Bennett and Braun score thrilling victory for CORE autosport at Laguna

Six hours of racing turned into two minutes of thrills as CORE autosport drivers Jon Bennett and Colin Braun won today’s American Le Mans Series Monterey Presented by Patrón at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

Braun, driving the #05 Composite Resources ORECA FLM09 Prototype Challenge (PC) machine made a thrilling outside pass of the then-leading #9 car of ex-Indy 500 pole winner Bruno Junqueira with less than two laps left in the race, using a slower GTC car as a “moving pic,” catapulting him into the first spot in PC (third overall).

The win marks the first for the #05 car for the 2012 season, and the first-ever American Le Mans Series (ALMS) victory for Braun and team founder and owner Bennett.  Although CORE autosport had won both driver and team championships in 2011 with Bennett co-driving the #05, it was only after today’s six-hour event that he was able to stand on the top step of the podium.

At one point during the race, the #05 machine was more than two laps down to the lead PC car, but smart pit strategy by lead engineer Gary Davies, fast pit stops by the crew led by mechanics Eric Van Bibber and Jay Ribas, as well as hard driving by Braun and Bennett made up the difference.

The sister #06 Soloson Import machine, driven by Alex Popow and Tom Kimber-Smith finished in third spot after holding the PC-class lead for more than half of the race, putting the rest of the field more than one lap down in the process.   Due to long caution periods over the race that bunched up the field, the #06 drivers lost their expansive lead and with one lap to go, Kimber-Smith was in fourth spot.  Hard driving allowed him to get by the car ahead and the #06 drivers were able to bring home a podium finish.

Competition was very tough among the nine PC-class entrants in today’s event – after a full day of racing around the legendary 2.238-mile, 11-turn track, the top three cars were a mere 1.725 seconds apart.

The 2012 ALMS season has been filled with wins and podiums in three rounds of competition for Rock Hill, SC-based CORE autosport.  The season-opening 12 Hours of Sebring was won by lead driver Popow in the #06 machine, as well as the second round on the streets of Long Beach, with the #05 Bennett / Braun pairing taking third spot in both events.

Thanks to consecutive wins and podium finishes in the three 2012 ALMS rounds, CORE autosport holds a comfortable lead in the 2012 ALMS PC driver and team championships.

Jon Bennett

“This is a dream come true.
“It’s been a long time getting here for me and I’m very honored and proud to be part of CORE autosport.  The group of guys put together by our team manager Morgan Brady have been spectacular considering the relatively short time that we’ve been together.
“I drove the wheels off of this car during my stint.  And Colin put together a smokin’ move at the end of the race and here we are.
“I’m so happy.  It’s just an unbelievable result.”

Colin Braun

“In the middle of the race, after my first stint in the car if you would’ve told me I would’ve won the race, I would’ve said ‘no way,’ I wasn’t sure we could do it when we were a few laps down.
“Jon did a great job in the middle of the race and we were able to stay there and be in contention.
“Those last few laps were really exciting, racing Bruno [Junqueira] and I knew that Tom [Kimber-Smith] was coming from behind.  It was important to push really hard and I was trying to set Bruno up in traffic.
“Finally he ended up going one way, I tried to go the other way and it ended up working out.  Bruno is a great racer and I appreciate him racing me clean.
“I’ve got to thank Jon and Morgan for giving me the opportunity to be a part of CORE autosport.  Jon and I have finished on the podium at each race this season and to get his first win as a belated birthday present to him (May 4) is an honor.
“This win shows the kind of solid team that CORE autosport is. It’s easy to be able to come in, fit in and be part of the group.  I can’t be happier!”

Alex Popow

“We may have lost a few points today, but we’re still glad we’re leading the championship.  It always feels good to be in that spot.
“The #06 had this race in our pocket, but that’s how races can be sometimes.  We had been up a lap over everyone, but racing luck was against us.  There were too many yellow flags and we lost our lead.
“At 10 minutes to go we were not going to get a podium finish, but Tom did an amazing job putting the car in third place with just one lap to go.
“We will keep working, winning races and complete our goal of winning the championship.”

Tom Kimber-Smith
“I’m disappointed with third place, but to have four or five cars after six hours all nose to tail was pretty exciting.
“Going down to the last couple of laps I knew I just had to make a maneuver to get on the podium.  I would’ve been devastated to finish fourth.
“Alex did a superb job out there and I cannot say enough about CORE autosport. It’s such a professional organization that I really enjoyed driving with for this event.”