A Winning Weekend for Katech Motorsports
June 7, 2017
DETROIT - Katech Motorsports engines grabbed two wins at the Trans Am Series Motor City 100 at the Belle Isle road racing circuit on a weekend in which the engine builder seemed to be winning everywhere. Katech-powered cars won races in three different sanctioning bodies on three tracks in a sustained show of excellence.
Katech won the Trans Am TA race and swept the first two spots in the TA2 event at the Trans Am Motor City 100 in Detroit over the weekend. The Performance Tech team won its fourth straight race in the IMSA Prototype Challenge class and another Katech-powered car won the GT2 race at the SCCA Super Regional at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.
"A lot of people came up to me to tell me what a great job Katech did," said Kevin Pranger, director of motorsports, Katech. "Wow! It was a winning weekend. I am so proud of our teams and am looking forward to Indy in two weeks."
Ernie Francis Jr., No. 98 Breathless Pro Racing/Buoniconti Fund/Beta Tools, won in TA on Saturday and Gar Robinson, No. 74 Robinson Racing, led the 1-2 Katech finish in TA2 on Sunday.
Francis Jr. drove a Ford Mustang powered by a 790 horsepower Katech Motorsports racing engine and was the class of the TA field at Belle Isle in Detroit. He started on the pole and, except for two early caution periods, was not challenged during the 36-lap event. The last 25 laps were under green flag conditions. He led every lap around the 2.36-mile course and won by an impressive 9.3 seconds.
On Sunday, in TA2 competition, Gar Robinson took the lead around mid-race and was not headed. Trans Am rules dictate that engines in TA2 generate slightly under 500 horsepower.
"I never had a car feel so good at the end of the race," Robinson said. "Katech gave me such a strong engine. We are honored to have a partnership with such a great engine builder for our first Detroit Grand Prix win."
James French and Pato O'Ward won their fourth race in as many outings, taking the Prototype Challenge class win in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship race at Watkins Glen International. O'Ward said his Performance Tech Motorsports team's race plan hinged on the predictability of their car's powerplant.
"It was a different race, pretty much the whole race, in my stint and James' stint, we were saving fuel," O'Ward said. "We were trying to do it on one stop."
Aaron Quine drove his No. 61 Spillfix/ECC/Shultz/Mizer Machine Katech Motorsports-powered Chevrolet Camaro to victory twice in one weekend in the GT2 class at a Sports Car Club of America Major Tour event at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.
The SCCA's Grand Touring 2 class - better known as GT2 - is for production-based cars from a wide variety of manufacturers.
Quine's wins came in different fashions. He ran away and left the field in Saturday's chase around Mid-Ohio's venerable 2.4-mile, 14-turn club course. Sunday's race was a struggle, but Quine collected the win.
About Katech
Katech was founded in 1977 by Fritz Kayl and Warren Frieze and continues to offer innovative products and cutting edge technologies in the areas of racing engines, race program support, prototyping, testing, R & D, manufacturing, high performance parts and vehicle modifications for street and track. Katech is involved in the marine industry, IMSA Grand Am, SCCA World Challenge, Le Mans Prototype Challenge, off-road racing and more. Katech's engine program and motorsports support has powered six Le Mans 24-hour road racing wins. For more information, call 866-KATECH1 or visit www.katechengines.com. Follow Katech: Facebook.com/KatechPerformance, Instagram: @Katech_Inc. or Twitter: @KatechInc.
