TAVARES, Fla, (Oct. 1, 2013) – Cooper MacNeil and Jeroen Bleekemolen head to Virginia International Raceway for the American Le Mans Series Oak Tree Grand Prix to run Oct. 3-5. The duo lead the GTC points in their No. 22 WeatherTech Racing Porsche.
MacNeil (Hinsdale, Ill) and Bleekemolen (Monte Carlo) have been clinging to a less than 10 point lead in the all Porsche ALMS GTC series for two races. Current lead is at four. The team is returning to VIR where they won the all-Porsche class in 2012. The duo would like to come away with another win so they have some breathing room heading into the all-important ALMS season finale Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta just 10 days after VIR.
“We won at VIR last year and we would like to do the same this year,” MacNeil said. “I know how fast Jeroen is there because he was right with Leh on the last lap in 2012. I know we will be strong because the guys have been working really hard. The mechanical issue in the motor at COTA was extremely unfortunate because we would be really strong in the points right now. I really like the esses at VIR because of how fast we can drive the WeatherTech Porsche through them – hitting the rev limiter at the top of fifth gear, that’s an amazing feeling. Our goal this weekend is to put the WeatherTech Porsche on the pole and win.”
Bleekmolen had a good car and new it could have been a winning day.
“Because it’s so tight in the championship, it’s all about winning now,” Bleekemolen said. “We were really unlucky at COTA and the only way to make up for that is to try and win VIR. At the same time you have to stay out of trouble, because a bad result means you will miss the championship for sure. I love the fast esses at VIR, very challenging. The only tricky part about VIR is the traffic. If a prototype sticks it in there you can be in trouble. We really need all of the road there with the Porsche. I have only raced once at VIR last year. I lost out to Cooper, so joining him this year should help. I had a great run to second last year. We were close to winning, but had two slow pit stops under green losing more than 30 seconds. So second wasn’t too bad after all. We were within one second of the winners at the end.”
Alex Job, team owner, can’t afford to be too conservative.
“Cooper and Jeroen are going to VIR to win,” Job said. “At this point in the championship we can’t afford to be too cautious. Being too cautious can cause you to over think the situation and that is when mistakes can happen. Both our guys really drive well at VIR. We have fixed our mechanical issues which have plagued us the last couple of races and now we need to put a win together before Petit Le Mans.”
The television broadcast from VIR will air October 6 at 5:30 p.m. EDT on ESPN 2. Live streaming of the race will run October 5, starting at 2:00 p.m. EDT on ESPN 3.com, with live qualifying streaming on ESPN3.com on October 4 starting at 3:35 p.m. The American Le Mans Series will travel to Virginia International Raceway for the Oak Tree Grand Prix Oct. 3-5.
Alex Job Racing is one of the most successful teams in sports car racing with 70 wins (since 1995); including two Rolex 24 GT Class wins in 1999 and 2013. This record is supported by 48 pole positions and 106 podium finishes. The team has won four championships (GTC 2012, GT in 2004, 2003 and 2002) complimented by their two GT class wins at Le Mans. The team also boasts nine Sebring 12-hour wins.
The ALMS GTC category is specific to one of the most popular factory produced racing cars in the world, the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup. Developed for Porsche’s one-make series around the world, the new version of the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup is based on the road-going 911 GT3 RS. The power unit featured in the new 911 GT3 Cup is largely identical to the production engine of the 911 GT3 RS with the same output of 450 bhp and the same maximum engine speed of 8,500 rpm.
WeatherTech Racing 2013 ALMS GTC Results
Event Drivers Qualify Finish
Sebring MacNeil/ Bleekemolen/ Von Moltke 2 1
Long Beach MacNeil/ Bleekemolen 1 4
Laguna Seca MacNeil/ Bleekemolen 1 3
Lime Rock MacNeil/ Bleekemolen 2 5
Mosport MacNeil/ Bleekemolen 1 1
Road America MacNeil/ Bleekemolen 6 2
Baltimore MacNeil/ Bleekemolen 1 2
COTA MacNeil/ Bleekemolen 3 6
About WeatherTech: WeatherTech, headquartered in Bolingbrook, Illinois, has long been recognized by the discerning automotive enthusiast as a supplier of accessories of unparalleled quality. In addition to the WeatherTech brand, the company supplies products to many automobile manufacturers (OEM) as an original equipment supplier. In fact, WeatherTech currently supplies accessories to all four German manufacturers of luxury automobiles as well as a host of other automobile manufacturers worldwide! More information can be viewed at www.weathertech.com.
From: Alex Job Racing
For more information about AJR, visit www.alexjobracing.com, or visit our fan page on Facebook by searching WeatherTech Racing. Further inquiries, please contact Kyle Chura at kyle@kcapr.com or (248) 821-0468.
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