K-PAX RACING LOOKS TO TIGHTEN GRIP ON GT WORLD CHALLENGE AMERICA CHAMPIONSHIP IN NEW YORK’S FINGER LAKES

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.

“We continue to gain knowledge about the Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO every time we run these cars,” K-PAX Racing Program Manager Darren Law said. “Based on the success we have had here in the past, the information we gained from the most recent test and hearing how much the drivers loved this track I am looking forward to a great weekend and hope we can continue to add to our Championship positions.”

K-PAX Racing first debuted at Watkins Glen in 2007, its first season of operation, collecting 11 podiums and four wins in eight races. The course played an important part in the team’s back-to-back title campaigns in 2007 and 2008, as K-PAX Racing took the checkers in each. In the team’s last two appearances at the course – in a multi-race format – K-PAX Racing amassed seven podiums which included a dominant sweep of the series event in 2018, securing a Team Championship in the former Sprint GT category.

The K-PAX Racing-Lamborghini Squadra Corse partnership has proved to be successful so far in its first season, as the team under an abundance of testing has bridged the learning curve to quickly see results. After eight rounds of the series championship, the team has battled to 13 podiums and six trips to the top-step. In lieu of heading to another new course with the Huracán GT3 EVOs, as well as an uncharted course for three of the team’s four drivers (Andrea Caldarelli, Giovanni Venturini, Jordan Pepper), K-PAX Racing gained some valuable track-time testing at the course last week.

“Watkins Glen is one of my favorite tracks in the U.S.,” Law said. “It has such a great variety of corners, many of them take a lot of commitment and trust in the car so when the cars are correct on setup it is amazing to drive. The Lamborghini is such a good all-around car. We had a great test there last week, so we feel good about our chances this weekend.”

K-PAX Racing has a 50-point spread in the Team Championship with five rounds remaining. In the Drivers Championship, the No. 3 of Caldarelli and Pepper share the lead with 170 points, while the team’s sister No. 6 driven by Venturini and Corey Lewis are in second with 126 points. Lamborghini holds 48-point lead in the Manufacturers’ Championship with 193.

“We’re looking forward to Watkins Glen,” Law said. “We feel confident about the direction we have been going with the cars. We have had a very successful season so far so it’s motivating to carry that success into this next event.”

DRIVER QUOTES

Andrea Caldarelli – No. 3 Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO – “I did not have many laps on the track – just couple of runs – but it looks really fun and very grippy. I love the bus stop chicane. I am really looking forward to race in Watkins Glen and do more laps on it. I think it suits the car quite well. It is high speed and some slow speed corners as well, so it should fit our Huracán GT3 EVO quite well. I love the bus stop chicane. Jumping on the curbs is always really fun and bring so much speed in such tight corner is always a treat. So far, I loved [the tracks in America]. I have to say my favorite one so far was Virginia. I love the fact that there is no room for error, otherwise you are in the wall. This brings a lot of excitement and full focus as well.”

Jordan Pepper – No. 3 Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO – “Going into Watkins Glen, we were able to do two days of testing which was great to get a good impression before the race weekend. It’s a very enjoyable, fast-flowing track which is extremely challenging and on the edge. It is hard to understand or know how we will stack up, but we had a very productive test and the car felt great, so if we able to replicate that feeling on the race weekend, I’m sure we can perform well. The track is super high speed and on edge, in particular the bus stop is quite challenging and enjoyable. All of them so far, are old school and very high speed with no track limit issues. Circuit of The Americas was an exception and definitely my least favorite, but I enjoyed all the other tracks so much – ‘big risk, big reward’ style tracks.”

Giovanni Venturini – No. 6 Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO – “The Glen is really fast circuit and sometimes the walls are really close, but I like it. Our car at Watkins Glen looks really cool to drive and I’m pretty sure we will be toward the front. Every experience with K-PAX Racing is unique to be honest – there is a very good atmosphere with the guys and the feeling is always good. So far, I find them [American circuits] always tricky but really nice to drive. Obviously, they are different compared to European circuits but honestly, I’m enjoying every moment. For sure and at the moment, my favorite one is Road America.”

Corey Lewis – No. 6 Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO – “Watkins Glen is one of my favorites on the schedule. Since they repaired the circuit, it has gained so much grip, which makes this place so fast with high G-load corners and big brake zones that create awesome racing. We’ve had a pretty decent test a few weeks back that I’m hoping we can take the knowledge and experience gained to have a successful race weekend. My favorite section of Watkins glen is the uphill esses, going 100 percent throttle and feeling the G-load as you drive thru the compression at the bottom on the hill in the second turn is such an amazing rush. History has proven that WGI has been a successful track for me and the Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO. We’ve had many podium visits but the top step in the GT3 car is a box that still needs to be checked! I’m hoping ‘G’ [Giovanni Venturini] and I can capture more points and keep our K-PAX Racing cars one-two in the championship. Three more events to go.”

Source. K-Pax Racing