IMSA: WTR Corvette DP, RLL BMW convert poles to wins in Long Beach

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Wayne Taylor Racing and BMW Team RLL didn't have an easy time turning their pole positions into victories on Saturday at the IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar Championship race on the streets of Long Beach, but after 100 minutes of hard racing both programs prevailed as their closest rivals were forced to surrender the lead.

For Ricky and Jordan Taylor, the warm and sunny day in Southern California was the perfect setting for a blistering run the moment the green flag waved. Their No. 10 Corvette DP was the class of the field, and only the second-place Ford EcoBoost DP driven by Scott Pruett and Joey Hand posed a challenge.

Despite turning over the lead in the pits at the 48-minute mark, Jordan Taylor quickly took the position back from Hand in a swift outbraking maneuver entering Turn 1. Despite intense pressure late in the race from Hand that saw the Ford draw to less than a second from the Corvette's tail, the black DP was able to pull out a 3.3-second gap to claim a popular victory in front of a massive throng of supporters from the team's primary sponsor.

"Ricky had a flawless stint leading the whole race, and when I came out of the pits, I don't know if it was a slow out-lap [for Hand] or what, but the 01 got around us and our strength was under the braking and we'd only have one shot at it so I basically just went for it and thankfully it stuck," said an elated Jordan Taylor. "It's great for Konica-Minolta on our first-year anniversary together here at Long Beach."

• Video interviews with the winners

Third place went to a distant Richard Westbrook, who crossed the line 18 seconds behind Hand in his No. 90 VisitFlorida.com Racing Corvette DP. Action Express Racing's Dane Cameron claimed fourth in the No. 31 Corvette DP after posting the fastest lap of the race while chasing down teammate Joao Barbosa in the ailing No. 5 AXR Corvette DP.

The top P2 car in the field took sixth as Michael Shank Racing's Ligier JS P2-Honda encountered problems that saw the No. 60 entry lose two laps to the leaders. Mazda's pair of diesel-powered P2s finished the race in 13th and 15th.

The DeltaWing DWC13, making its street course debut at Long Beach, lasted 12 minutes before paying a visit to the pits to have electrical problems investigated.

GT Le Mans once again produced the best competition at Long Beach, and unlike the Taylor Brothers, polesitter Bill Auberlen didn't lead at the end of the opening lap. Risi Competizione's Giancarlo Fisichella completed an inspired pass into Turn 1 and held the point as his Ferrari F458 kept the factory BMW Z4s in his rearview mirrors.

Pit stops for the GTLM class began in earnest at the 42-minute mark of the event, with Fisichella pitting from a slim the lead over the BMWs to hand the red Ferrari over to Pierre Kaffer. The Houston-based team performed a flawless stop, sending Kaffer out with a sizeable lead as the BMW team struggled to match Risi's efficiency.

Once the top GTLM cars completed their stops, Kaffer was left with a four-second lead, which he managed to double after 20 minutes behind the wheel.

A trip off the racing line coated the Ferrari's tires with marbles, and with a motivated Dirk Werner having taken over from Auberlen, the fight was on. The BMW driver wasn't ready to give the race win to the Italian marque, and with 12 minutes left to run, the German pulled off a daring pass under braking on the inside of Turn 9. Kaffer, struggling for grip, locked his front tires and was lucky to keep the Prancing Horse out of the tires as the BMW Z4 stretched into the distance.

The possibility of a BMW 1-3 was lost with the checkered flag in sight when Lucas Luhr experienced braking issues that left his Z4 stopped next to the wall in Turn 9. He was able to reverse and continue, but fell to fifth as Corvette Racing's Jan Magnussen swept into third and Porsche North America's Fred Makowiecki inherited fourth.

"To win Long Beach for me, it's the best race on the circuit. I've always said I love winning here," said Auberlen, who was born and raised nearby. "We never win this race without some sort of...we always make it difficult for us."

"Our car was just fantastic, really fast and consistent," added Werner. "The Ferrari had nothing for us. That was a hell of a race. It's the first win for me in five years. That's awesome."

The last two GTLM cars in the field took themselves out of contention on the first lap. The race lasted less than one minute for half of the Porsche North America squad as Richard Lietz and Corvette Racing's Oliver Gavin came together at the exit of Turn 1. The Austrian's Porsche 911 RSR and the Brit's Corvette C7.R fought over the same piece of real estate – both managed to lose in the exchange. Gavin tracked out and hit Lietz, whose Porsche was to the right of the Corvette, next to the outside wall. Lietz slammed the wall with its right side while Gavin was turned sideways, with the Corvette's right side door being pushed forward by the Porsche's front bumper.

Gavin was able to continue, but Lietz wasn't as fortunate, pitting for major repairs at the end of the lap. Gavin would pit 10 minute into the race for a new set of tires and quick inspection. The Corvette would finish 14th while the Porsche settled for 16th in the 17-car field.

Up next for the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship is Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca on May 1-3.