FULL REPORT: Magnus Racing Scores Second in Wet Petit Le Mans Finale

BRASELTON, GEORGIA (October 5, 2015)- Following a wild event at this year's Petit Le Mans, the final round of the 2015 TUDOR United SportsCar Championship, Magnus Racing would take a strong second in the GT Daytona (GTD) category. This would serve as the second podium for the team, ending a challenging season on a positive note. While the team was certainly pleased with their second consecutive podium at the event, it was bittersweet having led their class during much of the event.

“Looking back we're certainly happy for another podium,” stated Magnus Racing team owner John Potter. “It's tough because we were looking good for the win at multiple points during the race, but it just didn't work out for us when the series threw the checkered flag. It was still great to end the season strong, and everyone on this team should feel proud of the job they did.”

While the race was slated to last for 10 hours, an endless series of rain showers took their toll on the field, with series officials determining the conditions unfit to continue as the event neared eight hours. Eventually, the race was cancelled outright with drivers John Potter, Andy Lally, and Robert Renauer and the No. 44 Flex-Box Porsche 911 GT America in second when the premature checkered flag fell. 

As the green flag fell, the weeklong rain conditions would continue with John Potter taking starting duties under adverse circumstances. Knowing that attrition would play a major role on the day’s outcome, the Salt Lake City resident drove with patience and maturity as his opening stint progressed. Holding on throughout the opening hours, John would do an excellent job of keeping the car clean and not making a single error, eventually pitting during an opportune caution in favor of team newcomer Robert Renauer. 

While it would serve as his first Petit Le Mans, the German driver came into the event as no stranger to wet conditions, and it would show as Robert’s time in the car would slowly move the team up through the rankings. Thanks in part to clever pit strategy and a series of fortunate breaks with caution periods, Renauer would find himself caught up with the lead pack by time the third hour rolled around, and shortly after the No. 44 Porsche would find itself in the lead.

Engaged in a stint-long battle with the No. 93 Viper, a slight run through the grass in tricky conditions would be Robert’s only mistake, which would prove not enough to keep him from the lead.

Following a several-hour run, and under extremely difficult conditions, it was time for Andy Lally to take his turn for the race’s mid-point. Taking the reigns where Renauer left off, the pace of the Magnus Porsche in the wet was evident with Lally making a strong charge to build a gap to the field in front of him, leading by as much as 12 seconds nearing the halfway point.

As the Georgia-resident’s stint continued, a two-way race between the No. 73 of Spencer Pumpelly began to become clear, with Andy’s 11-second gap slowly dwindling as Pumpelly began his march up the field.

With just under six hours completed, however, the race would be stopped due to the extreme wet conditions with much of the paddock feeling as though this may lead to the race being called early. With Lally in front of the field at this time, the feeling within the Magnus paddock that they may have clinched their first victory of 2015 was optimistic.

Unfortunately, the teams would be called back to their cars within the hour, and Lally would have to once again defend his position against the charging Pumpelly.

With the field packed up under the red flag, the race would resume with the No. 73 Porsche of Pumpelly in close range of Andy, and as the green flag dropped it was clear the fight would be close.

With the two drivers engaged in a nose-to-tail battle for several laps, Lally did his best to thwart his good friend throughout much of the stint, however as the faster GTLM traffic came through, Andy would find himself stuck wide entering a critical section allowing Pumpelly to grab the lead and never looking back.

As Lally began to focus in on recapturing the lead, another yellow, and eventually red flag, would stop the race for good with the No. 44 stuck in second.

It was a bittersweet finish for the team, who on one hand were happy to take their second podium of the season, but disappointed having been so close to victory.

“It’s a tough one to let past,” stated Lally. “It’s so hard to win one of these races that you really don’t want to see one slip through. Everyone on this team worked so hard to take their first victory of the season, and I really wanted to deliver it for them. Unfortunately, it just wasn’t meant to be. As you would expect, Spencer drove completely fair and clean, he simply got me when he had the opportunity. Congratulations to him and the Park Place team for the win.”

For Robert Renauer, his Petit Le Mans debut should be considered a success.

“Of course a victory would have been great, but I think the team should be happy with a podium,” stated the German. “The Magnus Racing team was an excellent team to drive for. The crew was very professional, the car was very fast, and I felt very welcome through the whole experience. I’m glad I was able to take the car to the lead, and I’m sure next time the result will be even better. Thanks to John Potter and the whole team for the opportunity, hopefully I will be able to return.”

With the 2015 TUDOR United SportsCar Championship at a clean, the team will take some much needed time off in anticipation of their 2016 plans. Currently, the team has not made any formal plans however hope to make some announcements shortly.

Robert Renauer to Join Magnus Racing at Petit Le Mans Finale

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (September 30, 2015)- With the final race of the TUDOR United Sports Car Championship just days away, Magnus Racing has bolstered their lineup for the upcoming Petit Le Mans with the addition of German standout Robert Renauer, who will join drivers John Potter and Andy Lally. Looking to repeat the team’s podium performance from last year, hopes are high for the No. 44 Flex-Box Porsche 911 GT America to end a challenging season on a high note.

“Having gone through a difficult 2015, we’d love to go in to the off-season with a bit of momentum,” stated Magnus Racing team owner John Potter. “It’s been a long and busy summer for everyone, and as we keep saying, the performance has been there all year but we’ve just struggled for a variety of reasons. Even if the championship is well past our grasp, a victory at Petit Le Mans is certainly something we all want to see. Having won two of the four major endurance events in the country, adding to that would be incredible for everyone on the team. Robert Renauer is new to the team, but his résumé speaks for itself. Even though it’s his first race at Petit Le Mans, I have no doubt he’ll fit right in and get up to speed quickly.”

A veteran of Porsche competition for over a decade, Robert Renauer will join Magnus Racing for his first-ever Petit Le Mans. Hailing from Germany, the 30-year old is a proven winner, having taken victory in such series as the ADAC GT Masters, VLN 24 Hour Series, and with experience in the Porsche Carrera Cup, Blancpain Sprint Series, and numerous endurance events including the 24 Hours of Nürburgring as well as Rolex 24 at Daytona. 

“I’m excited to join Magnus Racing for Petit Le Mans,” stated Renauer. “The team has a great reputation of being both fun and competitive, and it’s a great opportunity for me. I have not raced in this event before, so I’m looking forward to the opportunity. So far everyone has been very welcoming and inviting, and I think we’re all hoping for a strong result on Saturday.”

With teammate Andy Lally living within an hour’s drive of the 2.5-mile, 13-turn circuit, the New York native knows the team is fully capable of helping him earn his second victory at the famed event.

“This is one of the coolest events in the country, there’s no question that we all want to win this,” stated Lally. “I know we all keep saying the same thing, but we’ve honestly been one of the fastest cars at every event we arrive at, and the races just keep getting away from us. The team is solid, the car is fast, so we all know what we’re capable of. Hopefully this will be the weekend for us and we can prove the potential we’ve shown all year.”

As a 10-hour event and the final leg of the series’ Tequila Patrón North American Endurance Championship, practice will begin tomorrow, October 1, with the race beginning at 11:15AM ET on Saturday. Live coverage will be carried on a variety of channels, full listing below.

11AM-12PM: FOX Sports 2
12PM-2:30PM: IMSA.com
2:30PM-7PM: FOX Sports 2
7PM-8:30PM: IMSA.com
8:30PM-9:30PM: FOX Sports 2XX

Magnus Racing Struggles to Get into Gear in Austin

AUSTIN, Texas (September 21, 2015)- Headed into Saturday’s Lone Star Le Mans, the penultimate round of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship, Magnus Racing’s hopes for a return to form were cut short within the opening laps as the team experienced gearbox problems. While the team would ultimately manage to get back on track after lengthy repairs, the No. 44 Flex-Box Porsche 911 GT America would be classified 12^th in the GTD class and 23 laps down.

“The event was pretty indicative of our season,” stated Magnus Racing team owner and co-driver John Potter. “We had a fast car all weekend and were optimistic for the race, but unfortunately we lost drive early on, and that was that. There were still a lot of positives on the weekend. We were one of the fastest cars in practice, I think we had a good qualifying run, and I know we keep saying it but I believe with a couple different changes of fortune we would have had a really good race. Petit Le Mans is next and that’s one we all want to win, and I think we’re well prepared for it.”

After one of his best qualifying performances of the season, Potter would start from the sixth position for the two-hour, forty-minute race. After repeatedly setting the fastest lap during Thursday and Friday practice, and having finished second during the previous two visits, the team was optimistic on their chances. 

Unfortunately, after making a strong start, Potter would lose drive after the second lap, immediately pulling into the pits as the team looked for a quick cure to the problem. After a lengthy examination of the car’s rear-end, it was clear the car would have to be rolled back into the paddock for further analysis and repair. Eventually, the team discovered a terminal issue in the gearbox, having to switch to a backup and effectively losing nearly an hour in the process.

In typical Magnus fashion, the crew did a stellar job given the challenges of swapping a gearbox, and the Porsche would go back on track within an hour. With no hope of a good finish, the focus simply became on ensuring Potter drove his minimum drive time to score points on the day.

Once Potter clicked off his required time, the team would put teammate Andy Lally in to finish the race, with the Long Island native driving the final 40 minutes to take the car to the checkered flag.

“Yup,” stated Lally. “…..” 

With only one race remaining, the entire TUDOR Championship will head to the final race of the championship, Petit Le Mans, in less than two weeks. As a 10-hour race, taking place at the scenic Road Atlanta, the team is looking forward to the opportunity to repeat their podium performance from last year. Practice begins on Thursday, October 1, with the race taking place on Saturday, October 3. The full broadcast schedule will be revealed in an upcoming 

Magnus Racing Looking to Finish Season Strong in Texas

AUSTIN, Texas (September 17, 2015)- With only two races remaining in the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship, Magnus Racing will head to this weekend’s second-to-last round in Austin, Texas, looking to close their season on a high. With practice for the Lone Star Le Mans at the famed Circuit of the Americas beginning this morning, the team is looking to continue a podium streak at the venue that began in 2013.
 
“Circuit of the Americas is a great circuit to visit,” stated Potter. “Everyone talks about it being a Formula One circuit, and the quality of the facilities and aesthetics certainly shows that. We’ve been lucky to be on the podium every time we’ve come here, and our work is certainly cut out for us if we’re going to repeat that. We’ve had an incredibly fast car for the last several races, we just haven’t had the breaks we needed during the race, but hopefully our good history here can continue.”
 
First visiting the circuit in 2013, Magnus Racing has been fortunate to have seen the podium in every year they’ve come. In 2013, the team just narrowly missed out on victory to finish second, repeating the same effort in 2014 utilizing a combination of strategy and patience.
 
With the track providing notoriously close racing, and strategy often coming in to play, the team knows the chance to see their second podium of the season is strong.
 
For Andy Lally, hopes for a return to form are high.
 
“We’ve been one of the quickest cars at nearly every track during the last few events,” stated Lally. “This field is so competitive that if just one little thing doesn’t go your way, the race can turn on you, and we seem to keep getting caught out by that. Circuit of the Americas has traditionally been a great place for us in the past, so we’re hoping this will be a weekend to finally reward the guys for their efforts.”
 
With practice having already begun for the event, Saturday’s race will take part as part of a combined event with the World Endurance Championship, with the TUDOR race beginning at 12:30PM ET. Live television coverage can be found on FOX Sports 2, with FOX Sports 1 re-airing the broadcast on Sunday at 1:30PM ET. 

Tire Woes End Day Early for Magnus Racing at VIR

ALTON, Virginia (August 25, 2015) – Despite repeatedly setting some of the quickest times in practice and looking like a strong contender for Sunday’s TUDOR United Sports Car Championship race, a series of tire and mechanical woes would end the Oak Tree Grand Prix early for Magnus Racing. Despite the race retirement, the team would still be credited with ninth in the GTD category.

“It’s disappointing to end another race early, but we feel as though we did it for the right reasons,” stated Magnus Racing team owner and co-driver John Potter. “At a certain point you just have to look at the merit of running vs. the risk, and in our case it unfortunately made sense to retire the car and look deeper into what was going on. It’s frustrating because we’ve all been working hard on this season and we know the quality of what we have, we just couldn’t find the luck we needed.”

Taking starting duties in the No. 44 Flex-Box Porsche 911 GT America, John Potter would take the green flag in seventh, with all eyes focused on the field in front of him. Knowing how strong the car had been, it was up to the Salt Lake City resident to manage his car carefully, doing an excellent job of maintaining a pace with the lead pack without putting the car in unnecessary risk.

As the laps continued, John had managed to move the car up to fifth with only two laps to go before pitting for teammate Andy Lally, when a sudden tire deflation through the tricky uphill esses would send the Porsche understeering wide past a right-hand turn and in to the grass, with Potter doing an excellent job to keep the car from contacting anything. He would manage to recover without significant damage, however, he would need to limp to the pits given the issue with his tire.

Upon further analysis from the team, the data did show a sudden loss of tire pressure on the left front, illustrating Potter’s quick thinking to get himself out of trouble once the incident began.

“When I went into the right hander on the esses, all of a sudden I saw the wall coming at me,” continued Potter. “I thought to myself, ‘I’ve seen this before,’ and jumped on the gas to get the car to turn around… luckily it worked perfectly. It was frustrating to have that kind of surprise, but I’m glad I was able to keep it from being anything more serious.”

Following a quick stop to evaluate damage and replace the tire, all signs were that the car was fine, their only real penalty being time lost from the spin and time in the pits. One lap later when Potter would eclipse the required minimum drive time, John would pit in favor of teammate Andy Lally.

With Lally in the car, all focus was on trying to get the car back on the lead lap and back on strategy, chasing down the race leaders as the laps went on. Unfortunately, just 13 laps later, a similar fate would hit Andy with another tire going down.

The crew would once again replace the tire, and after evaluating the car went back to action. Unfortunately, as the laps went on Lally felt a nagging vibration, with the team eventually pitting him again to examine the whole car.

Eventually, with the team effectively out of championship contention and with no way of winning the race, the decision was made to retire in the interest of safety.

“It’s disappointing for all of us,” stated Andy Lally. “This was another one of those weekends where we had the car to win, but it just wasn’t meant to be. It’s so disappointing for this team, because we have all the pieces to win. At the end of the day I do agree it was the right choice, I don’t think of any of us wanted to write off the car, put ourselves at risk, or screw up another team’s championship.”

With nearly a month until the next round at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, the team will have several weeks to make an extensive evaluation of the car. Practice for the Lone Star Le Mans will begin on Thursday, September 17, with the race action taking place on Saturday, September 19.