LEEDS, Ala. – Roman De Angelis had a perfect opening weekend to the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge USA with the aid of Yokohama season at Barber Motorsports Park.
The 18-yr-old from Belle River, Ontario, commenced both 45-minute races on the picturesque, 2.3-mile street path from the pole role in his No. 79 Racing for Children’s Kelly-Moss Road and Race Porsche 911 GT3 Cup gadget. On Saturday, De Angelis pulled away from the drop of the inexperienced flag and changed into in no way challenged en path to victory inside the season opener.
Sunday’s race turned into a carbon reproduction for the purple-haired racer. De Angelis got a nice bounce at the drop of the inexperienced flag and in no way changed into challenged en route to his first weekend sweep in the GT3 Cup Challenge USA’s Platinum Cup elegance for 911 race cars built among 2017 and 2019. He crossed the stripe 21.227 seconds ahead of Riley Dickinson within the No. Fifty three Moorespeed Porsche.
“I suppose human beings underestimate how hard it’s far if you have that large of a lead, or just to pull it,” De Angelis stated. “It’s no longer smooth to be that short. Even with a certainly accurate car, you still must hit all your marks, all your braking zones and simply attention on what you need to do.
“But the tough aspect is, whilst there’s nobody round you, just keeping focused on hitting all your marks. I assume we performed pretty nicely and it’s an amazing gaining knowledge of revel in.”
With the weekend sweep, De Angelis comes out of the season-beginning doubleheader because the early leader inside the Platinum Cup championship standings with the maximum 70 factors. But with lower back-to-returned 2nd-vicinity runs on each Saturday and Sunday, sixteen-year-vintage series rookie Dickinson is very lots within the blend. The Texan trails De Angelis via six points, 70-sixty four, with 14 races nevertheless on the calendar.
Also, for the second consecutive day, Parker Thompson got here domestic 0.33 inside the No. 3 JDX Racing Porsche. The Canadian ran a whole lot of the race without his the front splitter and became embroiled in a heated battle for the final podium spot with his JDX Racing teammates Jeff Kingsley and Sean McAlister, but he hung on to hold a double podium weekend in his first time racing sports cars.
Kingsley wound up fourth inside the No. Sixteen JDX Racing Porsche, at the same time as Alan Metni scored his first ordinary top-5 end result ever and his second consecutive win inside the Platinum Masters elegance for drivers forty five years of age and over. Metni, who drives the No. Ninety nine AM Motorsports/Kelly-Moss Porsche, is the reigning Platinum Masters champion and got his identify defense off to a perfect start at Barber.
“It feels awesome,” Metni stated. “’I’ve in no way finished within the top 5 earlier than and I’ve been searching ahead to this time, so I’m definitely pretty glad. It become difficult to reel in the younger children, and I in no way did, so it turned into a little bit more than what I had today, however I’m studying. The gap’s getting closer and closer and I’m hoping to in the end bring it to them.”
Fred Kaimer got here home 2nd in Platinum Masters inside the No. 23 NGT Motorsport Porsche for the second immediately day as properly. As a end result, he’s 2d inside the Platinum Masters standings with the aid of the same, 70-sixty four margin as inside the standard Platinum class. Fred Poordad finished the Masters podium with a 3rd-region displaying within the No. 20 Wright Motorsports entry.
In the Gold Cup magnificence for 911 GT3 Cup cars built between 2014 and 2016, Kurt Fazekas scored his first victory of the season within the No. Fifty two Porsche and preserved a sweep of all three elegance victories for Kelly-Moss Road and Race.
Fazekas also received the second Gold Cup race at Barber final 12 months. To do it this time, he prevailed in a conflict over Gold Cup polesitter Rob Ferriol in the No. Five TPC Racing Porsche. A final-lap incident left Ferriol 31.304 seconds in the back of at the checkered flag.
“We were truely lucky to get there,” Fazekas said. “We had one of these bad qualifying attempt. It’s really hard pedaling via a lot of these younger guys. I’m too vintage for this stuff. I’ve were given to start working on aerobic, because I’m winded.
“But I’m certainly glad to finish first. If you finish 2d, the simplest man or woman who recalls this is who completed second. We’re pushing, we’ve were given a few factors, we’re leading the championship, however there are 14 greater races.”
Ferriol salvaged a runner-up end result from a weekend that saw him begin each races from the Gold Cup pole position. On Saturday, a turn one incident took him out of the race without completing a lap.
Saturday’s Gold Cup winner, Sebastian Carazo, went domestic with any other trophy on Sunday, finishing 1/3 inside the No. 27 NGT Motorsport Porsche. As Fazekas cited, that makes him the Gold Cup factors leader via factors, sixty seven-65, with two races within the books.
