Action Express Racing Taking the Championship Battle Down to the Wire at Road Atlanta
In the 2015 IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar Championship, Action Express Racing has scored three victories and eight podiums in the first nine races. Despite only one finish outside the top-5, a sixth at Circuit of the Americas, the two Chevrolet Corvette Daytona Prototypes find themselves tied for second place, trailing the championship lead by six points.
While a six-point lead is difficult to make up, both entries from Action Express Racing have done it in single events this season. Team manager Gary Nelson knows the six-point gap is not insurmountable, and with his 'Expect to Win' motto, the North Carolina based team is still very alive in the title fight.
"We've had a good year, especially when you consider that we went from one full-time entry to two," said Nelson. "Both of our cars have won events this season and both have made up six or more points in a single event. Championships aren't supposed to be easy to win, and this year's IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar Championship is certainly going to be difficult. However, we know our team is capable of executing at the championship level necessary at Road Atlanta to secure the titles."
With their second victory of the season at Road America, the Whelen Corvette DP, driven by Dane Cameron and Eric Curran made up nine points on first place and since claiming their first victory of 2015 at the Chevrolet Sports Car Classic in Detroit, Cameron and Curran have amassed more points than all other prototype competitors, scoring 161 points in the five events, 11 more points than the next closest competitors.
In the eighth race of the 2015 season, the Mustang Sampling Corvette DP, driven by João Barbosa and Christian Fittipaldi made up six points to close within a point of the lead after finishing second at Road America.
Petit Le Mans will also mark the return of Frenchman Sébastien Bourdais to the Mustang Sampling Corvette DP. The return of Bourdais reunites the triumvirate, who in their last drive together were victorious in the Twelve Hours of Sebring, winning the race by an entire lap.
Italian Max Papis will make his return as the third driver in the Whelen Corvette DP. Papis is one of the few endurance specialists who took part in the Sahlen's Six Hours of the Glen. The team hopes the seat time at Watkins Glen will prove valuable for Papis, potentially giving the Whelen Corvette DP an edge on the competition.
Although Fittipaldi and Barbosa are trailing in the IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar Championship fight, they are leading by seven points in the Tequila Patrón North American Endurance Cup. With a maximum of 15 and a minimum of six points available at Road Atlanta, the two drivers are in an excellent position to claim a second consecutive NAEC title.
"While we would much rather be tied for first place in the championship, we welcome the challenge in front of us at Road Atlanta," said team principal Bob Johnson. "Week in and week out we've had two of the best cars at the track, and we fully expect to have great cars for Petit Le Mans. At the end of the day we are one team with two cars and we'll compete that way until the checkered flag.
"João and Christian have an excellent opportunity to win a second NAEC title, and hopefully we can get that accomplished in the first four hours. Then we'll turn our focus on getting one of our two cars to the head table on the TUDOR Night of Champions."
The 17th annual Petit Le Mans gets underway Saturday, October 3 at 11:00 a.m. ET. The race will conclude just after 9:00 p.m. ET. Follow Action Express Racing on Twitter (@ax_racing) and on Facebook (facebook.com/ActionExpressRacing) for updates on broadcast coverage and race updates. The race can be viewed in its entirety on IMSA.com, with portions of the event televised on FOX Sports 2.
Contact:
kzimmerman@hi-revracing.com
