IMSA: Porsche wins at Long Beach after competitors self-destruct
Sometimes in racing the slowest car wins when its competitors self-destruct.
WTR Andretti’s hopes of victory was eliminated when Ricky Taylor nosed the No. 10 Acura into the Turn 1 barriers after passing the Porsche of Jaminet for the lead with two laps to go.
The No. 25 Team RLL BMW M Hybrid V8 of Connor De Philippi, was fighting for the lead, but dropped to fourth with 23 minutes to go after running out of talent and going into the Turn 1 runoff.
In glorious sunshine and set against the stunning backdrop of the Pacific coast, the IMSA series treated fans to an extremely entertaining show on the narrow street circuit in Long Bach. Hollywood, barely 50 kilometres away, could hardly have staged it better. The two Porsche 963 fielded by Porsche Penske Motorsport had started the race from positions six and eight. In the first lap, the two ca. 500 kW (680 PS) cars benefitted from a collision among the leading pack in the early stages and inherited second and fifth place.
The first stint drivers, Nick Tandy from the UK and Brazilian Felipe Nasr, fended off fierce attacks from their rivals and brought the two Porsche 963 into the pits midway through the race for a scheduled service and driver change. There, the new Porsche Penske Motorsport works team opted for a daring strategy: Unlike the rest of the competition, instead of changing the wheels on both vehicles, the squad put its trust in the excellent durability of the Michelin tires. The time gained in the pits propelled the two “Made in Flacht” hybrid prototypes to the front of the field.
While Frenchman Mathieu Jaminet confidently turned his laps, his brand colleague Matt Campbell had his hands full in the final phase. The No. 7 car came under repeated attacks, which the Australian cleverly and resolutely countered or fended off. A minor collision, however, caused slight damage to the rear. Moreover, the tires deteriorated rapidly over the last ten laps. With nine minutes left on the clock, Campbell lost two positions initially but reclaimed third place after an accident involving the No. 10 Acura in a battle with the leading Jaminet. Ultimately, the race ended behind the safety car.
“What an exciting and fantastic race,” says a delighted Thomas Laudenbach, Vice President Porsche Motorsport. “It was a spectacle from the first to the last lap. Our team chose an optimal strategy and did a perfect job with the pit stops. Our drivers gave their utmost and drove flawlessly without exception despite coming under enormous pressure. This performance was deservedly rewarded with our first victory. Many thanks to everyone in the team, our employees in Weissach and all our partners who made this success possible. I’m sure today’s victory will give our team extra motivation in the FIA WEC as they head into Sunday’s race in Portugal.”
“This day will go down in the history of our team. The first victory with the Porsche 963 is incredibly important to us,” says Jonathan Diuguid, Managing Director Porsche Penske Motorsport. “We put in so much energy and work to be able to celebrate such a success. Our strategy was certainly risky, but it paid off. We owe this triumph to every single person in the team. What Matt Campbell did in the battle for second place at the end was awesome. He had the sister car’s back in the important final phase. I’m enormously proud of the entire team!”
Taylor, whose car along with the two BMWs took four new tires on their stops, made a bold move around Campbell in Turn 8 for second with nine minutes to go after previous contact between the two cars, and hunted down Jaminet for the lead.
WTR Andretti’s hopes of victory, however, was eliminated when Taylor nosed the No. 10 Acura into the Turn 1 barriers after passing Jaminet for the lead with two laps to go.
It resulted in the race ending under full course caution for the stricken Acura, which was classified seventh.
The race’s first hour was only slowed by one caution period, following an incident on the opening lap, and lasting for the first 10 minutes of the race.
Both BMW M Hybrid V8 machines had a turn in the lead before pitting. Yelloly stopped the No. 25 on lap 33 to hand off to De Phillippi, the Californian reentering in fourth. Two laps later, Farfus pitted the No. 24 car.
Eng reentered the race in seventh. De Phillippi moved into a podium position (third) on lap 52 with Eng moving to sixth as a competitor made a late stop. Eng moved up to fifth as the last GTP competitor pitted.
A rare error sent De Phillippi into a runoff area on lap 58 and back to fourth, but he climbed back to third, setting the race’s fast lap (1:11.503 minutes), and ultimately propelling himself and the BMW to second, in the final minutes of the race.
The Vasser Sullivan Lexus claimed top class honors in GTD Pro with a controlling run by Jack Hawksworth and Ben Barnicoat.
Barnicoat drove the No. 14 Lexus RC F GT3 to a narrow win over the No. 3 Chevrolet Corvette C8.R GTD of Jordan Taylor, who got around the No. 9 Pfaff Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R of Klaus Bachler following the mid-race pit stops.
Bryan Sellers and Madison Snow took their Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 to top honors in GTD, marking the duo and team’s third consecutive win on the streets of Long Beach.
Drivers’ comments after the race
Mathieu Jaminet (Porsche 963 #6): “What a terrific feeling! We’re all very relieved. When the Acura appeared in my rear-view mirror towards the end, I knew he was going to attack – after all, I was on the back foot with significantly older tires. He tried to outbrake me in the first corner. I immediately realised he wasn’t going to make the corner and took evasive action while he landed in the tire barriers. That was some real nail-biting stuff at the end of the race. Now, we’re celebrating the Porsche 963’s first victory!”
Nick Tandy (Porsche 963 #6): “It was clear to us before the start that we couldn’t win the race based on our pace. We didn’t have the fastest car. So, we thought through all possible strategies before race day and agreed not to change the tires. That’s the beauty of sprint races in the IMSA series: there are always many conceivable scenarios and sometimes a gamble pays off. We didn’t know whether the tires would last the distance, but it worked out. We also owe our victory to our colleague Matt Campbell, who put in a terrific performance in the battle for second place. That was a super strong effort from him! The first victory for the Porsche 963 feels fantastic. It’s a well-deserved reward for everyone around the world who put an incredible amount of work into this project.”