Just 20 points separate Colin Thompson,Michael Lewis, Angel Benitez Jr. and Sloan Urry entering the final two rounds of the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge USA by Yokohama on Oct. 2-3 at Road Atlanta.
The close title chase isn’t their only common bond. All four drivers are in their early-to-mid-20s, chasing the dream of a factory drive in the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship. All four have won at least two races this season.
All four drivers in title contention recently answered five questions that were posed to each in a championship roundtable discussion.
Q: What is your strategy entering the final weekend? Do you do anything different from previous 14 rounds since the stakes are so high?
Colin Thompson: Nothing changes for me. I will treat this race just like every other – go as fast as I can with the fewest mistakes.
Michael Lewis: The approach for our Competition Motorsports/Curb-Agajanian team during the last race of the season is honestly the same approach we have always had. We will try our best to get the No. 98 Curb Records/Eibach Springs/Cometic Gasket Porsche 911 in a position to win the races.
Angel Benitez Jr.: We are always working hard to do our best and to set up the car the best and quick way possible. Here we have a bit more time because of the promotional test days. In this case, other teams with big budget won’t have advantage so we are going to Atlanta to focus on victories. We know we can do it. Because the stakes are so high this weekend, we will keep calm, do what we always do and give us the best chance possible to get the championship by getting maximum points at the races.
Sloan Urry: I have never been one to focus on the championship standings throughout the year. I have always tried to stay as present as possible and know if I do my best every time I’m in the race car, the points should add up for themselves. So I’m going to stick with that, especially with where I’m standing in the points. I’m the one furthest out, so I’ve got to be aggressive and push to the front if I’m going to have a chance.
Q: Are you thinking about the title showdown constantly? If not, what are you doing to keep your mind off it and keep this week as “normal” as possible?
Benitez: I don’t. I knew this would be the scenario at the end of the championship because the level of the drivers is really close. I believe in that we got up to here with a really big effort, and we have really big friends and people supporting us and believing in us, and everything has a reason. We trust in ourselves even when we got everything against us, so here we are again, fighting all the odds. For us, it is just one more race but with a big reward. We always give 100 percent on the track with what we have, and we will continue doing it.
Thompson: Of course, it is constantly on my mind, and I am training and preparing myself physically and mentally harder then I ever have. But at the end of the day, I will still go about my life normally and stay relaxed.
Urry: As I said, I don’t usually think about the points standing, but I’ve got to say it has been getting hard to ignore as the battle tightens up. Myself and JDX have made a hard push the last few weekends to give ourselves a chance, so it’s difficult to not think about it, especially when at the end of the day that’s the reason you go racing – to win races and chase championships. Any time those thoughts pop up, I just try to address them as I do all year, just focus toward and prepare for the next race as best as I can and know that’s all I can do.
Lewis: A little bit, yes. For one, my team owner (Bob Faieta) is super-excited about the opportunity to win a championship; it’s awesome to see his enthusiasm. Our whole team feeds off of that. I’m pretty low-key, so I just try to focus on what I can do to improve as a driver and as a person in the days approaching the race.
Q: What would winning this championship mean to your future career and recognition at the higher levels of sports car racing?
Urry: Winning this championship would mean a great deal to me in many ways. First and most obviously it would give me a great feeling of accomplishment because winning a championship is no easy task, especially against the guys running up front right now. Although it would feel great to win it, it would just make me hungrier to achieve the same at a higher level, which is my real aim – to continue to climb the ranks of road racing. So the reason I really want it is to be able to add it to my resume and keep making steps forward in my racing career.
Benitez: I have won one already in 2012 in Gold Cup, and I felt a huge satisfaction for showing to the series, my family and all the motorsports lovers what I can do. This one would be definitely special because I’m racing with my dad’s team, and he is the one in charge of the setup of the car. I hope that after all the show and effort that this year has been, somebody would find my skills good enough to call me and let me continue doing what I love the most, race to win.
Lewis: You never know what will be in your future within motorsport, but it is always good to be a champion going into that next endeavor.
Thompson: This championship means everything to me and my future career. My dream has always been to be a factory Porsche driver, and this would inch me one step closer to that.
Q: If you win the title, what race do you think was the springboard that launched your charge toward the championship, your pivotal race this season, and why?
Lewis: First we’ve got to win. Maybe it will be the last race of the season that will be quite crucial to our success or failure. In my opinion, I think we have managed the “off days” really well to still score a lot of points even when we weren’t winning.
Urry: It’s the easy answer, but I would have to say our first win of the season at Mosportwas our pivotal race this season. We had some good races prior to that, but I think that’s the first time I really showed my team what I can do and that we are legit title contenders.
Thompson: Watkins Glen, for sure. After a rough qualifying session that weekend, we had an unbelievable showing during both races by blowing through lap traffic and closing the gap to first heavily until making the pass for the win on the last lap in spectacular fashion.
Benitez: I would have to say Watkins Glen because the people involved in what happened at that race know better than anybody else it was a hard one to ever recover from – I’m not talking about the result of the race – and I came back and won again. So in this one I would quote a famous movie, as Rocky Balboa said: “Is not about how hard you hit. It is about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward, how much you can take and keep moving forward.” This race changed my life, the way of seeing things, and I truly hope that nobody else has to pass through that ever in their life, but thanks to that I came back stronger than ever. Vince Lombardi once said: “Battles don’t always go to the richest, stronger or faster man. Sooner or later, the man who wins is the one who thinks he can.” I just keep that in my head the whole time, and if you think about it, it is kind of what Porsche does because they are not the biggest car with the biggest engine on the field, but they keep winning because they believe they can.
Q: Use one sentence to describe the on- and off-track qualities of your three other rivals in this title fight.
Benitez: All of them are really quick and passionate about racing, good guys off the track, I really enjoyed the experience with all of them the whole year and learned a lot from each of them. I can’t wait to see how it’s going to be at Atlanta.
Lewis: All three, Angel, Colin and Sloan, are all respectful and hard competitors. Good luck to all of them for this last weekend.
Thompson: All of my competitors in the championship are great talents who are provided with great cars, just like Kelly Moss does for me. But I think my hard work and preparation away from the track will make the difference this weekend at Road Atlanta.
Urry: Angel is a very animated guy and is a lot of fun to hang out with off track. When we are out there, I think it’s a similar story – you don’t know what’s going to happen, which makes for exciting battles. Colin is a great, stand-up guy when the helmets are off, and when they are on, he shows the same. I really enjoy racing with him, and I will never forget our battle at COTA this year. Michael has shown his talent with picking up the Cup car so quickly this year and presents himself like a professional on and off track.
Schedule, Race Coverage
Practice for the two Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge USA by Yokohama rounds at Road Atlanta starts at 9:30 a.m. (ET) and 1:40 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 1, with qualifying at 8:35 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 2.
Two 45-minute races are scheduled. The first race starts at 3:35 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 2, with the second at 11:25 a.m. Friday, Oct. 3.
Fans can follow the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge USA by Yokohama action this week from Road Atlanta in many ways. Both races will be streamed live at IMSA.com. Live timing from all on-track sessions also is available at IMSA.com, with live text commentary from all sessions tweeted @IMSALive.
A one-hour show featuring coverage from both races also will be televised Saturday, Oct. 25 in various U.S. markets as part of a new syndicated network television package partnership between the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) and Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: SBGI). That broadcast also will be available on YouTube after it airs on television.
About Me: Adam has been a race fan since the first time he went through the tunnel under the Daytona International Speedway almost 30 years ago. He has had the privilege of travelling to races all across the state of Florida (as well as one race in Ohio), watching nearly everything with a motor compete for fame and glory, as well as participating in various racing schools to get the feel of what racecar drivers go through every week. Adam has spent the last three years covering motorsports for Examiner.com., where he had the opportunity to see the racing world from behind the scenes as well as the grandstands. He invites everyone to follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and Google Plus, and looks forward to sharing his enthusiasm for all things racing with the readers of SpeedwayDigest.com.Be sure to tune in for his weekly sports talk program, Thursday Night Thunder, where he discusses the latest in motorsports news with drivers, crew members, and fans. The show takes place every Thursday at 8:00 pm EST on the Speedway Digest Radio Network.
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