Murry Pulls A Double This Weekend
Dylan Murry has competed in two race series on the same weekend before, just not at tracks 700 miles apart. The talented young driver has that opportunity this week, racing in Saturday’s IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge event at Road America in Wisconsin, one day after venturing to Watkins Glen International in New York to take on the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East race.
While the 18-year-old native of Cumming, Georgia, has experience in both series – including his first Pilot Challenge win last month at Watkins Glen – he’s never doubled up with them on the same weekend. And while Murry has driven in two series at the same track in a weekend – including winning the IMSA Prototype Challenge race and finishing second in the Pilot Challenge contest at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in May – this will be the first time testing his skills and stamina on two very different permanent road courses.
”I’ve driven the Mercedes in the Michelin Pilot and the Prototype Challenge in the same weekend before, but going to two different tracks, back and forth, it’s going to be really mentally and physically draining,” Murry said. “I’ve just got to make sure I get some sleep, keep eating healthy and drink lots of water.
“It’s going to be a mentally draining weekend, but all worth it, for sure.”
Murry, the son of longtime sports car driver David Murry, is in his second season competing in Pilot Challenge. Driving the No. 35 Mercedes-AMG in the Grand Sport (GS) class for Team Riley Motorsports, he teamed with Jeroen Bleekemolen and James Cox to win the Watkins Glen race on June 29. The elder Murry said that victory helped lead to the deal with Jefferson Pitts Racing to drive in the K&N East race at the iconic circuit in upstate New York.
“With him winning the IMSA race there, it sure helped fuel that fire quite a bit,” David Murry said. Dylan Murry drove in a pair of K&N East races in 2017, including an eighth-place finish at Watkins Glen.
The younger Murry’s schedule will see him get the bulk of seat time in the Mercedes at Road America during a promoter test day on Thursday before heading to Milwaukee to board a prop plane bound for Watkins Glen that evening. Including a refueling stop, he said he doesn’t expect to arrive until 2 a.m. Friday.
The K&N event is a one-day show, so Murry will practice, qualify and race on Friday before making the return flight to Milwaukee that evening. Back at Road America on Saturday, Murry will get limited seat time in the morning practice before Cox qualifies the car. The Road America 120, a two-hour race, is scheduled to begin at 5:05 p.m. ET Saturday.
“I’m hoping to get the most publicity out of this as possible and hopefully it’ll benefit my career in both IMSA and NASCAR,” Dylan Murry said, adding he’s thankful to Riley Motorsports for allowing him to split his time over the weekend and to Jefferson Pitts Racing for the opportunity.
