Motorsport

Porsche GT Team scores second after tactic thriller in the IMSA Weathertech Sportscar Championship at Laguna Seca

Porsche 911 RSR (912), Porsche GT Team Earl Bamber, Laurens Vanthoor

Comments on the race
Steffen Höllwarth (Porsche Program Manager IMSA SportsCar Championship): “That was a real thriller! First and foremost, I’m very pleased that nothing bad happened to Nick. He couldn’t do anything about the accident directly after the start. The impact was hard. The extensive safety features on the 911 RSR have proven their worth today. The race for our number 912 car was marked by caution phases, but we didn’t let this interfere with our strategy. The final stint was all about conserving as much fuel as possible and not ruining the tyres. Laurens did a great job. Of course we would have liked to win, but ultimately that was an impressive performance from the entire team.” 

Laurens Vanthoor (Porsche 911 RSR #912): “Based on the fact that we expected a difficult race, this result is really good. Of course it’s a shame that it wasn’t quite enough for first place. It was incredibly tough. We came into the pits early and therefore had to be extremely conservative with our fuel the whole time. Under such circumstances it’s difficult to keep the tyres at the optimal temperature. Such things don’t make the job easier. I did everything I could and finished in second place. We couldn’t do any better than that today.”

 

Porsche 911 GT3 R (73), Park Place Motorsports Joerg Bergmeister, Patrick Lindsey
Porsche 911 GT3 R (73), Park Place Motorsports Joerg Bergmeister, Patrick Lindsey

Earl Bamber (Porsche 911 RSR #912): “That was a tough job. After my early pit stop the main focus was to save fuel. But we also couldn’t afford to slow the pace – it worked well. Laurens’s long stint was sensational. Second place is the well-deserved reward for great teamwork, great decisions and clean drives. I’m really sorry about our sister car. The important thing is that nothing happened to Nick in the accident.”

Nick Tandy (Porsche 911 RSR #911): “It’s bitter to retire before the race even got underway. A prototype had spun in front of me and that triggered a chain reaction. I had no chance to avoid it. I hope our luck returns at the season finale at Road Atlanta.”

Patrick Pilet (Porsche 911 RSR #911): “It’s extremely disappointing, but that’s how it goes sometimes in motor racing. When you have a lot of cars from different classes starting together, it can quickly lead to collisions and chaos. Nick couldn’t do anything. The prototype stood right in the middle of the track – he had no chance.”

Complete results on next page