• Runner-up finish in first race for new CrowdStrike, APR partnership
• Team raced into darkness and into daylight to start IMSA season
• Winners of CrowdStrike Endurance, Teamwork, Speed award to be announced at Sebring 12 Hours
• CrowdStrike CXO Summit VIPs enjoy exclusive race experience

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Feb. 1, 2023) – CrowdStrike Racing by APR (Algarve Pro Racing) wrote a magical story in its first race with a runner-up LMP2 finish in the prestigious Rolex 24 At Daytona to open the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.

The first-year program was one of the feel-good stories around Daytona International Speedway on Saturday and Sunday. The quartet of George Kurtz, Ben Hanley, Matt McMurry and Esteban Gutiérrez completed 761 laps for 2,709.16 miles around the 3.56-mile road course at Daytona International Speedway in their No. 04 CrowdStrike/Accel ORECA 07-Gibson prototype coupe.

It wasn’t just that the CrowdStrike by APR entry led the LMP2 class Saturday and Sunday. The car led multiple times with each driver leading at least once as daylight broke Sunday in Daytona Beach. It came after Kurtz started the car fifth in class Saturday afternoon.

CrowdStrike by APR dominated the final four hours and led the most laps in the last quarter of the race to set the stage for the closest finish in race history – 0.016 seconds after 24 hours of hard racing.

Although the race win eluded the team on its debut, there is now a solid foundation for the team to build on for the final three races of its WeatherTech Championship program, which continues Saturday, March 18 with the 12 Hours of Sebring from Sebring (Fla.) International Raceway.

Speaking of Sebring, that will be where CrowdStrike presents its first Endurance, Teamwork, Speed award of the 2023 season.

As an Official Partner of IMSA for the second year in a row, CrowdStrike’s impact in the WeatherTech Championship and the Rolex 24 increased as presenting sponsor of the exciting CrowdStrike Endurance, Teamwork and Speed Award.

Awarded to teams following each Michelin Endurance Cup event of 2023, the honor recognizes the team in each of the five IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship classes that demonstrates the unique qualities needed to be successful – both on the racetrack in the pitlane – in the series’ four biggest races:

• Endurance: Running at the finish of the race;
• Teamwork: The most efficient time on pitlane, putting a premium on efforts by the driver and crew;
• Speed: A car’s best qualifying time and fastest race lap.

The philosophies within the Endurance, Teamwork and Speed Award match CrowdStrike’s approach as a global leader and provider of cybersecurity solutions. In racing, as in cybersecurity, success comes from delivering superior performance as a team, having a relentless focus on execution, and understanding that the clock doesn’t lie — speed matters.

In addition to sponsoring the Endurance, Teamwork and Speed Award, CrowdStrike’s IMSA partnership will also include on-track signage at the Michelin Endurance Cup tracks such as Daytona International Speedway. CrowdStrike will host exclusive IMSA experiences for CrowdStrike VIPs and guests at select WeatherTech Championship races throughout the season.

One of the most valuable parts of any CrowdStrike Racing weekend is its unique CXO Summit, which takes place at a number of major motorsports events throughout the year.

An initiative of CrowdStrike and Amazon Web Services (AWS) for a number of years, CXO summits bring together CISOs and VIPs at a motorsports environment for discussions with thought leaders on leading trends and topics that are key to the cybersecurity industry.

Approximately 45 attendees heard from CrowdStrike Chief Security Officer, Shawn Henry and Angelo Comazzetto, Senior Principal in the Office of the CISO at AWS. Together, the two discussed with the group growing a security culture at their respective businesses, preparing company leadership for modern cybersecurity and protection, and predicted a number of trends that CISOs must continue to monitor.

Following the exchange of ideas, the VIP group was treated to trackside hospitality at Daytona and received tours of exclusive areas including the CrowdStrike Racing by APR team garage for a meet-and-greet with drivers and team members.

CrowdStrike Racing guests also had the chance to tour IMSA race control – where officials watch over the competitors – visited the team in pit lane to see a live pit stop, and also had the opportunity to take laps in high-performance cars around the Daytona International Speedway.

GEORGE KURTZ – NO. 04 CROWDSTRIKE ORECA 07-GIBSON LMP2: “First off, everyone did a super job. CrowdStrike Racing by APR, Esteban, Ben and Matt, they were all phenomenal. Full credit to Stewart Cox of Algarve Pro Racing for putting this program together pretty late in the off-season. We didn’t have a lot of testing, so we have to be encouraged by the results. Certainly, we wanted the top step, but we’ll take some good learnings from this and focus on our next LMP2 race at Sebring.”

BEN HANLEY – NO. 04 CROWDSTRIKE ORECA 07-GIBSON LMP2: “The result isn’t ideal but there is a lot we can take from this weekend. We showed that we can be competitive out of the box against a really deep P2 field. To come here to the Rolex 24 as a new team and a new group of drivers and come that close to winning is incredible. I’m really proud of everyone at CrowdStrike Racing by APR for the effort they put in. The sting will hurt for a bit but there is so much we can take from here to Sebring and the rest of the Michelin Endurance Cup season.”

MATT McMURRY – NO. 04 CROWDSTRIKE ORECA 07-GIBSON LMP2: “I’m incredibly impressed with the quality and preparation of the team, especially considering how little time they had to prepare. I’ve done this race 8 times now and this new CrowdStrike Racing by APR team is one of the best I’ve ever worked with. Everyone is disappointed with a finish like that where with one second to go you think we have it and then we didn’t. Everyone did everything they could. We’ll find a little more pace to come back stronger at Sebring.”

ESTEBAN GUTIÉRREZ – NO. 04 CROWDSTRIKE ORECA 07-GIBSON LMP2: “Overall, it has been a really nice experience working with the team, the guys at CrowdStrike and George. It has been a great experience and also a good opportunity to be here for the first time. We all did our best and everything we could, but there’s always that little more you can do to secure the win. It’s a hard one to take but we need to take this second place and learn from it. It’s not ideal but we have to maximize everything to get the win next time.