Category: IMSA

Long Beach, Calif. (September 25, 2021) — The No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-05 finished fourth in the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. The result ensures that they maintain their lead in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship with a total of 3,071 points and a 19-point lead over their closest rivals.

Filipe Albuquerque was aggressive but calculated at the start, passing a pair of Cadillacs and entered the Turn 2 fountain section side-by-side with second place. He filtered out in third and concluded his stint in fourth position with one hour remaining.

The team executed a one-stop strategy for the 100-minute sprint, with Ricky Taylor taking the wheel for the second stint. Taylor was fast and consistent, bringing the blue and black Konica Minolta machine home in fourth.

The No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-05 team will conclude the 2021 season in November at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta for the prestigious Motul Petit Le Mans. Alexander Rossi will join full-time co-drivers, Ricky Taylor and Filipe Albuquerque for the ten-hour endurance event in hopes of mirroring the start of the season with another victory to clinch the 2021 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.

“We got the result that we expected today,” reflected Ricky Taylor. “The Cadillacs were clearly fastest this weekend. We finished the best of the rest. Filipe made a fantastic start, and because he did, we weren’t in a position to take a huge risk on the strategy, which ultimately wouldn’t have paid off, so the guys did their thing. We had a good stop, and everyone executed well. We came home with a fourth place at Acura’s home race. It’s nice to get some points and a clean race, but it’s a shame we can’t be on the podium at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.”

“I’m happy with our performance,” said Filipe Albuquerque. “I think Ricky, myself, Wayne Taylor and the No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-05 team maximized our Acura around Long Beach. Obviously, we would have liked a podium or finish ahead of the No. 31, but they were simply too quick. The margin is very small so it’s all about who wins at Motul Petit Le Mans in a month’s time. Let’s see how it goes. Still leading the championship, that’s what matters.”

“Coming in, we knew this was going to be a tough race for us,” said team owner Wayne Taylor. “From the off, it was all three Cadillacs first, second and third. We said, if the No. 31 wins, we have to be fourth to keep the championship lead and we’ve done that. We head to Motul Petit Le Mans where we’ll be on a more even keel, I think.”

The No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-05 2021 returns for the championship deciding Motul Petit Le Mans at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta on November 11-13. Practice begins on Thursday at 9:20 a.m. ET. Green flag will wave on Saturday, November 13 at 10:10 a.m. ET with complete 10-hour race coverage on TrackPass on NBC Sports Gold.
ABOUT KONICA MINOLTA

Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A., Inc. is reshaping and revolutionizing the Workplace of the Future™. The company guides and supports its clients’ digital transformation through its expansive office technology portfolio, including IT Services (All Covered), intelligent information management, managed print services and industrial and commercial print solutions. Konica Minolta has been included on CRN’s MSP 500 list nine times and The World Technology Awards recently named the company a finalist in the IT Software category. Konica Minolta has been recognized as the #1 Brand for Customer Loyalty in the MFP Office Copier Market by Brand Keys for fourteen consecutive years, and received Keypoint Intelligence’s BLI 2021 A3 Line of The Year Award and BLI 2021-2023 Most Color Consistent A3 Brand Award for its bizhub i-Series. Konica Minolta, Inc. has been named to the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index for nine consecutive years and has spent four years on the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World list. Konica Minolta partners with its clients to give shape to ideas and works to bring value to our society. For more information, please visit us online and follow Konica Minolta on Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn and Twitter. Wayne Taylor Racing’s existing lineup of partners that also features Harrison Contracting, Acura Motorsports, Hammer Nutrition and CIT.

Another close battle with Milner second in GTLM with No. 4 Corvette

LONG BEACH, Calif. (Sept. 21, 2021) – Corvette Racing continued its perfect run of pole positions in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship as Jordan Taylor earned fastest-qualifier honors Friday ahead of the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.

Taylor, in the No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C8.R, set a time of 1:16.801 (92.248 mph) around the 1.968-mile, 11-turn street course in Southern California. It’s his fifth consecutive pole position in GT Le Mans (GTLM) this season ahead of Saturday’s 100-minute race.

Taylor and teammate Antonio Garcia enter Saturday leading the GTLM Drivers Championship on the strength of four wins and six pole positions this year. The No. 3 Corvette C8.R duo also won five races in 2020 en route to the class title.

Taylor was 0.297 seconds clear of teammate Tommy Milner in the No. 4 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C8.R. He and Nick Tandy were winners in the most recent GTLM race at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca two weeks ago.

Saturday’s race will be the first at Long Beach for the mid-engine Corvette C8.R as the COVID-19 pandemic cancelled last year’s race and delayed this year’s running from April.

All four drivers have previous victories at Long Beach. Milner and Taylor each of three while Garcia and Tandy have one each.

Corvette Racing will contest the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach on Saturday from the Long Beach Street Circuit in Long Beach, Calif. Live television coverage will air live on NBCSN at 5 p.m. ET with live streaming coverage on TrackPass and NBC Sports Gold. Live audio coverage from IMSA Radio will be available on IMSA.com, XM 202 and SiriusXM Online 992.

JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – GTLM POLE-WINNER: “Track position obviously is crucial here. It’s nice to for us to be on pole and have another 1-2 for Corvette Racing. It’s the first time we’ve brought the C8.R here. It suited the track really well. We rolled off the truck strong, so preparation-wise the guys did a good job. Looking ahead to tomorrow, it’s always a one-stop race so it’s all about execution in that one stop and maintaining track position. You always put an emphasis on qualifying to try to get the pole and get a good run into Turn One. Hopefully we can control the race from there and make a good call on when to make that stop. It seems like we had a couple of yellows throughout the practices so we might be able to count on one of those at some point. Obviously I couldn’t be happier to get another pole this year.”

SECRET TO QUALIFYING? “I think we just made good decisions. Setup-wise, we’ve had a different setup for qualifying than the race. We put a big emphasis on that knowing where the car needs to go in the race. We spent Practice Two adjusting for race conditions and had in the back of our mind what we wanted to do in order to extract the most laptime when the tires are fresh. We did a long run at the end of Practice Two, and we’re pretty happy with things.”

INFLUENCE OF SIMULATOR WORK: “It’s tough to know where the track is going to go. IndyCar only had one session today and they’ll do more running tomorrow. The track was a bit different when we went back out on it this evening. It will go in another different direction, I’m sure. It makes it that much more stressful. The street courses are great, and we love coming to them. But as a driver it’s very stressful when you have to get the maximum out of the car in a session like qualifying. It’s always nice to get through unscathed. We’re in a good spot. We’ve done a lot of sim work to understand what the car will do over a long run. We made those adjustments in practice to confirm what we learned in the simulator.”

DID YOU LEARN ANYTHING DETROIT AND LONG BEACH AND DIFFERENT TIRE RUBBER: “We did. It was our first street course race with this car. It was good and bad, I’d say. It was stressful, like I said earlier, but it was even worse when you’re racing for no points and there’s no real incentive be pushing! But you want to push to learn lessons about the car, be on the limit of it to understand how the tire works, how it degrades and what we want from setup and development points of view. It was crucial for us to understand that. Every race we go to, we have multiple tire compounds to pick from so understanding how that comes into play with different rubber on the track and what will suit the car best… Corvette Racing does a great job on the engineering side to log data, make notes, study it and take those notes to the simulator to confirm things. It makes our jobs as drivers a lot easier when we go to a track like this where we’ve not been to with this car. We’re not fighting with the car in the first session; we know we can go in confidently that the car is going to be pretty well-suited already so we only need to make fine adjustments. Honestly this is probably the best car I’ve ever had at Long Beach. I’ve been here a few times before, and this was the nicest car I’ve driven here. It was stressful to drive but it was probably one of the easier cars I’ve driven, and it was still quick. That speaks a lot to the car setup.”

CHAMPIONSHIP OUTLOOK: “We’re in a good position. I think the 4 car and the 79 are close on points. So trying to build their gap will be more important. Looking at the way the BoP has gone and you compare it from this year to last year of where Porsche is, they should have a decent jump. These sprint races suit us. We’re pushing the whole time. But when you get to an event like Petit Le Mans where you have 10 hours of racing, that’s where you can see their advantage grow. At the same time, we’ve seen races won by the slowest car on track. So we’ll never give up.”

TOMMY MILNER, NO. 4 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – QUALIFIED SECOND IN GTLM: “Realistically, I’m not completely happy. I haven’t qualified a lot in my career but have had some good race cars. Getting beaten by your teammate isn’t ideal, but they’re the best comparison you can possibly make. Those guys are doing a great job and you can’t take anything away from them. Our guys are pushing super-hard and I’m trying super-hard. I probably threw away my last lap locking up the right-front tire on the backstretch. That’s unfortunate but the name of the game when you’re trying for every last little bit. I think we have a good Corvette. We were fast right away in the first practice. We can tweak on it a little bit but I think we fundamentally have a good race car. For the entire lifetime of this C8.R, we show up to the track and the cars are really good and we’re never lost. It gives us the chance to find every last little bit. Awesome job by Jordan but hopefully we can switch it around tomorrow again.”

Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.

About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in 79 countries with more than 3.2 million cars and trucks sold in 2020. Chevrolet models include electric and fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

Rob Ferriol To Make Long Beach Debut in No. 88 Richard Mille/GridRival Porsche 911 GT3 R; Katherine Legge Returns To Site of First US Race and Victory

LONG BEACH, California (September 23, 2021) – Team Hardpoint co-drivers Rob Ferriol and Katherine Legge have two unique views of this weekend’s IMSA WeatherTech Championship GT Daytona (GTD) race on the streets of Long Beach. Ferriol will make his first appearance at the famed U.S. street circuit, while Legge returns to the place that hosted her first career appearance in the United States, where she also earned a win.

The 100-minute race is scheduled for Saturday, September 25 at 2:05 p.m. PDT (5:05 p.m. EDT) and can be seen live on NBCSN for cable and satellite subscribers or via TrackPass on the NBCSN app. The temporary street race is the second of its kind on the 2021 IMSA schedule, following a 100-minute race on Belle Isle, Detroit in June.

For Ferriol, the famed 1.968-mile race through the streets of Long Beach is just his second on a temporary street circuit, following the earlier race in Detroit, in his first full season of IMSA GTD competition.

“I’m looking forward to getting behind the wheel of our Richard Mille/GridRival Porsche 911 GT3 R here at Long Beach,” Ferriol said. “We certainly learned a lot about street racing at Detroit, which will hopefully carry over. This is a tough circumstance for a first-time driver like myself, because there are no opportunities to test. Instead, we’ve put in some work on the simulator to get familiar with the layout. We’re much further along as a team at this point in the season and I think that will show. This is such an iconic race in the United States and we’re ready to put on a show in front of these fans.”

Conversely, Legge knows the layout well. Her first race in the United States came in what was then the open-wheel Atlantic Championship in 2005, where Legge won to become the first woman to win a major North American open-wheel race. The following season, she scored a top-10 finish at the same event in her Champ Car debut.

“Long Beach has a special place in my heart,” Legge said. “It’s where it all started for me. It was my first race in the Atlantic Championship and the start of my pro career. I won that race and have had some success here since. It’s been a while since I raced here but I’m beyond excited to be back this week with Team Hardpoint, Rob and the No. 88 Richard Mille/GridRival Porsche 911 GT3 R.”

Team Hardpoint and the No. 88 Richard Mille/GridRival Porsche 911 GT3 R pull onto the track for the first time at 9:45 a.m. PDT on Friday, September 24, for one hour of practice, followed by a second hour of practice at 1:20 p.m. PDT. Qualifying begins later that same day at 4:50 p.m. PDT to set the grid for Saturday’s race. Saturday’s race begins 2:05 p.m. PDT (5:05 p.m. EDT) on NBCSN.

About Team Hardpoint:
Hardpoint Motorsports was founded by Rob Ferriol in 2018 with the vision of combining his experience as a successful entrepreneur with his passion for racing. Team Hardpoint EBM is a joint venture between Team Hardpoint and Earl Bamber Motorsport formed in late 2020 for Team Hardpoint’s Porsche Carrera Cup North America program to utilize the resources of EBM and co-owners Earl Bamber and Will Bamber and the early success of Team Hardpoint. Headquartered at VIRginia International Raceway, the team’s 2021 plans include a full-season effort in the IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship in a Porsche 911 GT3 R and a multi-car effort in the IMSA Porsche Carrera Cup North America. More information on Hardpoint Motorsports can be found at www.hardpoint.com or through its strong social media presence on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Long Beach, Calif. (20 September 2021) – It’s been a busy three weeks for Meyer Shank Racing (MSR) it travels down the west coast, first making stops at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca for the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and Portland International Raceway for the NTT INDYCAR Series.

The team then returned to Laguna Seca last weekend for the penultimate round of the INDYCAR Championship. Now, both MSR programs will reconvene for a big combined weekend of action at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, which will be the second time this season that IMSA and INDYCAR will compete on the same weekend.

Meyer Shank Racing Ready to Represent at Acura’s Home Race

Driver Lineup:

Dane Cameron & Olivier Pla: No. 60 Acura ARX-05 DPi

Tune in:

Saturday, September 25, 5:00pm ET on NBCSN
SiriusXM Ch. 202

Meyer Shank Racing heads into the final sprint race of the IMSA Championship this weekend, competing on the 1.968-mile street course in Long Beach, California. The Acura Grand Prix is a special one with Acura and HPD’s headquarters stationed an hour away in Santa Clarita.

The team is coming off of a fourth-place finish at Laguna Seca after the No. 60 Acura led 55 laps before needing to make a final stop for fuel. Dane Cameron and Olivier Pla will now be looking for redemption this weekend as they tackle the 100-minute race.

The weekend marks Cameron’s seventh start at Long Beach and his third in an Acura DPi. Cameron comes into the weekend with two podium finishes (third in 2016 & 2019) along with a pole position won in 2018.

For Oliver Pla, this will be his first time at Long Beach in seven years after last racing at the track in 2014. Pla started and finished 4th in that race while driving an LMP2 car.

Driver Quotes:

Dane Cameron:
“I’m excited to head back out west for another weekend in California. Long Beach is always a great event and it’s an even more important race for us with it being Acura’s home race. I’ve had some good results at Long Beach in the past, but I’m hoping this weekend we can represent Acura well and give MSR its first win of the season.”

Olivier Pla:
“Long Beach should be an exciting race. It’s been quite a while since I raced there but I love street course racing. We’re going into the weekend with a reset and a clear mind from Laguna and hopefully we can bring home a good result for MSR and Acura.”

Harvey and Castroneves Head Into INDYCAR Season Finale in Long Beach

Driver Lineup:

Jack Harvey: No. 60 AutoNation / SiriusXM Honda

Helio Castroneves: No. 06 AutoNation / SiriusXM Honda

Tune in:

Sunday, September 26, 3:00pm ET on NBCSN
SiriusXM Ch. 205

Meyer Shank Racing will be making its third INDYCAR start on the streets of Long Beach this weekend as the 2021 INDYCAR SERIES comes to a close. Harvey had a strong debut in Long Beach in 2018, finishing 12th in just his third race start with MSR. The 2019 race saw Harvey get caught in a first lap melee, but the team quickly made repairs for Harvey to finish 22nd.

The Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach will also mark Harvey’s final race with MSR. Harvey was a critical member of MSR’s INDYCAR history, scoring his first top ten finish in St. Petersburg in 2019 and going on to give MSR its first podium finish at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Since 2017, Harvey has made 46 race starts, earning 14 top ten finishes and two front row starts.

Helio Castroneves will be making his sixth INDYCAR start with MSR and returning to a site where he has produced significant results. Castroneves will make his 16th INDYCAR start in Long Beach on Sunday and brings with him two wins in 1997 and 2001. The Brazilian’s last INDYCAR race in Long Beach was in 2017 where he finished ninth.

Castroneves additionally made two starts in IMSA competition in 2018 and 2019 which saw him finish sixth and second respectively.

Driver Quotes:

Jack Harvey:
“I think the weekend itself is probably going to be a mix of emotions. I’m extremely grateful for my time at Meyer Shank Racing. I’m exceptionally proud of what we’ve achieved together, from being a one-time Indy 500 effort to being able to expand into two full-time seasons with the No. 60 and obviously the addition of Helio in the No. 06. I’m sad that it’s coming to an end, but I’m grateful that opportunities are still coming for me and for the team. It’s been the most incredible chapter of my life so far. I’m feeling good now, so we’ll wait and see how I’m feeling after the race on Sunday at Long Beach. I love Long Beach, I was on pole there in Indy Lights so I certainly know we’ve got speed there. That’s probably going to be the biggest one of the year, just trying to get a good result because that’s probably the best way to say thank you to you everyone. Hopefully, we’ll have a nice send-off and I just hope the team wants to match my intentions for that weekend and go and get the best result.”

Helio Castroneves:
“Long Beach is an incredible place. Last year we weren’t able to race there so I’m excited to get back. It’s a place that I really like and it’s a big race for MSR with Acura and Honda located don’t far away. I finished on the podium there in the Acura DPi [IMSA] last time I was there. I also won there in INDYCAR. I can’t believe we’re going to go back to Long Beach and we’re going to have a good time.”

Third and Fourth Place Race Finishes Cap Competitive but Challenging Weekend for No. 6 SADA Systems US RaceTronics Lamborghini Huracán Team and Drivers

MONTEREY, California (September 13, 2021) – A third-place podium finish in Sunday’s second and final race of the IMSA Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America doubleheader at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca capped a competitive but challenging weekend for Steven Aghakhani and Jacob Eidson in the No. 6 SADA Systems US RaceTronics (USRT) Lamborghini Huracán Evo.

After climbing from ninth overall on the starting grid to a fourth-place finish in Saturday’s opening 50-minute race, Aghakhani, Eidson and the SADA/USRT team came into Sunday’s finale determined to get back on the podium.

Rolling off from third on the grid, Eidson moved up to second for a few laps at the start of the race to begin a challenging battle in the top three he and closing driver Aghakhani would wage the entire race.

“We had some higher hopes for Sunday, but it was getting progressively hotter and hotter as I was getting in the car,” Aghakhani said. “Jacob held second as long as he could and brought the car in third. I went out and it was just an absolute nightmare. There was no grip and the tires were gone, but we just had to go out there, kept our cool, brought the car home safe and collected some hardware in victory lane.”

Eidson also got the most out of the SADA Systems No. 6 Lamborghini despite the challenges.

“Laguna Seca is always really challenging in terms of setup and tire degradation,” Eidson said. “That was the theme of today, major tire degradation. Steven and I both did the best we could with what we had. The team always gives us the best car possible and sometimes the deck is stacked against you and you just have to do the best you can with what you’re dealt. I had a good start and moved to P2, but then one the tires fell off and we dropped back one spot, but it was still a good race.”

A highlight of Saturday’s otherwise forgettable race was Eidson’s last-lap pass for fourth, a move in Laguna Seca’s legendary Corkscrew set of turns that reminded some of Alex Zanardi’s famous “The Pass” from 1996.

“After getting hung out in qualifying for race one, we had to suck it up and just start the race from ninth,” Aghakhani said. “We got the car up to P8 but got stuck behind another car in another class. I brought the car into the pits and Jacob went out and climbed all the way up to fourth. He actually did a Zanardi move in the Corkscrew, got past fourth and we took that position overall for the first day.”

In total, Aghakhani, Eidson and the SADA/USRT team have hit the podium in seven of the year’s first 10 North American races, a consistent run that includes at least one top-three showing on each of the five doubleheader race weekend events held to date this season.

With the North American portion of the 2021 Super Trofeo season complete, next up is the season-ending sixth doubleheader of the year that will be held in Misano, Italy in late October, just ahead of the season-ending World Finals at the same Italian circuit.

“We got some good points this weekend at Laguna Seca and it’s on to the World Finals,” Eidson said.

Before Aghakhani and Eidson pack their bags for Europe, however, a more familiar challenge awaits in just two weeks. With the support of longtime partner SADA Systems and new sponsor Raymond James – which was on the car for the first time this weekend at Laguna Seca – Aghakhani and Eidson make their IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GT Daytona (GTD) debut at the Grand Prix of Long Beach, September 24 – 25.

“Long Beach is going to be fun,” Aghakhani said. “It’s a different breed of races, the entire crowd, everyone out there and the car we’re using. Everyone is going to be there, Formula Drift, Trophy Trucks, GTLM, Prototypes, and us in the GTD class. There’s so many different kinds of cars, things to do out there, and it’s only an hour away from home. We could even go back home, enjoy a meal and come back!”

Aghakhani’s racing programs run with the support of several key sponsor partners in 2021. SADA Systems, Inc. is a privately held global leader in providing business and technology consulting services that transform organizations through cloud-based solutions at www.sada.com The Global Wealth Solutions Group of Raymond James has far-reaching abilities to help clients. Their team has a global focus while maintaining an intimate focus on each client’s world. Learn more at www.raymondjames.com. Magic Laundry Services (MLS) is one of the largest independently owned hospitality linens and dry-cleaning operations in the country, catering primarily to the hospitality industry. Learn more at www.magiclaundryservices.com. TKX Associates specializes in consulting and staff augmentation at www.tkxassociates.com, Shegerian & Associates is a Los Angeles based firm at www.shegerianlaw.com. Insignia Mortgage focuses on providing flexible portfolio lending options for clients with non-traditional lending needs. Learn more at www.insigniamortgage.com. The Tax & Business Consulting Group is a Los Angeles-based public accounting firm at www.alllp.com. Equeduct provides capital funding solutions for small businesses at www.equeduct.com. O’Gara Coach is a luxury and high-performance auto dealer in Beverly Hills, Westlake Village and San Diego. Additional valued partners include Forgiato Wheels, Speed Society and the Pro Automotive Repair Center in Glendale, California.

MONTEREY, Calif., (September 13, 2021) – Era Motorsport’s hopes of again finishing on the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship podium were dashed Sunday afternoon when another car sent the No. 18 Oreca LMP2 car off course in WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca’s iconic Corkscrew with just seconds left on the race clock as the team ran in second place.

“Our car showed great speed all weekend, and both of our drivers were really dialed in,” said Team Owner Kyle Tilley. “It’s a real shame that we were taken out in the final corners. Everyone on the team deserved to celebrate another podium after the stellar performance they put on this weekend. I’m sorry they didn’t get that opportunity.”

The No. 18 Oreca, with drivers Dwight Merriman and Ryan Dalziel, showed strong speed in the opening practice, placing second in the LMP2 class. The team progressed for practice two, placing in first over the PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports car. For qualifying, the solid performance continued, securing a second-place starting position for Sunday’s sprint race, the Hyundai Monterey SportsCar Championship.

Dwight Merriman started the race in second, swiftly taking the lead from Ben Keating in the No. 52 PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports Oreca as they roared down the front straight at the drop of the green flag. An early race caution paused the race and grouped the field back together, eliminating Merriman’s lead over the LMP2 field. The No. 18 was passed on the restart, running the majority of the first stint in third.

Ryan Dalziel took over for the final two-thirds of the race, eventually working his way back up to second place, creating a comfortable gap ahead and behind the Era Motorsport car. He held the position to the final lap, when another car dove into Dalziel’s, sending him straight into the advertising signs propped up along the sides of the Corkscrew. Unable to fully see the course, Dalziel continued, swerving to try to remove the signage off the car. In the end, the No. 18 was unable to maintain position, finishing in fourth place.

The team next competes in Petit Le Mans on November 13, the final race of the 2021 season. Era Motorsport, who started the year off on victory circle at the Rolex 24 At Daytona, then a second-place finish at the Twelve Hours of Sebring will be a strong contender for the finale event, showing their strength in endurance events. For event information, visit imsa.com.

About Era Motorsport
Era Motorsport was formed in 2018 with the idea of providing unmatched excellence in historic racing. Just two years later, the team expanded to the world of professional sports car racing, fielding an Oreca 07 in the prolific IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. In 2021, the team went on to win at the iconic Rolex 24 At Daytona, in what was their second attempt competing in the event. Motorsport isn’t just a hobby, it is a way of life: a passion that is in the team’s blood. Whether you find us in the IMSA WeatherTech paddock with modern prototypes or chasing down lap records in our fully restored classic sports cars, or even globetrotting to experience historic F1 at some of the world’s most iconic circuits, Era Motorsport has something for everyone. In 2021, the team will return to the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship for the full LMP2 season and also contest in the full seasons of the Asian Le Mans championship and European Le Mans Series.

Rob Ferriol and Katherine Legge Ran in the Top Five in the IMSA WeatherTech Race, Efrin Castro Scored a Sunday Win and Riley Dickinson Earned a Season-Best Runner Up

MONTEREY, California (September 12, 2021) – Team Hardpoint’s contingent of Porsches had a solid Sunday, earning a top-ten finish in IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship competition at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca and adding a win and a runner-up trophy at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Porsche Carrera Cup North America.

Rob Ferriol and Katherine Legge were in eighth place in the No. 88 Richard Mille/GridRival Porsche 911 GT3 R at the checkered flag, one position higher than the start of the race, on Sunday afternoon in Monterey. Efrin Castro earned a Sunday morning Pro-Am class win in the first of two Sunday Porsche Carrera Cup North America races on the road course in Indianapolis, and Riley Dickinson followed that up in the afternoon sun with a Pro class second-place finish.

Ferriol started the two-hour, 40-minute race by dodging an opening lap incident involving two competitors, then climbing to fifth in a strong opening 45-minute stint behind the wheel. Legge lost some time in pit lane when the Porsche didn’t go into gear and rejoined in seventh.

She showed her speed in the car as the tires started to fade, matching lap times with the leaders over the final half hour of the race but unable to make up any more positions.

“In racing, lady luck always gets a vote and in my stint a lot of things happened ahead of me that I was able to take advantage of and gain some positions,” Ferriol said. “There were a lot of positives from the team’s perspective, from a driver’s perspective. We got inside the top 10 again. I don’t think that reflects how much better we’ve done since the last time we came out, but that first stint was an indicator of being able to start to work our way to the front at the start rather than holding on at the rear.

“Katherine got in and was right there with the leaders in the last half hour of the race. I think that’s a testament not just to her driving, but that we’re starting to get this car in a competitive window. And that’s what we want.”

In Indianapolis, the pair of Team Hardpoint EBM drivers ran their second and third races of the weekend at the Porsche Together Festival – a celebration of Porsche motorsports headlined by the Carrera Cup North America races.

Castro led the way in the Pro-Am class in the morning race, winning by 1.528 seconds in the No. 65 Fine Fare Supermarkets/GoDominicanRepublic.com Porsche 911 GT3 Cup. That run, which included the fastest Pro-Am lap of the race, also saw Castro climb to a season-best sixth overall. First lap contact in the nightcap relegated him to a ninth-place finish following a pair of wins on the weekend.

Dickinson ran third in the morning race before late contact and a drive through penalty left him eighth in the Pro class and 12th overall. The 18-year-old bounced back in a big way on Sunday afternoon, battling to the finish with the eventual leader before finishing just 0.312-second behind. The runner-up finish is his fifth podium of the season, and his first runner-up finish after four third-place finishes at four separate tracks.

“Being here at Indianapolis Motor Speedway is a surreal thing to me,” Dickinson said. “I never would have thought when I got into racing that I would ever be here. There’s so much history here. It’s definitely very hard when we do the gridwalk before the race not to pinch yourself when you walk across the bricks. The amount of names going across that start/finish line is pretty long.

“Being able to get two podiums this weekend is a great accomplishment for myself and the team. I feel like I put my best foot forward. I have a lot to improve and a lot to learn but I think I took a step up this weekend for my overall performance. I can’t thank Team Hardpoint EBM enough for this weekend, they helped a lot to get the Porsche Austin Porsche 911 GT3 Cup up front. I’m looking forward to VIR to see what I can do.”

The event was the first of its kind for Porsche Motorsports in the United States, marked as a celebration of Porsche Motorsports and their respective single-make series across all levels of the Porsche ladder ranging from Time Attack through the Carrera Cup. The race weekend was the final event before the team returns to VIRginia International Raceway – the home base for Team Hardpoint – in October.

“It was really cool to watch Riley and Efrin over the last couple of days,” Ferriol, Team Hardpoint owner, said. “I wish I could have been there, not just as a team owner but as a Porsche fan. Watching those guys get podiums and continue to build a bucket of points in their championship is exciting. I’m anxious to see how these guys continue to progress the rest of the season.”

Before returning to VIR for a home race, the No. 88 Richard Mille/GridRival Porsche 911 GT3 R makes one more stop on the west coast for the Long Beach Grand Prix, September 24-25. The 100-minute race is, along with the Detroit Grand Prix in June, the shortest on the 2021 season calendar.

About Team Hardpoint:
Hardpoint Motorsports was founded by Rob Ferriol in 2018 with the vision of combining his experience as a successful entrepreneur with his passion for racing. Team Hardpoint EBM is a joint venture between Team Hardpoint and Earl Bamber Motorsport formed in late 2020 for Team Hardpoint’s Porsche Carrera Cup North America program to utilize the resources of EBM and co-owners Earl Bamber and Will Bamber and the early success of Team Hardpoint. Headquartered at VIRginia International Raceway, the team’s 2021 plans include a full-season effort in the IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship in a Porsche 911 GT3 R and a multi-car effort in the IMSA Porsche Carrera Cup North America. More information on Hardpoint Motorsports can be found at www.hardpoint.com or through its strong social media presence on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

MONTEREY, California – Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing team Winward Racing secured its second-straight IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge double-podium race finish to anchor a solid 2-3-4 showing for the Mercedes-AMG GT4 Saturday at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. Winward’s double podium followed a similar result one race ago at Road America, but this time it was the No. 4 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4 of Russell Ward and Indy Dontje finishing second and leading their sister No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4 of Bryce Ward and Alec Udell to the line in third. The No. 56 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4 of Jeff Mosing and Eric Foss battled with both Winward cars to the end to finish fourth.

Both the Winward entries and the Murillo No. 56 never ran out of the top-10 in the Michelin Pilot Grand Sport (GS) class standings in the early stages of the race. The trio then stepped up to battle in the top five for the final 60 minutes of two-hour race on the 2.238-mile road course.

The Murillo entry was the first Mercedes-AMG GT4 team to move into podium contention after a flawless pit stop in the first hour. A well-timed caution at the 40-minute mark saw Murillo, the Winward entries and the other front runners all pit for the first time and make driver changes.

Foss took over the No. 56 and returned to the race in second after Mosing pitted from seventh.

With Dontje getting in the No. 4, and Udell taking over the No. 57, the Winward Mercedes-AMG GT4 teams also stayed in lead-pack contention after the first round of pit stops.

A key strategy move came during the race’s second and final pit stops in hour two. Winward took the split strategy of not changing tires on the No. 57 while putting two new rear tires on the No. 4.

The call soon favored the No. 4 as Dontje was able to pass Udell and zero in on Foss in second with just minutes to go. On the race’s final lap, Dontje passed Foss for second place with Udell, despite being on older Michelins than either the No. 4 or No. 56, also managing to edge by the Murillo entry for the third and final podium spot.

Saturday’s podium showings were the fourth and fifth of the season for Winward. Russell Ward and Dontje finished third to race runner ups Bryce Ward and Udell at Road America. The No. 57 teammates also finished third for Winward’s first podium of the season last May at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

Another Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing team performance of note came from Capstone Motorsports in just its third IMSA race. After taking over from starting driver Gary Ferrera, race closer Kris Wilson was battling to crack the top-10 in the race’s late stages. Unfortunately, the No. 60 Capstone Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT4 ran out of fuel coming out of the final turn on the last lap, but Wilson managed to coast across the line in 12th place.

Next up for Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing teams in IMSA competition is the Michelin GT Challenge at VIRginia International Raceway, October 8 – 10.

Indy Dontje, Driver – No. 4 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4: “We’re really happy. We had seen in practice already that we were quick, and in the race we showed that we were one of the strongest cars. The last 15 minutes was driving on ice with the low grip level here at Laguna. On the other side, I was the only one with better rear tires because we changed rear tires at the last pit stop. I think this helped us. I tried to move on the No. 56 for position, and in the end, I could stick it on the inside. A double podium for Winward Racing makes it really incredible. I’m really happy for the team and for the Ward family. It’s a strong championship and a lot of strong competitors, and I think we showed what we’re really capable of.”

Alec Udell, Driver – No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4: “There were some different pit-stop strategies that were playing out when I got in the car, but Bryce did a great stint and brought the car in from fifth. His last two events really have been some of the best driving that he’s done, which is really cool. It’s nice to be a part of that progression because that’s kind of what this sport is about. Having the results in the rain at Road America and being able to bring that momentum into this race shows the team is really dialed in with the Mercedes-AMG GT4 cars. It has been a good season. At Mid-Ohio we were on the podium and again at Road America and here at Laguna Seca. We had an opportunity too at Lime Rock. Overall, it’s a team effort and we were able to make it happen today. There was teamwork together with Indy, and we were back and forth, but it was nice to see both cars are getting the most out of what the Mercedes-AMG GT4 is capable of.”

Eric Foss, Driver – No. 56 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4: “We unloaded really well here at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. We were quickest in practice one, which is a good start to the weekend. I feel like we did a great job on initial setup and were really close in the race, but we didn’t quite have it dialed in like the Winward cars did. The team was so phenomenal on the pit stops, which is really how we got into position. When Jeff pitted, he was P7, and we came out of the pits in P2. I couldn’t believe how well those guys did that pit stop, they just killed it. Even at the end, when we did our final pit stop, we were able to leapfrog the No. 4 car in the pits. At that point, it just became a game of knowing we were managing tires. These Michelins do a good job, but this track is always really hard on the tires. I felt like I managed the tires really well, and when the No. 57 and the No. 4 were working together, I knew they were slowly gaining. I thought I had enough, but we had some really unfortunate luck in traffic the last couple laps and that’s what really killed our margin over those guys. Once they got to me, I knew it was going to be a struggle to keep them behind. Overall, I have to be really happy. Mercedes-AMG GT4 were able to finish second, third and fourth. The recent BoP (Balance of Performance) rule changes made us competitive again, so we’re thankful to IMSA for that.”

Gary Ferrera, Driver – No. 60 Capstone Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT4: “Laguna Seca is one of my favorite tracks for emotional reasons. I was stationed in the military here for language school, my wife was stationed here at Fort Ord, and I started college in Monterey. So, I love this place, I love this track and I love coming here. I know the track pretty well but I’m still learning the Mercedes-AMG GT4. We made a significant leap in where we are finishing each race. We still had a couple of hiccups, but the Mercedes-AMG GT4 was great. We really had a great time. In the end we want to have fun. We want to do well, but when everybody has a big smile on their face when you finish, it is a big advantage. We can’t do the next race at VIR, but we’re going to Road Atlanta at the end of the season. This is all about building for next year.”