It isn’t often that the story is about a team that started 26th overall and won the race. But if you had to guess who did it, you’d probably choose Rebel Rock Racing, Robin Liddell and Frank DePew. Liddell grabbed the lead late in Friday’s race and …
It isn’t often that the story is about a team that started 26th overall and won the race. But if you had to guess who did it, you’d probably choose Rebel Rock Racing, Robin Liddell and Frank DePew.
Liddell grabbed the lead late in Friday’s race and made a three-stop strategy work to drive from 26th overall and 23rd in the Grand Sport (GS) class to win the Alan Jay Automotive 120, the second race of the 2024 IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge season at Sebring International Raceway.
“It was wonderful,” DePew said. “We didn’t expect this. We’ve just had the car for a little while, and we’d been working on the setup, trying to get the car where we knew what the tires would do.”
The qualifying result didn’t necessarily show what the brand-new No. 71 Rebel Rock Racing Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4 Evo could do, but a strategic play that limited the team to just three pit stops during the two-hour race helped DePew and Liddell put themselves in position to win.
“When I was driving, the fronts were completely rooted,” DePew said. “We weren’t even sure about fuel, but we’re completely happy.”
Liddell’s fierce final stint let the No. 71 Aston Martin finish 1.817s ahead of another Aston Martin – the No. 19 van der Steur Racing Aston Martin Vantage GT4 co-driven by Valentin Hasse Clot and Rory van der Steur.
Chad McCumbee and Jenson Altzman finished third in the No. 13 McCumbee McAleer Racing Ford Mustang GT4, 2.766s behind Liddell.
Miller and Taylor return to TCR victory lane in No. 17 Audi
The four rings is making a whole lot of sense after two wins in two races. Michael Levitt/Lumen
Chris Miller and Mikey Taylor drove the No. 17 Unitronic/JDC-Miller MotorSport Audi RS3 LMS TCR to a convincing victory in Touring Car (TCR) class action Friday at Sebring.
Miller engaged in a spirited battle with Motul Pole Award winner Harry Gottsacker in the No. 33 Bryan Herta Autosport Hyundai Elantra N TCR in the first 40 minutes of the two-hour contest. After the various strategies played out over the course of several mid-race cautions, Taylor emerged in the lead.
“It was a smooth weekend from start to finish,” said Taylor. “That’s what we wanted, and the team gave us that. I’m just happy the car ran well. The crew put in a lot of work after Daytona, and here we are.
“It was a tough race nevertheless,” he added. “It might have looked easy, but we were saving as much fuel as possible while just giving it our all there.”
It was the second consecutive Michelin Pilot Challenge TCR win for the No. 17 duo, who also triumphed in the season opening BMW M Endurance Challenge at Daytona International Speedway in late January.
“We feel good, but the competition is really tough, and we know those guys are coming,” Miller said. “We had the best strategy today, which won us the race. But there’s a lot of fast cars so we need to keep working.”
Taking the checkered flag in second place was the No. 80 Victor Gonzalez Racing Team Hyundai shared by Morgan Burkhard and Chase Jones, but the car did not meet minimum ground clearance in post-race technical inspection and was moved to the back of the class.
Andy Lally prevailed in a late-race multi-car scrap in his first race in the No. 12 StarCom Racing Hyundai that he co-drove with Nick Tucker. With the penalty to the No. 80, they moved up to second place with the No. 89 HART Honda Civic FK7 TCR with drivers Chad Gilsinger and Steve Eich taking third.
The IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge resumes May 11 with a two-hour battle at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.
Kellymoss with Riley enjoyed a victorious debut in the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge Friday at Daytona International Speedway, and it couldn’t have been more dramatic. Riley Dickinson, who won the Porsche Carrera Cup North America Pro class …
Kellymoss with Riley enjoyed a victorious debut in the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge Friday at Daytona International Speedway, and it couldn’t have been more dramatic.
Riley Dickinson, who won the Porsche Carrera Cup North America Pro class championship in 2023, displayed remarkable fuel-saving skills that made a daring pit strategy orchestrated by legendary engineer Bill Riley work to perfection.
Dickinson started the last lap in second place in the No. 91 Kellymoss with Riley Porsche 718 GT4 RS Clubsport but swept into the Grand Sport (GS) class and overall lead of the BMW M Endurance Challenge when Kenton Koch pitted the No. 92 Random Vandals Racing BMW M4 GT4 (G82) for a splash of fuel.
Dickinson, who teamed with Michael McCarthy and Brady Golan, had enough fuel on board to hold off a rapidly closing Daniel Morad in the No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT GT4 and win the season opener. The Kellymoss with Riley Porsche crossed the finish line with a 1.936-second advantage. Matt Plumb and Owen Trinkler finished third in the No. 46 Team TGM Aston Martin Vantage GT4, 6.554s in arrears.
Riley made the call for Dickinson to pit for fuel near the end of a full-course caution with an hour remaining in the four-hour contest. The No. 91 Porsche was in 10th place entering the final 15 minutes, but one by one competitors were forced to stop for fuel.
Making Dickinson’s last stint even more amazing, he revealed it was the first time that he was ever in a position where he was asked to save fuel – Porsche Carrera Cup consists of 40-minute sprint races where fuel mileage is not a concern.
“Ultimately, we should give Bill Riley a pretty big shoutout for the strategy,” said Dickinson, a 21-year-old Texas native. “He was the mastermind behind the fuel save. That was the first time that I’ve done a live fuel save during a race, so it was definitely a bit of a learn-on-the-fly kind of experience.
“This was a bit of a last-minute program,” Dickinson added. “Not even three weeks ago we decided to green light this thing. To be honest, to have this all happen the way it did is a dream come true. It’s been quite an up-and-down offseason for me, so this definitely feels quite rewarding right now.”
The debut in Michelin Pilot Challenge was an unexpected bonus for the Kellymoss organization, a longtime sports car stalwart now owned by Andy Kilcoyne and Victoria Thomas.
“We were really hoping for a top 10, best-case scenario, so we couldn’t be more excited,” Kellymoss with Riley co-owner Victoria Thomas said. “Riley’s strategy was absolutely spectacular, and the lineup of these three young guys, you can’t beat it. We’re so excited for the season.”
Jake Galstad/Lumen
JDC-Miller Audi makes ‘Hail Mary’ recovery to win TCR class
Mikey Taylor won two races for JDC-Miller MotorSports on Friday. The first was to and from Orlando International Airport in the morning to pick up a critical part to be installed in the team’s No. 17 Unitronic Audi RS3 LMS TCR. Miller and co-driver Chris Taylor then proceeded to charge to the front and capture the four-hour Touring Car (TCR) class season opener.
After turning six laps in opening Michelin Pilot Challenge practice on Wednesday, the team was unable to start the car on Thursday. The No. 17 sat out Thursday’s practice and qualifying while the JDC-Miller crew scrambled to replace multiple parts on the Audi without success to get it restarted. What they didn’t have on hand to swap out was the engine control unit (ECU), but the nearest one they could find was in Mexico.
Arrangements were made for someone to fly with the part to Orlando early Friday morning and Taylor met them and the ECU at the airport and raced back to Daytona.
“We were not doing the speed limit to get back here,” Taylor said, “And we just made it just in time. Miraculously, the car started because we had no idea that the parts we had would actually fix the issue. It was a pure Hail Mary and we were super lucky today.
“I’ve never seen anything like this in my career,” he added, “and I don’t want to be part of it again because it’s too stressful.”
Starting at the back of the TCR grid, Miller knew quickly he had a fast car and moved up to fourth in class less than a half-hour into the race. Taylor pushed the No. 17 into the lead for the first time just past the halfway point and wound up leading all but four of the final 53 laps around the 3.56-mile road course.
Not to say it was easy. Taylor fended off challenges from Denis Dupont in the No. 76 Bryan Herta Autosport with Curb-Agajanian Hyundai Elantra N TCR, Tom O’Gorman in the No. 15 Rockwell Autosport Development Audi RS3 LMS SEQ and Mark Wilkins in the No. 98 BHA Hyundai. The margin of victory was 20.408s over Dupont, Preston Brown and Nick Looijmans in the No. 76 Hyundai, but only because Dupont ran out of fuel coming to the finish line.
It was Taylor’s eighth Michelin Pilot Challenge win, the sixth for Miller and their second together at Daytona – the other in 2021.
It was also particularly rewarding for reasons other than the miraculous recovery. It salved the wounds of the way the 2023 season ended, when an early exit from the season finale ended a bid for the TCR championship. Team members also learned Thursday night that Jay Cottrell, a former JDC-Miller crew member, passed away and dedicated the victory to him.
“It was nice to be able to do this and have the whole team rally around trying to win it for him,” Miller said. “It feels extra special because of that.”
The Michelin Pilot Challenge returns to action March 15 with the Alan Jay Automotive Network 120 at Sebring International Raceway.
For the first time since the first privateer GTP team joined the IMSA WeaherTech SportsCar Championship at Laguna Seca last May, a Porsche 963 from outside the Porsche Penske Motorsport camp has led an official session, and the two privateers were …
For the first time since the first privateer GTP team joined the IMSA WeaherTech SportsCar Championship at Laguna Seca last May, a Porsche 963 from outside the Porsche Penske Motorsport camp has led an official session, and the two privateers were one-two in the fourth Roar Before the 24 session at Daytona.
Phil Hanson was the quickest with a 1m35.216s (134.6mph) lap in the No. 85 JDC-Miller MotorSports 963, 0.113s better than Neel Jani in the No. 5 Proton Competition Porsche. Hanson’s time was 0.001s better than Pipo Derani’s time from yesterday that had been the previous best lap of the weekend.
“The JDC boys did a really good job of running out with a very strong package this morning and I think that shows in both practice sessions,” Hanson said. “[We] were very fast in the morning when my teammates Richard [Westbrook] and Ben [Keating] and Tijmen [van der Helm] drove, and it also translated to the afternoon. It was interesting to see how it might change as the track temps came up a bit with still being on the sort of softer compound. But happy days.”
It was another run in the top three for Connor De Phillippi in the No. 25 BMW M Team RLL BMW. De Phillippi was followed by two Cadillacs, Sebastien Bourdais in the No. 01 Cadillac Racing V-Series.R leading Tom Blomqvist in the No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac Racing entry.
Ben Keating topped LMP2 as United Autosports took first and second in the session. Keating’s 1m39.047s (129.39mph) lap was 0.047s faster in the No. 2 ORECA than teammate Paul Di Resta in the No. 22.
“It’s early, obviously, in the process of going through this event,” said Di Resta. “It’s relatively new to us. We had a test here recently where we got on top of some stuff, but we’re here just trying to learn as much as we can [to] try and get our numbers together to process what we can between the break of the Roar and the race, and certainly come back and try and fight very strong in front of the field. But it’s certainly looking like we’re near the top. Not quite sure where everybody else falls into that, but I think we’d be naive in the sense that we’re just concentrating on ourselves trying to make the best possible car with the philosophy…and hopefully that will enable us to try to battle for the win.”
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Connor Zilisch moved the No. 18 Era Motorsport ORECA to third on the time sheet with his final flying lap, posting a 1m39.343s. Mikkel Jensen in the No. 11 TDS Racing ORECA and Joao Barbosa in the No. 33 Sean Creech Motorsports Ligier were fourth and fifth.
Three Porsches topped GTD and the GT class overall, Klaus Bachler posting the best time of 1m45.799s (121.35mph) for MDK Motorsports in the No. 86 911 GT3R that was good for the best GT time of the weekend so far. Trent Hindman was 0.191s back in the No. 92 Kellymoss with Riley Porsche, followed by Fred Makowiecki in the No. 120 Wright Motorsports car at 1m45.999s.
“I would definitely take it if next Sunday we would end up in this position,” stated Bachler. “But yeah, it was a good session for us. The only problem is it’s quite cold today. It was much warmer yesterday, and it looks like the weather forecast for next weekend for the 24 is a lot warmer so…it was a good session for us and the car felt really good.”
Dennis Olsen was the first non-Porsche in GTD with the No. 55 Proton Competition Ford Mustang GT3, with Kei Cozzolino in the No. 21 AF Corse Ferrari 296 GT3 completing the top five.
Mario Farnbacher led GTD PRO for Heart of Racing, the first time this weekend that the team has had its No. 23 Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo at the top. Farnbacher had a 1m46.066s lap to best Mike Rockenfeller in the No. 64 Ford Multimatic Motorsports Mustang GT3 by 0.144s. Rockenfeller’s teammate in the No. 65 Mustang, Dirk Mueller, was third at 1m46.320s.
Daniel Serra (No. 62 Risi Competizione Ferrari 296) and Laurin Heinrich (No. 77 AO Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R) were fourth and fifth. Two GTD PRO cars didn’t make it out during the session, both undergoing engine changes – the No. 3 Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports Z06 GT3.R and the No. 60 Iron Lynx Lamborghini Huracán.
Up next: The first night session of the Roar, a two-hour test beginning at 6:30 p.m. ET.
With 2023 driver Mike Rockenfeller headed to race for Multimatic driving the new Ford Mustang GT3 in GTD PRO, JDC-Miller MotorSports has tabbed Richard Westbrook to partner Tijmen van der Helm in the No. 5 Porsche 963 GTP in the IMSA WeatherTech …
With 2023 driver Mike Rockenfeller headed to race for Multimatic driving the new Ford Mustang GT3 in GTD PRO, JDC-Miller MotorSports has tabbed Richard Westbrook to partner Tijmen van der Helm in the No. 5 Porsche 963 GTP in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
As previously announced, Phil Hanson will join the team for all five Michelin Endurance championship rounds. Ben Keating will once again pull double-duty at the Rolex 24 At Daytona, driving for JDC-Miller in addition to racing LMP2, as he did in 2022.
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“We were very pleased with our 2023 season with the Porsche 963 GTP,” said John Church, the team’s managing partner. “Everything was new for all the GTP teams last year and we all gained a huge amount of knowledge. For 2024, we will have a balance of youth and experience, but more importantly, all our drivers will have extensive prototype experience in IMSA. This driver line-up, coupled with the support of Porsche Motorsports North America, will put us in the position to compete for wins in the IMSA WeatherTech Championship.”
The Minnesota-based race team will be going with experience in its sophomore season, and its first full year with the Porsche 963 GTP. Van der Helm was with the team for the entire 2023 season and drove the team’s Porsche 963 GTP from the fourth round onward. Westbrook, who has been a factory driver in several programs, drove the team’s Cadillac DPi in 2022. He brings a lot of time with the new hybrid prototypes, having driven the Ganassi-run Cadillac V-Series.R LMDh in the FIA World Endurance Championship this past season.
RACER expects both Alex Lynn and Earl Bamber to return to the Cadillac FIA WEC program in 2024. There is currently no word on who will take over the third seat following Westbrook’s departure, though RACER understands that competing with two drivers for each race other than Le Mans is being considered.
Hanson, meanwhile, has a huge amount of prototype experience in IMSA and WEC, including a 2020 LMP2 class win at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
JDC-Miller was the first customer team in the WeatherTech Championship for Porsche’s 963 LMDh. Supply chain problems meant it didn’t receive the car until after the season started, and the bright yellow No. 5 made its debut in the fourth round at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. The team struggled in that first outing, but quickly began to catch up to its competitors.
Jenson Button did more than just accept his latest challenge. He welcomed it. Earlier this year – when they were in the midst of the NASCAR Garage 56 project that successfully showcased a NASCAR Next Gen Chevrolet Camaro on a global stage at the 24 …
Jenson Button did more than just accept his latest challenge. He welcomed it.
Earlier this year — when they were in the midst of the NASCAR Garage 56 project that successfully showcased a NASCAR Next Gen Chevrolet Camaro on a global stage at the 24 Hours of Le Mans — Mike Rockenfeller asked his teammate if he would be interested in joining JDC-Miller MotorSports for Petit Le Mans. Button, 43, didn’t need time to ponder the invitation. He promptly said yes.
“The question should be why would you not do this?” Button said. “I’m a racing driver. I could sit on the couch and do nothing, but why would I want to do that? I have to race.”
The 2009 Formula 1 world champion will be accomplishing three firsts in his acclaimed, 26-year career: Racing a Porsche prototype, racing in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and racing at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.
“IMSA is something I’ve watched for years,” Button said. “I love endurance racing. I love the teamwork that goes into it, and how drivers have to work together rather than being rivals within the team. The racing is just awesome.”
So awesome, in fact, that Button is seeking to parlay next month’s run at Petit with JDC-Miller into a more permanent gig in the realm of endurance racing for 2024 and possibly 2025. Most likely that would involve a full-time ride in the FIA World Endurance Championship, he said, with a side hustle in IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup races.
“There are a few very good options,” Button said.
While GTP cars are new to him, Button soon felt himself at home in his first test of JDC Miller’s Porsche 963. Jake Galstad/Motorsport Images)
But for now, the immediate task is Petit Le Mans. He’ll join Rockenfeller and Tijmen van der Helm in the No. 5 JDC-Miller Porsche 963 for the team’s sixth race as the first customer team in the GTP class this season. The 10-hour race is the fourth endurance race of 2023 and season finale for both the WeatherTech Championship and Michelin Endurance Cup.
It’s both a step into and a step out of Button’s areas of expertise. He spent almost two decades racing and winning in high-downforce cars — and is returning to it for the first time in four years — but he doesn’t have much experience with multi-class racing or co-driving with teammates.
“Endurance is the place I want to be,” Button said. “Multi-class racing throws something else into the mix with traffic. There’s always a lot more action because of it. The way IMSA is run, you don’t know who is going to win until after the last safety car, basically. Endurance racing is where it’s at.”
Three manufacturers in the GTP class — Porsche, Acura and Cadillac — are within five points of one another for the championship heading into the final race. While JDC-Miller didn’t get its customer Porsche up and running until May and therefore isn’t a part of the championship drama, Button says he won’t alter his approach to the race.
“It’s dangerous to not give it your all,” he said. “You’re not going to let people past. We are here to race and we’re here to compete. It’s a championship but it’s also a standalone race. You want to do the best you can. No quarters given, definitely not. As soon as you start taking it a bit easier on the guys fighting for a championship, it actually makes it worse.”
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Since departing F1 after 18 seasons in 2017, Button’s racing career has been diverse and adventurous. He’s raced in Super GT, the 24 Hours of Le Mans, WEC, DTM, British GT, Extreme E, Nitro Rallycross and, earlier this year, three NASCAR Cup Series races and the NASCAR-backed Garage 56 entry at Le Mans with Rockenfeller and Jimmie Johnson.
A test of the JDC-Miller Porsche last week at Michelin Raceway marked the first time Button had driven a high-downforce car since 2019.
“The first 10 laps were a bit of a shock to the system,” Button admitted. “Getting used to downforce cars again and a circuit that is fast, flowing, blind and unforgiving was interesting. But to be fair, I loved it. Absolutely loved the challenge. I feel at home driving high-downforce cars. It’s in my makeup. It’s what I’ve done for two decades.”
He joins a select group of stars from other racing series participating in Motul Petit Le Mans on Oct. 14. Reigning Indianapolis 500 winner Josef Newgarden will join the No. 7 Porsche Penske Motorsport GTP entry with co-drivers Felipe Nasr and Matt Campbell.
Newgarden’s IndyCar teammate, Scott McLaughlin, will return to Tower Motosports to try to add to their LMP2 class victory in March at the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring. Six-time IndyCar Series champion Scott Dixon and four-time Indy 500 winner Helio Castroneves — who have been frequent competitors in IMSA endurance races the past several years — also are expected to be on the grid again at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.
“It’s nice to see drivers from different categories jumping in and being competitive,” Button said. “It’s lovely that we’ve got drivers from all over the world wanting to try their hand at endurance racing.”
For Button, though, the question of why always becomes the question of why not. He talks of drivers in his age range who continue to race successfully at high levels like Fernando Alonso, still competitive in F1 at 42. Above all, Button says, the desire is about competition.
“It never leaves you as a racing driver, that want for competition,” Button said. “As long as I still want to race and am still healthy and fit and my reactions are still there, there’s no reason to stop racing. When I get to a point where I’ve lost my edge, I won’t be doing so much serious racing. But for now, wow! I feel like I’ve got a lot of years ahead. I still feel like a 20-year-old when it comes to racing. I will race as long as I can.”
Daniel Morad and Bryce Ward scored an incredible and improbable Grand Sport (GS) class and overall victory Saturday night in the Indianapolis Motor Speedway 240, the four-hour IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge race on the famous venue’s 2.439-mile road …
Daniel Morad and Bryce Ward scored an incredible and improbable Grand Sport (GS) class and overall victory Saturday night in the Indianapolis Motor Speedway 240, the four-hour IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge race on the famous venue’s 2.439-mile road course.
Ward qualified the No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT GT4 seventh in the 27-car GS field, but he was bumped into a spin in the opening laps that dropped the No. 57 to the tail of the field. He methodically worked his way up to 13th place before a rapid driver change and pit stop by the Winward crew elevated Morad up to seventh.
From there, the 33-year-old Canadian stole the show. Morad advanced through the field and first took the lead about a third of the way into the twilight endurance race. He comfortably held the top spot into the final hour, only to see a series of full-course cautions erode his advantage, bringing the No. 47 NOLASPORT Porsche 718 GT4 RS Clubsport shared by Adam Adelson and Elliott Skeer into contention.
Skeer led into a restart with 41 minutes remaining, but Morad regained the point at Turn 7 at the end of the IMS road course’s back straight. Skeer fought back, and with half an hour to go, the Porsche and the Mercedes completed nearly two full laps battling side-by-side for the lead. Their scrap allowed Scott Andrews and the No. 27 Lone Star Racing Mercedes he shared with Anton Dias Perera into the frame.
On multiple occasions, Morad attempted to outbrake Skeer into Turn 1, but was forced to take an escape road when Skeer refused to cede the position. Morad finally seized the lead for good with just under four minutes on the clock, and his path to victory was made easier when Skeer had to make a pit stop for a splash of fuel on the next-to-last lap, dropping to 16th place in class.
Morad crossed the famous yard of bricks finish line 0.566s ahead of Andrews, with Paul Sparta and Kenton Koch claiming third place in the No. 92 Random Vandals Racing BMW M4 GT4, 7.334s in arrears.
“By far, that was the most intense race of my life,” said Morad, who earned his third victory on the IMS road course dating to 2007 but first at the track in the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge. “I think I have finished on the podium at Indianapolis every time I’ve raced here. I just can’t thank Winward enough, and Mercedes gave us a great package.”
This victory was certainly a challenge, and not just because of Ward’s early contact with the No. 59 KohR Motorsports Ford Mustang GT4 that dropped the Winward car to the tail of the field.
“Everything was kind of stacked against us, and we just couldn’t catch a break with anything,” Morad related. “The racing was aggressive. (Skeer) was moving in the brake zones every single time and it was making it so difficult. We’d have contact, and I’d have to go through the runoff. There were little things I didn’t appreciate.
“But that gave me more motivation,” he added. “One thing I know is that I drive better when I’m angry, and he gave me motivation.”
Ward, who is the owner of Winward Racing in addition to serving as a co-driver, paid tribute to Morad’s performance.
“This is a team sport, but Daniel just drove it to the front,” Ward said.
Andrews admitted that when he saw Morad and Skeer racing so intensely, he thought the victory may fall into his hands.
“We had a lapped car between ourselves and the two leaders, and that made it difficult,” he said. “I’m normally pretty quiet on the radio, but I was pretty loud then. We just couldn’t quite capitalize, but it’s an absolute testament to the team because we never give up. A one-two for Mercedes-Benz in fantastic.”
In the battle for the GS class championship, incoming points leaders Christian Szymczak and Kenny Murillo had a rough run in the No. 72 Murillo Racing Mercedes, finishing 13th after starting fifth.
That dropped them to third in the standings, 10 points behind the No. 71 Rebel Rock Racing Chevrolet Camaro GT4.R with drivers Robin Lidell and Frank DePew, who finished fourth Saturday, and 70 points behind new championship leaders Robby Foley and Vin Barletta in the No. 96 Turner Motorsport BMW (who finished fifth in the race). Mercedes pushed its GS manufacturer lead to 40 points over BMW.
Jake Galstad/Lumen
Late-race pass from Taylor in No. 17 Audi at Indy creates hotly contested championship battle heading to season finale
A wild pass in the dark during the final minutes left one team happy and another angry as the Touring Car (TCR) class championship intensified in Saturday’s penultimate round of the 2023 IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge season at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Mikey Taylor passed Robert Wickens heading into Turn 7 with two minutes left, giving Taylor and polesitter Chris Miller their second consecutive victory, and third of the season, in their No. 17 Unitronic/JDC Miller MotorSports Audi RS3 LMS TCR.
“I knew if I had a big enough run, I’d be at least side-by-side,” Taylor said of his approach on the pass. “But he actually braked earlier than I expected, and I got a nice run around the outside. I don’t think he was necessarily expecting me to go there. It’s not a normal place to pass.”
The contact surrounding the pass didn’t go over well with Wickens, who, with co-driver Harry Gottsacker, managed to help maintain the TCR championship lead for the No. 33 Bryan Herta Autosport with Curb Agajanian Hyundai Elantra N TCR.
“I don’t want to be the poor loser, but I’ve never raced the No. 17 yet this year where there hasn’t been contact,” Wickens said. “I can race everyone else without any contact. It’s just the way he is. If that’s how he wants to play, that’s how we’re going to play.”
Wickens and Gottsacker will unofficially take a 20-point lead over Taylor and Miller into the season-ending race next month at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.
“We have to perform, every race, to catch back the deficit we had at the beginning of the season,” Taylor said. “We’re taking it to Atlanta now. I think the ball is in our court. If we win, it doesn’t matter what they do.”
On a restart with 11 minutes left, Taylor passed Wickens, who quickly regained the lead when Taylor tangled with the No. 79 NV Autosport Ford Mustang GT4 driven by Drew Neubauer in Turn 14.
Minutes later, Taylor pulled his Audi alongside Wickens’ Hyundai, and the final tussle for the victory commenced. When asked if there was contact in the dark, Taylor replied, “Oh, for sure.”
“It was just good racing,” he continued. “That’s how we’ve all raced all season. I have a lot of respect for them. … If I finished second at Indianapolis, I wouldn’t be happy either.”
The two shook hands during the post-race celebration, but Wickens expressed his frustration with the late move and the previous pass on the restart.
“He hit me to get by, and then he hit a GS (Neubauer),” Wickens said. “I get back in front of him, and then their car is so fast that they just catch back up. I’m blocking for my life, and eventually all he’s going to do is just hit me out of the way. That’s what he does.”
Taylor’s winning margin at the line was 1.138s. The No. 98 Bryan Herta Autosport with Curb Agajanian Hyundai Elantra N TCR co-driven by Mark Wilkins and Mason Filippi finished third.
The Fox Factory 120, the season finale for the Michelin Pilot Challenge, will be held Oct. 13 at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta. Peacock will provide live streaming coverage in the U.S.
Jenson Button is joining JDC-Miller Motorsports’ Porsche GTP lineup for October’s Motul Petit Le Mans at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta, the team has announced. In making his IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship debut, Button – the 2009 Formula 1 …
Jenson Button is joining JDC-Miller Motorsports’ Porsche GTP lineup for October’s Motul Petit Le Mans at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta, the team has announced. In making his IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship debut, Button — the 2009 Formula 1 world champion — will reunite with NASCAR Garage 56 co-driver Mike Rockenfeller and Tijmen van der Helm in the No. 5 Porsche 963.
British driver Button, who now lives in Los Angeles, teamed earlier this year with Rockenfeller and seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson to race the NASCAR Garage 56 Chevrolet Camaro at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. More recently, Button has become a part-time competitor in the NASCAR Cup Series, with a best finish of 18th place in three road course races for Rick Ware Racing.
“While I’m having a lot of fun cutting my teeth in the NASCAR Cup Series this year, a prototype with high downforce is definitely more in my comfort zone,” Button said. “That said, the Porsche 963, the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and Road Atlanta are all brand-new to me, so I can’t wait to tackle all three with my teammates for the weekend.
“I partnered with Rocky at Le Mans this year and he will be invaluable as he’s fantastic at car/team development. He is also incredibly quick, which always helps! I’ll also have the pleasure of working with rookie Tijmen van der Helm, who seems to really be gaining speed and confidence through the season so we should have a lot of fun.”
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The No. 5 Porsche 963 has shown steady progress since its mid-season debut at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, where JDC-Miller became IMSA’s first customer team to field a 963. In the last three races, Rockenfeller and van der Helm have delivered two fourth-place finishes and a fifth-place result.
“Having Jenson join JDC-Miller MotorSports is a testimony to the program John Church, John Miller and the entire team has assembled,” said Volker Holzmeyer, president and CEO of Porsche Motorsport North America. “It also speaks to the high level of competition and interest in the IMSA GTP class. Rocky and Tijmen have proven how successful a privateer can be with the Porsche 963. The addition of Jenson should bring even greater success.”
The 26th annual Motul Petit Le Mans is set for Oct. 11-14 at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.
JDC-Miller Motorsports are thrilled to have their shiny, new and very yellow Porsche 963 make its debut in this weekend’s IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Motul Course de Monterey. Becoming the first customer team in a field of factory …
JDC-Miller Motorsports are thrilled to have their shiny, new and very yellow Porsche 963 make its debut in this weekend’s IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Motul Course de Monterey. Becoming the first customer team in a field of factory efforts is an honor. But at the same time, they arrived at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca with no testing, and no experience with the car other than the crew putting it together with the Porsche engineers in Weissach. Just finishing the race will be an achievement.
“For me, (being the first customer team is) a big accomplishment,” said team principal John Church. “It’s nice to get back to the top class here. Sure, this weekend, we’ll be running around at the back, but use it as a test session, learn how everything works, learn how the tires work, learn how we work with the drivers, the communication…everything is an unknown at this point. I keep saying you’ve got to start somewhere, and we’re starting here at Laguna.”
The team found its first issues early, making only a handful of laps in the first practice session on Friday. Tijmen van der Helm only had his first laps in the car on Saturday morning, but pace kept improving, and in qualifying van der Helm put in a time that — although two seconds off the GTP pace — was in the ballpark of where the other teams had started Friday afternoon in Practice 1. Not bad for being “thrown under the bus,” as the other half of the driving team, Mike Rockenfeller, put it.
“With the experience I have, I have seen a lot of things in my life and racing, for sure. But still, at the end, every project is unique. And it’s definitely not an easy one without any testing. You know, I think if we had two, three days, you feel kind of prepared. Now it’s a bit…we’re a bit thrown under the bus, all of us, but I think we are in the same boat. I try to stay calm and just do it step by step, don’t expect too much. But then we all know once the race comes, the flag drops, you want to do as good as you can. But I see it as a test here for everybody, and then get our hands around this thing,” said Rockenfeller.
Urs Kuratle, Porsche’s director of Factory Racing, LMDh, says Porsche Motorsports will do everything possible to help JDC-Miller get up to speed, even as they try to catch up to their own internal struggles to produce cars and spares amid ongoing supply chain issues.
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“We do whatever we can, and we do whatever is necessary,” declared Kuratle. “Obviously, this is still a prototype, it’s still, even for the works team, a new thing. And we are learning a lot every lap we are out there. We transfer all the information straightaway to all of our customers as we do with Jota Sport in WEC, and we will with JDC-Miller motorsports here in the IMSA Series. And we have to communicate very good because we already have two works teams. Now we have two customers, and to bring all the information together, it’s a big effort. But so far, so good. We are really happy (with) how it works so far, and we try to support as much as we can.”
The name of Porsche’s prototype is designed to evoke the 962, the race car of choice for many customer teams in the original era of GTP. IMSA President John Doonan is happy to see a customer car in the series, and says both the car and the team are appropriate.
“You look back at the history of GTP, in its heyday, if you will, the customer teams were really the lifeblood of the series, the category itself, and the growth of the championship,” Doonan said. “For me, this is a perfect model of that. And I think the fact that it’s JDC…I’ve had relationships with John Church and John Miller for some time. They’re a race-winning and, in several divisions, championship-winning team, so they’re not rookies at this. Obviously, these cars are highly technologically advanced compared to other cars in the world, and to have them be the first one, I think it’s pretty fitting for me, personally. But the other part of it is, IMSA’s foundational values are about customer racing and that’s a very stable and sustainable way that we will grow as a series. So to have these guys be the first one is, for me, special, but I think for us as a championship, it’s also quite special.”
JDC-Miller Motorsports has a long road ahead of it to get close the Porsche Penske Motorsports factory effort. This weekend is merely a small first step, but it’s a crucial one. And, so far, so good.
“We want to make every session and run as many laps as we can,” said Church. “It’s a test weekend, just getting a feel for everything. And like I keep telling the guys — we’re here to learn all the stuff we don’t know. There’s a lot of things we don’t know… So we got gotta go and run and figure it out.”
Having taken delivery of its Porsche 963 LMDh, JDC-Miller MotorSports is planning its IMSA WeatherTech Championship GTP debut at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in two weeks with Mike Rockenfeller and Tijmen van der Helm as the drivers. The team’s …
Having taken delivery of its Porsche 963 LMDh, JDC-Miller MotorSports is planning its IMSA WeatherTech Championship GTP debut at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in two weeks with Mike Rockenfeller and Tijmen van der Helm as the drivers. The team’s entry marks the first customer effort in the new GTP category.
“We are very proud to announce the new driver lineup for our 2023 GTP campaign with the Porsche 963,” said team managing partner John Church. “It represents a balance of youth and experience and features a tremendous amount of on-track success. This pairing combined with the Porsche 963 will allow us to compete for wins in IMSA.”
Rockenfeller has a long history in sports car competition, including stints as a factory driver for Porsche, Audi and Corvette. That includes a pair of victories at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, as well as Daytona and Sebring, plus a DTM title. The German will be at Le Mans this year as part of the NASCAR Garage 56 program with Jjmmie Johnson and Jenson Button.
“I am excited to be part of this team and the Porsche 963 project,” said Rockenfeller. “Starting our GTP season at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca for the fourth round of the season is going to be a challenge. I am confident the JDC-Miller MotorSports team is on a very steep learning curve and will compete with the GTP teams very quickly. So very happy to see my name back on a Porsche.”
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JDC-Miller entered the LMP3 class at Daytona and Sebring in preparation for competing with the 963, with a driver lineup that included van der Helm. In 2022, he competed in the FIA World Endurance Championship and the European Le Mans Series in the LMP2 class, including his first start at Le Mans.
“I am really happy to be a part of JDC-Miller MotorSports Porsche 963 LMDh project,” the 19-year-old Dutch driver said. “To me it does not really matter that we start a bit later in the season. I think we as a team can maximize every opportunity we will get. Going to the Laguna race with a brand-new car will be tough, but I have no doubt that we will be competitive as a team. I look forward to the challenge and opportunity!”
JDC-Miller was announced as the first IMSA customer team for Porsche last July. But supply chain constraints left Porsche without the resources to deliver cars beyond the Porsche Penske Motorsports factory efforts before the start of the season. Both JDC-Miller and WEC team JOTA Sport received their 963s a few days ago.
The stalwart IMSA team, which competed with Cadillac in the final season of DPi competition last year, also runs programs in the VP Racing SportsCar Challenge and the Michelin Pilot Challenge TCR category.
