PR1/MATHIASEN WINS FIFTH TIME IN A ROW AT LAGUNA SECA

September 16, 2019 – Monterey, California – PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports won the Monterey SportsCar Championship Powered by McLaren at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca with their LMP2 entry as part of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.

The No. 52 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports ORECA LMP2 driven by Matt McMurry and Dalton Kellet won their fifth race in a row around the famous 2.23-mile circuit over the weekend. The penultimate round of the 2019 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship ran under green flag conditions through its entirety allowing the crew and drivers to execute their winning strategy and secure the championship points lead.

PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports finished one lap ahead of season-long competitor No. 38 Performance Tech Motorsports ORECA. The points lead now stands 235-227, and PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports will only need to score points at Motul Petit Le Mans to take the 2019 WeatherTech Championship title. The 10-hour Motul Petit Le Mans at Michelin Raceway Road America will take place on Saturday, Oct. 12.

Matt McMurry – Driver of the No.52 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports ORECA LMP2

“Another win! This win makes five in a row, and more importantly, it means we only have to start at Petit Le Mans to win the championship. The car was great as always, and the crew performed flawlessly all weekend.”

Dalton Kellet – Driver of the No.52 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports ORECA LMP2

“It was a great return to the team. We had a good day. At the start of the weekend, we struggled a little bit. We brought our pace right in line with the Performance Tech guys today. I think we did a better job managing traffic. I think we got a bit of a gap with a nice buffer when we did the driver change, so it was good.”

Bobby Oergel - Team Principal

“Both drivers did exactly what was needed by keeping it clean and consistent. We worked hard to get the car balanced for the tricky conditions of WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. The PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports crew performed flawlessly again. The whole race was under green flag with no yellows, which really helped us in building a gap to the competition. With the points championship settled we can go to Petit Le Mans only shooting for the win.”

BOTH PR1/MATHIASEN ENTRIES ROUND OUT TOP 15 IN TOUGH VIR RACE

August 26, 2019 – Alton, Virginia – PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports rounded out the IMSA Prototype Challenge Championship race at VIRginia International Raceway in the top 15 with both entries despite challenging weather conditions.

The Prototype Challenge entries included the No. 52 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports Ligier JS P3 piloted by Chris Archinaco and Scott Huffaker and the No. 70 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports Ligier JS P3 driven by Joel Janco and Jonatan Jorge.

The one-hour, 45-minute race had a total of 16 laps under full course yellow conditions. The slick track presented many challenges all 23 Prototype Challenge entries. The No. 52 had a great start from 14th on the grid with Archinaco behind the wheel. Archinaco was able to make it up to 7th before a mistake sent him off track. The No. 52 was able to re-enter the fight with no damage, but at the back of the field. Running a similar pace to the top 5, Archinaco finished his stint around the 50-minute mark of the race. Huffaker's stint almost mirrored his teammates as he was running lap times consistent with the top 3 competitors before spinning. Huffaker was also able to return to the race with no damage and finished in 11th.

The No. 70 started from 19th with Janco in charge of the first stint. Janco did what he set out to do and ran a clean race before pitting for Jorge to take over. PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports felt confident about the No. 70's position until a full course yellow came out and wrongfully placed the pace car in front of Jorge. This put Jorge in front of the leader, which took away any opportunity to pass for the remainder of the race. Jorge took the challenge in stride and pulled away from the leaders on the green flag and the following laps until the crew of PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports asked him to be conservative to the finish. Jorge crossed the line in 14th overall and solidified the lead in the Bronze Cup Prototype Challenge Championship point standings.

The next outing for the IMSA Prototype Challenge Championship will be at the Motul Petit Le Mans on October 12. The IMSA Prototype Challenge race from VIR will be televised on NBCSN on Monday, Sept. 2 at 6 p.m. ET

Bobby Oergel - Team Principal

"The whole team (crew and drivers) did a great job all week through some very tough conditions. The result really saddens me, but I'm happy with the pace and possibilities that were in play for the race. Unfortunately, the weather conditions of damp track and slick tires caused many drivers, including ours, to have some agricultural experiences during the race. On the other hand, I am amazed by the little to no damage that both left the event with. It was a tough event for sure, and I can't thank the whole crew, drivers, and their families enough for the upbeat mindset throughout the week."