Race Recap: Hallett WRL Ends in Misfortune After Hard Fought 4th in Saturday 8h
Jennings, OK | October 20-22nd, 2023
A run to 4th place in GP1 (from 12) in World Racing League’s trip to Hallett marked stable progression for the team after 8 hours of racing on Saturday. However, an issue with brakes took the #14 Palomar Racing E36 M3 out of contention early in Sunday’s 8 hour.
Team regulars Matt Million, Nik Romano, and Ryan Keeley piloted the #14 in GP1. The team’s second entry was not entered.
Qualifying 7th, Romano started the Saturday race off to a fairly smooth start. During his double stint, a red flag was briefly thrown for a GP2 entry which caught fire. The #14 gained a position or two through good pitwork and stable pace every few hours. Keeley took the middle stint of the race and held position for Million to take over the final 3.5 hours.
“Although we just missed out on a podium, I’m quite happy with how we performed overall today. The pace of the top three was something we haven’t been able to compete with all season, so to refine our pit stops and run a mostly error-free race was our goal to be there at the end. Whenever we can come away with 4th behind some truly well developed teams and cars, it feels like a win for our first WRL season.”
“This might’ve been the most physically exhausted I’ve been after a pair of stints all season! This 1.8 mile bullring gives you no time to rest, combined with the warm ambient and no ‘cooling’ driver aids. Lots of constant, fast corners with consequences combined with a busy multi-class grid to tax the brain. I thought I was ‘in the green’ on my fluid intake but I could hardly stand when I got out of the car! It took me two hours to finally feel normal. I gave my all to be on top of my game fighting in those stints. I’m proud of my performance for sure!”
“Again, what a unique circuit. So many small (and large) bumps and cambers and patches to master in order to be fast around here. Definitely took me back to my club racing roots. I felt like our #14 was suited very well to the circuit, soaking up all the imperfections well without upsetting the balance.”
“Sunday was a massive disappointment for all of us. None of us wanted what happened and we’ve all worked hard to try and figure out what went wrong and make sure it can never happen again.”
“I noticed something was wrong with the brakes during my opening pace laps on Sunday morning. As it warmed up, it seemed to get better but still never truly felt right or gave me the normal confidence in them. I trusted that the crew had done their job correctly and it would come to me. It didn’t. Even though I had backed off and prepared to brake far earlier than normal, I got no brake pressure entering T2 on the opening green flag lap at over 100mph. I had no time to react and attempted to split a gap through the field but failed, hitting another competitor and ending our race in the process. It’s a massive shame and one all of us on the team could look back on elements we could’ve done differently. I’m grateful to be physically ok and for the car to be fully repaired in time for COTA. We’ll reflect and make the necessary adjustments.”
Million will next compete at Circuit of the America’s for World Racing League’s 8 + 8 Hour finale on December 1-3rd.
Matt Million wants to thank all the volunteers and corporate partners who support Palomar Racing. The primary support of Palomar Solar and Roofing along with support by Apex Race Parts, Red Line Synthetic Oil, Ferodo Racing, AP / Essex Part Services, Yokohama Tires, BimmerWorld, Strom Motorsports, BIMMERSPEED, FastSideways, Enphase, Panasonic Solar, Swift Springs, MCS, AGA Tools, Rugged Radios, SignArt Graphix, and others.
Visit ‘Photos’ to view more pictures from the event and other pages on mattmillionracing.com.
Photography by Sam of Low Tide Motorsports Photography.