Andrew Davis and Leh Keen finished fourth at the Emco Gears Classic at Mid-Ohio Saturday to capture the Rolex Grand-Am GT championship in Brumos Racing’s first season in the GT class.
The co-drivers of the No. 59 Brumos Porsche GT3 were trailing Sylvain Tremblay and Jonathan Bomarito, drivers of the No. 70 Mazda RX-8, late in the event. However, Keen beat Bomarito out of the pits following the final pit stop and held that advantage for the remainder of the event.
Their fourth-place finish was enough to overtake the Bill Lester/Jordan Taylor Chevrolet Camaro as Lester spun and lost a lap in the opening minutes, and the team finished eighth.
Here are the final points in Rolex Grand-Am GT:
Leh Keen/Andrew Davis 319
Jordan Taylor/Bill Lester 317
Jonathan Bomarito/Sylvain Tremblay 315
“At the beginning of the year, Brumos Racing team manager Hurley Haywood sat us down and told us we were going to race to win races and championships. Winning the championship in our first year shows what Brumos is made of. This championship feels better than my first, doing it the way we did it and how it all unfolded, bringing Brumos back to GT. At first we wanted just to get a podium. Then we kept winning and winning,” said Leh Keen, who was racing for the storied team for the first time this year.
”My stint was very eventful. Coming from the back to the front was a lot of fun. Our strategy helped, but once I was up front, I was able to drive away. It was great to lead a few laps after our disappointment in qualifying,” said co-driver Davis.
Brumos won two races during the season – Watkins Glen Six-Hour and Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca – en route to the championship in their first year of Grand-Am GT racing since the ‘90s.
Jens Walther, president of Porsche Motorsports North America, Inc., was particularly proud of the Brumos Racing win as their 911 GT3 Cup car as the team’s hard work earned them the Rolex Grand-Am GT championship.
“Leh Keen and Andrew Davis never quit during the season, including today when they had to start from the back of the pack. The Brumos team worked hard to keep the car on the track, and it paid off in a championship. We are proud of all our Porsche customer teams, and we are so happy for owner Dan Davis and the entire Brumos Porsche organization,” said Walther.
Since the Rolex Grand-Am championship was initiated in 2000, Porsche drivers have won the GT championship eight of the 12 years in the Porsche 911 GT3 R, GT3 RS, and GT3 Cup cars. Brumos Racing had previously won the Daytona Prototype title, but this was their first GT championship.
Source: Porsche
