With six events in three countries across two continents over the next eight weeks, Scott Tucker and his Level 5 Motorsports organization will certainly be racking up the air miles...
Scott Tucker and the Level 5 Motorsports squad are in the middle of a busy stretch of races around the globe. (Photo: John Dagys)
By now it’s been no secret of Level 5 Motorsports’ ambitious dual program in the American Le Mans Series and Intercontinental Le Mans Cup. But when you add in the team’s efforts in Ferrari Challenge, it makes a very busy stretch of racing for Scott Tucker and the David Stone-led crew.
In fact, with six events in three countries across two continents over the next eight weeks, Tucker will will certainly be getting his racing fix, all while juggling his day job as the CEO of a private equity firm at the same time.
It all began last weekend, where Tucker and co-driver Christophe Bouchut took part in Saturday’s Long Beach street fight. From there, the reigning ALMS LMPC champion arrived in Le Mans on Friday for this weekend’s official test day.
Tucker will return home to Kansas on Monday, only having to leave for Sonoma, Calif. two days later for the weekend’s Ferrari Challenge race at Infineon Raceway. After that, he’ll return to Europe to take take part in the second leg of the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium.
With one weekend off, the core group of Level 5 personnel will be back in California at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca for the second Ferrari Challenge round, with Tucker and company returning to Le Mans for the beginning of the week-long race activities on June 4.
“We’re in the first quarter of the busiest stretch of the year for me,” Tucker said. “But it’s about the efficiency of my time. We have open slots in the season where it makes sense.
“Ferrari Challenge makes sense as it’s something I’ve been running for five years. So I definitely want to do those races, especially with the new 458 Challenge car. Fortunately we’ll be able to fit in most of the stuff. But it’s taking a lot of pre-planning and logistics up front.”
During the spring stretch, Tucker will have to adapt to a wide array of machinery. From the Honda-powered Lola B11/80 Coupe the team campaigns in Le Mans competition to the new Ferrari F458 Challenge machine and the prototype he’ll race in the SPEED EuroSeries support race at Spa-Francorchamps, all require a different approach from the cockpit.
But it’s nothing new for Tucker, who has split his weekends behind the wheel of a variety of cars in the past.
“I’ve been doing that for some time,” Tucker said. “I did it at Sebring, winning the IMSA GT3 Challenge race, then jumped in the [Lola-Honda] and probably had my best stint in a prototype. I drove almost four hours straight in the coupe with no problems keeping it on the lead lap. When I turned over the car, I was actually leading the race [in LMP2].
“The biggest transition you can have is jumping from a GT car back into a prototype. With a prototype, you’re able to roll through the corners so much faster. The braking points are also a little bit different. By no means am I an expert at it, but it takes a few laps in practice to get back up to speed. That’s what we’ve been trying to do when I first started doing it.”
With Level 5 having expanded to include a European base in 2011, it's no doubt made the logistical factor of the program a little less daunting. But it's still quite a challenge for team manager David Stone, who along with other key personnel, will also travel to each event.
John Dagys is SPEED.com’s Sportscar Racing Reporter, focusing on all major domestic and international championships. You can follow him on Twitter @johndagys or email him at askdagys@gmail.com
In fact, with six events in three countries across two continents over the next eight weeks, Tucker will will certainly be getting his racing fix, all while juggling his day job as the CEO of a private equity firm at the same time.
It all began last weekend, where Tucker and co-driver Christophe Bouchut took part in Saturday’s Long Beach street fight. From there, the reigning ALMS LMPC champion arrived in Le Mans on Friday for this weekend’s official test day.
Tucker will return home to Kansas on Monday, only having to leave for Sonoma, Calif. two days later for the weekend’s Ferrari Challenge race at Infineon Raceway. After that, he’ll return to Europe to take take part in the second leg of the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium.
With one weekend off, the core group of Level 5 personnel will be back in California at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca for the second Ferrari Challenge round, with Tucker and company returning to Le Mans for the beginning of the week-long race activities on June 4.
“We’re in the first quarter of the busiest stretch of the year for me,” Tucker said. “But it’s about the efficiency of my time. We have open slots in the season where it makes sense.
“Ferrari Challenge makes sense as it’s something I’ve been running for five years. So I definitely want to do those races, especially with the new 458 Challenge car. Fortunately we’ll be able to fit in most of the stuff. But it’s taking a lot of pre-planning and logistics up front.”
During the spring stretch, Tucker will have to adapt to a wide array of machinery. From the Honda-powered Lola B11/80 Coupe the team campaigns in Le Mans competition to the new Ferrari F458 Challenge machine and the prototype he’ll race in the SPEED EuroSeries support race at Spa-Francorchamps, all require a different approach from the cockpit.
But it’s nothing new for Tucker, who has split his weekends behind the wheel of a variety of cars in the past.
“I’ve been doing that for some time,” Tucker said. “I did it at Sebring, winning the IMSA GT3 Challenge race, then jumped in the [Lola-Honda] and probably had my best stint in a prototype. I drove almost four hours straight in the coupe with no problems keeping it on the lead lap. When I turned over the car, I was actually leading the race [in LMP2].
“The biggest transition you can have is jumping from a GT car back into a prototype. With a prototype, you’re able to roll through the corners so much faster. The braking points are also a little bit different. By no means am I an expert at it, but it takes a few laps in practice to get back up to speed. That’s what we’ve been trying to do when I first started doing it.”
With Level 5 having expanded to include a European base in 2011, it's no doubt made the logistical factor of the program a little less daunting. But it's still quite a challenge for team manager David Stone, who along with other key personnel, will also travel to each event.
John Dagys is SPEED.com’s Sportscar Racing Reporter, focusing on all major domestic and international championships. You can follow him on Twitter @johndagys or email him at askdagys@gmail.com
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