Sebring Thursday practice times
Sebastien Bourdais and Action Express Racing picked up right where they left off after winning the Rolex 24 At Daytona by setting the fastest lap Thursday on the opening day of TUDOR United SportsCar Championship testing at Sebring International Raceway.
Bourdais drove the No. 5 Corvette DP around Sebring’s historic 3.74-mile road course in 1:52.480 (119.701 mph), topping Gustavo Yacaman’s No. 42 OAK Racing Morgan/Nissan by 0.724 seconds in the final minutes of the afternoon session. The two-day winter test is preparation for the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh From Florida on Saturday, March 15, the second round of the Tequila Patr¢n North American Endurance Cup.
“We’re still trying to sort through the balance and the new aero configuration," Bourdais said, “but we just kind of nailed it and were able to put down a really good lap at the end of the session. Hopefully, we can keep the momentum going."
If Action Express Racing can indeed build off that momentum and win next month at Sebring, the victory would put the team in elite company.
Only four teams have won overall with the same car at both Daytona and Sebring in the same season, the last coming in 1998 when Moretti Racing won both events with a Ferrari 333SP. The merger between the GRAND-AM Rolex Series and the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patr¢n has resulted in the two events being on the same schedule for the first time since 1997.
Yacaman led the morning session and the majority of the afternoon before Bourdais blistered the field in the closing moments. There are few tracks Yacaman knows better than Sebring and it showed, as he consistently posted times quicker than his P-class counterparts.
“I have close to one million laps on the club circuit here," Yacaman said. "Sebring has always been one of my favorite tracks. Today was my first time driving the full track, and it’s even more amazing than the course I’m used to. It’s very hard, but it’s a lot of fun."
Three cars among two teams took time in the Prototype Challenge (PC) class. Tom Kimber-Smith drove the No. 25 8Star Motorsports ORECA FLM09 to the top spot in the morning session with a lap of 1:55.940 (116.129 mph). That time held up for the remainder of the day over the pair of BAR1 Motorsports entries.
8Star Motorsports co-driver Roberto LaRocca also had an incident at the end of the morning session, but the crew was able to repair the car, allowing Kimber-Smith to also post the top time in the afternoon session at 1:56.561 (115.510 mph).
TUDOR Championship testing concludes Friday with a morning session from 9:30 a.m.-noon ET and an afternoon session from 2:45-5 p.m. ET
Morning
Gustavo Yacaman may have been exaggerating about his “million laps" of experience at Sebring International Raceway, but the Colombian driver backed up that claim on Thursday by turning the fastest lap in the opening session of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship test at the famed circuit. Yacaman turned a lap of 1:53.204 (118.936 mph) in the No. 42 OAK Racing Nissan/Morgan co-driven by Olivier Pla and Ho-Pin Tung to lead the Prototype (P) class. The two-day winter test is in preparation for the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh From Florida on Saturday, March 15.
“I have close to one million laps on the club circuit here," Yacaman said. "Sebring has always been one of my favorite tracks. Today was my first time driving the full (3.74-mile) track, and it’s even more amazing than the course I’m used to. It’s very hard, but it’s a lot of fun." Scott Pruett, back at Sebring after a long absence – the race was not on the Rolex Sports Car Series schedule during the series’ existence – had a rough welcome back, when he scrubbed the wall in Turn 3 in his first laps driving the No. 01 Telcel Ford EcoBoost Ford/Riley that he shares with Memo Rojas and Scott Dixon.
“A bump caught us out and the car got out from underneath me," admitted Pruett, who won the GTO class at Sebring in 1986, co-driving with Olympian Bruce Jenner for Roush Racing. “Our team hasn’t been here before, and I haven’t raced here since the 1980s. I’ve got thousands of miles on the short course testing Indy cars, but this is my first time here on the latest long-course configuration. It’s driving good, but we need to get our hands around the car control." Jordan Taylor was second in the P class with a lap of 1:53.974 (118.132 mph) in the No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Corvette DP co-driven by Max Angelelli and Ricky Taylor, followed by Klaus Graf at 1:54.590 (117.497 mph) in the No. 6 Muscle Milk Pickett Racing ORECA/Nissan co-driven by Lucas Luhr.
Coming off a GT Le Mans (GTLM) class victory in the season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona, Porsche Motorsports North America took first and third in the opening session. Joerg Bergmeister led the class with a lap of 2:00.048 (112.155 mph) in the team’s No. 912 Porsche 911 RSR co-driven by Patrick Long and Michael Christensen, while Richard Lietz was third with a lap of 2:01.153 (111.132 mph) in the Daytona-winning No. 911 co-driven by Nick Tandy and Patrick Pilet. The meat in the Porsche sandwich was the No. 56 BMW Team RLL BMW Z4 GTE of Dirk Werner, who is testing that car with Andy Priaulx. He ran 2:00.745 (111.508 mph) on the 17-turn layout.
“I tested but didn’t race at Sebring last year, and it feels real good to be back," Bergmeister said. “We had a little bad luck with our car at Daytona, but overall Daytona was a perfect start for our new team. This is a new car, but we’ve tested here quite bit in the past and our setup was perfect right off the truck."
While 8Star Motorsports was fastest in Prototype Challenge (PC), Roberto LaRocca sidelined the No. 25 ORECA FLM09 team with a crash late in the session after turning a lap of 1:55.940 (116.129 mph). The team plans to have the car repaired for the afternoon session, with LaRocca being joined by Tom Kimber-Smith and Eric Lux. BAR1 Motorsports was second and third in the class, with the No. 87 of Gaston Kearby, Moses Smith and Bruce Hamilton, 1:59.009 (113.134 mph) followed by the No. 88 of Doug Bielefeld, 1:59.257 (112.899 mph).
In GT Daytona (GTD), James Davison was fastest at 2:05.655 (107.151 mph) in the No. 007 TRG-AMR Aston Martin V12 Vantage co-driven by Al Carter and David Block. Second in GTD was Spencer Pumpelly in the No. 45 Flying Lizard Motorsports Audi R8 LMS with a time of 2:05.719 (107.096 mph), followed by the No. 33 Riley Motorsports SRT Viper GT3-R of Jeroen Bleekemolen, 2:05.737 (107.081 mph). TUDOR Championship testing will continue with a second Thursday session from 2:45-5 p.m.
Practice 2
| Pos | Class | PIC | No. | Name | Time | Diff | Speed | Laps | Make |
| 1 | P | 1 | 5 | Action Express Racing | 1:52.480 | – | 119.701 | 45 | Corvette DP |
| 2 | P | 2 | 42 | OAK Racing | 1:53.267 | 0.787 | 118.870 | 43 | Nissan Morgan |
| 3 | P | 3 | 90 | Spirit of Daytona | 1:53.425 | 0.945 | 118.704 | 35 | Corvette DP |
| 4 | P | 4 | 10 | Wayne Taylor Racing | 1:54.522 | 2.042 | 117.567 | 40 | Corvette DP |
| 5 | P | 5 | 01 | Chip Ganassi Racing | 1:54.686 | 2.206 | 117.399 | 30 | Ford Riley DP |
| 6 | P | 6 | 1 | Extreme Speed Motorsports | 1:54.918 | 2.438 | 117.162 | 9 | HPD ARX-03b |
| 7 | P | 7 | 2 | Extreme Speed Motorsports | 1:55.184 | 2.704 | 116.891 | 33 | HPD ARX-03b |
| 8 | P | 8 | 6 | Muscle Milk Pickett Racing | 1:55.190 | 2.710 | 116.885 | 14 | Nissan ORECA |
| 9 | P | 9 | 60 | Michael Shank Racing w/ Curb/Agajanian | 1:55.821 | 3.341 | 116.248 | 41 | Ford Riley DP |
| 10 | P | 10 | 31 | Marsh Racing | 1:56.096 | 3.616 | 115.973 | 30 | Corvette DP |
| 11 | PC | 1 | 25 | 8Star Motorsports | 1:56.561 | 4.081 | 115.510 | 4 | ORECA FLM09 |
| 12 | PC | 2 | 88 | BAR1 Motorsports | 1:58.750 | 6.270 | 113.381 | 16 | ORECA FLM09 |
| 13 | P | 11 | 78 | Starworks Motorsports | 1:59.023 | 6.543 | 113.121 | 19 | Honda Riley DP |
| 14 | PC | 3 | 87 | BAR1 Motorsports | 2:00.060 | 7.580 | 112.144 | 33 | ORECA FLM09 |
| 15 | GTLM | 1 | 911 | Porsche North America | 2:00.364 | 7.884 | 111.861 | 35 | Porsche 911 RSR |
| 16 | GTLM | 2 | 93 | SRT Motorsports | 2:00.496 | 8.016 | 111.738 | 28 | SRT Viper GTS-R |
| 17 | GTLM | 3 | 912 | Porsche North America | 2:00.536 | 8.056 | 111.701 | 38 | Porsche 911 RSR |
| 18 | GTLM | 4 | 3 | Corvette Racing | 2:00.580 | 8.100 | 111.660 | 17 | Chevrolet Corvette C7.R |
| 19 | GTLM | 5 | 17 | Team Falken Tire | 2:00.834 | 8.354 | 111.426 | 43 | Porsche 911 RSR |
| 20 | GTLM | 6 | 57 | Krohn Racing | 2:00.913 | 8.433 | 111.353 | 26 | Ferrari F458 Italia |
| 21 | GTLM | 7 | 56 | BMW Team RLL | 2:00.993 | 8.513 | 111.279 | 40 | BMW Z4 GTE |
| 22 | GTLM | 8 | 4 | Corvette Racing | 2:01.000 | 8.520 | 111.273 | 42 | Chevrolet Corvette C7.R |
| 23 | PC | 4 | 8 | Starworks Motorsport | 2:01.076 | 8.596 | 111.203 | 3 | ORECA FLM09 |
| 24 | P | 12 | 70 | SpeedSource | 2:01.311 | 8.831 | 110.987 | 40 | Mazda SKYACTIV-D |
| 25 | GTD | 1 | 94 | Turner Motorsport | 2:04.487 | 12.007 | 108.156 | 36 | BMW Z4 |
| 26 | GTD | 2 | 73 | Park Place Motorsports | 2:04.703 | 12.223 | 107.969 | 22 | Porsche 911 GT America |
| 27 | GTD | 3 | 33 | Riley Motorsports | 2:04.915 | 12.435 | 107.785 | 22 | SRT Viper GT3-R |
| 28 | GTD | 4 | 51 | Spirit of Race | 2:04.987 | 12.507 | 107.723 | 29 | Ferrari 458 Italia |
| 29 | GTD | 5 | 007 | TRG-AMR | 2:05.153 | 12.673 | 107.580 | 38 | Aston Martin V12 Vantage |
| 30 | GTD | 6 | 71 | Park Place Motorsports | 2:05.527 | 13.047 | 107.260 | 20 | Porsche 911 GT America |
| 31 | GTD | 7 | 22 | Alex Job Racing | 2:05.719 | 13.239 | 107.096 | 43 | Porsche 911 GT America |
| 32 | GTD | 8 | 44 | Magnus Racing | 2:05.801 | 13.321 | 107.026 | 41 | Porsche 911 GT America |
| 33 | GTD | 9 | 27 | Dempsey Racing | 2:06.162 | 13.682 | 106.720 | 40 | Porsche 911 GT America |
| 34 | GTD | 10 | 23 | Team Seattle/Alex Job Racing | 2:06.205 | 13.725 | 106.684 | 33 | Porsche 911 GT America |
| 35 | GTD | 11 | 19 | Muehlner Motorsports America | 2:06.449 | 13.969 | 106.478 | 22 | Porsche 911 GT America |
| 36 | GTD | 12 | 45 | Flying Lizard Motorsports | 2:06.619 | 14.139 | 106.335 | 41 | Audi R8 LMS |
| 37 | GTD | 13 | 35 | Flying Lizard Motorsports | 2:06.966 | 14.486 | 106.044 | 43 | Audi R8 LMS |
| 38 | GTD | 14 | 48 | Paul Miller Racing | 2:07.191 | 14.711 | 105.857 | 45 | Audi R8 LMS |
| 39 | GTD | 15 | 46 | Fall-Line Motorsports | 2:07.585 | 15.105 | 105.530 | 44 | Audi R8 LMS |
| 40 | GTD | 16 | 28 | Dempsey Racing | 2:08.086 | 15.606 | 105.117 | 42 | Porsche 911 GT America |
| 41 | GTD | 17 | 13 | Rum Bum Racing/Snow Racing | 2:08.286 | 15.806 | 104.953 | 12 | Porsche 911 GT America |
| 42 | GTD | 18 | 32 | GMG Racing | 2:08.610 | 16.130 | 104.689 | 32 | Audi R8 LMS |
Practice 1
| Pos | Class | PIC | No. | Name | Time | Diff | Speed | Laps | Make |
| 1 | P | 1 | 42 | OAK Racing | 1:53.204 | – | 118.936 | 42 | Nissan Morgan |
| 2 | P | 2 | 10 | Wayne Taylor Racing | 1:53.974 | 0.770 | 118.132 | 21 | Corvette DP |
| 3 | P | 3 | 6 | Muscle Milk Pickett Racing | 1:54.590 | 1.386 | 117.497 | 24 | Nissan ORECA |
| 4 | P | 4 | 31 | Marsh Racing | 1:54.734 | 1.530 | 117.350 | 22 | Corvette DP |
| 5 | P | 5 | 90 | Spirit of Daytona | 1:54.768 | 1.564 | 117.315 | 27 | Corvette DP |
| 6 | P | 6 | 2 | Extreme Speed Motorsports | 1:55.102 | 1.898 | 116.975 | 23 | HPD ARX-03b |
| 7 | P | 7 | 60 | Michael Shank Racing w/ Curb/Agajanian | 1:55.207 | 2.003 | 116.868 | 36 | Ford Riley DP |
| 8 | P | 8 | 1 | Extreme Speed Motorsports | 1:55.306 | 2.102 | 116.768 | 32 | HPD ARX-03b |
| 9 | P | 9 | 01 | Chip Ganassi Racing | 1:55.527 | 2.323 | 116.544 | 17 | Ford Riley DP |
| 10 | PC | 1 | 25 | 8Star Motorsports | 1:55.940 | 2.736 | 116.129 | 22 | ORECA FLM09 |
| 11 | PC | 2 | 87 | BAR1 Motorsports | 1:59.009 | 5.805 | 113.134 | 35 | ORECA FLM09 |
| 12 | PC | 3 | 88 | BAR1 Motorsports | 1:59.257 | 6.053 | 112.899 | 13 | ORECA FLM09 |
| 13 | GTLM | 1 | 912 | Porsche North America | 2:00.048 | 6.844 | 112.155 | 31 | Porsche 911 RSR |
| 14 | GTLM | 2 | 56 | BMW Team RLL | 2:00.745 | 7.541 | 111.508 | 38 | BMW Z4 GTE |
| 15 | GTLM | 3 | 911 | Porsche North America | 2:01.153 | 7.949 | 111.132 | 19 | Porsche 911 RSR |
| 16 | GTLM | 4 | 57 | Krohn Racing | 2:01.389 | 8.185 | 110.916 | 14 | Ferrari F458 Italia |
| 17 | GTLM | 5 | 4 | Corvette Racing | 2:01.486 | 8.282 | 110.828 | 35 | Chevrolet Corvette C7.R |
| 18 | GTLM | 6 | 3 | Corvette Racing | 2:01.553 | 8.349 | 110.766 | 39 | Chevrolet Corvette C7.R |
| 19 | P | 10 | 78 | Starworks Motorsports | 2:01.739 | 8.535 | 110.597 | 7 | Honda Riley DP |
| 20 | GTLM | 7 | 17 | Team Falken Tire | 2:02.126 | 8.922 | 110.247 | 29 | Porsche 911 RSR |
| 21 | GTLM | 8 | 93 | SRT Motorsports | 2:02.252 | 9.048 | 110.133 | 21 | SRT Viper GTS-R |
| 22 | P | 11 | 70 | SpeedSource | 2:04.998 | 11.794 | 107.714 | 32 | Mazda SKYACTIV-D |
| 23 | GTD | 1 | 007 | TRG-AMR | 2:05.655 | 12.451 | 107.151 | 27 | Aston Martin V12 Vantage |
| 24 | GTD | 2 | 45 | Flying Lizard Motorsports | 2:05.719 | 12.515 | 107.096 | 37 | Audi R8 LMS |
| 25 | GTD | 3 | 33 | Riley Motorsports | 2:05.737 | 12.533 | 107.081 | 23 | SRT Viper GT3-R |
| 26 | GTD | 4 | 44 | Magnus Racing | 2:06.044 | 12.840 | 106.820 | 33 | Porsche 911 GT America |
| 27 | GTD | 5 | 94 | Turner Motorsport | 2:06.173 | 12.969 | 106.711 | 16 | BMW Z4 |
| 28 | GTD | 6 | 27 | Dempsey Racing | 2:06.434 | 13.230 | 106.490 | 37 | Porsche 911 GT America |
| 29 | GTD | 7 | 71 | Park Place Motorsports | 2:06.444 | 13.240 | 106.482 | 34 | Porsche 911 GT America |
| 30 | GTD | 8 | 22 | Alex Job Racing | 2:06.505 | 13.301 | 106.431 | 24 | Porsche 911 GT America |
| 31 | GTD | 9 | 13 | Rum Bum Racing/Snow Racing | 2:06.633 | 13.429 | 106.323 | 33 | Porsche 911 GT America |
| 32 | GTD | 10 | 73 | Park Place Motorsports | 2:06.952 | 13.748 | 106.056 | 29 | Porsche 911 GT America |
| 33 | GTD | 11 | 35 | Flying Lizard Motorsports | 2:07.133 | 13.929 | 105.905 | 37 | Audi R8 LMS |
| 34 | GTD | 12 | 23 | Team Seattle/Alex Job Racing | 2:07.137 | 13.933 | 105.902 | 29 | Porsche 911 GT America |
| 35 | GTD | 13 | 51 | Spirit of Race | 2:07.334 | 14.130 | 105.738 | 32 | Ferrari 458 Italia |
| 36 | GTD | 14 | 48 | Paul Miller Racing | 2:08.100 | 14.896 | 105.105 | 41 | Audi R8 LMS |
| 37 | GTD | 15 | 32 | GMG Racing | 2:08.408 | 15.204 | 104.853 | 30 | Audi R8 LMS |
| 38 | GTD | 16 | 46 | Fall-Line Motorsports | 2:08.500 | 15.296 | 104.778 | 32 | Audi R8 LMS |
| 39 | GTD | 17 | 28 | Dempsey Racing | 2:09.474 | 16.270 | 103.990 | 31 | Porsche 911 GT America |
| 40 | GTD | 18 | 19 | Muehlner Motorsports America | 2:14.098 | 20.894 | 100.404 | 22 | Porsche 911 GT America |
| 41 | P | 12 | 5 | Action Express Racing | – | – | – | – | Corvette DP |