2004 Grand Prix of Sonoma
The 2004 Grand Prix of Sonoma was the fourth race for the 2004 American Le Mans Series season held at Infineon Raceway. It took place on July 18, 2004.
This race saw Corvette Racing enter a third Corvette C5-R for Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and co-driven by Boris Said. The car was successfully qualified but in warm-up the morning of the race, Earnhardt, Jr. went off course and collided with a barrier, causing a rupture of a fuel line. The broken fuel line was sparked when the car came to a stop and caused the car to be engulfed in flames, with Earnhardt, Jr. inside dazed by the accident and unable to get himself out immediately. Once Earnhardt, Jr. was able to become aware of his situation and rescue crews were able to arrive, Earnhardt, Jr. was successfully pulled from the burning vehicle. He received second and third degree burns to his neck, chest, and legs, partially due to not wearing a fire-retardant balaclava with his helmet.
The Corvette C5-R was burned beyond repair and did not race. The Corvette Racing team quickly examined the car and found that there was no design flaw in their fuel system. At the end of the 2004 ALMS season, Corvette Racing restored the car (Chassis No. C5-009) to its 2003 Le Mans specification and sold it to a collector.
Earnhardt, Jr. was forced to return to the Nextel Cup Series unable to complete full races as he underwent treatment, being relieved the next two races by Martin Truex, Jr. and John Andretti.
Official results
Class winners in bold. Cars failing to complete 70% of winner's distance marked as Not Classified (NC).
Pos | Class | No | Team | Drivers | Chassis | Tyre | Laps |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Engine | |||||||
1 | LMP1 | 38 | Audi R8 | M | 107 | ||
Audi 3.6L Turbo V8 | |||||||
2 | LMP1 | 20 | MG-Lola EX257 | G | 107 | ||
MG (AER) XP20 2.0L Turbo I4 | |||||||
3 | LMP1 | 16 | MG-Lola EX257 | G | 104 | ||
MG (AER) XP20 2.0L Turbo I4 | |||||||
4 | GTS | 3 | Chevrolet Corvette C5-R | M | 102 | ||
Chevrolet LS7-R 7.0L V8 | |||||||
5 | LMP2 | 30 | Lola B2K/40 | P | 102 | ||
Judd KV675 3.4L V8 | |||||||
6 | LMP2 | 10 | Lola B2K/40 | Y | 100 | ||
Nissan (AER) VQL 3.0L V6 | |||||||
7 | LMP2 | 56 | Pilbeam MP91 | D | 98 | ||
Nissan (AER) VQL 3.0L V6 | |||||||
8 | GT | 23 | Porsche 911 GT3-RSR | M | 98 | ||
Porsche 3.6L Flat-6 | |||||||
9 | GT | 45 | Porsche 911 GT3-RSR | M | 98 | ||
Porsche 3.6L Flat-6 | |||||||
10 | GT | 24 | Porsche 911 GT3-RSR | M | 98 | ||
Porsche 3.6L Flat-6 | |||||||
11 | GT | 35 | Ferrari 360 Modena GTC | P | 97 | ||
Ferrari 3.6L V8 | |||||||
12 | GT | 66 | Porsche 911 GT3-RSR | M | 96 | ||
Porsche 3.6L Flat-6 | |||||||
13 | GT | 79 | Porsche 911 GT3-RSR | M | 95 | ||
Porsche 3.6L Flat-6 | |||||||
14 | GT | 60 | Porsche 911 GT3-RS | P | 92 | ||
Porsche 3.6L Flat-6 | |||||||
15 | GT | 44 | Porsche 911 GT3-RSR | M | 92 | ||
Porsche 3.6L Flat-6 | |||||||
16 | GTS | 6 | Lamborghini Murciélago R-GT | P | 90 | ||
Lamborghini 6.0L V12 | |||||||
17 | GT | 50 | Panoz Esperante GT-LM | P | 88 | ||
Ford (Élan) 5.0L V8 | |||||||
18 | GTS | 4 | Chevrolet Corvette C5-R | M | 86 | ||
Chevrolet LS7-R 7.0L V8 | |||||||
19 | GT | 31 | Porsche 911 GT3-RSR | M | 85 | ||
Porsche 3.6L Flat-6 | |||||||
20 | GTS | 71 | Dodge Viper GTS-R | P | 75 | ||
Dodge 8.0L V10 | |||||||
21 DNF |
GT | 67 | Porsche 911 GT3-RSR | M | 52 | ||
Porsche 3.6L Flat-6 | |||||||
22 DNF |
GTS | 5 | Lamborghini Murciélago R-GT | P | 15 | ||
Lamborghini 6.0L V12 | |||||||
23 DNF |
GT | 43 | Porsche 911 GT3-RSR | M | 15 | ||
Porsche 3.6L Flat-6 | |||||||
24 DSQ |
GTS | 63 | Saleen S7-R | P | 58 | ||
Ford 7.0L V8 | |||||||
DNS | GTS | 8 | Chevrolet Corvette C5-R | M | - | ||
Chevrolet LS7-R 7.0L V8 |
Statistics
- Pole Position - #38 ADT Champion Racing - 1:22.320
- Fastest Lap - #38 ADT Champion Racing - 1:23.656
- Distance - 270.71 miles (435.67 km)
- Average Speed - 98.082 mph (157.848 km/h)
External links
- "Official Results" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-09-29. Retrieved 2006-11-17. (38.9 KiB)
American Le Mans Series | ||
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Previous race: 2004 New England Grand Prix |
2004 season | Next race: 2004 Portland Grand Prix |