ALMS: BMW M3s Third, Fourth and Sixth After First Qualifying at Sebring
Posted By Terry CallahanMotorsports Editor, The Auto Channel
March 16, 2001
After two days of testing, today's qualifying round for the 49th annual 12 Hours at Sebring finds the BMW M3s third, fourth and sixth on the provisional GT grid. Bill Auberlen put the No. 10 PTG M3 third on the grid with a time of 2.08:392. Boris Said, in the No. 6 PTG M3, recorded a 2.08:422 around the 3.7-mile circuit for the fourth quickest time. Last season's ALMS GT champion Dirk Muller qualified the No. 43 BMW Motorsport M3 sixth on the grid with a time of 2.08:612. A throttle cable problem spoiled the run of the new No. 42 BMW Motorsport M3 GTR and the car did not set a time.
Bill Auberlen, driver #10 BMW M3
"Every lap I was in traffic. I came in and we bled down the pressure in the Yokohamas and made an adjustment to the rear wing. It came down to one lap at the end of the session and that moved us from seventh to third. We've been one of the quickest all week and we got back there."
Boris Said, driver #6 BMW M3
"The track is slower today in the heat, but we've been working on the M3 all week and that's the best the car has been. We tried a lot of things that we could then rule out and went back to things we knew worked - and they worked. I think we have a good race car."
Tom Milner, owner BMW Team PTG
"I'm happy with our positions. We are where we should be and will now focus on the race."
BMW M3 GTR Introduction
Another significant event on the BMW/Sebring timeline occurred today with the introduction of the new, 4.0-liter V8 powered, BMW M3 GTR race car. A late afternoon presentation, hosted by both BMW Motorsport and BMW Team PTG, saw the new M3 GTR displayed next to a 2001 Titanium Silver production model M3. Richard Brekus, Product Planning and Strategy Manager for BMW of North America, reviewed the company's motorsports marketing position in the US and Albert Biermann, Program Manager for the M3 GTR, gave a technical overview of the GTR.
Text provided by Bill Cobb
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