The Am class championship battle not only came down to the final race of the season at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, it continued to unfold in the last few corners, with everyone on the sidelines waiting under bated breath to see who would take the title. However, for Robb Holland, Team Owner and driver at Rotek Racing, this wasn’t exactly unfamiliar territory.
“I’ve been in this position before, fighting for championships that came down to the last race,” said Robb Holland. “We were fairly confident going into the final rounds at Indy. Our cars had been running well leading up to that weekend, and with the speed we had in qualifying and in Race 1, we knew we had a real shot at the championship on Sunday, but we also knew we had a fight ahead of us.”
They went into Race 2 with a slight advantage over their competitors, but remained highly aware of the fact that there was no room for error, and every position gained or lost mattered. The temperatures gave them an additional element to contend with as it affected their pace on track, allowing title rivals Random Vandals Racing to rejoin the fight. As the clock counted down and the laps elapsed, Holland attempted to keep the BMW team within a manageable distance in order to take advantage when the right opportunity arose, but it appeared as though time was running out.
“Coming into the last lap, I thought that was it, we gave it all we could,” he recalled, explaining that he had accepted that they were about to come up short in their championship quest. “Then I saw the Vandals car was struggling a bit, and in turn recognized that we could go on the attack and get around them in the last few corners.”
As he powered ahead of his opponent and crossed the finish line, he felt like he was in shock as he began to process the extreme rollercoaster of emotions as he shifted from disappointment to pure elation within a few short minutes.
“We were all kind of surprised,” he added. “Since I was the one in the car, I could see what was unfolding, but the team didn’t realize until we took the checkered flag what had just happened. It was a great feeling to come out on top. The team did a phenomenal job and this was an incredible year for us all.”
Rotek Racing captured the Driver and Team Championships across both Pirelli GT4 America and GT America powered by AWS series, an accomplishment that Holland spoke about with a great deal of excitement. As he splits his duties between being a Team Owner and a driver, he has a lot of pride in all the success the team has seen, indicating that there’s only more to come from this group.
“Being able to bring home all these championships means so much to us. The crew have worked so hard all year long to get us to this point. As a driver, you always want to bring home a title for the team because you know they are always working hard on your car. It truly is a team effort, regardless of whether you're a driver or a Team Owner. We've built this program over the years, and we've been slow and methodical about it in order to make sure we did it right in order to really focus on the growth and development of the team so we could be competitive for a long time and be able to go head to head but these other established programs such as Random Vandals Racing and BimmerWorld. To be able to come out on top in that battle was really fulfilling and just goes to show that we’ve made excellent developments.”
The progress was steady, with Holland and new teammate Jaden Lander taking the first opening rounds as an adjustment period as they got up to speed, but it didn’t take long before they hit their stride.
“The first couple of events didn’t go our way,” he elaborated. “We took it as an opportunity to sit down and reboot so we could establish a game plan going forward. We reviewed our weaknesses and where we were losing time on track, and addressed everything we could by the time we arrived at COTA. From there, we just hit the ground running and were able to score a podium. I think that was the impetus for the next half of the season. We were able to capitalize on that success and build on it. It’s a really cool feeling when you’re able to come up with a plan and it starts to come together and culminates in successes, wins, and championships.”
Although they didn’t get off to the start they had hoped for, they never allowed their focus to stray away from their title pursuit. The goal from the beginning was to challenge for the top spot, and they weren’t going to let a couple of early setbacks throw them off course. The strong comeback in Texas established the tone for what was to come, as they went on to secure another three podiums and four victories, claiming the Am class championship by a 10-point margin.
“As a team, we understood exactly what the mission was and we were able to bring that all together,” he detailed. “I think VIR was where we started recognizing that we had a real shot at winning the whole thing, and we were brought even closer in the standings after the weekend at Road America. We had good momentum and we were making a lot of progress, and that’s when we said it’s time to make this happen.”
Holland gave his team high praise for their ability to execute and deliver consistently, and credits them for being able to handle all the added pressures that come with competing in multiple series.
“We’ve got really good people around us,” he expressed. “The crew know exactly what they’re doing and I’m able to rely on Brian, our Technical Director, who I consider to be my right hand man. It allows me to be able to use my time effectively so that if I’m being pulled in one direction, he can cover for me on the other side. I’m really proud of the fact that we’re able to balance and juggle all of these elements and still walk away with championships in two different series. It’s amazing for us and it just goes to show that the hard work and effort we're putting into this is paying off.”