TRG-Aston Martin Racing and Christina Nielsen Take The GTD Series Lead In The Tudor United Sportscar Championship - Speedway Digest

For the first time in North American history, an Aston Martin race car sits on top of a major Sportscar racing series in both the Team and Drivers Championships. A strong qualifying effort and flawless driving performance saw Danish sportscar standout Christina Nielsen and her teammate, reigning GTLM champion Kuno Wittmer finish 2nd in GTD class at the Tudor Continental Tire Road Race Showcase at Road America. The duo have clicked since driving together at Watkins Glen in June and are coming off a podium finish at Lime Rock Park just two weeks ago. Today’s 2nd place result catapults Nielsen and the TRG-AMR team into first place in the IMSA TUDOR GTD Championship.

The two-hour, forty minute race saw Nielsen and Wittmer lead the GTD class at multiple points throughout the race and finishing ahead of the pole sitting Porsche 911. A key objective for this weekend was to finish ahead of the number 48 Audi R8 to take over the points lead and that is precisely what the team did with a stellar performance by the entire TRG-Aston Martin Racing squad.

The race at Road America is also a home race for sponsors Orion Energy Systems and LaSalle Solutions that were on hand to witness the fantastic finish by the 007 Aston Martin V12 Vantage and Christina Nielsen and the Team’s jump into the overall points lead in the GTD class. The strong performance couldn’t have been better timed as Orion Energy Systems hosted over 200 guests trackside with TRG-Aston Martin Racing.

With limited support, the team has done something truly remarkable in placing itself, its driver and the beautiful and potent Aston Martin race car on top of the other teams and much larger manufacturers, a feat that seems to be a recurring theme with TRG over the last 20+ years.

TRG-AMR CEO Kevin Buckler: “We have known all season we have the car, driver combination and the team to win. Christina has been solid throughout the season and with the addition of Kuno Wittmer at the midpoint of the championship, it is paying off. Christina did an incredible job of qualifying the 007 V12 Vantage P3 yesterday with an amazing lap of a 2:09. She backed it up by driving a fast, super heads-up race today and allowing Kuno to finish it off in P2. We had the win in our sites but the very powerful (and very thirsty) V-12 combined with the series rules, caused us to take an extra stop for precaution. I simply could not be more proud of my drivers, crew, and entire team. What really makes this performance special is being able to take over the GTD class points lead with three of our key sponsors at the track in Orion Energy Systems, LaSalle Solutions and Royal Purple/Calumet all present. We could not do it without them. We feel confident that we have a strong program for the last three races of the season at VIR, COTA and Road Atlanta. We want to enjoy our points lead this weekend with all of the festivities at Pebble Beach but get back to work to focus on extending that lead going into VIR on the August 21-23 weekend.”

Orion Energy Group, CEO, John Scribante:
“Congratulations to the TRG Aston Martin team for the 007 car taking second and to Christina taking first in points. This event has been a fantastic team-building experience for our Orion members who were out in full force today to cheer on TRG and highlight Orion’s high performance LED lighting solutions now installed at the Road America track.”
LaSalle Solutions Group President, Steve Robb:
“LaSalle could not be happier with this team as they have battled throughout this season and now lead in the series. We are proud to be partnered with TRG-AMR the IMSA Tudor United SportsCar Championship series.”

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Adam Sinclair

NHRA, IHRA, Motocross and other forms of motorsports Staff writer
About Me: Adam has been a race fan since the first time he went through the tunnel under the Daytona International Speedway almost 30 years ago. He has had the privilege of travelling to races all across the state of Florida (as well as one race in Ohio), watching nearly everything with a motor compete for fame and glory, as well as participating in various racing schools to get the feel of what racecar drivers go through every week. Adam has spent the last three years covering motorsports for Examiner.com., where he had the opportunity to see the racing world from behind the scenes as well as the grandstands. He invites everyone to follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and Google Plus, and looks forward to sharing his enthusiasm for all things racing with the readers of SpeedwayDigest.com.Be sure to tune in for his weekly sports talk program, Thursday Night Thunder, where he discusses the latest in motorsports news with drivers, crew members, and fans. The show takes place every Thursday at 8:00 pm EST on the Speedway Digest Radio Network.