(Watkins Glen, N.Y.) June 24, 2023 — The Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Autosport (WTRAndretti) team continued their success within the Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America Championship at Watkins Glen International. The four-car stable came away with an overall weekend sweep by Kyle Marcelli and Danny Formal, two additional podiums by PRO driver Ryan Norman and LB Cup Rookie Graham Doyle as well as a top five finish by Nate Stacy and Nick Persing in the PRO|AM class.
Reigning PRO Class Champions, Marcelli and Formal, have won all four races in the LST season to date following Saturday’s win at Watkins Glen International. After qualifying third in the PRO class for Race 1, it was all focus to the front come Friday’s race. With an impressive start to gain crucial track positions, Marcelli handed over the wheel to Formal to finish out the 50-minute race. With two laps remaining, Formal drove two stellar laps to close a 4.5-second gap on the leader and take the overall win after their competitor was served a time penalty, placing the No. 1 on the top step of the podium. Saturday’s Race 2 saw the No. 1 WTRAndretti machine start on pole position – after a red flag in Qualifying 2 forced the field to start by positions from Practice 2. Formal built a steady lead of nearly three seconds ahead second place before coming into pit lane for the driver change to Marcelli. Marcelli assumed the lead after the pitstop to drive into Victory Lane for the fourth-consecutive race – both of the 2023 LST season and at Watkins Glen.
Following success at his first Lamborghini Super Trofeo event in Laguna Seca, Ryan Norman was on the hunt for the top step of the podium come this weekend at Watkins Glen. After starting second in the PRO class for Race 1, Norman was able to pilot his No. 84 WTRAndretti Lamborghini Huracan EVO2 onto the third step of the podium, marking the third overall podium of his LST career. As Saturday’s Race 2 rolled around, Norman quickly found himself into second position as the second race of the doubleheader unfolded. In the closing laps, Norman was on the tail of his WTRAndretti teammates, contending for the win, when a mechanical failure ended the day for him, agonizingly shy of the checkered flag.
Entering the PRO|AM class this weekend, the No. 8 WTRAndretti machine piloted by Nate Stacy and newcomer Nick Persing saw two solid results by the new co-driver pairing. In their PRO|AM debut during Friday’s Race 1, Stacy and Persing were able to navigate heavy traffic of other classes to bring home a sixth-place finish. Keeping it clean through a busy Race 2 on Saturday, Stacy and Persing closed in their fellow class competitors to earn fourth in the PRO|AM category.
Taking on his second LST race of his career, rookie Graham Doyle saw the best weekend at Watkins Glen International as the 17-year-old qualified second in the LB Cup class for Race 1 and the red flag in Qualifying 2 placed the No. 10 DEX Imaging WTRAndretti entry on LB Cup pole position for Saturday’s race. Learning from his fellow WTRAndretti teammates, Doyle was able to keep control of his machine as Friday’s Race 1 saw brief wet conditions, propelling him on the LB Cup podium in a richly rewarding second place finish. Starting from pole position in LB Cup in Race 2, Doyle was focused on holding his track position, but a crowded track shuffled the No. 10 around to finish seventh in LB Cup.
Next for the WTRAndretti Lamborghini Super Trofeo stable is Road America in just over a month’s time on August 4-6th, 2023.
Kyle Marcelli, No. 1 WTRAndretti Lamborghini Super Trofeo (PRO)
“First off, thank you to WTRAndretti, Harrison Contracting for giving us this opportunity. Today’s race was a fun race. Every race is different and unique and today, we did have a little bit of pressure from our sister car. Danny’s last two laps, he started to comment on a vibration on the front left – which had everybody alarmed and concerned. The team looked it over in the pits and it seemed okay. I felt it right away, so it had me a little on edge and at that point you’re managing. You have the lead, and you just want to manage the gap. I got hurt bad in traffic and I came up on a gaggle of four or five cars and think I lost like three seconds just parked behind them in the Bus Stop. That put the sister WTRAndretti car behind us. I said, ‘OK, boys, I’m going to turn up the wick here for two laps and just get away.’ That’s what we did and then it was just sort of managing (the gap) again. Danny did a monster drive at the beginning – quick lap of the race – and we continue to push each other. It’s a lot of fun.”
Danny Formal, No. 1 WTRAndretti Lamborghini Super Trofeo (PRO)
“I’m just so grateful to be part of this organization. Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Autosport, the support we get from them is everything. I got everyone a little nervous and their heart racing when I said I had a front left tire vibration. Luckily was off with it and we managed. The car was fantastic, it was a rocket ship. The first ten laps of that race were incredible. Super grateful for Harrison Contracting, our main sponsor on this car, and ShipSigma, our new sponsor – getting a double win for them here at Watkins Glen. This is our second double win, winning four times here in the last two years.”
Ryan Norman, No. 84 WTRAndretti Lamborghini Super Trofeo (PRO)
“Overall, we had great pace all weekend. Yesterday, I struggled a little bit at the end of the race – I used too much of my front tires. The second race was near perfect, especially there at the end when we were catching the No. 1 car by a lot. We had four minutes left, came out of Turn 1 and was going to battle for the lead then a mechanical failure. We will come back stronger next race and we’ll keep battling for the lead.”
Nate Stacy, No. 8 WTRAndretti Lamborghini Super Trofeo (PRO|AM)
“This weekend went really well. Obviously, not the result we wanted, we wanted a podium and we tried really hard for it but couldn’t quite get there. We were about five seconds back, but we were closing pretty quickly. I think if we had a few more laps, we could’ve got there. I think Nick (Persing) drove extremely well. He has never driven a sportscar before, he’s only driven open-wheel – nothing with ABS. For him to show up at his first weekend at a track he has never been to, in a car he’s never driven and drive as well as he did, it speaks dividends to him. I can’t wait for some testing to hopefully get some more seat time under our belts and try some different things out to get us more comfortable. It’s always a work in progress. The goal is obviously to challenge Danny and Kyle for the win overall if we can, but at the end of the day the car came home in one piece. We’ll go onto Putnam Park for testing with no repairs required. I couldn’t think of a better team to do it with than WTRAndretti. Everyone’s been awesome all weekend, couldn’t ask for more.”
Nick Persing, No. 8 WTRAndretti Lamborghini Super Trofeo (PRO|AM)
“This weekend was great. The WTRAndretti team gave me a great car to go compete with. Race 1 went well. I was on track for a podium, but then there was a restart, and it was just hard to hold on. I’ve never driven a GT car before, never been to this track before, but P6 in class wasn’t too bad so I was happy with that. As well in Race 2, I was battling with some people and made a mistake, because I don’t not know the track or the car. In the driver change, Nate did an amazing job to claw back up to ninth overall from 21st. We ended up finishing fourth in class and it was an amazing experience overall.”
Graham Doyle, No. 10 DEX Imaging with WTRAndretti Lamborghini Super Trofeo (LB Cup)
“I learned a lot this weekend at Watkins Glen. In Race 1, I was able to push through the traffic and in the end got my first podium, finishing second. The entire Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Autosport team put me in the best car and in the end, I believe it showed.”
ABOUT WTRANDRETTI’S DRIVER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM.
Based in Indianapolis, Indiana, Wayne Taylor Racing, now with Andretti Autosport (#WTRAndretti), is a leader in sportscar racing, recognized worldwide for fielding championship winning racing efforts since 2007. WTRAndretti has run a stable of championship winning cars and drivers in the Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America series for over half a decade, forming the basis of their Driver Development Program. Since its inception in 2015, the team has clinched eight North American PRO Driver, Team and Dealer Championship titles, fielded the first woman World Finals race winner and became the overall 2017 Champions at the World Finals in Imola, Italy. WTRAndretti’s Driver Development program has grown into interim classes and series as it evolves to encompass a greater variety of skill and experience levels. WTRAndretti currently fields a GTP program with it Championship winning No 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-06 effort as well as GT3 programs in both the IMSA Michelin Endurance Championship and Fanatec GT World Challenge with Harrison Contracting Company, Acura, Honda Performance Development (HPD) and Racers Edge Motorsports.
For more information on Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Autosport’s Driver Development Program and how to get involved, contact Travis Houge at info@waynetaylorracing.com.
