RNW Staff

The schedule continues to move almost relentlessly forward for Wright Motorsports as the SRO America series returns September 17 – 20. Wright Motorsports will approach the Watkins Glen International weekend with a sizeable point leads in both GT World Challenge America and GT America series. Though the drivers and crew of the No. 20 Porsche 911 GT3 R and No. 45 Porsche 911 GT3 R have little pressure in the championship fight, the customer racing team will continue to execute at the highest level to ensure optimal success for the approaching double-header.

Thomas Laudenbach (53) will assume the role of managing Porsche Motorsport on October 1, 2021. The accomplished German engineer takes over from Fritz Enzinger (65), who has led the racing department of the sports car manufacturer to countless successes since 2011. “We cannot thank Fritz Enzinger enough for his enormously successful work over the past ten years. He shaped an era at Porsche Motorsport that led us to incredible triumphs and title wins,” comments Michael Steiner, Member of the Executive Board for Research and Development at Porsche AG. “Motorsport has played a very special role in Porsche’s corporate strategy. We’ve always used the racing platform as a test laboratory for the latest technologies. Thomas Laudenbach has everything it takes to successfully continue on this path. We look forward to the future of motorsport, in which we want to take an active role in shaping. The Mission R concept presented at the IAA MOBILITY showcases an exciting preview of what’s to come.”

Only a handful of races remain in the 2021 season, and DXDT Racing is equipped and ready for the final push in their respective championships in SRO America. This weekend, the Mercedes AMG customer racing team will field two entries in the GT World Challenge America and one in the TC America series at Watkins Glen International. This event marks the first time SRO America has competed at the event since the COVID-19 pandemic began, having last raced at the circuit in 2019.  

CarBahn with Peregrine Racing faced the trials and tribulations of WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca but still persevered.

Paul Miller Racing made a welcome return to the podium Sunday, scoring second place at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. 

Ferrari will be showcasing a range of Formula 1 and FXX cars at Ferrari Racing Days 2021. Six Formula 1 Ferraris will attend the event, including cars driven by Felipe Massa in 2008, and Kimi Raikkonen in 2007. Sixteen Ferrari XX cars will be in attendance, including FXXK, FXXK-Evo and 599XX Evo.

The Fanatec GT World Challenge America Powered by AWS Championship has covered much of the United States into the second half of its season, seeing K-PAX Racing win at least one of each multi-race event at some of the most prestigious road courses stateside. The team will follow Rounds 9 & 10 Northeast into New York State’s Finger Lakes region, firing up its Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVOs September 17-19 at Watkins Glen International.

GRT Grasser Racing reaped the reward for impressive teamwork with a valuable points haul last weekend. In rounds seven and eight of the 2021 ADAC GT Masters hosted by the Lausitzring, all three Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVOs fielded by the Austrian outfit finished in the points. Lamborghini factory drivers Mirko Bortolotti and Albert Costa Balboa produced the standout result of the weekend with a P3 on Saturday, which puts them third in the drivers’ championship and handily placed for a late title push. In the team standings, the situation is even tighter, with GRT Grasser Racing Team in second place, only seven points behind the International German GT Championship leaders.

Porsche customer teams celebrated two victories, a pair of third-place finishes and a top-ten at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca over the weekend.

Porsche customers braved incredibly challenging conditions as heavy rain hit the Shanghai International Circuit for the second round of the 2021 GT Super Sprint Challenge, coming away with overall and class podium finishes in the Am-focused championship.

Era Motorsport’s hopes of again finishing on the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship podium were dashed Sunday afternoon when another car sent the No. 18 Oreca LMP2 car off course in WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca’s iconic Corkscrew with just seconds left on the race clock as the team ran in second place.

Meyer Shank Racing demonstrated strong race pace at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, leading 53 of 118 laps on the way to a fourth place finish on Sunday. Olivier Pla and Dane Cameron combined in the No. 60 Acura DPi for the seventh round of the 2021 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar championship. 

Daniel Harper produced a sensational performance to fight his way up the order from seventh to second and put the BMW Junior Team on course for a brilliant third podium finish of the 2021 Nürburgring Endurance Series season on Saturday (11th September).

Whelen Engineering drivers Pipo Derani (Brazil) and Felipe Nasr (Brazil) finished third in Sunday’s IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Hyundai Monterey Sports Car Championship at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.

United Autosports head to Spa Francorchamps this weekend for the penultimate round of both the European Le Mans Series and the Michelin Le Mans Cup.

Perfect day for birthday boy Igor Waliłko (24/PL) and Mercedes-AMG works driver Jules Gounon (26/F): the two drivers from iconic team Zakspeed Mobil Krankenkasse Racing claimed their first win of the season at the DEKRA Lausitzring on Sunday, repeating last year’s success for Zakspeed in the Lusatia region of Germany. Like yesterday, second place went to Luca Stolz (26/Brachbach) and Maro Engel (36/Monte Carlo, both Mercedes-AMG Team Toksport WRT. Raffaele Marciello (26/I) and Maximilian Buhk (28/Hamburg, both Mann-Filter Team Landgraf – HTP/WWR) finished third to make it an all-Mercedes-AMG podium. “This is the best birthday present you could imagine,” said Walilko after his maiden victory. “I don’t know what to say. Jules did a great job. I would also like to thank the team, who worked into the night to repair our car after yesterday’s crash.”

The SUGO GT 300km RACE, Round 5 of the 2021 AUTOBACS SUPER GT series, was held at Sportsland SUGO circuit (one lap: 3.586 km x 84 laps) in Miyagi Prefecture on the afternoon of September 12 (Sun.). In the GT500 class, the winner was the No. 12 CALSONIC IMPUL GT-R driven by Kazuki Hiramine and Nobuharu Matsushita, taking their first GT500 class race win since 2016. In the GT300 class, after taking their third pole position of the season, the No. 61 SUBARU BRZ R&D SPORT (Takuto Iguchi/Hideki Yamauchi) went on to take their first win in three years.

The No. 01 V-Performance Academy Cadillac DPi-V.R will start tomorrow’s running of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship race at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca from third on the DPi grid.

Cooper MacNeil (Hinsdale, Ill.) and Matt Campbell (Australia) will start tomorrow’s running of the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship race at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca from third in GTLM.

The Paul Miller Racing team will roll off fourth at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca tomorrow after Madison Snow and Bryan Sellers both notched the fourth-fastest qualifying times in their respective sessions.