Li, Neser Win Indy Season Finale; Liddy, Harvey Claim Pro Title

James Li and Sam Neser secured the Race 2 win aboard the No. 74 RWE Motorsport McLaren Artura Trophy EVO in Friday’s McLaren Trophy America season finale at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, although Patrick Liddy and Tanner Harvey were declared Pro class champions some six hours after the race finish.

The race win down to a late battle between Li and Liddy, in the No. 24 Forte Racing entry, following a brief full-course caution period.

Liddy kept the pressure on the race leader as the clock wound down on the 50-minute contest, setting up a final-lap showdown. However, Liddy spun entering Turn 1, allowing Li to hold on for the victory.

The incident promoted Jon Miller to second overall and among the Pro competitors alongside co-driver Kevin Madsen in the No. 53 Relapsing Polychondritis Motorsports/Forte Racing McLaren, which is understood to have been classified as a guest entry due to a late driver change.

Liddy and co-driver Tanner Harvey completed the overall and Pro class podium in third but still scored second place points.

There was initial confusion whether the No. 74 RWE pairing or No. 24 Forte duo had won the Pro championship, as calculations based on a season-long points table put both teams on equal points, with a tie-breaker going to Li and Neser, who had four wins on the season compared to Liddy and Harvey’s three.

However, an irregularity regarding the points distribution from Road America weekend led to an extensive review by McLaren Automotive and SRO America’s timing and scoring service, Al Kamel North America.

Official points, published late Friday, more than six hours after the checkered flag, confirmed that Liddy and Harvey have actually won the Pro drivers’ championship by a single point over Li and Neser.

Forte also won the team’s championship.

The father-and-son pairing of James and Jenson Sofronas converted their consistent pace into an Am class victory in the No. 14 GMG Racing entry.

Cooper Broll brought his No. 100 Forte Racing entry back into podium contention after receiving a drive-through penalty with less than 25 minutes remaining.

Broll capitalized on the reshuffled order to finish second in Am, having already clinched the class championship.

Michael Suco and co-driver Darren Law completed the Am podium in third aboard the No. 77 LLH Motorsports entry.

Oliver Webb and Ryan James claimed the Pro-Am title on Friday after James started the weekend’s final race in the No. 22 Greystone GT McLaren.

The duo also finished third in class to cap their championship-winning campaign with another podium finish.

Alexandra Hainer capitalized on the pit-stop cycle in the No. 43 Motorsports In Action entry to move into the overall lead late in the race.

Although she fell out of the overall top five, Hainer and co-driver Jesse Lazare maintained their advantage in Pro-Am to secure the class victory.

Alex Pollard and Spencer Schmidt charged from the back of the field to finish second in Pro-Am, earning the runner-up spot aboard the No. 47 RWE Motorsport McLaren.

RESULTS: Race 2