WeatherTech Racing drivers Cooper MacNeil and Leh Keen finished today’s running of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship Lone Star Le Mans race at Circuit of the America’s (COTA) in fifth place in GTD.
With one race left, Keen (Charleston, S.C.) and MacNeil (Hinsdale, Ill.) have put themselves in a position to garner the team a third championship in as many years. The team will have to win Petit Le Mans in two weeks to secure the GTD championship.
MacNeil had the wheel of the No. 22 WeatherTech Porsche for the start of the two-hour-and-forty-five-minute race today. Starting from the 16th position on the GTD grid, the University of Colorado at Boulder college student drove the 22 Porsche to tenth position when he handed over to Keen on lap 26. Keen proceeded to move the white and black Porsche to the front of the GTD field as the primary competition for the championship, the No. 300 Turner BMW, began to lose ground and eventually finished third. Keen crossed the finish line in fifth, giving the WeatherTech Racing team a four point deficit heading to Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta Oct. 4.
“We turned a tough qualifying run into a top five finish today,” MacNeil said. “We are second in the championship, just four back. We are going to Petit with the thought that we have to win the race. The WeatherTech Porsche was handling pretty good during my stint. I was able to move up six or seven positons. Leh did a great job to improve a few more spots and bring it home fifth. That has been the goal the last quarter of the season, get to Petit in sight of the championship. Alex Job Racing does a great job with the endurance races and now it is in our hands to go and perform.”
“We have another top five, which has been the secret to our season,” Keen said. “To come from dead last on the grid because we put on new tires to finishing fifth is a pretty good day. We also had a good points day. A few back from the BMW and put the 555 Ferrari behind us heading to Petit. We didn’t expect to beat the BMW here at COTA. We wanted to take the championship fight to Petit and beat them there in two weeks. The improvements we made on the car helped today. Cooper had a good start and gave me the car in excellent position.”
Team owner Alex Job has the team heading to Petit in a position to win a third championship.
“We had a pretty good day with the WeatherTech car,” Job said. “We rebounded nicely from qualifying and improved the car. Cooper had a nice start to the race and Leh did a nice job to close it out. We are heading to Road Atlanta with one goal, win the race.”
The TUDOR United SportsCar Championship will close its season at Road Atlanta’s Petit Le Mans on Oct. 4.