Park Place Motorsports fought to finish fifth after starting 12th in the MICHELIN GT Challenge at VIRginia International Raceway with the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship series.
Porsche Works Driver Patrick Long was closing in on fourth when the checkered flag fell. Not only did he push his way up the field from eighth for the top-five finish, but he also became his own strategist when radio communication failed. Long spent the majority of his stint with no connection to the pit stand until entering the front stretch. Alone on course, he gained three positions, correctly called a pass-around and managed fuel. He showcased extreme composure in the aggravatingly long delays between picking up spots due to traffic and the scattered positioning of the GTD field.
Long received a clean car from co-driver and Team Principal Patrick Lindsey who valiantly drove from 12th up to sixth in the GTD Class before the driver change pit window shuffled the field and pushed him up to second. Lindsey’s greatest run came when he picked up four positions in his opening laps. Strategy from Director of Race Operations Mike Johnson aided Lindsey in his further push to the front. The team operated efficiently in tracking the No. 73 Park Place Porsche 911 GT3 R in position to charge to the front of the field.
Patrick said, “It’s been a game of track position this year, and unfortunately we had some minor work to do there,” Long said. “The car was quick, but without a radio, it was interesting to try and help run strategy at the same time. I’m proud of the effort; the guys did a great job in the pitstops. Again, we had a very consistent car and just didn’t get quite what we deserved out of the day. At the end of the day, it was good points.”
