Category: Porsche Carrera Cup North America

Porsche Motorsport North America (PMNA) and Yokohama Tire Corporation are expanding the footprint of the tire company on the Porsche Motorsport Pyramid North America to Porsche Carrera Cup North America.

With the start of the 2024 Porsche Carrera Cup North America in March at Sebring International Raceway, the Yokohama ADVAN tire will be the sole supplier of race tires to the one-make race series. The agreement gives Yokohama exclusive rights to market and sell competition tires on-site at all Porsche one-make championships in North America. Yokohama will provide the ADVAN A005 racing slick and ADVAN A006 tire for wet conditions on all Porsche 911 GT3 Cup race cars in the Pro, Pro-Am and Am classes of Carrera Cup North America.

Yokohama has been supplying tires for the Porsche Sprint Challenge North America and USA West series, and with this new agreement now supplies tires for all the Porsche one-make championships in North America.

“Yokohama and Porsche have a long and successful history in North America,” said Volker Holzmeyer, president and CEO of PMNA. “We are excited to reestablish this relationship at the highest level of one-make racing as Yokohama becomes the race tire supplier of the Porsche Carrera Cup North America. This partnership means more than providing the best competition tires for the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup race car, it involves a focused marketing and branding program that will benefit our competitors, our teams, partners as well as Porsche and Yokohama. We look toward 2024 with great expectations and anticipate another standard setting season of Porsche Carrera Cup racing in the United States and Canada.”

The partnership will allow competitors to race on the same Yokohama tire compound and construction across much of the Porsche Motorsport Pyramid North America. The Yokohama ADVAN tire will be the sole tire for all classes of the Porsche Sprint Challenge North America, Porsche Sprint Challenge USA West and Porsche Carrera Cup North America. This will ease the transition for drivers and teams as well as offer a cohesive branding and marketing program.

“It’s truly an honor to see our long-term relationship with PMNA take an even bigger step with this new, dynamic partnership,” said Andrew Briggs, Yokohama VP of marketing and product management. “We can’t wait to join forces with PMNA in Porsche Carrera Cup North America next season. It’s a highly competitive, exciting series that aligns with our overall motorsports program and offers more opportunities to showcase our ADVAN racing tires in some of the most awesome racing in North America.”

Porsche and Yokohama share a history of more than 15 years of sports car racing. Since its inception in 2021, Porsche Sprint Challenge North America – the steppingstone one-make series to Carrera Cup North America – has raced on Yokohama tires. Prior to the creation of Porsche Carrera Cup North America, the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge USA raced as the top category on Yokohama tires from 2009 to 2020.

Riley Dickinson can now remove ‘provisional’ from his title as 2023 Porsche Deluxe Carrera Cup North America champion.

The Texas resident overcame the pressure of the competition and performing in front of his hometown crowd to win both rounds at the Circuit of The Americas (COTA). Sunday’s 16th round of the 16-race season was a pole position to checkered flag for the 21-year-old driver of the No. 53 Racing For Children’s Kellymoss Porsche. It concluded the third season of the premier Porsche one-make series the same way it started: a pole-to-victory race for Dickinson.

“It was a bit chaotic,” he said. “A bit of a messy race. Ultimately, I think we put on a good race for the fans. We had a little bit of everything: some full course yellows, some restarts, quite a bit of action in turn one. Taking what we learned [from the first race], I had a good idea of what to expect from the restarts. Bringing in what we learned on those restarts, I was able to use it today to put our best foot forward.

“This has been a pretty surreal event. It being my home track it is pretty special, but I think it has been for all the teams. What a fantastic way to finish out our season. This is a testament to everyone at Kellymoss. When I heard we had the opportunity to finish our season at COTA, I was thrilled. I knew how much this event means to the world of racing but also to me and to my partner Porsche of Austin. It has been a special experience. Thank you to our friends at Racing For Children’s, it has been a special journey with them.”

In the Pro-Am class, James Sofronas scored back-to-back wins in his first trip into the series in 2023. While having no impact on Pro-Am championship – which had already been settled in the favor of Efrin Castro in the No. 65 Kellymoss Porsche – Sofronas’s wins were impressive for the driver returning from early season testing injuries.

“We are going to have a bigger involvement in Carrera Cup North America next year and I wanted to experience it for myself firsthand,” Sofronas said.

“I thoroughly enjoyed it. I knew the race was going to be rough and tumble, so having probably 500 starts in different series in my career, I knew what to expect. At one point at the start, I got hit on both sides and the steering wheel snapped 90-degrees. I was in midair while a car was four-wheels up on the inside curbing in [Turn] 2. I don’t know how I didn’t wreck. I think the only reason I didn’t was because I just hit a car to my left and to my right and it straightened me out. Car still felt good. The car was strong, and the brakes were good. I got PJ [Hyett] in Turn 8 and he gave me the room and we went two-by-two all the way into Turn 1, but I was able to out brake him and pull away. All-in-all the guys did a great job. As a team owner I am pleased with the effort and personally happy to get a few wins here.”

The finale also witnessed championship runs by Mark Kvamme, who needed to score wins in the Am class for both races. Following early race contact, his primary rival and MDK Motorsports teammate Scott Noble retired from the event and was awarded last place. Kvamme kept a cool head and not only earned the spots needed to win the title, but he also scored his eighth race win of the year in the No. 43.

“This was 100 percent not the way I wanted to win this championship,” said Kvamme. “Scott has been such a great competitor all season long. He races super fair. We had a great race [on Saturday]. I wanted to battle with him and see what happens. I hate to say it but, that’s racing. That has happened to me in the past and I feel really bad for him. At the beginning of the season, I had him. But then he just put this head down and worked. He came right at me. Right now, he is faster than me. So, I just had to be as smart as I could in the races. It has been a great year.”

Porsche Motorsport North America will announce the 2024 Porsche Carrera Cup North America on Monday, October 23.

Porsche Deluxe Carrera Cup North America provisional champion Riley Dickinson scored his tenth race win of the season at the Circuit of The Americas (COTA) today.

It was a hometown win for the 21-year-old from New Braunfels, Texas and an opportunity to celebrate his Pro class championship with friends and family at the Austin, Texas track. Adding to the sweet taste of victory for the driver of the No. 53 Racing For Children’s Kellymoss Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car was the dramatic, first lap pass on pole sitter Tom Sargent to take the lead in the 35-minute plus one lap, race.

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“The hole opened up at the start and I took advantage of it. Kudos to Tom [Sargent] for racing me clean. He could have very easily done something over the limit, but he didn’t,” said Dickinson. “Thank you to everyone at Kellymoss for such a strong effort. We put a lot of work into this one to finish the season. I feel like we can actually improve on a few things for tomorrow. Personally, I know that I need to work on sector three, Tom showed me how to do it this morning in qualifying and I need to work on that a bit. We will go into tomorrow swinging and see what we can get done.

“Huge thank you to Porsche for bringing us to this event. This is my first time racing here at my home track on the F1 weekend, so it is quite special. Anytime you are able to get up on the podium during an F1 event is really cool. For me this experience even topped being on the podium at Miami. This time we had a lot of fans and when the national anthem concluded and with all the people cheering it was super, super cool. I had the heart pounding moment when we came up for the pre-race and we parked on the front straight. I looked up at turn one and it was packed with fans; I couldn’t see any grass at all.”

The penultimate round of the year saw longtime Porsche entrant James Sofronas (Villa Park, California) win the Pro-Am class in the No. 14 GMG Racing Porsche.

The Am class continues to be the nailbiter of the class championship as MDK Motorsports teammates Mark Kvamme (Columbus, Ohio) and Scott Noble (Dallas, Texas) exchanged the lead on track to push the title chase into the last race of the year. Kvamme extended his chances for the Am championship in the No. 43 into tomorrow’s finale but remains 10 points out of the lead behind Noble.

The second race of the weekend, and final race of the year, will start on Sunday, October 21 at 10:50 a.m. CT/11:50 a.m. ET.

Porsche Deluxe Carrera Cup North America enters its final two rounds of 2023 in front of what is expected to be the largest audience in series history. Support races at the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix at Circuit of The Americas this weekend will close the third North American season of the premier Porsche one-make race series, which exclusively runs the Type-992 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup.

This is the second stop this season for Porsche Carrera Cup North America with F1. Rounds three and four of the series were held in conjunction with the Grand Prix of Miami, May 5-7. The 3.4-mile, 20-turn road course near the capital of Texas will officially crown champions in all three classes: Pro, Pro-Am and Am as well as an overall Entrants Championship for teams.

Point leaders

Pro: Riley Dickinson has earned 328 points and has provisionally been awarded the drivers’ championship for the Pro class. With 25 points per win, two points for each pole position and one marker for each fastest race lap, 56 points remain available at COTA. Dickinson holds a 124-point margin over Tom Sargent (Australia) in second place (204 points) and is 139 points ahead of Will Martin (United Kingdom).

Pro-Am: Efrin Castro (Dominican Republic) holds the top spot in the Pro-Am with 298 points, an 84-point margin over nearest competitor Marco Cirone (Canada). The 2021 class champion was recognized as a provisional two-time champ entering the previous rounds at Porsche Rennsport Reunion 7. Cirone is not entered this weekend. Moisey Uretsky (Miami, Florida) sits third in the Pro-Am class with 185 points. Uretsky, in the No. 44 Accelerating Performance Porsche is 113 points behind Castro.

Am: The Am class remains between MDK Motorsports teammates as it has for most of the season. Team owner Mark Kvamme (Columbus, Ohio) saw his lead give way to teammate Scott Noble (Dallas, Texas) after the pairings lowest performing two rounds were dropped. Noble enters the finale with 296 points to Kvamme’s 284 (a 12-point deficit).

Entrants: Kellymoss has provisionally won its third consecutive Entrants Championship. The race team owned by Andy Kilcoyne and Victoria Thomas has earned 322 points coming to COTA. An 87-point lead over JDX Racing and a 97-point margin on McElrea Racing in third place.

Season winners
Entering the final two rounds at COTA, 12 drivers have stood atop a class podium in the Carrera Cup North America winner’s circle. Riley Dickinson (New Braunfels, Texas) secured the provisional Pro class championship at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, two rounds ago. The third-year driver did so earlier than any driver in the history of the series by racing the No. 53 Racing For Children’s Porsche to nine victories, three second place finishes and one third-place finish in first 14 rounds. Only once – following an accident – has Dickinson missed the Pro class podium. Joining Dickinson as a Pro class winner in 2023, Will Martin (United Kingdom) has driven the No. 9 JDX Racing Porsche to three victories. Tom Sargent (Australia) has one win in his rookie season racing for McElrea Racing. While it is the first season in North America for the team, McElrea is a longtime entrant in Porsche Carrera Cup Australia. Jason Hart (Flower Mound, Texas) will attempt to add a second win this weekend behind the wheel of the No. 20 MDK Motorsports Porsche.

In the Pro-Am championship, Castro, who also won the inaugural title in 2021, has seven victories in the No. 65. Five other drivers have race wins as well – the most diverse list of any class. Jeff Mosing (Austin, Texas) has earned two wins but is not entered this weekend. Alan Metni, also of Austin and also not entered, joins Mosing with a pair of victories. Marco Cirone (Canada) most closely chases Castro in the points but enjoyed only one win. Moisey Uretsky (Miami, Florida) has driven the No. 44 Accelerating Performance Porsche to victory lane once while PJ Hyett (West Chicago, Illinois) is the most recent winner in the class, claiming race two at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca as part of Porsche Rennsport Reunion 7.

The Am category has been a seven-to-five-win split between MDK Motorsports teammates Scott Noble (Dallas, Texas) and Columbus Ohio’s Mark Kvamme, the 2022 class champion and owner of MDK Motorsports.

Kellymoss leads the points and the win totals for entrants. The Madison, Wisconsin-based program has nine victories in the Entrants Championship while JDX Racing has three wins. McElrea Racing and MDK Motorsports each have tallied one overall victory.

JDX consistency
JDX Racing has been a stalwart of Porsche one-make racing for years. The three-car team is a consistent performer including earning the 2022 Pro class championship with Parker Thompson. The Jeremy Dale-led program enters the finale second in the Entrants Championship, 87 points back from Kellymoss. With race wins by Will Martin (United Kingdom) in the black and gold No. 9 at Long Beach (Race 2), Watkins Glen (Race 2) and the most recent round at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca (Race 2, Round 14 of the championship), the team has compiled more Pro class race wins than any organization other than Kellymoss. JDX Racing also brings Elias De La Torre (Key Largo, Florida) and Alex Sedgwick (United Kingdom) to COTA. Both De La Torre’s No. 4 and Sedgwick’s No. 98 are also in the Pro class.

Racing to End Alzheimer’s
The mission of Racing to End Alzheimer’s, the presenting charity partner of defending Am class champion Mark Kvamme (Columbus, Ohio), is to increase awareness of this terrible disease, to raise funds for research and treatment, and to give families a way to honor their loved ones. A key beneficiary of those research funds is the Nantz National Alzheimer Center (NNAC), based in Houston. The NNAC was established by legendary sportscaster Jim Nantz in 2011, to honor his father, who passed away from the disease in 2008. This weekend, the team carries 186 names on the No. 43 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car driven by Kvamme. For a $250 donation, a loved one’s name is placed on the car as it races across the United States (https://www.r2endalz.org), with 100 percent of the donations matched, and shared between the team’s two beneficiaries. Since 2017, Racing to End Alzheimer’s has donated over $425,000 to the NNAC to assist vital research.

Hometown heroes
Texas is home to five of the top drivers in Porsche Carrera Cup North America. Provisional Pro class champion Riley Dickinson is from nearby New Braunfels and is backed by local brand dealer, Porsche of Austin. Nick Boulle, who pilots the No. 3 for MDK Motorsports, is from Dallas while teammate Jason Hart – who drove the No. 20 MDK Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car to a victory in race one at Watkins Glen International hails from Flower Mound. Austin is home to Travis Wiley who will drive the No. 77 Topp Racing. Austin is also home to defending Pro-Am champion Alan Metni who had to pull his No. 99 Kellymoss machine from the entry list after a non-racing accident sidelined him. A Texan could also walk away with the Am class title as current class points leader Scott Noble (No. 10 MDK Motorsports) is from Dallas.

First time at COTA
While previous Porsche one-make series have raced at COTA, this marks the first time for Porsche Carrera Cup North America.

Drop two
Entering the finale, Pro-Am and Am class drivers have had their lowest two race results removed from consideration for the points championship. The two rounds are automatically dropped entering the final weekend at COTA. The final two races cannot be dropped. While Efrin Castro (Dominican Republic) secured the Pro-Am title entering the Rennsport weekend in the No. 65 Kellymoss Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car – his second championship in the three-year history of the series – the eliminations have dramatically changed the Am class battle swapping the top-two positions. By being allowed to drop round two at Sebring – where he scored zero points – and round five (race one at Miami) where he also failed to score any points, Scott Noble (Dallas, Texas) jumps from second place over teammate and defending class champion Mark Kvamme (Columbus, Ohio) into the lead. He is now 12 points ahead rather than at an eight-point deficit. Kvamme was able to remove two rounds where he scored no points as well, but Noble’s late season, six-race victory run has given him the better average finish. Kvamme will need to win both races at COTA to repeat as Am class champion.

Al Holbert Cup
Since its inception, the Porsche Carrera Cup North America has awarded its overall championship trophy in honor of Porsche legend and path maker, Al Holbert. On Sunday evening, the Al Holbert Cup will be officially awarded to Riley Dickinson, the 2023 Pro Class and Overall Champion of the series in its third year.

The Al Holbert Cup was created in recognition of Holbert’s commitment, inspiration and leadership in the formation and organization of Porsche motorsports in North America. The silver cup carrying his name is a timeless and traditional trophy to commemorate each Pro class champion. This award recognizes the true racing spirit of Al Holbert conveying his professional driver’s skill, engineer’s precision and racer’s passion.

A storied racer and one of the all-time leaders in IMSA race victories (63) and pole positions (27), Al Holbert was a consummate engineer-racer. The Warrington, Pennsylvania-native earned three 24 Hour of Le Mans overall titles as well as two Rolex 24 At Daytona and Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring victories racing with Porsche. He became synonymous with the brand and became an intricate part of IMSA racing in the 1980s. Through his skills as a driver, owner and businessman the wildly popular No. 14 Holbert Racing Porsche 962 prototypes remain iconic today. As the first Director of Motorsports for Porsche North America – today’s equivalent position to PMNA president and CEO – Holbert outlined the future of the German sports car manufacturer’s North American racing endeavors. He guided the brand to a fulltime foray in Indy car racing and managed its position as a sports car juggernaut. On October 15, Holbert was unanimously named to inaugural class of the IMSA Hall of Fame.

Following his path, the Porsche Motorsport Pyramid North America continues to allow drivers, teams and partners to climb the ranks from novice to club racer and one-make champion to ultimately ascend to prototype racing against full-factory efforts at Daytona, Sebring and Le Mans all behind the wheel of a Porsche. Riley Dickinson’s name will join Seb Priaulx (2021) and Parker Thompson (2022) as Porsche Carrera Cup North America Champion.

Entry list
The full Porsche Carrera Cup North America entry list can be found at: https://www.imsa.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/32/2023/02/12/2023_PCCNA_COTA_PreEvent_EntryList_1.pdf .

Current Porsche Carrera Cup North America Championship Point Standings. http://results.imsa.com/?season=23_2023&evvent=20_Weathertech+Raceway+Laguna+Seca

All races air on the Peacock streaming app, IMSA.tv and PorscheCarreraCup.us and are archived at: https://www.youtube.com/c/PorscheMotorsportNorthAmerica.

On the web. www.PorscheCarreraCup.us.

Schedule (All times Central)

Porsche Carrera Cup North America will drop the second of its typical two, 30-minute practice sessions due to tight scheduling requirements of Formula 1. A single session will be held on Friday morning followed by qualifying and Race 1 on Saturday and Race 2 as lead-in to the United States Grand Prix on Sunday.

Friday, October 20.

9:20 a.m. – 9:50 a.m. – Practice 1

Saturday, October 21.

8:35 a.m. – 9:05 a.m. – Qualifying (all classes)

2:10 p.m. – 2:50 p.m. – Race 1 (40-minute race)

Sunday, October 22.

10:50 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. – Race 2 (40-minute race)

Porsche Deluxe Carrera Cup North America came to last week’s Porsche Rennsport Reunion 7 as the only professional, touring championship at the WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca event.

The premier one-make championship – which exclusively races the 992 generation Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car – ran rounds 13 and 14 of the 16-race season at the 2.238-mile, 11-turn race course in Monterey, California.

First time winners, champions struggling and tightening points races excited the fans and put a spotlight on the top rung of Porsche single-marque entering its final weekend scheduled for the Circuit of The Americas (COTA), October 20 – 22.

Tom Sargent has raced the No. 17 McElrea Racing Porsche 911 GT3 Cup race to multiple podiums and has held second place in the standings for the majority of the season behind provisional champion Riley Dickinson. However, the first year Carrera Cup North America driver changed that in Sunday’s first race by winning over Kellymoss driver Sean Varwig. In the Pro-Am class, it was PJ Hyett who scored his first class victory in Porsche Carrera Cup North America. Hyett raced the No. 23 Kellymoss Porsche to victory lane in the second race of the day.

“It was a fairly straightforward race,” said Martin. “I think the biggest challenge was just managing that gap and trying to get through all the traffic as well. It gets tough at times, but we did a great job and the team have done great all weekend as well. It’s been one to half remember and one to half forget; motorsport is like that. But overall, very pleased with the weekend.”

Competitors in the Pro-Am and Am classes will have their lowest two race results removed from consideration for the points championship. The two rounds are automatically dropped entering the final weekend of the year at the Circuit of The Americas (COTA). The final two races cannot be dropped.

While Efrin Castro secured the Pro-Am title entering the Rennsport weekend in the No. 65 Kellymoss Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car – his second championship in the three-year history of the series – the eliminations have dramatically changed the Am class battle, swapping the top-two positions. By being allowed to drop round two at Sebring – where he scored zero points – and round five (race one at Miami) where he also failed to score a point, Scott Noble jumps from second place over teammate and defending class champion Mark Kvamme into the lead. He is now 12 points ahead rather than at an eight-point deficit.

Kvamme was able to remove two rounds where he scored no points as well but Noble’s late season, six-race victory run has given him the better average finish. Kvamme will need to win both races to repeat as Am class champion.

Porsche Deluxe Carrera Cup North America will make history this weekend at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca when it becomes the first national championship to hold a points paying round at Porsche Rennsport Reunion.

Rounds 13 and 14 of the premier one-make Porsche championship will headline an incredible list of historic Porsche race car run and exhibition groups at the world’s largest gathering of Porsche enthusiasts.

Porsche Rennsport Reunion 7 will take place at the Monterey, California circuit from September 28 – October 1. Riley Dickinson enters the penultimate weekend of the 16 race, all 992 generation Porsche 911 GT3 Cup race car competition as the provisional champion of the Pro class and Al Holbert Cup but title competitions remain in Pro-Am and Am as well as the Entrant chase.

The driver of the No. 53 Racing For Children’s Kellymoss Porsche has also provisionally been awarded the Porsche Junior North America title for 2023 as well.

37 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup race cars are entered for competition among 14 race teams, with 22 in the Pro class, seven in Pro-Am and eight in Am. 8

By virtue of his back-to-back victories at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Rounds 11 and 12, Dickinson has earned 308 points and has provisionally been awarded the drivers’ championship for the Pro class. With 56 points possible for a driver accomplishing a perfect weekend: 25 points per win, two points for each pole position and one marker each for fastest race lap, 112 points remain possible to accumulate. Dickinson holds a 146-point margin over Tom Sargent in second place (162 points) and is plus 149 points up on Will Martin. While Dickinson’s lead is insurmountable barring any unexpected and uncharacteristic penalties for the three-year starter.

Dickinson’s teammate Efrin Castro holds the top spot in the Pro-Am with 278 points, a 64-point margin over nearest competitor Marco Cirone. However, Cirone is not currently entered in the Rennsport Reunion races this weekend. Moisey Uretsky sits third in the Pro-Am class with 161 points. Uretsky, in the No. 44 Accelerating Performance Porsche returns having not entered the most recent round at Indy.

The Am class continues to tighten between leaders from MDK Motorsports. Despite a pair of second place finishes at Indianapolis, points leader and team boss Mark Kvamme saw his lead shrink to his teammate Scott Noble. Noble’s No. 10 Porsche has been on a recent roll, streaking to four consecutive class victories — five on the season. The gap is now a minimal 18 markers between the two friends.

Kellymoss continues on course to secure its third consecutive entrants’ championship. The Madison, Wisconsin-based race team owned by Andy Kilcoyne and Victoria Thomas has earned 282 points to date. This gives the team an 81-point lead over JDX Racing and a 99-point margin on third place McElrea Racing.

Rapid rookies
Bayley Hall will drive the No. 24 McElrea Racing Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car this weekend during rounds 13 and 14 of Carrera Cup as well as in the season finale at COTA. The Porsche Michelin Junior has been impressive in Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia this year driving for McElrea, scoring three top-10 finishes in what is only his second full year of one-make competition. Hall has tested three times with McElrea in the U.S. (Road America, COTA and Laguna Seca in preparation for the Rennsport weekend).

In addition to Hall, two other first-time Carrera Cup drivers have been added to the Pro class for the Rennsport Reunion stop. GMG Racing has entered Blake McDonald in the No. 11 while Wright Motorsports brings a third entry, the No. 51, for Nick Hayes.

Supporting role
This weekend marks the Porsche Carrera Cup North America’s tradition of being the headline series in one event each season. The one-make championship is the only professional race series at Porsche Rennsport Reunion 7, as it was for Porsche Sports Car Together Fest at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2021 and ’22. To date, the series has raced with IMSA four times — including the doubleheader with IndyCar at Long Beach. It ran as support to Formula 1 at Miami and the NASCAR Xfinity Series at Road America. The season finale with Formula 1 at the Circuit of The Americas will be held on October 20 – 22.

WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca has been on the Porsche Carrera Cup North America schedule two of the three seasons of the series existence. Parker Thompson drove a JDC Racing Porsche to twin wins here in 2022 on his way to the Pro class championship.

Al Holbert remembered
Since its inception, the Porsche Carrera Cup North America has awarded its overall championship trophy in honor of Porsche legend and path maker, Al Holbert. This weekend is particularly poignant as it marks the anniversary of the death of Holbert in a private aircraft crash on September 30, 1988.

The Al Holbert Cup has been created in recognition of Holbert’s commitment, inspiration and leadership in the formation and organization of Porsche motorsports in North America. The silver cup carrying his name has been crafted as a timeless and traditional trophy to commemorate each Pro class champion. This award recognizes the true racing spirit of Al Holbert conveying his professional driver’s skill, engineer’s precision and a gentleman racer’s passion. A true link between the past, present and future of Porsche.

A storied racer and one of the all-time leaders in IMSA race victories (63) and pole positions (27), Holbert was a consummate engineer-racer. The Warrington, Pennsylvania native earned three 24 Hour of Le Mans overall titles as well as two Rolex 24 At Daytona and Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring victories racing with Porsche. He became synonymous with the brand and became an intricate part of IMSA racing in the 1980s.

Through his skills as a driver, owner and businessman the wildly popular No. 14 Holbert Racing Porsche 962 prototypes remain iconic today. As the first Director of Motorsports for Porsche North America — today’s equivalent position to PMNA president and CEO — Holbert outlined the future of the German sports car manufacturer’s North American racing endeavors. He guided the brand to a full-time foray in Indy car racing and managed its position as a sports car juggernaut.

Following his path, the Porsche Motorsport Pyramid North America continues to allow drivers, teams and partners to climb the ranks from novice to club racer and one-make champion to ultimately ascend to prototype racing against full-factory efforts at Daytona, Sebring and Le Mans all behind the wheel of a Porsche. To date, Seb Priaulx (2021) and Parker Thompson (2022) have been awarded the trophy to-date.

Double time
Pro-Am class driver PJ Hyett has seven cars entered under the AO Racing banner as part of the Porsche Rennsport Reunion 7 run groups. The team will bring seven iconic cars to the celebration of Porsche motorsport history, led by a 2017 Porsche RSR, sporting a livery honoring F.A.T International and Porsche. In addition will be the original Porsche 962 which carried the F.A.T. livery in 1990, the 1983 24 Hours of Daytona winning “Swap Shop” ANDIAL Porsche 935L and the 2007 Porsche RS Spyder entered by Penske Racing and Porsche in that record-setting season.

Two Porsche sports cars so legendary as to be instant icons are also under the AO Racing tent: the 1985 Lowenbrau Porsche 962 HR1 and the shocking overall Petit Le Mans winning Porsche 911 RSR from 2015. Current fans of IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GTD class racing will also be excited to see Hyett’s 2023 Porsche 911 GT3 R known as “Rexy”.

Entry list
The full Porsche Carrera Cup North America entry list can be found here.

Point standings
For the current Porsche Carrera Cup North America Championship Point Standings, click here.

Broadcast
All races air on the Peacock streaming app, IMSA.tv and PorscheCarreraCup.us and are archived at: https://www.youtube.com/c/PorscheMotorsportNorthAmerica.

On the web. www.PorscheCarreraCup.us

Schedule (All times Pacific)

Friday, September 29,
1:40 p.m. – 2:20 p.m. – Practice 1

Saturday, September 30.
9:40 a.m. – 10:20 a.m. – Practice 2
2:20 p.m. – 2:45 p.m. – Qualifying (all classes)

Sunday, October 1.

9:05 a.m. – 9:50 a.m. – Race 2 (40-minute race)
3:35 p.m. – 4:20 p.m. – Race 1 (40-minute race)

Entering the Indianapolis Motor Speedway weekend of the Porsche Deluxe Carrera Cup North America, September 15 – 17, Riley Dickinson had a theoretical chance to win the championship. He leaves rounds 11 and 12 of the premier Porsche one-make race series very much the champion.

The title is a culmination of not only an impressive year on track in the No. 53 Racing For Children’s Porsche 911 GT3 Cup race car prepared by Kellymoss, but a five year journey on the Porsche Motorsport Pyramid North America. The Texan almost swept all points available in Indianapolis with two race wins, two fastest laps and one pole position. This comes in addition to seven previous race wins and six maximum points rounds. The 21-year-old also locked the Porsche Junior Program North America title with four rounds remaining on the 16-race calendar. Dickinson will be awarded the Al Holbert Cup for his overall and Pro class championship at the series’ Night of Champions in Austin, Texas, October 22.

The 2.49-mile road course that cuts through the heart of the world’s most famous race track, has proven to be a favorite for Dickinson, who took his first career Carrera Cup victory there in 2022. Indy is also a favorite of Efrin Castro and Scott Noble, both of whom returned to victory lane for the second straight day. Castro has now earned six class wins for the season in the No. 65 Kellymoss Porsche while the No. 10 MDK Motorsports Porsche carried Noble to his second straight win at the Brickyard, and his fifth Am class win of the year.

Following a caution-free race on Saturday, Sunday’s second race had a lap one yellow flag. As a result of on track incidents, three drivers were sent to the infield care center at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for evaluation. Sabre Cook and Cirone made contact in Turn 7 on the opening lap when the No. 82 of Cirone suffered an issue. The No. 77 of Travis Wiley had contact in a separate incident. Cirone and Wiley were evaluated and released from the Care Center. Out of an abundance of caution, Cook was transported to a local hospital for precautionary imagery. She was evaluated and released from the hospital on Sunday afternoon.

“First and foremost, I want to make sure Sabre is OK,” said Dickinson. “She had a tough incident there in Turn 7 and I am wishing her the best.

“The beginning of the race was a bit scrappy. Ultimately, once we ended the full course yellow we were able to break away, stay out of trouble and click off laps. I am a quite speechless right now. Twelve months ago, here at Indianapolis, this was my first career win and now, a year later to win the championship is a surreal moment. I have been working for this for so incredibly long. This definitely is a very cool feeling.

“I can’t thank everyone at Kellymoss enough for all of their hard work. It has been an unbelievable two years. My mechanic Donnie Leonard has been my guy for two years now and it super-special to give him this championship. To be able to do this for Racing For Children’s and all of the kids back at the hospital and here is very special. Porsche Austin has been unbelievable supporters of me back home; a huge thank you to them. We will be able to go to Laguna Seca and Austin with no worries about the championship, just focus on race wins. I look forward to Rennsport!”

Despite the Pro championship being settled four rounds early, the remaining class championships are still hotly contested. In the Pro-Am category, Castro has won the last four rounds, six races total, but a slow start at Sebring has kept the 2021 class champion from locking down his second title. He holds a 71-point lead over Marco Cirone, who has one win but six second place finishes. In the Am class, MDK Motorsports teammate Mark Kvamme and Noble are now within 24 points. Four straight victories have closed Noble’s team owner.

Next: Rounds 13 and 14. Porsche Rennsport Reunion 7, WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, October 1, 2023.

Porsche Deluxe Carrera Cup North America points leader Riley Dickinson took another step towards becoming the first American-born driver to be crowned as champion after another dominant victory at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Saturday.

After starting from pole, the Kellymoss driver jumped into the lead from McElrea Racing’s Tom Sargent, who held off a hard-charging Alex Sedgwick (JDX Racing).

While Dickinson charged ahead at the front, the Pro-class pack behind him was getting aggressive. Jason Hart (MDK Motorsport) earned a 10-second penalty for contact with Sedgwick — moving him from second at the finish to ninth.

Sargent was looking to record his sixth second-place finish of the season but suffered contact at turn 12 with about 10 minutes remaining. JDX Racing’s Will Martin had to serve a drive-through penalty for the incident, which spun Sargent around but fortunately left him pointing in the right direction. The Australian recovered to finish fifth with Martin in P9 at the checkered flag.

Joining Dickinson on the podium was British-born “local hero” Dan Clarke. The former Champ Car racer and Indianapolis resident crossed the line in second place ahead of Sedgwick.

MDK Motorsports’ Jimmy Llibre equalled his season-best finish with fourth.

“It was a great race for the Kellymoss team. Going into the weekend, we felt pretty confident, but we were able to fine-tune some stuff in practice,” Dickinson said.

“Fortunately, from the start, the people behind us started to get into a fight, and we were able to pull away. The whole race I kept thinking about what to do if there was a full-course caution but that never happened, and we were able to go on to the victory.

“Ultimately, we are here at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and there is no better place to do this. I’m looking forward to what we can do tomorrow. Thanks to everyone at Kellymoss, Racing For Children’s, and Porsche of Austin.”

Should Dickinson triumph in this year’s championship, he will become the first American-born champion. Inaugural champion Seb Prixaulx was born and raised in Guernsey (one of the Channel Islands in the English Channel), while Canada’s Parker Thompson was crowned champion last yaer.

There are now five rounds remaining in 2023 — one more at Indianapolis on Sunday and two each at the upcoming Rennsport Reunion VII at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca and the U.S. Grand Prix at Circuit of The Americas.

In the Rafa Racing Club Pro-Am class, Dominican Republic racer Efrin Castro won his third race in a row and his fifth in total in 2023. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway has proven to be a happy hunting ground for the Kellymoss racer who has won six races from seven starts at  the Brickyard.

Canadian Marco Cirone (ACI Motorsports) crossed the line in second place ahead of GMG Racing’s Kyle Washington.

Remarkably, in the Am class, Saturday’s result mirrored both practice sessions and the qualifying times. Scott Noble took his third win in a row and his fourth in his first season in the championship ahead of his MDK Motorsports team boss Mark Kvamme, and Wright Motorsports’ John Goetz. The trio of drivers have filled the same positions in every session so far this weekend.

The Porsche Deluxe Carrera Cup North America will be back on track at Indianapolis at 9:40am on Sunday for round 12 of the 16-round championship.

RESULTS

The Porsche Deluxe Carrera Cup North America has raced each of its three seasons at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway but this is the first time the premier one-make race series in North America will race at the Brickyard’s road course alongside the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.

Joining IMSA’s Battle On the Bricks, the twin 40-minute races for the all-Porsche 911 GT3 Cup series will act as rounds 11 and 12 of the 16-race title fight.

Riley Dickinson enters the final three race weekends of the 2023 race season focused on maintaining his perfect record in the No. 53 Kellymoss Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car with seven race wins and six perfect race weekends (dual race wins, pole positions, and fastest race laps).

There are 29 entries across the three classes — Pro, Pro-Am, and Am — that will have their shot at the New Braunfels, Texas resident when Porsche Carrera Cup North America travels to the 2.49-mile, 14-turn road course in Speedway, Indiana, September 15 – 17.

INDIANAPOLIS FAST FACTS

• Indianapolis is a special place to racers but for points leader Riley Dickinson, the Brickyard holds an even more special place in his heart. It is where the Texan earned his first career Porsche Carrera Cup North America victory. The win came in the second of two races held as part of Porsche Sports Car Together Fest in 2022. Dickinson had been a regular contender since joining the series as a teenager in 2021 but the September 4 Indy victory was his breakout moment.

• This weekend marks the final time the Porsche Carrera Cup North America will race with the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship this season. To date, the series has raced with IMSA three times — including the doubleheader with IndyCar at Long Beach. It ran as support to Formula 1 at Miami and NASCAR Xfinity Series at Road America. The remaining races will see it as the headliner during Porsche Rennsport Reunion 7 at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, September 28-October 1 and its season finale with F1 at Circuit of The Americas on October 20-22.

• Like Sebring, Watkins Glen International, and Road America, Indy is one of four tracks to host a Carrera Cup event each season (2021, ’22 and now ’23).

• Two Pro-Am class drivers will do double duty with Carrera Cup alums this weekend in Indianapolis. PJ Hyett will race the No. 23 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car for Kellymoss in Carrera Cup North America while sharing the AO Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R with 2021 Carrera Cup North America Champion Seb Priaulx in the GTD class of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. Alan Metni will also compete in both series. He will field the No. 99 for Kellymoss in the Pro-Am category for the two Carrera Cup rounds, sharing the No. 91 Kellymoss with Riley Porsche 911 GT3 R with 2021 and 2022 Carrera Cup North America runner-up Kay van Berlo in the GTD class of the WeatherTech Championship.

• Porsche customer competitors will also split their time between two support series. Kyle Washington will also race in two championships this weekend. He will pilot the No. 32 GMG Racing Porsche in the Pro-Am category of Carrera Cup while joining Jeroen Bleekemolen in the No. 32 Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport in the GS class of the Michelin Pilot Challenge. Rearden Racing enters Porsche race cars for Jake Pedersen in both Carrera Cup (No. 85 in the Pro class) and the No. 21 Porsche Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport with co-driver fellow Utah-resident Vesko Kozarov in Michelin Pilot Challenge. NOLASPORT will also enter machines in both series.

Click HERE for the full Porsche Carrera Cup North America entry list.

Click HERE for the current Porsche Carrera Cup North America Championship point standings.

All races air on the Peacock streaming app, IMSA.tv and PorscheCarreraCup.us and are archived at: https://www.youtube.com/c/PorscheMotorsportNorthAmerica.

Schedule (all times Eastern)

Friday, September 15
10:00am – 10:30am – Practice 1
1:45pm – 2:25pm – Practice 2
5:30pm – 6:00pm – Qualifying (all classes)

Saturday, September 16
2:30pm– 3:10pm – Race 1 (40-minute race)

Sunday, September 17
9:40am – 10:20am – Race 2 (40-minute race)