After nearly a five week break, Guy Cosmo and the Extreme Speed Motorsports Tequila Patrón Ferraris return to action at historic Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia for the season finale, the American Le Mans Series presented by Patrón 15th Annual Petit Le Mans Powered by Mazda.
While things may have been quiet on track, Cosmo has been keeping himself busy off-track. Since VIR, Guy has been coaching for Extreme Speed Motorsports' Ferrari Challenge drivers and changing his bachelor status to married.
"It's been busy," laughed Guy. "In the past month, we completed our wedding plans, had the wedding and enjoyed a honeymoon. It's been great. I couldn't be happier."
"That said," added Guy, "it's great to be back at the track and driving the No. 02 ESM Patrón Ferrari 452 Italia. I love driving these cars and I'm excited to finish out the year with a great result."
Petit Le Mans uses the rules established for the 24 hours of Le Mans by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO), slightly modified to allow additional cars to compete. The race was founded by Road Atlanta owner Don Panoz and first run on October 10, 1998 as part of the IMSA season. The 1999 edition was one of the original events of the American Le Mans Series.
The race covers a maximum of 1,000 miles (1,600 km) (which is approximately 394 laps) or a maximum of 10 hours, whichever comes first; only once, in the rain-stopped 2009 race, has the leading team failed to complete 1,000 miles (1,600 km). Class winners at Petit receive an automatic invitation to next year's 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Like most drivers, Guy is extremely happy the final event of the year is contested at Road Atlanta.
"I love this race," said Guy. "Petit Le Mans lives up to its title. It's a 'little Le Mans.' It's held on one of the greatest tracks in the world and the very best competitors in our business show up to compete. You know it will be the most intense and exciting race of the season. Though while it might be a thrill…. it's certainly not easy."
Extreme Speed Motorsports' Ferraris will feature a special livery for this year's Petit Le Mans.
"The special Ultimat Vodka and Action Against Hunger livery for this one race is just ballistic," said Guy. "Ultimat Vodka is another premium Patrón Spirits brand and it's great that we're building it's awareness to all the Patrón Tequila fans out there. Action Against Hunger is a global organization committed to saving the lives of malnourished children across the world. So as we close out the season and head into Thanksgiving and the holidays, we wanted to draw attention to the crucial work that Action Against Hunger does and encourage people to learn more and support this very important cause."
As part of the special Ultimat Vodka livery, fans can contribute to Action Against Hunger at www.actionagainsthunger.org/ultimat. The online fundraising campaign supporting Action Against Hunger, will run through the end of the year.
The 1,000-mile/10-hour Petit Le Mans powered by Mazda is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. ET on Saturday, Oct 20 from Road Atlanta. ABC's broadcast begins at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday, Oct. 21. Full, live coverage starts at 11:15 a.m. ET on ESPN3 with qualifying coverage beginning at 1:50 p.m. ET on Friday, Oct. 19.
Guy Cosmo, 2005 American Le Mans Series Rookie of the Year drives the No. 02 Extreme Speed Motorsports Patrón Ferrari. Cosmo is a race record-holder at Mid-Ohio (for fastest lap in the GTC series, which he set in 2009 in the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup). Cosmo has 38 starts in the American Le Mans Series, finishing in the top-five 18 times and has been on the winner’s podium twice. In addition to being an accomplished driver, Cosmo is also a highly sought-after driving instructor. You can find out more about Guy Cosmo at http://www.guycosmo.com or follow Guy through the racing weekend on Twitter @guycosmo and on Facebook.
The American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón is the world`s leading sports car championship and is recognized as the Global Leader in Green Racing. In the tradition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, multiple classes of cars - purpose-built prototypes and production-based Grand Touring automobiles - race on the track at the same time to create compelling race action and constant passing. All cars in the Series compete using one of five approved alternative fuels or energy sources: clean sulfur-free diesel, cellulosic E85 or E10, Isobutanol and electric hybrid technologies. The Series has more automobile marques involved than any other major race series in the world as manufacturers develop relevant technologies on track that transfer directly to the customer showroom. The ALMS competes at North America`s premier road racing tracks and selected temporary street circuits in major urban markets.