WeatherTech Racing drivers Cooper MacNeil (Hinsdale, ILL), Alessandro Balzan (Italy) and Gunnar Jeannette (Salt Lake City, Ut.) are taking the momentum of a top ten finish at the Rolex 24 At Daytona to the second round of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring to run Saturday, March 17.
The No. 63 WeatherTech Ferrari team is looking for strong run at the historic central Florida circuit this weekend. MacNeil is a former Sebring winner (2012), Balzan has also won at the historic track (2016) and Jeannette has been on the podium.
The 3.7-mile, 17-turn historic Sebring circuit is tough on driver and equipment. The Scuderia Corsa prepped WeatherTech Racing Ferrari 488 participated in the IMSA Sebring test three weeks ago and all three drivers left pleased with a base set-up to start the race week.
“We were able to put in a lot of quality laps at the test,” MacNeil said. “The Scuderia Corsa guys took our feedback and together we were able to get the WeatherTech Ferrari 488 faster each session. The GTD field is very competitive, it takes a complete effort behind the wheel, in the paddock and in the pits to run at the front. Our team has a lot of miles at Sebring. Alessandro and I have won there, we want to help Gunnar get a win there as well.”
“We had great two days of testing,” Balzan said. “After Daytona everyone worked really hard studying data and moving forward to improve WeatherTech Racing Ferrari. During the second day we started to understand the new Continental tires. I had a good feeling and all of the drivers were giving the same feedback. Competition is really strong in the GTD Class, but I know that if we will use all the potential of our Ferrari we will be very competitive. I had two podiums with a win in 2016 at Sebring in the last two seasons. I love Sebring, particularly the section between Turn 15 and 16, the double high-speed change of direction!”
“The test a few weeks ago went well,” Jeannette said. “We learned a lot that hopefully we can apply to the race weekend. The track at Sebring changes so much that it’s hard to leave a test with a set-up that you’re confident will work on the race weekend. Our WeatherTech Ferrari 488 should be a match for any other car in our class. We have a fantastic driver lineup and a great team behind us. I love Sebring. The whole weekend is both super fun and really challenging. You have to respect and adapt to the track and a win here means you’ve really accomplished something. It’s not a new type circuit, it has a lot of character and there are no other turns in motorsport like Turn 1 or Turn 17.”
The IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GTD competitors will qualify on Friday, March 16 at 12:30 p.m. ET. The green flag will drop on the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring at Sebring International Raceway on Saturday, March 17 at 10:40 a.m. The race start will be televised live on FS1 starting at 10:30 a.m. The action will switch to FS2 at 12:30 p.m., then transistion to FoxGO at 3:40 p.m. and then back to FS2 at 6 p.m. for the finish.
