ST PETERSBURG, Fla.—World-class motor racing comes to the streets of St. Petersburg this weekend, as the popular American Le Mans Series and Indy Racing League run races through closed-off city streets along the bayfront.
Indy cars, Indy lights and ALMS prototype and GT racers will vie for victory over a narrow, tight 1.8 mile, i4-turn race course.
The ALMS cars will be racing on Saturday, while the Indy cars go at it on Sunday afternoon. German driver Marco Werner put his diesel-powered Audi R10 TDI on the pole, beating Frenchman Romain Dumas in his LM P2 Porsche RS Spyder by .75 seconds.
Saturday opened with a practice session for the Indy cars, followed by a warm-up period for the ALMS cars. Most of the action came through turns one (at the end of the .4 mile front straight) and turn two.
Saturday dawned hot and sunny, but light cloud cover blew in, dropping the temperature to a relatively comfortable 79 degrees. As of 11 am, there seemed no real threat of rain, but it is certain some of the crew chiefs were preparing the rain tires apprehensively.
Below are photos from the event. [All photos: Sherwood Liu/The Epoch Times]
 Racing was fierce through Turns One and Two.
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 A prototype accelerates away from a GT car exiting Turn Two.
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 An LMP car leads the competition through the corners.
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 An Indy car hits the apex of Turn Ten during Saturday's morning practice.
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 More action from the Indy car morning practice.
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 An LMP car spins after contact with a Porsche in Turn One.
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 An Indy car's crew adjusts and refuels their machine during the morning practice.
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 The driver climbs out, eager to cool off after morning practice under the Florida sun.
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 Marked for location and direction, a rack of tires sits ready for use.
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 The consequences of hitting a curb.
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 The engine of the Dodge Viper.
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 Honda's 3.5 liter V8 , used in Indy car racing.
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 The driver exits his GT Ferrari after the Saturday practice session.
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 Crew members tear down a prototype after the warm-up session.
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