Farnbacher Loles Mosport podium

Farnbacher Loles Racing earned its fourth American Le Mans Series GT2 podium on Sunday, after a strong class-leading performance on the challenging 2.459-mile Mosport International Raceway road course in Bowmanville, Ont. The rookie ALMS team's result was bolstered by fast work on track and in pit lane.

Pierre Kaffer of Salenstein, Switzerland, drove the first stint in the No. 87 Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, starting second on the 11-car GT2 grid. He slipped back to fourth behind three veteran cars, then stopped for a driver change after 55 minutes of the two-hour 45-minute race.

Dirk Werner of Kissenbrück, Germany, drove the rest of the race, stopping out of sequence for fuel during a mid-race caution period. The strategy and Werner's careful management gave him enough fuel to finish the race. He took the class lead with an hour remaining and held it until a stronger Ferrari passed for the class win just 20 minutes from the checkered flag. With no previous experience at Mosport, the team was elated with second place.

race report

car          time             driver                          action

87           start              Kaffer

               55m              change                         pit – Werner in, fuel, four tires

               1h28             Werner                         pit – fuel, four tires, clutch wouldn't engage

               1h44             Werner                         GT2 leader

Gregory Loles, team owner:  "Strategy, strategy, strategy. We were the only car that got it right today and we couldn't be happier. All the pieces of the puzzle are now in place and we're looking forward to a very good Petit Le Mans [the team's next ALMS race]."

Pierre Kaffer:  "It was quite an exciting race day for me, especially this morning when there was a little accident in the warmup. I'm really proud of the team – they did a really good job between the warmup and the race. I could hold my position and at the end of my stint, the team was really fast in the pitstop. They called a brilliant strategy today and Dirk did an amazing job. We finished second; we're happy with this result. And I'm happy to be back in the ALMS and on the podium."

Dirk Werner:  "I'm very happy that we got another podium in our first ALMS season. I think it shows how amazingly the team works together and how good a package we have. With a little bit more luck in finding the right race setup, we could have had a chance to win the race, but today the Ferrari was just a little bit stronger. I had to fight very hard to go the speed I went; I couldn't do it over the whole stint. But we can be happy with the result because everything went right for us. Thanks to the team for a great race!"

IMSA Challenge

Ben McCrackin of Corpus Christi, Texas, notched a good finish for Farnbacher Loles Racing in the IMSA Challenge by Michelin race at Mosport on Sunday. He started 12th, was slowed in the first part of the 23-minute race, but gained momentum as it continued. He moved up to finish eighth in his No. 81 Magnus Energy Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car.

"I got held up a little longer than I wanted to in the pack, made a couple of passes, had a few more coming, but I just ran out of race," he said. "But the car was great; it's been excellent all weekend."


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