California calls for the Porsche GT Team
The penultimate round of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship heads to the legendary twists and turns of Laguna Seca
The tenth and penultimate round of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship is in Monterey, California this weekend (September 7-9), for a visit to one of America’s most demanding race circuits.
The Porsche GT Team will field two Porsche 911 RSR cars in the GTLM class, with Patrick Pilet and Nick Tandy sharing the Number 911 car, and Laurens Vanthoor and Earl Bamber pairing up in the 510 hp RSR with the 912 badge.
Further Porsche hopes will be pinned on the customer teams, with eyes on local boy Patrick Long and Porsche Selected Driver Christina Nielsen, who will hope to continue their podium streak when they drive the Wright Motorsports 911 GT3 R in the GTD class.
A second 911 GT3 R will be fielded by Park Place Motorsports. Unlike the previous round at Danville, Porsche will be competing for class rather than outright wins, as the prototypes return for the Laguna Seca race. Not that this makes things any less competitive.
Patrick Long, who shared victory at the recent Elkhart Lake race with Nielsen, said: “Laguna Seca is a home race for me. I like the region and the track is really challenging. You need a perfect setup here, and it’s very tricky working your way through the traffic on the track. Our Porsche should suit this circuit.”
Dr Frank-Steffen Walliser, Vice President Motorsport and GT Cars, described the track – which has a 55-metre elevation change and a real mix of fast and slow corners – as “difficult turf” for Porsche.
“The season is drawing to a close: Laguna Seca is the penultimate round and my personal favourite. However, in the recent past, the racetrack has proven to be difficult turf for Porsche,” he said. “I hope we can turn the insights we’ve gained since last year with the new 911 RSR into a good result. We’ll do everything we can to conclude the season with a good performance.”
The race kicks off on Sunday (September 9) at 14.05 hrs local time (22.05 hrs CEST) and can be viewed live outside the USA and Canada on www.imsa.com.
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