On October 15th, 2013, 26 year old Sean Edwards took to Queensland Raceway for a private test to train up and coming drivers. Prior to going out on track, the 2006 GT3 champion tweeted; “Time to hit Queensland Raceway today, should be fun, hope there aren’t too many kangaroos like at Bathurst! :)” Sean exited the pit lane that day and tragically, he never came back. Just like that, a promising young sports car racer was gone and the racing community was stunned. At the time of his death, Sean was leading the Porsche Supercup standings by a comfortable margin and was well on his way to winning the title with just one round remaining. Fellow racer Jon Miller came up with a way to honor Sean and his proposal has gained international support from fans and drivers alike. Here it is…
“Porsche, you have the opportunity do something rare and very special. We are asking you to elect to hold the final two rounds of the 2013 Porsche SuperCup (rounds 8 and 9 on November 2/3 at the Yas Marina Circuit) as non-points scoring rounds.
We believe that the rightful champion of the 2013 season has already been crowned, however he won’t be able to attend the final race to make it a formality. Racers and fans around the world are mourning the loss of driver, Sean Edwards, who currently leads the Supercup Championship by 18 points, with 3 wins in 7 races. With a win being worth 20 points, and Sean never having finished lower than 5th, he was bound to be champion. If his nearest competitor were to win both races at the final round, Sean would only need to match his worst finish so far (5th) and the championship would still go to him. If Sean were to win the first race of the weekend, he could park his car and score no points during race 2 – and still be champion. Even his competitors can’t argue: Sean Edwards has dominated Porsche Supercup this year. He deserves the title.
We want to make sure that Sean goes down in the record books as he was in the hearts and minds of his family, friends and competitors: a Champion. Please dedicate the final two races of Porsche Supercup to Sean Edwards, implore your drivers to race in his honor and put on a fantastic show for the fans. Pay them their prize money and hire the good ones to factory drives for next year. But do not award them any points.
Please, Porsche; make Sean Edwards your 2013 SuperCup champion and celebrate in his honor at the championship party in Abu Dabhi.
Thank you,
Racing fans, Porsche fans and Sean Edwards fans everywhere”
The petition surpassed 10,000 signatures within 48 hours with people praising the idea from all corners of the globe. I got the chance to interview the petition’s creator, Jon Miller earlier this week.
First off, where did the idea for this petition come from & who are some of its major supporters in the racing community?
The idea for the petition came after the initial shock of hearing about the accident and Sean’s passing. In the outpouring of respect and support for Sean’s friend and family, people began to share stories about him and how he was racing at the top of his game, on the verge of a major factory drive. Attention was also placed on the fact that Sean was currently leading the Porsche Supercup championship by a healthy margin. I think many racers and fans probably had the same thought. Richard Westbrook was the first one that I saw who tweeted: “Would be very fitting if Sean was crowned Supercup champion in Abu Dhabi. He dominated this year. Make it a non points race please Porsche”
It got over 600 retweets in a few hours and seemed to echo the sentiment that many were feeling. A couple of days later, I was still thinking about that idea and how to grow support for it and send the message to Porsche. I started the petition late one night and emailed it to a few people and posted it on Facebook and Twitter. When I woke up there were a few hundred signatures already, and within 48 hours there were 10,000 signatures from all over the world. I think it’s important to mention that the petition has grown organically and these signatures are not inflated numbers. People have left hundreds of comments supporting Sean and I have gotten personal messages from people all over the world who were happy to see the support for Sean and this idea.
The petition has seen support from drivers like Andy Lally, Will Davidson and 3-time Supercup champion, Rene Rast. Khaled Al Qubaisi, who was Sean’s teammate when they won this year’s Dubai 24hr race in a Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3 has also been very active in supporting the petition.
Has Jonas Krauss or any Porsche Supercup officials responded to this petition yet?
At this time, I have not received and response from Porsche or Jonas Krauss, acknowledging the petition. I hope that changes before race day and I have been told by supporters who are connected with Porsche that people within the company are aware of the petition.
Nicki Thiim and Michael Ammermüller are the drivers currently 2nd and 3rd in points and I’m interested to know if they have said anything regarding the petition and do you think they’d possibly consider refusing to run the final round in order to ensure Sean the crown?
The two drivers, Nicki Thiim and Michael Ammermuller who are mathematically able to defeat Sean for the championship have not responded to the petition, as far as I know. They have their own decisions to make about that, and I’m sure they will keep that to themselves. They have their own teams, sponsors and careers to consider in the context of all of this.
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
The reason that I believe making it a non-points race is the right thing to do is so that the final race can be hard fought, for the win, all the way to the checkered flag – a proper show without concern of one driver punting another to ensure Sean’s title, or a dramatic, last lap, “intentional retirement” by the leader. Porsche are in a unique position to do something incredibly special for the motorsport world, a rare symbolic gesture. Being a driver myself, I understand some of the disagreement with this idea, that a championship should be fought to the end regardless of circumstances but that doesn’t resonate with me in this case. Sean dominated the series this year and essentially only needed to show up in Abu Dhabi to claim the prize. Nobody can argue with his performance this year or that he has earned the title.
Whatever happens at the final race weekend, weather or not this petition achieves it’s stated goal, as far as I am concerned it has already accomplished far more than I had ever expected. The stories that have been posted, the support and popularity of the petition alone shows that there is a massive, international motorsport family, who can break through the politics of racing and come together to support one of their own. I am just happy to be a part of that, for Sean.
I 100% agree with everything Jon is saying and believe there is no better tribute to Sean than to award him the championship posthumously. I really don’t see how you can argue otherwise. This young man paid the ultimate price doing what he loved and we should honor him for his sacrifice. Signing takes less than a minute and if you want to give your support, I posted a link to the petition below. Please spread the word as well.
TO SIGN THE PETITION —> http://www.change.org/petitions/porsche-motorsport-make-the-final-race-of-the-2013-supercup-season-a-non-points-race?
Sean Edwards was a great driver, a great person and he will be missed by us all. This tragedy epitomizes just how close the motorsports community is and how we all come together when things go horribly wrong. Death in racing is unavoidable and the wounds left in its wake sometimes never heal. Tragic deaths like that of Sean Edwards’ are never in vain though. Racing legend Bruce McLaren, who also lost his life behind the wheel, put it best when he said; “To do something well is so worthwhile that to die trying to do it better cannot be foolhardy. It would be a waste of life to do nothing with one’s ability, for I feel that life is measured in achievement, not in years alone.” We bury the fallen with tears, embrace the ones who escape death’s firm and final grip with relief and race on, because that’s what racers do. Goodbye Sean and let us all take comfort in the fact that you’re racing with angels now.
