Panoz Wins GTS Race 1 With Late-Race Pass

Photo: Brian Cleary/PWC

Team Panoz Racing scored its fourth straight Pro-Am win in the first Pirelli World Challenge GTS SprintX race at Portland International Raceway on Saturday with Ian James completing a late-race pass for the lead.

James overtook Harry Gottsacker, who had led for most of the race, into turn one in the final stages of the race to put his No. 50 Panoz Avezzano GT4 which he co-drives with Matt Keegan into the lead.

He crossed the line just 0.357 seconds ahead of Gottsacker who made several last-minute attempts to regain position in the No. 69 SIN R1 GT4 run by Racers Edge Motorsports.

Gottsacker started from pole and remained out front for most of the race but was unable to pick up the team’s first win of the season.

Lawson Aschenbach came through to finish third in his No. 1 Blackdog Speed Shop Chevrolet Camaro GT4 while Michael Cooper’s sister car was classified fourth.

Epic Motorsports Secures Am Class Win

Epic Motorsports’ James Clay and Randy Mueller picked up the Am class win from seventh position overall in their No. 3 BMW M4 GT4.

The class lead changed between several cars including Drew Staveley’s Ginetta G55 GT4 which came home second in class.

The only other car to lead overall before the race-deciding pass was the No. 113 Classic BMW-entered BMW M4 GT4 of Brett Strom and Daren Jorgensen, running in the Am class.

Strom ran in second for most of the opening stint although missed the pit stop window and so was given a drive-through penalty for pitting one lap late.

The pit stop window was moved back by five minutes following a lengthy 17-minute full course caution period caused by an incident involving Racers Edge’s Mark Pavan and KPR’s Mark Klenin.

Sunday’s Race 2 will get underway at 11:55 a.m. PT.

RESULTS: Race 1

Jake Kilshaw

Jake Kilshaw is a UK-based journalist. He is a graduate of Politics and International Relations.