Stevenson Pontiac GXP-R Repeats First Place Finish At VIR

Apr 28, 2008

The #57 Stevenson Motorsports – BryanMark Financial Pontiac GXP-R, running in the Grand- Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16, was once again the first GT class car to fly under the checkered flag. After the team’s first ever win at Mexico City last week, drivers Andrew Davis and Robin Liddell, along with Team Manager Mike Johnson and team owners John and Susan Stevenson combined winning strategy and winning driving talents to take their second win of the 2008 season. The win gives them a ‘batting average’ of .500 which any baseball player would love to possess. And if not for luck having stayed away at the first two races this team could be perfect.

But perfection takes many forms and for one, the pit strategy employed by Mike Johnson at Mexico and VIR proved to be as perfect as can be.

Johnson: “It was a shame getting our first win without John and Susan at the track, but to win again at our ‘home’ track with their friends and family was very special as well. As for the car, tires, strategy, we are not doing anything different or better than we did at Daytona or Homestead. We have a great car, with two great drivers and we are executing very well with great pit stops, no contact and calculated pit decisions. We were only 7th quick in the race and we realized we were not going to win unless we took a gamble and the gamble paid off.

“Everyone in the paddock has the same opportunity to pit when we do and do what we do, but it’s a real gut check to pull your car out of fourth place, under green to add fuel only on 40 mile tires, but someone was going to do it, and I am just glad it was us. The new yellow flag rules open up some different opportunities and I am sure people will figure it out soon enough.”

Davis qualified the car second on the grid, giving him a front row starting position. He ran with the leaders throughout his stint, bringing the car in during a full course caution before 15 minutes of the race had been run. He brought the car in a second time after an hour and turned the driving chores over to Liddell. After a quick splash for fuel only during green conditions, Liddell was able to go into the lead while everyone else pitted under yellow. The lead was then his and he never gave it up.

For this race, where the Stevenson’s had a full complement of guests to entertain, John Stevenson elected to also run the Crawford-built Corvette the team ran in last year’s Grand-Am series. James Gue and Randy Pobst were brought on board to drive and they finished 12th in class after Gue had qualified the car right behind Davis, in 3rd on the starting grid.

Pobst enjoyed his return stint with Stevenson, after having run with the team at the Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona as the start of the season.

“I had a ball! It was so nice to be back with Stevenson Motorsports and I thank them for this opportunity. They are a first class effort. The car was very well prepared. Stevenson and Crawford really worked to develop the car over the winter. Crawford re-engineered the rear suspension and Stevenson put the car together and it showed promise at the test session at Homestead Miami. The car handled great during the race. Our finishing position doesn’t indicate how good the car was.

“I had a very satisfying stint. I did not have much practice in the car, so I learned how to drive it during the race. Our times were competitive with the lead pack. We just needed another yellow flag for our pit strategy to pay off and we didn’t get it.

Andrew Davis shared the joy of bringing home a win in front of the team owners. “Our first victory in Mexico City was very special, but being able to stand on top of the podium again on home soil was exceptional! The only thing missing from last week’s win was that fact that John and Susan Stevenson were not there to share in the celebration. So obviously, they were the first targets to get sprayed with the champagne from the podium.”

“The race played out perfectly due to another great race strategy implemented by Mike Johnson. I started the Bryan Mark Financial Pontiac GXP.R from the front row, and I was able to get a good jump at the green flag. We had a pretty uneventful run to the first caution period before stopping for fuel and tires. The next part of my stint was a bit more difficult due to some nasty GT battles going on in front of me. However, I was able to get the car back up into the top five before handing it off to Robin. The big gamble came when we reached the pit window in terms of making it to the end of the race on fuel. Mike Johnson made the call to come in early for fuel, leaving the Stevenson Motorsports GXP.R to inherit the lead on the next caution period.”

“VIR is basically the home track for Stevenson Motorsports, so it was great to have a crowd of friends and family to support the team. We were able to put on a good show for everyone, and prove that our first victory in Mexico City was not a fluke. Two wins in a row really breathes some life back in our fight for the championship, and we are all looking forward to the next round at Laguna Seca.”

Liddell too expressed his satisfaction with the fortunate turn this season has taken when he said, “The Pontiac ran beautifully throughout the race while Stevenson Motorsport’s race strategy was first class. We’re the team to beat and this form bodes well for the remainder of the season.”

The win moved the Stevenson Team up into a 3rd place tie (With SpeedSource – running a Mazda) overall in the Team Championship standings. The win at VIR catapulted the team up five places in this still early point in the season. And Davis and Liddell are also enjoying time near the top as they are now in a three way tie for 3rd in the Driver standings.

The Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 includes cars competing in two classes, Daytona Prototypes and GT. The #57 Stevenson Motorsports Pontiac GXP-R competes in the GT class against other teams running cars carrying such vaunted names as Porsche, Ferrari, Mazda and the Ford Mustang Cobra.

Stevenson Motorsports operates out of a new facility located in Jacksonville, North Carolina. Fans of the Stevenson Team are invited to visit the team’s website at www.stevensonmotorsports.com