Corvette Racing vs. Aston Martin Racing

[gaijin]

TITAN RIVALS CONTEST GT1 CHAMPIONSHIP

Braselton, Ga. — It's no surprise that the biggest auto manufacturer rivalry in the American Le Mans Series has produced one of the tightest championship races in Series history. Just past the halfway point in the 2006 season, Corvette Racing and Aston Martin Racing have each stood toe-to-toe in the battle for GT1 supremacy.

The Chevrolet contingent represented the American sports car icon by claiming two of the three GT1 podium spots at three of the Series events (Houston, Mid-Ohio and Portland), while the Brits answered as the Union Jack presided over two thirds of the other three Series victory stands (Sebring, Lime Rock and Salt Lake City). To date, Corvette Racing has posted four wins to Aston Martin Racing's two.

"The competition is very tight, and when you have two top teams racing each other, it's fantastic," said Corvette Racing driver Olivier Beretta. "It's a great thing for the fans, media, television and the Series, but it makes life difficult for everyone involved with the two teams."

Among the championship standings, GT1 features the closest automobile manufacturer race and the second-closest races for the driver, team and tire manufacturer championships.

In both the team championship and automobile manufacturer championship standings, Corvette Racing and Chevrolet reside in first place with 115 points while Aston Martin Racing and Aston Martin occupy second place with 104 points. Within the driver championship race, Corvette Racing's Beretta and Oliver Gavin have posted a GT1-leading total of 106 points each. Behind them are Aston Martin's duo of Tomas Enge and Darren Turner, the Utah Grand Prix champions who both have 94 points. Rounding out the other drivers still alive in the championship race are Corvette's Ron Fellows and Johnny O'Connell (both with 90 points) and Aston Martin's Stephane Sarrazin (88 points) and Pedro Lamy (72 points), who teamed for the win at the New England Grand Prix.

Given that as much as 89 possible total points remain through the final four races (20 each for Road America and Mosport, 26 for Petit Le Mans and 23 for Laguna Seca), the championship may not be decided before the season finale.

"It's still pretty close," said Turner, who won the GT1 pole at the New England Grand Prix. "We've got four races to go, and everything is up in the air."

Beretta and Gavin set the initial pace by winning four of the first six races; however, following victories at Sebring, Houston and Mid-Ohio, Beretta and Gavin had a pair of disappointing fourth-place finishes before they reclaimed the victory stand at the Portland Grand Prix.

"The last race was very important for us," commented Beretta, who clocked the fastest GT1 race lap at both the Portland Grand Prix (101.789 mph) and the New England Grand Prix (107.377 mph). "To snatch back a victory at Portland was very significant."

Although Aston Martin Racing is 11 points behind in the team standings, it has had the fastest GT1 qualifier in four of the six races as well as the fastest GT1 lap in three of the six races. Furthermore, Aston Martin's showing at the Utah Grand Prix was the first 1-2 GT1 finish by a marque other than Chevrolet since Ferrari pulled off the feat during the final two races in 2003.

"We're still behind Corvette on the pace, so we've got to work harder on strategy and do the best we can," Turner said. "Unfortunately, I can't win the driver's championship because I'm going to miss Mosport, so my goal is to help Tomas become the champion and try to get the team on top too."

"They are a first-class team, as are we," added Beretta. "They are pushing us hard in the race for the championship, and if we can have a strong battle to the end, that will be very sweet."




American Le Mans Series
GT1 Points Standings Leaders
(through six rounds)

Drivers Championship Standings
Olivier Beretta 106 points

Oliver Gavin 106 points

Tomas Enge 94 points

Darren Turner 94 points

Ron Fellows 90 points

Johnny O'Connell 90 points

Stephane Sarrazin 88 points

Pedro Lamy 72 points

Team Championship Standings
Corvette Racing 115 points

Aston Martin Racing 104 points

Auto Manufacturer Championship Standings
Chevrolet 115 points

Aston Martin 104 points

Tire Manufacturer Championship Standings
Michelin 115 points

Pirelli 104 points