St. Pete Race!!! March 31, 2007

Checkered flag - The Lizards are 2 and 4 in GT2 with Johannes bringing the No. 45 in to second position behind the No. 62 Ferrari, and No. 44 in fourth. The Ferrari and the Lizard No. 45 again finish 1 and 2 for the second race of the season. Congratulations to the entire Lizard crew, Lonnie, Darren, Johannes and Joerg for a strong race under very difficult conditions.

Tape delayed race coverage begins at 8 pm ET/5 pm PT on SpeedTV.

We will see you all shortly at Long Beach. Check out our schedule at www.lizardms.com
* Jennifer and Shane *

7:52 pm - No. 44 passes Melo in the No. 62, and it could help Lonnie push to catch the No. 21, just 5 seconds ahead. 1 lap to go.

7:51 pm - No. 45 passes Melo in the No. 62 but it's not for position.

7:50 pm - Green flag but just three minutes left to go in the race.

7:43 pm - GT2 positions: P 1 No. 62; P 2 No 45; P 3 No. 21; P 5 No 44.

7:40 p m - One of the Dyson prototoypes just hit the wall and the No. 18 Rahal Porsche is also in the wall after an apparent tire/wheel problem. Johannes radios in that he made it through the incident but "just barely" and he "couldn't see anything for four minutes." Both drivers appear to be fine. 13 minutes left in the session. This moves Johannes to P2.

7:36 pm - Green flag!. Just 20 minutes left in the race. 16 Dyson Porsche prototype pits unexpectedly. Johannes in the No. 45 is one lap down on the leaders No. 62 and No. 18, with Lonnie just 7 seconds behind Johannes.

7:33 pm - GT2 positions are: P 1 No. 62 Risi Ferrari; P 2 No 18 Rahal Porsche; P 3 No 45 Lizard Porsche; P 4 No. 44 Lizard Porsche; P 5 No. 21 Panoz.

7:29 pm - We are still under yellow and race control notified us that because there is so little time left in the race, they will not have a wave by in the yellow.

7:17 pm - The No. 45 crew radios Johannes to confirm that the handling problems that have dogged the car for the entire race, have been fixed. Engineer Stefan Pfeiffer notifies Johannes that they expect that the problems were fixed. The course is still yellow, and we expect the yellow to continue for some time.

7:15 pm - No. 45 is in the pits for tires, fuel, and driver change to Johannes and one more setup adjustment to the rollbar. We still haven't heard yet on the status of driver Thomas Enge, who was driving the Petersen Ferrari.

7:10 pm - No 31 Petersen Ferrari is in the wall. The car looks to have significant damage and a rear engine fire. The driver is being removed from the car by safety personnel It is unclear if the driver has been injured but he is out of the car and the fire has been extinguished.

7:02 pm - GT2 P 1 No. 31; No. 62 P2; No. 18 P 3; No. 45 P 4; No. 21 P 5.

7:00 - No. 44 pits for a driver change to Lonnie, tires and fuel and windshield tearoff and is back out quickly after the fast stop.

**** Listen in to our live team radio communications at www.lizardms.com ***


6:45 - Joerg passes the No. 44 and moves into P 4. He is a full lap down on the three GT2 leaders.

6:44 - Joerg radios in to ask if teammate Darren Law will let him by.

6:42 - No. 31 P 1; No. 62 P 2; No. 18 P 3; No 44 P 4 ; No 45 P 5. Darren and Joerg are still 1 lap down on the leaders.

6:36 pm - The No. 45 pits twice in succession under yellow for the engineers to make some rollbar adjustments to improve the cars' handling. Although he made 2 pit stops, he only lost one position (to Darren in the No. 44) because he was able to catch the pack each time under yellow and not lose a lap.

6:26 pm - One of the Dyson cars spun on track, and appears to be stalled. the course is yellow. Joerg calls in that there is a loose rumble strip - which is a significant hazard to the cars if they were to hit it. Joerg asks the crew to report it to race control. the No. 45 crew gets ready for a pit stop under yellow.

6:22 pm - The No. 62 and No. 31 Ferraris were able to move past the No. 45 Porsche, which although behind them in position, was not giving up position to them easily. Taking advantage of one of the few passing opportunities, the two Ferraris have moved past and are now 1 lap up on Jeorg in the No. 45. Positions are P 1 No. 62; P 2 No. 31; P 3 No. 18; P 4 No. 45; P 5 No. 44

6:15 pm - No. 62 Ferrari P 1; No. 31 P2; No. 18 P 3 Panoz; No. 45 P 4; No 44 P 5.

6:09 pm - Just before the course was ready to go green, the Intersport prototype spun on track and caused a further delay. The track is extremely slippery and the drivers reporting its very tough - especially offline.

5:59 pm - The course remains yellow. The No 18 and the No. 31 cars, which had not pitted under the earlier yellow, take advantage of this yellow to pit. the No. 26 Acura is back in the pits. Something appears to be going on with one of the Corvettes.

5:55 pm - No. 26 Acura was contacted by one of the Penskes, sending him into the wall. The course again goes yellow to remove the damaged car from the track. The driver appears to be fine and is remaining in the car.

5:51 pm - No. 44 and NO. 45 pit simultaneously. No. 45 is out first, then the No. 44. The course is still yellow.

5:48 pm - Tafel No. 71 Porsche is having some problems with their fueling in an extended pit stop. They were the leader, so the long pit will affect the positions. Both cars are pitting. No. 45 for tires, fuel and driver change to Joerg. No. 44 for tires and fuel only.

5:44 pm - A double yellow to remove the No. 8 Mazda has the crews moving quickly to suit up for a possible pit stop. Joerg Bergmeister is getting ready to get into the car. Chief strategist Thomas Blam will make the call if and when to pit - it's early in the race to do a driver change, but even a short time on this track is extremely difficult for the drivers. Because there are no real straights, just turns, the drivers have no chance to "rest" during the race.

5:38 pm - The No. 8 Mazda prototype has spun and is stopped on course. Looks llike he will be able to continue under power but he's creating abit of a hazard. Luckily everyone was able to get around him without incident and he's back on track.

5:32 pm - GT2 positions: P 1 No. 71 Tafel Porsche; P2 No. 62 Risi Ferrari; P 3 No. 45 Lizard Porsche; P 4 No. 44 Fying Lizard Porsche
5:29 - Darren passes one of the Tafel Porsches for position and moves into P 4.

5:26 - 20 minutes into our 2 hour and 45 minute race, Lizards are P3 (No. 45) and P 5 in No. 44.

5:17 pm - It's green flag racing. Johannes is out in the No. 45 and Darren in the No. 44. The Lizards started fifth and sixth on the grid and are now in It was an exciting start as some of the prototypes got together just at race start - looks like everyone was able to continue without pitting. Just a few minutes into the race, we are now P 3 and P 5 (45 and 44 respectively).


A reminder that we are broadcasting our radio communications live - you can listen in at www.lizardms.com.

Radio Free Lizard at St. Pete - Final Practice

2:05pm ET - We've had a shortened 2nd practice here at St. Pete, a wreck by the #18 Porsche early in the session shortened afternoon practice by about 20 minutes, leaving precious little time for the team to adjust setups ahead of qualifying at 2:20pm local time.

The driver of the #18 was uninjured, as was the driver of the #61 Ferrari which crashed in the morning session. That car has been withdrawn from the race, trimming the GT field to 10 cars.

Welcome to St. Petersburg - First Practice

8:46am ET - Welcome to the Lizards' second-ever street race. We're here in sunny St. Pete for a combined race with the IRL, and there are plenty of challenges to be overcome. The logistical challenges of racing on a temporary street circuit are tough, for example we have very short windows of opportunity to get to and from pitlane with all of our equipment before and after track sessions, and it's a bit of a hike from our paddock to the rest of the circuit.

We've been noticing lots of wildlife so far this weekend - Jennifer noted seeing an alligator on her morning run yesterday, and she and Shane saw a dolphin in the harbor during their track tour in the afternoon. Then we had reports of "livestock on the track" before morning practice started.

The circuit itself is reported by the drivers to be nicer than the average street course. It's relatively wide, and it certainly is scenic, but the drivers and engineers did a walkaround yesterday and said that the surface of the track would be a challenge. Sure enough, within 2 laps of hitting the track this morning, Darren reported that the camber change in turn 3 - one of narrowest parts of the track - gets the car very unsettled. If previous ALMS street races are any indication, there may well be some carnage on track this weekend.

2nd in GT2 - A Podium for the Lizards

One of the most exciting GT2 races ever is over - with Joerg passing the No. 62 on the last turn before the finish line after a heroic battle for the lead, gaining an average of 2 seconds per lap over the last 10 laps, he was pushed into the wall by the No. 62, which made contact at the end. The unofficial results are the No. 45 in P2 and the No. 44 in p 13.

Congratulations to the entire Lizard crew on an incredible race and to Joerg for putting on an incredible show.

9:40 pm ET - Race Update

9:40 pm -Joerg is a man on a mission - he has the Ferrari in his sights and wants this win. This last lap, Joerg was nearly 3 seconds faster than the Ferrari. Joerg has hit some traffic now and needs to navigate it quickly so he doesn't lose any time.

9:32 pm - The No. 62 Risi car appears to have been assessed a 20 second penalty and he stayed on his tires. The No. 45 is still in P 2, but now only 13 seconds behind the No. 62. No. 44 pits for tires and fuel, but Lonnie will stay in the car.

9:30 pm ET - Marc radios in that he needs to come in - the tires are done and Marc needs to get out. The No. 45 will do a driver change to Joerg and the crew will take advantage of the stop for fresh tires and fuel. Barring any problems, this will be the final stop for the No. 45. The No. 44 will also come in one more time for tires and fuel. The crew warns Marc of oil in pit lane from one of the panoz cars and tells him to do a "late entry" which means a sharp turn into his pit stall. Marc is out of the car and Joerg in a lightning fast pit stop.

The No. 62 pits just after the No. 45 - we'll see how their stop goes.

9:20 pm ET - Race Update

9:20 pm ET - Marc is still in P 2, right behind the No. 62 Ferrari. Both cars will need to pit one more time before race end for a splash of fuel.

8:43 pm ET - Darren radios in that he is on fuel reserve and pits for tires and fuel and driver change to Lonnie Pechnik.

8:41 pm ET - The Ferrari took advantage of traffic and nosed underneath Marc to retake the lead. These two cars have changed the lead nearly a dozen times over the last 11 hours.

8:40 pm ET - The Ferrari is back and he and the N0. 45 are once again in a battle for the finish.
Marc is fresh in the car and will push to stay ahead and not give the Ferrari a chance to get by.

8:33 pm - The No. 62 Ferrari is now in the pits and and Jaime Melo is staying in the car for tires and fuel . The 62 car appeasr to be having trouble starting which delayed the pit stop. The TV showed Marc just passing by as Melo exited the pits. With 1.5 hours to go in the race, Marc is P1 in the No. 45 and the Ferrari will once again have to pass him. Both cars will need to do another pit stop for a fuel splash to finish the race.

8:30 pm - Joerg was 13 seconds behind when he pitted and Marc is out just a short while later in a very fast pit stop.

8:28 pm - Joerg hits the bobble and the crew calls him in. They will do fuel, tires and driver change to Marc Lieb.

7:59 pm ET - Race Update

7:59 pm ET - No. 44 now in P 15. Joerg continues to push the Ferrari but reports that the tires are rapidly losing grip as the track cools down.

7:45 pm ET - The No. 62 passes the No. 44, and the No. 45 prepares to move past the No. 44 to continue its chase.

7:43 pm - No. 44 pits for tires and fuel and driver change from Seth to Darren Law. The car is currently in P 16. No. 45 is still in P2 behind the No. 62 Ferrari.

7:32 pm ET - Race Update

7:32 pm - The No. 62 pits and exits the pits just ahead of the No. 45 to take the lead. The two cars continue their shuffle with No. 45 this time in pursuit. It's been an incredible battle between these two cars for the entire race - shifting among all six drivers in the two cars.

7:29 pm - No. 45 pits - driver change to Joerg, tires and fuel.

7:22 pm - With just under 3 hours to go, the No. 45 remains in the lead with Marc Lieb at the wheel. Mika Salo has regained some of the ground he lost after his spin and is closing the gap once again to Marc. Marc is due to pit soon, and we believe the Ferrari will also need to pit in the next 10 minutes or so. With the pit stop, you'll see the Ferrari take the lead, then Joerg Bergmeister, taking over for Marc, will work to close the gap once again.

7:57 pm ET

7:57 pm ET - The No. 73 Tafel car appears to have had tire problems and is slow on track.

6:53 pm ET - In hot pursuit of Marc Lieb in the No. 45, Salo spins in the No. 62. He's able to continue, but may need to pit for new tires. Post-spin, Marc has gained a bit of breathing room - with an 11 second lead. The No. 44 continues in P 16 - but the good news is the car is still on track, given the substantial damage sustained so early in the race. It's important for both cars to finish the race because of the higher points given in this race.

6:31 pm ET - Race Update

6:31 pm ET - The No. 62 is hot in pursuit of Marc Lieb in the No. 45 but is having to fight traffic. He makes it past two slower Porsches and is directly behind Marc - once again they are fighting tooth and nail for th elead.

6:26 pm ET - No. 45 in GT2 lead

6:26 pm ET - the No. 45 pits for driver change to Marc Lieb. Both the No. 62 and the No. 45 pit at the same time and the No. 45 beats the NO. 62 out of the pits to take race lead.

6:04 pm ET - RAce Update

6:04 pm ET - the No. 32 Ferrari is on fire on track. A significant engine fire. Driver Jose Maria Lopez in the car pulls off and is safely out of the car.

6:00 pm ET - The No. 44 continues to be dogged with problems. Lonnie reports a problem, pits, and the crew diagnoses a broken coil pack, which means that the car is going on 5 cylinders. The crew replaces the coil part in the pits.

5:46 pm ET - Race Update

5:46 pm ET - After another pit stop, Johannes is back out under green. He is just 9 seconds back from the No. 62 Ferrari.

5:37 pm ET - Johannes enteres pit lane, reporting that the car has shut off. We are not sure what's going on yet, but Johannes was able to restart the car. Luckily we are still under yellow so he has not lost too much time. The crew may call JOhannes in on the next lap if the problem persists.

5:35 pm ET - The course goes double yellow and chief strategist Thomas Blam reminds the crew that if they need to change brake pads, this will be the time to do it.

5:34 pm ET - Johannes in P 2 behind Mika Salo in the No. 62 Ferrrari. It was a longer than normal pit stop for the No. 45, and Johannes is now about 15 seconds behind the No. 62.

5:25 pm ET - Jörg pits for driver change to Johannes, tires and fuel. The course is still yellow, but will go green on next lap. Both the 45 and the 62 are in the pits. The No. 45 had a longer than usual pit stop but is out again on course.

5:18 pm ET Race Update

5:18 pm ET - The course is still in full yellow. A good long yellow, and it went in our favor. We are in P2, but now four laps ahead of the No. 71 Tafel Porsche. Jaime Melo still leads in the No. 62 Ferrari, but Joerg was able to close up just behind him - he's now just 1 second back. At green flag, we expect those two cars to be in a battle for the lead. They are now the only two GT2 cars on the lead lap. Lonnie is in P 16 in the No. 44.

5:13 pm - The No. 44 pits for driver change from Seth to Lonnie. The No. 45 stays out and Joerg works to get the wave by so he can stay on the same lap as the No. 62 Ferrari. The crew is discussing when to bring Joerg in for driver change.

5:07 pm ET - Race Update -

5:07 pm ET - The course goes double yellow due to bodywork from one of the prototypes after two collided on course. The yellow is good news for the No. 44 which was preparing to pit anyway. This could help the No. 44 gain back lap on the field. It could also help the No. 45, and allow Joerg to close the gap with the No. 62 - he is only 7 seconds behind. It could also allow the No. 71 car to catch back up to Joerg.

5:05 ET - Race Update

5:05 ET - the No. 44 is preparing to pit in a few laps for driver change to Lonnie Pechnik, tires and fuel.

5:00 - the No. 71 Tafel Porsche has pitted. Due to the length of the pit stop there appear to be some issues.

4:48 pm ET - Race Update

4:48 pm ET - Looks like Joerg turned the fastest GT2 lap time so far, a 2:02:953. He continues to work to close the gap between him and the leader, the No. 62. The No. 62 if starting to fall off his times a bit. Wolf Henzer is in the No. 71 Tafel Porsche, and is on the same lap as Joerg and Jaime Melo in the No. 61. Darren continues his run in P 16.

4:22 pm ET - RAce Update

4:22 pm ET - Marc Lieb brings the No. 45 in for a driver change to Joerg.

3:56 pm ET - Race update

3:56 pm ET - Marc continues to hold his pace in the No. 45. His last lap was the the second fastest of GT2 so far in the race. He holds in P 2 behind the No. 62 Ferarri with pat long close behind in the No. 71 Porsche

3:32 pm ET - Race Update

3:32 pm - Marc Lieb in No. 45 is now in P 2, No. 71 in P 3.

3:25 pm - Positions are: P 1 No. 62; P 2 No. 71; P 3 No. 45; P 4 No. 86; P 5 No. 85. The No. 44 is back on track but in P 17.

3:22 pm ET - The No. 44 pits one more time for a final inspection. Darren says that the car feels pretty good.

3:18 ET - Johannes radios in that a tire is going down. luckily, he is close to pit in and the crew calls him in for an early stop and driver change to Marc Lieb

3:17 pm - Johannes reports that the No. 71 Tafel Porsche has gotten by him in traffic. That puts the No. 45 in P3. Johannes will pit in a few laps for driver change to Marc Lieb, tires and fuel.

3:14 pm ET - Darren stays out but reports that the car is not handling well, but appears safe. With the major repair that was required to get the car back on track, it will be very difficult, if not impossible for the crew to get the car into complete alignment.

3:00 pm ET - The No. 44 is back on track again after nearly 2 hours off track, but Darren reports continued problems with the car. The crew calls him back in and crew chief Tommy Sadler and No. 45 head mechanic Roger Reis will go over the wall to see if they can determine the problem.

2:51 pm ET - Race Update

2:51 pm ET. Positions are: P1 No. 62; P 2 No. 45; P 3 No. 71; P 4 No. 32. Johannes in the No. 45 is gaining on the No. 62 Ferrari. Pat Long in the No. 71 Tafel Porsche is in turn gaining on Johannes. The No. 44 crew is sending the No. 44 back to pit lane to try once again to rejoin the race.

2:34 pm ET Race Update - No. 62 pits

2:34 pm - The No. 62 Ferrari, which is in the lead, pitted unexpectedly. It was unclear what the problem was, but the car was on its way again shortly. Johannes remains in P2, although he did regain some time on the No. 62 while it was in the pits.

The No. 44 has gone back to the garage again for more repairs after Darren made an attempt to rejoin the race, but discovered that there were still problems.

Race - 2:26 pm No. 44 back on track

2:26 pm - The No. 44 crew has the car back on track - an hour and 15 minutes after it went behind the wall to repair suspension damage after it was hit by the No. 31 Ferrari. Darren is in the car. The No. 44 is currently P 16. On his outlap he called in that there was a problem with the car. Team manager Eric Ingraham calls Darren in. Because some of the NO. 44 crew is still in the garage from the repair, the No. 45 crew is helping out.

Race - 2:22 pm ET

2:22 pm ET - No. 45 pits for driver change to Johannes, tires and fuel. The helmet blower, which cools the drivers in the car, broke early in Joerg's stint which increases significantly the heat in the cockpit. When he pitted, Johannes was in P 2.

Race: 2 pm ET

2:00 pm - Joerg has repassed the No. 32 Ferrari, moving back into P 2 behind the NO. 62 Ferrari. No. 44 repairs are nearing completion, we expect the car back in the pits soon.

Race - 1:50 pm ET

1:50 pm ET - The No. 45 is in P 3, behind the No. 62 Ferrari in P1, and the No. 32 Ferrari in P2. The NO. 44 is still behind the wall as the crew completes the suspension repair. Joerg is behind held up by traffic as he attempts to catch back up with the No. 32.

Race!!! 12 Hours of Sebring

1:29 pm - Green flag. No. 44 still behind wall.

1:22 pm - The No. 44 is still behind the wall. The No. 45 is in P2. Unfortunately, the only caution so far in the race was called just after the No.45 completed their scheduled pit stop. During the yellow, the cars behind the No. 45 were able to catch up to Joerg under yellow (by receiving the "wave by") . So now the No. 71 Porsche and the No. 32 Ferrari are on the same lap as Joerg.

1:12 pm - The No. 44 has a left flat rear tire, creating major bodywork and suspension damage in the right rear. Luckily, Lonnie is able to make it to pit lane. The crew makes the call to go behind the wall to fix the broken left rear suspension. It appears that the No. 61 Ferrari spun on track and hit the NO. 44, which caused the damage and a full course caution to remove the NO. 61.. Meanwhile Joerg continues in P 2 behind the Ferrari.

1:09 - The No. 45 Porsche is pitting for driver change to Joerg, tires and fuel.

12:59 - With Marc still running in P 1 just ahead of the No. 62, he was caught behind a slower GT2 Porsche, giving the No. 62 Ferrari the chance to show its speed and move beyond both cars in a clean pass. Thomas Blam reassured Marc that he has only a few laps to pit and to keep his pace. Lonnie continues in P 11.

12:33 - The No. 62 Ferrari has moved around the No. 44 now and continues his chase of the No 45. Additional traffic from the other classes has increased the gap between Marc in P1 in the NO. 45 and Mika in the NO. 44.

12:30 pm - In the No. 44, Lonnie continues to hold off the No. 62 Ferrari, which is chasing the No. 45. With a lot of traffic including prototypes and Corvettes it's really crowded as they all move to pass the GT2 cars.

Reminder - we are broadcasting our team radio live at www.lizardms.com. Right now we have a live interview with Joerg.

12:25 pm - The NO. 44 and No. 45 are running together on track, although the No. 44 is two laps back. The No. 62 Ferrari, with Mika Salo at the wheel is in the hunt for the No. 45 and is working hard to catch him. The No. 44 is now in between the two.

12:16 pm - Marc Lieb moves into P1 as the No. 62 and the No. 73 pit. Pechnik is out in P 11. The No. 44 is two laps down on the GT2 leader.

12:15 pm - Neiman is in in the No. 44 for driver change to Lonnie, tires and fuel.

12:09 pm - A fast pit stop for the No. 45 crew - swtiching over to Marc Lieb. He's still behind the leader (the No. 62 Ferrari) and the No. 73 Porsche, but neither of those cars have come in for their second pit stops. So, he should move to P 1 when those cars pit.

12:02 pm - Johannes has the bobble which means that he has to switch to reserve fuel and he's preparing to come in for pit stop and driver change to Marc Lieb. In the NO. 44, Seth will continue for another 10 minutes or so before turning it over to Lonnie.

11:51 am - Johannes is in P2 just 4 seconds behind Jaime Melo in the No. 62 Ferrari. The NO. 45 has been in second since its first pit stop and driver change. Chief Strategist Thomas Blam just notified Johannes that he had 9 laps left in his stint. So we should expect him to pit around 12:05 or so. The No. 31 Ferrari is just returning to the track after some repairs. Seth Nieman is in the No. 44 Porsche is now in P 11. The No. 44 lost a few positions during a longer than usual pit stop to repair bodywork damage sustained in the incident earlier in the race.

11:21 am - Jörg and Darren both have completed their pit stops. Johannes van Overbeek now into the No. 45 car, currently running in p2, close behind the No. 62 Ferrari, running nearly identical lap times. The No. 44 car is currently 2 laps down on the leader, having lost laps in the pits to fix minor bodywork damage to the rear of the car and as the crew checks for structural or mechanical damage. Seth Neiman now behind the wheel of the No. 44 car.

10:50 am - Joerg continues in P1 and is running nearly 2 seconds ahead of the No. 62 Ferarri who is in P 2. Darren is in P 7.

10:31 - The GT2 field continues to have problems. The No. 44 is hit by the rear by the No. 22 Panoz and reports that some bodywork is loose. Darren reports that he can continue. The No 31 Petersen White Lightning Ferrari is back in the pits. The No. 22 Panoz is back in the pits and the No. 37 prototype went off course but continued. Joerg continues in P 1 and No. 73 in P 2. Darren is in P 7.

10:18 am - Joerg is beginning to reel in the P 1 No. 73 Tafel Porsche. He's closed the gap by 2 seconds in the last few laps. He is currently .4 seconds behind. In P 3 Nic Jonsson is about 7 seconds behind Joerg. Darren meanwhile in the No. 44 is has moved up to P 9. So far, the Lizards have stayed out of trouble.

10:10 am - An eventful raee start for GT2 as the crowded field jockied for position. We weren't able to see it on TV but it looks like the No. 31 Petersen White Lightning Ferrari and the No. 71 Tafel Porsche got together in turn 3 at race start. Both cars pitted within the next 2 laps. The No. 18 Rahal Porsche also went in for an early unscheduled pit stop. So just 7 minutes into the race, the field is No. 73 P1, No. 45 P2, No 61 P3, No. 21 P 4, No 22 P 5, No. 44 P 6.

10:00 am ET - The race is just about to start. With the national anthem complete, the teams are ined up on the grid and the flyover is about to begin. Lizards will start in P2 (No. 45) and P 11 (No. 44) respectively. Joerg Bergmeister and Darren Law are starting the race. The cars are heading out for their pace laps now.

Race day! Morning Warmup

7:50 am - Thanks for joining us this morning. Happily, the warmup was uneventful. We'll post the final starting grid as soon as it is published by the ALMS.
We'll be back online just before the race - around 9:45 am. You can also tune into our radio at http://www.lizardms.com/radio.htm

7:39 pm ET - Johannes just brought the No. 45 in and Marc Lieb headed out. Seth Neiman is in the No. 44, following Lonnie who took the Porsche out for the first few laps. All six drivers will cycle through the short warmup session. The goal for each car is to do a final shakedown - if there's anything wrong, this is the time to find it prior to race.

7:30 am ET - Good morning from Sebring. It's raceday and the teams are heading out on the track for the final warmup before today's race. It's a chilly and breezy 50 degrees here. We had more torrential rain yesterday which made for a wet afternoon. It looks like the storm may have passed and we hope to have clear skies today. This is the first morning warmup we've ever begun in the dark.

In addition to the blog postings, we'll broadcast our radio transmissions all day today. Shane Mahoney and I will be on the radio too to give an overview of what's happening. That's us in that photo. You can listen in at
http://www.lizardms.com/radio.htm

Since we are newbies at the radio, we'd appreciate your feedback. You can e-mail us with feedback or questions during the race at info@lizardms.com.

You can also comment on our blog postings (moderated).

Thanks for joining us!

March 16 - Final Practice

10:30 am ET - The Krohn Ferrari is dead on the track, reporting a throttle problem. The #8 Mazda slowed on the track as well, but returns to the pits under its own power.


10:22 am ET - Final practice today, 55 minutes on track this morning and the last chance for the team to finalize race setup. Johannes starts in the No. 45, Darren in the No. 44.

Johannes reports a high-speed stability problem, and Darren reports the track is 'green' - meaning that there's very little grip available. Heavy rains yesterday and through the night have washed the track of the rubber and chemicals that build up on the surface through the course of cars running on track.

March 15 - RAIN!!!! Night Practice

Good night from Sebring! We'll see you Friday at 9:55 ET when we are back on track for morning practice - thanks! Jennifer

9:35 pm - Joerg went out for one additional lap, a red flag was called because of an accident in turn 1 which appears to be one of the Audis. Joerg reports that the problem appears to be resolved.

9:26 pm - Joerg reports something is off with the No. 45 and it is misfiring. He has finished his 3 laps so the crew tells him to proceed slowly and bring the car in. The crew will take the car back to the paddock, determine if there is an issue, add fuel in the paddock, then come back out to do one final lap to see if they can find the problem.

9:22 pm - Seth arrives in pit lane and the crew puts transports on the No. 44 Porsche and heads back to the paddock. Crew chief Tommy Sadler calls Johannes in in the No. 45 and Joerg takes the wheel for night stint.

9:10 pm - Seth takes the wheel of the No. 44. In the No. 45, Marc radios in that his tires are done and the crew makes the call to send Johannes out on slicks (non rain tires). No, cancel that, they decided to leave Johannes on rains.

9:05 pm ET - The No. 45 just arrived in pit lane with Marc Lieb at the wheel. Just in time - there are less than 40 minutes left in the session and all three drivers need to do their 3 laps. Darren is out in the No. 44 now.

8:50 pm ET - Tonight's practice has been delayed due to rain. Well, more than just rain - we were doused by a torrential downpour that began around 6 pm and lasted nearly an hour, turning the paddock into a lake. The winds caused some damage to a few canopies in the paddock but overall everyone seems to have weathered it OK.

Night practice is being run as planned, but will now last until 9:40 pm. Each driver is required to do 3 laps at night. The No. 44 is out now and Lonnie is just finishing up his laps. Darren will be next, and then Seth. The No. 45 is still in the paddock but will head out soon.

The cars are running slowly and the drivers are being extremely cautious- 2:22 is the fastest GT2 time so far. Lonnie reports that the track is still wet in a few areas, but in general is fairly dry.

March 15 - Sebring Qualifying

3:53 pm ET - Qualfying is complete. Jörg in the No. 45 qualified 3rd with a 2:03.043, 6/10ths behind the polesitter, Melo in the No. 62 Risi Ferrari. Darren qualified the No. 44 in 12th. Joerg commented on the session, “This morning, I was pretty happy with the No. 45. We had a bit of understeer in the slow-speed corners and were working on fixing that before qualifying. Unfortunately, with the warmer temperatures and the changes, we couldn’t get quite where we wanted to be for the qualifying session. But in general we were the fastest Porsche and that’s a good sign. We have to work a bit more on race setup over the final two sessions and see where we are.”

We’ll be back on line tonight for night practice starting at 7:45 pm ET.

Reminder – Lizards will broadcast team radio transmissions live from the track on race day, starting with morning warmup. For times see http://www.lizardms.com/radio.htm

3:44 pm ET - We're live watching Jörg and Darren qualify the Nos. 45 and 44 cars, respectively. The 62 Risi Ferrari went off in turn one and very nearly hit the wall, hard. With a few minutes left to run, they've got the pole lap, with a 2:02.439.

March 14 - Radio Free Lizard

5:02 pm ET - We marketing folks spent the afternoon's session setting up and tuning our new radio broadcast equipment. In 2007, we're expanding the team radio communications to include more content, specifically commentary by Jennifer Hart and Shane Mahoney. We think it'll be a pretty unique way for our fans to get access to what goes on with the team - it might be a little bumpy at first, but we'll get it ironed out as time goes on. We found out today that it's difficult to get a decent-sounding radio broadcast out over the internet, and after some trial and tribulation, we got it pretty dialed in.

We're going to be broadcasting live online on Saturday, check back to our homepage for the link. Times are:

7:30am ET - 7:50am ET (morning warmup)
9:30am ET - 10pm ET - race (approx)

March 14 - Afternoon Practice

2:15 pm PT - Nos. 44 and 45 out for afternoon practice, Johannes into the No. 45 and Lonnie in the No. 44. 55 minutes of practice this afternoon, both cars scheduled to run the duration, focused on race setup.

March 14 - Morning Practice

11:07 am ET - With the No. 45 back in the paddock for repairs, the No. 44 continues through the end of practice. Seth was in the car for most of the session, handing it over to Lonnie at the end for a final few laps. So far in the session, the No. 45 has the fifth fastest time, behind four of the Ferraris (61, 62, 31 and 32). Five minutes left in the session.

10:37 am ET - The No. 45 appears to have a problem on track. We may have a broken axle. Joerg is attempting to bring the car into the pits. They'll take the car back to the paddock for repairs.

10:30 am ET - Good morning from Sebring. The Lizards are heading out for morning practice. Joerg is in the No. 45 and Seth is in the No. 44. The team learned this morning that our Porsches exhaust note registers at 104 decibels, and the diesel Audis register at only 95 db. By comparison, a rock concert is rated at 120db, and Wikipedia tells us that the perceived loudness doubles with every 10db increase, so that explains why the Audis seem so much quieter than our Porsches.

We have two sessions today. This morning until 11:15 am, and this afternoon from 2:15-3:10.

Troy Lee Launch

We're happy to have announced our partnership with Troy Lee Designs today, it's been fun to see the news spread across the internet and start to get emails from fans. We think it's going to be a very cool way to soup up our image this season!

We embarked on a PR junta with our announcement this morning, and we've had some cool hits so far. Check out Winding Road magazine's link - click here.

Also, our friends at Autoblog gave us a nice photo feature, which is here.

We're not sure if any of our friends and fans Digg, but if so, Digg us! Click here.

We'll be updating the blog continually throughout Sebring, so check back.

Welcome to the 2007 Season!

This is our ongoing Blog for the 2007 ALMS season. Please check back frequently.