CORE autosport Scores First PC Victory Of 2015

Subtitle:Bennett, Braun Extend Points Lead

Watching various problems strike most of their rivals in the Prototype Challenge (PC) class, Jon Bennett and Colin Braun drove a trouble-free race to capture their first victory of the season in the No. 54 Flex-Box/Composite Resources ORECA FLM09. The victory allowed the CORE autosport teammates to extend their lead in the point standings with four races remaining.

Four other teams managed to lead the event, but the No. 54 team ran in the top two throughout the entire race – with the exception of a three-lap stretch following its first pit stop.

John Falb led 12 laps in the No. 16 Edvisors.com/Top 1 Oil ORECA, and joined Sean Rayhall in a second-place finish for BAR1 Motorsports, one lap behind the winners. Taking third were Mikhail Goikhberg – who led 25 laps – and Matt McMurry in the No. 85 UndergroundCellar.com ORECA from JDC/Miller Motorsports.

Renger van der Zande entered the race looking to give Starworks Motorsport and the No. 8 Martini ORECA its third consecutive victory. Ailing co-driver Mirco Schultis drove the opening hour, with van der Zande driving to the lead before dropping out with a mechanical issue.

Also experiencing problems was TOTAL Pole Award winner James French, who led the opening 30 laps in the No. 38 Ric-Man Construction/GO-PUCK/Braille Batteries entry before pulling off course on the back straight to bring out the lone caution of the event. The team managed to repair the car, with Conor Daly finishing the race in seventh.

Mike Guasch and Tom Kimber-Smith entered the event one point behind in the PC standings, but the No. 52 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports Cuttwood entry lost 12 laps with a mechanical problem at the 90-minute mark. The team came back to finish fifth and now trails by 10 points, 193-183.

The PC and GT Daytona (GTD) classes will be in the spotlight at the next TUDOR Championship event, when they join the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge in the Northeast Grand Prix at Lime Rock Park on Saturday, July 25. The Prototype (P) and GTLM classes return to action in the Continental Tire Road Race Showcase at Road America on Sunday, August 9.