Trailing by just four points heading into the season-closing Motul Petit Le Mans, Alex Quinn and the #04 CrowdStrike Racing by APR squad are embracing a "nothing to lose" mindset as they chase their first IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship LMP2 title.
Quinn and full-season co-driver George Kurtz – joined this weekend by Toby Sowery – enter the 10-hour finale second in the standings behind Inter Europol Competition’s Tom Dillmann and Jeremy Clarke. Armed with four podiums from six starts this season, including a victory at the Rolex 24 At Daytona, Quinn is seeking his first series title and eyeing an improvement on his career-best third-place Petit Le Mans finish from 2023.
Reflecting on the shift in championship momentum, Quinn emphasized that trailing by a narrow margin takes the pressure off the team.
“All year long we've had a bit of a lead in the championship, but it's been slowly coming down from to Inter Europol,” Quinn said. “But this weekend, now we're actually four points behind. So, there's absolutely no pressure at all for us. And it's basically like we're going into the last round tied, so we know we just need to beat them. There's no pressure now.
“We just have one goal, and that's to beat Inter Europol. In a way, I think it's kind of nice that we're not going in leading. We've got nothing to lose, so yeah, we can only gain. Full attack.”
The overall championship isn't the only hardware on the line for Quinn in his 14th career WeatherTech Championship start. He also leads the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup LMP2 point standings by a single point over AO Racing’s Dane Cameron, Jonny Edgar, and PJ Hyett.
Addressing the potential impact of qualifying, where a 10-point swing favored Inter Europol in the last round at Indianapolis, Quinn praised Kurtz's progression while maintaining that long-run race execution remains the priority.
“First of all, George has been doing an amazing job this year,” Quinn said. “I think I've worked with him in previous years a bit on and off, and then this year's sort of full time. I've really seen him improve. He's handled pressure a lot better in races, especially. His general performance has improved loads, so that's a positive, first of all. But, of course, we're up against a really quick Bronze in Jeremy (Clarke), and yes, over the season, we have lost some points in qualifying as a result, I think. I’m not sure exactly how many.
“You know, it's points we would love to have, but at the end of the day, it is what it is. To be honest, first of all, George testing last week in Petit was very, very close to Jeremy, so that's a positive. It'll still be a hard task to beat him because he is so strong as a Bronze, but I don't think it'll come down to quali, to be honest. I think since the gap's that tight, and with the way the points work, and at least the first half of the finishing positions, I think it's more down to the race. And that's where we're fully focused. I think that's where we are putting most of our attention, let's say.”
