Park Place Motorsports earned its second consecutive GRAND-AM Sports Car Series podium tonight. The Porsche customer team repeated the second-place performance in the two-hour and 45-minute SFP Grand Prix at the Kansas Speedway with their Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car. The second Porsche customer program, Magnus Racing, entered the weekend leading the GT team and driver championship chase but after debris punctured the car’s radiator, they fell to eighth in the race’s final standings and to second in the point standings.
Park Place Motorsports driver and team principal Patrick Lindsey (Santa Barbara, Calif.) took the green flag fifth on the GT grid in the No. 73 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car and held to strategy in the race’s early going. He turned the Porsche over to Patrick Long (Playa del Rey, Calif.) with just over two hours remaining in the race. Long joined the field after quick pit work by the Dallas-based crew and shortly thereafter took the lead. America’s only Porsche factory driver held the top position until the eventual race winner, the No. 63 Ferrari of Alessandro Balzan (Italy) and Leh Keen (Charleston, S.C.), moved to the point. A late race strategy call to only fuel the No. 73 and not take new tires helped close but not overcome the gap to the leader. The team’s performance guaranteed them their third podium finish of the season.
“We didn’t have the best car but we did what we could on strategy and executing on pit road,” offered Lindsey on the performance. “I’ve got to hand it to our guys. Park Place is firing on all cylinders right now. That Ferrari was just too quick for us tonight. Porsche reliability got us what we needed. This is a tried and true machine. We got a podium tonight for our NF Heroes with Children’s Tumor Foundation which is fantastic. We’re looking forward to Laguna and Lime Rock. I think we’ll be strong at Laguna.”
His teammate, Patrick Long Added:
“It was an eventful night. Ultimately, strategy was our strong suit and what kept us upfront. Pace-wise we were really good but it was super tight amongst a lot of cars. The differentiator was down to making the call when to fuel. We played our cards right. My stint started off in a pretty tight battle with the 61 car but I kept reminding myself it was a long race. But, it was nice to lead a few laps. That final pit stop when we decided only to top-up was ultimately why we had a shorter stop at the end. We were able to capitalize and hold that track position with good pace. To be on the podium for the second race in a row is a great accomplishment for the team. Now on to Laguna and try and do one better.”
Magnus Racing
The day was longer for the Magnus Racing team. Owner/driver John Potter (Salt Lake City, Utah) started the race and turned over the driving chores to three-time GRAND-AM Rolex GT champion Andy Lally (Dacula, Ga.) at the same time the No. 73 made their driver change. Once in the car, Lally charged as high as sixth playing the team’s strategy that has paid off with nine top five finishes in ten races this year. With less than half the race remaining, multiple Daytona Prototype (DP) class cars tangled in the infield. The incident left debris in the racing line. Moments after the accident, Lally, unaware of the debris laying on the track, drove over it puncturing the No. 44’s radiator. The crew made repairs in a remarkable nine minutes returning to the race in ninth place, six laps down to the class leader. Lally was able to gain one position on the last lap of the race earning the team vital additional points in their championship chase. However, it was not enough to hold the lead entering the last two races. Magnus Racing leaves Kansas with a one-point deficit to the No. 63 Scuderia Corsa Ferrari 458.
“Very disappointing day today,” reflected Lally. “The car was really solid and we were on a good strategy. It’s really unfortunate that we got caught on something that could have been avoided with a caution. Radiators are the most sensitive part of a Porsche, and it was just bad luck. The guys did an amazing job getting us out within nine minutes, and that definitely helped us minimize the points damage.”
Park Place will have the next chance to earn its first GRAND-AM victory and Magnus its chance to recapture the point lead, September 8 at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, Calif. A rebroadcast of this past race can be seen on FOX Sports 1 at 4 p.m. ET, Sunday, August 18.
GRAND-AM Race Results – GT Class
1. No. 63 Alessandro Balzan/Italy; Leh Keen/Charleston, S.C., Scuderia Corsa Ferrari 458 – 118 laps
2. No. 73 Patrick Lindsey/Santa Barbara, Calif.; Patrick Long/Playa del Rey, Calif., Park Place Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 Cup – 117 laps
3. No. 69 Emil Assentato/Locust Valley, NY; Anthony Lazzaro/Acworth, Ga., AIM Autosport Ferrari 458 – 117 laps
4. No. 57 John Edwards/Cincinnati, Ohio; Robin Liddell/England, Stevenson Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro – 117 laps
5. No. 46 Mark Boden/Winnetka, Ill.; Bryan Sellers/Braselton, Ga., Fall-Line Motorsports Audi R8 – 117 laps
6. No. 61 Alex Tagliani/Canada; Jeff Segal/Miami, R.Ferri/Aim Motorsport Ferrari 458 – 116 laps
7. No. 94 Bill Auberlen/Redondo Beach, Calif.; Paul Dalla Lana/Canada, Turner Motorsports BMW M3 – 115 laps
8. No. 44 Andy Lally/Newport, NY; John Potter/Salt Lake City, Utah, Magnus Racing Porsche 911 GT3 Cup – 112 laps
9. No. 93 Michael Marsal/New York; Maxime Martin/Belgium, Turner Motorsports BMW M3 – 111 laps
10. No. 31 Eric Curran/Holyoke, Mass.; Boris Said/Escondido, Calif., Marsh Racing Chevrolet Corvette – 24 laps
GRAND-AM Team Point Standings – GT Class
1. No. 63 Scuderia Corsa – 279 points
2. No. 44 Magnus Racing – 278
3. No. 57 Stevenson Motorsports – 276
4. No. 69 AIM Autosport – 269
5. No. 94 Turner Motorsports – 263
6. No. 73 Park Place Motorsports – 259
7. No. 61 R.Ferri/Aim Motorsports – 251
8. No. 31 Marsh Racing – 219
9. No. 93 Turner Motorsports – 214
10. No. 18 Muehlner Motorsports America – 180
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Porsche’s Results and Pictures from the GRAND-AM’s Brickyard Grand Prix at Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Porsche’s Results and Pictures from the GRAND-AM’s Six Hours of the Glen