The 2017 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship will fire the engines for the final time this season at Road Atlanta for the 20th Anniversary Motul Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta on Saturday, Oct. 7.
Tomy Drissi will take part in the final WeatherTech Championship race in the history of the Prototype Challenge (PC) class with BAR1 Motorsports in the No. 26 Murder on the Orient Express / Top 1 Oil ORECA with Garett Grist and Jon Falb.
“I’m excited to be part of this weekend,” said Drissi. “Petit Le Mans is alway party atmosphere and we’ve made some great memories over the years. We’ve put a special livery on the No. 26 car featuring Murder on the Orient Express… a new movie coming to theaters November 10th along with Top 1 and their “Made in America” campaign.”
“Murder on the Orient Express opens November 10, 2017, added Tomy. “Most people will remember, it’s a lavish train ride unfolds into a stylish & suspenseful mystery, from the novel by Agatha Christie. It’s about thirteen stranded strangers & one man’s race to solve the puzzle before the murderer strikes again. It stars Johnny Depp and Michelle Pfeiffer.
The (LeMans) Prototype Challenge class debuted in 2010. The PC prototype chassis is built by French manufacturer Oreca and known as the FLM09. The PC race cars use Chevrolet’s naturally aspirated V8 6.2L LS3 engine, the very same engine that powers the Chevrolet Corvette and Camaro. The cars feature a full carbon fiber chassis, carbon brakes and an Xtrac sequential gearbox with paddle shifting. The cars weigh in at a mere 900 kilograms and can reach speeds of 175+ mph.
“It’s a shame these cars are going away,” said Tomy. “I’ve had a lot of success in these cars… going back to the ALMS and at tracks like Mid-Ohio and Baltimore, we had 13 visits to the podium. We saw some great racing against some really great drivers and teams.”
Practice for the WeatherTech Championship Motul Petit Le Mans gets under way Thursday, Oct. 5 with a one-hour session beginning at 11:10 a.m. ET. Thursday’s activities will include three WeatherTech Championship practice sessions, the second running from 3:15 to 4:15 p.m. ET and night practice from 7:30 to 9 p.m. ET.
Friday’s schedule calls for an hour-long practice session beginning at 11:40 a.m. ET, followed by qualifying, which begins at 4:20 p.m. ET. Saturday’s race day schedule includes a warm-up session from 8:30 to 8:50 a.m., with the green flag scheduled to fall on the Motul Petit Le Mans at 11:05 a.m. ET.
Live FOX Sports coverage of the race begins at 10:30 a.m. ET on FS1 with live streaming throughout the race available on FSGO with FS1 authentication. FS2 will have two Motul Petit Le Mans live television windows, the first from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. ET and the second from 5 p.m. through the checkered flag and post-race activities ending at 9:30 p.m. ET.
Keep up with Tomy at http://www.tomydrissi.com or on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/tomydrissi/ – Catch Tomy’s Twitter feed at https://twitter.com/tomydrissi
Tomy Drissi is an American driver and Trans Am Champion.
His driver experience includes ALMS, Trans-Am, NASCAR and Speed World Challengea
Born December 9 in Hollywood, California, Tomy owns an advertising firm that produces upcoming film displays for cinemas.
Drissi’s first racing experience in motorsports was street racing on Mulholland Drive in the Hollywood Hills.
Tomy’s professional racing career highlights include:
• 1999 Trans-Am Rookie of the Year,
• 2000 Trans-Am BBS Most Improved Driver,
• 2000 Trans-Am Crew of the Year
• 2000 Trans-Am Long Beach Champion
• 2009 Trans-Am Champion.
• 2010 ALMS (one off race) Prototype LMP1 3rd. at Mid Ohio
• 2011 saw Tomy’s return to the American Le Mans LMPC division. He scored a 2nd at Long Beach, 3rd at Lime Rock, 1st at Mid Ohio,1st at Inaugural Baltimore Grand Prix and second at Road Atlanta -Petit Le Mans.
• 2012, Drissi teamed with Bruno Junqiera for finishing 2nd at Laguna Seca, a win at Mosport (Canadian Tire Motorsports Park), 2nd at Baltimore and second at the season finale, Petit Lemans.
• 2013 NASCAR CUP/Nationwide. Best result at Mid Ohio starting 38th and finishing 19th.
• 2014 IMSA LMPC at Daytona 3rd.
• 2014 NASCAR CUP/Nationwide. Finished 19th at The Glen
• 2015 TUDOR Series. 2nd Place Rolex 24 at Daytona
• 2016 WeatherTech Series. 2nd Place Rolex 24 at Daytona
Murder on the Orient Express – In Theaters November 10, 2017
A lavish train ride unfolds into a stylish & suspenseful mystery. From the novel by Agatha Christie, Murder on the Orient Express tells of thirteen stranded strangers & one man’s race to solve the puzzle before the murderer strikes again. Directed by Kenneth Branagh. Starring Johnny Depp, Daisy Ridley, Michelle Pfeiffer.
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IMSA
The International Motor Sports Association, LLC (IMSA) is the sanctioning body of the WeatherTech Championship, the road-racing series resulting from the merger of the American Le Mans Series and the GRAND-AM Sports Car Series. IMSA also sanctions the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge and the Cooper Tires Prototype Lites Powered by Mazda, as well as four single-make series: Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge USA by Yokohama, Ultra 94 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada by Michelin, Ferrari Challenge North America and Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America. IMSA is the exclusive strategic partner in North America with the Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO), which operates the 24 Hours of Le Mans as a part of the FIA World Endurance Championship. The partnership enables selected WeatherTech SportsCar Championship competitors to earn automatic entries into the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans.