(FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE)
Victory at the Sahlen’s Six Hours At The Glen !
Turner Motorsport Loves New York !
Newton, NH. – June 28, 2021 -
Turner Motorsport scored their second and, no doubt, biggest win of the 2021 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season with a brilliant victory at the June 27th Sahlen’s Six Hours Of The Glen. Bill Auberlen, Robby Foley and Aidan Read completed 179 laps of the classic 3.4-mile, 11-turn Watkins Glen International circuit in the six-hour contest, finishing 5.747 seconds ahead of the 14-car GT Daytona class in the No. 96 Liqui-Moly / LMC Industrial / BMW M6 GT3 to earn Turner Motorsport their third GT class victory at the Six Hour– but that’s (almost) not the best part of the story.
Watkins Glen is a racing track that demands everything from both car and team, but the guys and girls in Turner yellow and blue seemingly made it almost look easy behind a clever strategy plan directed by team strategist Don “Iceman” Salama and realized on lap 150 that put the team in the position to win. While Foley’s and Auberlen’s first stints laid the foundation, that plan really became evident to folks watching in the race’s third hour with Aidan Read behind the wheel. Instructed to run to a fuel usage number that would maximize the laps during Read’s time in the BMW and see the car just off the fuel strategy being utilized by the balance of the field. The young Australian did exactly that and entered the pits on lap 150 from the class lead ready to hand off the Auberlen for the final hour of the race. Per the plan, Auberlen would now have enough fuel to make it to the checkered flag, cycling to the point as the rest of the field would make their final pit stops.
Now here’s where the best part of the story comes:
At almost the same time that the winningest driver in IMSA history (that’s Auberlen, for those of you reading this and recently arrived from another planet) was getting belted up in the pits, a prototype car wailed the wall in turn 1 and the caution flag waved. Auberlen rejoined the field, waiting calmly for the rest of the class to make their stops under caution, and easily cycle to the front. Effectively, the race was over. All Auberlen had to do was stay in front, but that’s not much of an issue for the guy with more IMSA wins than anyone in history. Bryan Sellers and the No. 1 Lamborghini gave a spirited chase, but it was Turner Motorsport’s day. For Foley, it was his sixth career IMSA win. For Read, his first. Auberlen? Number 64!
But wait, there’s more. Here’s where the best part of the day comes:
On the victory podium it was Don Salama that held up the entrant’s trophy beside Bill, Robby, and Aidan. It was the perfect end to the day because those were the four guys who won the race.
Auberlen and Foley remain at the top of the GT Daytona driver points, Turner is at the top of the team points and BMW leads the manufacturer standings.
Will Turner - “Because all the cars in GT Daytona are so closely balanced anyone could have won this race. We thought it would come down to who executed the best strategy and today that was done by Turner Motorsport. Some folks watching may think we just got lucky with the yellow flag. We made our own luck and I believe we would have had the win regardless. A great strategy is only a winner if the team makes no mistakes. I could not be prouder of this team.”
IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge
On Saturday, June 26, Bill Auberlen and Dillon Machavern raced the No. 95 BMW M4 GT4 to a runner-up finish in the four-hour Tioga Downs 240 to record the duo’s third podium in the first four races of the season. Vin Barletta and Robby Foley finished 11th in the No. 96 BMW M4 GT4, the first finish outside of the top-10 this year.
In Michelin Pilot Challenge standings, Bill Auberlen and Dillon Machavern move up to second in GS driver points. No. 96 BMW M4 GT4 drivers Vin Barletta and Robby Foley stand fourth.
Next Up:
The IMPC Sahlen’s 120 At The Glen will stream live on TrackPass on NBC Sports Gold at 2:35 p.m. Saturday, July 2. The NBCSN broadcast will air on Tuesday, July 6 at 5:00 p.m. ET. The IMSA WeatherTech 240 will stream live on Track Pass on NBC Sports Gold beginning at 6:10 p.m. ET Saturday, July 2.
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About Turner Motorsport
Turner Motorsport is the leading BMW tuner in North America, bringing technology and expertise from the racetrack to the street for over two decades. Since 1993 the Turner Motorsport Team has competed in over 380 professional races, winning seven professional racing championships in four different series since 2003. The most recent being the 2014 Team Championship in the GTD-class of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship. Their success is passed into every component that Turner Motorsport designs and sells through their comprehensive website and performance showroom. Our Race Team, R&D Engineers and Sales Team work together, ensuring practical knowledge and state-of-the-art engineering flow in both directions. Few companies in North America can claim such a close relationship to what they sell and what they race.
