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Three Scottish drivers made notable appearances at the Sebring 12 hours. Allan McNish and Ryan Dalziel both stood on the podium, while Marino Franchitti drove in the public debut on track of ​​the Nissan DeltaWing.

Allan McNish (Audi R18 TDI #2, Audi Sport Team Joest, winner), the reconquest. Victory eluded him in 2011, and images of his accident at the 24 Hours of Le Mans are still fresh in our memories. At Sebring, where he has already won three times,  Allan McNish, at the age of 42 remains one of the greatest of the discipline. "We worked very hard for this victory. Together with the engineers and the mechanics Tom (Kristensen), Dindo (Capello) and I invested a lot of time in working out the optimal race setup. That paid off because I think we had the best race car today. The new world championship couldn’t have started better for us than with a victory."

Ryan Dalziel (Honda ARX-03b #44, Starworks Motorsport, vainqueur catégorie LM P2, 3rd overall), the surprise in Florida. At the 12 Hours of Sebring, the young Ryan Dalziel joined his compatriot Allan McNish on the podium, with whom he finished second in the 2012 24 Hours of Daytona. In their first appearance in the FIA World Endurance Championship, Starworks ​​Motorsport was ready very late to be ready, but beat all the favourites to win LM P2. "We have a lot of work still to do. I was down there at the start of the week and I thought there was no way we would be a car running. We didn’t have the fastest car out there, but we definitely had the most consistent and we had great team effort.”

Marino Franchitti, on track for the future. March 15, Marino Franchitti (age 33) performed the first public demonstration laps of the DeltaWing Nissan, expected in the upcoming 24 Hours of Le Mans in the '56th pit' devoted to cars of new technologies. For the occasion he was accompanied by his older brother Dario, twice winner of the Indianapolis 500, four times and current IndyCar champion. The 2012 IndyCar season opens on the 25th March in St Petersburg (Florida). Note that their cousin Paul di Resta finished tenth at last Sunday's Australian Grand Prix, opening round of the Formula 1 World Championship 2012.

A lap of Sebring with Allan McNish
Marino Franchitti and the Nissan DeltaWing at Sebring

Jean-Philippe Doret
(Quotes from Audi Motorsport and Starworks Motorsport press information)

Photo : SEBRING (FLORIDA, USA), SEBRING INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY, SEBRING 12 HOURS, 15 MARCH 2012. The Nissan DeltaWing on pit straight with Marino Franchitti at the wheel.