- Mat Pombo and Mike LaMarra finish eighth in the Road America 120
- Pombo claims fastest lap for Honda in the closing minutes of competition
The LA Honda World Racing team notched another top-ten finish at the famed Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin with the #73 Honda Civic Type R TCR drivers Mat Pombo and Mike LaMarra scoring eighth in the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge Road America 120.
Starting fifth, the duo persevered through a tricky race that saw many series veterans finding trouble. LaMarra took control of the #73 Civic for the first 56 minutes of the race before handing it over to Pombo for the final one hour and four minutes.
During his stint, fuel strategy forced Pombo to pit an additional time compared to his competitors' single stops, pushing them down the order. However, he did manage the fastest TCR lap of the race, a 2:20.971, set on lap 47 of 49, just before the yellow caution flag came out to end the race, following a late-race crash involving a GS class car.
The #37 LA Honda World Racing machine shone in qualifying, with Chris Miller putting his and Shelby Blackstock's Honda Civic Type R TCR third on the grid. Miller got a fantastic start and even got into the lead on the first lap of the race. Unfortunately, a mechanical issue soon sent Miller off the course in Turn Five, ending the #37's day.
Taylor Hagler made her return to the series after contracting, and recovering from, a COVID-19 that forced her out of the previous round at Sebring International Raceway. She and co-driver Ryan Eversley started 12th in the #77 Civic. A wiring loom issue forced Hagler into the pits early and, once that was fixed, a subsequent broken hood pin ended their day.
HPD has three ready-to-race Civic models for touring car competition. The line starts with the affordable and reliable Civic Si TCA race car, then leads to the Civic Type R TC racer that puts legendary Type R performance on track, and culminates with the no-compromise, championship-winning Civic Type R TCR race car. Our unparalleled trackside support at every level from HPD engineers is a unique benefit that no other manufacturer can offer. Find out more about these cars and our touring programs at: https://hpd.honda.com/Motorsports/Touring
Honda Racing social media content and videos from Road America are available on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/HondaRacingHPD) and on Twitter at (https://twitter.com/HondaRacing_HPD). Produced by CoForce Digital Media, YouTube video packages can be found at: https://www.youtube.com/HondaRacingHPDTV.
The MICHELIN Pilot Challenge travels to VIRginia International Raceway for the August 23rd Virginia Is For Racing Lovers Grand Prix. The race can be streamed live on TrackPass on NBC Sports Gold.
Quotes
Mat Pombo (#73 LA Honda World Honda Civic Type R TCR), finished eighth, TCR fastest lap: "Road America this weekend was so fun to be at. We had a fast car all weekend in practice — top 2 in every session and then a solid top 5 qualifying from Mike. Our #73 LA Honda World Civic Type R TCR car was looking great for the race. Unfortunately, Lady Luck wasn't on our side and the competition found a lot of speed going into the race. Our fuel strategy caught us off guard there at the end, as we needed two stops to our competition's single stop. However, that let me get a new set of tires right at the end and lay down a fast lap to show what these Honda's are capable of. Looking forward to VIR for redemption in a couple weeks"
MICHELIN Pilot Challenge Road America 120
Circuit: Road America, Elkhart Lake, WI
Weather: Partly cloudy and mild, 79 degrees F
Top Five TCR, Honda Race Results:
Ps. Drivers Team Chassis Laps / Notes
1. Gabby Chaves/ Ryan Norman Bryan Herta Autosport Hyundai Veloster N TCR 50 laps
2. Parker Chase/ Spencer Brockman Bryan Herta Autosport Hyundai Veloster N TCR 50 laps
3. Mark Wilkins / Harry Gottsacker Bryan Herta Autosport Hyundai Veloster N TCR 50 laps
4. Tim Lewis/ Roy Block KMW Motorsports Alfa Romeo Giulietta TCR 50 laps
5. Max Faulkner / James Vance Speed Syndicate Audi RS3 LMS TCR 50 laps
8. Mike LaMarra / Mat Pombo LA Honda World Honda Civic Type R TCR 49 laps
10. Ryan Eversley / Taylor Hagler LA Honda World Honda Civic Type R TCR 16 laps – Not running
12. Shelby Blackstock / Chris Miller LA Honda World Honda Civic Type R TCR 6 laps – Not running
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