Rebel Rock Racing Bounces Back for Solid Fourth-Place Finish at Watkins Glen

WATKINS GLEN, NY (25 June 2022) – Rebel Rock Racing rebounded from an early incident to post its best finish of the 2022 IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge season, taking fourth in Saturday’s Tioga Downs Casino Resort 120.

Frank DePew managed to keep the No. 71 Urban Grid Chevrolet Camaro GT4.R on the lead lap after suffering from a cut a tire on lap eight – dropping all the way to 26th.  But the team responded quickly to allow the duo to make a charge in the closing moments.

Liddell stormed through the pack during the final 20 minutes, barely missing the podium. In a three-car battle for second all the way to the checkered flag, Liddell eventually missed the podium by a mere 0.179-seconds.

“I pushed as hard as I could,” Liddell said. “Since we were still on the lead lap, I gave it all I had. I raced them hard and clean, and had some good battles with people. It was nip and tuck with a lot of guys, and they raced me clean, and I’m happy with that.

“It’s a shame we didn’t finish on the podium, because that would have been awesome,” Liddell continued. “But under the circumstances from early in the race, to finish fourth was a strong result. I’m very happy with the car and the team, they performed well. I had some good restarts and made up a lot of positions, but the car purely does not have enough grunt – and it comes down to the restrictor. I’m not complaining too much, but at end of the day, the BMW (winner Bill Auberlen) just drove to the front, easily. Nobody should be able to drive to the front as easy as that, and I hope IMSA does something about that.”

Qualifying 20th, DePew held that position until side-by-side contact in Turn 1 on the ninth lap. DePew continued, but drove through the grass in the Inner Loop with a cut left-front tire. He limped to the pits for a new tire and was able to continue on the lead lap.

“We had a bit of contact that caused us to cut a tire,” DePew said. “Fortunately, we were able to stay on the lead lap, so I can thank the crew for that. It was fun out there. I was following a group of cars, and I think somebody checked up in front. I went to the outside to try to miss it, but ultimately, Sheena Monk and I got together, and it damaged our car a little. It was an unfortunate incident, but we were able to continue running.”

Since the team kept the car on the lead lap, that stop ultimately enabled DePew to gain track position during a lengthy caution prior to the race reaching minimum driving time. As a result, DePew was running ninth when he pitted under green at the 45-minute mark, putting Liddell in position for his second-half moves to the front.

The series now moves to Canada for the first time in three years for Saturday’s Canadian Tire Motorsport Park 120, beginning the second half of the 10-race season.