 |
|
|
|
| · 2013 Australia GP: Formula One F1 Practice Two Results - Vettel, Red Bull Fastest! (Mar 15, 2013)
· 2013 Australia GP: Formula One F1 Practice One Results - Vettel, Red Bull Fastest! (Mar 14, 2013)
· 2013 IndyCar: Barber Park Wednesday Test Results - Power, Chevrolet Fastest! (Mar 13, 2013)
· 2013 IndyCar: Barber Park Tuesday Test Results - Power, Chevrolet Fastest! (Mar 13, 2013)
· 2013 Las Vegas: NASCAR Sprint Cup Race Results - Kenseth, Toyota Win! (Mar 10, 2013)
|
Previous Top Stories! |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Goldburg Claims 2nd Cooper Tires Prototype Lites Win At Sebring In Race 1
The Cooper Tires Prototype Lites Series Powered by Mazda returned to race mode at Sebring International Raceway with a bang today for the 61st Annual Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring fueled by Fresh from Florida.
|
|
|
Daniel Goldburg of Performance Tech Motorsports was on the fast track leading the field to the green flag, and second and third place Ryan Booth and Sean Rayhall spent the first few laps jockeying for position.
Sean Rayhall's No. 14 Comprent Motor Sports car started the event very strong. In fact, his best race lap of 1:59:375 eclipsed last year's previous race record set by last year's Series Champion Tristan Nunez. But despite setting a new Sebring race record, his L1 machine faltered while he and Booth were chasing down race leader Goldburg, and he ultimately was forced to retire his car.
"We were running good, obviously Dan (Goldburg) was in the lead but we were chasing him down and gaining every lap," Rayhall said. "Unfortunately my shifter broke and I was stuck in fourth gear. We tried to bring it home and stay out there as long as possible but we weren't gaining anything. It's unfortunate that we had a mechanical failure but we'll be back at it tomorrow."
On lap 10, Lamont Harris of Comprent Motor Sports went into the tires in Turn 16 after turning his fastest lap of the race.
The field went back to green on lap 12, which gave Ryan Booth the opportunity he needed to put pressure on Daniel Goldburg for the lead. Unfortunately Booth ran out of time to chase his teammate down and Goldburg took the checkered flag for the first race of the season.
"My Performance Tech car was solid today," Goldburg said. "I just tried to look forward and not watch the mirrors. At the end there my teammate Ryan Booth gave me a run and I had to put a couple wheels off in Turn 16 on the last lap. He kept me honest, but I held it together and I'm extremely pleased to come out with a win in the first race of the season."
Today was Goldburg's second Prototype Lites career visit to victory circle at Sebring International Raceway. He took home his first Series trophy at this circuit in 2011.
Second place finisher Booth was hoping for a few more laps that would give him an advantage over Goldburg.
"I didn't have a great start but I tucked in and tried to chase Goldburg down," Booth said. "The double yellows at the end allowed me to get really close to him but he managed to hold me off."
Mikhail Goikhberg, 2012 championship runner-up for Cooper Tires Prototype Lites Powered by Mazda, landed in the final spot on the podium.
"Today was okay for us," the JDC Motorsports driver said. "We didn't have the speed, but we walked into a third place so we'll gladly take that. I'll be focusing on getting more out of the car tomorrow and trying to maximize points. It's great to be back to racing here at Sebring after a long off-season though."
Race 1 was slowed by one caution period for a total of two laps, and 17 of the 20 drivers who started the race were still running at the end.
Race 2 for the Cooper Tires Prototype Lites Powered by Mazda Series, a 45-minute timed race, will start at 11:30 a.m. ET on Friday, March 15.
For a video link of the Post Race press conference, click here. For up-to-date event information, including live timing and scoring, session results and downloadable Spotter's Guides, connect to the series website, or click this hot-link.
Live on-track session updates can be found on Twitter @IMSALites or on Facebook.
The Master Classmen
Jon Brownson led the Master Class to the green flag in Race 1 followed in close pursuit by teammates Owen Kratz and Richard Fant from Ferrari of Houston.
Scott Tucker and Gerry Kraut, who started sixth and seventh respectively in the Master Class, spent much of the race in spirited competition with their fellow class competitors as well as the rest of the field. Tucker, driving for Level 5 Motorsports, fought his way up to third before settling for fifth. Kraut finished an impressive second on the Master Class Podium.
"I qualified terribly, but through some skill and luck I worked my way up," Kraut said. "I'm concentrating on making tomorrow a much better day all around."
Jon Brownson took the Master Class win for Race 1.
"It was a great start to the season," Brownson, of Eurosport Racing, said. "It's always a pleasure to start off the season in Sebring. I moved up a few positions on the track today and that's definitely a good thing. I'm looking forward to building on that tomorrow. "
Daniel Mancini, driving for Performance Tech, rounded out the Master Class podium in third.
"I focused on staying consistent today to get closer to the front," Mancini said. "I haven't been driving at all during the off-season so it feels fantastic to get back in the car."
The Qualifying Report
Qualifying for Cooper Tires Prototype Lites Powered by Mazda at Sebring International Raceway saw Daniel Goldburg of Performance Tech shatter Tristan Nunez's qualifying record by nearly two seconds with a lap of 1:57.668, taking the Cooper Tires Pole Award for the first race of the season.
Young guns Sean Rayhall and Ryan Booth were right behind Goldburg with laps that also broke the previous track qualifying record.
Per new IMSA Development Series Rules and Regulations, Sean Rayhall of Comprent Motor Sports will take the Cooper Tires Pole point position for tomorrow's second race, as the second fastest lap of the qualifying session today.
He will be joined by Performance Tech teammates Ryan Booth and Daniel Goldburg as the second and third place starting positions.
PaddockTalk Perspective
|
|
|
Also in American Le Mans Series News: |
|
| |
|
