Porsche customer teams kiss the bricks at Indianapolis as factory team podiums

by Thomas Moore

Review, IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, Race 10, Indianapolis, Indiana

  • Porsche customer race teams score GTD Pro and GTD class wins with 911 GT3 R race car in IMSA six-hour Battle on the Bricks
  • AO Racing goes from last to first for GTD Pro victory at Indianapolis
  • Wright Motorsports earns first GTD class win of the year
  • Porsche leaves Indianapolis holding GTP points lead with October finale looming
  • Porsche Penske Motorsport leaves Brickyard one-two in GTP standings
  • Jaminet/Tandy earn podium result with No. 6 Porsche 963
  • Cameron/Nasr maintain points lead with ninth place finish
  • JDC-Miller MotorSports fights back from a lap down to finish fourth

Speedway, Indiana. Porsche customer race teams took class victories in both the GTD Pro and GTD classes with the venerable Porsche 911 GT3 R race car today at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Wet weather and critical strategy calls at the “Battle on the Bricks” six-hour endurance race for the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship provided AO Racing and Wright Motorsports the perfect combination to take the top step of the podium in the two GT classes.

Having started last in today’s race after having their qualifying time disallowed as a result of a ride height violation, the Porsche with the popular “Rexy” livery was able to charge from the back of the 56 car grid to class victory. It was the third race win of the season for AO Racing’s No. 77 “Rexy” Porsche 911 GT3 R in the all-professional driver GTD Pro class. Former Porsche Junior driver Laurin Heinrich (Germany) now leads the GTD Pro Drivers’ standings by 99 points. This was the second race win in the car Porsche factory ace Michael Christensen (Denmark). AO Racing leads the Team standings by 99 points while Porsche is 122 points ahead of Aston Martin in the Manufacturer standings.

Today’s endurance race win was the first victory of the season for Wright Motorsports in the GTD class. It ranks as the first IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship career win for both Adam Adelson (Los Angeles, California) and Elliott Skeer (San Diego, California). Porsche veteran Jan Heylen (Tampa, Florida) joined the Porsche one-make graduates in the No. 120 Porsche 911 GT3 R for his first win of the season.

In the top GTP class, the No. 6 Porsche Penske Motorsport Porsche 963 of Mathieu Jaminet (France) and Nick Tandy (United Kingdom) fought to a third-place finish overall. The 2023 winners of the Battle on the Bricks finished just ahead of Porsche 963 privateer JDC-Miller MotorSports. Driving the No. 85 Porsche 963, Tijmen van der Helm (Netherlands) Richard Westbrook (United Kingdom) and Phil Hanson (United Kingdom) finished one spot behind the factory car at the end of six hours of racing.

The No. 7 Porsche Penske Motorsport Porsche 963 of Dane Cameron (Huntersville, North Carolina) and Felipe Nasr (Brazil) finished in ninth place after a power steering issue dropped them seven laps behind the overall winners. However, the car scored enough points (220) to enter the final race of the year – the Petit Le Mans at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta on October 12 – with a 14-point lead over their teammates in the No. 6.

Full results on https://www.imsa.com/scoring/

  • Image courtesy of Porsche Motorsport.

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