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Second straight podium for Riley-Matthews.

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Riley-Matthews Motorsports continued to show fine form in Rolex Sports Car Series competition, taking third place in Sunday's Bosch Engineering 250 at Virginia International Raceway to add to victory in Mexico City a week earlier.

Jim Matthews led the race early before turning the car over to Marc Goossens, who brought the Riley-Pontiac home in third. Riley-Matthews entered the race weekend second in the Rolex Series team championship standings, and the third place finish further strengthened the team's position in the order as the VIR event marked the eighth straight top-ten finish for the duo.

“We had a great second pit stop, and picked up several spots with the job the guys did over the wall,” Riley-Matthews Motorsports president Bill Riley. “That was key, because we had a solid car but we didn't have quite the speed that we did in Mexico, so it was great to get that kind of boost out of our pit stop. Jim had a great day, running well up front in the opening stages and then getting the Trueman Award again. And Marc just did his normal awesome job. This is great for the points, and we're already looking ahead to Laguna Seca.”

Matthews not only gained precious Team Championship points with the result, but also made positive progress in the Trueman Award standings with the VIR podium. His co-driver Goossens, who made several highlight reels with his outside pass for the victory in Mexico City, was once again in several battles for position as he worked the silver No. 91 into podium position.

“The Riley-Matthews team was strong on that end, and I'm so glad to be part of it, being up on the podium twice in a row with Jim next to me,” he said. “That's what he's doing it for, and I'm here to help him.

“I think the team, especially in a race like today, showed very clearly that they are one of the better if not the best teams in the paddock. If you look at how they played it, strategy-wise, to get us up front and score a podium finish for us. On pure speed ¬ I'm not saying we weren't strong enough to be third, ¬ but we definitely didn't have the speed like the first two guys had. It took quite a manoeuvre on Ian James to take away that third place.

“It's all down to the team. We've got a good programme running here. We've kept going from the momentum at the end of last year. Everybody's keeping their heads down and working hard, and that's what's needed to be a front runner in this competitive championship.”