Shane Lewis Earns Podium at N�rburgring 24 Hour
Shane Lewis Earns Podium at Nürburgring 24 Hour
American Endurance Veteran Captures Third in 30th Career 24 Hour Race
NÜRBURG, GERMANY - June 28, 2011 – At 23 hours into the 39th Running of the Zurich 24 Hours of Nürburgring, Shane Lewis’s No. 73 Götz Motorsports Audi RS-4 was second and closing on the lead. The Jupiter, FL-resident was suited and ready to take the final stint in the twin-turbo, Audi V8 Quattro he had shared throughout the world’s most demanding endurance event with Axle Duffner (Germany), Christian Kolhau (Germany) and Vic Rice (San Rafael, CA). Lewis was poised to take the battle to the leader in defense of his 2010 Nürburgring title when word came that the black No.73 was sitting somewhere on the side of the 15.753-mile (25.359 km)-long, 73-turn track known as the “Green Hell”. The team would struggle to make repairs allowing the car to run the final two laps of the event. Lewis and his teammates would finish third in class. So ended the rollercoaster ride Lewis had been on June 25-26 in Nürburg, Germany.
The result of the day’s efforts was Lewis’s third podium finish in four attempts at the Nürburgring 24. Previously, he finished third in 2004 - his first year running the race which drew nearly 200 entries this year - and first in 2010. An accident by a teammate ended his race in 2005. This weekend’s podium is one of dozens Lewis has compiled to this point in his career but is sweet in that it comes on the occasion of his 30th lifetime start in a 24 hour race. In his first-ever sports car race, he captured the 24 Hours of Nelson Ledges (OH) from pole position and repeated the feat the following year. Since, he has added three starts at Le Mans (’99,’00, ’03) and 14 in the Rolex 24 At Daytona to his resume.
A broken driveshaft was the culprit which sidelined the German-entry for most of the final hour this past weekend. The failure cost Lewis a guaranteed second-place finish had the car continued running even at half-speed and a very legitimate shot at victory. However, it was just the final valley in a string of ups and downs which made-up the race for Lewis. Starting fifth against the factory-backed efforts of Volkswagen, a near-perfect race was going to be required. That was not to be, Hour One would already place the first blow as a punctured tire brought a pit stop and dropped the car to last. The second hour drew a penalty for a teammate passing under a local caution. With Lewis now in the car the team began to climb back toward the top until Hour Five brought the car in with a mechanical issue. Once back on track, the No.73 moved up to third before a heavy accident sidelined Rice nearing the race’s midpoint. The damage was substantial but, with minor repairs, the car could continue. Rice, a longtime friend of Lewis, was not so fortunate. The Californian was forced to withdraw himself from the race with back pain and broken ribs. Despite an offset steering angle – a result of the accident – the team soldiered on with only three drivers reaching second-place with three hours remaining.
As the race entered its final hour, the Audi was two laps behind the “Super Production 8T” class leader and four laps up on the Götz sister car. The leader was limping around the track with a mechanical issue as the Götz Audis ate into the margin with each corner. With his speed and skill to balance pace with protecting the car, Lewis was asked by team officials to chase the back-to-back wins in the final hour. Waiting in the pit lane garage, Lewis received word that his own ride was stopped on track. Now the hunted instead of the hunter, the team watched as it lost its chance to capture the win. Fortunately, the clock ticked to 4pm (CET) ending the ride Lewis and his teammates had been on for 24 hours, locking the podium finish for the quartet of drivers.
Quotes
Shane Lewis
About the result at the Nürburgring 24: “You are lucky just to finish this event no matter how well prepared you are. I know I should be elated with the podium but we were so close; so very, very close to victory. We came here to win. That is one of the reasons I wanted to be back with the Götz team; they want to win just as bad as I do. This place is the most special race track in all of the world. It’s the most demanding, the most spectacular and the most dangerous. I feel like I am the luckiest man alive just to be here but as an American to stand on the podium for a third time; all I can say is wow!”
About the range of emotions he experienced during the race: “You always know anything can happen. As a driver you must put your head down and do the best you can on every, single lap and the crew and the car does the same. But it was a real rollercoaster. When you start the race with a terrible first few hours, fight your way back to towards the front, then crash, then fight back again to a real possibility of winning and then have that taken away in the last hour, well, it’s an entire year of work and emotion all in one event.”
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To read more about the 24 Hours of Nürburgring, visit * *http://adac.24h-rennen.de
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