Click on the drivers below to view bios.
Joerg Bergmeister -
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Name: | Joerg Bergmeister |
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| Hometown: | Langenfeld, Germany | |
| Team: | Flying Lizard Motorsports | |
| Car: | Porsche 911 GT3 RSR | |
| Bio: |
Born: February 13, 1976 in Leverkusen, Germany Current residence: Langenfield, Germany Marital status: married with a daughter Helmet: blue, white, red with yellow arch Web site: www.bergmeister.de Race car: No. 45 Flying Lizard Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 RSR In 2011, Joerg returns to Flying Lizard for the fourth consecutive season to defend his 2009 American Le Mans Series GT2 drivers' championship title. He will be paired with Patrick Long in the No. 45 Porsche 911 GT3 RSR. He also joined Lizard team owner Seth Neiman, Long, and Johannes van Overbeek in the Flying Lizard Motorsports Porsche Riley for the 2011 Rolex 24 at Daytona, capturing the pole and leading the first hour of the race. Unfortunately, damage from two on-track incidents later in the race forced the car back in the pack. Joerg is five-time ALMS GT2 driver champion (2010 and 2009 with Long and plus 2008 Wolf Henzler at Flying Lizard; 2006 and 2005 with Patrick Long at Petersen/White Lightning). In his ALMS career (2002-2010) he has had 33 class wins, 8 poles, and has been on the podium 58 times. His first victories came with co-driver Timo Bernhard and the Alex Job Racing Porsche 2002 – 2004. 2010 also featured Joerg’s venture in the Porsche racing lab – the hybrid 911 GT3 R – where his team lead the race for into the 23rd hour at the Nurburgring. In 2009, Joerg and Patrick set the ALMS GT2 record for most consecutive wins (five) with the same driver pair. Joerg has won Petit Le Mans five times (2003 -2007) and Sebring twice (2005, 2008). In Grand-Am, he has won the 24 Hours of Daytona three times (2009 in GT, 2003 overall and GT, and 2002 in GT – all with The Racers Group) and was the 2006 Rolex Grand-Am Daytona Prototype year-end champion. To date, Joerg has competed in eight 24 Heures du Mans races: in 2004 he won in GT2 (with Long and Sascha Maasen). Joerg began go-karting at the age of three, following in the footsteps of his well-known racing family. Joerg's grandfather raced motorcycles as a Sachs factory driver, his father was a touring car racer, and his brother Tim is also a professional sports car driver. Joerg began racing open-wheel at age 16, and won the Formula Koenig championship at 17. His championships in Porsche Carrera Cup (Germany) in 2000 and Porsche Supercup in 2001 earned Joerg his appointment as a Porsche factory driver in 2001. |
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Wolf Henzler -
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Name: | Wolf Henzler |
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| Hometown: | Nuertingen, Germany | |
| Team: | Team Falken Tire | |
| Car: | Porsche 911 GT3 RSR | |
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Born: April 5, 1975 in Nürtingen, Germany Residence: Nürtingen, Germany Marital status: single Helmut: Green with yellow lightning bolts Education: master's degrees in business economics and computer science Website www.wolf-henzler.de race highlights 1991 Junior German Kart Championship champion 1992 – 1993 Formula ADAC – two poles, two wins, 1992 rookie of year 1995 – 1998 German Formula Three – nine wins; 1997 second; 1995, 1998 third 2000 Porsche Supercup rookie of year 2003 Porsche Supercup – second, one pole, two wins, three podiums; Porsche Carrera Cup – fourth, one win, four podiums, two fastest laps 2004 Porsche Supercup champion – eight poles, nine wins, 11 podiums, 10 fastest laps in 12 races; Porsche Carrera Cup – second, three poles, three wins, six podiums, one fastest lap; American Le Mans Series GT – Petit Le Mans podium; Speed World Challenge GT – two wins in two races 2005 Rolex 24 At Daytona GT winner and pole position; American Le Mans Series GT2 – fourth, one podium; Speed World Challenge GT – fourth, four poles, two wins, five fastest race laps 2006 Porsche Cup winner; Rolex Series GT – second, five wins, 11 podiums; American Le Mans Series GT2 – fourth, one win, five podiums 2007 Rolex Series GT – two podiums; American Le Man Series GT2 – third, six podiums including 12 Hours of Sebring and Petit Le Mans 2008 American Le Mans Series GT2 co-champion – three poles (two record), four wins including 12 Hours of Sebring, nine podiums; 24 Heures du Mans GT2 – fifth 2010 First win in GT at the 24 Hours of Le Mans; also drove Porsche Hybrid at the Nurburgring 2011 Started season with second Rolex 24 at Daytona win in GT Porsche; finished four at ALMS Long Beach - best finish ever for Falken Tire Porsche 911 GT3 RSR. |
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Darren Law -
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Name: | Darren Law |
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| Hometown: | Phoenix, AZ | |
| Team: | Flying Lizard Motorsports | |
| Car: | Porsche 911 GT3 RSR | |
| Bio: |
born April 4, 1968 in Toronto, Ont. residence Phoenix, Ariz. family wife Karrie, daughters Megan, Hannah website darrenlaw.com Recent named head of Bondurant School of high performance driving notes drives both Daytona Prototype and GT Porsche race cars, one of a few drivers who compete in multiple series – "I've been doing both prototype and GT since '04, so I'm comfortable with it, but the cars are very, very different to drive. The prototype is very stiff and the GT car moves around a lot. The engines are very different, as well. The GT car has a flat 6 cylinder 4.0 liter that is very peaky in its powerband and the prototype has a 5.0 liter V8 that has a linear power band with a lot more torque, so the driving stye of each engine is different." has started more Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series races than any other driver – 137 through the 2010 season endurance racing with co-drivers – "I enjoy the camaraderie and having a teammate to work with. If you have the right driving partner, there are no excuses about your lap times, because you have a direct comparison in the same car to your co-driver. You can also feed off each other – if one person's quicker in one area, you can learn from each other." instructor at Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving 1991 to 1997, still provides private coaching services – "It keeps me in a race-car all year round and keeps me sharp. I think it helps from a driver standpoint to be able to explain how to go faster, rather than just trying to always figure it out for yourself." raced in England – "I moved over there on my own and I lived with the team, didn't have any money and the team didn't have much money, so it was a difficult, but a good learning experience. The younger kids racing formula cars in England are so aggressive, it's so much different than in the States. It definitely gave me experience in more competitive racing." father Peter was an SCCA driver and a Penske Racing mechanic – "I grew up around cars. What little kid at 10 or 11 years old doesn't want to be a race-car driver? My father and I spent a lot of time together, go-kart racing every weekend. We had a great relationship and we shared a sport together. Racing was always my dream." grew up in Orange County, Calif., but was born in Toronto, while his parents were traveling with Penske Racing off-track pursuits include fitness training, cycling and off-road biking with his daughters; tried skydiving in a tandem jump in 2008, a birthday gift from wife Karrie race highlights 1982 – 1989 two U.S. karting championships 1991 British Formula Ford and Formula Renault 1996 North American Super Touring Series – second 1998 inaugural Petit Le Mans GT – second 1999 American Le Mans Series GT – two podiums, four top-five finishes 2000 Rolex Sports Car Series GTU – second, four poles, five wins, eight podiums 2001 Rolex Sports Car Series GT champion – one win, six podiums; Grand-Am Cup SGS, ST and GS – four podiums 2002 Rolex Sports Car Series SRPII – second, one pole, one win, six podiums, GT – one win, two podiums; Grand-Am Cup GSI – one pole, one podium, three top-five finishes 2003 Rolex Sports Car Series DP – fourth, five podiums including Rolex 24 At Daytona; Petit Le Mans GT; Grand-Am Cup GS and GSII – three podiums 2004 American Le Mans Series GT – second, one win, seven podiums 2005 Rolex Sports Car Series DP – one pole; American Le Mans Series GT2 – three podiums; Grand-Am Cup GS – three podiums 2006 Rolex Sports Car Series DP – Rolex 24 At Daytona fourth; American Le Mans Series GT2 – one podium, four top-five finishes; Grand-Am Cup GS – one pole, one top-five finish; SCORE Baja 1000 Challenge – sixth 2007 Porsche Cup – second; Rolex Sports Car Series DP – sixth, two podiums, seven top-five finishes; American Le Mans Series GT2 – two podiums, six top-five finishes; KONI Challenge Series GS 2008 Porsche Cup – fourth; Rolex Sports Car Series DP – fourth, five podiums, seven top-five finishes; American Le Mans Series GT2 – 12 Hours of Sebring podium; KONI Challenge Series GS 2009 Porsche Cup – fifth; Rolex Sports Car Series DP – Rolex 24 At Daytona winner; 24 Heures du Mans GT2; American Le Mans Series GT2 – three top-five finishes, including 12 Hours of Sebring 2010 Porsche Cup – fifth; Rolex Sports Car Series DP – one podium, six top-five finishes; 24 Heures du Mans GT2; American Le Mans Series GT2 – 12 Hours of Sebring top-five finish |
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Patrick Long -
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Name: | Patrick Long |
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| Hometown: | Tampa, Florida | |
| Team: | Flying Lizard Motorsports | |
| Car: | Porsche 911 GT3 RSR | |
| Bio: |
Born: July 28, 1981, in Thousand Oaks, Calif. Residence: Belleair, FL Marital status: single; Helmet: neon green flames on a blue background, yellow band at top web site: www.patricklong.com Race Car: #45 Flying Lizard Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 RSR Patrick returns to Flying Lizard Motorsports for the 2011 season, driving with Joerg Bergmeister (Germany) in the No. 45 Porsche for the third consecutive season. He will also joined Lizard team owner Seth Neiman, Bergmeister, and Johannes van Overbeek to drive a Porsche Riley Daytona Prototype in the 2011 Rolex 24 at Daytona, where the team had the pole and lead the race early before some on-track incidents resulted in damages that required lengthy pits stops. Patrick is a three-time American Le Mans Series GT2 driver champion: Besides last year’s championship, he won in 2009 with Joerg Bergmeister with the Lizards and in 2005 (also with Joerg – with the Petersen/White Lightning Porsche team). In his ALMS career (2004-2010) he has had 63 starts, 19 class wins, 36 podiums, and 3 poles. In 2009, Joerg and Patrick set the ALMS GT2 record for most consecutive wins (five) with the same driver pair. In the ALMS, Patrick has won Sebring once (2005) and Petit Le Mans three times (2005-2007). In 2009, Long added the Rolex 24 at Daytona to his endurance victory portfolio, winning with Bergmeister in a TRG Porsche. He has competed in six 24 Heures du Mans and won in class twice (2004 with Petersen/White Lightning Porsche and 2007 with the French IMSA Performance Porsche team). In 2006, he finished 4th in the Flying Lizard No. 80 Porsche at the 24 Heures du Mans (with Johannes van Overbeek and Seth Neiman). Long also competed in the ALMS LMP2 class in the Penske Porsche RS Spyder with co-driver Sascha Maassen in 2008. The pair had several podium finishes, but no wins. Patrick has been a Porsche Works driver since 2003. 2009 – Won the Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona for the first time, driving a TRG Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car with new Lizard teammate Joerg Bergmeister. With five class wins in the American Le Mans Series with co-driver Joerg Bergmeister in the Flying Lizard Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 RSR so far this season, long hopes to clinch the ’09 GT2 championship at Petit Le Mans. 2008 – Tough year for Patrick and co-driver Sascha Maassen in the Penske Porsche RS Spyder, with no trips to the top step of the podium, although they had several podium finishes. 2007 – A transition year for Long, who won a Rolex Grand-Am DP race in the Ruby Tuesdays Alex Job Racing Porsche Crawford, scored a victory in the GT2 class for the second time at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the French IMSA team Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, and was part of the exciting win by the Timo Bernhard/Romain Dumas/Patrick Long Penske Porsche RS Spyder team that won the 2007 Petit Le Mans contest. 2006 – Besides his stint with the Penske Porsche team in ALMS at Sebring, Long teamed with Mike Rockenfeller to contest the Rolex Sports Car series in Grand-Am. The pair won two races (VIR and Homestead) and finished on the podium multiple times after leading almost every event in their Ruby Tuesdays Alex Job Racing Porsche Crawford. Long also ran a GT3 Cup car in Grand-Am Cup (Synergy Racing) and his Petersen/White Lightning 911 GT3 RSR in ALMS with Jorg Bergmeister. At Le Mans, Patrick helped the Flying Lizard Porsche team to a fine fourth-place finish in GT2. Back home, Long/Bergmeister won five ALMS GT2 events in Petersen/White Lightning Porsche to give Joerg the championship (Long did not share the title with him because he missed the Sebring event to drive the Porsche prototype). 2005- Patrick Long joined Petersen Motorsports/ White Lightning Racing after winning the 2004 24 Hours of Le Mans with the team. 2004- In addition to his Le Mans victory, Long had a strong American professional sports car racing debut season, earning six podium finishes in the ALMS (The Racers Group Porsche with Cort Wagner) with a season-high of fourth (twice - Mid-Ohio and Road America). 2003- Long made his debut as a UPS Porsche Junior factory driver in Germany’s Porsche Carrera Cup. He won one race and took two other podium finishes as a rookie in the series, won twice in British Carrera Cup and ran a select number of Michelin Porsche Supercup races. In Supercup, Long finished second at Nürburgring after taking the pole and drove to third at Monaco. At the end of the season, he made his ALMS debut finishing fourth in GT at the Petit Le Mans. 2002- Long moved up to the British Formula Renault series finishing eighth in the championship, including a pole and win at Snetterton. He was chosen as one of the final six drivers in the Red Bull F1 Driver Search program where he was first recognized by Porsche. 2001- He raced in Europe as the lead driver of the Van Diemen team in Formula Ford. He won three races, two poles and took second in the championship. 2000 - Long moved to England to compete in the British Formula Ford Zetec series where he raced to eight top-10 finishes. He moved to the factory Van Diemen team following the season to compete in the British Formula Ford Zetec Winter Series. Once there, he won one race and two pole positions. Maintaining his break-neck effort, Long returned to the United States to win the Barber Dodge Pro Series "Big Scholarship" Shootout. However, he turned down the scholarship to race in Europe the following season. Pre-2000 - A prodigy, Long began racing karts at eight after driving his first kart at six. He went on to capture several state and national titles and raced in the Belgium Junior Championship where he finished second. In 1997, he became the lead driver for SSC Racing winning the IKF Formula A title and the WKA Constructors' Cup. He moved to Europe to pursue his career at age 17. Once in Europe, he gained immediate recognition by becoming the first American (in 1998) to win an International European karting event in 20 years. He went on to win 15 WKA Constructor's Cup series races in a row placing second in the international North American Karting Championship. The success still ranks as the highest finishing position for an American in the series. He moved to France in 1999 to make his debut in automobiles. Long placed third overall in the Elf Campus series and won nine of 11 races in the Skip Barber Formula Dodge Series in the United States that season. |
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Sascha Maassen -
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Name: | Sascha Maassen |
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| Hometown: | Born: Aachen, Germany | |
| Team: | Paul Miller Racing | |
| Car: | Porsche 911 GT3 RSR | |
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Date of Birth: September 28, 1969 Major accomplishments: Championships: ALMS GT champion (2002, 2003 with Lucas Luhr); factory driver: Porsche, since 1999; FIA-GT champion with Luhr, also in Porsche 911 GT3 RSR – 2004. Major sports car wins: 25 ALMS GT class wins, 24 Heures Du Mans win (2003 and 2004), four 12 Hours of Sebring (2001-2004); four Petit Le Mans ('00, '01, '03, 04). Won LMP2 class with Luhr in the debut of the Penske Porsche RS Sypder at Laguna Seca in October, 2005. 2nd this year at at Mid-Ohio and Lime Rock; won Salt Lake City and Road America - all in LMP 2. Maassen started his racing career in 1988 with a two-year stint in German karting and Formula 1600 racing becoming the European and German Formula 1600 champion in 1990. He parlayed that success into a ride in the German Formula 3 Championship finishing in the top-10 in season points every year from 1991-’94. He capped his F3 career by winning the Formula 3 World final at Macau in 1994. In 1996, he moved to the final stepping-stone to Formula One by racing in British Formula 3000 winning the Donnington-round of that highly competitive series. Maassen moved from open wheel to sports cars in 1997 with a tenth-place finish in the German Super Touring Car Championship points. He contested the FIA GT Championship the following season winning at Budapest in the GT2 class. The likable German started his winning way in the ALMS in 1999 with a GT class victory at the Petit Le Mans while finishing fourth overall in the Porsche Supercup series. His four ALMS wins in 2000 came with co-driver Bob Wollek before joining Luhr and Alex Job Racing in 2001. # # # |
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Seth Neiman -
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Name: | Seth Neiman |
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| Hometown: | Burlingame, CA | |
| Team: | Flying Lizard Motorsports | |
| Car: | Porsche 911 GT3 RSR | |
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Birthdate: 6/27/1954 Hometown: Woodside, Calif. Affiliation: Owner, Flying Lizard Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 RSR After winning his first professional race in 2003 (the Six Hours of the Glen at Watkins Glen with Johannes van Overbeek and Lonnie Pechnik), Seth founded Flying Lizard. The team has run Porsche 911 GT3 RSRs in GT2 in the ALMS since 2004, finishing every year in the top three in both team and drivers' championships. In 2008, the team won their first GT2 team and drivers' championships. In 2009, the team swept all ALMS GT2 titles: Joerg Bergmeister and Patrick Long won the drivers’ championship in the No. 45; Flying Lizard won the team championship; Porsche won the manufacturer championship; and the Flying Lizard No. 44 Porsche won the Michelin Green X Challenge championship (new for 2009). In 2010, Seth teamed with Darren Law in the No. 44 Porsche, finishing 14th overall in points, including a top ten at Petit Le Mans. In 2009, Seth finished seventh in the GT2 drivers’ championship, and in 2008 he was fifth, with a notable 2nd place finish at the 2008 Twelve Hours of Sebring (with Law and Alex Davison). He was ranked eighth in the Porsche Cup in 2006. Seth has competed in five 24 Heures du Mans races: finishing 6th in GT2 in 2008 (Bergmeister, van Overbeek), 4th in GT2 in 2006 (van Overbeek/ Long) and 3rd in GT2 in 2005 (with van Overbeek/Pechnik). |
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