Podium finish for Pfaff Motorsports at Long Beach

April 16, 2023

Long Beach, CA. (April 16, 2023) – After a pair of endurance races, Pfaff Motorsports showed its strength in a sprint challenge this weekend at the Grand Prix of Long Beach, finishing third in the No. 9 Driveway Porsche 911 GT3 R.

After starting from the same position, Patrick Pilet jumped to second at the beginning of the 100-minute race, but was held back from contending for the lead due to a car from another class between his Porsche and the leading Lexus.

The team then executed a flawless pit stop and driver change – highly important at sprint events – to place Klaus Bachler at the helm. The Austrian held off a hard-charging Corvette for the first half of his stint, but was overtaken as the rival piggy-backed off a pass from a quicker prototype. While Bachler stayed within sight of second place and sought opportunities to pass, the results stayed through the checkered flag.

By placing third in both qualifying and the race, the No. 9 Driveway Porsche earned valuable points and is now fourth in the GTD Pro class championship ahead of a month-long hiatus.

Pfaff Motorsports will complete its West Coast swing with the fourth IMSA round at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca on May 12 – 14 with the two-hour, 40-minute Motul Course de Monterey. The team looks to defend its win at the circuit last year on Sunday, May 14, with a green flag time of 15:10 p.m. ET (12:10 p.m. local time).

For high-resolution imagery and video from the Grand Prix of Long Beach and throughout the 2023 season, please click here with credit to Pfaff Motorsports/Lenssen Photo. Updates from Pfaff Motorsports can be followed on the team’s Facebook, Instagram and Twitter pages.

Team Quotes:

Klaus Bachler: “It was a great race. Patrick did a superb first stint – he came in P2 and in the end, it was a gamble when to pit. We had to gamble because we knew the Lexus was in a good position. We came out P2 and I fought with the Corvette and kept him behind me. But when an LMDh passed me in Turn 5, the Corvette had the run on me. We were fighting each other in Turn 6 and he was on the inside, so I couldn’t keep him behind me.

“I was trying to get past him at the end of the race, but he did not make a mistake. I tried it once and it nearly happened. In the end, I also wanted to keep the points and the podium for the championship. It’s not easy to pass here and we knew it, but it was a good weekend. I’m happy about it and I’m looking forward to the next one.”

Patrick Pilet: “It was a good race. I had a really good start – it was quite tricky with all the traffic and cold tires, but I feel like I had a good warm-up compared to the others and I had an opportunity to overtake the Aston Martin. I moved to P2, but we still had the GTD car between the leader and us and then we pit. The car was excellent and I managed the pace well to follow the Lexus but today, they were better and they deserve the victory.

“Klaus did a great job. We just got a bit of bad luck with traffic and lost a position to the Corvette, but it showed that the pace was there and all three cars were really tight. It was a good result for the team and we’re moving forward and still continuing to learn each other. It’s also not an easy track, so it was good to come back with good points.”

About Pfaff Motorsports

Pfaff Motorsports has established itself as one of the most successful sportscar racing programs in North America over the past decade. A professional team in the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA), it has established long-term partnerships with premium brands such as Lithia & Driveway, Motul, the Automotive Owned Brands of Canadian Tire Corporation, and Hagerty, and is one of the top-performing Porsche customer racing teams in the sport.

Pfaff Motorsports’ competition résumé includes historic victories and championships across multiple series. Since joining the top-tier IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in 2019, the team has won the prestigious 24 Hours of Daytona and twice at the 12 Hours of Sebring, in addition to being crowned the 2022 WeatherTech Championship GTD Pro class and 2021 GTD class champions. It has also won the 2018 GT World Challenge America championship and is a three-time Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada champion. For more information, please visit www.pfaffmotorsports.com.

Pfaff Motorsports Contact: Jennifer Klein // jklein@pfaffmotorsports.com