ALMS: PTG BMW M3s Qualify Fifth and Eighth on Texas GT Grid

Posted By Terry Callahan
Motorsports Editor, The Auto Channel

In a 20-minute session, marked by damp and drying track conditions, BMW Team PTG qualified fifth and eighth for Sunday's 2-hour-and-45-minute Leather Center Grand Prix of Texas. In a tough GT class, that saw the top 10 cars separated by only 3.2 seconds, Bill Auberlen qualified fifth fastest in the number 10 BMW M3 with a time of one minute, 27.064 seconds (96.095 mph). Boris Said was eighth in the number 6 M3 (1:28.300, 94.750 mph).

Bill Auberlen, driver #10 BMW M3

"We qualified on the hardest compound we have. I saw the other cars start out fast and come back. We started out slow and kept chipping away. A little bit of heat in the track tomorrow and we will be looking good"

Boris Said, driver #6 BMW M3

"Track conditions were tough. It was slippery off-line and hard to put a good lap together. The M3 is better than my time."

Tom Milner, team owner BMW Team PTG

"We went with a harder tire compound -- one we know we can race with -- a tire that will be the same from the beginning to the end. We are fine, we are better racers than qualifiers."

HANS Stuck

Hans Stuck will be wearing the HANS (Head And Neck Safety) device for the first time this weekend. "I bought it after Rolex 24 this year and have had a new helmet modified and painted. It is a safety device that makes sense - it should be used by all drivers."

Retailers and club members

BMW of North America, LLC invited all of the local Dallas/Ft. Worth and Houston BMW centers, as well as the Lone Star chapter of the BMW Car Club of America, to enjoy the event this weekend. Plans include a paddock tour to see the PTG M3s up close and a Titanium Silver 2001 M3 production car. Club members were able to take their BMWs out on the circuit for two laps to get a taste of what the race car drivers experience.

Text Provided By Bill Cobb

Editors Note: To view hundreds of hot racing photos and art, visit The Racing Photo Museum and the Visions of Speed Art Gallery.