Laps Led, But Unfortunate End for Honda TCR Cars at VIR Atlanta

Speedwerks’ Brian Henderson leads home race at VIR
No. 84 Honda Civic Type R TCR’s charge halted by off-track excursion
VGMC looked set for first top-five finish of the year before precautionary stoppage

ALTON, VA (October 10, 2021) Atlanta Speedwerks looked set for a podium finish, and potentially a victory, in the #84 Honda Civic Type R TCR at today’s Virginia is For Racing Lovers IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge race, before an unfortunate late-race off ended their chances for the TCR class win.

Brian Henderson started fourth at his home race at VIRginia International Raceway. Though he fell back to the sixth position in the early minutes of the race, the Fredericksburg, VA-native carved his way through the field, making his way to the lead just before the halfway point in the two-hour contest. Henderson led 6 laps before handing the #84 over to co-driver Ryan Eversley.

Eversley would leave the pits second in the TCR class, and was chasing down the leader when he went off in Oak Tree corner. Though he continued, the contact with the tire wall dropped Eversley down to ninth place, before he eventually made a pair of late race position gains to finish seventh.

Early in the race, the #88 VGMC Racing Civic Type R TCR looked set for the team’s best result of the year. Qualifying fifth, owner/driver Victor Gonzalez stayed in contention for a top-five finish for most of the first stint of the race before an off-course excursion dropped them down the TCR order.

Co-driver Karl Wittmer took over control of the #88 just past the halfway point, but would make it only 25 minutes into his stint before he had to retire the car due to high temperature readings.

Virginia is For Racing Lovers Honda TCR Race Results
7th TCR – #84 Ryan Eversley and Brian Henderson, Atlanta Speedwerks Honda Civic Type R TCR
12th TCR – #88 Victor Gonzalez and Karl Wittmer, VGMC Racing Honda Civic Type R TCR – Not running

Quote
Brian Henderson (#84 Atlanta Speedwerks Honda Civic Type R TCR), started fourth, led six laps: “I had a blast! I always look forward to coming to VIR, no matter what we’re racing, and it was so much fun racing this Honda Civic Type R here. I really felt like everything came together during my stint. We made our way up through the field, and I just had a great time. We had a lot of speed in the car; it’s unfortunate we didn’t get a result that showed that. But, I’m still really happy with our team’s performance here today.”

Next
The MICHELIN Pilot Challenge heads to Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta for the final race of the 2021 season, the November 12 Fox Factory 120.

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

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