Amesbury, MA. June 11th, 2012 --Bill Auberlen and Paul Dalla Lana drove the No. 94 Turner Motorsport BMW M3 to the GT class victory in Saturdays Rolex Sports Car Series EMCO Gears Classic. It was the first win for the duo this season and their fifth top five finish in a row. This victory comes in the middle of a very busy month that will see four GT races at Detroit, Mid-Ohio, Road America and Watkins Glen.
Dalla Lana started the 2.75-hour race from the eighth starting spot and drove a fine first stint to move up and hand the M3 off to Auberlen in perfect shape. Auberlen, who missed last years Rolex race at Mid-Ohio due to a conflict, continued to move up through the field. Within an hour the Californian was at the front of the 17-car field. Surrendering the lead during the final round of pit stops he rejoined the race in tenth, but regained the point with 45 minutes remaining. A late race caution erased the eight second cushion he had built up, but he held off the No. 69 Ferrari of Jeff Segal to win by .952 seconds at the checkered flag.
Dalla Lana, last seasons Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Grand Sport drivers champion, and the veteran Auberlen had put together a string of fifth place finishes in their last three races together, but a recent test at Watkins Glen left the team hopefully confident for a better result at Mid-Ohio. The speed found at that test, fantastic race strategy and spot on pit stops added up for to the first victory of the season for the team.
In Saturdays opening race, Michael Marsal and Boris Said finished 11th in the No. 97 BMW M3 in the 2.5-hour Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge contest. Auberlen and Dalla Lana suffered an oil pump failure in the No. 96 BMW M3 and did not finish.
Something about Mid-Ohio likes us and we like something about this track, said Will Turner. I cant put my finger on it, but Turner Motorsport, BMW and Mid-Ohio make a great combination. Coming into this race I was confident we could have a good finish, but a win though not out of the question seemed a bit of a reach. This is a very competitive class and we are delighted to race a BMW to the top of the podium as they celebrate 40 years of BMW ///M.
The CTSCC race will be televised on SPEED television on June 17 at 12:00 p.m. ET. The EMCO Gears Classic rebroadcast can be found on Grand-Am.com.
The next rounds of the 2012 Grand-Am season will be held at Road America, in Elkhart Lake, Wis., on June 23.
Images
More photos can be found HERE
About Turner Motorsport
Turner Motorsport is the leading BMW tuner in North America, bringing technology and expertise from the racetrack to the street for over two decades. Since 1993 the Turner Motorsport Team has competed in over 240 professional races, winning six professional racing championships in three different series since 2003. The most recent being the 2011 Continental Sports Car Challenge. Their success is passed into every component that Turner Motorsport designs and sells through their comprehensive website and performance showroom. Our race team, R&D engineers and Sales team work together, ensuring practical knowledge and state-of-the-art engineering flow in both directions. Few companies in North America can claim such a close relationship to what they sell and what they race.
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2012 ROLEX SERIES SCHEDULE
| Television coverage by |
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LIVE! Road America June 23rd @ 12:00pm ET | Road America, Elkhart Lake, WI
LIVE! Sahlens Six Hours of The Glen July 1st @ 11:00am ET | Watkins Glen International, Watkins Glen. NY
LIVE! Super Weekend at the Brickyard July 27th @ 4:30pm ET | Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Indianapolis, IN
LIVE! Watkins Glen International Short Course August 11th @ 6:00 ET | Watkins Glen International, Watkins Glen. NY
LIVE! Circuit Gilles Villenueve August 18th @ 7:00pm ET | Circuit Gilles Villenueve, Montreal, Quebec
LIVE! Continental Tire Sports Car Festival September 9th @ 3:00pm ET | Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, Salinas, CA
LIVE! Lime Rock Park September 29th @ 3:00pm ET | Limerock Park, Lakeville, CT
Links
TurnerMotorsport.com - Parts, Performance & Service Parts for BMWs
H&R Springs - Premium Quality Suspension Components
StopTech Brakes - Experts in High Performance Brakes
Recaro -The best in high quality automotive seats.
MOTUL Lubricants - Race-proven Oil and Lubrication Products
Borla Exhaust - The World's Most Winning Exhaust
Intercity Lines - America's Premier Enclosed Automotive Transport
Escort - Radar Detectors & Laser Detectors
Spy Optic - Sunglasses, Snow and MX Goggles
Grand-Am Road Racing Homepage
