- George Kurtz wins in GT America powered by AWS
- Boehm stays podium-perfect with pair of second-place finishes in TC America
- CJ Moses has season’s best showing in Audi R8 LMS GT2
- Kurtz, Colin Braun remain in Fanatec GT World Challenge America championship contention
ELKHART LAKE, Wis. (August 25, 2022) – CrowdStrike Racing heads into the last two events of the SRO Motorsports America season fully in championship contention in three categories following their Road America race weekend.
The program collected three victories and three runner-up finishes around the spacious 4.048-mile, 14-turn road course north of Milwaukee. George Kurtz and CJ Moses each claimed victories in GT America Powered by AWS while Kevin Boehm continued his march toward the Touring Car championship in TC America Powered by Skip Barber Racing School.
All in all, it was a positive weekend for the racing program and for guests of CrowdStrike – the Official Cloud and Internet Security provider of GT World Challenge America and SRO Motorsports America. A number of CrowdStrike guests from the company’s Midwest region visited Road America to take in the event.
In addition to trackside viewing around the circuit, CrowdStrike VIPs were able to connect with other guests in a business-to-business environment while enjoying the hospitality offered in the CrowdStrike/AWS GT Paddock Club facilities. They were also able to attend meet-and-greet sessions with CrowdStrike Racing team members.
GT America
Kurtz, CrowdStrike co-founder and CEO, returned to his winning ways and inched closer to the GT America Drivers Championship. He drove the No. 04 CrowdStrike/AWS Mercedes-AMG to his sixth win of the season in Sunday’s 40-minute race and came from the rear of the field to finish second Saturday to extend his points lead heading to Sebring.
Kurtz controlled Sunday’s race from his pole position start. Two full-course caution periods kept the field bunched up again, but Kurtz didn’t flinch on his way to victory.
"Luckily we got a gap early and I was able to manage the tires,” Kurtz said. “It was a good scrap with Andy (Pilgrim), and that was fun. We came in, did what needed to do and controlled the race to get the win. I'm already looking forward to Sebring.”
Saturday, Kurtz began in third place, but wasted little time moving toward the front. He went to the inside at the first corner but was tapped, causing the Mercedes to drop to 20th overall. He made up 11 spots in two laps before the race’s only full-course yellow, which brought him back up to the lead pack.
Once the race went green again, Kurtz needed only a couple of corners to move back to third, and he advanced to second a lap later. The last 10 minutes saw him whittle down the deficit from five seconds to less than one second before the end.
"The comeback drive was great,” Kurtz said. “To be able to come back after that tap and jump up to second place with good, solid points is a testament to the team and the hard work everybody put in.”
Moses continued his solid run in his first year of GT2 competition in GT America with the No. 58 CrowdStrike/AWS Audi R8 LMS GT2. Moses earned two class victories and finished fifth overall in Saturday’s round after beginning seventh. He ran as high as fourth near the midpoint in his best showing of the season.
Road America continued to be kind in the second race as Moses placed seventh in another clean performance – something that very few in the field could claim.
“Another great weekend for us in the GMG CrowdStrike/AWS Audi,” Moses said. “This is a great car and it’s even more enjoyable at a place like Road America. I’m really starting to feel comfortable in this car, and I’m encouraged by the performance we had in both races. It’s now full-on to Indianapolis to close the season on another great track. I’m ready for it.”
Fanatec GT World Challenge
In the Fanatec GT World Challenge America, Kurtz and Colin Braun endured their first retirement of the season after an incident on the opening lap of the first 90-minute race. Sunday wasn't much better after an issue on the opening lap that damaged the No. 04 Mercedes. Kurtz and Braun eventually finished ninth to score a handful of points.
The weekend sets up a thrilling finish to the Pro-Am Drivers Championship with the top-three unofficially separated by just four points, and only two points separate the top-three in the Pro-Am Team standings.
“Whew, that was a tough weekend!” Braun said. “They say success is when luck and preparation meet. We certainly were well-prepared but had zero luck this weekend. George avoided a spinning car on the opening lap only to get collected from behind, forcing us to switch to a spare car on Saturday and start at the back on Sunday. On the Sunday start, there was a huge brake check after the green was out and I made contact with the car ahead enough to break a hood latch. On the positive side, we had very good pace all weekend. George drove super-well and picked up a win and great points in GT America, and we are very much still in the title fight for GT World Challenge America. I'm very proud of the grit and hard work by the CrowdStrike & Riley team and can’t wait for Sebring.”
TC America
Boehm continued his perfect run of podiums in TC America’s Touring Car category with a pair of runner-up finishes in his No. 9 CrowdStrike/AWS Honda Performance Development Civic Type R TC. The results mean Boehm unofficially leads by 56 points heading into the final four rounds – a gap of two full races.
Boehm earned pole position for the first 40-minute race and led the first 17 minutes before falling back to second. Not having the ultimate pace of the TC leader meant Boehm had to be content with second place for the rest of the race.
It was the same story for the weekend’s second TC America race. Boehm started second and ended there, but not before a three-car battle mid-race entertained the fans around the track and on the worldwide online Twitch stream. Boehm briefly fell to third but quickly regained the spot on his way to another second-place showing.
“We are thrilled to add two more second-place finishes to our results so far this year," Boehm said. "This was going to be a tough weekend with the multiple long straights on the track and that playing into the strengths of our competitors. But I'm happy to keep our podium streak going. It was easy to see how challenging and tough this category is as the season has gone on. We’re in a great spot heading to Sebring, with the championship beginning to be within reach.”
As has been the case all season, Boehm enjoyed the help of Operation Motorsport (OpMo) on his championship-leading entry at Road America. A not-for-profit, OpMo provides a chance for retired and disabled service members to use their skill sets in a variety of areas including paddock operations, car and tire prep, marketing, social media and other key areas that are part of a racing program.
Craig Neri, Retired – U.S. Air Force – continued his longstanding work on Boehm’s crew while newcomer U.S. Army Sgt Adam Poppenhouse (Ret) worked his first-ever SRO event as part of a team member. By contributing to Boehm’s weekend success and championship effort, both Neri and Poppenhouse exemplified the OpMo mantra of “Recovery Through Motorsports #OneAtATime.”
CrowdStrike also is a proud part of American Corporate Partners (ACP), which provides CrowdStrike mentors for service members looking to transition to the private sector, and a partner with HireMilitary, to provide meaningful internship experiences to service members exiting the military via the DoD SkillBridge program.
CrowdStrike Racing next participates in SRO Motorsports America competition at Sebring International Raceway on Sept. 23-25.
For more information, visit CrowdStrikeRacing.com. Follow #CrowdStrikeRacing on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn for updates.
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