The fifth round of the IMSA Weathertech SportsCar Championship at Watkins Glen brought Porsche its fourth podium. Both GTLM and GTD are increasingly competitive and diverse. This strong finish places Porsche second in the manufacturers’ standings, and fourth in points for both teams and drivers. The customer team of Seattle/Alex Job Racing, with Mario Farnbacher (Germany), Ian James (Great Britain) and Alex Riberas (Spain) at the helm brought home a strong third at the challenging Central New York circuit.
Porsche’s Race Report for GTD
The true highlight of the weekend for Porsche fans was the podium finish for Seattle/Alex Job Racing. An unfortunate tire puncture may have robbed the team of a class win, but per Alex Riberas “this podium earns us vital points towards the championship. As long as we bring a trophy home from every race we won’t complain.” The very rapid GTD class was running laps in the mid 1:42 range, and the Alex Job Racing Porsche GT3 R followed Jeff Sagal’s Le Mans class-winning Ferrari and Magnus Racing’s Audi R8 LMS onto the Podium.
Ian James (911 GT3 R #23): “It was a great race. We managed to lead every so often, but we’re still pleased with this third place. Every day that ends on the podium is a good day.”
GTD CLASS RACE RESULT
GTD class
1. Nielsen/Balzan/Segal (DK/I/USA), Ferrari 488 GT3, 185 laps
2. Lally/Potter (USA/USA), Audi R8, 185
3. Riberas/Farnbacher/James (E/D/GB), Porsche 911 GT3 R, 185
4. Bleekemolen/Keating (NL/USA), Dodge Viper, 184
5. MacNeil/Keen/Jeannette (USA/USA/USA), Porsche 911 GT3 R, 184
7. Pappas/Pilgrim/Catsburg (USA/USA/NL), Porsche 911 GT3 R, 184
8. Bergmeister/Lindsey/MacMurry (D/USA/USA), Porsche 911 GT3 R, 173
Porsche’s Race Report for GTLM
Following a tough run in qualifying, the factory supported Porsche team in GTLM faced a very challenging race. Still fairly fresh off their class win at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the Chip Ganassi Ford GTs proved just as dominant at the relatively tight and technical circuit at Watkins Glen as they were at La Sarthe. After six hours of racing the two 911 RSRs finished 9th and 10th respectively, with drivers Patrick Pilet (France) and Nick Tandy (Great Britain), the winners of the Long Beach race, as well as Earl Bamber (New Zealand) and Frédéric Makowiecki (France).
Steffen Höllwarth, Program Manager IMSA SportsCar Championship: “The gap to the top was big already in qualifying. Although we improved in the race, we didn’t manage to close that gap. Still, a big compliment to the team and the drivers who did their very best under difficult circumstances. With perfect pit stops we constantly managed to make up positions. For this reason we don’t need to stick our heads in the sand. In a week we’ll be tackling the next race in Canada and that’s what we’ll be concentrating on now.”
GTLM CLASS RACE RESULT
GTLM class
1. Briscoe/Westbrook (AUS/GB), Ford GT, 190 laps
2. Hand/Müller (USA/D), Ford GT, 190
3. Auberlen/Werner (USA/D), BMW M6, 190
4. Gavin/Milner (GB/USA) Chevrolet Corvette, 190
5. Pier Guidi/Serra (I/BRA), Ferrari 488 GTE, 190
6. Fisichella/Vilander (I/SF), Ferrari 488 GTE, 190
9. Pilet/Tandy (F/GB), Porsche 911 RSR, 190
10. Bamber/Makowiecki (NZ/F), Porsche 911 RSR, 190
Points’ standings in the GTLM class after 5 of 11 races
Drivers
1. Millner, Gavin, Corvette, 159 points
2. Briscoe, Westbrook, Ford, 151
3. Auberlen, Werner, BMW, 141
4. Bamber, Makowiecki, Porsche, 140
4. Serra, Ferrari, 140
5. Fisichella, Vilander, Ferrari, 139
6. Garcia, Magnussen, Chevrolet, 133
7. Hand, Müller, Ford, 132
8. Pilet, Tandy, Porsche, 129
9. Edwards, Luhr, BMW, 115
Manufacturers
1. Chevrolet, 160 points
2. Porsche, 153
3. Ford, 150
4. Ferrari, 148
5. BMW, 144
Teams
1. #4 Corvette Racing, 159 points
2. #67 Ford Chip Ganassi Racing, 151
3. #25 BMW Team RLL, 141
4. #912 Porsche North America, 140
4. #68 Scuderia Corsa, 140
5. #62 Risi Competizione, 139
6. #3 Corvette Racing, 133
7. #66 Ford Chip Ganassi Racing, 132
8. #911 Porsche North America, 129
9. #100 BMW Team RLL, 115