Photo : Guénolé TREHOREL - Guénolé TREHOREL

 

Race-opening and qualifying driver Davis started from the sixth row and immediately took to the field in front of him. He gained several spots during the opening laps and raced into the top-five by the first round of pit stops. Dempsey took the reins just past the one-hour mark and set a series of consistent and improving lap times before handing the car to Foster, who nearly drove a triple stint in his only shift of the race. He kept the No. 27 team within contention of the lead pack during his run, knowing that Davis would return for the closing leg of the race. Setting some strong times of his own, Foster mastered the traffic and large field with a veteran’s experience, running without error and handing the car back to Davis for the run to the finish. Advancing throughout every stage of the six-hour race, the team was up to third in the closing hours and poised to take its first podium in the brief history of the IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar Championship. A quick series of final pit stops throughout the pack put the No. 27 in fourth but just seven seconds behind the third-place competitor. Davis ripped off a quick series of fast laps in pursuit but a late race yellow would end any hope of a podium.

Patrick Dempsey: “It was a great run today, good to show how competitive the team truly is. We had a car that was able to run with the front runners all race and it’s great to finally have a top-five to show for it. We’ve definitely turned a corner in the performance of the car and the consistency of the drivers. Everybody drove really well. Andrew drove his heart out. So did Joe.”

Meanwhile, Dempsey Racing’s sister No. 58 Porsche 911 GT America of drivers Madison Snow and Jan Heylen endured a difficult day, finishing a season-low 13th. After light contact early on with Prototype Challenge (PC) traffic, the team immediately fell back a lap for small repairs to the right side of the Porsche, but a harder blow came later when a suspension issue forced the team to go to the paddock for long term repairs.

With only two weeks until the next event, Dempsey Racing will turn both Porsches around quickly for the upcoming Mobil 1 Sportscar Grand Prix presented by Hawk Performance at Mosport Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (Canada, on July 11-13), the eighth round of the 2014 TUSC.

(Based upon Dempsey Racing press information)

Photo: LE MANS (SARTHE, FRANCE), CIRCUIT DES 24 HEURES, 24 HOURS OF LE MANS, SUNDAY JUNE 15, 2014, RACE. Two weeks after finishing 5th in the LM GTE Am class at Le Mans, Patrick Dempsey claimed Dempsey Racing's season-best result to date at Watkins Glen, with the 4th position in the GT Daytona class.