Continental Tire IMSA Spotlight: Eric Foss

IMSA Spotlight: Eric Foss
Driver: Murillo Racing No. 56 Porsche Cayman
Follow: @EricFossRacing

How did your second Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge championship season compare to the first?

“The 2017 season in the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge was much different than my first championship winning season in 2014. In 2014 I was the new guy on the team and was learning to communicate with Ken Murillo and the team as a whole.

“Even though we were off to a great start with a win at Daytona and a podium at Sebring, Round 3 at Laguna Seca was a challenge. Jeff Mosing had to sit out the race with back spasms and we had mechanical issues in the race resulting in a 20th place finish.

“The rest of the season was spent trying to catch up in points and bring home a good finish. In the end we were able to win the team championship, me a driver’s championship, and Jeff finished third in the driver’s championship.”

What were the emotions after winning the title but not being able to share it with your usual co-driver Jeff Mosing who was forced to miss two races due to injury?

“In 2017 Jeff and I had an amazing start to the season with a podium finish in six of the first seven races. By the end of Round 8 (VIR), it felt like there was nothing that would derail our chance at a first championship together.

“Unfortunately, weeks after VIR Jeff called and told me that he would not be able to race for the remainder of the season — I was devastated.

“Jeff and I have bonded like brothers over the last several years and I know how much a championship in the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge would mean to him.

“At the end of the season I was happy that the team overcame adversity in the last few races to win the championship. It still felt hollow not having Jeff on the top step of the podium once again.”

Only Scott Maxwell has more championships in the series with three. How motivated are you to try and equal that mark?

“I wasn’t aware that Scott Maxwell was the only driver in the series to have three championships until just recently! Although a great accomplishment to Scott Maxwell, finding out this bit of information doesn’t change my general approach to competing.

“Ultimately, at the start of every racing season I focus only on the individual race weekend ahead. I only entertain the idea of the championship if (and only if) we get a good start in the first few races.

“But as history has shown ANYTHING can happen and I focus on executing to the best of my ability — which is also the mindset of the Murillo racing team.

“I will treat 2018 and any following seasons in the same manner.”

What can you share about your 2018 plans at this stage?

“For 2018 it appears that Jeff Mosing has let the cat out of the bag. Murillo Racing will be campaigning one of the new Mercedes-AMG GT4 spec cars in the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge series in the GS category.

“We are excited to take delivery of our first car very soon. The Mercedes-AMG GT4 is a well-designed and tested racecar and the Murillo Racing team is ecstatic to race two of the cars next season.”

What can you tell us about your recent venture into team ownership at the grassroots level?

“I recently ran a WRL event at COTA with my BMW 323is, which I use for driver training.

“This was my first ever event as a team owner and I had three of my clients from IMSA GT3 Cup (David Baker, Bill Smith, and Frank Raso) race the car with me.

“The weekend consisted of two eight-hour races, one Saturday and one on Sunday. We had an adventurous weekend including an all-night engine change Saturday night to get the car ready for the race on Sunday.

“Overall, I had fun working strategy, managing the team, and dealing with the issues that can arise in an endurance race. For now though, I’m going to focus on my driving and coaching for a main source of income.”