Porsche: double overall and GTD Pro win at Sebring

IMSA

Mar 16

Porsche scores high at 12 Hours of Sebring with Porsche Penske Motorsports’s Porsche 963 double overall and AO Racing’s Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) win in GTD Pro class.

📷© Luc Warnotte at Sebring. Both Porsche leading after 5 laps.

Porsche Penske Motorsports’s Porsche 963’s double

Porsche has clinched first and second place at round two of this year’s IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. Felipe Nasr, Nick Tandy, and Laurens Vanthoor swept to victory at the 12 Hours of Sebring at the wheel of their #7 Porsche 963. This victory comes after the trio’s triumph at the 24 Hours of Daytona in January. Matt Campbell, Mathieu Jaminet and Kévin Estre rounded off the stellar performance of the Porsche Penske Motorsport works team with second place.

Winning Porsche 963 #7 — 📷© Luc Warnotte at Sebring. Second win in a row for Porsche 963 #7

In summer temperatures reaching 31 degrees Celsius, a fierce battle among the top GTP contenders unfolded as soon as the lights turned green at 10:10 am local time. After just 15 minutes, Felipe Nasr swept to the front at the wheel of the #7 Porsche 963. While the Brazilian and his teammates Nick Tandy and Laurens Vanthoor relinquished the lead around an hour later, they ultimately fought their way up the order to regain the lead in the evening after overcoming difficult conditions on the extremely hot track at the Sebring International Raceway.

Porsche’s 19th overall victory at Sebring

📷© Luc Warnotte at Sebring. Winning Porsche #7 in bumpy turn 17

The decisive moment came after the ninth and final yellow phase when the field went head-to-head in a thrilling sprint during the final 31 minutes of the race. Nasr fended off his attacking rivals to bring home Porsche Penske Motorsport’s second victory of the season at round two. For Porsche as the record Sebring winner, this marked the 19th overall victory at the endurance classic in Florida – the first since 2008.

Tandy’s Triple Crown of endurance racing

For Nick Tandy, who earned himself the nickname “Mister 24 Hours” after his victory in Daytona, this latest triumph was another dream come true: The UK ace is just the tenth racing driver in the world to achieve the so-called Triple Crown of endurance racing after scoring overall victories at Sebring and the 24-hour races in Le Mans and Daytona.

Triple crown for Nick Tandy with Porsche 7 at Sebring — 📷© Luc Warnotte at Sebring. Triple crown for Nick Tandy with Porsche #7 at Sebring

Nick Tandy (Porsche 963 #7): “It feels amazing to win two races in a row. But winning the 36 Hours of Florida in Daytona and Sebring is hard to believe. And to top it off, both Porsche 963 finished both races on the podium. Given the fierce competition, that’s incredible. No mistakes, no penalties, no damage – today was simply a dream in endurance racing.”

📷© Luc Warnotte at Sebring. P2 for Porsche 963 #6.

The #6 sister car also ran among the frontrunners for much of the twelve-hour race. Matt Campbell, Mathieu Jaminet, and Kévin Estre ultimately crossed the finish line just 2.239 seconds behind their victorious teammates.

📷© Luc Warnotte at Sebring. Porsche Penske Motorsports Porsche 963 #6

Matt Campbell (Porsche 963 #6): “The one-two finish is obviously a banner result for Porsche Penske Motorsport. Congratulations to our victorious sister car. Today was incredibly long and tough for us; the race went back and forth. We experienced some difficulties in the intense heat of the early afternoon, but our Porsche was incredibly strong in the cooler evening. It’s terrific to score the maximum number of points together.”

Porsche’s leadership in GTP Championships

Thanks to the one-two finish at Sebring, Porsche has extended its lead in the manufacturers’ championship. The two driver crews now lock out the top two positions in the overall standings.

📷© Luc Warnotte at Sebring. AO Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R

First victory for AO Racing in GTD Pro

In the GTD Pro class, the customer team AO Racing celebrated its first-ever victory in one of the major endurance races of the IMSA series with the Porsche 911 GT3 R. At the wheel of the fan favourite “Rexy”, the two former Porsche Juniors Laurin Heinrich and Klaus Bachler joined forces with Alessio Picariello to drive a flawless race. After an intense fight for the lead, the trio ultimately won by a margin of 4.371 seconds. Proton Competition’s 911 finished eighth.

Klaus Bachler (Porsche 911 GT3 R #77): “I’m so proud of the team! Laurin did an exceptional job in the last two hours of the race, and Alessio was also incredibly strong. It’s simply cool to share the car with two great guys. We’ve finally won one of the biggest races with ‘Rexy’. Now it’s time to celebrate. I’m already looking forward to all the remaining races this season – I hope it continues like this.” Source: Porsche