BMW TEAM PTG M3s FINISH FOURTH AND SIXTH IN MIAMI 250
Winchester, VA - September 20, 2004... BMW Team PTG came within 23 minutes of
their eighth straight Rolex Sports Car Series GT class victory, but the team's
run of good luck ended this weekend. After confidently leading the Miami 250
for more than two hours and 20 minutes, and building a one-lap margin on the
competition, the No. 21 M3 of Bill Auberlen and Justin Marks suffered an engine
failure. The duo was credited with sixth place finish after completing 86 laps.
The No. 22 M3 of Boris Said and Joey Hand finished fourth (98 laps) after an
early race pit stop to replace a cut right rear tire dropped them a number of
laps down. A deteriorating clutch kept them from regaining the lost ground
later in the race.
BMW Team PTG's bad luck resulted in the first win of the year for The Racer's
Group Porsche of Kevin Buckler and Tom Nastasi.
The team's fourth place finish held BMW's lead in all GT-class championships;
Manufacturers Points, Team Points and Drivers Points. Bill Auberlen leads the
Driver's Points (278). Boris Said is just one point behind in second (277),
Justin Marks is fourth (245) and Joey Hand sixth (226).
The next race will be the VIR 400, Round 10 of the Rolex Sports Car Series, at
Virginia International Raceway in Alton, Virginia on October 1-3. The race will
be televised live on Speed Channel at 12:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, Oct. 3.
JOEY HAND, DRIVER NO. 22 BMW TEAM PTG M3 (fourth):
"I got knocked off the track in the opening laps and cut the tire. It took
three or four laps to deflate and finally let go entering Turn 1. I had to limp
back to the pits and, ultimately, we lost two laps there and then one more on
the next caution period. Even before the clutch slowed us, our day was over
early."
BORIS SAID, DRIVER NO. 22 BMW TEAM PTG M3 (fourth):
"The clutch was bad when I got in the car and all I could do was nurse it home.
Sooner or later bad luck catches up with everyone. In fact, it caught up with
both cars this weekend."
JUSTIN MARKS, DRIVER NO. 21 BMWTEAM PTG M3 (sixth):
"Everything went well for me during my stint in the car. It was extremely hot
and humid, but you don't feel it as badly when you are leading. We put
ourselves in a winning position, but today just was not our day."
TOM MILNER, OWNER, BMW TEAM PTG:
"A sixth place finish just does not tell how hard we worked for that eighth
win. We led all day and even gambled a bit on our final pit stop during the
fourth caution period to gain further advantage. We got a wave-by and pitted
the No. 21 M3 early. The guys were fast. They got Bill out before the pace car
came by and we gained a lap on the 67 Porsche. Unfortunately, we lost the
engine and the No. 22 car lost laps early and was not in a position to finish
better than fourth."
HERNANDO CARVAJAL, MOTORSPORT MANAGER, BMW OF NORTH AMERICA, LLC:
"Despite mechanical problems with both M3s, BMW Team PTG managed fourth and
sixth place finishes. The No. 21 M3 was in a strong position for another win,
but we came up some 20 minutes short. On the positive side of things, even
though we did not reach the podium this weekend our seven-race win streak has
kept us in the Championship lead."
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