Fountain Valley, California – Hyundai has grown its Manufacturers’ Championship lead by 90 points after an incredible win at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway 120 by Mason Filippi and Mark Wilkins in their No. 98 Hyundai Elantra N TCR. This win at the Battle on the Bricks is the manufacturer’s third victory of the season and the first of the season for the #98 Elantra N TCR team. Completing the two-hour race on just one pit stop forced Filippi to master his fuel-saving techniques, taking the checkered flag on mere fumes. Their race from last to first elevates Wilkins and Filippi to third in the series standings, and still mathematically eligible for the title with just one round remaining.

 

Drivers Harry Gottsacker and Robert Wickens claimed the second step of the podium in the No. 33 entry to complete Hyundai’s one-two finish at the iconic Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The pair started 11th and raced to their sixth podium finish of the season, strengthening their runner-up points position.

 

The #77 Elantra N TCR driven by Bryson Morris and Taylor Hagler matched their best finish of the year, finishing fourth at Indianapolis. The pair recovered from a dramatic fire during qualifying, which brought out a red flag and compromised not only their qualifying effort but also the effort of their teammates, the #33 and #98, forcing them to take the green flag from the final three positions on the grid.

 

Preston Brown earned his best starting position of the season when he qualified 4th in the #76 Elantra N TCR. His day ended abruptly on just the fourth lap when he was hit by a GS car. Brown and co-driver Denis Dupont are tied for fourth place in the TCR standings.

 

The final round of the 2024 IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge takes place at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia. The Fox Factory 120 is a 2-hour "sprint" race on Friday, October 11, 2024, and will air live on NBC's Peacock.

 

Started: 11th Finished: 2nd 2024 Rank: 2nd (2600pts)

 

Harry Gottsacker: "It’s nice to grab an other podium at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and bring home some much needed points. The team worked the strategy well today and that’s what put us in the position for a P2 finish. We have spent the last few races battling back from adversity and it will be good to put in a solid run at Atlanta."

 

Robert Wickens: "After a tough qualifying for BHA, we really showed who we are as a team. We never gave up and found ourselves in great position at the driver change. From there it was a really challenging stint saving enough fuel to make it to the end, but it was our best chance at keeping the championship fight alive. P2 was the best we could manage but it was great to see our teammates Mark and Mason pick up the win. Hyundai led a lot of laps which means a great day for Hyundai Hope On Wheels. September is pediatric cancer awareness month and I'm proud the Hyundai race cars raised $6700 at Indy for the Riley Children's Hospital.

 

Started: 4th Finish: 11th 2024 Rank: 4th- tied (2410pts)

 

Denis Dupont: "Indy was a disappointing race for us. Preston started third and managed to stay at the front at the start. A competitor ran into him in turn 1. The car had too much damage to continue. On to Road Atlanta."

 

Preston Brown: "Clearly Indy was a big disappointment for us. I had good pace going into the race and felt strong in the car, and to cap it off I was starting in my highest grid starting position of the year. There was nothing I could have done to avoid the incident that occurred just a few laps into the race... being eliminated so quickly stings. We will recover and attempt to put on a strong end-of-the-year finish at Road Atlanta, and take what we have learned during our first year with Bryan Herta Autosport into next year's season."

 

Started: 12th Finished: 4th 2024 Rank: 7th (2220pts)

Taylor Hagler: "Our day didn’t start as planned, but we were able to rebound to finish the day with a solid fourth-place finish. A big thank you to the No. 77 Bryan Herta Autosport team for their quick work to replace the engine and get us on the grid in time to race. The start was one of those moments you love as a racing driver - finding the lane that is open and pushing the car before the first turn. We will finish out the season at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta with the same mentality of pushing as hard as we can."

 

Bryson Morris: "It was a good weekend. After a difficult qualifying, we were able to come back and finish fourth, matching our best finish of the year. We are still looking for a podium result at the next event, which also happens to be my favorite track in the USA, Road Atlanta."

 

Started: 13th Finished: 1st 2024 Rank: 3rd (2540)

Mason Filippi: "We won at Indy! Mark did an incredible job in the first stint and we had everything come together in the #98 Elantra N TCR. The fuel strategy was intense, and we had some good battles. It felt incredible to kiss the bricks, and Mark and I are looking forward to carrying this momentum into the final race. Huge thank you to the whole team and Hyundai for giving us an incredible race car."

 

Mark Wilkins: "This one feels great! It was anything but a straightforward race but we stayed out of trouble, had a fantastic pit stop, and Mason drove a perfect stint. We put it all together and it feels great. 1-2 for Hyundai at Indy is pretty sweet! We led a lot of laps for HHOW and extended the lead in the manufacturers' championship! 

 

One more to go! Would love to end the season with another Win!" 

 

Founded in 2009, Bryan Herta Autosport has grown from a single car Indy-Lights team into a multi-championship winning auto racing franchise. Led by IndyCar and Sports Car star Bryan Herta, Bryan Herta Autosport has won races in every discipline they have entered, including Indy Lights, Indy Car, Global Rallycross, and championship titles in Pirelli World Challenge and IMSA. BHA rose to prominence after winning the 2011 Indianapolis 500 in what was the final race of the Centennial Era, a celebration of 100 years of racing at The Indianapolis Motor Speedway, with driver Dan Wheldon. Five years later, BHA partnered with Andretti Autosport, and defied the odds again, winning their second Indianapolis 500 with rookie driver Alexander Rossi. In 2018, BHA entered the American Sports Car scene beginning its immensely successful partnership with Hyundai. Together, BHA and Hyundai have won five consecutive team and driver championships, and four consecutive (2020, 2021, 2022, 2023) manufacturer's titles in IMSA's Michelin Pilot Challenge. For more information, visit: www.BryanHertaAutosport.com.

 

BHA/Hyundai Customer Support: Bryan Herta Autosport is the U.S. sales agent and part support representative of Hyundai TCR race cars for customer teams. The BHA/Hyundai Customer Support Team offers trackside engineering support, setup and tuning advice, and part and order fulfillments for the Hyundai Veloster N TCR and TCA teams and drivers from the BHA’s headquarters in Speedway, IN. in 2024, there are five BHA Customer Support Teams racing Elantra N TCR cars in Canada, The USA and in Mexico.

 

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