LEVEL 5, TUCKER EARN THIRD CONSECUTIVE SEBRING VICTORY

Five-time national driving champion Scott Tucker joined Level 5 Motorsports teammates Christophe Bouchut and Joao Barbosa on the top step of the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón P2 podium in Saturday’s Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring fueled by Fresh from Florida, winning America’s oldest endurance race for the third consecutive year following its dominating performance.

The ALMS P2 class win for the No. 055 Alpina Watches-sponsored Honda Performance Development ARX-03b didn’t come without its challenges, as an accident in Friday's qualifying resulted in the David Stone-led team pulling an all-nighter to get its prototype ready for the season-opening race.

While it was Level 5’s No. 95 HPD of Tucker, Luis Diaz and Ryan Hunter-Reay that paced the opening stages of the race, an error by a GTC Porsche in the fourth hour knocked the IndyCar star out of the lead and ultimately led to an early end for the team’s second entry.

All hopes of a repeat P2 victory turned to the rebuilt No. 055 car, which started from the rear of the grid due to a tire change and the overnight rebuild. An impressive quadruple stint by Tucker, however, saw the defending P2 champion move up to second in the ALMS class before handing over to Bouchut and Barbosa to complete the driving duties.

Both drivers also enjoyed time out front, often ahead of the entire WEC LMP2 field. While Barbosa battled tooth-and-nail with the Starworks Motorsport prototype for the overall LMP2 lead, the focus was clearly on taking top ALMS honors, which Level 5 accomplished in convincing fashion. The No. 055 HPD of Tucker, Bouchut and Barbosa finished 21 laps clear of the competition in its class.

"Our team is very happy," Tucker said. "It was a great effort by everybody. To get a top-five finish overall and winning the ALMS class and mixing it in the WEC battle is really incredible. While there were a couple of different races going on at the same time, we focused on the ALMS prize. This is our third straight win at Sebring, which makes me real proud of the entire team’s achievement.”

With its fourth-place overall result, Level 5 was the highest-placed American Le Mans Series finisher. It was an even more impressive accomplishment considering the level of competition from the more powerful LMP1 category, which had 11 entries, including three factory Audis prototypes.

"We did a lot of work, especially the mechanics, who worked through the night to get our car ready," Bouchut said. "The car ran very well, so we're very happy to win our class in the ALMS. That was the main target of the weekend. Of course, we're a little disappointed to finish so close to the WEC car, but it was a good Saturday night show for the fans."

Barbosa added: "We were very competitive throughout the race but lost a little of the edge when nightfall hit when we went to soft tires. But it was still a great battle in the end. I just had to be really careful because our battle was not with Starworks, it was winning the ALMS class. My hats off to the entire team who did an amazing job."

At the end of the day, it was mission accomplished for Level 5, which takes an early lead in the P2 championship standings in Tucker’s bid to become a three-time American Le Mans Series class champion.

"Our clear goal was not to get in a dogfight with the WEC cars as our focus has been to win the ALMS championship," team manager David Stone said. "We won the ALMS race today and that's what was most important for us.

"We didn't really have a single problem with the No. 055 car," Stone added. "The guys did great pit stops all through the day and night and the drivers didn't put a wheel wrong. This is a great win for the entire Level 5 team and gives us great momentum for the rest of the season.”

Next up for Level 5 is the Tequila Patrón American Le Mans Series at Long Beach, scheduled for April 13-14. The race will be broadcast live on ESPN 2 at 7:30 p.m. ET and will also be shown live on ESPN3.com or ALMS.com.

Level 5 Qualifies on Pole for 12 Hours of Sebring

Level 5 Motorsports and Scott Tucker will start on the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón P2 pole for Saturday’s 60th Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring, following a solid performance that had an unfortunate end in a dramatic qualifying session for America’s oldest endurance race.

After dominating the time sheets all week long, even among the international competitors vying for the FIA World Endurance Championship, Level 5 headed into qualifying confident of continued success. However, lap traffic dashed hopes of an overall LMP2 pole for the No. 055 car of Christophe Bouchut or Luis Diaz’s No. 95 Alpina Watches-sponsored prototype, after the Frenchman got caught out by a slow car existing the revised pit lane.

“I arrived in Turn 1 and in the middle of the corner, suddenly a car came from the exit of pit lane and onto my line,” Bouchut explained. “I had to decide to do something, so I tried to go to the left, but I hit the wall and I spun. From my perspective, at that time, there was nothing else I could do, or else the car would have hit me and then it would have been worse than what happened.”

Moments before Bouchut’s incident, he had set a 1:52.129 lap time, which held for the P2 class pole for he and co-drivers Tucker and Joao Barbosa. It proved to be a bitter-sweet end to the day, with the No. 055 car on the top spot for Saturday’s race, but having also sustained bodywork damage during the high-speed accident.

The red flag ultimately ended the session early, resulting in Level 5’s No. 95 car of Diaz unable to also mount a challenge for the overall pole. The Mexican driver’s 1:52.659 lap time was good enough for third best on the ALMS grid in the car he will share with Tucker and IndyCar star Ryan Hunter-Reay.

“I don't think the result shows what we're capable of doing,” Diaz said. “It was a difficult qualifying because we had very few laps. We chose a tire compound that was hard to bring up to temperature. But we made all the right decisions. It's a long race and we know we have a good car. So we have to keep thinking about that.”

Team manager David Stone added: “We’ve had a closer look at the car and we have all the spare parts needed, which is good news. The guys are going to have a long night, but I know we have the motivation and labor to get it back together. It’s a long race and it will be important for both cars to stay out of trouble, especially as we be low on spares considering today’s unfortunate incident.”

Despite the slight setback, the team heads in with plenty of confidence, as Level 5 and Tucker seek their third consecutive Sebring class victory. The five-time national driving champion has already gotten off to a great start this week, having won both Cooper Tires Prototype Lites Powered by Mazda support races at Sebring and will now look to add another P2 trophy to kick off his ALMS title defense.

“We know the HPD ARX-03b is a competitive package all the way around,” Tucker said. “There are some quick teams out there that we’ll have to fight hard with but we feel like we have good equipment. Reliability is always a big issue in this race but I think we’ve shown to have cars that can get to the finish. We just have to stay out of trouble tomorrow.”

The 2012 American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón begins with the 60th Anniversary Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh from Florida on Saturday on March 17. The race, set for 10:30 a.m. ET, will be broadcast at noon March 18 on ABC and shown live on ESPN3.

The race is available to international audiences on MotorsTV in Europe, Fox Latin America, Rogers Sportnet in Canada, ESPN International, Fox Mideast and on ALMS.com.

LEVEL 5, TUCKER COMPLETE SECOND PRE-SEASON TEST, ANNOUNCE DRIVER LINEUP

On the heels of a flawless three-day private test at Sebring International Raceway this week, Level 5 Motorsports is pleased to announce its driver lineup for the 60th Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh from Florida and American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón season.

Coming off one of its most successful seasons to date, which included the ALMS LMP2 drivers’ and teams’ titles and a podium at the famed 24 Hours of Le Mans, Level 5 has again assembled a star-studded lineup that’s capable of taking on the world’s best at Sebring and the increased competition that the LMP2 category will bring throughout the year.

Five-time national champion Scott Tucker will spearhead driving duties once again, sharing the wheel of both of Level 5’s Honda Performance Development ARX-03b prototypes. He’ll be joined by veteran Frenchman Christophe Bouchut and Joao Barbosa in the No. 055 for Sebring, while IZOD IndyCar Series star Ryan Hunter-Reay and Luis Diaz complete the roster in the No. 95 HPD for the ALMS season opener.

Tucker, who earned his second consecutive ALMS title and hat-trick of SCCA National Championships in 2011, is on track to reach an unprecedented 75th career victory this year, many of which have come while surrounded by the world-class superstar drivers he brings together.

“We were very proud of our wins and championships last year and thought the continuity, especially in the driver lineup, would be important as we head to Sebring and begin our ALMS title defense,” said Tucker. “Christophe and Luis did a great job for us last year and both Ryan and Joao were a part of our success as well. It made the most sense to continue with our proven lineup for Sebring.”

Having been with Level 5 since 2008, Bouchut returns to the wheel with owner/driver Tucker for the full 10-round ALMS series, as well as the 24 Hours of Le Mans, where he’ll be making his 19th start in the world’s greatest endurance race. Last year, Bouchut celebrated victories at Long Beach, Road America, Laguna Seca and Road Atlanta and collected his first ALMS drivers’ title with Tucker.

“I’m very happy to be back with Level 5 Motorsports and Scott Tucker for the 2012 season,” Bouchut said. “At Sebring, and especially Le Mans, where there will be 18 cars in LMP2, we know the competition will be tough. Also, with new cars coming in the ALMS, it will make it tighter than last year. So we have to be on top of what we’re able to do in order to win the championship again.”

Tucker and Bouchut will again be joined at Sebring by Portuguese ace Barbosa, a regular in the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series who enjoyed a successful season in the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup with Level 5 last year. The trio earned a victory at the 1,000-mile Petit Le Mans in Road Atlanta and also achieved podium finishes at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Six Hours of Imola in Italy.

The No. 95 HPD ARX-03b will be led by Tucker and Diaz for the season. As one of the most successful drivers to hail from Mexico, Diaz, the 2009 ALMS LMP2 champion, made a positive impression in his Level 5 debut last year, claiming wins at Sebring, Road America and Laguna Seca, plus a popular pole run at Road Atlanta. His quick and consistent pace was rewarded with another full-time drive for 2012.

“I’m looking forward to the season,” Diaz said. “Certainly I think with all of the news that has happened during the winter, there’s a very good grid in the P2 class. It’s a good category and the HPD is a great car to drive. The American Le Mans Series is one of the best series in the world. I’m happy to be with a strong and competitive team in Level 5 and looking forward to the season with Scott.”

Completing the lineup in the No. 95 car for Sebring is open-wheel veteran Hunter-Reay. The Andretti Autosport driver collected his third career IndyCar Series victory at New Hampshire and finished seventh in the championship in 2011. His most recent start with Level 5 came at Sebring last year, where he, Tucker and Diaz claimed victory in the team’s LMP2 debut.

“We’re happy to have Christophe, Luis, Joao and Ryan back with Level 5 for 2012,” said team manager David Stone. “They're all good, top guys and while there could have been some other choices, I don't think there could have been any better choices to join Scott in the HPDs. It's good to have the continuity and working relationship with the same crew and we’re all looking forward to the season.”

Level 5 continued its aggressive pre-season testing program this week at Sebring, with both Barbosa and Hunter-Reay getting their first laps in the new HPD ARX-03b. Joined by Tucker, the flawless three-day test saw the trio log 1500 miles in the No. 055 car, with a best time of 1:50.515 set by Hunter-Reay. It was over one-second faster than the team’s top time set here just three weeks ago.

As was the case during their first test at Sebring, Level 5 focused on continued tire development with new partner Dunlop and full tank runs to gauge the car’s performance over multiple stints on the brutal 3.7-mile, 17-turn former World War II airfield circuit. All three drivers gained plenty of track time, particularly Tucker, who made significant gains over the course of the test sessions.

“This year's race is shaping up to be a big one with a lot of fast cars and drivers in LMP2,” Stone added. “So many things can happen; it's of course a 12-hour race and at Sebring, which is especially demanding on the cars. I feel like we have a good base in that we've now tested here for five days, with the earlier test this month and the three days here this week.”

With the build of its second HPD ARX-03b still ongoing following a production delay due to the recent European snow storm, Level 5’s immediate attention turns to the completion of the cost-capped LMP2 car prior to its planned roll-out at Sebring on March 10. Both of the new cars are expected to be on-track for that private test, in advance of additional official testing on March 12-13 and practice and qualifying later in the week.

Level 5 and Tucker will be seeking their third consecutive class victory in the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh from Florida, which celebrates its 60th anniversary this year. The American Le Mans Series season-opener is set for a 10:30 a.m. ET start on March 17, and will also as the first race for the new FIA World Endurance Championship. It will be broadcast March 18 on ABC and shown live on ESPN3 or ALMS.com.