Sonoma Raceway Race One: Porsche Packs a Punch in Race One

Sonoma Raceway Race One: Porsche Packs a Punch in Race One
  • PRO Class Newcomer RS1 Porsche Wins Season Opener
  • PRO-AM Class Sees New Driver Pairing Pay Off with Wright Motorsports Win
  • Drag Racing Royalty RealTime Racing Sails Smoothly to AM Class Win
  • Results

If you looked through the field of 18 GT cars at any time during Race One at Sonoma Raceway, you would find multiple battles. A single yellow early in the race slowed the progress of competitors. Once back to green, every driver-focused forward and lurched for the podium's top spot.

PRO-Class
The No. 28 RS1 Porsche GT3 R 992 wowed the crowd with its supreme capability in the hands of drivers Eric Filgueiras and Steven MAleer. Filguiras handed over the Porsche to McAleer with an eight-second lead. McAleer kept the car clean and finished the race with a two-second lead over the No. 94 BimmerWorld BMW M4 GT3 of Chandler Hull and Bill Auberlen. Auberlen pushed through and around traffic to gain ground, avoiding PRO-AM battles and giving back space after a mistake exiting the pit lane resulted in granting back track position to another car.

The No. 93 Racer Edge Motorsports Acura NSX GT3 of Ashton Harrison and Mario Farnbacher used a combination of driver skill and pitlane prowess to advance fifth to third. Harrisson led the field in a strategy of a late driver change. A clean pit stop and furious driving by Farnbacher earned the team a third-place finish.

PRO-AM and AM Class
The No. 120 Wright Motorsports Porsche GT3 R showcased the new driver pairing of Adam Adelson and Elliot Skeer. The duo spent most of their race amongst the PRO Class cars. The extra traffic aided in their ability to stay ahead of the PRO-AM competition. However, by the end of the race, the No. 04 Crowstrike by Riley Mercedes-AMG in the hands of Colin Braun was hot on the heels of Skeer. The No. 04 Mercedes had a smooth handover from starting driver George Kurz who held the car firmly in third for his stint.

Braun made his way around the No. 16 ACI Motorsports Porsche GT3 R early in his stint. The duo of Pedro Torres and Spencer Pumpelly pilots the No. 16 Porsche. Torres started ninth in the race before handing it over to Porsche expert Pumpelly who smoothly wheeled the car to third place.

In the AM Class the No. 43 RealTime Racing Mercedes-AMG of Anthony Bartone and Andy Pilgrim stayed clean for the duration of the race to bring the No. 43 Mercedes-AMG across the finish line. 

Up Next
Next on the docket Race Two, Sunday, April 2, the race is prefaced with an open fan walk for all attendees to enjoy. Tickets are still available for purchase at the gate. The teams and drivers pack up Sonoma Raceway in preparation for another full week of SRO Motorsports America racing at NOLA Motorsports Park.

STAY UP TO SPEED WITH #GTWorldChAm

Website: www.gt-world-challenge-america.com

Twitter: @gtworldcham

Facebook: www.facebook.com/gtworldchallengeamerica 

Instagram: @gtworldchallengeamerica