After our home race at Lime Rock Park, the FCP Euro Motorsports Team heads to Road America for round 7 of the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge.
Round 6 saw drivers Michael Hurczyn and Nate Vincent, as well as the entire FCP Euro Motorsports Team take on the competition at Lime Rock Park. Fresh off a partnership making FCP Euro the "Official Auto Parts Supplier" of Lime Rock Park, the race allowed FCP Euro to ring in its partnership in style. The team qualified 8th and started the race clean, avoiding the incidents that triggered several full-course-yellow flags. An early pit stop for a driver change vaulted the #11 AMG GT4 up near the front of the pack, where it remained for most of the race.
A full-course-yellow bunched the field up with around 25-minutes to go with the FCP Euro Motorsports Team in the lead. The team took a chance on a one-pitstop strategy to save valuable time in the pits, and it nearly worked, but the #11 ran out of fuel half a lap from the end. Hurczyn fought valiantly during the last stretch of green, battling in the top-5 and surviving contact with the #57 Winward Racing AMG GT4 driven by Alex Udell before finishing 9th in class.
Learn about FCP Euro and Lime Rock Park's freshly paved autocross course
On top of the race weekend, FCP Euro hosted its company picnic at Lime Rock Park during that Saturday's race. More than 450 employees, family, friends, and partners came to the track to celebrate the successful year of business and growth through the pandemic while also cheering on the Motorsports Team. One of FCP Euro's core values is "Achieve Results and Celebrate," so everyone's hard work, new and old, was rewarded with bright sunshine and a weekend of racing.
"Lime Rock was a big race for us," said Michael Hurczyn, driver of the #11 FCP Euro Motorsports AMG GT4 and Brand & Partnerships Director at FCP Euro, "now we're looking to carry that into the upcoming race weekend." August 5-8 will see the #11 AMG GT4 take on the rolling hills of Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, at Road America. The 14-turn, 4-mile long road course is a considerably different challenge from the small 1.5-mile Lime Rock Park. Road America features a long front-straight with extreme elevation changes at multiple points on the course. The FCP Euro Motorsports team has fond memories from Road America—it was there in 2019 the team clinched the team championship in the 2019 SRO TCR class.
Vincent and Hurczyn will have an improved car to drive this weekend as IMSA has adjusted the balance of performance for the AMGs for the Road America 120. Following the race at Lime Rock, all AMG GT4s in the Michelin Pilot Challenge received an increase in power and fuel capacity to compete more evenly with the other GS-class cars. That is a substantial improvement heading to Road America, where saving fuel is critical.
When & Where Is Round 7 of the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge?
Round 7: IMSA Sportscar Weekend
Where - Road America - Elkhart Lake, WI
When - August 5th-8th
How Can I Watch?
IMSA TV & TRACKPASS *LIVE* | Saturday, August 7, 2021 | Race: 5:30 pm - 7:35 pm ET
2021 IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge Schedule |
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| ACURA SPORTS CAR CHALLENGE | May 14-16 | Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course |
| SAHLEN'S SIX HOURS OF THE GLEN | June 24-27 | Watkins Glen International Raceway |
| WATKINS GLEN INTERNATIONAL | July 1-2 | Watkins Glen International Raceway |
| NORTHEAST GRAND PRIX | July 16-17 | Lime Rock Park |
| IMSA SPORTSCAR WEEKEND | August 6-8 | Road America |
| WEATHERTECH RACEWAY LAGUNA SECA | September 10-12 | Weathertech Raceway Laguna Seca |
| MICHELIN GT CHALLENGE AT VIR | October 8-10 | VIRginia International Raceway |
| MOTUL PETIT LE MANS | November 11-13 | Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta |
To learn more about IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge, or find all of the live stream links, visit https://www.imsa.com/michelinpilotchallenge/.
If you would like to learn more about the team at FCP Euro Motorsports, visit race.fcpeuro.com for more information, live streams, and schedules.
