The Porsche GT Team has claimed its third-straight win of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. Porsche factory drivers Earl Bamber (New Zealand) and Laurens Vanthoor (Belgium) went up against the typically strong opposition in the GTLM class at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, yet celebrated their second-consecutive victory of the season, the first coming at Long Beach, California in April. The No. 911 Porsche team car of Patrick Pilet (France) and Nick Tandy (Great Britain), who won the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring with Frédéric Makowiecki (France) to start the Porsche winning streak, finished in third-place to give the 911 RSR two of the three podium positions in the fourth race of the 2019 GTLM season. Last year, the pair in the No. 912 Porsche 911 RSR also won the race at the Lexington, Ohio-area track.
In contrast to the previous two-days of practice and qualifying, the race took place in sunny, dry conditions. As the race progressed with no caution periods, the drivers were able to take advantage of the setup of the Porsche 911 RSR over the long distance. Vanthoor, who started second on the class grid, handed the car off to Bamber approximately 50 minutes into the race while running in second-place. Thanks to consistently and strategy, the New Zealander swept into the lead shortly afterwards. The No. 912 car held on to the lead to the checkered flag at the conclusion of the two-hour and 40-minute race.
However, the race for the No. 911 vehicle turned into a rollercoaster ride. When the race went green, Pilet jumped the start and received a drive-through penalty. After serving the punishment, the No. 911 was in last place in the GTLM class but Pilet began a spirited charge through the field. The Frenchman fought his way back toward the front turning the car over to Tandy who had his own battle to move the car into third-place. It was the first time this season the North American Porsche GT Team placed both cars on the class podium.
In the GTD category, factory driver Patrick Long (Manhattan Beach, California) and his German teammate Marco Seefried finished just off the podium in fourth-place at the wheel of the No. 73 Porsche 911 GT3 R fielded by the customer squad Park Place Motorsports. The team opted for a strategy with a late pit stop which came during the only safety car phase of the race. With his wealth of experience, American Long used his fresh Michelin tires to fight into the top-five. Bad luck plagued the customer team of Pfaff Motorsports. Putting in a strong stint, 2017 IMSA Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada by Yokohama Champion Zacharie Robichon (Canada) was on pace to score a second-place finish in the 500+hp GT3 car from Weissach, Germany. His teammate, Porsche Selected Driver Scott Hargrove (Canada), defended this potential podium placing until the closing five minutes when the car went off in turn one. The No. 9 was ultimately classified in twelfth-place.
The two Porsche 911 RSR contesting the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship will be transported to Europe at the end of May. On June 15 – 16, the North American team will, like last year, join the factory cars from the FIA World Endurance Championship to tackle the 24 Hours of Le Mans (France). Both vehicles will be back in North America for the continuation of the GTLM season at the Six Hours of The Glen.
Steffen Höllwarth, Program Manager, IMSA SportsCar Championship.
“That was a perfect race with a sensational result. We had the fastest car over the distance. Our engineers did a great job with the setup. With Earl and Laurens, everything is working perfectly at the moment. But the pursuit race of the sister car was just as strong. Victory, podium place, leading all classifications plus the fact that our colleagues in the FIA WEC have just clinched the world championship yesterday – it doesn’t get better than this. Now we’re looking forward to the next great challenge: the 24 Hours of Le Mans.”
Earl Bamber, Driver, No. 912 Porsche GT Team Porsche 911 RSR.
“The day was perfect for us. It’s incredible that our run in Mid-Ohio continued seamlessly. We’re leading the championship, but that doesn’t mean we’re leaning back. The competition will certainly not make it easy for us. Before the next IMSA race we first have to tackle Le Mans in mid-June. Hopefully everything will continue to go just as brilliantly there for us, too.”
Laurens Vanthoor, Driver, No. 912 Porsche GT Team Porsche 911 RSR.
“What a wonderful race! After the free practice in wet conditions, it was difficult to find a suitable setup for the changed conditions. But our team used its huge experience to do it perfectly. Our car was the strongest in the GTLM category over the distance. We’ve won Long Beach, we’ve won at Mid-Ohio – this year and last year – we’re on a fantastic roll. As far as I’m concerned, Le Mans can come now.”
Patrick Pilet, Driver, No. 911 Porsche GT Team Porsche 911 RSR.
“After the jump start we launched a gigantic pursuit race. Nick, in particular, got the most out of the car in his stints, and I even had hopes of finishing in second-place. Still, third earns us all-important points. Essentially, the overall result has put Porsche in an excellent position in the championship.”
Nick Tandy, Driver, No. 911 Porsche GT Team Porsche 911 RSR.
“That was an extraordinarily eventful race today. During my chase through the field I enjoyed some wonderful duels with the Ford and BMW drivers. It was huge fun. But right now I’m looking forward to our start at the Le Mans 24-hour race.”
Patrick Long, Driver, No. 73 Park Place Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R.
“I’m really proud of our result. We started from far down the field and fought our way to the front. The yellow flag helped us a bit, but we implemented a special strategy as a team. The decision to change the tires later proved absolutely correct. Fourth-place earns us a lot of points in the championship. At the next race we’d like to be right up the front with the Porsche 911 GT3 R. It certainly has the potential.”
