No. 912 Porsche 911 RSR Takes Patrón Endurance Cup Lead In GTLM

Subtitle:With One Segment Remaining, Porsche North America Is In First At Road Atlanta

Six teams in the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship GT Le Mans (GTLM) class entered Petit Le Mans powered by Mazda within three points of the lead in the Tequila Patrón North American Endurance Cup. With two of the three segments at Road Atlanta complete, the picture is a bit clearer with the checkered flag the only segment remaining. 

The No. 912 Porsche North America Porsche 911 RSR followed up its lead in segment one by finishing the second four-hour segment in the second position to give the team and drivers Patrick Long and Michael Christensen 34 points on the season, two points ahead of the No. 4 Corvette Racing Corvette C7.R and drivers Tommy Milner and Oliver Gavin. 

Points in the Patrón Endurance Cup – worth $100,000 to the GTLM champion team – are awarded at four hours, eight hours and the finish (five points for first, four for second, three for third and two for all other competitors in each segment). 

Also in contention are the No. 911 Porsche North America Porsche 911 RSR, No. 91 SRT Motorsports Dodge Viper SRT GTS-R and No. 3 Corvette Racing Corvette C7.R entries, three points out with 31 points. However, the No. 912 Porsche entry would clinch the Patrón Endurance Cup title with a second-place finish. 

With the No. 17 Team Falken Tire Porsche 911 RSR leading at the end of the second segment, Porsche leads Chevrolet by five points (46-41) and has locked up the manufacturer championship. 

No. 912 Porsche 911 RSR Pulls Even In Patrón Endurance Cup

A lot can happen in a 10-hour endurance sports car race, but one thing is certain in the Petit Le Mans powered by Mazda at Road Atlanta: the GT Le Mans (GTLM) battle in the Tequila Patrón North American Endurance Cup will come down to the checkered flag. 

The No. 912 Porsche North America Porsche 911 RSR made its charge early in the Petit Le Mans, leading at the four-hour mark to score the maximum five points in the segment and tie the No. 4 Corvette Racing Corvette C7.R (30-30) with two segments remaining. Coming into the event, the No. 912 entry was fifth in a tight GTLM points battle that featured six teams separated by two points. 

The season-long drivers of the No. 912 Porsche 911 RSR, Patrick Long and Michael Christensen are tied with the No. 4 Corvette C7.R drivers Tommy Milner and Oliver Gavin for the driver championship. 

The most dramatic moment in the race so far involved two other GTLM contenders: the No. 3 Corvette Racing Corvette C7.R and the No. 911 Porsche 911 RSR. The entire GTLM field pit for routine service while under a full-course caution at the two-hour, 30-minute mark. As the cars approached pit exit the No. 911 Porsche 911 RSR of Patrick Pilet made contact with the No. 62 Risi Competizione Ferrari F458 Italia of Pierre Kaffer triggering a chain reaction that also claimed the No. 3 Corvette C7.R of Jan Magnussen. 

The No. 62 Ferrari F458 Italia retired from the race because of the contact, while the No. 3 Corvette C7.R and the No. 911 Porsche 911 RSR entries – both of which came into Road Atlanta trailing the No. 4 Corvette C7.R by one point in the Patrón Endurance Cup – returned to the race and are one point out of the top spot. 

Both of SRT Motorsports’ Dodge Viper SRT GTS-R entries are also in contention, with the No. 93 entry two points out (30-28) and the No. 91 entry three points out. 

Porsche extended its manufacturer lead to three points (41-38) over Chevrolet. 

Points in the Patrón Endurance Cup – worth $100,000 to the GTLM champion team – are awarded at four hours, eight hours and the finish (five points for first, four for second, three for third and two for all other competitors in each segment).