Win From Pole by Bryan Sellers and Madison Snow First for Lamborghini in IMSA WeatherTech Championship Competition
DANVILLE, Virginia (August 28, 2016) – Paul Miller Racing and team drivers Bryan Sellers and Madison Snow put the crowning touch on a perfect weekend at VIRginia International Raceway (VIR) with a dominating victory Sunday in the No. 48 Lamborghini Huracán GT3 in the Michelin GT Challenge at VIR.
The victory, the first for Lamborghini in its inaugural season of IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GT Daytona (GTD) competition, capped an amazing weekend that saw the No. 48 team sweep all three practice sessions, this morning’s warm-up and win the pole with a new track record in Saturday qualifying.
Snow and Sellers led nearly every lap of today’s two-hour and 40-minute race as well, relinquishing the top spot for just a few laps when the GTD field cycled through for pit stops.
“What was so great about this effort is that it was so dominating,” said Team Owner Paul Miller. “In every respect, the guys really didn’t make any mistakes in the pits, in the strategy and in the fuel conservation. The driving was impeccable, Madison maintained an amazingly quick pace for a very long time and Bryan proved to be a true team leader by turning quick laps while masterfully saving fuel. It really created a nice gap for us, and it was very comfortable racing today because we were able to create a margin and it stayed green all day. We were trying to make it as boring as possible! It was just an amazing performance and we were finally able to deliver in a way that we haven’t been able to all year.”
After winning the pole on Saturday, Snow led from the drop of the green flag in today’s race and was never challenged throughout his race-opening double stint.
“It’s an amazing feeling knowing that we led every practice session, qualifying and won the pole,” Snow said. “Going into the race we had no excuse and had to do everything we could to win. The team asked whether I wanted to do a second stint or not, but I was feeling great in the car. I was in a rhythm, I was happy to stay in so they left me in the car and it kept getting better and better as the tires wore off. We had the balance, it was good at the beginning of the stint, but as the fuel wore off it made it even easier to drive for sure.”
Sellers took over from Snow with just a little over an hour remaining and was the freshest closing-stint driver in the GTD field.
“I was lucky to bring the car home but the majority of the credit should go to Madison today,” Sellers said. “He was fantastic all weekend and we gave him an agenda in the opening drive to go out and set a gap so that we wouldn’t have pressure, and he certainly delivered. When I got in the car we had a 20 second lead and from there it was just managing and saving fuel.”
In addition to giving Lamborghini its first IMSA race win today, Paul Miller Racing gave the Italian manufacturer its first IMSA pole – at Detroit in June with Sellers – and IMSA podium finish with a third-place showing at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in July.
“Our relationship with Lamborghini is very strong,” Miller said. “They really appreciate what we’ve done, our level of professionalism, the caliber of drivers in Madison and Bryan. Everything about our team is top drawer, and I think they are starting to recognize that even though we’ve lagged in the championship points. I think they realize we’re delivering a first class effort and finally showing the results that, frankly, should have been here all along.”
Lamborghini Squadra Corse officials were among the first to meet and congratulate Paul Miller and his team in victory lane.
“We are absolutely thrilled with the Squadra Corse Lamborghini’s first win in the IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship,” said Lamborghini Squadra Corse’s Chris Ward. “The Paul Miller Racing team has done an outstanding job all season long. This has been our foundation year for a good springboard into what we hope will be a really successful 2017 campaign. We’ve formed a fantastic relationship not only with Paul Miller Racing but with all of our Squadra Corse supported teams.”
The victory was the first for Paul Miller Racing since the season-ending race at Road Atlanta in 2014 when Bryce Miller co-drove with then team drivers Christopher Haase and British GT specialist Matt Bell to win Petit Le Mans.
Sellers and Snow, in their first year with Paul Miller Racing, each scored their first win with the No. 48 team. Earning it in a Lamborghini made it even more special.
“As far as Lamborghini’s first win, it’s a huge honor,” Sellers said. “When you think about being a young kid growing up, I think all of us dreamed about driving a Lamborghini. Being able to deliver their first win in IMSA is something pretty special. I’m glad that we at Paul Miller Racing could be the ones to do that for them, and I hope it builds our relationship and makes that stronger.”
Next up for Paul Miller Racing is the Lone Start Le Mans at Circuit of The Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas, September 15 – 17. The race can be seen live on FOX Sports 2 (FS2) on Saturday, September 17, at 12:30 p.m. EDT.
Noteworthy
– In addition to the winning IMSA GTD weekend, Paul Miller Racing, Sellers and Snow made their debut in the Lamborghini Blancpain Super Trofeo North America series at VIR. The co-drivers were competitive in the No. 48 Universal Industrial Sales (UIS) Lamborghini Huracán LP 620-2 Super Trofeo although the entry was taken out in a contact incident in Saturday’s race and retired late in today’s round with a mechanical issue. The team will also compete in Super Trofeo with the No. 48 LP 620-2 in the next race of the series on the Lone Star Le Mans weekend next month at COTA.
Follow Paul Miller Racing at www.PaulMillerRacing.com, on Twitter @PaulMilleracing and at the Official Team Page on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/PaulMillerRacing.
