The second race weekend of the IMSA VP Racing Sportscar Challenge in Austin was a rollercoaster of emotions for GEBHARDT Motorsport - the team from Sinsheim was able to clinch a victory.
The second event of the IMSA VP Racing Sportscar Challenge is behind GEBHARDT Motorsport USA: The sports car championship made a appearance at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin (Texas) as part of the NASCAR Cup Series supporting programme. ADAC Sports Foundation protégé Valentino Catalano and Colombian Oscar Tunjo drive the two Duqueine D08s.
The experienced LMP3 driver Tunjo did not need a long familiarisation phase with his new team, as he proved in both practice sessions on Friday: Tunjo set the fastest time in both sessions ahead of his team-mate Catalano. Tunjo also set the fastest time in qualifying, with 19-year-old Catalano just 0.028 seconds behind the veteran on his debut in Austin. With the second-fastest lap, Prototype Cup Germany title winner Catalano secured pole position for the second race.
Right from the start, the drivers of the two GEBHARDT Motorsport USA Duqueine cars dominated the first race. Tunjo initially led the race by a wafer-thin margin ahead of Catalano, who won both races at the season opener in Daytona. Catalano overtook his team-mate around seven minutes before the end of the race.
As confidently as things had been going up to this point in the race, the tide turned abruptly. Both Catalano and Tunjo rolled out at the same time on the penultimate lap and lost the one-two victory they had believed to be secure until then. Due to the completed race distance, the two cars were still classified in fifth and sixth place in the LMP3 class.
‘Unfortunately, we had a problem with our newly purchased refuelling system in the USA,’ explains Fritz Gebhardt. ‘It hadn't calibrated the quantities correctly and pumped six litres less fuel into the cars' tanks instead of the calculated amount. As a result, both Duqueine rolled out at the same time without fuel.’
In the second race, the German team made amends in front of the many NASCAR fans in Texas: Catalano and Tunjo took a one-two victory for the GEBHARDT team. The young German dominated the race from pole position and celebrated his third win of the season in the IMSA championship. Tunjo initially followed the youngster, but had to slow down due to rising gearbox oil temperature in order to reach the finish safely. At the end of the race and after a 10-second time penalty against Tunjo for a track limit offence, the two Duqueine LMP3 prototypes were separated by 48 seconds.
Valentino Catalano was able to defend his lead in the drivers' standings and GEBHARDT Intralogistics Motorsports USA is also ahead in the team standings. ‘We can only be satisfied with the sporting performance of the race weekend - we were consistently at the front of the field with our two cars, which makes us very happy. We are now preparing conscientiously for the next race weekend so that we can permanently rule out the problems at the end of the first race,’ summarised Team Manager Karl Jennings.
The third race weekend of the IMSA VP Racing Sportscar Challenge will take place at the beginning of June at the traditional Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington. Before that, GEBHARDT Motorsport will start the European racing season in the Michelin Le Mans Cup and the Prototype Cup Germany.
