Lamborghini Squadra Corse endured a challenging second round of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship campaign, as bad fortune prevented the trio of Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2s from achieving strong results in the 12 Hours of Sebring.
Lamborghini Factory Drivers Andrea Caldarelli, Marco Mapelli were joined by James Hinchcliffe in the #9 Pfaff Motorsports car and showed incredible resilience in the face of adversity to salvage 10th, while the #78 Forte Racing combination of Mario Farnbacher, Misha Goikhberg and Parker Kligerman recovered well after a puncture cost them a shot at a top five result. Early brake issues also cost the #45 trio of Danny Formal, Trent Hindman and Graham Doyle, but all three Huracáns made it to the end of the grueling race.
There was disappointment for the Lamborghini SC63 in the GTP class, despite an improved performance from Daytona. Factory Drivers Romain Grosjean, Mirko Bortolotti and Daniil Kvyat started well but an exhaust issue meant the #63 had to retire on safety grounds with three hours to go.
Free Practice and Qualifying – GTP
The team arrived back in Florida with renewed determination in the first of three practice sessions taking place on Thursday. After placing ninth quickest in the morning, the SC63 underwent a number of setup changes focusing on rear-end stability and overall balance, to which the drivers responded positively ahead of FP3 under the lights. One-lap remained something of a concern throughout the weekend and the qualifying effort was not helped by a five-minute stop-and-hold at the start of Friday’s session for a previous infringement. Nevertheless, with limited running in the session, Grosjean qualified the car 11th on the grid for the race.
Race – GTP
At the start, Grosjean made good progress and vaulted two places to run ninth before gaining another position after the pole-sitting BMW was handed a drivethrough penalty. The Frenchman got his elbows out with those around him and fought admirably to hold off the faster Cadillac for a number of laps before dropping back to ninth. The team got lucky with a timely full course caution and, having pitted just one lap before, cycled into the overall lead of the race. Unfortunately, a miscommunication between the pit box and Grosjean meant the #63 was swamped by the entire GTP field at the restart. After Grosjean’s initial double stint, Kvyat took over the reins of the SC63 for a double of his own and settled into 11th place.
Having lost a lap, the trio waited in vain for another caution to help them get back onto the lead lap, with Bortolotti’s average pace better than the #5 Porsche and #23 Aston Martin in front. With around three hours remaining, a broken exhaust which could have caused heat damage to other driveline components meant the team decided to withdraw on safety grounds. Despite a second successive retirement of the IMSA season, the team were left with some optimism with the driveability of the car in race conditions.
Free Practice and Qualifying – GTD/GTD Pro
Returning to the scene of some of Lamborghini’s most memorable victories, the trio of Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2 cars faced an early uphill battle in free practice. The #9 Pfaff Motorsports car conducted a lowkey programme in FP1 despite encountering a minor brake issue, before an electrical issue left the team scratching their heads in the second session. With added weight on all three Huracáns hampering stability under braking, the car qualified eighth in the GTD Pro session with Caldarelli. In GTD, Mario Farnbacher made the most of his qualifying session in the #78 Forte Racing machine, setting the seventh-quickest time, while the #45 WTR Huracán was 13th on the grid after a heavy FP1 crash for Danny Formal forced the team to miss the second session.
Race – GTD/GTD Pro
Caldarelli started the #9 and showcased the strong characteristics of the Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2 by climbing to fourth place in the opening hour, battling with the lead group before having to pit to remedy a torque sensor issue before the first round of pit-stops. Mapelli took over after Caldarelli’s pair of stints but there was more drama after the end of Hinchcliffe’s stint, the Canadian injuring his left foot in an unfortunate incident in the pits. The car dropped three laps, gaining one of them back as caution periods in the second half of the race proved scarce, but a late brake pad change meant it was left to wonder what might have been as the team salvaged a 10th place finish.
In GTD, it was a similar day as the #78 Forte Racing Huracán ran strongly inside the top five in the early going, even climbing to the podium places in the hands of Goikhberg. But a puncture with Kligerman at the wheel early in the lap forced a slow trip back to the pits. Like the #9, the team did not get the necessary luck with the yellows, but Farnbacher rallied well to recover some ground, eventually finishing 12th. For the #45 WTR machine, a difficult weekend got harder from the start as a brake issue brought Hindman in for an early stop. Down three laps, it was a long and ultimately unrewarding journey to the flag, but the team never gave up and persevered to bring the car home 14th at the finish.
