TRG Pulls GT4 Sprint Title-Contending Pumpelly Entry

Photo: Sarah Weeks

TRG has withdrawn its Pirelli GT4 Sprint title-contending Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport from this weekend’s penultimate round of the season at Circuit of The Americas over an alleged Balance of Performance dispute.

Spencer Pumpelly, who has been locked into a battle with Blackdog Speed Shop’s Michael Cooper for the Pro class championship, will not take part in this weekend’s three races, effectively handing the title to Cooper.

The McLaren Automotive factory driver heads into the weekend with a 40-point lead over Pumpelly with five races to go.

The next closest Pro competitor is Drew Staveley, who is on 172 points compared to Cooper’s 243.

Cooper has claimed wins in eight of the 11 races to date, including a run of six consecutive victories in the No. 10 McLaren 570S GT4.

While yet to release a statement on its absence, Sportscar365 understands the Kevin Buckler-led TRG team has voiced its displeasure over the BoP in the series since the start of the season.

It’s unknown if Pumpelly will return to action for the final two rounds of the season at Indianapolis Motor Speedway next month.

TRG’s withdrawal has resulted in a 12-car GT4 Sprint field for this weekend.

A total of 24 cars, meanwhile, are due to take part in the pair of GT4 SprintX races, including TRG’s GT4 Am class pairing of James Rappaport and Derek DeBoer.

Track action is set to get underway on Thursday, with the first GT4 SprintX race taking place on Friday at 11 a.m. CT. followed by the GT4 Sprint Race 1 at 2:55 p.m. ET.

Three GT4 Sprint races are again on tap for the weekend, in order to make up for the canceled CTMP Race 2, although GT4 SprintX competitors will have a normal two-race event.

John Dagys

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John