Lime Rock Practice and Qualifying July 11

4:20 pm - Based on the qualifying times, we will start fourth (No.45), fifth (No. 46) and eighth (No. 44) on the GT2 grid. Joerg actually did a faster time, which would have put him in third, but that lap was not allowed by race control (said he shortcutted one of the turns).

4:18 pm - They have called Joerg in to the pits. So - looks like there will be no pole here for the Lizards.

4:17 pm - The No. 87 has just taken P1, pushing the No. 62 Risi Ferrari to P2. Joerg in the No. 45 is P3. he is trying for one more lap. The 11 car is in the run off at 1, but was able to continue.

4:14 pm - The No. 45 and No. 44 are in. Patrick is P3 in the No. 46 and Darren is P7 in the No. 44. Joerg is P4, but is going for another run at a better time. Starting position is always important but at a track like Lime Rock where there are so few passing opportunities, where you start on the grid could be critical. Race control said that Joerg took a shortcut at Turn 7 so they are not allowing that lap.

4:09 pm - Sorry that is Joerg in the No. 45 not Wolf. Timing and scoring is showing Wolf, but it's actually Joerg.

4:05 pm - Joerg is trading fast laps with the No. 87 Farnbacher Porsche. Patrick Pilet has now moved into P2 and No. 87 is now P1. Joerg is P3. No. 44 is P6.

4:03 pm - Joerg is P1 in the No. 45. Only about half of the GT2 field is on track so we'll have to see what happens over the session.

4:02 pm - We are a few minutes into the GT qualifying session. Joerg is in the No.45; Patrick in the No. 46 and Darren in the No. 44. All three cars went out immediately at the start of the session because there's a possibility of rain and they want to get their laps in before any precipitation. It's spitting a bit out there, but no substantial rain yet and the track remains dry.

Afternoon practice is complete and the cars are back in pit lane. We have a short 10 minute break until qualifying starts.

3:40 - No. 46 Lizard Porsche is in the tire wall but has continued. We'll know more about the damage once he is in the pit lane. He's in the pits now - damage appears superficial - to the right passenger side.

3:38 - The 007 Aston Martin is off in Turn 1 but apprears to be able to continue.

3:33 - The No. 62 Risi Ferrari went off into the dirt again, spraying a lot of dirt on to the track. The driver was able to continue, but pitted immediately to let the crew check the car over.

3:28 pm - No. 45 is P 2, No. 46 is P 3 and No. 44 is P 6. With all of the red flags, the drivers have not had many laps so far. let's hope the rain holds off so that we can at least have a clean qualifying session.

3:22 pm - The No. 62 Risi Ferrari went off course into the dit but continued. Looks like there is some debris on the track so red flag to remove it.

3:18 pm - Green flag, we are running again. The skies are starting to darken and the wind is coming up - may be some rain coming our way. The weather here at the base of the Berkshires is very changeable.

3:13 pm - The 007 Aston Martin slowed then stoped on course. Red flag to remove him.
right now, Wolf is in the No. 45 in P2; Johannes is P 5 in the No. 46 and Seth is P 8 in the No. 44. We have only 30 minutes left in the session. Qualifying follows the session - starting at 3:55 pm.

3:00 pm ET - Afternoon practice had just gotten underway when the No. 73 Tafel Ferrari went into the wall. they are pulling it out now. Don't have any info on the driver yet. So another red flag. Let's hope tihs is not indicative of how the race will go tomorrow. Johannes is in the No. 46, Wolf in the No. 45 and Seth in the No. 44.

11:43- Red flag - session is over. another big crash in the Chicane. Looks like the No. 008 GT1 Aston Martin hit the wall. Bad break for those guys since they have just repaired the car after a big crash at St. Pete kept them out of the next two races. Hopefully they'll be able to get it repaired and back on track for the race.
We are heading back to the garage for more prep before this afternoon's practice and qualifying. Afternoon practice starts at 2:45 pm ET.

11:40 am ET - Green flag but just four minutest left in the session. the No. 45 and is heading out for what should be three laps or so. The No. 46 and No. 44 are still in the pits. Looks like they are heading out now too.

11:34 am ET - Red flag - not sure of the reason - could be what we see on TV is that the concrete curbing has disintegrated on one section of the track in the uphill section near the chicane. We can see what looks like a bolt sticking out of the pavement - it will obviously need to be repaired.

11:32 - Wolf went into the run off at the chicane, but continued without incident.

11:22 - Wolf will be taking over in the No. 45, and Johannes in the No. 46. All three engineers are working quickly to make aggressive setup changes so that they can spend the afternoon session making refinements. Joerg commented on the track, "There's no grip on the track at all this morning. The changes on the track may improve some things but it will definitely make passing harder."

11:20 am - Darren pits in the No. 44 for driver change to Seth Neiman.
Joerg and Patrick are still out in the No. 45 and 46, respectively. 25 minutes remain in the session.

11:15 am - Darren had "a little spin" in the No. 44 but continued with no issues.


11:10 am ET - Green flag again on the session. Darren Law is in the No. 44, Joerg Bergmeister in the No. 45 and Patrick Pilet in the No. 46.

July 11 - 10:45 am ET - Good morning from Lime Rock Park in Connecticut. It's a beautiful day here at the circuit. We are out for our first run at the newly repaved and configured course. Unfortunately, just a few minutes into the session the No. 40 Duran Ford GTR went off track into the barrier and sustained significant damage. Driver appears to be fine, but it's been a substantial delay in the already short 1 hour practice session. Looks like race control will give us an extension, which means we have about 45 minutes left to go.

All three Lizard Porsches have their race engines in already - part of this session will be making sure that they are completely shaken down. Because of the new track, each driver is also having to effectively relearn the course. So far, now major issues for the cars but we've only done a few laps.