Rolex 24: Michelin continues to lead in GTO and GTU categories at Daytona
6 February 2000
Posted By Terry
Callahan
Motorsports Editor, The Auto Channel
(Daytona Beach, Fla.) - The Michelin-shod Dodge Vipers
continue to show
their strength in GTO competition, running first, second and third in
class
(second, third and fourth overall) in the Rolex 24 at Daytona. At the
nine-hour mark, the #93 Viper of David Donohue, Jean-Phillippe Belloc and
Ni
Amorim led teammates Olivier Beretta, Karl Wendlinger and Dominique Dupuy
in
the #91 Viper and Tommy Archer, Marc Duez and Vincent Vosse in the #91
Viper. All three Vipers were leading rival Corvette."We're very pleased with the performance of the Michelin Pilot radials so far," said Herb Johnson, Director of Motorsports, Michelin North America. "We're getting excellent reports from the Viper drivers that the tires are performing flawlessly. We have full confidence in the tires and hope that they will be an advantage for the Viper."
Michelin Dominating GTU Category
Michelin-shod Porsches continue to dominate GTU competition. Patrick Huisman, Uwe Alzen, Duncan Huisman and Darren Law have led nearly the entire GTU event. Lucas Luhr, Dirk Muller and Bob Wollek moved up to second after the Alex Job Racing Porsche driven by Mike Conte, Bruno Lambert and Randy Pobst was forced to the pits with a water leak just after 9:00 p.m. The team is attempting to repair the problem.
Newman Sidelined
The Michelin Porsche driven by actor Paul Newman, 17-year-old Gunnar Jeannette, Michael Laver and Michael Brockman retired in the eighth hour with mechanical problems.
Doran/Lista Ferrari Withdraws
After being unable to cure a fuel system problem that arose in the fourth hour, the Doran/Lista team withdrew its Michelin-shod Ferrari at 7:15 p.m. The team led for must of the first four hours. "It was the most perfect car I have ever driven," said Ross Bentley, who was driving at the time the problem arose. "I was having too much fun...guess that was the problem."
Text Provided by Chris Kuechenmeister
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