DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (November 21, 2013) – Paul Miller Racing, Bryce Miller and Audi works driver Benoît Tréluyer wrapped up four days of Florida testing Tuesday and Wednesday at Daytona International Speedway in the team’s new Audi R8 LMS.
The productive two days at Daytona followed the team’s initial shakedown run with its new Audi last weekend at Sebring International Raceway. The respective two-day tests at Sebring and Daytona were the first organized on-track activity of 2014’s debuting IMSA TUDOR SportsCar Championship. The No. 48 Paul Miller Racing Audi R8 LMS will compete this year in the GT Daytona division (GTD) that promises to be one of the most competitive in the series.
“It was a successful test, very few problems, our crew got well acquainted with the car as a first time pass at it and we have had enormous support from Audi, which has been fantastic,” Paul Miller said. “It has been very productive and we really did it more from a familiarization point of view than anything else, and it has been a very successful four days with many, many, many laps of running.”
Paul Miller Racing took delivery of its new Audi R8 LMS just the weekend prior to the Sebring test at the team’s race shop in the Atlanta area. The Audi was prepared for the track straight from its shipping container and was more than prepared and ready to get the most out of the four full days of Florida testing.
“Personally, as a driver, it has been awesome to get the seat time in the car,” Bryce Miller said. “To just come up to the car, learn the car and how it works, what it responds to, what’s needed to make it go fast. These four days have given us a lot of opportunity to try some changes as well.
Tréluyer, a member of Audi’s World Champion LMP1 team, was sent by the factory to assist the Paul Miller Racing team in the initial familiarization runs at Sebring and Daytona. A full-season Audi works co-driver for Bryce Miller will be announced in the coming weeks.
“My impression is that there are still some schedules being developed for European races that are going to impact on their decision as to who they choose to run with us for the season,” Paul Miller said. “Hopefully that is all going to unfold over the next few weeks.”
This coming IMSA season will be the first time Paul Miller Racing has raced with Audi after decades with Porsche, but the team’s parent organization, the Paul Miller Auto Group, has operated Paul Miller Audi since 1976, one of the largest Audi dealerships in the nation.
“The Audi support has been tremendous,” Bryce Miller said. “To be able to work side by side with their people has certainly accelerated our learning curve with the car. We are really happy coming away from here. I think we have a really good foundation to build from. We were able to keep the car on track without a lot of issues and are leaving with a really good base.”
About Paul Miller Racing: Paul Miller Racing is among the top GT teams competing in North American sports car road racing. In 2014, the team will contest the full GT Daytona (GTD) season in the new IMSA TUDOR SportsCar Championship in a new partnership with Audi Sport customer racing. Bryce Miller will drive the No. 48 Paul Miller Racing Audi R8 LMS with a to-be-named co-driver. The racing team is affiliated with the Paul Miller Auto Group, which has operated Paul Miller Audi since 1976, races in support of Full Circle Home, and competes with the support of TOTAL Lubricants, Search Marketing Group and Motegi Racing.
Follow Paul Miller Racing on Twitter @paulmilleracing @bryceracer and become a Facebook fan at Facebook.com/paulmillerracing and Facebook.com/brycemiller.net. Learn more about the team at www.paulmillerracing.com.
About Audi of America and the Audi R8 LMS: Audi began a new chapter in 2009 with the introduction of the Audi Sport customer racing program. For the first time it was possible for motorsport customers to acquire a race car designed for customer racing events. Since its inception, the success of the R8 LMS has been significant throughout the GT3 racing format worldwide, including victory in the GT class in the 2013 edition of the Rolex 24 at Daytona. The Audi R8 LMS shares more than 50% of its parts with the Audi R8 street car including the naturally aspirated V10 5.2 Liter engine, the Audi Space Frame and a variety of other components
Audi of America, Inc. and its U.S. dealers offer a full line of German-engineered luxury vehicles. AUDI AG is among the most successful luxury automotive brands globally. Audi was a top-performing luxury brand in Europe during 2012, and broke all-time company sales records in the U.S. Through 2016, AUDI AG will invest about $17 billion on new products and technologies.
Visit www.audiusa.com or www.audiusanews.com for more information regarding Audi vehicle and business issues.
