Aw Snap! Audi R10s lose outright victory at Road America

click above image for gallery of Audi's battle with Porsche at Road America

Speaking of calling your shots, Audi said prior to Round Eight of the American Le Mans Series at Road America this past weekend that its LMP1 R10 diesel racers were poised to steal an outright victory from the LMP2 cars. The R10s, they surmised, were better suited to the 4.0-mile track with its long straights than the LMP2 cars. Though performing well in qualifying and leading most of the race, the Audis ultimately lost to a Penske Porsche RS Spyder in the LMP2 class, the nearest one 1.783 seconds back. Both Audis picked up fuel and tires in their final pit stops, while driver Timo Bernhard opted for only fuel in his Porsche. Ironically, what really did the Audis in was their lack of cooperation during the final laps. Rather than allowing one of the cars to charge ahead and overtake Bernhard in the LMP2 Porsche, the Audis passed each other multiple times, as if they were competing against each other for the LMP1 win. The R10 driven by Dindo Capello and Allan McNish ultimately finished first in LMP1, just 0.706 seconds ahead of the R10 driven by Emanuele Pirro and Marco Werner. Lot of good it did them, especially considering Road America was their best change this season at an overall victory, which they haven't enjoyed since March in St. Petersburg.

Check out a gallery of the Audi and Porsche battle below, complete with descriptive captions from Getty.

[Source: ALMS, Audi]