Auberlen keeps BMW Team RLL on a roll with fastest GT lap

Klaus Graf set the fastest time in testing Friday for Mobil1 presents the Grand Prix of Mosport, a 1:09.172 (127.977 mph) lap in the V12-powered Lola-Aston Martin coupe that he will share with Lucas Luhr. Graf and the Muscle Milk squad are looking for their second straight victory at the Canadian circuit in the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón. Romain Dumas teamed with Graf for a win in 2010 with a Porsche RS Spyder.

Graf was 2.251 seconds clear of Steven Kane in Oryx Dyson Racing’s Lola-Mazda coupe. This is the first race at Mosport for Kane and teammate Humaid Al Masaood; they combined for a third-place finish in their ALMS debut two weeks ago at Lime Rock Park.

LMP1 championship co-leader Chris Dyson was third quickest Friday at 1:11.477 (123.850 mph). The Lola-Mazda he will drive with Guy Smith missed most of the session with a slight mechanical issue. The Dyson/Smith duo are coming off an overall win at Lime Rock.

Bill Auberlen went quickest among the GT runners Friday for BMW Team RLL. His lap of 1:17.933 (113.590 mph) in the BMW M3 GT he will share with Dirk Werner was a scant 0.163 seconds better than teammate Dirk Müller in the sister BMW. Müller and Joey Hand are three-for-three in 2011 and hold the class championship lead.

Defending GT race co-winner Patrick Long was third in class for Flying Lizard Motorsports. His best time was a 1:18.164 (113.254 mph) in the team’s lead Porsche 911 GT3 RSR. He is paired with Jörg Bergmeister in hopes of a repeat victory at Mosport.

The top six cars in GT were within 0.998 seconds of each other.

In LMP Challenge, Barrie, Ontario’s Kyle Marcelli set the fastest lap with a time of 1:13.367 (120.659 mph) in the Intersport Racing ORECA FLM09 that he will drive with Chapman Ducote. The young Canadian outpaced teammate Jon Field in the second Intersport entry by 0.032 seconds. He will drive with Ricardo Vera.

Ricardo Gonzalez was third in class for CORE autosport at 1:14.104 (119.459 mph). He and teammate Gunnar Jeannette enter Mosport with the class championship lead.

Spencer Pumpelly went quickest in GT Challenge for TRG. His lap of 1:23.815 (105.618 mph) put his Porsche 911 GT3 Cup ahead of Alex Job Racing’s Brian Wong by 0.391 seconds. JDX Racing’s Nick Ham was third in class at 1:24.246 (105.078 mph).

Saturday’s first practice session is set for 10:25 a.m. ET with qualifying set for 3:35 p.m. ET.

Mobil 1 presents the Grand Prix of Mosport, the fourth round of the 2011 ALMS championship, is scheduled for 3:05 p.m. ET on Sunday, July 24 with ESPN2 airing the race starting at 10 p.m. ET. Live video coverage will be available at 2:50 p.m. ET on ESPN3.com in the US, and americanlemans.com for international viewers. Canadian fans may also watch live coverage on Rogers Sportsnet One. Worldwide radio coverage will be available on American Le Mans Radio at www.americanlemans.com

For more information on the broadcasts, go to www.americanlemans.com/tv

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