Terry Borcheller - Le Mans race / Watkins Glen preview

Le Mans wrap

Terry  Borcheller completed his third 24 Heures du Mans on June 14/15, 
although the team didn't finish as high as hoped.  The Phoenix driver shared driving 
duty with Ralf Kelleners of Germany and Anthony Lazzaro of Acworth, Ga., in 
the No. 94 Risi Competizione Ferrari Modena 360 GT.

Borcheller arrived at Le Mans just in time for technical scrutineering and 
the accompanying ceremonies.  He wasn't able to participate in the advance test 
in May, so he was pleased with his ability to get up to speed quickly during 
two night practices.

The team qualified fifth and finished ninth in the GT class, after a two-hour 
delay to identify and repair an electrical problem.  Borcheller was fastest 
in the Risi Ferrari through the first 18 hours of the 24-hour race, with a lap 
time of four minutes 14.7 seconds on the 13.65-km circuit.

"To be involved with Risi and drive a Ferrari at Le Mans, with the drivers I 
was with, was a great experience," he said.  "The preparation of the team and 
the hard work of everyone was evident.  The problem we had was beyond our 
control, but they were able to find it and get it fixed.  They had the whole back 
end off the car and thrashed to get it done, but the car never skipped a beat 
after it was fixed.  That's incredible!"
 
on to The Glen

Borcheller returns to the Rolex Sports Car Series this week, driving the No. 
54 Bell Motorsports Doran JE4 with Forest Barber of Fort Worth, Tex., and 
Belgian Didier Theys.  The three hope to combine for victory in the Six Hours of 
the Glen endurance race on the 3.4-mile Watkins Glen International road course 
in Watkins Glen, N.Y.

"In a six-hour race, you're on the gas the whole time, but at the same time 
you can't make mistakes or be in the pits," Borcheller noted.  "As long as you 
keep the momentum, keep mistakes to a minimum and keep the pace, you're okay.  
We feel the team has the car reliable and we have a really strong driver 
lineup."

Borcheller and Barber will also drive the No. 54 Bell Motorsports BMW M3 in 
the Grand-Am Cup GS race at Watkins Glen.  With a win at California Speedway 
two weeks ago, they're looking for a repeat for Borcheller's sponsors K&N 
Performance Filters, Infinity2 Nutrition, Dark Dog, Alpinestars, Bell Helmets, Bob 
Bondurant School of High Performance Driving, Gatorz Eyewear and Goodyear.

"Coming off the win at Fontana, we've got a lot of momentum," Borcheller 
said.  "There are 22 GSII cars in the race, but we're looking to have a good 
finish.  It's a good track for the car when you're alone, but when you get into 
traffic in the race it's difficult because you lose the momentum and it takes 
longer to get back up to speed."

details

The Grand-Am Cup GS race is scheduled for Saturday, June 21 from 2:45 pm to 
5:45 pm and the Rolex Sports Car Series race is set for 10:30 am to 4:30 pm on 
Sunday, June 22, both at Watkins Glen International in New York.  The Rolex 
Series race will air at 2 pm on Sunday, June 22 and the Grand-Am Cup race will 
be telecast on July 5 at 4:30 pm, both on SPEED Channel.  all times ET