Redemption arc for works drivers: Road America.

As the two Porsche works drivers, Laurens Vanthoor and Matt Campbell, travelled to the USA, they were still coming to terms with the past 24h of Francorchamps. Besides the strenuous efforts, both were probably feeling the disappointment of being unable to finish the Belgian race. Matt Campbell's 911 GT3 R retired with a defect. Laurens Vanthoor injured himself in the paddock and was still marked by this on Road America. But the great thing about racing drivers is their ability to transform frustration and anger into motivation and speed on the track. Together with Cooper MacNeil from the USA, Matt Campbell won the GTLM category in the Porsche 911 RSR. Laurens Vanthoor also cemented his exceptional talent in a one-hour final sprint in a duo with the Canadian Zacharie Robichon. They both won the eighth round of the North American IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in the GTD class in the Porsche 911 GT3 R.

With a daring and opportunistic pit stop strategy, both Porsche customer teams each managed to jump to the top of the podium. Cooper MacNeil used an early yellow phase in the race to complete the first refuelling stop and hand the car over to Matt Campbell, who then found the perfect balance between speed and prudence. In a one-to-one duel with the competition, he spared the 911RSR a third pit stop and, after 160 minutes, was the first to cross the finish line. The team from Pfaff Motorsports did something similar. Zacharie Robichon made the first stop just before the yellow phase and handed over the car to the lightning-fast Belgian, Laurens Vanthoor, just under an hour before the end of the race. Vanthoor showed no mercy on the race track and won with a lead of nearly 12 seconds. In the GTD class, another Porsche 911 GT3 R came in third place: the Porsche works driver, Patrick Long, and his fellow countryman, Trent Hindmann, took themselves to the podium, having also delivered a legendary race.

1. MacNeil/Campbell (USA/AUS), Porsche 911 RSR, #79, 73 laps
2. Garcia/Taylor (E/USA), Chevrolet Corvette, #3, 73 laps
3. Tandy/Milner (GB/USA), Chevrolet Corvette, #4, 72 laps

1. Robichon/Vanthoor (CDN/B), Porsche 911 GT3 R, #9, 69 laps
2. Auberlen/Foley (USA/USA), BMW M6 GT3, #96, 69 laps
3. Long/Hindman (USA/USA), Porsche 911 GT3 R, #16, 69 laps
8. Ferriol/Legge (USA/ GB), Porsche 911 GT3 R, #88, 68 laps