Kiwi Earl Bamber has finished second with co-driver Alex Lynn in the premier Daytona Prototype International (DPi) field at the IMSA Fastlane SportCar Weekend at Road America this weekend.
The Cadillac of Lynn and Bamber was only eclipsed by the Acura of Felipe Albuquerque and Ricky Taylor. Their Cadillac Racing teammates of Sebastien Bourdais and Renger Van Der Zande rounded out the podium.
The result of the victory sees Albuquerque and Taylor jump to the top of the IMSA DPi standings.
An overtake on their race and championship-leading teammates Oliver Jarvis and Tom Blomqvist with just 24 minutes remaining in the 2 hour 40 minute race saw the duo take the lead of the event. It was a risky move which saw half the car on the grass as they passed both Jarvis and the lapped vehicle.
Bamber and Lynn were running third at this point, until second-placed Jarvis hit the wall hard on the exit of Turn 10 with 7 minutes remaining in the event. The English veteran was able to continue on with severe damage, and the safety car brought out to clear debris saw the race finish under caution. The crash promoted Bamber to second, which is where he finished, with Jarvis only able to come home in fourth.
With one round remaining for the DPi category in 2022, Albuquerque and Taylor lead the championship by 19 points over Jarvis and Blomqvist, with the 10 hour Motul Petit Le Mans on October 1 acting as the championship decider.
Bamber and Lynn sit in fourth place in the standings, needing a strong showing and relying on other cars not finishing should they wish to take top spot.
Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta promises to be an exciting end to the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, with a number of scenarios possible. The event will also be the last time the DPi class races, being replaced by the Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) class in 2023, beginning with the 24 Hours of Daytona in January. The GTP class sees the inclusion of LMDh-spec cars to compete alongside those with DPi-specs.
