Acura Joins the American Le Mans Series
We’re big fans of the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) here at DLB, with yours truly having fond memories of a rainy day in July 2004 feeling the concussive, ground-trembling blat of C5R Corvettes as they blasted around the confines of Lime Rock Park. Other folks must have had similarly positive experiences, with ALMS claiming today in Acura’s news release that:
“The America Le Mans Series is one of the fastest-growing racing series in the U.S., with a rapidly growing fan base attending the events and watching on television. Five of the 10 races in 2006 will be broadcast by CBS, with the remaining five events and Le Mans telecast on the cable/satellite SPEED network, including a prime-time season finale at Laguna Seca.”
We’re happy to see the series add yet another high-profile auto manufacturer, with Acura announcing today that they’ll be joining the series in the LMP2 class — initially using Honda engines and a Lola/Courage chassis — beginning wih the 55th Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring in March of 2007. Acura has even higher hopes for the series in the years that follow, additionally stating in their release that their plans include “….development of an Acura LMP1 chassis and engine package to compete in the American Le Mans Series, and earn an invitation to the 24 Hours of Le Mans.”
Stuart Waterman over at Autoblog has a nice write-up on the announcement (along with more photos like these), or you can scope out the ALMS or Honda/Acura sites for additional info as well. – [Jeff James]
