The Ganassi Team had a destroyed car at the start of the weekend and a Team's Title at the end of it
General Motors
Ganassi
Michael Shank Racing
Alex Job Racing
Farnbacher Loles
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General Motors
SunTrust Pontiac and Stevenson Motorsports Finish Second in Jersey
Collins, Edwards lead GT points, Liddell, Davis second with one to go
Millville, New Jersey, August 31, 2008 -- The SunTrust Pontiac Daytona Prototype (DP) of Max Angelelli and Michael Valiante finished second today in the Grand-Am Rolex Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 Supercar Life 250 run at New Jersey Motorsports Park today. Robin Liddell and Andrew Davis brought their No. 57 Stevenson Motorsports Pontiac GXP.R home in second in GT. The No. 01 Ganassi team clinched the DP championship based upon their ninth place finish.
New Jersey Motorsports Park proved it may take a year of seasoning before it is truly a track that can be liked by all. The fans turned out from the tri-state area to see some of the best action of the year, some caused by the competitors, most attributed to the dust and dirt of this brand new racing facility. Five cautions for 27 laps hampered the speed of the race, with of those caution periods used to blow dust and debris from the racing surface.
Andrew Davis started the No. 57 Stevenson Motorsports Pontiac GXP.R from the front row and maintained second place right up to when he transferred the controls to teammate Robin Liddell. Liddell ran a conservative first part of his stint to let the race settle in. On the second half of his time in the car he began to move forward and took the lead of the GT race on lap 57 He couldn't hold off the charging 67 and with the big picture of the championship looming he ran a fast yet safe race to come home in second. Paul Edwards and Kelly Collins still lead the GT points with 337 in their Banner Pontiac GXP.R, with Liddell and Davis moving into second just five points out.
"At the beginning we knew it was going to be a crazy race," Liddell said. "I got in and took it easy the first part of my stint and just let things happen. The second half of my stint I began to charge and was able to overtake the 67 at the exit of turn one and lead. He got by me again on power down the front straight. I thought I had a good run on him later and then with 10 laps to go I got pushed wide in the last turn by two DPs and that was it. We had a great points finish, the car was excellent and now we go into the last race with a chance at the championship."
Collins and Edwards had a strong car early in the race. Collins started and was running in the top three for most of his stint. Collins turned the yellow Banner No. 07 over to Edwards who fell back in the order as a result of the pit stop. On the restart of the fourth caution period he was hit from behind by the No. 87 car. The result was a rubbing right rear tire and debris on the part of the grill in the front. The debris left the car on the next lap and the tire rub went away allowing Edwards to stay out and persevere for a 10th place finish.
"The 87 car hit me on the restart," Edwards said. "I went off the track and was able to recover, but the tire was rubbing. The car had some smoke inside, but it went away after a lap. The team mentioned that there was also some debris on the front of the car, which also went away in a lap. After that the handling of the car wasn't great and we could not afford to pit. We are still alive and the championship will go right down to the last race in three weeks."
PR1 Motorsports had a very strong day. Patrick Barrett started the race and managed to take the lead on lap three and put the white and blue GXP.R upfront for 16 laps, the first for the team in Grand-Am Rolex Series competition. Barrett handed over to Mike Forest who was eagerly making up ground. With two laps to go he went from 11th place to his finishing position of seventh.
"The car was good," Forest said. "I had too much dirt on my tires after the restarts. It took me a few laps to get them clean so I could keep pushing. Halfway through my stint the car really came to me and it was fun to drive. The track turned in a single groove. If you go off the track just a four inches it was really dirty and you pick up a lot of garbage on your tires. I was able to go from 11th to seventh in just two laps, so that proves we have a good car. Patrick also did a great job early to keep us upfront."
Ryan Phinny and Diego Alessi finished the day in third. Phinny led 34 laps early and was also the victim of an off track excursion. The Connolly Motorsports Pontiac GTO.R had its second podium finish of the year, the first coming at Mid-Ohio in June.
"The track was really slippery," Alessi said. "It was hard to really push without taking too much risk. I took the opportunity at the end to make up some positions and we ended up third. Our second podium of the year and a good day after all that went on out there. Ryan was able to lead a lot of laps early."
The No. 06 Banner Racing Pontiac was started by team owner Leighton Reese. Reese was moving up the field when on lap 13 the No. 64 car puts him off in turn one. Reese came to the pits and the Banner crew had to replace a broken end link. The fix was not complete and the team took the car to the paddock for further repairs and then retired for the day.
"The team did a good job to fix the car," Bunting said. "I went out and the car just would not go straight. We had to come back to the paddock for repairs. By the time we got it just right there was really no point in returning to the race."
Tim Lewis Jr. and Terry Borcheller had the No. 72 Autohaus Motorsports Pontiac GXP.R in an excellent position with just 20 laps remaining. Borcheller and the team had brought the red and black GCP.R from a lap down back to third. Early contact proved the team's undoing when the brake pedal went to the floor on lap 85 eventually forcing the team to retire for the day.
"I was in third and just watching the 57 and 67 and waiting," Borcheller said. "I was getting ready to start to make my move when into turn seven and the brake pedal went to the floor. I came into the pits and the guys said that we had a broken hub, probably from some contact early in the race."
Valiante started from outside of the front row and by lap six he was in the lead. The No. 10 Dallara led up to the team's first pit stop. Valiante turned the wheel over to Angelelli who had some off course excursions but maintained his poise to comeback and finished second. The finish is the second best of the season. The bankers won the race just last weekend at Infineon.
"I could have overtaken him (Negri), but I would have had to push him out of the way and that would not have been fair," Angelelli said. "So, I just parked myself behind him. It was a wild race, but it is normal for a Grand-Am race. This is the way we race here. And it's very difficult. I went off a couple of times and recovered. A lot of people did the same. Everybody is so tight together. There are a lot of good cars, good drivers, good teams, and different winners. That's what makes Grand-Am racing so great."
GAINSCO/Bob Stallings drivers Jon Fogarty and Alex Gurney were consistent front runners most of the day. When the team looked like they were in a position to take the lead traffic or contact would send them off of the track and back in the order. Gurney eventually brought the red 99 home in fifth. The 2007 series champions no longer have a chance to repeat as the No. 01 car clinched the championship today.
""I feel like I have had some pretty bad luck this year with traffic in general," Gurney said. "It is a shame I had somebody come in front of me right after we took the lead. We had an amazing pit stop and I thought we were in good shape. The car was really not good on restarts at all, I really struggled and I just spun the wheels almost for an entire lap, but we were still okay. I was working on Oz a little bit with Angelelli right behind me. I caught a GT car going into turn three and Max was able to gain some ground and then going into Turn 5 he just ran into the back of me. I have no idea how the officials could call it a racing incident because he wasn't alongside of me, he just hit me in the back. That put me off the track and the car filled inside with dirt and I struggled to see the rest of the time. I just tried to hang on from that point on. It was a real shame to give up position and the lead like that."
Tracy Krohn and Eric van de Poele finished their No. 75 Krohn Pontiac Lola in eighth. The duo drove a very strong race to navigate the carnage and dirt to finish strongly in the top 10 from their 15th place qualifying position.
"We knew it was going to be tough with all the traffic and in fact it was very difficult with the dust on the track as well," van de Poele. "When we had to pass a GT car, it was really a challenge because the tires picked up a lot of dust and it was very difficult. It was especially tough after a restart because the pace car was so slow and you couldn't keep the tires clean and not get pick up. Except for that, I had one spin because I tried to pass a GT and he kept me in the dust and I couldn't get back on the line and I spun. I'm still eating that dirt at this moment. Afterwards, the car was perfect with the new tires and we could rejoin the field and try to improve our position, which I did. Two laps from the end the 01 passed me and I re-passed him on the last lap. It was a good fight, very nice."
Nic Jonsson and Ricardo Zonta experienced radiator damage early the race on lap 32. Jonsson had just handed over to Zonta when the engine temperature on the Pontiac LS2 motor began to rise. Zonta pitted the green Lola which had a hole in the side pod where the radiator rides. The fix required several pit stops taking them down the finishing order and two laps off of the leader.
"The dust and track conditions were very difficult," Zonta said. "Cars were spinning off everywhere and there was so much dust on the track it was impossible to drive. For us it was bad because something got in the radiator. This made us have many pit stops to add water to keep from overheating. It was such a shame because we had a very good car and we felt good about this race."
Jim Matthews and Marc Goossens suffered another rocker arm issue this weekend. The duo and their No. 91 Riley-Matthews Pontiac had the same issue last weekend at Infineon. The team fixed the problem and Matthews brought the silver Riley home in 16th position. It was a disappointing day as the team proved they had the speed by equaling the pole qualifying time of the weekend in the morning warm-up.
"The car was good," Goossens said. "We went really fast in the morning and we were looking to have a good day. When I got in the car we were in a great position to move forward and have a good finish. But we had the same issue as last weekend."
Cheever Racing had another tough outing this weekend. In the first turn on the first lap Antonio Garcia went in and had an electrical problem which cut power to the car. Garcia spun and then was able to get restarted. He then spun again facing the exit of turn one in the middle of the track. The GT field came at him with everyone missing him but the last car, which tore off the front right front wheel of the Crown Royal Cask No. 16 Pontiac Coyote. Newly indoctrinated U.S. citizen Christian Fittipaldi never saw race action.
Ganassi
GANASSI LEXUS CLINCHES CHAMPIONSHIP; LEXUS DRIVERS PRUETT/ROJAS WIN HISTORIC DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP
MILLVILLE, NJ (Aug. 31, 2008) -- Despite a Thursday testing crash that forced the team to miss every session prior to the race, the #01 Telmex Lexus driven by Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas drove up through the field to finish ninth in today's Supercar Life 250 at the New Jersey Motorsports Park and clinch the Rolex Sports Car Series team and drivers championships.
The championship is the third for the Chip Ganassi Racing team in the last five years and it marks a record eighth American sports car championship for Pruett -- and his second Rolex Series title to go along with three runner-up finishes.
Pruett's Thursday crash, which happened while cars were trying to avoid a GT car that had gone off track, resulted in the primary #01 Lexus being destroyed and Pruett taking a trip to a local hospital. But Pruett returned with a clean bill of health a few hours later and the team immediately went to work on a plan to take to the track for Sunday's race.
The decision was made that afternoon to head back to Indianapolis and prepare the team's older back-up chassis. The truck arrived back in Indianapolis at midnight Thursday night and the team went to work at 5 a.m. on Friday morning....16 hours later, the car was assembled and ready to go. At 7 a.m. Saturday morning, the car was loaded for transport back to the Jersey shore where it arrived late afternoon that day.
Starting from the back, a still-sore Pruett climbed through the field, ultimately reaching as high as second-place just past the midway point of the race. He eventually pitted out of the fourth position and Rojas rejoined in 10th. Knowing he needed only to bring the car home to win the title, the Lexus driver carefully maneuvered around the race-track on the way to the eventual ninth-place finish.
While it's guaranteed that at least one of the Lexus-powered drivers will take the driver's championship, they will both need to compete 30 minutes of track time at the season finale to share the title. They will take an insurmountable 38-point lead into that event.
Notes:
- With the two championships clinched today, it marks the fifth and sixth titles for Lexus in Rolex Sports Car Series competition.
- Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas have clinched the Rolex Sports Car Series driver's championship for the team. It's still possible that one or the other could win the title outright if they both don't complete the Rolex Series 30-minute minimum per driver to earn points.
- With Scott Pruett expected to start the Salt Lake City event, he will clinch his record eighth American sports car title. He's previously won titles in IMSA GTO (1986, 1988), the IMSA GT Endurance (1986), Trans-Am (1987, 1994, 2003) and Rolex Series (2004 and 2008). He also has a record seven Rolex 24 at Daytona victories.
- Memo Rojas can become the first Mexican driver ever to win a major U.S. championship simply by finishing the 30-minute minimum for points at Salt Lake City.
Memo Rojas, #01 Telmex Lexus: "The whole Ganassi team just did a great job. Traveling back to Indy and working 16 hours in a day to get the other car put together just to get back here and race is incredible. I have to admit, we had a lot of anxiety this morning, not knowing what to expect today and to overcome all of the adversity and win a championship, really says something about these guys. I'm just really happy right now."
Scott Pruett, #01 Telmex Lexus: "It's awesome. I'm a little sore right this second, but I just can't say enough about the whole Ganassi team, Lexus, Telmex, of course, Memo. Just a fantastic job to rally back from what started off as a horrific weekend. To do what we've done all season long, it's just awesome. That's the heart and soul of Ganassi. It's all the guys, it's a team effort. It's everybody pulling together. It's late nights. It's the desire to become champions. And in no short order, with Lexus and all their help and support and moving engines around while everything is taking place, it's just been fantastic. I'm beat up and I'm sore. I feel like somebody's been punching me in the ribcage, but my wife's been hearing taking care of me and now I'm really looking forward to a couple weeks off to enjoy it."
Michael Shank Racing
Michael Shank Racing wins Supercar Life 250 at New Jersey Motorsports Park
Patterson and Negri return to Victory Lane as Pew and James climb a mountain for top ten comeback
(Millville, NJ) 31 August 08 - Michael Shank Racing scored a thrilling Rolex Sports Car Series race victory in the Supercar Life 250 at New Jersey Motorsports Park as Mark Patterson and Oswaldo Negri co-drove the No. 60 Michael Shank Racing Ford-Riley to a .459-second win on Sunday afternoon in the penultimate round of the 2008 season.
The sister No. 6 Ford-Riley of John Pew and Ian James suffered a difficult race start, but staged a strong rally to come home a strong seventh at the finish.
The race weekend had a promising opening as the 60 machine paced the opening practice session as the Rolex Series got a some laps in on the newly and nearly finished New Jersey Motorsports Park facility. After Patterson qualified in the top ten, he got off to a smart start as speed and strategy saw him lead the field before pitting to turn the car over to Negri.
That move, which came just as the field went to green flag racing some 30 minutes into the race, forced Negri return to the track deep in the field. But once again, fast laps and smart strategy put Negri in position to make a pair of bold moves to take the lead on lap 61. After withstanding pressure in the late stages of the race, Negri grew his advantage to nearly five seconds before a yellow flag erased his gap and set up a thrilling two-lap dash to the finish as the Brazilian held firm to score the sixth-closest race win in Rolex Series history.
"This is amazing to get back to the top step of the podium again with Mark and Michael Shank Racing," said Negri, who led a race-high 45 laps. "It was a very hard race and I'm so happy to take another win. It was tough at the end of the race because there was so much pick up out there and the track was breaking up on some of the corners, so you had to place the car very carefully. I also sort of had to play cards with the cars behind to protect my position with the GT traffic and it ended up perfectly. I wasn't worried about anything on that last lap, I was just trying to work on the tires as much as I could before the restart and it worked out perfectly. I just focused forward and brought it home. We had a great start to the season with the pole at Daytona and then some setbacks so this feels fantastic and I can't wait for Miller."
The win comes on the two-year anniversary of the team's maiden victory at Miller Motorsports Park as the team once again took a win in the first Grand-Am race for a new facility.
"The car was fantastic and I turned it over to Ozz from the lead so that was a great way to start the race," said Patterson, who also collected the Jim Trueman Award Medal for the New Jersey event. "At one point, it looked as though our strategy was off, but in the end the Mike Shank guys did it again, and we were right where we wanted to be with Ozz up front and controlling the race at the end. There was a lot of aggressive racing out there, but Ozz and the whole team did a fantastic job and its great to come home with a win. Now we head off to Miller where we've won before, so hopefully we can do this all over again soon."
"This is what we've been working for all season long and to get Ford back in the winners circle is a credit to the partnership we have with Ford Racing," said team owner Mike Shank. "Obviously Ozz had a great drive today, but I think the hero who made this win possible was our fueler Tom Finley. He did an awesome job to help us get out ahead on our last stop and that was key for us today. Winning is what drives everything we do, so to have it pay off like this is just great for Mark and Ozz and all the guys and it helps us keep pushing in this championship."
Pew punted before James stages huge comeback
The New Jersey outing looked to be in dire straights for the No. 6 Ford-Riley as John Pew made a great move to avoid a spinning DP directly in front of him in the first corner, only to be punted by a different DP on the next series of corners, sending him spinning nose first into the dirt that lines the newly opened track.
Pew first used some tricks in his bag to try to clear the dirt car out of the car, but the dirty load was too great and he had to pull in to the pits to get the radiators blown out to prevent an overheating motor.
"The car was absolutely covered and I couldn't see a thing," said Pew. "There was even dirt in my blower so that was blowing dirt into my helmet and making it tough because it was getting into my contacts. So it was a frustrating start, but Ian did an awesome job after he took over, and my hat's off to Mark and Ozz on their win, that was great to see!"
The damage was severe enough that when James returned to the pits to close out his stint, the team made the move to replace the damaged nose, setting James back a lap and deep in the field. But the Englishman showed his mettle once again as Michael Shank Racing engineers called a strategy that saw him regain the lap, as he held up his end of the bargain with a hard-fought run to seventh after 105 laps.
Alex Job Racing
Auberlen's late-race pass gives Ruby Tuesday Championship Racing Team podium finish at New Jersey Motorsports Park
MILLVILLE, N.J. - Driver Bill Auberlen made a thrilling late-race pass on the final lap to help the Ruby Tuesday Championship Racing Team finish third in today's inaugural Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series Supercar Life 250 at New Jersey Motorsports Park.
Auberlen was behind the wheel of the No. 23 Ruby Tuesday Championship Racing Team Porsche-powered Riley Daytona Prototype when the race went green for the final time with only two laps remaining. On the restart, he was fourth and needed to pass at least one car for a shot at a podium finish. The team knew this would not be an easy task for a couple of reasons.
First, the competition directly in front of him (Max Angelelli and Joao Barbosa) and immediately behind him (Alex Gurney) had been strong most of the day. This is to say that passing the two in front would be just as difficult to do as it would be to fend off a charge from the car behind him. Second, the No. 23 Porsche Riley had struggled on the each of the previous four restarts with having too much pickup on the tires. What this meant was that Auberlen would have difficulty getting the traction necessary to remain in the hunt. But, the team had faith that Auberlen could get it done. And, he did not disappoint.
The green flag dropped with two to go and Auberlen held his position on the first lap. On the final lap, he came down the front straight, took the white flag and he was within striking distance of third. He waited for Angelelli to make a move on Barbosa, who was second at the time. Just as Angelelli pushed Barbosa wide, Auberlen seized the opportunity to also slide underneath Barbosa for third. Auberlen's opportunistic move netted the team its second podium finish of the season.
"I knew that it was going to take more than two laps for the tires to come in," Auberlen said regarding what he was thinking when the race went green with only two laps remaining. "But, I was definitely going to push as hard as I could. I was not going to let anyone pass me and then hope that I could capitalize on anything that would happen in front of me. And, sure enough, Angelelli made a move on Barbosa and pushed him wide. So, I also got right up underneath him [and passed Barbosa].
"This Ruby Tuesday team did a great job today. I can't wait to get my Triple Prime Burger with Joey and celebrate with all of these guys. I owe everything in this race to our team. My hat's off to all of them."
Auberlen's teammate, Joey Hand, set the tone early for what proved to be a consistently strong run by the Ruby Tuesday team all day. Hand started third and took the race lead on lap 16 before the race's first caution came out. On lap 17, Hand made his first pit stop and took fuel only. Following the stop, he dropped to fourth (only because there were a couple of DPs that did not pit) when the race went green.
Once again, over the next 34 laps, Hand continued to show just how quick the No. 23 machine had been all weekend. By this time, he was in second and was just behind the race leader when the third caution came out on lap 55. One lap later, Hand made his final pit stop, which included four new Pirelli tires, fuel and a driver change.
"I felt like I had a pretty good stint," Hand said. "It was a tough one. This track is all about keeping your momentum up. And, with our Porsche-powered flat 6, it was tough to really keep our momentum up. Because I haven't started in the car in awhile, my strategy was to get through turn one [at the start] and then eventually turn it over to Bill in the top three and let him go racing.
"Our car was not good on the short runs. When we got the yellows, we were kind of sitting ducks. But, on the long runs, the car kept getting better and better. We had a good race car all weekend. Bill and I drove as hard as we could to give these guys something to continue to work for. We are still looking for that first win. And, now we're going to go to Salt Lake City and we're going to get it done."
"Bill just put his head down and did what he does so well," Team Owner Alex Job said of the team's finish. "That's why he is the veteran professional that he is. He and Joey both did a great job to get us to the podium. After the race, I sent the whole team to the victory circle because everyone on the team deserved this one. It's been a long time. It was a hard-fought finish. Ruby Tuesday deserved a podium today and thank goodness we were able to give it to them.
"This almost feels like a victory because it's been a difficult year for us. But, it's clear, in just five races with this new car, that we can put it on the podium and contest for wins. It shows the strength of this team."
Farnbacher Loles
Farnbacher Loles Racing earned a top-five GT finish in the inaugural Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series race at Thunderbolt Raceway in Millville, N.J., on Sunday. The pace was slowed by five caution periods that consumed 68 minutes of the two-hour 45-minute race, a result of difficult conditions on the narrow, dusty 2.25-mile road course.
Leh Keen of Charleston, S.C., and Eric Lux of Jacksonville, Fla., led the team's five-car contingent, starting 10th and finishing fifth in class in the No. 86 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car.
Bryce Miller of Summit, N.J., and Dirk Werner of Kissenbruck, Germany, raced from ninth to third in the No. 87 Porsche, but Werner's charge for the class lead was stopped when he was knocked off track by a Daytona Prototype car. The pair finished sixth.
Steve Johnson of Bristol, Va., and Dave Lacey of Toronto, Ont., followed a different strategy that took Johnson from his 11th-place GT start to lead the class. They finished 15th.
Farnbacher Loles also prepared cars for JLowe Racing. Johannes van Overbeek of San Francisco charged from last on the 24-car GT grid to sixth in the No. 64 Porsche, but was forced to pit for new tires after a hit from a rival Pontiac cut the left-rear tire. He and Tim Sugden of Leeds, England, finished 12th.
Jim Lowe of Bryn Mawr, Pa., and Jim Pace of Ridgeland, Miss., saw the checkered flag from pit lane after their No. 63 Porsche also suffered a cut tire. They had to settle for 18th place.
Gregory Loles, team owner: "It's always good to see a Porsche win, so congratulations to [GT class winners] Andy Lally, Tim George and TRG. I'm very disappointed that we were subjected to these conditions in a professional racing series. It's not the race track that is supposed to decide who will win and lose, it's supposed to be the drivers and the cars. It was a disservice to the series, the teams and the track to prematurely bring us here for this very unfortunate event. Clearly, once the track is completed, it will be a first-class facility. By next year, it should be a good event."
Jim Lowe, No. 63: "It was a great weekend all around, a good start to a good team. Working with the support of Farnbacher Loles was a very nice thing to have for a tough time. The cars had a lot of promise, but for various reasons, things didn't go our way, including some contact and some mechanical stuff that was out of our control. But we finished both cars. Johannes van Overbeek started last and moved up as far as sixth before his race was ended by a Pontiac that got a little too over-eager. It was a nice weekend for the Porsche Mainline guys and a nice weekend to start the whole JLowe experience for us."
Johannes van Overbeek, No. 64: "The car was really easy and effortless to drive. We were instantly quick in the warmup and very quick in the race, but unfortunately, one of the Pontiacs turned in and hit the left rear and gave us a flat. I went off the road and lost a couple of laps. It's a shame because the team performed perfectly, Thomas Blam's strategy was great, Horst Farnbacher's setup was great and Tim's co-driving was great. I really want to thank Jim Lowe for the opportunity to be here at Thunderbolt."
Leh Keen, No. 86: "We ended up being the first Farnbacher Loles car, which is really good because the team is so good, there are so many good cars just within the team. And top-five is what we shoot for, so we're happy with that. The race was pretty crazy, I guess what everybody was expecting. This place is not ready to be raced on, so any time you go off line or try to make a pass, you pick up so much debris on your tires, it's just over. But everything worked out through the chaos for us and we finished fifth."
Eric Lux, No. 86: "It was difficult having two classes on track with it being so narrow. But I think it's quite nice racing here and with two classes, it makes it exciting. It would help if they had grass instead of all this dust, but otherwise, it's a nice track. I'm glad Farnbacher Loles had a top-five, but I wish we were on the podium. Maybe next time ..."
Bryce Miller, No. 87: "It's an unfortunate situation for us because we were poised for another podium, but there wasn't a lot of racing today. With the the track conditions the way they were and the dust everywhere, it made for a very difficult race. We also had contact a couple of times that disrupted the progress and, unfortunately, we had an unnecessary maneuver from a prototype car when Dirk was making a charge for the top spot. So it's disappointing, but the speed is still there, and all the momentum. Hopefully, we can get the win at Salt Lake that the team deserves."
Dirk Werner, No. 87: "It was a very disappointing end for Bryce's home race. I think we ran strong the whole weekend and in the end, we got bad luck with very aggressive DPs on the track. It was a very hard race, with a lot of bouncing and bumping going on. A podium was in the cards for sure -- the car was great all weekend. Thanks to the guys for putting a lot of effort in it. It's just sad that we couldn't get more out of it."
Steve Johnson, No. 88: "The team once again did a phenomenal job on the car all weekend. The track for the race was quite different than in practice and within 30 minutes was a one-groove track. Unfortunately, the track's width combined with DP [Daytona Prototype] traffic caused you to drive off-line in areas where the 'marbles' were and it made for a tough day. With some fine-tuning here and there, it will be a fun place to race. Congrats to my friend Andy Lally for his win. He, without a doubt, is America's best current road racer in the GT category. We look forward to a strong finish in Salt Lake!"