The Porsche GT Team has set a new record in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. Earl Bamber (New Zealand) and Laurens Vanthoor (Belgium) won round six at Bowmanville (Canada) in the No. 912 Porsche 911 RSR and thus notched up the fifth win in a row for Porsche – a feat that no other manufacturer in the GTLM class has managed by now. Their works driver colleagues in the ca. 510 hp No. 911 sister car, Patrick Pilet (France) and Nick Tandy (Great Britain), rounded off the outstanding team result with third place.
The Porsche GT Team again implemented perfect pit stops and a good strategy to bring home victory at the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. Immediately after the start, the factory pilots made full use of the potential of the Porsche 911 RSR. In the very first lap, both vehicles gained one position, and after just 20 laps the cars were running in second and third and on course for the podium.
With about an hour left on the clock, Bamber moved into the lead, which he retained to the flag. The race over 2:40 hours was interrupted for ten minutes in the closing phase due to a serious accident involving a prototype vehicle. In the final 15-minute sprint, Tandy battled for second place. Although the British racer was unable to find a sufficient gap to overtake, he crossed the finish line just 2.177 seconds behind the winning sister car.
“Porsche is the first manufacturer to achieve five straight wins – an incredible record considering the tough competition,” commented Bamber. “The path to victory was paved not only by our perfectly set-up 911 RSR but, above all, by implementing optimal strategies.
“The sprint at the end was not for the fainthearted. We headed into the final ten laps with cold tyres, and we needed to turn qualifying laps. It was intense, exciting, exhausting and ultimately successful – simply perfect!”
Thanks to this fifth win from six races of the 2019 IMSA season, Porsche has further extended its lead in the manufacturers’ classification. Earl Bamber and Laurens Vanthoor have taken over the front spot from their works driver colleagues Patrick Pilet and Nick Tandy, who now rank second.
In the GTD class, the Porsche factory driver Patrick Long (USA) and his compatriot Patrick Lindsey secured fourth place. The pair sharing the Porsche 911 GT3 R run by Park Place Motorsports narrowly missed out on a podium step by just 0.373 seconds. The identical 500+hp GT3 car fielded by the customer squad Pfaff Motorsports brought home fifth place. The two Canadians Scott Hargrove and Zacharie Robichon had at times been in second place at their home race, but were thrown down the field after being handed a drive-through penalty.
Race result
GTLM class
1. Bamber/Vanthoor (NZ/B), Porsche 911 RSR, 116 laps
2. Krohn/Edwards (FIN/USA), BMW M8 GTE, 116 laps
3. Pilet/Tandy (F/GB), Porsche 911 RSR, 116 laps
GTD class
1. Auberlen/Foley (USA/USA), BMW M6 GT3, 113 laps
2. Farnbacher/Hindman (D/USA), Acura NSX GT3, 113 laps
3. Bell/Montecalvo (USA/USA), Lexus RC F GT3, 113 laps
4. Long/Lindsey (USA/USA), Porsche 911 GT3 R, 113 laps
5. Robichon/Hargrove (CDN/CDN), Porsche 911 GT3 R, 113 laps
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