The first practice session at Sebring is in the books but the picture ahead of the race is far from clear, as the GTP teams all continue to prepare for what is widely considered the toughest race of the year.
For Cadillac’s teams, the task is this: Defend the crown after the #31 Whelen V-Series.R stormed to victory in what was the second outing for the current GTP formula.
There’s a level of pressure and expectation that comes with past success at an event like this. As a result, despite the fact that it was a Cadillac 1-2 in Free Practice 1, nobody at Action Express or Chip Ganassi Racing is treating this week as a formality.
Renger van der Zande, who will drive the #01 new-look Mobil 1 gold-nosed Cadillac, is however, still cautiously optimistic. He told DSC that Sebring should remain a “Cadillac track”, as the V-Series.R feels at home on the bumpy surface.
“We have a different car now because of the 30 kilos (added in the Sebring BoP table), so we will see how the car handles. We have a bit more power though and we have tested here for two days before the race,” he said.
“You really have to wait and see. The Porsche seems to have found more speed, but they’ve slowed it down a little bit on BoP. So it’s all up in the air after Rolex.”
There is, however, confidence to be found elsewhere in the paddock. Porsche Penske Motorsport is looking to continue its perfect start to 2024 in IMSA and the WEC, Acura hopes to be closer to the front on pace and BMW Team RLL feels the M Hybrid V8 is in an entirely different place to last year.
Speaking with DSC, Connor De Phillippi, driver of the #25 BMW, said the team left the recent Sebring test featuring all five GTP manufacturers with high hopes for the race. If the 12 Hours comes down to pace and not attrition, De Phillippi believes BMW can be in the mix, after struggling in 2023 with traction issues at the circuit.
“We are so much more sorted than last year and we felt good after the test two weeks ago,” he said. “There the car felt as balanced as it’s ever been. We have a few weaknesses that we’ve been working on, and obviously, the BoP is different. But I feel more comfortable and better prepared.
“We did a lot of laps, a lot of long runs in the evening which was a real positive. Not everyone was running with timing so we don’t know where we will be, but compared to lap times from last year we feel we can be a good chunk better.”
The conditions at the test were reportedly significantly cooler than this week though, which is something that should be taken into account. The longer runs completed during practice may produce significantly different results.
“Tyre life is going to be a big deal, especially as we double stint them a lot more,” De Phillippi continued. “It adds to the strategy, but the manufacturers that have done the best with that have reaped the rewards. It’ll be interesting to see how tyre life pans out if the race is in 90-degree (32 degrees Celsius) heat.
“I imagine Acura will be in the mix as they’re lighter, but I think everyone will be close. It’ll be about who is good in the heat and then who is good when it cools down. Track position is going to be key, so we need to hold station early and stay out of the way if it gets chaotic in the final 20 minutes.”
For the Iron Lynx Lamborghini squad, which is debuting the SC63 in North America this weekend with its IMSA-dedicated crew, the test was vital. Matteo Cairoli, who is eager to get his first race in GTP under his belt alongside Romain Grosjean and Andrea Caldarelli, said it gave the team a baseline to build on.
“We had some issues with the car and lost some time on the first two days, but it’s all part of the process,” he explained. “We are just thankful we could run here before the race week. Over three days we completed around 1300 kilometres and we hope the race will go smoothly.”
It also gave him some valuable laps in the car. Of the three drivers in the SC63 this weekend, Cairoli is coming at this with the fewest laps. This is because he waited until his time at Porsche came to an end after the 2023 season to start testing the SC63.
“I’ve waited for this moment for years and to be here with an Italian brand is a huge challenge,” Cairoli said. “Finally, the dream has come true for me. But in my case, I haven’t done a lot of testing. I was so busy last year with Porsche that my time was limited so I’ve not completed many miles and only driven the car in Jerez, Austin and here in Sebring last month.
“I’m new to prototypes so I have needed to adapt myself. But every time I get in I feel more comfortable. And thankfully Andrea and Romain have been a really good help. It’s a privilege to work alongside them, they are great drivers and super experienced.”
The aim for Iron Lynx is simply to get the car to the finish. Reliability is the first priority at this early stage for the programme.
“This year we have to be realistic, we are not aiming for any results, just finishing races and getting experience,” Cairoli admitted “I followed the car’s WEC debut in Qatar and that was encouraging. Qatar though is quite a flat track, so Sebring may be a different story.”
While every manufacturer was present for the pre-event four-day test which featured a day of tyre testing for a handful of cars, it wasn’t a complete field. Proton Competition’s 963 wasn’t on hand, meaning the German team is starting from scratch with car set-up this week.
“It’s going to be very difficult,” Gianmaria Bruni told DSC. “Three drivers, three practice sessions and we have no data. It’s going to be a blank sheet of paper for us. Rolex went well, but we had the Roar, so we had a lot of testing before the race.
“It’s going to be super challenging for all of us. We are trying to learn and make no mistakes. I think the hardest races will be this one, Long Beach and Laguna, then when we get to Watkins Glen it should be better. As we have no data, we won’t test before Laguna, so it’s hard.
“We feel two or three steps behind the others as everyone is testing all the time.”
