Alex Sedgwick, Zachary Vanier, Elias De La Torre and Madeline Stewart Return in Season’s Final Race Weekend in Support of the United States Grand Prix
AUSTIN, Texas (October 18, 2024) – Less than seven days has passed since Zachary Vanier’s second and the team’s third win of the season, but JDX Racing has already arrived at Circuit of the Americas for the Porsche Carrera Cup North America season finale and a chance to secure strong finishes for both the team and its four drivers in the season-long standings.
Vanier’s double podium began with Thursday’s race at Road Atlanta, where he started from third on the grid in his No. 9 Technica Mining/Byers Imports Porsche 911 GT3 Cup and made a lap one move to slide around both his polesitting teammate in Alex Sedgwick and the championship leader Loek Hartog in the 10a/10b complex.
Not even a full course caution could slow Vanier once he found the lead. A safety car with 30 minutes to go in the 40-minute timed race erased a gap of more than two seconds, but a strong restart allowed him to hold the point. Vanier raced home for a 1.078-secon win for his second victory of the season, following it up with a third-place finish on Friday.
Sedgwick earned his fourth pole position of the season in the No. 98 PT Autosport/Byers Imports Porsche 911 GT3 Cup after a red-flag marred qualifying session and began Thursday’s race up front. His battle with the second-place car was one that opened the door for his teammate to take the lead but dropped him to fourth at the finish. He started third on Friday, losing the position to a hard-charging Vanier early on, and earned a second-consecutive fourth-place finish.
Elias De La Torre drove his No. 4 HCB Yachts/iKon Boats/Porsche Columbus Porsche 911 GT3 Cup to a pair of finishes inside the top 10 at Road Atlanta. De La Torre took advantage of the qualifying session red flags to start Thursday’s race on the outside of row three, putting him in the thick of the action before finishing 10th. He improved one spot at the checkered flag on Friday for a ninth-place finish.
Madeline Stewart was in the mix at the front of the field during Thursday’s race before an incident led to contact and ended her day after just seven laps. The JDX Racing crew went to work to have her No. 82 Spool Imports/Byers Imports Porsche 911 GT3 Cup ready for Friday’s race, and she fought back for a 10th-place finish of her own.
That weekend set up this week’s showdown in support of the Formula One United States Grand Prix at the Texas track. Sedgwick enters the season-finale doubleheader second in the Pro Class driver standings, seven points ahead of third place and 27 points ahead of Vanier in fourth. De La Torre is 10th, just three points from ninth place, with Stewart 15th in her rookie season of the championship.
All four enter Circuit of the Americas fresh off a recent test at the circuit, which includes a repave in advance of this season’s Formula One race that was completed in September. That provided data on the new surface, which Sedgwick, Vanier and Stewart can contrast with an early-season Porsche Endurance Challenge race that each participated in – co-driving with JDX Racing Porsche Sprint Challenge drivers.
Vanier will compete this weekend with another year of life experience under his belt, having turned 22-years-old on Wednesday of race week.
The Circuit of the Americas weekend begins with a single practice session on Friday in advance of Formula One’s Sprint Race Qualifying. Porsche Carrera Cup qualifying is at 9:50 a.m. CDT on Saturday morning, with the first of two 35-minute races at 3:40 p.m. CDT. Sunday’s race begins at noon CDT, the last official on-track session before the United States Grand Prix.
JDX Racing Quote Board
Zachary Vanier, Driver, No. 9 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup, following his Road Atlanta win: “That win absolutely amazing. It by far ranks as one of the best, if not the best, race of my career. It was perfectly executed by the entire JDX Racing team. We were there testing and I felt like we left with a pretty good program and something we could compete with and I think we showed that. We had a really strong qualifying that put us in contention for this and then of course capitalized on everything we possibly could. I am absolutely thrilled, I can’t thank JDX Racing and all of my partners for being with me through this.”
Alex Sedgwick, Driver, No. 98 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup: “We have one more shot for a good weekend remaining in Carrera Cup, to finish on a high note. It’s been an awesome journey, and I’ve learned so much, thanks to the support and guidance from both JDX and PT Autosport. I really want to repay them for my opportunity in this series with two strong results, and underline what I am capable of as we look to graduate for the 2025 season. Our test here was one of the best tests we’ve had. We started well straightaway. It probably helped that I was there earlier in the year with (JDX Racing teammate) Eric Lapp for the USAC Endurance Challenge opener. It was more a matter of figuring out parts of the track that have been resurfaced, to see if they required a different driving input – so the test was more about just driving and working on the “on the fly” changes that I can do inside the car rather than overall set up. This surface seems almost slicker than it was, the tire can’t bite into it as much. It’s still quite dark and absorbs a good amount of heat.”
Madeline Stewart, Driver, No. 82 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup: “Round Seven of the Carrera Cup North America was a mixed bag for us. We showcased strong pace, qualifying and finishing 10th in race two. We faced a DNF in race one, which is part of racing. The key takeaway is that we made significant progress last week. This championship is incredibly competitive, and it takes more than that to achieve results. We are working hard every day to continue to develop and find those little gains that will propel us forward. I’m looking forward to racing this weekend at Circuit of the Americas for the final round of the championship. Having been here a couple of times I have come to really like this track. My focus is on maximizing our performance and finishing strong. The competition is tough, but I’m ready to make the most of this opportunity and see what we can achieve.”
About JDX Racing:
Founded in 2008 and based outside of Denver, CO, JDX Racing represents the very best in professional motorsports. Competing in the IMSA sports car series, JDX Racing campaigns cars in events throughout North America. JDX Racing features world-class drivers, outstanding crew members and dynamic marketers from Champ Car, IndyCar, NASCAR, ALMS and the Champ Car Atlantic Championship series. For more information, follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/jdxracing, on Twitter @JDXRACING and on Instagram @jdxracing.
