Petersen/ White Lightning Announces Stanton as Third for Petit Le Mans

Petersen/ White Lightning Announces Stanton as Third for Petit Le Mans 

 

LAS VEGAS, Nev., September 15, 2005 – Petersen Motorsports/ White Lightning
Racing didn’t have to look very far when they began the search for the third
driver to race the No. 31 Westward Ho Casino/ MMPIE/ PAWS/ Michelin Porsche
911 GT3 RSR at the upcoming Petit Le Mans. The GT2 class winning team at the
2005 Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring— the only American Le Mans Series
(ALMS) endurance race held thus far this season— has called on 2003 and 2004
team driver Craig Stanton (Long Beach, Calif.) as its third pilot. Stanton,
who raced to a podium-finish in the 10 hour or 1,000 mile event last year
for the Michael Petersen-owned team, will join regular team drivers Jörg
Bergmeister (Langenfeld, Germany) and Patrick Long (Las Vegas, Nev.) for his
fifth Petit Le Mans appearance. Braselton, Georgia’s Road Atlanta will play
host to the race, round nine of ten in the ALMS season, on October 1.

 

Renowned for his physical fitness and speed, Stanton was a natural fit as
Petersen and White looked for a third driver to complement Bergmeister and
Long. One of the Stanton’s greatest attributes is his ability to work for
the best of the team. That will be key as the No. 31 enters the last two
events in a nip-and-tuck battle for their first GT2 team championship.
Bergmeister and Long currently lead the GT2 driver championship, 12 points
ahead of second-place. The Dale White-managed team, which has won the two
most recent ALMS races in the class, has a two marker lead in the team
championship while also holding the top-spot in the IMSA Cup chase— awarded
to the highest finishing privateer entrant— by 44. Working to keep the
natural balance of the team, Petersen and White anticipate the addition of
Stanton— whose laidback-style off the track masks his aggressive on-track
persona— will go smoothly due to his knowledge and comfort with the internal
operation of the team. The trio of drivers has never competed on the same
team together but each holds mutual admiration having raced against
one-another for several years. The pairing of Bergmeister and Long dates
back to the team’s second 24 Hours of Le Mans victory in 2004 and includes
four race victories and nine podium finishes in ten races.

 

Stanton raced for the Las Vegas-based organization for two seasons earning
both his and the team’s first ALMS class victory at Road America in 2003. In
all, Stanton, the 2004 runner-up in the prestigious Porsche Cup competition,
earned nine podium finishes in his 15 races in the No. 31 Porsche including
a third at the Petit Le Mans last season. The native-Californian currently
leads the GT point standings in the Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series
driving a Porsche 911 GT3. Petit Le Mans will mark his first ALMS start of
the season.

 

The Petit Le Mans can be seen live on SPEED, Saturday, October 1st at 11 AM
(EDT). Live timing and scoring for all sessions as well as the Petersen
Paddock Cam presented by Firetide can be viewed at
<http://www.americanlemans.com/> www.AmericanLeMans.com. 


 

Quotes…

Mike Petersen, owner/ driver: “We’re excited to have Craig back as he knows
how this team operates. He’s going to be a good complement to Jörg and Pat.
We’re definitely not there to go on cruise control. This race has bonus
points and that is what we are shooting for. It’s a great opportunity for
Craig and we’re excited to have him back and look forward to our chances
there. It should be a very, very competitive ten hour race.”

 

Dale White, team manager: “This may have been the easiest decision I’ve ever
made in racing. Mike and I discussed who we wanted in the car first. Then we
went to Stefan [Pfeiffer, crew chief]. Then we spoke to the team about it.
The first name out of everyone’s mouth was Craig’s. Craig is a major part of
the growth of Petersen/ White Lightning that has put us where we are right
now. It is a perfect opportunity to pay back a little bit of that. But, in
the end, it was a decision based on what we needed, not emotion. We had the
choice of a lot of drivers but Craig fits exactly what we need to go for a
win at Petit. We needed a driver that was fast, wouldn’t make mistakes, that
could race with anyone and bring the car home in one piece. Most
importantly, we wanted someone that could fit into our team. Craig is a team
player. We know he won’t come in and disrupt the balance that we have here.
He’ll contribute to the overall success of this program just as he always
has. Everybody on the team is really excited about having Craig racing with
us at Petit. He is exactly the piece to the puzzle that we needed.”

 

Craig Stanton, driver: “I am ecstatic that Dale and Mike called me and
wanted me to be the third driver for Petersen Motorsports/ White Lightning
Racing at Petit. It is quite an honor to be driving with Jörg and Patrick. I
want to do my part to help the team towards that championship. I’ll be able
to blend right back in with the team. The core guys that were there when I
was there are still there. It’s going to be an easy adjustment for me to
take a position back with the team. I’m also really excited about going back
to Atlanta in the top-end of development for a Porsche 911 again. Mike and
Dale and Stefan have been doing a great job all year guiding the team. They
have taken the team to a whole other level than when I was there. I’m
excited to be back driving a car they have prepared and being a part of this
winning operation again.”

 

 

More on Petersen Motorsports/ White Lightning Racing can be found at
<http://www.petersenmotorsports.com/> www.PetersenMotorsports.com. 

Learn more about Porsche at  <http://www.porsche.com/> www.Porsche.com. 

Additional information on Craig Stanton can be viewed at
<http://www.craigstanton.com/> www.CraigStanton.com. 

 

### 

Digital images and complete team and driver bios available upon request.

Editors, please do not publish any contact information other than web sites.
Thank you.

 

contact: Tom Moore, Petersen Motorsports/ White Lightning Racing, 

615-778-1614 (office), 615-509-5000 (cell),  
tom@darkhorsecom.com