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Porsche pilots keen to tackle the WEC premiere in Texas

As part of this year's sports car World Endurance Championship WEC campaign, Porsche competes for the first time on the Circuit of the Americas on 22 September in Austin. Fans in the United States can not only look forward to seeing the successful Le Mans contender Porsche 911 RSR in action, which is fielded by Porsche AG Team Manthey in the hotly-contested GTE-Pro class. Also racing on this weekend alongside the WEC is the American Le Mans Series with a strong Porsche contingent on the Formula 1 track in the Texas capital close to the Colorado River

The Porsche drivers
Porsche factory pilots and Le Mans winners Marc Lieb (Germany) and Richard Lietz (Austria) share the cockpit of the number 92 Porsche 911 RSR in Austin. Their works driver colleagues Joerg Bergmeister (Germany) and Patrick Pilet (France), who recently scored third in Sao Paulo, take up the race in the number 91 car. In the GTE-Am class, two customer teams field last year's Porsche 911 GT3 RSR: Driving for IMSA Performance Matmut are the Le Mans winners from France, Raymond Narac, Jean-Karl Vernay and Christophe Bourret. Competing for the Proton Competition squad is team owner Christian Ried (Germany) with his Italian teammates Paolo Ruberti and Gianluca Roda.

The Porsche 911 RSR
The 470 hp Porsche 911 RSR features consequent lightweight design and sophisticated aerodynamics. The look of the 2013 Le Mans winner (GTE-Pro) is dominated by the flared fenders and the cooling air intake at the front. The exceptional livery of the car honours the anniversary, "50 years of the 911". As the successor to the winning 911 GT3 RSR, with which Porsche customers have scored many victories and title wins since 2004, the GT racer from Weissach is based on the seventh generation of the iconic 911 sports car.

The schedule
The six-hour race on the Circuit of the Americas starts on 22 September at 11.00 hours local time (18.00 CEST). Eurosport International broadcasts the starting phase live from 18.00 to 19.00 hours CEST. From 20.30 to 22.30 hours, Eurosport 2 telecasts live race action. The final phase of the race is covered live by Eurosport from 22.30 p.m. to midnight. Viewers can follow the race live on the internet under www.fiawec.com.

Comments before the race
Hartmut Kristen, Head of Porsche Motorsport: "The race in Austin is undoubtedly a real asset and a gain for the WEC. After all, motor racing has a great tradition in America. The USA is one of the most important markets for Porsche. That's why we are particularly pleased to showcase the Porsche 911 RSR, which did so well recently in Le Mans, to our many US fans for the first time at a race meeting."
Joerg Bergmeister (# 91): "Austin is one of the few race tracks in the USA that I don't know. The greatest challenge for us all will be to quickly familiarise ourselves with the circuit and to find the optimal race set-up during practice." Patrick Pilet (# 91): "I only know this track from TV. It'll certainly be an interesting race. Like in Le Mans and Sao Paulo, I'm hoping for another podium result."
Marc Lieb (# 92): "A new race always adds interest to the series. I'm looking forward to the Austin track. There are a couple of unusual corner combinations. All in all, it looks interesting and rather challenging."
Richard Lietz (# 92): "The track is new for us all. But we had an additional day of testing so it shouldn't be a problem. Our goal is to bring home a top result and keep the bid for the championship open."

The Sports Car World Endurance Championship WEC
In the sports car World Endurance Championship WEC, sports prototypes and GT vehicles start in four classes: LMGTE-Pro, LMGTE-Am, LMP1 and LMP2. They all compete in one race but are classified separately.

Points standings after 4 of 8 races
World Cup for Manufacturers GTE
1. Ferrari, 149 points
2. Porsche, 145
3. Aston Martin, 134

World Endurance Cup for GTE drivers
1. Darren Turner, Stefan Mücke ( Aston Martin), 86 points
2. Marc Lieb, Richard Lietz (Porsche), 84
3. Giancarlo Fisichella, Gianmaria Bruni (Ferrari), 81
4. Romain Dumas (Porsche), 72
5. Joerg Bergmeister, Patrick Pilet (Porsche), 57

FIA Endurance Trophy for GTE-Am drivers
1. Jean-Karl Vernay, Raymond Narac (Porsche), 76 points
2. Jamie Campbell-Walter, Stuart Hall (Aston Martin), 70
3. Christophe Bourret (Porsche), 68
6. Christian Ried, Paolo Ruberti, Gianluca Roda (Porsche), 47

FIA Endurance Trophy for GTE-Pro teams
1. Aston Martin Racing (Aston Martin), 89 points
2. Porsche AG Team Manthey (Porsche), 87
3. AF Corse (Ferrari), 81

FIA Endurance Trophy for GTE-Am teams
1. IMSA Performance Matmut (Porsche), 76 points
2. 8 Star Motorsports (Ferrari), 74
3. Aston Martin Racing (Aston Martin), 74
5. Proton Competition (Porsche), 55