Double victory for Porsche at Sebring

There was a double victory for Porsche at Sebring, as the #91 Porsche 911 RSR of Gianmaria Bruni/Richard Lietz won round six of the WEC in Florida on Friday. Not to be outdone, Nick Tandy/Patrick Pilet/Frédéric Makowiecki also grabbed a win in the #911 Porsche 911 RSR in round two of the IMSA Weathertech SportsCar Championship, the 12 Hour of Sebring.

WEC Round 6, 1000 Miles of Sebring

First up, in the 1000-mile race WEC race on Friday, which was capped at eight hours, ran without incident over long stretches for the Bruni/Lietz pairing. Sitting in second place around 25 minutes before the finish, the rain arrived necessitating an additional pit stop, but the Manthey-Racing factory crew did a perfect job ensuring that the #91 car left the pits first.

However, for the pairing of Kévin Estre/Michael Christensen, their start from pole position was marred by a collision with a rival car. In the ensuing chase, the #92 car fell back down the field as a result of a stop-and-go penalty. The few overtaking manoeuvres possible on this infamously bumpy track hampered the car from catching the leading pack, and they finished in fifth place. As a result of the weekend’s results, the #91 winning pair has improved their ranking and moved up to second place behind their #92 teammates who still lead the championship.

In the GTE Am class, the #77 Dempsey Proton Racing team of Matt Campbell/Julien Andlauer/Christian Ried celebrated another win, following a consistent and flawless drive. In the process, Matt Campbell also posted a fastest lap in class. The #56 Project 1 team with works drivers Jörg Bergmeister, together with Patrick Lindsey and Egidio Perfetti secured third place, defending their overall class leading position. The #86 Gulf Racing Porsche 911 RSR driven by Thomas Preining/Ben Barker/Michael Wainwright finished in fourth place. Driving the #88 Porsche 911 RSR, Matteo Cairoli with Giorgio and Gianluca Roda finished the race in seventh place.