Race Recap: WRL Finale at COTA Proves Strong with GP1 Podium for Million, Palomar Racing

Race Recap: WRL Finale at COTA Proves Strong with GP1 Podium for Million, Palomar Racing

Austin, TX | December 1-3, 2023

The 2023 season finale of World Racing League turned out to be a positive end for Palomar Racing and the driver’s of the #14 BMW E36 in GP1.

Team regulars Matt Million, Nik Romano, and Ryan Keeley piloted the #14. The team’s second entry, the #15 also in GP1, was entered but suffered a large setback in Friday practice.

The #14 finished a respectable 4th in Saturday’s 8 hour and 3rd in Sunday’s 8 hour race. With a 20+ GP1 field of strong entries and 80+ in the overall entry between all five classes, it was a job well done for Palomar Racing.

Saturday’s result was looking to be a 2nd place, or even the win, until the sixth hour. The throttle pedal had broken under Million as he had to limp back to the pits and spend 5 minutes with the crew repairing. They dropped from 2nd to 4th because of it.

However, it was an important discovery. The car had begun loosing horsepower throughout the day on Saturday to the tune of 10mph on COTA’s long back straight. When Million returned in the final hour, lap times dropped significantly from 2:36 average to 2:32 average. It is believed the throttle began failing in the second or third hour and progressively worsened, as well as raise water temperature by 20 degrees.

With this issue now solved, along with a host of other mechanical and aerodynamic improvements overnight, the #14 was set on a podium charge for Sunday.

Million started the opening few hours Sunday and moved from 6th on the grid to 4th and eventually the podium places. With a new PB of 2:30:1, consistency in traffic, and thoughtful strategy calls, the #14 was fighting amongst the podium for the last four hours with drivers Ryan Keeley and Nik Romano.

Unfortunately, an ill-timed full-course yellow came out with about two hours remaining that would snap the team’s strategy play for the win. Amongst the front runners, what would’ve been one more fuel stop for only the #14 instead of two turned out to be a single fuel stop for the others as well. This locked the #14 into 3rd, approximately four minutes behind the win and one lap behind second place.

Overall, it was a very impressive performance by everyone at Palomar Racing and one that should be held highly. At our first WRL event this season at Barber Motorsport Park back in March, we finished 6-7 laps behind the leader on both days. At our last event in Austin, we finished within 1-2 laps. We’ve learned a lot throughout our 8-event season through tireless failures, updates, and effort to be better.

Matt wants to thank his co-driver Ryan Keeley and Nik Romano for an incredible season with their camaraderie and support. Thank you to Andy and Mike Anderson with the support of Palomar Solar and Roofing, of which none of this season would’ve been possible without.

Special thank you’s as well to the crew, including the driver’s and the owner’s, along with Blair, Grant, BimmerSpeed (Ryan, Mike, Pete, Mark), Strom Motorsports, Mashore Autobody, and many others who have helped our season.

Matt 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 Chance Hales.

Million Begins New Full-Time Role at The Thermal Club

Million Begins New Full-Time Role at The Thermal Club

October 2023 - Thermal, CA

A place which once existed as a ‘dream’ employment destination throughout my up-and-coming years as a racing driver and motorsport professional is now a reality.

Starting officially in October, I will be full-time at The Thermal Club as a driver coach, lead-follow driver, pit lane operator, and trackside billing. I’m extremely excited to begin meeting and working with the passionate members and staff at this one-of-a-kind facility.

It was an opportunity that came up very quickly and unexpectedly. Having finished my college degree last year and been actively looking for a work experience to pair alongside my pursuit as a professional driver, this couldn’t have been better timing.

The demands of the position are unique, challenging, and encouraging for the future growth of the club as well as my career. It required a credentialed racing driver with industry knowledge and a hardened work ethic for long days in various capacities of both driving and operational skills. Despite how far I’ve come in the industry, I still have a lot of room for growth in all areas and it will challenge (and teach) me more than I’ve yet learned in my career. I’m immensely grateful to be the candidate chosen for the position and aim to perform at the level expected. It has already been a rewarding few months of meeting some incredible people and settling into my role.

I hope to share more of my experiences soon.

Matt

Race Recap: Hallett WRL Ends Early After Hard Fought 4th in Saturday 8h

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.

Race Recap: High Plains WRL Provides 2nd in GP1 for Million, Palomar Racing in Colorado

Race Recap: High Plains WRL Provides 2nd in GP1 for Million, Palomar Racing

Deer Trail, CO | September 1-3rd, 2023

After an electrical issue on Saturday, Palomar Racing’s sixth weekend of their 2023 World Racing League campaign saw a return to the GP1 podium for Matt and the #14 BMW E36 M3 on Sunday.

Team regulars Matt Million and Nik Romano were joined by Lucas Weisenberg in the #14. Weisenberg, current Toyota GR Cup driver, is a welcome addition with his past experience working with the group. The team’s second entry, the #15 BMW E36, was driven by team regular Ryan Keeley as well as Andrew Gardner and Alan Leukhardt.

The #14 finished 7th of 11 in Saturday’s 8-hour and 2nd of 11 in Sunday’s 8-hour.

Qualifying 3rd, Matt took the #14 to an early run in 2nd place for the opening stint. During the first pit stop, the car failed to refire. After an hour of diagnosis and repair, it was discovered part of the AIM PDU computer module failed and wouldn’t allow the car to restart. Weisenberg and Romano brought the car to the finish without trouble afterwards. For Sunday’s 8-hour, Weisenberg started in 4th and maintained position for his stints. Romano continued for his stints and handed off to Million to close the race. Through clean pit stops and stints, the #14 found itself firmly in 2nd with 219 laps complete, three laps behind the winning #147 Morehead Speed Works BMW E46.

The story of #15 was more unfortunate. An 8th place finish on Saturday and 7th place on Sunday after the car struggled to maintain proper voltage, amongst other issues. A gearbox failure took the car out of Sunday’s race past half-distance.

“It’s an awesome feeling to get the #14 back onto the podium! We got 3rd in our very first race of the season, way back in March at Barber Motorsports Park. Since then, this car has seen a lot of revisions to make it more competitive in GP1. Through development of springs, tires, engines, aero, and a lot of small things, it’s a been an exhausting season to find small bits of speed but suffer frequent mechanical and electrical gremlins. After our 4th of 15 at Road Atlanta, it was clear we’ve developed into a podium-contending package. Still with gains to be made in ultimate pace, but a lot more potential than early in the season. This 2nd helps confirm that when all goes well on our side, we are nearing closer to our ultimate goal in World Racing League.

“”I’m really proud of what I could extract in qualifying to put us 3rd in class. I’ve never been to High Plains Raceway before and only had a handful of laps before true ‘go time’. It was the best position we were going to start from, with the top two on a different level of speed than where we are in our development.”

“High Plains is a sneakily fun circuit! 15 corners, 2.5 miles. Only one real straightaway, lots of heavily cambered and off-camber corners with elevation. Besides the utterly tight hairpins, it’s a wonderful ‘flow’ circuit. There isn’t much in the way of sights though… a lot of dead grass!”

“I’m truly proud of my start and opening stint on Saturday. We remained within touching distance of the leader (15-30 seconds) for the entire hour and a half. I have to especially thank Ryan Lindsley and Pete Bush of BIMMERSPEED for their tireless hours of car preparation ahead of this event. The #14 felt like an entirely new race car, giving me the confidence to set some seriously quick laps time after time and keep us close.”

“It’s a shame about our relatively small issue on Saturday. We would’ve been on for a podium both days, which is what this group deserves after all the hard work this season. It did feel good though to bring the car across the finish on Sunday and secure the result. My job Sunday was a lot more tame; keep the car on the road and hold onto the position with no close threat in either direction. Definitely a team-earned podium all-around. Proud to be a part of their journey and chip away at the milestones, despite the difficulties we’ve faced on multiple levels in 2023. Thank you Andy and the rest of Palomar Solar for the continued hard work, belief in me, and backing for this program. Thank you Blair, Grant, Kaylyn, and the drivers for the long days to make sure we succeed.”

Million will next compete for Palomar Racing at Hallett Motor Racing Circuit in Oklahoma for the WRL’s 8 + 8 Hour event in mid-October. He is scheduled to drive the #14 BMW E36 M3 in GP1 for the rest of the season.

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.

Million Tests BMW M4 GT4 for AutoTechnic Racing at Indianapolis

Million Tests BMW M4 GT4 for AutoTechnic Racing at Indianapolis

Speedway, IN | August 30st, 2023

On a sunny afternoon at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in late August, I achieved what many young professional drivers hope to get realize; get to drive a modern GT4 category racing car. At the world famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway nontheless!

Although it would technically be my second time in a GT4, taking part in a driver evaluation shootout in early 2021 with another manufactur. However, this opportunity felt a lot different. With aspirations to make the GT4 class and the new BMW M4 GT4 my next step as a professional driver, this was a very special and important day.

AutoTechnic Racing chose to take advantage of a BMW Motorsport-hosted track event at Indianapolis to help prepare their teams for upcoming IMSA and SRO races here. All three of their BMW M4 GT4’s would be present; the #51 for Zac Anderson, the #253 for Rob Walker and Satakal Khalsa, and the #24 for Adam Gleason.

Lacking the funding to place myself as a driver in the test, I chose to work for the team. Manning radios, assisting drivers, and completing other tasks to help the test run efficiently. Although I’d prefer to be strapped in instead of strapping in others, I understand my current situation of sponsorship and finances. I’d rather be present and working with a team I truly enjoy than sitting at home!

Through my work for the past three SRO/IMSA events and a close relationship with many at AutoTechnic, I was given a chance to test the M4 GT4 on the afternoon of the test’s second day. It’s rare to find yourself in the right place, right time, with the right people to where this can occur. I’m immensely grateful and honored at their belief in me and my talents.

Thank you Rob and Satakal for allowing me to drive their current SRO GT4 America chassis to begin my journey in the BMW M4 GT4. Thank you Rob Driscoll and Charlie Scott for supporting this plan, team drivers Zac and JCD for speaking highly enough to put me in this position, and the San Diego-based crew with Keeley, Lindsley, and Pete Bush for introducing me to the team.

I was able to have two sessions. The first, a short 10-15 minute run, was primarily to learn the fundamentals. I improved about one second per lap, starting at around 1:37 and ending at a 1:32. The second session was about 20 minutes on an older set of tires. I dialed back the traction control to as much as possible and focused on being smooth, consistent, and calculated. Multiple laps from 1:32.2 to 1:31.8 followed. All the hours studying the car’s operational manual as well as hours on the simulator did help me come to speed quicker than I would’ve otherwise.

What a race car. Similar in ways I’d thought it would be, very different in ways I didn’t consider. Visibility, tire feel, pedal feel, and overall weight transfer all felt noticeable different from what I expected and needed to adapt quickly. It soon began to feel normal after a dozen-or-so laps… nearly. Blasting down the front straight and across the most famous brick finish line in the world was an unbelievably cool feeling. A special one I won’t forget any time soon.

In the moment, I felt I could’ve been a better in many areas. Braking force, brake timing, car positioning, throttle management, etc. And I was right, I could’ve been better. But for a first half hour in a completely foreign race car at a new circuit, I’ve come around to the idea that… I should be immensely proud. It was a heck of an effort to be thrown into the situation. Thank you Zac for helping instill this perspective after the sessions. I’d love to one day reach your level in these cars!

I believe I’ve proven the potential needed to compete at a high level in GT4 in the future. Now, I am constantly searching for ways to make a GT4 season happen in 2023. With SRO’s GT4 America my primary aim, I will need to locate the right opportunity or finding a significant amount of sponsorship to make it happen.

It would mean the world to me to begin my GT4 journey in full during 2024. It would mean even more to do it with AutoTechnic Racing in their incredible M4 GT4’s. In the meantime, I’ll continue to work hard at making dreams… a reality. :)

- Matt Million

9/9/23

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