IMSA News: Tandy delivers Laguna Seca win for Porsche Penske

On a beautiful Sunday afternoon in California, Nick Tandy completed a daring pass for the lead with 12 minutes remaining in Sunday’s Motul Course de Monterey Powered by Hyundai N and drove on to victory in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship race at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.

Tandy, in the No. 6 Porsche Penske Motorsport Porsche 963, hounded leader Jack Aitken in the No. 31 Whelen Cadillac Racing Cadillac V-Series.R through the last half-hour of the two-hour, 40-minute race. When they came upon slower traffic through Turns 3 and 4 of the 2.238-mile, 11-turn road course at the 12-minute mark, Aitken was balked behind the No. 3 Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports Corvette Z06 GT3.R while Tandy slid inside and past for the decisive move of the race.

Tandy, who shared the No. 6 Porsche with Mathieu Jaminet, pulled away to win by 5.764 seconds over Aitken, whose No. 31 Cadillac co-driver was Pipo Derani. The No. 6 became the fourth different car to take an overall and Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) class win in as many races this season. It also marked the 100th sports car racing victory for cars fielded by Roger Penske, 37 of those coming under the IMSA banner.

The GT Daytona Pro (GTD PRO) victory went to the No. 77 AO Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R and co-drivers Seb Priaulx and Laurin Heinrich – the first for the team – by 9.074 seconds ahead of the No. 9 Pfaff Motorsports McLaren 720S GT3 EVO.

With wins in both GTP and GTD PRO, Porsche now has compiled 601 victories in IMSA competition.

Russell Ward and Philip Ellis won for the third time in four GT Daytona (GTD) races in the No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3. They were running a close second to the No. 557 Turner Motorsport BMW M4 GT3 when Robby Foley was bumped off course with just five minutes left in the race. Foley recovered to finish second with co-driver Patrick Gallagher in the 557th race start with BMW for Turner Motorsport, the most worldwide for any team.

Winning Drivers’ comments after the race
Nick Tandy (Porsche 963 #6): “Our team did a tremendous job. Keep in mind, first, the crew clinches the 100th pole position for Penske in sports car racing, and then a day later the IMSA team scores their 100th victory. The results on both sides of the Atlantic clearly show how much we’ve improved in all areas over the past few months. That’s exactly what we needed. I’m so proud to be a part of it!”

Mathieu Jaminet (Porsche 963 #6): “Luck eluded us in the first three races of the year, but now the tables have finally turned. The team did a perfect job, from preparing the cars to pit stops and strategy. Our Porsche 963 was a dream to drive today. Nick delivered a thrilling and ultimately successful fight for victory. Let’s continue like this.”

Race Results