Audi achieved a dream debut of its 2011 motorsport season in Australia: The Audi R8 LMS entered by Team Joest celebrated a 1-2 victory at the Bathurst 12 Hour after a fierce battle.
Bathurst rookies Marc Basseng/Christopher Mies/Darryl O'Young won by 0.7 seconds ahead of their Australian team-mates Mark Eddy/Craig Lowndes/Warren Luff.
After locking out the front row of the grid, the race went down to the wire. The Audi R8 LMS was developed specifically for customer sport activities and was the most reliable and the fastest car in the field. The GT3 sports car achieved a new lap record at Mount Panorama in Bathurst and took the 65th win of its career that spans only two years.
The awesome 6.213km circuit at Mount Panorama demanded everything from the team. Thanks to strong performances in terms of tactics and driving, the team eventually won after persistent rain showers in the first part of the race and numerous safety car periods.
A constant struggle for the lead endured between the Audi R8 LMS cars and a local Porsche team as they fought for first place throughout the 12 hours. However, Audi's closest rival was beaten by only one lap. The number 8 Audi R8 LMS won after a slow puncture decided the race. This incident meant Craig Lowndes had to do an additional stop in car number 7, that was not counted as a regular pitstop according to the rules. After a strong chase, the Australian touring car legend fought for victory up to the final grueling minutes.