Porsche Motorsport Weekly Event Notes: Monday, February 1, 2021

This Week.
• Wright Four Daytona. Veteran Porsche Squad Leads Privateers to Daytona Success. • Imola Esports. Win on Virtual Italian Circuit Moves Rogers Into Porsche TAG Heuer Esports Supercup Lead.

Wright Four Daytona. Veteran Porsche Squad Leads Privateers to Daytona Success.
Wright Motorsports has secured fourth-place in the GTD class of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship’s season-opening race, the Rolex 24 At Daytona. Led by Porsche factory driver Patrick Long (Manhattan Beach, California) the team fought one of the largest fields in the history of the endurance classic in Daytona Beach, Florida. North America’s only “works” driver for the German marque shared driving duties in the No. 16 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R with Trent Hindman (West Long Branch, New Jersey), Jan Heylen (Belgium) and Klaus Bachler (Austria). Over long stretches, the 500+hp GT3 vehicle fielded by the team from Ohio was on course for a podium result, however, a collision cost the squad considerable time. The result was the highest for the Porsche privateers in the January 30 – 31st race run on the 3.56-mile road course that uses portions of the famous Daytona oval.

Other contenders utilizing the race machines built in Weissach, Germany filled out Pro-Am style class. The Team Hardpoint EBM operation’s first outing fielding a Porsche 911 GT3 R concluded with tenth-place with drivers Earl Bamber (New Zealand), Rob Ferriol (Fayetteville, North Carolina), Katherine Legge (Great Britain) and Christina Nielsen (Denmark). Pfaff Motorsports overcame serious obstacles to finish in 12th-position with the “Plaid Porsche” driven by factory driver Laurens Vanthoor (Belgium), Matt Campbell (Australia), Porsche Test and Development Driver Lars Kern (Germany) and 2019 IMSA Sprint Champion Zach Robichon (Canada) . Team TGM’s debut with the Porsche GT3-spec machine netted a 17th-place result for owner/driver Ted Giovanis (Highland, Maryland), Hugh Plumb (Wilmington Delaware), Matt Plumb (Chesapeake City, Maryland) and Owen Trinkler (Nashville, Tennessee).

Bad luck plagued the Pfaff Motorsports squad in the GTD class for vehicles complying with GT3 regulations. For almost 20 hours, the No. 9 red and black racer ran among the frontrunners. The car sustained considerable damage in a collision and came to a standstill on the track. The repairs, including fitting a new half-shaft, took approximately 80-minutes. The team would cross the finish line in twelfth-place. The Porsche 911 GT3 R campaigned by the TGM squad retired early after 515 laps with a power transmission fault.

In the GTLM class, WeatherTech Racing made its first start with the Porsche 911 RSR-19. Previously the sole territory of the Porsche factory team in North America, WeatherTech joined with Proton Competition to take on the factory-backed programs as a privateer. Unfortunately, the race was over before it had even started for the No. 79 515 hp race car shared by factory drivers Gianmaria Bruni (Italy), Kévin Estre (France) and Richard Lietz (Austria) as well as series veteran Cooper MacNeil (Hinsdale, Illinois). Works driver Estre approached the green flag in his earned third-place GTLM starting position when a BMW crashed into the rear of his car. The Frenchman was unable to avoid a spin and collided with another vehicle. Repairs to the damage at the front and rear of the most advanced Porsche 911 race car threw the squad 14 laps behind. Making the most of the 13 caution phases, and strategies to finish in sixth-place of the class.

Round two of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring, is scheduled for March 20.

Sebastian Golz, Project Manager Porsche 911 GT3 R.
“There were fierce battles like in a sprint race. The collisions in this intense long-distance event resulted in a lot of repair work, and one of our cars even had to retire. We held our position in the top-five over the distance, but unfortunately this year, we missed out on claiming a podium step by ten-seconds. Congratulations to Wright Motorsports on finished a strong fourth. The points are very important for the championship. Next up is Sebring.”

Patrick Long, Driver, No. 16 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R.
“Great start to the season from a points perspective. Naturally, we were hoping for a podium and striving for a victory but it unraveled for us after contact with the [number] nine car in the evening. The damage to the car hurt our straight-line speed. From there we were just trying to push as hard as we could in the changing conditions and have a clean race. We executed all day but things happened outside of our control and that is what dictated the result for the day. There were strong cars ahead of us today but a lot of our full-season competitors had hard days. I am proud of the whole Wright organization. Eyes forward to Sebring. This one goes out to Ryan Hardwick.”

Richard Lietz, No. 79 WeatherTech Porsche 911 RSR.
“The start was beyond adventurous. Kévin was driving and got shunted from behind. The car was badly damaged in the accident. Our team did a terrific job and fixed everything, but the gap was simply too big. Our strategy was perfect and we were able to make up five laps, but unfortunately, we couldn’t catch the frontrunners. We would’ve needed many more safety car phases to achieve that. So, we finished sixth.”

Matt Campbell, Driver, No. 9 Pfaff Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R.
“It’s a pity. We were looking really strong during the night, and our hopes were high. Unfortunately, an incident resulted in considerable damage. Still, the team put in a massive effort and managed to get our No. 9 car back in the race. At least we earned important points for Pfaff Motorsport and for the regular drivers Laurens and Zach.”

Earl Bamber, Driver/Owner, No. 88 Team Hardpoint EBM Porsche 911 GT3 R.
“It’s been really good. Obviously, everyone comes to the race to win, but I think a top-10 finish for us the first time out at the 24 is a great result. All the drivers did their jobs. It was really cool to get it to the end. Rob getting to start and end the race was cool. I think we showed great speed and great promise. We had that little issue with the splitter and we just couldn’t recover from that. But that’s motor racing and we’re going to roll on to Sebring. We’ve got a lot of things that we can improve on but if we’re already this strong, I’m looking forward to what it means when we can improve on it.”

Rob Ferriol, Driver/Owner, No. 88 Team Hardpoint EBM Porsche 911 GT3 R.
“We took delivery of the Porsche 911 GT3 R approximately three weeks ago, and three of our drivers took their first laps in the car in a shakedown about four days before the Roar. The team spent 10 days leading up to the Roar working 18 to 20-hour days, getting the car prepped and getting the gear prepped and getting down here. The first thing that was said over the radio at the checkered flag was that it wasn’t the finish we wanted, but we wouldn’t have finished without the crew and this entire team. That’s a pretty cool thing. Taking both the green and the checker was both special and unexpected. We were anticipating that Earl and Katherine would take us to the end. We had an issue overnight that caused an adjustment, so we tried to build the position at the end and then toss me in there and I was able to hold on. I had a little bit of drive time to wrap up, so it was a pleasant surprise for me.”

Katherine Legge, Driver, No. 88 Team Hardpoint EBM Porsche 911 GT3 R.
“I’m so proud of this team. They worked so hard. You could see the exhaustion and relief as we crossed the finish line. To finish the race is no mean feat, we had no mechanicals, all the pit stops were flawless. It’s huge kudos to the team and the Porsche. We were just unlucky with the splitter coming apart. We could’ve gotten more, but at the end of the day I’m really proud of the team.”

Christina Nielsen, Driver, No. 88 Team Hardpoint EBM Porsche 911 GT3 R.
“It wasn’t easy. The competition was super fierce this year. There’s room for improvement for everyone, including myself. It was my first race back in a year, so I have to focus on a couple of things I want to do better for next time. Overall, the team did a good job handling the challenges like the splitter failure when I was in the car. The team handled it well and we made it to the finish line and that’s an accomplishment in itself. Was it what we wanted? No, but we also have to think about the glass being half full and it’s some decent points for the championship.”

Ted Giovanis, Driver/Owner, Team TGM Porsche 911 GT3 R.
“All in all, my first race at Daytona was a great experience. Our team worked perfectly, and my teammates did a flawless job. Obviously, we’re disappointed that we didn’t finish, but I gained a lot of amazing impressions. I learned a lot, especially about physical exertion. Next time I’ll make sure I’m fitter when I compete. I’m exhausted. It’s like my first marathon. I was totally exhausted, but I still took part in a second one.”

Gianmaria Bruni, , Driver, No. 79 WeatherTech Racing Porsche 911 RSR-19.
“The car was not like it was for Thursday and Friday practice. It is evident we have some issues with the car. We had a good package. But unfortunately, everything went away just before the start. That’s racing. But, it’s a shame some of our competitors should not race like this in a 24-hour race.”

Cooper MacNeil, Driver, No. 79 WeatherTech Racing Porsche 911 RSR-19.
“It was really the worst-case scenario for a 24-hour race. You have a problem early in the race, get it fixed, go several laps down, and then everything goes really well, but you’re out of it. It just makes the clock slow down and turns the event into a real grind. On the positive side, I really like driving the RSR and working with Proton Competition. We will lick our wounds and start looking forward to Sebring.”

Imola Esports. Win on Virtual Italian Circuit Moves Rogers Into Porsche TAG Heuer Esports Supercup Lead.
Joshua Rogers (Australia) has moved into the lead of the Porsche TAG Heuer Esports Supercup (PESC) after winning the main race at the digital Autodromo Internazionale in Imola, Italy. In the sprint race on the virtual version of the Italian Grand Prix circuit, the 2019 PESC champion was narrowly beaten to the flag by archrival Sebastian Job (Great Britain). The Red Bull Racing Esports driver took the green flag of the nine-lap sprint race from pole position and crossed the finish line in first-place at the wheel of his virtual Porsche 911 GT3 Cup race car. However, in the following main event over 18-laps, Job, as the defending series champion, spun off the track early in the race. Mitchell deJong (Temecula, California), who entered round three of the PESC season run on the iRacing simulation platform as the series leader, fell back to second-place in the drivers’ standings after scoring twelfth and seventh-place respectively.

After the third of ten rounds, the new series leader Joshua Rogers (198 points) has built a gap to Mitchell deJong (161) and Dayne Warren (145). Trailing the leading trio are Maximilian Benecke (139), Kevin Ellis Jr. (127) and Alejandro Sánchez (126), who has made impressive progress after a patchy start to the season. Sebastian Job (109) has shuffled down the order to rank seventh.

In just one week, round four of the Porsche TAG Heuer Esports Supercup will be contested. Saturday, February 6, the virtual Silverstone Circuit in Great Britain hosts the global esports championship. The 3.66-miles (5.891-kilometer) Grand Prix circuit has been the venue of many motor racing events since 1947. The Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup, run as part of the Formula 1 support program, has for many years thrilled spectators at the “Home of British Motor Racing”.

At Silverstone, the 40 sim racers contesting the Porsche TAG Heuer Esports Supercup will tackle a seven-lap sprint race and a 14-lap main event. In the lead-up, well-known YouTubers from the esport world will pit themselves against each other in two All-Star races. For the first time, the All-Stars will drive the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4.

• Image courtesy of Porsche Cars North America 02012021