Ryan Pelham, Highlands Today
The sun sets as cars pass under the pedestrian bridge and into Turn 1 during the tenth hour of the 12 Hours of Sebring on Saturday.
SEBRING INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY - While there were several classes that came right down to the finish, there were also some dominating performances during Saturday's 12 Hours of Sebring that saw the winners leave the competition in the dust. No race was quite as lopsided as the GTE-Am class, where Krohn Racing scored a 50-lap victory over Proton Competition.
Krohn Racing was driving one of the old Ferrari 430s, a car that has been replaced by the newer Ferrari 458 by a number of teams, but a solid run sent to the team to victory with ease. The win was the first American Le Mans Series victory for all three of the team's drivers, Tracy Krohn, Nic Jonsson and Michele Rugulo.
"It's a dream come true," Jonsson said of the win. "The crew has been flawless."
Krohn Racing completed 302 laps during the race, while Proton Competition completed 252.
The LMP2 class wasn't quite so lopsided, but Level 5 Motorsports cruised to a 10-lap victory over the Signatech Nissan team in a race where both cars had their share of troubles. But in the end, it was the Signatech entry that had the most problems, allowing Level 5 to take the comfortable victory.
"It was huge effort from Level 5 today," said driver Luis Diaz, who shared the piloting duties with Scott Tucker and Ryan Hunter-Reay. "We didn't have the speed on the straights, but the engineers gave us a great car in the corners and the Honda was very reliable as always.
"Ryan drove great at the end with some amazing laps. I'm very thankful to have these great teammates and I'm looking forward to the rest of the season."
Things were a bit closer in the LMPC class, as Genoa Racing drivers Jens Petersen, Dane Cameron and Michael Guasch breezed to a three-lap victory. It was the first ALMS victory for all three drivers.
"This is my first time at Sebring and it was amazing," Petersen said. "I was unlucky and did not get to drive more than 20 laps before the race. I have to say 'thank you' to Genoa Racing who prepared a fantastic car for us."
Genoa placed ninth overall and had the best finish of any of the non-LMP1 cars in the race and picked up the team's first-ever ALMS victory.
The GTC field provided some exciting racing and it was Black Swan Racing, who piloted their Porsche 911 GT3 Cup to a victory of a little over a minute over the TRG.
It was the first ALMS victory for driver Tim Faulkner, while it was the second for Sebastiaan Bleekemolen and the fifth for Tim Pappas.
"I am so happy to be at the 12 Hours of Sebring," Faulkner said. "The team was fantastic all week. We had fantastic pit stops and were faster than our rivals."
The next stop in the ALMS will be vastly different, as teams will head to Long Beach to compete in the 100-minute dash through the streets of Long Beach. The race drew a record 36 entries last year to compete over the 1.97-mile course.
The featured race of the weekend is the Grand Prix of Long Beach.
"It's a dream come true," Jonsson said of the win. "The crew has been flawless."
Krohn Racing completed 302 laps during the race, while Proton Competition completed 252.
The LMP2 class wasn't quite so lopsided, but Level 5 Motorsports cruised to a 10-lap victory over the Signatech Nissan team in a race where both cars had their share of troubles. But in the end, it was the Signatech entry that had the most problems, allowing Level 5 to take the comfortable victory.
"It was huge effort from Level 5 today," said driver Luis Diaz, who shared the piloting duties with Scott Tucker and Ryan Hunter-Reay. "We didn't have the speed on the straights, but the engineers gave us a great car in the corners and the Honda was very reliable as always.
"Ryan drove great at the end with some amazing laps. I'm very thankful to have these great teammates and I'm looking forward to the rest of the season."
Things were a bit closer in the LMPC class, as Genoa Racing drivers Jens Petersen, Dane Cameron and Michael Guasch breezed to a three-lap victory. It was the first ALMS victory for all three drivers.
"This is my first time at Sebring and it was amazing," Petersen said. "I was unlucky and did not get to drive more than 20 laps before the race. I have to say 'thank you' to Genoa Racing who prepared a fantastic car for us."
Genoa placed ninth overall and had the best finish of any of the non-LMP1 cars in the race and picked up the team's first-ever ALMS victory.
The GTC field provided some exciting racing and it was Black Swan Racing, who piloted their Porsche 911 GT3 Cup to a victory of a little over a minute over the TRG.
It was the first ALMS victory for driver Tim Faulkner, while it was the second for Sebastiaan Bleekemolen and the fifth for Tim Pappas.
"I am so happy to be at the 12 Hours of Sebring," Faulkner said. "The team was fantastic all week. We had fantastic pit stops and were faster than our rivals."
The next stop in the ALMS will be vastly different, as teams will head to Long Beach to compete in the 100-minute dash through the streets of Long Beach. The race drew a record 36 entries last year to compete over the 1.97-mile course.
The featured race of the weekend is the Grand Prix of Long Beach.
Allen Moody can be reached at 863-386-5841 or amoody@highlandstoday.com.
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