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| 2008 Lime Rock Team Race Report: Banner Racing Pontiac |
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Banner Pontiac GXP-Rs win second straight Grand-Am GT race at Lime Rock
Lakeville, Connecticut (May 26, 2008): Paul Edwards and Kelly Collins powered the #07 Banner Engineering Pontiac GXP.R home to the checkered flag to win the Lime Rock GT Classic on Memorial Day. The win was the third of the season for Collins and Edwards and the fifth straight for Pontiac in the ACXIOM GT class of the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16. as the duo increased both their lead in the Grand-Am GT Driver's Championship but strengthened Pontiac's lead in the Manufacturers' Title.
The #06 Banner Engineering Pontiac GXP.R of Jan Magnussen and Ron Fellows finished 4th in the 164 lap race that went green from flag to flag after Fellows spun out of the lead with four laps remaining and had difficulty restarting the car as the starter failed to engage.
This was a bitter sweet deal for sure, said team owner Leighton Reese of the win and 4th place finish. I wanted to get a one-two for Banner Engineering and I definitely wanted a one-two for Pontiac and we came so close. We had some pretty crazy strategy going, very divergent, and they came back together at the end so it all worked.
This was a sweet win for Pontiac here and dominating performance this weekend, said Paul Edwards. I didn't know if we were going to be this strong or not. The Banner Engineering Pontiac GXP.R was solid the whole day. This track is pretty hard on cars. It is pretty bumpy and turn six on the bumps is pretty brutal on the underside of the chassis but our Banner Pontiac has been flawless all year. We haven't had any issues or problems, no funny feelings in the steering wheel all year which is great if you are trying to win a championship.
As the race wore on it became apparent that the two Banner Pontiacs were the class of the field as Denmark racer Jan Magnussen brought the #06 Banner Pontiac from last to first after a scheduled first lap fuel stop put him well back of the leaders. Meanwhile Kelly Collins, of Newport Beach California, was playing a waiting game in 5th position letting the field sort itself out.
Collins spent the early stages of the race trying to find a way past the #70 Mazda of Ham and the #87 Porsche of Farnbacher as Magnussen was blasting up through the field and was clearly the fastest car on the track at that point. Collins had gotten passed by both Farnbacher and Ham during a very frenetic start of the race.
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