If you go down to the beach today

The week’s preparations started well for the factory Porsche team, as the two cars locked out the front row of the grid for race start at 14h05 local time on Saturday 13 April. Nick Tandy and Patrick Pilet in the #911 Porsche 911 RSR secured the first grid spot, with colleagues Laurens Vanthoor and Earl Bamber in the #912 Porsche alongside them in second place. This was Porsche’s third pole position this season in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. So, it was a case of, if you go to the beach today, you’ll see an all-Porsche front row on the starting grid.

During the 15-minute qualifying session, Nick Tandy edged ever-closer to the track barriers of the street circuit, with the Briton improving on his best time with each lap. In the end, a qualifying time of 1:16.313 minutes saw Tandy set not only a new qualifying record at Long Beach, but he also added to his personal record in the IMSA series. This pole position marked the seventh time that Tandy had posted the fastest time in the GTLM-class qualifying. Driving the #912 Porsche, Laurens Vanthoor was just 0.064 seconds adrift of Tandy’s time.

At the start of the 100-minute race – the shortest on the IMSA calendar – Tandy and Vanthoor defended their lead and managed to gradually pull clear of the field. However, a safety car phase shortly before the halfway point of the race all but eliminated the advantage they had built up. After the restart, Bamber squeezed past his colleague Pilet, and into the lead. While the #912 car defended its lead to the chequered flag, Pilet grappled with deteriorating tyres, bringing the #911 Porsche home in fifth place.

After their win, Laurens Vanthoor (#912) commented, “What a huge race. At the start, it was really close a couple of times between the two Porsches, and we only just managed to dodge a damaged prototype. But apparently, there was slight contact, and our rear diffuser was damaged. It couldn’t be properly fixed but luckily it held until the end. I’m really thrilled about my first win at Long Beach!”

Earl Bamber (#912) added, “That was a really crazy race. At one point, someone hit the rear of the car and we sustained some damage that was worrying. After the pit stop I was running in third, and I overtook Patrick and the leading Ford shortly afterwards. After that it was all about somehow getting the car to the finish. I prayed that the diffuser wouldn’t fall off. It didn’t – I’m pleased!”

Patrick Pilet (#911) said, “Nick got away well at the start and managed to easily retain his lead. We experienced a little bad luck with the safety car and lost the top spot during the pit stop. During my stint, I had difficulties with the tyres. I’m thrilled for my colleagues who put in an exceptional drive despite the defect diffuser. The overall result is good for Porsche’s position in the manufacturers’ classification.”

Nick Tandy (#911) had this to say, “The race began really well for us and we were clearly in the lead. Our strategy was also the right one but for some reason we didn’t find our rhythm in the second half of the race. The pace was simply not as good as it previously was and we couldn’t make our way up the field.”

Long Beach race result – GTLM class

The championship points tables look as follows:

IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship – GT Le Mans Drivers

Championship Points Standings after three rounds

IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship – GT Le Mans Teams

Championship Points Standings after three rounds

Thanks to their Long Beach victory, Bamber/Vanthoor have moved to the top of the drivers’ classification, with their colleagues Pilet/Tandy sitting in joint second place. Round four of the IMSA SportsCar Championship will be contested in Mid-Ohio on the first weekend in May.

Edited by: Glen Smale
Images by: Porsche Motorsport