Andrew Henderson was at Lime Rock Park for the final Grand Am race of the season – and the final Grand Am race ever before the United Sports Car Championship commences in 2014. It was a great race, particularly for the Wayne Taylor Racing team and the Scuderia Corsa teams that took out the final Grand Am Championships.
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It was a great day for Wayne Taylor racing, taking their 3rd win in a row and their second DP championship
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Scuderia Corsa took advantage of some terrible luck for Magnus Racing to take their first GT title
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The Aston Martin will go down in infamy for changing the course of the GT title, driving into the Magnus car after an off track moment
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The GT derived cars look great thought the Audi had an issue during the race
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The Sahlen team took pole and just missed out on a podium spot with the #42, the #43 was down in 11th
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In the last GX class race before it gets combined into the DGT ranks, the Porsche took second, behind a Mazda
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The Action Express #9 took 8th to finish 9th in the Championship
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The Michael Shank crew had this stunning livery thanking their fans for their support on the side of the car
The race in brief
LAKEVILLE, Connecticut (Sept. 28, 2013) – Max Angelelli and Jordan Taylor ended the 2013 Rolex Sports Car Series season with an exclamation point, winning Saturday’s GRAND-AM Championship Weekend Presented by BMW at Lime Rock Park by 13 points to clinch the Daytona Prototype (DP) championship with their third consecutive victory.
At the Kansas Speedway race in August, Taylor held off Scott Pruett throughout the final half-hour to win the race in the No. 10 Velocity Worldwide Corvette DP to take the lead in the standings. In the most recent race at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, Taylor led the final 29 laps to extend that lead. Saturday, the 22-year-old Floridian led the final 69 laps, winning by five seconds over Gustavo Yacaman with Pruett taking third.
Pruett and Memo Rojas of Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sebates’ No. 01 Telcel/TELMEX BMW/Riley finished the season 14 points ahead of GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing’s Jon Fogarty and Alex Gurney, drivers of the No. 99 GAINSCO Auto Insurance Corvette DP to round out the top three in points.
It was the final race in the 14-year history of the Rolex Series, which is merging with the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón and will debut as the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship beginning with the 2014 Rolex 24 At Daytona.
Angelelli won the 2005 DP title co-driving with car owner Wayne Taylor. It was his fourth consecutive victory at Lime Rock Park, having won the three prior DP races with Taylor’s oldest son, Ricky. Saturday, Angelelli took his 26th career DP victory while helping Jordan become the youngest champion in DP history.
“It all came down to the team,” Jordan Taylor said. “Every time we won a race came down to the line, they got us out of the pits with great track position. All we had to do was keep everyone behind us.”
Yacaman finished the race second in the Michael Shank Racing’s No. 6 Aero/Tuvacol Ford/Riley started by Justin Wilson, followed by Pruett and Rojas, who were seeking their fourth straight championship.
“This is bittersweet,” Pruett said. “GRAND-AM’s been home for us for the last 10 years, and you hate to see it end – even though there’s a new beginning ahead. I enjoyed the last 10 years and everything we’ve achieved. At least no one can break our records.”
Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates won its seventh DP team championship in 10 years and fourth in a row, finishing six points ahead of Wayne Taylor Racing.
– See more at: http://www.grand-am.com/News/GA_News/tabid/141/Article/54293/exclamation-point-taylor-angelelli-win-third-straight-to-take-dp-title.aspx?cid=6383&sid=1#sthash.FedeQfsq.dpuf
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Photos by Andrew Henderson, September 2013. Race in brief by Grand Am PR. Video by Lime Rock Park
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