Audi does it again at Road Atlanta

Audi wins ninth straight Petit

race at Road Atlanta

YOUR ROVING ATLANTAAUTOBEAT CORRESPONDENT IN THE PIT WITH TEAM AUDI

Audi won the 11th annual Petit LeMans at Road Atlant Saturday, fending off a formidable challenge by Peugeot.
It was Audi's ninth straight Petit victory.

Allan McNish, behind the wheel of the Audi in the top LMP1 class, had to muster a comeback after missing the first two laps of the race because he crashed as he came around to line up for the start.

VIEW THE THRILLING LAST LAPS OF THE RACE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQX30sCYiuw

But he eventually outmaneuvered Peugeot, driven by Christian Klien.

For McNish, it marked his third straight win and fourth overall for him and his co-drivers, Dindo Capello and Emanuele Pirro.

The Audi car is powered by the company's TDI turbodiesel technology, which is clean and quiet.
Helio Castroneves, best known as an Indy car driver, was on the track. Just a day earlier, he was in court facing tax-evasion charges. But he and teammate Ryan Briscoe won the LMP2 category for Penske Racing.

I was lucky enough to be down in the pit with the Audi crew in the waning moments of the race. Seeing the whole operation was a thrill, and even though you might be tempted to think of race car driving as an individual sport, when you are in the pit, you see how much of a team sport it really is.

There were people monitoring virtually everything that could be monitored, and they all worked with such precision.

And when the race is as close as it was last night, even the slightest error can be very costly.

What a rush it was to witness all that up close -- thanks, Audi.

All in all, it was a great night of racing at Road Atlanta.

If you've never been to the track, make sure you go -- it's a great place to have fun and enjoy motorsports.