2005 Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring – Sebring International Raceway, Sebring, Fla. March 16-19th
No. 31 Westward Ho Casino/ MMPIE/ PAWS/ Michelin Porsche 911 GT3 RSR
drivers: Jörg Bergmeister (Langenfeld, Germany), Patrick Long (Las Vegas, Nev.), Lucas Luhr (Monaco), Michael Petersen (Las Vegas)
owner: Michael Petersen team manager: Dale White crew chief: Stefan Pfeiffer
remembrance
The 2005 Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring marks the fifth anniversary of the loss of sports car racing legend Bob Wollek. Wollek, team driver for Petersen/ White Lightning in 2001, was killed in a bicycle accident shortly before that year’s 12 Hour. In respect to the French racing great, Petersen/ White Lightning withdrew from the event in ‘01. For the fifth anniversary the team hopes to honor Wollek with a GT2 class victory. Wollek’s memory is a constant with the team but nowhere is it stronger than at Sebring.
100% results
Petersen Motorsports/ White Lightning Racing enters Saturday’s 12 Hours of Sebring with a 100% record for taking GT2 victories with their three drivers. Lucas Luhr has won both the endurance races that he has been entered as a driver of a Petersen Motorsports Porsche (2003 24 Hours of Le Mans and the 2001 Rolex 24 At Daytona). Jörg Bergmeister and Patrick Long each won the only race they have driven the Petersen/ White Lightning Porsche, the 2004 24 Hours of Le Mans.
5 for 6
Lucas Luhr, the 2002 and 2003 ALMS GT2 champion, is pursuing his fifth GT2 class title at Saturday’s Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring. Luhr won his first four attempts (2000-’03) at the world famous endurance race and finished second in 2004. With Petersen/ White Lightning, the German is hoping to return to the top-step of the podium in his sixth attempt.
Porsche power
Petersen Motorsports/ White Lightning Racing has raced Porsche 911-based race cars in the ALMS since the team entered the series in 1999. In that time, Westward Ho Casino/ MMPIE/ PAWS Porsche’s have entered 36 ALMS races, won once, earned ten podiums, 17 top-fives, 34 top-tens (94%) and been running at the finish 32 times (88.9%). 22 drivers have piloted the Petersen Porsche including Mike Petersen and Dale White in the team’s ALMS premiere at Laguna Seca in 1999- they finished 6th in GT class.
podiums
Petersen Motorsports/ White Lightning Racing has finished on the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring podium each of the last two seasons earning third in both 2003 and ’04. In 2004, the team earned six top-threes in nine starts, eight top-fives and had an average finish of fourth. The No. 31 Porsche took two second-place finishes (Mosport and Road America) and won the 2004 24 Hours of Le Mans.
