Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing Teams Conclude Competitive Weekend at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park with IMSA WeatherTech Championship Podium Finish for Winward Racing on Sunday

Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing teams concluded a competitive weekend of podium and race-winning success at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (CTMP) with a second-place finish by Winward Racing in Sunday's featured IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship race. The season-best finish for co-drivers Russell Ward and Philip Ellis and the No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 was the final achievement in a string of on-track success for Mercedes-AMG Motorsport customer teams in both IMSA WeatherTech and IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge series competition this weekend on the 2.459-mile CTMP circuit.

Starting driver Ward advanced the No. 57 from fourth on the grid to third in his race-opening stint that saw him stay in the car into the race's second hour and make two pit stops in the two-hour and 40-minute race.

Ellis took over from Ward on the second visit to the pits and well-executed pit work by the Winward team then and during one more subsequent stop during Ellis' race-closing stint helped elevate the No. 57 to second place.

Ellis kept the pressure on the race leader throughout the race's final hour but never had a chance to make a move for the top spot on the fast and hard-to-pass 10-turn CTMP course. Ellis took the checkered flag in second place just .493 of a second behind the GT Daytona (GTD) class winner.

Winward improved two spots from their starting position as did the No. 79 WeatherTech Racing Proton USA Mercedes-AMG GT3 co-driven in the GTD Pro class by Cooper MacNeil and Daniel Juncadella.

Starting sixth, MacNeil moved the No. 79 to fifth in his race-opening stint while Juncadella improved one more spot to fourth in the run to the finish despite a late yellow flag that didn't work with the WeatherTech team's strategy. Running on track just behind Ellis, Juncadella encountered the same hard-to-pass challenges as the Winward No. 57 and never had an opportunity to even try to crack the GTD PRO top three.

Winward's podium added to the nice haul of success for Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer teams at CTMP. In addition to the Winward and WeatherTech Mercedes-AMG GT3 entries racing on Sunday, four Mercedes-AMG GT4 entries in Saturday's featured Pilot Challenge race all posted career-high or season-best results.

The first milestone came in Friday qualifying for Saturday's two-hour Pilot Challenge race when Kenny Murillo secured his first Grand Sport (GS) class pole of the season in the No. 72 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4.

Murillo's pole led a run of three Murillo Racing entries in the overall top five in Pilot Challenge GS qualifying, including a career-best fifth place run by Tim Probert in the No. 65 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4.

Debuting team and Mercedes-AMG GT4 driver Marc Miller qualified third and then went on to co-drive to his first Pilot Challenge win in a Mercedes- AMG with Eric Foss in the No. 56 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4.

Foss and Miller shared the overall and GS podium with Murillo and his co- driver in the No. 72 Christian Szymczak. The runner-up showing was the best career finish to date for the Murillo and Szymczak duo in Pilot Challenge competition. The one-two overall sweep was the first of the season for the Mercedes-AMG GT4 and a career first in GS for Murillo Racing.

Yet another win in Saturday's Pilot Challenge race came from co-drivers Gary Ferrera and Kris Wilson who secured their fifth Bronze Cup victory of the season in the No. 11 Capstone Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT4.

Next up for Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing teams in IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship and IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge competition is the FCP Euro Northeast Grand Prix at Lime Rock Park in Connecticut, July 15 – 16.

Russell Ward, Driver – No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: "This is the place where we got our first Mercedes-AMG GT4 podium back in 2018 with a third, so it feels really good to come back for the first time with the Mercedes-AMG GT3 and be one step higher. We are just kind of carrying the momentum from Watkins Glen and looking forward to Lime Rock in two weeks. The Mercedes-AMG GT3 loves this track here in Canada so it's a blast. It's great to be up here and the fans are awesome."

Philip Ellis, Driver – No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: "Honestly, we took some of the momentum we had from Watkins Glen where we basically won the race. Everyone was highly motivated to do it again here and we got on the podium. I really like the track, I enjoyed it a lot, it's a very flowing track, but it is super hard to overtake as well. Even though I think I could have had a lot better pace than the leader in front, I never got close enough to put a dive on him or make a move on him. So, I basically had to pressure him into a mistake, but he never made one. We have to be happy with P2 this time but maybe we will get the win next time at Lime Rock."

Cooper MacNeil, Driver – No. 79 WeatherTech Racing Proton USA Mercedes-AMG GT3: "A shame with the last yellow. I think if that didn't happen and allow the other cars to splash for fuel, we would've had a podium car. It was tough, not too many strategy options for us. We had a good run, just not a lot of opportunity at the end. Good job by Daniel and the WeatherTech Racing Proton Mercedes-AMG GT3 team all- race. On to Lime Rock in two weeks."

Daniel Juncadella, Driver – No. 79 Proton WeatherTech Racing USA Mercedes-AMG GT3: "I was hoping for a more entertaining race at the end with some more action and opportunities to pass. Unfortunately, it didn't happen and play to our strategy. Our Mercedes-AMG GT3 is quick in free air but this is a tough place to overtake when you are following other cars. Cooper did a great job to open the race for us. In the end, we finished fourth. I had fun and really love this track."

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