The No. 3 K-PAX Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo of Jordan Pepper and Andrea Caldarelli saw no one in their way to a double win in the FANATEC GT World Challenge America at Watkins Glen.
The K-PAX Lamborghinis Nos. 3 and 6 were quick to secure their 1-2 at the start, but the No. 6 was passed on the same lap by the No. 96 Turner BMW, losing second place in the process. With the No. 10 TR3 Lamborghini crashing and stopping trackside, a brief Safety Car period was called with 5 minutes of racing, which lasted 8 minutes.
Back to business, Michael Dinan was taking everything out of the No. 96 Turner BMW, becoming a threat to Jordan Pepper, who was making the No. 3 K-PAX Lamborghini the fastest car of the track, but it was question of a few laps for Pepper to return to his dominant pace.
No changes happened during the first half of racing, and the top two contenders went really early to the pits, and while the pit service was smooth sailing for the No. 3, the No. 6 got stuck longer than needed, dropping down to fourth position.
While things looked settled in the Pro Cup, the Pro-Am Cup Acura battle was on with the No. 93 Racers Edge NSX holding the No. 77 Compass NSX, and the high pace of this battle gave them overall benefits, as both of them passed the troubled No. 6 K-PAX Lamborghini, going up to fourth and fifth.
In front, things went as predicted, with the No. 3 K-PAX Lamborghini easily controlling the rest of the race, while in the Pro-Am Cup, despite the best efforts of Matt McMurry, he stayed in second place in class at the line, seeing the back of the No. 93 Racers Edge Acura.
GTWC America Watkins Glen - Race 1 results
Without partnership in the front row on Sunday, the No. 3 K-PAX Lamborghini started going away from the pack as early as possible, but the Safety Car period brought because of the stranded No. 33 Winward Mercedes nullified any gains for Andrea Caldarelli.
Although Jan Heylen was right in the tail of the No. 3 Lamborghini, the No. 20 Wright Porsche had the Pro-Am Cup lead, so the Belgian wouldn’t need to take any unnecessary risks, and another Safety Car period near the halfway bunched them up again, keeping the No. 3 within striking distance to possibly undercut in the pit window.
K-PAX called the No. 3 early in the pit window while the No. 20 Wright Porsche had Heylen extending his drive time in hopes of putting the car in the overall to secure the Pro-Am Cup lead, and although the No. 20 did came back as the Pro-Am leader, the overall lead was brief, with the No. 3 back at its position a few seconds after the No. 20’s pit stop. The No. 96 Turner BMW jumped to second for a moment, just to be slapped with a penalty for pit lane infringement regarding presence of tire warmers.
Fred Poordad kept the No. 20 in second overall for as long as possible, and with 17 minutes to go, not only the No. 6 K-PAX Lamborghini passed him, but he also became a target for the No. 77 Compass Acura, meaning that the Pro-Am Cup lead was at risk. Some wide lines by Poordad opened the way for the No. 77, so Michael Di Meo gone away while Poordad was holding Taylor Hagler in the No. 93 Racers Edge Acura, while Martin Fuentes in the No. 9 TR3 Lamborghini was having a close watch in the two cars ahead.
The time spent behind the No. 20 had negative effects in Hagler’s charge, as the No. 96 Turner BMW opened the way through the Pro-Am battle, letting enough of a room for the No. 9 to go past too, although Fuentes and Hagler were still behind Poordad.
In front, K-PAX made the expected 1-2 overall with the No. 3 and the No. 6 Lamborghinis, while the No. 77 Compass Acura secured the Pro-Am Cup win, and in the end, the No. 20 Wright Porsche held second in class ahead of the No. 9 TR3 Lamborghini.
GTWC America Watkins Glen - Race 2 results
Next in the calendar is Sebring, debut in GTWC America on 2 and 3 October.
PHOTO: SRO
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