After beginning third, Bourdais spent a lot of the early portion of the IMSA’s 100-minute traditional within the runner-up spot pursuing pole-sitter Pipo Derani within the Motion Specific Racing-prepped No. 31 Cadillac.
The pivotal second of the race got here when Derani pitted on lap 26, handing off to co-driver Jack Aitken because the crew placed on two new left-side tires.
Bourdais pitted the subsequent lap and relinquished driving duties to Renger van der Zande, with the choice made to proceed operating on the set of tires that began the race, which saved time and propelled them into the lead.
A variety of incidents simmered any probabilities Aitken had of constructing sufficient tempo as much as retake the highest spot. Ultimately, van der Zande was in a position to maintain on and finest Aitken to win by 0.564s in a race that went 68 laps across the 11-turn, 1.968-mile avenue circuit.
“Technique received this race,” van der Zande stated.
“The tires have been type of gone on the finish. It was fairly slippery. However I’m very pleased with my crew.”
The idea to take no tires mirrored final 12 months’s successful name by Porsche Penske Motorsport, which have been in a position to make the most of a tougher rubber.
When requested by Motorsport.com in the course of the post-race press convention the place the arrogance got here from to take no tires regardless of a speculated greater tire put on going into the occasion, Bourdais make clear the topic.
“It got here from yesterday’s knowledge,” Bourdais stated.
“Clearly, we actually dreaded loads of tire deg as a result of it is the softest of all of the tires that there’s within the Michelin panel. And it is type of bizarre, however the degradation was really little or no, and the wear and tear was virtually nothing.
“Once we noticed that, we went by the truth that the solar type of got here by the clouds round noonish, monitor temp is kind of low in comparison with what we have been anticipating.”
And there was the added concern of how tough the dealing with can be on new tires that may take time to construct as much as temperature on the out-lap.
“Being second anyhow, we have now to strive one thing to leap these guys, so over-cutting them was clearly the decision and doing no tires was one of the simplest ways to maximise the pace on the out-lap,” Bourdais stated.
“They solely took two tires, however it was the second distinction. So, it was positively the precise technique to go and Renger made it stick. Clearly, look quite a bit smarter afterwards, however yeah, we weren’t completely positive it was going to work. However that was the one method we have been going to try to win this race.”
The outing marked twentieth IMSA victory of van der Zande’s profession and the twelfth for Boudais. The motive force pairing additionally received Lengthy Seashore in 2022.
The unofficial championship standings have the No. 7 Porsche Penske Motorsport duo of Dane Cameron and Felipe Nasr main with 1,032 factors, with Bourdais and van der Zande trailing by 58 factors.
