Race Primer: The 12 Themes Of Sebring

One factoid per hour, here are the 12 themes we're keeping an eye on this week leading up to the 57th running of the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Presented by Fresh from Florida:

1. Which P1 will be No. 1? The American Le Mans Series' 100th race is easily its most anticipated: Audi vs. Peugeot vs. Acura in a one-time battle for manufacturer supremacy. With nine straight LMP1 wins at Sebring under its belt (including eight of the last nine overall wins), Audi brings two new R-15 turbo diesels to fend off European nemesis Peugeot and P1 newcomer Acura, which moved two teams up from P2 to chase the Germans.

2. Sebring Stands Alone. The bumpy old landing strip amid the orange groves is typically thought of as the ultimate testing ground for the 24 Hours of Le Mans. This year, the race carries the distinction of likely being the only race of 2009 where LMP1 rivals Audi, Peugeot and Acura will meet on the same track. With Audi out of ALMS and Acura not planning a trip to Le Mans, the eyes of the sports car world will be more focused than ever on Sebring.

3. Dash For Cash. The economic downturn hasn't spared auto racing, as sponsors, teams and manufacturers tighten their belts in uncertain times. Even the most successful teams have cut back: Nine-time defending LMP1 champ Audi heads straight to Le Mans after Sebring, while defending Series GT2 champ Flying Lizard will run two cars instead of three this year, to name two examples. The bottom line: Five less teams will start when the green flag drops on Saturday.

4. Acura's Star Power. Moving up from LMP2 to the front of the grid, Acura is hoping an all-star lineup can drive them to an overall victory at SIR. Both de Ferran Motorsports and Patron Highcroft will run new Acura ARX-02a prototypes, with DFM tapping team owner and former Indy 500 champ Gil de Ferran, 2008 Indy 500 and IndyCar champ Scott Dixon and French phenom Simon Pagenaud and Patron Highcroft features 16-time ALMS winner David Brabham, nine-time Indy Car winner Scott Sharp and, last but not least, 2007 Indy 500 and Indy Car champ Dario Franchitti.

5. TK Goes For Five. Tom Kristensen has already cemented his place in Sebring history with four overall wins, but the Audi Sport Team Joest driver will go for five on Saturday in an Audi R15 that still has the new car smell. Its drivers, however, are anything but inexperienced: Kristensen joins Rinaldo Capello and Allan McNish, the same pair he won P1 with last year.

6. No Introductions Necessary. Patrick Long and Joerg Bergmeister are one of the most accomplished duos in sports car racing, and the two are teaming up again this year at Sebring. Driving for defending GT2 champion Flying Lizard, both have won at Sebring, Le Mans and Petite Le Mans before and will likely be the team to beat in GT2.

7. P2 Showdown. Mazda's partnership with revered independent team Dyson Racing has made them an instant contender in LMP2, as Acura's Lowes Fernandez team readies to battle Dyson's two MZR-R closed-top prototypes. Veterans Chris Dyson and Guy Smith will pilot one, while Marino Franchitti, Butch Leitzinger and Ben Devlin will drive the other.

8. GT Throwdown. The first battle in the war for the GT2 class is in Sebring, as eight manufacturers square off for what's anticipated to be one of the closest GT2 class races in the history of the Series. Porsche, Ferrari, BMW, Aston Martin, Panoz, Corvette, Ford and Dodge will do battle as favorites Flying Lizard (in a Porsche 911 GT3 RSR), Risi Competizone (Ferrari F430 GT), Rahal-Letterman (BMW M3) and Farenbacher Loles (Porsche 911 GT3 RSR) try to hold off potential sleeper Panoz Team PTG.

9. Curtain Rises On Rahal-Letterman. Two BMW M3s will make their competitive debut for Rahal Letterman Racing on Saturday as BMW returns to ALMS for the first time since 2006. Veterans Bill Auberlen and Joey Hand bring a scary-fast M3 to the grid, assembled at Rahal Letterman Racing's Hilliard, Ohio compound.The No. 90 will be co-driven by BMW veterans and Californians Bill Auberlen and Joey Hand, while 23-year old Tommy Milner will share the No. 92 with Dirk Müller.

10. Drayson. Lord Drayson. Lord Drayson came to the Series last year from the House of Lords at Great Britain's former Minister of Defense Procurement after competing in the British GT Championship. The Ph.D. in robotics returns to Sebring on official business as Great Britain's Minister of Science driving the aptly numbered 007 Aston Martin using a cellulosic E85 ethanol blend.

11. Here's A Guarantee: Corvette Will Win GT1. It'd be a safe bet, considering they've taken home three consecutive ALMS GT1 championships and three straight at Sebring. But it's even safer since the Chevrolet C6-R 'Vettes are the only GT1 competitors this year. Catch them while you can, however, since the Corvette team plans to retool for a run in GT2 the second half of the season following the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

12. Green Energy. In 2006, ALMS began its push toward alternative fuels with Audi's entry of two diesel-powered cars. Today, ALMS is the only major racing series in which all cars compete using alternative fuels such as clean diesel, E10 and cellulosic E85. In fact, the EPA, Dept. of Energy and SAE International have noted ALMS meets green racing protocols, and, as a result, created the Green Challenge Award. The inaugural award was given at Petite Le Mans last fall to the leading prototype and GT class cars that demonstrated the best overall performance while demonstrating fuel efficiency and less environmental impact.