Double Win For Kelly-Moss At Laguna Seca

Kelly Moss Road and Race continued to make a winning impression in Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge USA by Yokohama as Jesse Lazare took two convincing wins at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca to made a significant gain in the championship point standings.

Lazare’s double-victory was backed up with a strong run by his Kelly Moss Road and Race teammate Mike Hedlund, who brought home a seventh place finish in Race 1 and then saw his increased race pace in Race 2 on Saturday earn him a fifth place result.
 
Bill Peluchiwski took fourth in the Masters class in Race 1 as Kurt Fazekas followed directly behind to take a fifth in Masters to open the weekend on Friday.

Saturday’s race was an eventful one for both Fazekas and Peluchiwski, as Fazekas saw his race end a few laps early following a flat spotted tire. For Peluchiwski, an early off put him at the rear of the pack, but he was able to gain significant ground with pass after pass on his way to scoring third in the Masters division.

The race ticked on at a blistering pace without a caution period, a stark contrast to Friday’s event which was red flagged due to a significant crash early in the running. In both events, Lazare was a dominating factor extending his leading margin to nearly a 10-second advantage. The double-win result was a welcome comeback for the Canadian racer who suffered a tire puncture in the opening round at Sebring International Raceway.

The Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge USA by Yokohama will travel to Lazare’s hometown of Montreal, Quebec, Canada on June 10-12 for the Canadian Grand Prix.  
 

KELLY MOSS ROAD AND RACE DRIVER QUOTEBOARD, MAZDA RACEWAY LAGUNA SECA

Jesse Lazare, No. 21: "We're coming off a puncture at Sebring so we knew we had to do whatever it took to get that double win to get back in the points. The points are so close here, it's hard to make up a lot of ground if you make a bad finish. That's what we did this weekend. We didn't make any mistakes in qualifying. We got the two poles and on this track it's very good to be on pole because there aren't too many passing zones. For both races, Kelly Moss gave me a perfect car and I took advantage of that with no mistakes and we brought it home first.

"When you're 10 seconds ahead you have to calculate how much time you can lose in case there is a full course yellow. You don't want to keep pushing, pushing, pushing and then when there's a yellow your tires aren't going to be as good anymore. I was trying to maintain a seven to 10 second lead and that's what I tried to do just for insurance. Everything turned out great. I really want to thank all my sponsors, Kelly Moss, of course my parents and family. I'm very excited to head to Montereal and race in front of all my fans and sponsors."
 
Mike Hedlund, No. 77: “They were really good. Sebring was rough for me the car being new nad the team being new and everything. This weekend from the first practice I improved every session. In this last race, I went faster than qualifying which is really good for me. And the fact that the whole race went green was good for me. It just helped me repetition and let me push harda t the end. I think we had the pace for a podium but it being early in the season I wanted to be safe and not take any risks for damage on the car. It was good. The car was spotless the balance was great, the team was great, it was a decent result and I’m happy with it.

Bill Peluchiwski, No. 74: “I had a lot of passing opportunities! I didn’t qualify as well as I’d liked to. I was struggling a little on this track. Kelly Moss did a great job preparing the car. We started a little further back and then had a little fighting for position and got spun and ended up all the way in the back. I fought my way back through the field and it was a great fun time. Thanks for Kelly Moss’ help and everybody putting the car together after yesterday’s argy-bargy with another car. It was a fun weekend.”