Historic Sportscar Racing (HSR) Season-Opening HSR Spring Fling Concludes with Competitive Run of Sunday Feature Race Winners at Sebring International Raceway
Overall and Prototype Group Wins in B.R.M. Chronographes Endurance Challenge Secured by Travis Engen in his GMT Racing 2005 No. 2 Audi R8 LMP
B.R.M. Endurance GT Modern (GTM) Victory by Thomas Gruber in the TAG 2016 No. 991 Porsche 991 GT3
B.R.M. Historic Honors Taken by Kenneth Greenberg in 1996 No. 836 Porsche 993 RSR prepared by Air Power Racing; Vintage Group B.R.M. Race Won by George Balbach in Ecurie Engineering 1966 No. 0 Porsche 911
Co-drivers Dean DeSantis and Josh Tuggle Secure GT Classic (GTC) B.R.M. Win in Heritage Motorsports 1969 No. 133 Porsche 911 RSR
Five different Historic Sportscar Racing (HSR) Run Group winners were crowned after a clean-and-green B.R.M. Chronographes Endurance Challenge one-hour race Sunday that was the feature event of the final day of competition of the season-opening HSR Spring Fling at Sebring International Raceway.
The overall B.R.M. win was secured by the ageless Travis Engen who drove his equally timeless GMT Racing 2005 No. 2 Audi R8 LMP to yet another Sebring B.R.M. Endurance race overall and Prototype group win. Engen shared the overall top-three with the duo of Francesco Melandri and Nigel Greensall 2017 No. 24 Fransco Racing Ligier JS/P3 who co-drove to second both overall and in the Prototype division.
Third overall and first in GT Modern (GTM) went to Thomas Gruber in his TAG 2016 No. 991 Porsche 991 GT3. Gruber doubled-up on HSR feature race wins at the Spring Fling and also captured the victory in Friday night’s season-opening HSR Stoner Car Care Global GT race.
Dominick Incantalupo finished fourth overall in his 2014 No. 54 Roin Realty Holdings Oreca FLM09 to complete the Prototype podium with a third place showing while Jose Cortes completed the overall top five in the Olthoff Racing 2016 No. 75 Ligier JS/P3.
The remainder of the GTM podium finishers were not far behind the top five. Shaun McKaigue crossed the finish line sixth overall and second in the modern GT group in his TPC Racing 2012 Porsche 997.2 GT3 Cup while debuting driver Bill Fenech partnered with his coach and co-driver Chris Hall to make it an all-Porsche GTM top-three in the 2018 No. 015 Porsche GT2 RS/CS. The B.R.M. podium was one of three visits Fenech made to victory lane in his first ever race weekend of competition.
The B.R.M. Historic class honors went to Kenneth Greenberg in his 1996 No. 836 Porsche 993 RSR prepared by Air Power Racing. Greenberg battled throughout the 60 minutes with the similar Fransco Racing 1996 No. 96 Porsche 993 GT2 that Melandri and Greensall also drove in the B.R.M. race.
The Vintage group race was won by George Balbach in his Ecurie Engineering1966 No. 0 Porsche 911 and delivered some redemption. Balbach was leading a Saturday WeatherTech Sprint race only to be knocked from contention by a faulty spark plug, but his always-fast 911 didn’t miss a beat in Sunday morning’s one-hour B.R.M. race.
Jamie Busby finished second in Vintage in his KMW Motorsports 1970 No. 188 Porsche 914/6 while third went to the 1986 No. 114 Porsche 944 Turbo of George Kovakas. The quick 951-model Turbo Porsche is prepared by Kovakas and his brother David Kovakas.
Co-drivers Dean DeSantis and Josh Tuggle scored the GT Classic (GTC) victory in the Heritage Motorsports 1969 No. 33 Porsche 911 RSR. The winners shared the podium with DeSantis’ brother Damon DeSantis who finished second in the Heritage Motorsports 1974 No. 82 Porsche 911 RSR.
Next up on the 2023 HSR schedule is the milestone 45th HSR Mitty at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta that features this year a celebration of NASCAR’s 75th Anniversary, April 27 – 30.
