Yokohama Tires win at the 25 Hours of Thunderhill

Dec. 12, 2012

When the checked flag came down after the demanding 25 Hours of Thunderhill, the Porsche 911 with Yokohama’s ADVAN ENV-R2 orange oil-infused tires was alone in the winner’s circle. Yokohama-sponsored driver Tyler McQuarrie helped lead the Motorsport Solutions/Ehret Family Winery Porsche to victory at the 25-hour, 1,953-mile endurance contest, December 8-9 at Thunderhill Raceway Park in Willows, California.

McQuarrie, with co-drivers Memo Gidley, Pierre Ehert, Christian Bollrath and Anthony Ward, drove to a convincing 16-lap victory in the 10th running of the National Auto Sport Association’s United States Air Force-sponsored sports car contest.

“The Yokohama ENV-R2 tires were awesome and truly helped us get to victory lane,” said McQuarrie, who is also a Yokohama-sponsored Formula Drift driver. “They really out-shined the rest on the double stint. I could do the same lap times whether the tire was on lap 1 or on lap 80, and having the ability to double stint your tires without giving up lap time over 25 hours is a massive advantage.”

“It is great to see Yokohama’s orange oil technology take another win,” said Duane Sampson, Yokohama’s motorsports manager. “The last time Yokohama competed in the 25 Hours of Thunderhill at this level, back in 2009, we took the win.”

“Just finishing the 25 Hours of Thunderhill can be a major accomplishment, but winning the grueling race is big and taking the overall victory is massive,” said McQuarrie, who notched his first Thunderhill endurance overall win. “We couldn’t have done this without the Motorsports Solution Team, and my co-drivers really helped bring this home. Thanks again to Yokohama for supporting this effort and helping us reach the top step on the podium.”