Defending IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship LMP2 class champions AO Racing secured their first victory of the season in dramatic vogue, capturing an exciting class win because the LMP2 class returned to motion following a three-month hiatus.
Dane Cameron held a snug five-second lead within the #99 AO Racing ORECA LMP2 07 with simply 45 minutes remaining, however needed to face up to a livid late-race cost from Alex Quinn within the #04 CrowdStrike Racing entry. Quinn whittled the deficit all the way down to lower than a second by way of heavy visitors earlier than a yellow flag on the ultimate lap froze the sector and sealed the hard-fought victory for AO Racing below warning.
The triumph marks the primary win at Watkins Glen for the trio of Cameron, PJ Hyett, and Jonny Edgar. It’s the ninth total victory for AO Racing, their first since successful at Highway America final summer season, and a milestone twentieth IMSA class win for Cameron, alongside the third for Hyett and the second for Edgar.
“It’s a little bit of a déjà vu from final season, to be trustworthy,” Hyett stated, referencing finishes of fifth and seventh at Daytona and Sebring, respectively, earlier than a runner-up outcome at Watkins Glen began a title run.
“It is all the time irritating when you realize you may have the suitable automobile and also you simply catch the flawed aspect of a security automobile in earlier races, and we all know now we have the suitable automobile and the suitable workforce to do stuff like this, and it is only a testomony to your complete workforce. It feels nice to win one. We bought it performed, in order that’s all that counts.”
A ‘basic IMSA race’
Regardless of lacking out on the race victory, the second-place end unofficially strikes the #04 workforce into the LMP2 championship lead. They now maintain a 55-point benefit over each the AO Racing squad and the #22 United Autosports USA workforce, which entered the weekend because the factors leaders however completed the race in fifth.
“Truthfully, a fairly basic IMSA race, coming and going with visitors, some onerous fights and techniques and issues enjoying throughout LMP2 by way of when individuals are pivoting and overs and unders and all types of issues,” Cameron stated.
“I had numerous enjoyable in the present day. We had been fairly aggressive and one thing we had been engaged on as a gaggle. I feel we have been conservative generally, car-wise, driving-wise, issues like that. We felt like there was a number of instances final 12 months that was dangerous for us. Once more, form of a poor begin to the 12 months, and sooner or later, it’s good to cease the bleeding and get one on the board. And the automobile was superior as quickly as we rolled off the truck. We had been tremendous fast. And nice to shut that one off for certain.”
Learn Additionally:
We would like your opinion!
What would you prefer to see on Motorsport.com?
– The Motorsport.com Workforce
