Five Porsche race cars will compete in the all-GT car race weekend at Lime Rock Park, one of the oldest continuously running road courses in the country. The July 19 – 20 Northeast Grand Prix on the 1.5-mile “bullring” in Lakeville, Connecticut is among the most exhilarating events on the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship schedule. After scoring five-straight wins in the series’ GTLM class, the Porsche GT Team now wants to build on this record and its championship lead at the two-hour, 40-minute race. With the two prototype classes absent from the Lime Rock event, the main focal point will be on the GTLM class including the two ca. 510 hp Porsche 911 RSR fielded by the Porsche GT Team “works” effort. In the GTD category, the customer squads of Pfaff Motorsports, Park Place Motorsports and the newly announced Wright Motorsports entry aspire to claim a podium spot each with their Porsche 911 GT3 R racing cars.
The winners of the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring and Six Hours Of The Glen at Watkins Glen, Patrick Pilet (France) and Nick Tandy (Great Britain), share the No. 911 Porsche GT Team Porsche 911 RSR. The pair currently ranks in second-place in the Drivers’ Championship entering the sixth round of the GTLM season. Their works driver colleagues in the No. 912 sister car, Earl Bamber (New Zealand) and Laurens Vanthoor (Belgium), lead the class after their victories at Long Beach, Mid-Ohio and most recently at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (CTMP).
In the GTD class, three 500+hp Porsche 911 GT3 R will compete in that categories sixth race. The customer team Pfaff Motorsports makes an alteration to its drivers’ lineup for the next two race weekends with Porsche Young Professional Dennis Olsen (Norway) joining 2018 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup Challenge Canada Champion Zacharie Robichon (Canada) in the No. 9 in Connecticut event. Porsche works driver Patrick Long (Manhattan Beach, California) is a three-time winner at Lime Rock Park and leads all drivers for IMSA pole positions with three since 2000. North America’s lone Porsche factory driver shares the cockpit of the No. 73 racer run by Park Place Motorsports with Germany’s Marco Seefried this weekend as the duo looks to close in the Michelin Sprint Cup championship. The No. 91 Henry Repeating Arms Porsche 911 GT3 R makes its series’ debut this weekend campaigned by veteran Porsche entrant Wright Motorsports and driven by Porsche Young Professional Matt Campbell (Australia) and Anthony Imperato (New York City, New York).
The seven-turn circuit has been a successful venue for Porsche in the past. The German brand leads all IMSA manufacturers with 19 victories at the track since 2000. The most recent wins came with a pair of GTLM and GTD titles in 2017. Pilet and Dirk Werner (Germany) piloted the No. 911 Porsche “works” car to the top-step of the GTLM class podium just ahead of Vanthoor and Gianmaria Bruni (Italy) in the team car that year while, in the Pro-Am style GTD class, Jörg Bergmeister (Germany) joined Patrick Lindsey (Santa Barbara, California) in the No. 73 for a Porsche sweep of the race.
Porsche currently holds a 24-point lead in the GTLM class Manufacturer standings.
Pascal Zurlinden, Director GT Factory Motorsport.
“We are determined to continue our sensational winning streak at Lime Rock. At this race on the small circuit in Connecticut, it would be particularly important to finish in first place – because it’s one of the very few chances in the IMSA series to celebrate overall victory. After our five-straight wins, we’re certainly not about to lean back. We’re leading the championship, and it should remain like this to the end of the season.”
Steffen Höllwarth, Program Manager IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
“There is no time for drivers, strategists and the crew to catch their breath on this extremely short circuit. Another feature of the Lime Rock course is that there is only one left-hander. This has an impact on the cars’ setup and tire wear. We’ve always performed well there in past years. I expect we’ll have good chances of continuing our great run over these intense weeks in North America.”
Patrick Pilet, Driver, No. 911 Porsche GT Team Porsche 911 RSR.
“I really enjoy racing at Lime Rock; there’s always plenty of action on the short circuit. The course suits our Porsche 911 RSR with its relatively short wheelbase. We’ll definitely be competitive there. For me personally, I’d like to reclaim the lead of the drivers’ championship with my teammate Nick. The duel against our works colleagues in the 912 car has been great fun.”
Nick Tandy, Driver, No. 911 Porsche GT Team Porsche 911 RSR.
“This is the first race of the season where only GT vehicles compete. Most of all, this changes the traffic situation on the short track, because you don’t constantly get prototypes looming in your rear-view mirror. Overtaking on this flowing, twisty racetrack is very difficult. You have to keep a cool head and have lots of patience. It’s often very warm at Lime Rock at this time of the year. The many laps during a stint, the heavy traffic and the quirks of the track make this race physically exhausting.”
Earl Bamber, Driver, No. 912 Porsche GT Team Porsche 911 RSR.
“We’re heading to Lime Rock with five Porsche wins in a row. Our goal is to continue this winning streak. I really like Lime Rock Park, mainly because the fast times of around 50-seconds per lap make for spectacular racing. We’ve always been strong there with our Porsche 911 RSR, and that’s not about to change this year.”
Laurens Vanthoor, Driver, No. 912 Porsche GT Team Porsche 911 RSR.
“At Lime Rock, we’re finally in the limelight with our GT cars. Even though the prototypes don’t contest round seven of the season, there will be plenty of action on the track. The course is really narrow and very fast. That means we’ll encounter a lot of traffic out there over the entire distance. Still, this makes it gripping and spectacular but at the same time tricky. Porsche has always performed strongly at Lime Rock. After our recent five successive wins, we’re feeling very optimistic but also totally focused. Our great run can only continue if we make the absolute best out of the possibilities once again in the upcoming race. We want to stay at the lead.”
Patrick Long, Driver, No. 73 Park Place Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R.
“Lime Rock Park has a very special atmosphere every year. The short course has a lot of tradition and is always good for exciting and action-packed motor racing. Last year at Lime Rock we were on pole position. Unfortunately, the race didn’t turn out quite so well for us at that time. That should be different this year.”
Matt Campbell, Driver, No. 91 Henry Repeating Arms/Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R.
“This year I’m contesting numerous Blancpain GT World Challenge America races with Anthony Imperato and Wright Motorsports. I know my teammate and the squad well, and our teamwork is fantastic. I’m very much looking forward to our first IMSA race together. I’ve heard a lot about the Lime Rock racetrack. I can hardly wait to go racing there.”