Muscle Milk Pickett Racing Ready for another California battle

Muscle Milk Pickett Racing is returning next week to the scene of one of its most dominating races last season with the team traveling to Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca for the third round on the 2013 American Le Mans Series schedule.

After a not so satisfying start to the year in Sebring, the 2012 P1 Champions gained some momentum with their record-setting third win in a row on the streets of Long Beach a few weeks ago and are now looking forward to continuing where they left off last year at Laguna Seca.

During its 2012 visit to the 2.238-mile, 11-turn road course, the team, led by drivers Klaus Graf and Lucas Luhr, took the win in the six-hour event with a three lap lead on its closest on track rival.

While the team is confident its Michelin-clad, #6 Muscle Milk HPD ARX-03a will once again be a strong contender in what is now a four-hour event, it also knows that the competition will be more difficult this time around.

However, no matter the level of difficulty, the Muscle Milk squad is always up for the challenge. The Greg Pickett-led team will also have a little extra motivation to do well, as the California event is also the home event for its sponsor Muscle Milk whose headquarters are located about 100 miles away in Benicia, CA.

The team will be looking to come out of the weekend with the outright lead in the P1 Championship standings after tying with Rebellion Racing for first place following the previous round.

Of note:Lucas Luhr, who is currently tied with Olivier Beretta for most career ALMS wins with 42, is the driver with the most wins at Laguna Seca with six. The German also holds the record for multiple wins at 11 different venues.

It will be the sixth ALMS visit for the team to the Monterey area track. In addition to last season's win, they also have two second place finishes.

On track activities kick off Thursday, May 9 with the promoter test session, while official practice gets underway Friday morning with qualifying later that day. The four-hour American Le Mans Monterey race will go green at 3:30 pm PT Saturday, May 11.

Qualifying and the race will be streamed live on ESPN3.com with tape delayed coverage airing on ESPN2, Sunday, May 12 at 4:00 pm ET.

Muscle Milk Quotes Klaus Graf - driver #6 Muscle Milk HPD ARX-03a"Coming home is the motto for Laguna Seca as it is the home race for our sponsor Muscle Milk and we certainly want to repeat our dominant win from last year's event."The duration for this year has changed to four hours and the competition is different too. The P1 category is for sure more competitive and we will need to push with our Muscle Milk HPD ARX-03a to stay on top. But this is what we strive for and we like the challenge."The Laguna Seca race track provides a unique experience with its layout as well as the track conditions. With the race start being in the late afternoon we usually experience a dramatic shift in track temperature, which can have a big impact on the car behavior."That said, I'm confident our Michelin Street Soft tires will be up for that challenge. Last year we had a very quick and reliable car and we don't expect anything less this year. Lucas and I want to give Muscle Milk Pickett Racing and all the family and friends that will be present another win."

 Lucas Luhr - driver #6 Muscle Milk HPD ARX-03a"Laguna is a special race. It will be a little different this year because it's a four-hour race instead of six hours but it won't take away how great it is to go there. Both the track and the area are very nice and it is close to the CytoSport (Muscle Milk) headquarters, so a lot of friends and family from the company show up. Therefore, there is always a little extra motivation to have a good result there."It is, for sure, going to be a good fight again with the competition in the P1 class, but Laguna Seca is a high downforce track and our Muscle Milk HPD ARX-03a is quite good in that configuration. I look forward to it."

Race Facts:American Le Mans MontereyMazda Raceway Laguna Seca, 2.238-mile, 11-turn road course, Salinas, CAMay 9 - 11, 2013

American Le Mans Series: Round #3 of 10Race Duration:  4 HoursALMS TV Broadcast:Race (USA): ESPN2Tape-delayed, Sunday, May 12, 2013 4:00 pm ETInternational: Tape delayed on MotorsTVALMS live online coverage:USA: www.ESPN3.comInternational: www.alms.comQualifying - Friday, May 10, 2013: 7:45 pm - 9:20 pm ETRace - Saturday, May 11, 2013: 6:15 pm - 10:45 pm ET

Schedule (All times Pacific):

Thursday, May 9, 2013:Test Session: 5:00 pm - 5:30 pm (P1/P2/PC)Test Session: 5:30 pm - 6:30 pm (All Classes)Test Session: 6:30 pm - 7:00 pm (GT/GTC)

Friday, May 10, 2013:Practice 1: 11:00 am - 12:00 pm (All Classes)Practice 2: 3:25 pm - 4:25 pm (All Classes)Qualifying: 4:35 pm - 4:50 pm (GTC)Qualifying: 4:55 pm - 5:10 pm (GT)Qualifying: 5:20 pm - 5:35 pm (PC)Qualifying: 5:40 pm - 5:55 pm (P1/P2)

Saturday, May 11, 2013:Warm up: 9:40 am - 10:05 am (All Classes)Autograph Session: 12:30 pm - 1:15 pmALMS Race: 3:30 pm - 7:30 pm (4 hours)


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