CarBahn with Peregrine Racing is taking to the streets of Detroit for Round 2 of the IMSA WeatherTech Sprint Cup.
The No. 39 Audi R8 GT3 LMS will turn its first laps on a street course this weekend, June 11-12, at Belle Isle Park. The historic event was established in 1982 for Formula One and has since welcomed top tier series such as IndyCar and the IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship.
The Raceway at Belle Isle Park consists of 14 Turns, each tighter than the last, and 2.35-miles offering little opportunity to pass competitors. With this in mind drivers Richard Heistand and Jeff Westphal will push for outright pace all weekend with a goal of earning the Motul Pole Award. The team must start at the front of the pack, have flawless pit stops and a leak proof strategy in order to succeed at this trying event.
Driver Heistand enters the weekend as the defending race winner providing both him and the team with a priceless confidence boost and a deeper understanding of how they must execute headed into the flat-out event.
“I’d say in general at Mid-Ohio we were reminded how critical qualifying is in the sprint championship in GTD,” Heistand said. “I think the emphasis is going to be trying to roll off the truck fast. We need to get the car well balanced, us drivers comfortable and in a rhythm early as the race outcome will primarily be decided on Friday during qualifying and our pit stop during the race.”
While the checklist appears inordinate, driver Westphal eagerly welcomes the challenge with open arms.
“Detroit is a tricky one, but it’s one that I love,” Westphal said. “Having said that, we will need to be smart in pit lane and with strategy as well as considering potential lap pace vs. where you are in traffic assuming there are no full course cautions.”
“We had a pretty good debut at Mid-Ohio but none of us are satisfied. I think we can improve the car and how it works with the tire and asphalt combo seeing as we are just starting to learn the car behaviors while are competitors are able to revisit past notes. We also need to consider bump control as Detroit is a place that outs emphasis on compliance and traction.”
The whirlwind weekend begins on Friday, June 11, with Practice 1 at 8:30 a.m. ET, Practice 2 at 12:00 p.m. and Qualifying at 3:30 p.m. The team returns to the track Saturday, June 12, for Morning Warmup at 10:15 a.m. The weeded concludes later that day with IMSA WeatherTech Sprint Cup Round Two, the Sports Car Classic, at 5:00 p.m.
Source. CarBahn Motorsports with Peregrine Racing
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