Victory for Grisham and Holbrook at Road America

May 11, 2021

Shift Up Now Athletes Hannah Grisham and Shea Holbrook – with teammate Christian Maloof – earned back-to-back podium finishes for Round 3 Racing at Road America, winning on Sunday and placing second on Saturday in the World Racing League (WRL) GP2 class.

Driving the No. 601 Team Sentinel Porsche Boxter, Grisham drove the second stint of Saturday’s race, then handed the wheel to Holbrook, who took over the GP2 lead on lap 147, before a late-race penalty was issued to the team, moving them back to a second-place finish.

“I had a lot of confidence heading into my final stint knowing we had a strong car,” said Holbrook. “Our target was to find lap time today so we could know what we needed to keep our position. With a super reliable and predictable car we know what we have. We delivered results but being so close to a win gives us a taste of what we can do and use that to get the win tomorrow.”

On Sunday, Holbrook drove the first stint from a P7 starting position and advanced to second place by only the sixth lap. Maloof took over for the second stint and kept the team in podium contention, then Grisham took on a double stint. She stretched the lead to five laps ahead of second place before handing the wheel back to Maloof to close the race.

“Getting a win today in the No. 601 Team Sentinel Porsche Boxster is an amazing feeling,” said Grisham. “The Round 3 Racing crew gave us a reliable and fast car and that was critical to our result today. Only being a part of this lineup for a few races, it is such valuable experience working with Christian (Maloof), Shea (Holbrook) and the rest of the R3R lineup. I am excited that we got the win today and I know we are capable of continuing this success.”

Two other Shift Up Now Athletes – Loni Unser and Sarah Montgomery – also competed at Road America for Round 3 Racing.

Montgomery – along with teammates Buz McCall and Brad McCall – drove the No. 702 Team Hagerty Porsche Cayman in the WRL GTO class.

On Saturday, Montgomery took the opening stint, starting in third and advancing to the lead by lap 15. She also set the fastest lap of the race. Unfortunately, the team received a two-lap penalty – later reduced to one lap – for an unsafe pass on a slow car through a white-flag zone. After a broken splitter required an unplanned pit stop, the team finished the race in P9.

On Sunday, Montgomery wasted no time taking over the lead – from a second-place start – on the first turn of the opening lap. On lap 49, an exhaust issue forced the car into pit lane. Montgomery drove 25 laps more, then handed the car to Brad McCall. A rear shock broke and brought the car back to pit lane for repairs, putting the team 27 laps down. Buz McCall closed out the day and brought the No. 702 home in P9.

Unser – along with teammates Mike Gilbert and mo Dadkhah – made the switch to the GP1 class just days ahead of the race weekend, and therefore saw limited track time on Friday.

On Saturday, they completed 83 laps in the No. 701 Team Cooper Tires Porsche Cayman without a working ABS (Automatic Brake System), and finished P14.

The trio started Sunday’s race in 11th place in the GP1 field. Dadkhah took the first stint and charged to P2 by the tenth lap. Tire locking issues forced the team back to the garage for mid-race repairs, and they finished P8.

Round 3 Racing will head to Daytona International Speedway for a single, 14-hour endurance race on June 4-5, for the fifth round of the 2021 WRL season.

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