After four practice sessions totalling 4.5hrs, the qualifying sessions took place at lunchtime on Friday, with
separate 15mins sessions for each class, with the GTD class runners being the first to take to the track.
When the chequered flag signalled the end of the session, it was the # 51 Spirit of Race entered Ferrari 488
GTE, driven by Daniel Serra, which had claimed the top spot, with a lap in 1min 58.710secs. 2nd fastest was
the # 29 Montaplast by Land Motorsport entered Audi R8 LMS GT3 with Christopher Mies at the wheel,
followed closely by the # 15 3GT Racing Lexus RC F GT3 entry driven by Jack Hawksworth, with the top six
cars covered by less than a second. One of the group didn’t make it to the qualifying session, this being the #
93 AX GT3 of Michael Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian, which had suffered a heavy impact with the tyre
wall during the Thursday practice session after reported brake failure. However, the team valiantly repaired it in
time for the race, and their efforts were rewarded with a 5th in class when the chequered flag fell on Saturday
evening.
GTLM class qualifying honours went to the # 25 BMW Team RLL entered BMW M8 GTLM driven by Connor
de Phillippi, just ahead of the # 62 Risi Competizione entered Ferrari 488 GTE driven by James Calado, with
the second # 24 BMW Team RLL BMW M8 GTLM 3rd quickest driven by Jesse Krohn. All nine entries in the
class were covered by a fraction over a second, so there was going to be some frantic race action in store. In
the prototype class things were equally close, with the top ten entries covered by under a second. The # 90
Spirit of Daytona Racing entered Cadillac DPi topped the time sheets with a lap in 1min 47.432secs in Tristan
Vautier’s hands. 2nd fastest was the # 2 Tequila Patron ESM entered Nissan DPi driven by Olivier Pla, with a
third different make, the # 7 Acura Team Penske entered Acura DPi, driven by Ricky Taylor, 3rd quickest. As
a point of note, all three class pole position laps were new qualifying records.
When the green flag was waved at 10.40 on the Saturday morning the pole sitting # 90 with Tristan Vautier at
the wheel led the field into the first turn, but the # 2 Nissan of Olivier Pla tried to go around the outside and
there was contact, this saw the Nissan spinning out onto the grass and the field swept past it. The contact
had done some damage to the Nissan and it slowly trundled back to the pits for investigation. It wasn’t the
only one that suffered contact, as both the # 3 Corvette and the class pole sitting # 51 Ferrari collected left
rear punctures in separate incidents, necessitating slow journeys back to the pits for replacement rubber, and
then lost more time while the respective pit crews checked for further damage, making the remainder of the
race an uphill struggle for them. It transpired that the shock of the impact had caused transmission damage
to the # 2 Nissan, and it was posted as the first retirement. At virtually spot on the 30 minute mark, the # 64
Ferrari of Frank Montecalvo, was the innocent victim of the spinning # 52 Ligier LMP2 of Sebastian Soavedra
in Turn 17 coming onto the start-finish straight. The point of impact on the Ferrari flipped it onto its roof and
into the tyre barrier, fortunately without injury to the driver, but the damage was such that its race was run.
This led to a lengthy full course yellow while the Ferrari was recovered and the tyre barrier repaired.
After the hectic opening period things settled down a little, but there were still virtual trains of cars in all
classes vying for position, and still the full course yellows came, but mainly for short periods through minor
“indiscretions”. These served to bunch up the classes, and meant that when the race was running “green” that
there were constant battles for its duration. Whereas in the past the Mazda DPis have been fast but fragile,
the tie up with Joest Racing for the 2108 season seems to paying dividends, as despite a disappointing
Daytona race, they showed much improved form at Sebring. Their # 77 car driven by Oliver Jarvis posted the
fastest lap of the race, in a time of 1min 49.002secs (123.521 mph), a new class record. Brake problems
dropped it back, but the sister # 55 car was in contention for a 2nd place finish until its final pit stop when an
electrical issue dropped it off the lead lap to a 6th place finish.
After 12 hours of racing around the demanding and bumpy, thus physically tiring, Florida track, it was the #
22 Tequila Patron ESM Nissan DPi of van Overbeek, Derani and Lapierre that took the chequered flag first,
providing great relief and joy for the team, after losing their # 2 car on the 1st lap. They were only 12.427secs
ahead of the # 10 Cadillac DPi driven by J. Taylor/Van Der Zande and Hunter-Reay, with the top five finishers
all on the same lap. Porsche took the GTLM class win with their # 911 car driven by Pilet, Makowiecki and
Tandy, with the sister 912 example of Vanthoor, Bamber and Bruni finishing 3rd, sandwiching the # 25 BMW
of Sims, De Phillippi and Auberlen in 2nd place. As in the prototype class the top five finishers were all on the
same lap, and the class winning margin was only 6.230secs. Things were just as close in the GTD class,
with ten cars on the class lead lap at the finish, and leading them was the # 48 Lamborghini Huracan driven
by Sellers, Snow and Lewis, which finished 8.169secs ahead of the # 63 Ferrari of MacNeil, Balzan and
Jeanette, giving some cheer to Scuderia Corsa after the loss of their # 64 car early in the race.
The new BMW M8 GTE celebrated its maiden podium finish.
After 328 laps, Alexander Sims (GBR) finished round two of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship
second in the GTLM class at the wheel of car number 25. He had shared driving duties with fellow BMW
Team RLL drivers Connor De Phillippi and Bill Auberlen (both USA), leading the pack in some phases of the
race. The number 24 BMW M8 GTE – driven by Jesse Krohn (FIN), John Edwards (USA) and Nick Catsburg
(NED) – had to retire in the final hour of the race. The number 911 Porsche secured victory, just 6.230
seconds ahead of the second-placed BMW M8 GTE.
De Phillippi, Sims and Auberlen did a flawless job in the cockpit after starting from pole position. Their BMW
M8 GTE mastered the tough 12 hours of racing without major technical issues. Following a brake change
towards the end of the first half of the race, the trio lost a lap to the leaders, but managed to keep their cool
and fought back into the group of front-runners. Sims was able to secure the first podium finish for the newly
developed BMW M8 GTE as final-stint driver. In total, it was the 69th podium for BMW Team RLL and the
26th runner-up finish since 2009.
For car number 24 the race took a decisive turn after four hours and 17 minutes, when there was a collision
between the BMW M8 GTE and the number 66 Ford GT. Edwards had to head back to the pits with a water
leak and some extensive repair work followed. The car rejoined the race nine laps down from the leaders.
Edwards, Krohn and Catsburg ultimately had to retire in the final hour of the race. However, the trio recorded
the fastest GTLM lap – a 1:57.622 set by Krohn on lap 21. Car number 24 had also led the field in the early
stages of the race.
The Turner Motorsport team delivered a fighting performance in the GTD class. From 16th place on the grid,
Don Yount (USA), Dillon Machavern (USA) and Markus Palttala (FIN) improved to 11th position with the
number 96 BMW M6 GT3. In the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge race on Friday, Classic BMW’s Toby
Grahovec and Jayson Clunie (both USA) had reason to celebrate after finishing second with the number 26
BMW M4 GT4.
Comments on the race
Pascal Zurlinden, Director GT Factory Motorsports
“It’s a great achievement to score two podium spots at Sebring. The secret was our consistency and the fact
that we didn’t make one mistake. We may not have been the fastest over a lap, but over the distance the
drivers and the entire team put in a perfect performance. Even when we had to repair the #912 car in the pits,
we pulled out all stops to get the car back up the front. Today was a great day for Porsche. Thank you to all
the employees at Weissach. They contributed as much to this success as our team here in Sebring.”
Patrick Pilet (911 RSR #911)
“This win was missing from my collection. It was a great team effort. The pit crew didn’t make one mistake
and our strategy was perfect. To celebrate this achievement with my friends Nick and Fred is incredible. After
the qualifying, victory seemed a long way off. But when you’re determined to achieve something and you go
for it, you can do it. This race is proof of that.”
Nick Tandy (911 RSR #911)
“They say that the best victories come from the toughest races. Today was such a race. We didn’t have the
slightest problem over the entire distance and that was the key to our success. My last two stints were
incredibly intense, especially the duels with the Ferrari and the BMW. We switched to new tyres during the
last pit stop – after that, nothing could hold us back.”
Frédéric Makowiecki (911 RSR #911)
“That was one of my greatest successes. Sebring is my all-time favourite race in the USA and we knew that
we’d only have a chance if we as a team didn’t make any mistakes. It was a really tough race, but that
makes this victory all the more special.”
Earl Bamber (911 RSR #912)
“This race was a real rollercoaster for us. A case in point is when another car blocked our pits and we lost
twelve seconds and several positions. It was a banner day for Porsche. We’ve waited a long time for such a
sense of achievement. Now we’ll tackle the rest of the season feeling even more motivated.”
Laurens Vanthoor (911 RSR # 912)
“Victory and third place, what a great success for Porsche. The whole team has worked hard for this major
race and they deserve this success.”
Gianmaria Bruni (911 RSR # 912)
“I’m proud to be a part of this squad. What they’ve achieved today is hard to describe in words. It’s
unbelievable how quickly the mechanics got our car back in the race after I left the circuit briefly towards the
end and had to pit with a damaged diffuser.”
Jens Marquardt (BMW Motorsport Director)
“We have seen another exciting and extremely tough 12-hour race here at Sebring – and we can take many
positives back home. Congratulations to BMW Team RLL and our BMW Motorsport crew on the maiden
podium finish for our new BMW M8 GTE. The 12 hours here is more demanding than many 24-hour races on
other circuits. That makes this result even more special. Far more important than the result are two other
findings: On the one hand, the BMW M8 GTE was able to show its potential, which is underlined by the fact
we recorded pole position and the fastest race lap. On the other hand, the GTLM field was far better balanced
than it was at Daytona. The fans saw a thrilling race with close battles and excitement to the very last lap.
This is what we all want. We are now looking forward to the upcoming races. At Long Beach we will go flat
out again.”
Bobby Rahal (BMW Team RLL, Team Principal)
“After Daytona, this has been a much more competitive race for us. Naturally when you are that close you are
disappointed not to win. But if you look at the big picture, we made a lot of progress. It’s been a lot of hard
work put in by a lot of people. I’m just pleased we are able to bring home a second place. This is a pretty
good Sebring.”
Connor De Phillippi (#25 BMW M8 GTE, 2nd place)
“This whole weekend has been super memorable for me. First pole as a BMW works driver, and our first
podium position for the new BMW M8 GTE. I’m very proud of the guys. They deserve this one. We will
celebrate tonight.”
Alexander Sims (#25 BMW M8 GTE, 2nd place)
“It was very nice to be in the hunt for the win. The fight with Nick Tandy was fun. Ultimately they turned on the
pace a lot in the last stint, so I couldn’t catch him really. Second place is pretty good. The BMW M8 GTE
was working well, BMW Team RLL did a great job. We are in the mix now.”
Bill Auberlen (#25 BMW M8 GTE, 2nd place)
“You just have to be happy with this result. The BMW M8 GTE ran flawlessly from beginning to end. I’m
happy for everyone. The guys worked very hard for it.”
The IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship will resume on 14th April with round three of the season
held at Long Beach (USA). One week prior, the BMW M8 GTE will continue “Mission8” at the Prologue for the
FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) at Le Castellet (FRA) on 6th April.
Race result
Overall & Prototype Class
1st # 22, Tequila Patron ESM Nissan DPi, J. Van Overbeek/P. Derani/N. Lapierre
2nd # 10, Konica Minolta Cadillac DPi-V.R, Cadillac DPi, J. Taylor/R. Van Der Zande/R. Hunter-Reay
3rd # 31, Whelen Engineering Racing, Cadillac DPi, F. Nasr/E. Curran/M. Conway
GTLM class
1. Tandy/Pilet/Makowiecki (GB/F/F), Porsche 911 RSR, 328 laps
2. Sims/de Phillippi/Auberlen (GB/USA/USA), BMW M8, 328
3. Vanthoor/Bamber/Bruni (B/NZ/I), Porsche 911 RSR, 328
4. Westbrook/Briscoe/Dixon (GB/USA/NZL), Ford GT, 328
5. Vilander/Pier Guidi/Calado (SF/I/I), Ferrari 488, 327
6. Gavin/Milner/Fässler (GB/USA/CH), Chevrolet Corvette, 327
7. Krohn/Edwards/Catsburg (SF/USA/NL), BMW M8, 296
8. Magnussen/Garcia/Rockenfeller (DK/E/D), Chevrolet Corvette, 283
9. Hand/Müller/Bourdais (USA/D/F), Ford GT, 277
GTD class
1. Sellers/Snow/Lewis (USA/USA/USA), Lamborghini, 321 laps
2. Balzan/McNeil/Jeannette (I/USA/USA), Ferrari 488, 321
3. Keating/Bleekemolen/Stolz (USA/NL/D), Mercedes, 321
6. Long/Nielsen/Jaminet/Renauer (USA/DK/F/D), Porsche 911 GT3 R, 321
9. Bergmeister/Lindsey/Pappas (D/USA/A/USA), Porsche 911 GT3 R, 321
All results and points standings for the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and the North American
Endurance Cup can be found on results.imsa.com.
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