2015 Lone Star Le Mans

Map of the Circuit of the Americas - Grand Prix Circuit

The 2015 Lone Star Le Mans was a sports car race sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). The race was held at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, on September 19, 2015. The race was the eleventh round of the 2015 United SportsCar Championship.

Background

Circuit of the Americas (pictured in 2015), where the race was held.

Preview

International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) president Scott Atherton confirmed the race was part of the schedule for the 2015 IMSA Tudor United SportsCar Championship (IMSA TUSC) in August 2014. ^[1] It was the second consecutive year the event was held as part of the United SportsCar Championship. The 2015 Lone Star Le Mans was the eleventh of twelve scheduled sports car races of 2015 by IMSA, and was the eighth round not held as part of the North American Endurance Cup. ^[2] The race was held at the twenty-turn 3.426 mi (5.514 km) Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas on September 19, 2015. ^[2]

Entry list

Thirty-eight cars were officially entered for the Lone Star Le Mans. Action Express Racing (AER) fielded two Chevrolet Corvette DP cars while VisitFlorida Racing (VFR) and Wayne Taylor Racing (WTR) fielded one. Chip Ganassi Racing (CGR) entered one Ford-powered Riley MkXXVI. Mazda Motorsports had two Lola B12/80 cars and Michael Shank Racing (MSR) entered one Ligier JS P2 chasis with Honda HR28TT twin-turbocharged 2.8-liter V6 engine. ^{[3] [4]} They were joined by DeltaWing. The Prototype Challenge (PC) class was composed of Nine Oreca FLM09 cars: two from BAR1 Motorsports and two from Starworks Motorsport. CORE Autosport, JDC-Miller MotorSports, Performance Tech, PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports, and RSR Racing entered one car each. ^[3] GTLM was represented by eight entries from four different brands. In the list of GTD entrants, twelve GT-specification vehicles were represented by six different manufacturers. The No. 45 Flying Lizard Motorsports Audi R8 LMS ultra was reinstated to the Tudor United SportsCar Championship after making its first appearance since the Laguna Seca round. ^[5] Lone Star Racing made their series debut. ^[6]

Qualifying

Friday afternoon's 90-minute four-group qualifying session gave 15-minute sessions to all categories. Cars in GTD were sent out first before those grouped in GTLM, PC, and Prototype had three separate identically timed sessions. Regulations stipulated teams to nominate one qualifying driver, with the fastest laps determining each classes starting order. IMSA would arranged the grid to put all Prototypes ahead of the PC, GTLM, and GTD cars. ^[7]

Qualifying results

Pole positions in each class are indicated in bold and by ‡. P stands for Prototype, PC (Prototype Challenge), GTLM (Grand Touring Le Mans) and GTD (Grand Touring Daytona).

Pos.	Class	No.	Team	Driver	Time	Gap	Grid
1	P	01	Chip Ganassi Racing	Scott Pruett	1:58.441	_	1‡
2	P	60	Michael Shank Racing with Curb/Agajanian	Oswaldo Negri Jr.	1:58.512	+0.071	2
3	P	5	Action Express Racing	Christian Fittipaldi	1:59.008	+0.567	3
4	P	10	Wayne Taylor Racing	Jordan Taylor	1:59.033	+0.592	4
5	P	31	Action Express Racing	Eric Curran	2:00.011	+1.570	5
6	P	90	VisitFlorida.com Racing	Michael Valiante	2:00.111	+1.670	6
7	P	0	DeltaWing Racing Cars with Claro/TracFone	Memo Rojas	2:01.570	+3.129	7
8	PC	11	RSR Racing	Chris Cumming	2:02.222	+3.781	8‡
9	PC	85	JDC-Miller MotorSports	Matt McMurry	2:02.697	+4.256	9
10	P	70	SpeedSource	Tristan Nunez	2:02.779	+4.338	10
11	P	07	SpeedSource	Tom Long	2:03.484	+5.043	11
12	PC	38	Performance Tech Motorsports	James French	2:03.586	+5.145	12
13	PC	54	CORE Autosport	Jon Bennett	2:03.697	+5.256	13
14	PC	8	Starworks Motorsport	Mike Hedlund	2:04.009	+5.568	14
15	GTLM	911	Porsche North America	Patrick Pilet	2:04.396	+5.955	17‡
16	PC	52	PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports	Mike Guasch	2:04.432	+5.991	15
17	GTLM	25	BMW Team RLL	Dirk Werner	2:04.490	+6.049	18
18	GTLM	912	Porsche North America	Earl Bamber	2:04.625	+6.184	19
19	GTLM	3	Corvette Racing	Antonio García	2:04.651	+6.210	20
20	GTLM	17	Team Falken Tire	Wolf Henzler	2:04.813	+6.372	21
21	GTLM	24	BMW Team RLL	John Edwards	2:04.968	+6.527	22
22	GTLM	4	Corvette Racing	Tommy Milner	2:05.245	+6.804	23
23	GTLM	62	Risi Competizione	Giancarlo Fisichella	2:05.996	+7.555	24
24	PC	61	BAR1 Motorsports	Don Yount	2:08.350	+9.909	16
25	GTD	48	Paul Miller Racing	Dion von Moltke	2:11.097	+12.656	25‡
26	GTD	33	Riley Motorsports	Ben Keating	2:11.658	+13.217	26
27	GTD	63	Scuderia Corsa	Bill Sweedler	2:11.729	+13.288	27
28	GTD	007	TRG-AMR North America	Christina Nielsen	2:11.761	+13.320	28
29	GTD	73	Park Place Motorsports	Patrick Lindsey	2:12.213	+13.772	29
30	GTD	44	Magnus Racing	John Potter	2:12.478	+14.037	30
31	GTD	80	Lone Star Racing	Dan Knox	2:12.835	+14.394	31
32	GTD	23	Team Seattle / Alex Job Racing	Ian James	2:12.935	+14.494	32
33	GTD	97	Turner Motorsport	Michael Marsal	2:13.054	+14.613	33
34	GTD	22	Alex Job Racing	Cooper MacNeil	2:13.126	+14.685	34
35	GTD	45	Flying Lizard Motorsports	Mike Vess	2:16.353	+17.912	35
36	GTD	76	Compass360 Racing	Ray Mason	2:16.518	+18.077	36
37	PC	16	BAR1 Motorsports	No Time Established			37
38	PC	88	Starworks Motorsport	No Time Established			38
Sources: [8] [9]

Race

Race results

Class winners are denoted in bold and ‡. P stands for Prototype, PC (Prototype Challenge), GTLM (Grand Touring Le Mans) and GTD (Grand Touring Daytona).

Final race classification Pos Class No. Team Drivers Chassis Tire Laps Time/Retired Engine 1 P 01 Chip Ganassi Racing Joey Hand Scott Pruett Ford EcoBoost Riley DP C 73 2:41:07.039‡ Ford EcoBoost 3.5 L V6 Turbo 2 P 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Jordan Taylor Ricky Taylor Corvette Daytona Prototype C 73 +16.910 Chevrolet 5.5 L V8 3 P 90 VisitFlorida.com Racing Richard Westbrook Michael Valiante Corvette Daytona Prototype C 73 +44.212 Chevrolet 5.5 L V8 4 P 60 Michael Shank Racing with Curb/Agajanian John Pew Oswaldo Negri Jr. Ligier JS P2 C 73 +44.575 Honda HR28TT 2.8 L V6 Turbo 5 P 31 Action Express Racing Eric Curran Dane Cameron Corvette Daytona Prototype C 73 +1:06.753 Chevrolet 5.5 L V8 6 PC 54 CORE Autosport Jon Bennett Colin Braun Oreca FLM09 C 73 +1:28.158‡ Chevrolet 6.2 L V8 7 PC 11 RSR Racing Chris Cumming Bruno Junqueira Oreca FLM09 C 73 +1:53.822 Chevrolet 6.2 L V8 8 PC 38 Performance Tech Motorsports Conor Daly James French Oreca FLM09 C 73 +1:57.517 Chevrolet 6.2 L V8 9 PC 52 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports Mike Guasch Tom Kimber-Smith Oreca FLM09 C 73 +1:58.239 Chevrolet 6.2 L V8 10 P 5 Action Express Racing João Barbosa Christian Fittipaldi Corvette Daytona Prototype C 72 +1 lap Chevrolet 5.5 L V8 11 P 0 DeltaWing Racing Cars with Claro/TracFone Memo Rojas Katherine Legge DeltaWing DWC13 C 72 +1 lap Élan (Mazda) 1.9 L I4 Turbo 12 GTLM 25 BMW Team RLL Bill Auberlen Dirk Werner BMW Z4 GTE M 72 +1 lap‡ BMW 4.4 L V8 13 GTLM 62 Risi Competizione Pierre Kaffer Giancarlo Fisichella Ferrari 458 Italia GT2 M 72 +1 lap Ferrari 4.5 L V8 14 PC 85 JDC-Miller MotorSports Misha Goikhberg Matt McMurry Oreca FLM09 C 72 +1 lap Chevrolet 6.2 L V8 15 GTLM 911 Porsche North America Patrick Pilet Nick Tandy Porsche 911 RSR M 72 +1 lap Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6 16 GTLM 17 Team Falken Tire Bryan Sellers Wolf Henzler Porsche 911 RSR F 72 +1 lap Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6 17 GTLM 912 Porsche North America Earl Bamber Jörg Bergmeister Porsche 911 RSR M 72 +1 lap Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6 18 GTLM 3 Corvette Racing Antonio García Jan Magnussen Chevrolet Corvette C7.R M 72 +1 lap Chevrolet LT5.5 5.5 L V8 19 GTLM 24 BMW Team RLL John Edwards Lucas Luhr BMW Z4 GTE M 72 +1 lap BMW 4.4 L V8 20 GTLM 4 Corvette Racing Oliver Gavin Tommy Milner Chevrolet Corvette C7.R M 72 +1 lap Chevrolet LT5.5 5.5 L V8 21 DNF PC 8 Starworks Motorsport Mike Hedlund Renger van der Zande Oreca FLM09 C 70 Suspension Chevrolet 6.2 L V8 22 GTD 33 Riley Motorsports Jeroen Bleekemolen Ben Keating Dodge Viper GT3-R C 69 +4 Laps‡ Dodge 8.3 L V10 23 GTD 97 Turner Motorsport Michael Marsal Markus Palttala BMW Z4 GT3 C 69 +4 Laps BMW 4.4 L V8 24 GTD 48 Paul Miller Racing Christopher Haase Dion von Moltke Audi R8 LMS ultra C 69 +4 Laps Audi 5.2 L V10 25 GTD 23 Team Seattle / Alex Job Racing Mario Farnbacher Ian James Porsche 911 GT America C 69 +4 Laps Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6 26 GTD 73 Park Place Motorsports Patrick Lindsey Spencer Pumpelly Porsche 911 GT America C 69 +4 Laps Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6 27 GTD 63 Scuderia Corsa Bill Sweedler Townsend Bell Ferrari 458 Italia GT3 C 69 +4 Laps Ferrari 4.5 L V8 28 GTD 80 Lone Star Racing Marc Goossens Dan Knox Dodge Viper GT3-R C 69 +4 Laps Dodge 8.3 L V10 29 GTD 007 TRG-AMR North America Christina Nielsen Kuno Wittmer Aston Martin V12 Vantage GT3 C 69 +4 Laps Aston Martin 6.0 L V12 30 GTD 22 Alex Job Racing Leh Keen Cooper MacNeil Porsche 911 GT America C 68 +5 Laps Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6 31 GTD 76 Compass360 Racing Pierre Kleinubing Ray Mason Audi R8 LMS ultra C 68 +5 Laps Audi 5.2 L V10 32 GTD 45 Flying Lizard Motorsports Jason Hart Mike Vess Audi R8 LMS ultra C 66 +7 Laps Audi 5.2 L V10 33 DNF P 70 SpeedSource Jonathan Bomarito Tristan Nunez Mazda Prototype C 65 Belt Mazda Skyactiv-D 2.2 L Turbo I4 (Diesel) 34 GTD 44 Magnus Racing John Potter Andy Lally Porsche 911 GT America C 46 +27 Laps Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6 35 DNF PC 61 BAR1 Motorsports Ryan Lewis Don Yount Oreca FLM09 C 33 Accident Chevrolet 6.2 L V8 36 DNF P 07 SpeedSource Tom Long Joel Miller Mazda Prototype C 23 Belt Mazda Skyactiv-D 2.2 L Turbo I4 (Diesel) 37 DNS PC 16 BAR1 Motorsports John Falb Todd Slusher Oreca FLM09 C -- Did Not Start Chevrolet 6.2 L V8 38 DNS PC 88 Starworks Motorsport Alex Popow Sean Rayhall Oreca FLM09 C -- Did Not Start Chevrolet 6.2 L V8 Sources: [10] [11]

Tyre manufacturers Key Symbol Tyre manufacturer C Continental M Michelin F Falken Tire

References

1. Dagys, John (August 10, 2014). "2015 TUSC, CTSC Schedules Released". Sportscar365.com. John Dagys Media, LLC. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
2. Pruett, Marshall (August 10, 2014). "IMSA: 2015 TUDOR Championship schedule revealed". Racer. Archived from the original on March 23, 2015. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
3. DiZinno, Tony (September 9, 2015). "38 Cars on COTA TUSC Entry List". Sportscar365.com. John Dagys Media, LLC. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
4. Dagys, John (September 15, 2015). "Mazda Returns to Two-Car Diesel Prototype Effort for COTA". Sportscar365.com. John Dagys Media, LLC. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
5. "Vess, Hart to Drive Flying Lizard Audi at COTA". Sportscar365.com. John Dagys Media, LLC. September 8, 2015. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
6. Dagys, John (September 9, 2015). "Lone Star Viper to Debut at COTA; Goossens Named Driver". Sportscar365.com. John Dagys Media, LLC. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
7. Dagys, John (September 16, 2015). "Continental Tire Keys to the Race: COTA". Sportscar365.com. John Dagys Media, LLC. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
8. "Qualifying" (PDF). IMSA. September 18, 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 22, 2015. Retrieved November 5, 2024.
9. "United SportsCar Championship Austin 2015 Grid Positions". Racing Sports Cars. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
10. "Unofficial Race Report" (PDF). IMSA. September 19, 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 20, 2021. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
11. "2015 Lone Star Le Mans". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved November 8, 2024.

External links

United SportsCar Championship
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