Porsche 2008 Annual Report Download - page 137

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driven by David Donohue, Darren Law, Buddy
Rice and Antonio Gracia crossed the line as
victors with a slim 0.16 second lead. Third place
also went to a Brumos Porsche. Penske Racing,
fielding Company drivers Timo Bernhard and
Romain Dumas, struggled with technical prob-
lems towards the end of the race, but recorded
the best lap time and were leading for much
of the race.
Porsche also began the 2009 season of the
Grand-American Rolex Sportscar Series with its
21st overall victory in Daytona. Penske Racing
and Brumos Racing were in the running right
up until the end of the year, despite the organ-
izers continually changing the rules with rpm-
limits, increasing the minimum weight and requir-
ing five-gear transmissions instead of the origi-
nal six permitted. Following a further victory by
Brumos Racing at the final in Miami, Porsche
came second in the manufacturers’ competition.
While the Company started out as a partner
for engines and development in the Grand-Am
class, the end of the 2008 season represent-
ed the planned end of its involvement with the
RS Spyder sports prototype following three very
successful years. Three times in a row, the ve-
hicle, which ended with 440 hp (324 kW) output
and a weight of just 825 kilograms, claimed all
titles in the American Le Mans Series, as well
as the European Le Mans Series and its class in
the 24-hour race at Le Mans in 2008.
In 2009, customer teams demonstrated the ex-
cellent qualities of the sports prototype at select-
ed races. Team Essex from Denmark entered
the 1,000 kilometer race in Spa in May, winning
in their class at the first attempt. In Le Mans,
the RS Spyder once again proved itself to be un-
beatable, with Team Essex achieving an even
more convincing victory than in the year before.
Casper Elgaard, Kristian Poulsen and Company
driver Emmanuel Collard won with a 15-lap
lead. The RS Spyder once again won the en-
vironmental award “Michelin Green X Challenge”,
which goes to the racing car with the lowest
consumption values per lap.
Fans in the US were given another opportunity
to experience the RS Spyder. Team Cytosport
entered the prototype into four races in the
American Le Mans Series, achieving podium
placements each time.
The 911 in Gran Turismo sport
Countless victories and championships have
added to Porsche’s legendary reputation in
Gran Turismo sport. In this competition, racing
cars must be based on series vehicles rather
than prototypes. In fiscal 2008/09, the Com-
pany offered four racing variants to customers
for use in the various Gran Turismo classes.
Originally conceived for the Porsche Cups,
professional customer teams racing the
911 GT3 Cup have also enjoyed success in
GT championships. It has been in use since
1998, and is the most popular racing car in
the world with 1,400 units delivered. The vehi-
cle, which has an output of 420 hp (309 kW),
served as the basis for the even more power-
ful GT3 Cup Grand-Am for the GT class of
the Grand-Am Series.
The motorsports division continued to refine
the GT3 Cup S, first used in 2008, in response
to the increasing importance of GT3 champion-
ships. With a 440 hp (324 kW) variant of the
familiar 3.6-liter racing engine, refined aerody-
namics and a chassis that borrows aspects
from the even more powerful GT3 RSR, the
GT3 Cup S also enjoyed a series of impressive
victories in the reporting year.