SAVAGE, Minn. (June 2, 2025) — JDC-Miller MotorSports persevered with their Porsche 963 after receiving a pit speed penalty, ultimately finishing in 11th place at the 5th round of the IMSA WeatherTech Championship on the streets of Detroit.
The privateer team felt confident heading into Saturday’s race after making progress on Friday with the car setup for the always-challenging Detroit street circuit. Some of this progress, however, was diminished on race day when the weather dropped significantly from the upper-70s to a blustery 61ºF. The cooler ambient temperatures made it more difficult to reach optimal tire temperatures during the race, which impacted the Porsche’s overall pace.
Gimmi Bruni had a strong opening lap in the No. 85 Porsche, passing two cars and advancing from his 10th starting position to 8th. The race was proceeding smoothly and according to plan when, on lap 21, Bruni pitted for the mandatory driver change to Tijman Van der Helm. Unfortunately, the No. 85 Porsche exceeded the pit speed limit while exiting the pits. A drive-through penalty was imposed, causing the car to go a lap down. Van der Helm uneventfully brought the car home in 11th position.
Quotes:
John Church, Managing Partner, No. 85 JDC-Miller MotorSports Porsche 963
“Except for the pit speed penalty, it was a relatively uneventful weekend. The team did a great job prepping the car for this race and provided the drivers with a car that performed as well as could be expected over the bumps and tight turns of this street circuit. While we didn’t achieve the pace we desired, we had a car we thought we could gain some positions with in the race. In a race as short as this one, once you go down a lap, there wasn’t much left to salvage. It’s tough.
The crew and drivers did an excellent job throughout the weekend. We are excited about Watkins Glen and the rest of the season. We have experienced success at The Glen in the past and are putting in the effort for a strong performance.”
Gianmaria Bruni, Driver, No. 85 JDC-Miller MotorSports Porsche 963
“We knew this race was going to be tough for us for a variety of reasons. I had a really great start, jumping up from P10 to P8. We were in a pretty good position to push for the rest of the race from there, but the pit overspeed violation ended that.”
Tijmen van der Helm, Driver, No. 85 JDC-Miller MotorSports Porsche 963
“Over the weekend, we couldn’t quite match the pace of Porsche Penske Motorsport’s factory Porsche 963 cars. But in the race, the gap was a bit smaller. Sadly, a penalty for exceeding the speed limit in the pit lane cost us dearly – you simply can’t make up those 25 lost seconds. And even if you did, overtaking is difficult on this track.”
