Krohn Racing / TRG Has Tough Day at The Glen
Krohn Racing / TRG drivers Nic Jönsson and Tracy Krohn finished tenth on Saturday (September 24) at Watkins Glen for the Grand American Rolex Series Crown Royal 250. Teammates Jörg Bergmeister and Max Papis led early, but retired from the race on lap 44 to eventually finish seventeenth in DP.

Tracy Krohn started the number 67 Krohn Racing / TRG / Pontiac Riley from the eighth row. The Texan was able run fast laps and stay out of trouble before handing the car over to Nic Jönsson on lap 24 in 12th position. Jönsson rejoined the fray and steadily moved forward to run in fourth position. On lap 54 he was forced off line in the Bus Stop chicane and went through the grass. The radiator of number 67 Krohn Racing / TRG / Pontiac Riley was clogged causing the car’s engine temperature to rise. The Georgia resident tried to shake it off on track, but had to pit out of fourth place to clear the debris with 12 laps remaining. The pit stop put them back into tenth place.

The number 66 car further exacerbated the tough day for the California based team. In the post qualifying tech inspection on Friday, the car was found to have front nose “kick plates” that were too wide. As a result Jörg Bergmeister had to start the car from the back of the 21 car Daytona Prototype field. The German raged through the pack, by lap 22 he was in sixth and took the overall lead of the race on lap 30. On lap 39 Bergmeister pitted and turned the wheel over to Max Papis. On lap 42 following a restart, the Italian was caught on the outside of turn one; he came back onto the racing surface in front of the number four car which clipped his right rear tire. The tire went flat at the beginning of the esses and came apart tearing at the body work and the oil lines to the motor. He pitted the car and retired it on lap 44.

Max Papis, #66 Krohn Racing / TRG / Pontiac Riley: “I slid to the outside and had to go over the curb in turn one. When I came across the track I did not see the four car and he hit me in the back. That broke something in the back of the car and the tire went flat up into the esses. Jörg did a good job to get the car back up into the lead. I feel sorry for the team; we had a good shot at winning today.”

Jörg Bergmeister, #66 Krohn Racing / TRG / Pontiac Riley: “I went from last to first. The car had some understeer at the beginning, but it kept getting better the further I got into my stint. Once I got into the lead I was able to gap the guys behind me. Max got in and had some bad luck in turn one. When you get a flat here at the beginning of the lap it is a long way around and the fragmented tire causes a lot of damage.”

Tracy Krohn, #67 Krohn Racing / TRG / Pontiac Riley: “I feel like that Wood Chuck that Angelelli hit - I am just trying to get out of the way of hurricanes and cars. It was nice to finish after what Nic went through and the guys in the 66 car. I had a good stint, the car felt good and I was comfortable running fast times. I am not sure we had a winning car, but a podium car for sure.”

Nic Jönsson, #67 Krohn Racing / TRG / Pontiac Riley: “I had to avoid the chaos in the esses. I was able to get the car back up into the fight with the front runners. The car was pretty good. I was forced into the grass at the Bus Stop. I tired to shake the debris off, but the engine temperature just kept climbing, I had to pit. We had a good car; I think we could have finished at least third. I am not sure we had much for the front two cars.”

Kevin Buckler, team co-owner: "We had a hard day with the 66. Jörg drove a good first part of the race and led a lot of laps. A tough restart by Max and some contact ended our day early. Tracy had one of his best drives of the year. He was running lap times that were consistent with the top guys on the track at the start. Nic did a good job and I thought for sure we had a podium with them.”

The next round of Grand American Rolex Series will be run at Virginia International Raceway on October 9.

TRG Pontiac GTO.Rs Finish First and Second in GT
Three Wins a Row for GTO.R
The TRG / Pontiac GTO.Rs ruled the day in GT at the Grand American Rolex Series Crown Royal 250 at Watkins Glen. Marc Bunting and Andy Lally drove to victory, followed closely in second by teammates Paul Edwards and Jan Magnussen.

Marc Bunting started the number 65 GTO.R from his third place qualifying effort and was forced into the turn thirteen wall on lap one. The Baltimore resident was able to continue at speed. He later handed the car over to Andy Lally in eighth place. Lally took to the track with a vengeance. On lap 42 a large incident in the esses affected many of the duo's competitors in the GT championship battle. Lally was able to get through the incident in the lead. With the victory Bunting and Lally are just five points out of the lead for the GT series title.

A smooth consistent race was the plan for Edwards and Magnussen. Starting from his front row qualifying position, Edwards was able to take the lead on lap 14. On lap 24 he turned the car over to Magnussen who returned to the battle in seventh. Magnussen received Speed TV The Move of the Race for avoiding the accident on lap 42.

The win at Watkins Glen is the second for the GTO.R at Watkins Glen and third out of six races since its inaugural race at Daytona in June.

Marc Bunting, #65 TRG / Pontiac GTO.R: “We are like five points out of first in the championship race. The leading 80 car had some bad luck and that is what we needed to get back in contention. The car was solid all day. When I was exiting turn nine I got shoved out by another car onto the marbles and rubbed the wall. The GTO.R is a tank; it never really affected the handling.”

Andy Lally, #65 TRG / Pontiac GTO.R: “I was working with a little understeer in the car and we were taking it easy to see if there was any damage to the right front. Once I had to get back in it hard there were no issues at all. The car performed well all day, the biggest order was avoiding the carnage and parts strewn across the track.”

Paul Edwards, #64 TRG / Pontiac GTO.R: “The car ran well all day. We kept it clean and were able to avoid the incidents and come home in second. My stint was good, I think the BMW left early at the start. I was able to eventually make it up and get by. We had a good day and were able to support the number 65 car in their championship run.”

Jan Magnussen, #64 TRG / Pontiac GTO.R: “I was in the car for an-hour-and-forty-minutes and I think I did 10 green laps. It was actually a pretty easy race. Paul and the guys did a good job in testing last week and it showed right from the first session, the car was noticeably better. We are in the position now to help the 65 car with their run to the championship and that is what we will do.”

Kevin Buckler, TRG team owner: “Three in a row for the GTO.R, second win at Watkins Glen and the first win in the car for Andy and Marc. We were clicking all day with the GTO.Rs. The strategy and pit stops were right-on and the drivers did a great job to keep them in the front and out of the wrecks."