JAEGER, ZACHARIAS EARN FOURTH PODIUM IN FIVE RACES IN DORAN 370Z NISMO WITH STRONG SECOND AT ROAD AMERICA
August 10, 2015 by Nissan
◾GT Academy 2014 Winner Hammann leads race in only second start
◾GT Academy duo take #41 Doran car to fourth place finish
◾Zacharias shatters track record in Nissan 370Z NISMO
ELKHART LAKE, Wisc. — This one was oh so close. Brad Jaeger and B.J. Zacharias took a podium for the fourth time in the last five races, finishing second at Road America on Saturday. The drivers of Doran Racing's #14 Nissan 370Z dominated at times, both leading the 150-minute Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge (CTSCC) race. In the end, series veteran Zacharias had the fastest car on the track, making a ferocious run on the leading Rum Bum Porsche 911 of Matt Plumb. Zacharias was glued to the rear bumper of the Porsche and was poised to slingshot past Plumb coming out of the final turn. As the two cars sailed through the corner, they ran up on two slower ST class cars taking the left side of the track, blocking Zacharias' path to victory by just .31 of a second.
In a series that values diversity of manufacturers, this race was a gem, with cars from Germany, Japan and the U.S. taking the top five spots featuring boxer six, V6 and V8 powertrains.
'This series is so tough,' said Jaeger, who started fifth and led the race for seven laps early. 'There aren't any soft entries out there, and the teams, cars and drivers are all capable of winning. These Doran 370Zs were fast from the moment they came out of the trailer, and the team made small adjustments that gave us a fantastic race car for this track. I can't say enough about this team. We are due to win a race, so we're a little disappointed, but this string of podiums is pretty impressive when you look at who we're up against.'
The #14 Nissan wasn't the only Doran Z running up front. Nic Hammann, the 2014 Nissan GT Academy winner, powered his way from an 11th starting position to take the race lead near the halfway point and fended off former series champion Hugh Plumb in his Porsche for the next 20 minutes. The rookie led the race for 11 laps and built up a sizable gap when Plumb pitted.
'The GT Academy Doran Racing Nissan 370Z ran extremely well all weekend long. I had such a great weekend racing at my home track, Road America, and it was awesome seeing all the support from family and friends,' said the 21-year old Hammann. 'Getting up to the lead at the track where I watched from turn six a year ago was amazing. It will be a memory that will last forever, all because of the GT Academy program. To finish fourth was a great result, and I cannot wait to get back on track in a few short days. Big thanks to the whole Doran team for giving me a great race car.'
Nissan GT Academy 2012 Steve Doherty took over with 47 minutes left, entering the track in seventh but quickly working himself up to third, then second spot. An epic battle ensued with former series champions Plumb in a Porsche and Hindman in his BMW M3 battling the two Doran Zs cleanly fender to fender at high speed over the picturesque Wisconsin landscape for the final 20 minutes. In the end, Doherty could catch but not get past Hindman for the final podium spot, but it was an entertaining battle for the fans and gave notice that the Nissans are a force to be reckoned with in the popular IMSA series.
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'I really wanted that third spot, but couldn't get by Hindman clean, so we had to settle for fourth,' said Doherty, who trailed Hindman by only .69 of a second for the podium spot. 'Nic did such a great job and left us a good car. I'm disappointed we didn't get on the podium along with the #14 car, but it was still a great weekend for the whole team. I don't race again until Road Atlanta (October), so I'll have to wait for a bit for my next chance to get us up on the podium.' The Doran team has a lot to look forward to in the season's final three races. The Nissans went 1-2 in early practice times, and Zacharias lowered the track record fastest race lap for CTSCC cars twice in the closing laps, at one point ripping off a blistering 2:22.8 lap around the 4-mile road course (108 mph average) with only 14 minutes left in the race. 'We had the car to win again today,' said Zacharias, a veteran sports car racer from Cincinnati. 'Our tires were great, the car was dialed in and we had the Porsche in our sights. The Z was so good on the long runs and high speed corners; the second half of the track was ours. We're going to win one soon, but I'd love to have gotten this one.' The Road America CTSCC race will air on Fox Sports 1 on Monday, August 17 from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. Eastern. The next CTSCC race is Aug. 22 at Virginia International Raceway outside Danville, Virginia and will be streamed live at imsa.com from 1:25 – 3:55 p.m. Eastern. That race will be rebroadcast on Sunday, September 6 on Fox Sports 1. For more information and the latest news about IMSA Racing and the CTSCC, follow the series online at IMSA.com/. Check out GT Academy on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GTAcademyNA Check out NISMO USA on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NISMO.US
posted on conceptcarz.com
