Wright Motorsports Maintains Points Lead with Double Podium Weekend
With just two race weekends remaining in the Fanatec GT World Challenge America season, Wright Motorsports leaves Road America’s doubleheader still holding onto the championship points lead. Adam Adelson, Elliott Skeer, and the team of the No. 120 Porsche 911 GT3 R earned a second-place and third-place finish in the two rounds held at the Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin area track, effectively maintaining their gap over the competition.
“This weekend was all about consistency and resilience,” said Team Owner John Wright. “The team executed flawlessly under challenging conditions, and both Adam and Elliott delivered impressive performances. We knew the weather could be a factor, and our ability to adapt played a key role in securing these podiums. Now, with the championship still within reach, we’re focused on finishing these final races strong.”
The weather was anything but predictable for Rounds Nine and 10 of the GT World Challenge championship, and the group at Wright Motorsports knew rain would play well into their hands. A storm rolled through Road America just before the start of the race but the circuit had dried enough for competitors to start on the standard Pirelli slick race tires. Adelson took the green flag for the first race from fifth position in class and advanced to fourth in the opening lap. He had damage to the rear of the Porsche at the hand of another car early in his stint, and when other cars pitted to assess damage or penalties, he continued on. The strategy not to pit allowed him to climb up to third place, despite damage to the rear diffuser. He made a normal planned stop at the halfway point from third. Skeer took over and engaged in an exciting late-race push for position, netting the fastest lap of the race. In the end, the team celebrated a third-place result and decent points day.
Skeer started race two on Sunday from third overall and second in class. He slid into the PRO class lead and second place overall on the start, maintaining position and keeping the rest of the field behind the Porsche. Adelson jumped in at the halfway point, fending off heavy pressure from the designated pro, Alec Udell, in the DXDT Racing Corvette. The Corvette eventually got by, but Adelson masterfully kept the Porsche near the front of the field, finishing the race in second place.
Provisionally, the team holds a 35-point lead in the championship, with 200 points still remaining to be awarded in the final three races.
Barber Motorsports Park will host the final doubleheader of the season, September 6-8 before the series faces the grand conclusion to the season: the Indianapolis 8-Hour. The eight-hour endurance race will see the team take on a third driver in a final-race, double-points showdown, October 3-8 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Driver Quotes
Adam Adelson
It was not the results that we would have hoped for. We have to be happy with how we place, but every race, we keep on doing our rain dance. The Porsche is always amazing in the rain. On Saturday, it looked like it was coming straight for us, but right before the race, the storm split into two and just went everywhere except for where we are. But it's all about keeping the points lead and staying as close to, if not beating, the Corvette. That's what our focus is on. The best way to do that is to just concentrate the most we can on ourselves.
Elliott Skeer
It was overall, an interesting weekend for us at Road America. We knew it was not going to be the Porsche’s strongest track, but to ultimately have the base we did was a testament to the team at Wright and what they can make this Porsche do. Saturday was grimy and messy, even without the weather hitting. We seem to be cursed when it comes to not getting rain in the races. We left Saturday very frustrated as some missed opportunities and came into Sunday prepared to do what we needed to do. I’m extremely happy with my stint, as it was one of my best so far this year. I really drove to maximize everything out of the car that I possibly could. Adam had quite a strong race there, doing what he could. I’m just super proud of the pace that he could hold either way. He drove a very strong stint. The Corvette was able to get around us and run away with it. Ultimately, though, for the next round of SRO, I'm feeling very confident about Barber. I’ve had this one highlighted for a while, and I think that we can really make our Porsche shine there.
Source: Wright Motorsports