Racing two completely different cars in two different races, Kiwis Brendon Hartley and Earl Bamber were able to spray champagne from the top step of the podium at Austin's Circuit of the Americas.
Hartley claimed his third straight World Endurance Championship race victory with teammates Mark Webber and Timo Bernhard, and their LMP1 919 Hybrid. The win was aided by issues for both of Audi's LMP1 R18s, the #8 car suffering electrical issues and the #7 getting taken out following a collision with a slower car.
The #8 Di Grassi/Duval/Jarvis Audi looked like it might bounce back to threaten Hartley's Porsche in the closing phase of the race, but it couldn't, and the trio that had to endure such an unlucky start to the year ended up with the win.
Bamber won their shorter race in somewhat similar fashion following the failings of some of his and co-driver Frédéric Makowiecki's main rivals in the GTLM class.
By the end of the race, it was a three-horse race between a third-placed Bamber, the second-placed Nick Tandy in the other factory Porsche 911 RSR, and Ferrari driver and former F1 star Giancarlo Fisichella.
