- Gray Gregory and Ethan Shippert Secure B.R.M. Overall and Historic Victories in Phil Reilly and Co. 1974 No. 26 Chevron B26
- Thomas Gruber GT Modern Winner in TAG 2016 No. 991 Porsche 991 GT3 prepared by Speed Syndicate
- Eric Lux Locks Down GT Classic Victory in Goldcrest Motorsports 1973 No. 0 Porsche 911 RSR
- Craig Sutherland Scores First Career Win in B.R.M. Vintage in Heritage Motorsports 1973 No. 41 Porsche 911 S/T
WATKINS GLEN, New York (July 12, 2021) – Four different Historic Sportscar Racing (HSR) class winners took to the top step of victory lane after a packed B.R.M. Chronographes Endurance Challenge one-hour race Sunday morning that was the featured HSR event of this weekend’s Finger Lakes Invitational with Masters Historic Racing at the at Watkins Glen International, July 9 – 11.
The new-for-2021 race weekend at The Glen, which was originally scheduled to debut in 2020, didn’t disappoint despite a year-long delay due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Sunday’s HSR B.R.M. Chronographes Endurance Challenge, and a doubleheader schedule of HSR WeatherTech Sprint races Saturday and Sunday, shared the weekend’s card with a showcase slate of Masters Historic Racing and Masters Endurance Legends competition.
The Masters Historic Racing Weekend at The Glen continued a successful and ongoing relationship between HSR and Masters that has been in place the last few racing seasons. The annual “HSR Classics” at Daytona International Speedway and Sebring International Raceway both feature Masters entries competing for overall and series honors in several different run groups.
The overall and Historic-class B.R.M. victory at The Glen went to Gray Gregory and co-driver Ethan Shippert in the Phil Reilly and Co. 1974 No. 26 Chevron B26. The victory continues a winning run for Gregory and his teammates in HSR competition that includes late 2020 triumphs in both the HSR Classic Daytona presented by IMSA and the team’s third consecutive victory in the HSR Classic Sebring 12 Hour.
The B.R.M. GT Modern (GTM) class win was earned by Thomas Gruber in his TAG 2016 No. 991 Porsche 991 GT3 prepared by Speed Syndicate. Crossing the finish line second overall, Gruber started a streak of his own after capturing the B.R.M. GTM victory in his last HSR appearance at the season-opening Spring Fling at Sebring last March.
Eric Lux secured the B.R.M. GT Classic (GTC) victory with a fourth-place overall finish in his Goldcrest Motorsports 1973 No. 0 Porsche 911 RSR. Lux also picked up a Saturday Group 5 WeatherTech Sprint win in the Porsche in addition to sweeping the Group 9 WeatherTech Sprints in his Goldcrest Motorsports 2011 No. 100 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3.
It was the second-straight HSR event in which Lux won races in both the Porsche and Mercedes-AMG, driving both cars to multiple race wins in his last HSR appearance at the 43rd Mitty at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta in April.
The fourth and final B.R.M. class winner at The Glen was Craig Sutherland who took Vintage class honors in his 1973 No. 41 Porsche 911 S/T prepared by Heritage Motorsports. The win was the first for Sutherland since he began driving in competition 16 years ago.
Third overall in B.R.M. and second in GTM went to the HSR debuting father-and-son team of Geoffrey Ehrman and Russell Ehrman in their 2003 No. 516 Porsche 996 GT3 Cup. The Ehrmans anchored a strong showing of father-and-son teams in the GTM class that accounted for three of the top-seven overall B.R.M. finishers.
Fifth overall and third in GTM went to longtime HSR competitors Paul Reisman and his son John Reisman in their Hudson Historics 2009 No. 771 Porsche 997 Cup.
Another strong HSR debut came from first-timer Jimmy McGlynn who co-drove the 901 Shop 2003 No. 171 Porsche 996 GT3 Cup with his father Tom McGlynn to fourth in GTM and seventh overall in the B.R.M. race.
The GTC podium was completed by a pair of familiar competitors joining rival Lux in victory lane. Todd Treffert in his Speedconcepts 1974 No. 141 Porsche 911 IROC prepared by the 901 Shop finished second while Yves Scemama – fresh from his weekend triple sweep one race ago at Barber Motorsports Park – hit the podium again with a third place showing in his Heritage Motorsports 1974 No. 52 Porsche 911 IROC.
Gregory and Shippert were joined on the Historic-class podium by second-place finisher Francesco Melandri in his Amalfi Racing 1996 No. 96 Porsche 993 GT2 and Mark S. Clark, who crossed the line third in class in his 1990 No. 15 Swift DB5 Sports 2000.
Sutherland shared the Vintage podium with runner-up Daniel Caggiano in his 901 Shop 1970 No. 71 Porsche 914/6 while Bob Summerour co-drove with David Hinton to third in the Heritage Motorsports 1972 No. 201 BMW CSL.
In addition to Lux in Group 9, other competitors that swept both of their weekend WeatherTech Sprint races included Scott Kissinger and Hervey Parke.
Kissinger scored the Group 3 win in both rounds in his 1971 No. 202 Datsun 240Z in addition to taking the overall win in the combined Group 2 and 3 races.
Group 2 honors in the same pair of races were earned by Parke in his 1965 No. 11 Ginetta G4.
Next up for HSR is a return guest appearance with the Vintage Sports Car Drivers Association (VSCDA) for the Elkhart Lake Vintage Festival (ELVF) at the Ariens Art on Wheels Vintage Weekend, September 17 – 19, at Road America.
About HSR: Historic Sportscar Racing (HSR) was formed in the mid-1970s with an event at Road Atlanta. There was one goal then and it remains true today: to celebrate the race cars from the past. As a “time machine” of sights and sounds, HSR provides a venue for competitors and spectators alike to share in the wonderful history and excitement created by the cars that competed at race tracks around the world. HSR currently sanctions eight vintage and historic racing events at some of the world’s most renowned race tracks, including Road Atlanta, Sebring International Raceway, Daytona International Speedway and more. The complete schedule and full event information can be found on HSR’s website at www.HSRRace.com. Look for the HSR Channel on YouTube and follow HSR on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/HSRrace/ and on Twitter and Instagram at @HSR_race. A dedicated website for the Classic 24 Hour at Daytona presented by IMSA is available at www.Classic24hour.com.
