Angelelli edges Gurney for victory at Porsche 250
Max Angelelli and Jordan Taylor get a Champagne shower following their victory.
Jimmy Jones/ZumaPress.com
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) Max Angelelli took the lead with 45 minutes remaining and held off Alex Gurney by 4.116 seconds to win Saturday's Porsche 250 at Barber Motorsports Park, his 22nd career Grand-Am Rolex Series victory.
Angelelli co-drove the No. 10 Velocity Worldwide Corvette DP with Jordan Taylor, who earned his first victory in Grand-Am's headlining Daytona Prototype class.
They averaged 96.494 mph in the two-hour event on the 2.3-mile road course. Angelelli credited the victory largely to a solid opening stint by Taylor.
"From my side it was kind of easy because I only had to maintain the gap, looking after the tires, so I was really babysitting the tires all along," Angelelli said. "And the car was great. Jordan allowed me to have such a race, an easy race, because he put the car in such a good position (during his stint) and that really helped."
In the production-based GT class, Chevrolet Camaro driver Robin Liddell held off Alessandro Balzan's Ferrari 458 to win by .733 seconds. Liddell co-drove with pole winner John Edwards.
Jim Norman took his third consecutive triumph in the Rolex Series' new GX class, co-driving a Porsche Cayman with Spencer Pumpelly.
Reigning Rolex Series DP champions Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas retained the DP points lead by two points over Gurney and Jon Fogarty and five over Angelelli and Taylor.
