Scott Tucker-owned Level 5 Motorsports is the first American Le Mans Prototype (LMP) entry in the Le Mans circuit in 25 years, and knowing he's a bit of a pioneer, Tucker has made sure the team's-and the country's-debut in the series is set up for success.
When Tucker and mentor/co-driver Christophe Bouchut took the opportunity to compete in the LMP class of American Le Mans and Intercontinental Le Mans Cup in 2010, they finished the season with a class championship win, which bumped them to the LMP2 class for the current year. To start off the season strong, Tucker added LMP2 veteran Luis Diaz to the mix. Diax, of Mexico, had been racing LMP2s since 2007, when he raced a Lola B06/43-Acura for Fernandez Racing and won the class championship in 2009.
With that, Level 5 Motorsports tore up the ALMS schedule, posting wins at the 12 Hours of Sebring, the Long Beach Circuit and 24 Hours of Le Mans, along with impressive performances at the Rolex 24 at Daytona, Infineon and Imola in Italy. Only improving from there, Tucker and the Level 5 team acquired a brand new Honda chassis prototype-the HPD ARX-01g-just in time for the American Le Mans Series Monterey at Mazda Laguna Seca Raceway. The team made a podium finish with the new prototype, and it was officially established as an LMP2 powerhouse.
Now, Tucker again stacks his deck for LMP2 competition with the addition of Marino Franchitti, to be the fifth and final driver for the two-car entry in the 14th annual Petit Le Mans powered by Mazda. Franchitti will join Tucker, Diaz and Bouchut in the team's No. 055 Microsoft Office-sponsored HPD ARX-01g in the 1,000-mile, 10-hour showdown at Road Atlanta, which is the pinnacle of the ALMS presented by Tequila Patron.
"I'm very excited to be joining Level 5 Motorsports for Petit Le Mans," Franchitti said. "Having driven every iteration of the HPD up until this new model, I can't wait to get in the new car. Level 5 is no doubt a top team that's putting all of the resources they need behind this program."
And Tucker continues to impress with how far his resources can go. Franchitti is a significant addition to the already stocked team-as part of the development phases of the ARX-01a, he was one of the first drivers behind the HPD family's wheels. He then spent two years racing LMP2s with Dyson Racing before rejoining HPD models with Highcroft Racing as the third driver for its ALMS journey. He earned the overall pole position at the 12 Hours of Sebring and won at Laguna Seca and Petit Le Mans, in addition to driver and team championship for Highcroft. In this year's 12 Hours of Sebring, Franchitti was runner-up with Highcroft's LMP1 car, the highest prototype class.
Franchitti isn't completely new to Level 5, either; he has worked with engineers Rick Mayer and Jeff Braun. "A car is a car, and guys like Scott, Christophe and Joao [Barbosa] are good to drive it to the maximum that it's capable of," Franchitti said. With Level 5 Motorsports, the possibility is good for Franchitti earning a hat trick of LMP2 victories in Petit Le Mans.
"We're ecstatic to have Marino on board," Tucker said. "With the momentum we've built up to this point in the season, with the boost of our new prototype, we're optimistic for a strong performance at Petit Le Mans. Marino is an obvious choice for this team, and we're glad to have him."
Next week, Franchitti will officially take the wheel as a Level 5 driver during a two-day test at Road Atlanta. The team also expects to have its second car on the track, an ILMC-designated No. 33 HPD. The Petit Le Mans revs up on Oct. 1.
When Tucker and mentor/co-driver Christophe Bouchut took the opportunity to compete in the LMP class of American Le Mans and Intercontinental Le Mans Cup in 2010, they finished the season with a class championship win, which bumped them to the LMP2 class for the current year. To start off the season strong, Tucker added LMP2 veteran Luis Diaz to the mix. Diax, of Mexico, had been racing LMP2s since 2007, when he raced a Lola B06/43-Acura for Fernandez Racing and won the class championship in 2009.
With that, Level 5 Motorsports tore up the ALMS schedule, posting wins at the 12 Hours of Sebring, the Long Beach Circuit and 24 Hours of Le Mans, along with impressive performances at the Rolex 24 at Daytona, Infineon and Imola in Italy. Only improving from there, Tucker and the Level 5 team acquired a brand new Honda chassis prototype-the HPD ARX-01g-just in time for the American Le Mans Series Monterey at Mazda Laguna Seca Raceway. The team made a podium finish with the new prototype, and it was officially established as an LMP2 powerhouse.
Now, Tucker again stacks his deck for LMP2 competition with the addition of Marino Franchitti, to be the fifth and final driver for the two-car entry in the 14th annual Petit Le Mans powered by Mazda. Franchitti will join Tucker, Diaz and Bouchut in the team's No. 055 Microsoft Office-sponsored HPD ARX-01g in the 1,000-mile, 10-hour showdown at Road Atlanta, which is the pinnacle of the ALMS presented by Tequila Patron.
"I'm very excited to be joining Level 5 Motorsports for Petit Le Mans," Franchitti said. "Having driven every iteration of the HPD up until this new model, I can't wait to get in the new car. Level 5 is no doubt a top team that's putting all of the resources they need behind this program."
And Tucker continues to impress with how far his resources can go. Franchitti is a significant addition to the already stocked team-as part of the development phases of the ARX-01a, he was one of the first drivers behind the HPD family's wheels. He then spent two years racing LMP2s with Dyson Racing before rejoining HPD models with Highcroft Racing as the third driver for its ALMS journey. He earned the overall pole position at the 12 Hours of Sebring and won at Laguna Seca and Petit Le Mans, in addition to driver and team championship for Highcroft. In this year's 12 Hours of Sebring, Franchitti was runner-up with Highcroft's LMP1 car, the highest prototype class.
Franchitti isn't completely new to Level 5, either; he has worked with engineers Rick Mayer and Jeff Braun. "A car is a car, and guys like Scott, Christophe and Joao [Barbosa] are good to drive it to the maximum that it's capable of," Franchitti said. With Level 5 Motorsports, the possibility is good for Franchitti earning a hat trick of LMP2 victories in Petit Le Mans.
"We're ecstatic to have Marino on board," Tucker said. "With the momentum we've built up to this point in the season, with the boost of our new prototype, we're optimistic for a strong performance at Petit Le Mans. Marino is an obvious choice for this team, and we're glad to have him."
Next week, Franchitti will officially take the wheel as a Level 5 driver during a two-day test at Road Atlanta. The team also expects to have its second car on the track, an ILMC-designated No. 33 HPD. The Petit Le Mans revs up on Oct. 1.
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