Acura teams and drivers in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship proved their speed today on the streets of Long Beach – setting the fastest laps in both GTP and GTD. But delays and incidents for all three Acura teams prevented them from reaching victory circle at Saturday’s race.
Acura ARX-06 GTP
Starting from the pole, the #10 Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Autosport Acura ARX-06 pulled away to an early lead in the hands of starting driver Filipe Albuquerque. Albuquerque continued to lead for the first 40 minutes of the 100-minute race, but issues during the single scheduled pit stop led to a delay of more than 10 seconds before second driver Ricky Taylor could resume, costing them the lead.
Taylor fought his way back into contention, but a passing attempt with just a handful of laps remaining saw Taylor slide into the Turn One barriers, ending the day for the WTRAndretti Acura.
The #60 Meyer Shank Racing Acura ARX-06 of Tom Blomqvist and Colin Braun had an equally fraught day. Starting driver Blomqvist was tapped into a spin at the start of the race, losing a lap to the leaders as a result. Without a mid-race caution period to allow MSR to get back on the lead lap, the duo was consigned to sixth-place finish, although Blomqvist was credited with the fastest GTP race lap.