Marc Lieb Disappointed with Le Mans Results

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Marc Lieb Disappointed with Le Mans Result - Ready for Mid-Ohio

Sylvia Proudfoot 6-17-2004

Marc Lieb was ready for victory in his second 24 Heures du Mans, but success proved elusive. After finishing second in the GT class in 2003, Lieb, of Leipzig, Germany, and his co-drivers Leo Hindery of New York and Mike Rockenfeller of Neuwied, Germany were favored for a podium finish in the No. 87 YES Network Porsche 911 GT3 RSR. Instead, a mechanical failure took them out of contention.

Lieb started third on the GT grid, based on Rockenfeller's qualifying time of four minutes 9.079 seconds on the 13.65-km circuit. He moved up one position when the second-place Ferrari pitted before the start of the race, and the team held second in class through Lieb's and Rockenfeller's first stints. Hindery had a good start to his first stint, but slid off course in slippery conditions and dropped to sixth place.

Lieb and Rockenfeller each drove a triple stint through the night, double-stinting the team's Michelin tires. They worked their way to fourth in class and Hindery held the position through his second stint. Lieb followed and charged to second in class, but was sidelined when the car's transmission failed 16.5 hours into the 24-hour race.

"At the end, it was a really big disappointment," he said. "We were running really well and I'm very proud of the team and Mike - he did a fantastic job. We showed that we were really a great team together. Racing sometimes is really difficult and today is a difficult day, but I think we all showed that we are up there and that we could have won this race."

Lieb's next race will be with the American Le Mans Series at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio on June 27.