Robb Holland races the #99 Rotek Racing Porsche Cayman 718 GT4 RS Clubsport in the GT America powered by AWS championship. Cars are his second racing career after time spent as a professional cyclist. He started with SRO in the Touring Car class before racing overseas in the BTCC, then returning to race in the U.S. The SRO Motorsport Group caught up with Robb as he prepares for Watkins Glen.

Before you raced cars, you raced bicycles. What if anything did bike racing teach you about racing cars? How much do you still train on two wheels?

Actually I credit a lot of my success in cars to things that I learned in cycling. Things like spatial awareness and race tactics and understanding how to approach and focus on a race weekend are all things that I learned as a pro cyclist.

What was your gateway into racing cars?

I actually had a friend of mine talk me into doing a track day with him. So I went out there and a guy named Len Pettyjohn who was one of the top cycling team managers decided to come with us as he was a big gearhead. At the end of the day Len comes up to me and says I looks pretty good on track and I might want to take a look at going to a racing school like Skip Barber and get my racing license. It was like a lightbulb went off. I never thought about actually racing cars before that.

Tell us about your experience racing in the British Touring Car Championship. What are the biggest difference between that series and racing with the SRO here in America?

My experience in the BTCC was the most amazing time. I always watched BTCC on TV wherever I could and it was one of the things that drew me into racing cars. Watching those guys do what they did in cars that look like cars that I could drive on the street totally amazed me. So to be able to go over there as the first American since Dan Gurney and compete on the same level with those guys with something quite special. The biggest difference between BTCC and SRO is the level of aggression over there. If you leave even the smallest gap you'll immediately find a car stuck in there. But the skill level is so high that even though you do get a bit of carnage from time to time it's nowhere near as much as you would've expected with the level of aggression that they show.

How long did you live near the Nurburging? What was that like to race, and how many laps did you complete in street cars?

I lived at the Nurburgring for five years. It's the most epic track in the world and definitely by far one of the most difficult to race on wheel-to-wheel. Especially if you're in a slower car the overtaking speeds of the GT3 cars are absolutely incredible. You really have to have your head on a swivel the whole time you're in the car. With so much going on at all times you can't afford to let your attention drop for even a second. I get asked how many laps I've done there all the time and I never kept track but I believe it's north of 3,000. Needless to say I have the track fairly well memorized lol.

Since you are a Rocky Mountain guy, and we don't race in Colorado, do you have a track you consider to be your hometrack?

No I really don't have a home track per se. If I had to pick one though it would probably be St Petersburg oddly enough. It's the track I made my pro debut on many many years ago. So when we came back there to race this year it was the first time I'd been there in over a decade but it very much felt like coming home.

And since you are a Colorado guy, tell us about the Pikes Peak Hillclimb and why every race fans needs to go there at least once.

Pikes Peak is one of the biggest spectacles in all of motorsports. Other than the Nurburgring it is the most difficult track to master. It's so unlike anything else that I have ever faced in motorsports. It’s also got to be one of the most beautiful and scenic racetracks in the world. If you are a gearhead this should definitely be on your bucket list of races to attend. You'll never see anything like it anywhere else in the world.

How are you and the team getting along with your new Porsche? What was your goal for the first half of the season? Are your satisfied with your progress? What are your expectations for the rest of 2022?

We are slowly coming to grips with the Porsche. It's an amazing car but the hardest bit for us is adapting to the BOP. Teams that have run the last generation Cayman GT4 definitely have a bit of a leg up on us as they have a much better understanding of the suspension and how the changes to it for BOP work. We did take some big steps forward at VIR which we were competitive in both races and ended up with us on the podium in race 2.

We know that you were close to your dad and his passing hit you hard. What were the lessons he taught you that most impact you as a person and as a racer?

Yeah it was tough losing my dad this past winter. He was such an amazing man and one of my biggest supporters throughout both my cycling and motor sports careers. I think the biggest thing that he taught me was that I shouldn't be afraid to open doors but I need to make sure that they don't close behind me. That's one of the things that we are working on this year to try to bring new people into the sport that might not otherwise know that there is a door there to walk through.

Who are the behind the scenes people and companies who make it possible for you to race? How do they measure success beyond the results sheet?

Motul, Hella-Pagid and Gurit are my primary partners. I've had great success with all of them throughout the years but their metrics to measure success vary company by company. Obviously the exposure that they get from all of Rotek Racing's programs worldwide are paramount in terms of ROI. But also each one of them also has very specific asks on the marketing side of things. That being said, our relationships aren’t just a marketing exercise but a technical one as well. We use all of our partners products in competition and give their engineers feedback on performance and usability. I think it's that combination of marketing and technical benefits that make Rotek Racing such a desirable industry partner.

What is your best advice for someone who wants to get involved with SRO racing?

I would say just reach out to one of the teams or drivers or even SRO and let them know that you're interested in being involved. This year more than any other year I can remember there is a huge need for more crew guys. I think teams are more interested in bringing in guys that might not have all the experience needed to go pro racing but are willing to learn.

More on the SRO Motorsport Group can be found here https://www.sro-motorsports.com/