Pole and fastest race lap for Felbermayr

It was Richard Lietz's superb turn of speed which rewarded the Felbermayr-Proton team with LMGTE Pro pole position in the 6 Hours of Silverstone.  After two hours of racing, the Austrian driver had a firm hold on the class lead when the blue Porsche suddenly slowed on track, after which followed a plume of smoke: a failed shock absorber had wiped out all hopes of victory for the German team.   

The two factory drivers, Marc Lieb and Richard Leitz, crossed the finish line fourth in class, not without having locked up fastest race lap, no doubt helped by the latest developments from Weissach.  The team’s LMGTE Am entry had better luck, the trio of Christian Ried, driver and team owner, Paolo Ruberti and Gianluca Roda, finished on the third step of the podium.  The team is therefore third in the FIA World Endurance Championship classification, in both LMGTE Pro and LMGTE Am.   

Christian Ried, Team Manager and driver of the No.88 Porsche:  “It’s obviously a shame that Marc and Richard weren’t rewarded for their performance.  Richard set the fastest lap which proved that we could have won the race.  Our third place in LMGTE Am is some consolation for the amount of work the team put in over the weekend.”

Fiona Miller (quote from a team press release)

Photo: TOWCESTER (NORTHAMPTONSHIRE, GREAT BRITAIN), SILVERSTONE CIRCUIT, 6 HOURS OF SILVERSTONE, SUNDAY 26 AUGUST 2012, RACE.