Bentley Racing Team at Grand Prix of Long Beach

With little time for preparation, the Bentley racing team remained dedicated to performing well within the tight confines of the 1.6 mile Long Beach street circuit.  The team was set on taking advantage of this single-race event that awards double points towards the Manufacturer’s Championship. 

Saturday morning’s qualifying session placed the #16 GT, piloted by Chris Dyson, in 12^th position and #20, Butch Leitzinger, in 14^th position for Sunday’s race start. 

Sunday afternoon’s race began with an excellent jump on the standing start, however a stalled vehicle on the starting line immediately put the race under yellow flag caution.  Upon green flag restart, both drivers pushed into 8^th and 10^th position.  Rear contact in Turn 5 pushed the #20 Bentley into a tailspin and collision with the circuit barriers.  The accident put the course under yellow caution and took both the Bentley GT3 and Butch Leitzinger out of race contention.  

What followed was an impressive stint by Chris Dyson who worked his way from 8^th position into 5^th before another caution lapse, and then into 2^nd place due to a well-coordinated overtaking strategy, awarding him the World Challenge’s ‘Move the Race’ award and Bentley’s first podium finish of 2015. 

The team immediately hit the road for the Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, AL this weekend.  It is the series’ only back-to-back race of the season.  

 

The cars fielded by the team are based on those on the Late European sales floor. If you are interested in purchasing a Bentley, contact Sonny Morgan at 512.401.4607 through Late European or sonny@lateeuro.com.