Two Dominant Wins at Barber for TRG-Aston Martin Racing

TRG-Aston Martin Racing and Team Driver Kris Wilson secured their second win of the weekend with another dominant victory in the second GTS race of the weekend at Barber Motorsports Park. This is the third win of the 2015 Pirelli World Challenge season for the TRG-AMR No. 07 Royal Purple/ORION/LaSalle Solutions/PassTime USA Aston Martin V8 Vantage GT4 and Team Driver Kris Wilson.

TRG-AMR Team Driver Christina Nielsen drove her Aston Martin V12 Vantage GT3 over the weekend. Christina Nielsen raced her No. 7 Royal Purple/ORION/LaSalle Solutions/PassTime USA Aston Martin V12 Vantage GT3 on Saturday and Sunday in both GTA races, her first time driving here at Barber. In the first GT race, starting from mid-pack and after getting hit from behind during the start, Nielsen was able to move up to P4 before getting caught up in some contact during a passing maneuver and forced into the pits.

The second GT race was full of great racing, with Christina ultimately ending up in P7 after a last-minute restart following a lengthy safety car period while crews cleaned up the still-burning Cadillac. While no podiums were earned this weekend, a great deal of experience was gained, with Christina moving on to her third straight weekend of racing at Laguna Seca this coming weekend for IMSA GTD competition. Christina and the team will next see Pirelli World Challenge competition at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park the weekend of May 15 - 17.

Nielsen said, “The field is so incredibly competitive right now, it was great to run up near the front of the pack. I’m very thankful for the team, while I was running the races this weekend they were busy preparing the other car for my race next weekend at Laguna Seca. I’ve never seen a group of people work so hard. I am learning more every time I get in the car. The engineers, data, and video are very helpful and I think my constantly improving lap times have shown that. I am looking forward to running with World Challenge again when we head to Canada in a couple weeks time.”

Wilson had a good go of things this weekend, earning back-to-back race victories in the GTS class. After qualifying P4 for GTS race number 1, Wilson started quickly and moved up a spot to P3 before settling into his race pace.

The top four positions all fought a great battle early on, running nose to tail and changing positions several times before Wilson was able to make his move. He eventually slipped into P2 past longtime series competitor Jack Baldwin and his typically dominant Cayman. It was only a matter of time before Wilson would overtake Ben Clucas for P1, as the gap was sliced down considerably every lap. After moving into P1 Wilson showed his typical clean, quick driving style by bringing the gap to over 15 seconds between himself and P2 while the cars behind him were battling it out. After that it was smooth sailing with Wilson taking the victory on the trot.

Starting the second GTS race from P2, Wilson fell in line behind the surprisingly quick Cayman of Jack Baldwin. Baldwin’s lead held for only a lap or two, as smoke began billowing from the back of the Porsche and the World Challenge veteran was forced to pull to the side of the 16-turn road course. While some great racing was happening throughout the pack, including some strong performances by the two other Aston Martin V8 Vantage GT4s in the field, the pace up front was smooth and relaxed.  A late race charge through the field by Spencer Pumpelly kept Wilson on the throttle but he eventually prevailed with his second victory of the weekend.

Wilson now leads the GTS Drivers’ Championship, with 517 points, ahead of Martin with 459. Wilson took the checkered flags in place of longtime teammate and co-driver Max Riddle, who was out of the driver’s seat this weekend while recovering from illness. Riddle is scheduled to be back at the next event in Canada.

Christina Nielsen raced her No. 7 Royal Purple/ORION/LaSalle Solutions/PassTime USA Aston Martin V12 Vantage GT3 on Saturday and Sunday in both GTA races, her first time driving here at Barber. In the first GT race, starting from mid-pack and after getting hit from behind during the start, Nielsen was able to move up to P4 before getting caught up in some contact during a passing maneuver and forced into the pits.

 

The second GT race was full of great racing, with Christina ultimately ending up in P7 after a last-minute restart following a lengthy safety car period while crews cleaned up the still-burning Cadillac. While no podiums were earned over the weekend, a great deal of experience was gained, with Christina moving on to her third straight weekend of racing at Laguna Seca this coming weekend for IMSA GTD competition.  

Christina and the team will next see Pirelli World Challenge competition at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park the weekend of May 15th - 17th.

“Another great weekend of Pirelli World Challenge racing,” said Kevin Buckler, TRG-AMR CEO.” Christina did a great job in this competitive GT3 field. Saturday she was fast and destined for a podium or better, but contact in the last corner took her out. Sunday’s race was terrific with hard racing up to the checkered flag. She’s been improving dramatically every race weekend, I really am impressed with the learning curve she’s been able to achieve - especially at these brand new tracks. We are now headed to Laguna Seca for IMSA and the guys have been working around the clock to get the car ready.”