Munich
.
The
Northeast Grand Prix at Lime Rock Park (USA), held this
coming weekend, marks the start of the second half of the 2019 IMSA
WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season. BMW Team RLL is looking
to make the most of its increased competitiveness shown in recent
rounds. A one-two BMW M8 GTE qualifying effort resulted in second
and fourth place finishes at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (CAN) and
moved BMW back into second place in the GTLM class manufacturer
points standings.
The event at Lime Rock is the home round for BMW of North America as
it’s just a two-hour drive from the headquarters at Woodcliff Lake
(USA). BMW Team RLL has scored three poles and six podium finishes on
this circuit in the US state of Connecticut, including victories in
2011 and 2013.
Tom Blomqvist (GBR), in his first drive at Lime Rock, and Connor De
Phillippi (USA) will drive the #25 BMW M8 GTE and John Edwards (USA)
and Jesse Krohn (FIN) will pilot the #24 BMW M8 GTE.
The two-hour-and-forty-minute race gets underway at 3:10 p.m. local
time on Saturday, July 20th.
Quotes ahead of the race at Lime Rock Park.
Tom Blomqvist (#25 BMW M8 GTE): “Coming off the back
of a strong performance for BMW, the team we would like to continue
that run at Lime Rock. The team has been making progress each race and
we know the races are won by making smart decisions and executing the
race as best as possible – not necessarily having the quickest car.
We’re ready and we’re confident we can again fight for the podium.”
Connor De Phillippi (#25 BMW M8 GTE): “Coming off two
events where we made big strides with the car, I’m excited to see what
we can apply at Lime Rock. It’s a tight and twisty bullring creating a
lot of close battles. Our main goal will be to have a great qualifying
session to start the race with the important track position we will
need to battle for the win.”
John Edwards (#24 BMW M8 GTE): “It was great to
finish on the podium in Mosport! It gives us some momentum as we head
into the second half of the season. Lime Rock didn’t suit us last year
but we’ve improved some things since then and are hoping to be
competitive. A win at BMW of North America’s home race would be huge,
so we will push hard for it.”
Jesse Krohn (#24 BMW M8 GTE): “I am looking forward
to Lime Rock after the good weekend at Mosport. It was good to be back
on the podium and I hope we can move up one step next weekend. There
is no reason why we can’t keep this momentum going and have another
strong weekend.”