Porsche Penske Motorsport clinch one-two at indianapolis

IMSA

Sep 18

*📷 Courtesy of Porsche:* Matt Campbell, Felipe Nasr, Nick Tandy, Mathieu Jaminet, Porsche Penske Motorsport

Porsche takes lead of manufacturer’s championship

Works drivers Nick Tandy from the UK and Mathieu Jaminet from France won the Battle on the Bricks at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Their Porsche colleagues Matt Campbell from Australia and Felipe Nasr from Brazil finished second. With this success at the “Brickyard”, Porsche has taken the lead in the manufacturers’ championship.

*📷 Courtesy of Porsche:* Porsche 963, Porsche Penske Motorsport (#6), Nick Tandy (UK), Mathieu Jaminet (F)

Mathieu Jaminet squeezed past polesitter Matt Campbell in the sister car while braking for the first corner. This order remained unchanged until the first pit stop after about 35 minutes. During a yellow phase, both Porsche 963 came into the pits for a service before lining up at the front behind the safety car.
A little later, the stewards made a surprising decision: Because Felipe Nasr and Nick Tandy as the drivers of the two Porsche 963 had not adhered to the requirements during the so-called “class split” (sorting of vehicle classes during a safety car phase), the race directors issued a directive for the third-placed Cadillac to move to the top – a puzzling decision that caused many onlookers to shake their heads, but one that ultimately did not change the race result.
At the restart, Nasr initially pushed past his brand colleague Tandy and then set his sights on the leading car. For almost 30 minutes, the No. 7 vehicle attacked on almost every lap and put the leader under immense pressure. With success: With 63 minutes remaining on the clock, a minor driving error opened the door for both Porsche 963 to overtake. After the last pit stop, Nasr made a small error at the wheel of the leading ca. 515 kW (700 PS) hybrid prototype. On cold tyres, the Brazilian slid onto the grass and lost critical seconds, which put the sister car in the lead. Safely at the front, Tandy brought home a one-two result for Porsche Penske Motorsport.

Mathieu Jaminet (Porsche 963 #6): “As expected, the start was close and spectacular. I was trapped between our sister car and the Cadillac. I thought about what the best solution might be in this situation and I decided to brake a little earlier. That was exactly the right course of action. I took the corner well, the others didn't. During my stint, I managed to maintain the lead. At one point things got a little exciting, but ultimately, we finished in first and second. It’s a banner day for Porsche and the entire team.”

Nick Tandy (Porsche 963 #6): “The event in Indianapolis is an absolute highlight for the team and the entire Penske group of companies. To achieve a double victory at this venue, of all places, is simply unparalleled. The fact that we’re now leading the manufacturers' championship is equally as impressive. Thanks to our success, we still have realistic chances of winning the drivers’ championship title. I’m absolutely thrilled with this win – it was very emotional.”

*📷 Courtesy of Porsche:* Porsche 963, Porsche Penske Motorsport (#7), Felipe Nasr (BR), Matt Campbell (AUS)

Felipe Nasr (Porsche 963 #7): “A double success at the home race is of course an ideal result. I managed to manoeuvre our car into the lead, but later lost this position during the pit stop. In the last stint, I was no longer able to really attack and had to settle for second place. It was a lot of fun lapping the slower traffic. There was a lot of action out there – great for the spectators.” Source: Porsche

BMW M Team RLL return to the podium

The #25 BMW M Hybrid V8 finished third, with Connor De Phillippi crossing the “Brickyard” after co-driver Nick Yelloly did the early running. In the overall standings of the IMSA series, De Phillippi and Yelloly are currently in fourth place with 2422 points each, just 38 points behind the leaders, ahead of the season finale on 14th October in Road Atlanta (USA).

📷 Courtesy of IMSA: Both BMW M Team RLL BMW M Hybrid V8

Connor De Phillippi (#25 BMW M Hybrid V8, 3rd place): “We really extracted everything we had in our package today. From the strategy side to car preparation side, I think we really executed. I’m really proud of everybody on the team. Nick drove a brilliant first stint that got us a great track position. The team had spot-on strategy and I just had to wheel it to the finish.”

Cadillac V-Series.Rs finish fourth, seventh

📷 Courtesy of Cadillac Racing: Pipo Derani and Alexander Sims with #32 Cadillac V-Series.R

Pipo Derani and Alexander Sims drove the hybrid Cadillac racecar to fourth place in the Battle on the Bricks at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The #31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac V-Series.R takes a three-point advantage in the GTP Team/Driver Championship into the 10-hour race on the 2.54-mile, 12-turn Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta. Derani, Sims and Jack Aitken also lead the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup in points.

Alexander Sims: "Honestly, from where we started, the end was pretty good. The middle of the race it was looking pretty rosy the was the strategy played out. Ultimately, we didn’t quite have the long-run pace of the guys up front. When I got in we were fourth and we finished fourth. I didn’t have the strongest of stints and there is work to do to keep improving. Nevertheless, we go into the last race in a good position and as always in IMSA it’s pretty exciting down to the end. I’m looking forward to it.”

📷 Courtesy of Cadillac Racing: Sebastien Bourdais and Renger van der Zande with #01 Cadillac V-Series.R

The #01 Cadillac V-Series.R driven by Sebastien Bourdais and Renger van der Zande overcame a first-lap incident to finish seventh. Bourdais, who qualified fourth, was tagged from behind in Turn 1 of the green flag lap, spun and hit again. He continued and brought the crippled car onto pit lane under yellow for a front bodywork change assembly and right-rear tire change. He returned to pit lane five minutes later under green for tires and fuel. Van der Zande took over the wheel for the final 1 hour, 51 minutes left.

Renger van der Zande: "I was disappointed with our pace after the first-corner crash because it didn’t feel right. I was hanging on to it much of the time. We hopefully can improve at the upcoming test and understand a little more what the tire does and take it from there at Petit Le Mans.”

Cadillac is eight points out of first place in the GTP Manufacturer Championship standings and will seek to claim its ninth manufacturer title (three in IMSA DPi, three in the Pirelli World Challenge GT, two in the SPEED World Challenge GT).

Rough day for Acura

It was rough day for Acura in the return of IMSA sports car racing to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, as both ARX-06 prototypes of Meyer Shank Racing and Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Autosport were damaged and delayed in in an opening-lap crash caused by a contact between Phillip Eng and Sebastien Bourdais at the start resulted in a spin by Bourdais. With no way to go avoid the spun Bourdais machine, both Acuras also were caught up in the collision, continuing with damage until the first round of pit stops.

📷 Courtesy of IMSA: #10 Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Autosport ARX-06 of Filipe Albuquerque and Ricky Taylor

The #10 Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Autosport ARX-06 of Filipe Albuquerque and Ricky Taylor escaped the multi-car contact with relatively minor damage. But an ill-timed second caution flag, which came out just after the team's first scheduled pit stop, cost them valuable track position. They fought hard the rest of the day, regaining several positions in the process, to end the day fifth.

*📷 Courtesy of IMSA:*The #60 Meyer Shank Racing of Tom Blomqvist and Colin Braun.

The #60 Meyer Shank Racing and starting driver Tom Blomqvist suffered the greater impact in the opening-lap incident, requiring new front bodywork and other repairs in a long first stop. As a result, MSR went off-strategy with its remaining pit stops. But with no late-race cautions flags, closing driver Colin Braun needed to reduce his pace, resulting in a sixth-place finish.