Road America: David Brabham preview

Sportscar ace David Brabham heads for round seven of the American Le Mans Series, the Generac 500 at Road America on 8-9 August, with the intention of taking the race spoils and vital championship points from LMP2 class leaders Timo Bernhard and Romain Dumas.

The native Aussie, who resides in Henley-on-Thames, tips the permanent road course at Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, as one of the best race tracks in America, where the LMP2 battle between Brabham's Patron Highcroft Racing Acura and the Penske Porsche is sure to rage throughout the four-hour race.

After a stunning outright pole to flag victory at Lime Rock and a sensational second in class one week later at Mid-Ohio, Brabham and team mate Scott Sharp boast two wins and a pair of second place finishes among their 2008 highlights. Their stunning form leaves the duo second in the LMP2 championship standings with 94 points and, with Bernhard and Dumas leading on 122 points, Brabs and Sharp will be aiming to pull out all the stops and close the 28 point gap at Road America.

"A lot of preparation has gone into this next race but a lot depends on whether some new parts will be available in time for Road America," said Brabs. "We have an intensive ongoing development programme in place and although we are clearly competitive, with a great run and outright victory at Lime Rock followed by second in class at Mid-Ohio, we need to go even better at Road America.

"It's time for us to step up to the plate and the Patron Highcroft Racing team have proved time and again that they can keep pushing the boundaries and I have every confidence in them. If we can get the development parts ready in time we will definitely improve on last year's result. Obviously our aim will be to win at Road America and every remaining round in order to beat the Porsches and win the championship."

For the latest American Le Mans Series news visit www.americanlemans.com and for the provisional Road America race weekend schedule visit www.roadamerica.com

-credit: www.davidbrabham.com