To call 2013 a successful year for Dempsey Racing would be the definition of an understatement. Expecting anything less for 2014 would be foolish. Patrick, internationally known for his acting talent, is earning a reputation in the paddock for his tenacity, desire, and driving skills. The team he has built over the last handful of years has pulled off some extraordinary feats, and keeps writing new chapters. The excellent showing at Le Mans last year was just the beginning.
As we've known for a while, Dempsey Racing has entered into to a two-year promotional and brand cooperation relationship with Porsche, and has raced exclusively in Porsche cars since early last season. For this year, Dempsey has hired Andrew Davis to drive the 27 car for the full season. Davis is no stranger to Porsches, having won the Grand-Am GT championship with Brumos in 2011. Additionally, Patrick has committed himself to the entire 10 race GTD season, forcing his acting schedule to work around his racing endeavors. Rounding out the team, Joe Foster and Marc Lieb will be joining in for the North American Endurance Series events at Daytona, Sebring, Watkins Glen, and Road Atlanta.
Patrick Dempsey -
"Driving the full season with Andrew as my teammate is fantastic. He is truly one of the good guys in the paddock and we learned working with him last year that he is also one of the fastest on the track too, and very experienced in Porsches. We are heading into this season with high expectations.
“Last year was a great first season with Porsche, in ALMS and with our fourth-place GTE-AM finish at Le Mans. In many ways, it was our most successful season ever and we have every reason to believe that will continue, certainly, as something to build on this season, especially with Andrew on the team.”
Andrew Davis -
“I am absolutely thrilled to be driving with Patrick and Dempsey Racing for the 2014 IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar Championship,” Davis said. “The Dempsey Racing crew is comprised of some of the best personnel in the business and our new Porsche 911 GT America is going to be strong. Additionally, the technical partnership with Konrad Motorsport will further strengthen the program.”
The No. 28 Dempsey Racing car will be a joint venture with Germany's Konrad Motorsport. The car will be driven by team principal Franz Konrad, as well as Christian Engelhart, Rolf Ineichen, Lance Willsey, and Klaus Bachler at the Daytona 24 to start the season. Bachler is a Porsche Junior driver from Austria with recent Porsche Supercup experience. Engelhart, hailing from Germany races regularly with Konrad Motorsport in Porsche Supercup as well as the German Carrera Cup. Ineichen is also a Konrad team member, having won the B-class German Carrera Cup championship last year. Willsey is an American who brings extensive Porsche 911 GT3 racing experience to the table. Konrad is an accomplished driver himself, with podiums at Le Mans, the Nurburgring, and a GT2 class win at Daytona.
Who Will Dempsey Get As Sponsors?
Sponsorship for either car is currently up in the air, and has not yet been finalized. We do know that 2013 sponsor Tully's Coffee has vacated the team for 2014, winding up on the GB Autosport car, instead. Patrick Dempsey, until recently, was a part-owner of the Tully's name, with partner Michael Avenatti. As of August, a legal battle ensued, and Dempsey dissolved the partnership.
The pair had acquired the company out of bankruptcy, and had continued to operate the 40 Puget Sound area locations under the name Global Baristas. Dempsey had agreed to no monetary contribution in the company, with Avenatti providing the capital to fund the acquisition, and sufficient working capital to continue operations. The suit stated that Avenatti used the Global Baristas name to borrow two million dollars for working capital without informing Dempsey. It goes on to state that the loan carries an "exorbitant" 15% interest rate.
In an interesting turn of events, a couple of days ago the GB Autosport car arrived for the Roar Before the 24 test at Daytona in full Tully's silver and black livery, with Michael Avenatti's name listed as one of the drivers.
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Information Sources: Dempsey Racing, Seattle Times
Photography Sources: Dempsey Racing, Andrew Davis Racing, Konrad Motorsport, and Sportscar365.com
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