Mercedes-AMG is the defending Sebring GTD winner.
GTD With 18 entries representing eight different manufacturers,
the GTD class of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar
Championship is among the most competitive classes in
all of motorsports. Although not as fast as their GTLM big
brothers, this class provides incredible action.
Mercedes-AMG is the defending champion here at Sebring,
and last year’s winning No. 33 from Team Riley entry
will be among the favorites. Drivers are likely to include
Ben Keating, Jeroen Bleekemolen, Adam Christodoulou
and Luca Stolz.
The No. 75 SunEnergy1 Mercedes with its colorful livery
will include drivers Kenny Habul and Thomas Jaeger. A
third Mercedes in the fi eld is the No. 71 P1 Motorsports
entry for Kenton Koch, J.C. Perez and Loris Spinelli.
Acura will be represented by four NSX GT3 entries, led by
the two-car Michael Shank Racing team (No. 86 and No.
93). Katherine Legge, Alvaro Parente, Trent Hindman, Justin
Marks (fresh off a strong fi nish in the Daytona 500),
Lawson Aschenbach and Mario Farnbacher are set to drive
for the Acura team.
Another Acura entry is the No. 69 HART Racing team with
Ryan Eversley, Tom Dyer and Chad Gilsinger at the wheel.
A new Acura team making its competition debut is the C.J.
Wilson entry (No. 36).
Lexus has entered two beautiful RCF GT3 entries (No. 14
and No. 15). Drivers on this squad will include Dominik
Baumann, Kyle Marcelli, Jack Hawksworth and David
Heinemeier-Hansson. This team is poised to make its move
to the front of the fi eld after a year of development.
Audi will be represented by two teams here at the Mobil
1 Twelve Hours of Sebring presented by Advance Auto
Parts. The No. 29 Montaplast by Land Motorsports entry is
a leading contender for GTD honors this weekend, having
fi nished second here last year and posting a very strong
performance in the season opener at Daytona. Sheldon
van der Linde and Christopher Mies are expected to be
in the driving lineup. The popular No. 44 Magnus team
will have Andy Lally, John Potter and Andrew Davis at the
wheel.
Porsche is always tough in long distance races, and this
year will be no exception with two very strong entries. The
No. 58 Wright Motorsports team has two-time IMSA class
champion and 2016 Sebring winner Christina Nielsen in
the driving lineup along with veteran Porsche pilot Patrick
Long and Robert Renauer. The No. 73 Park Place Motorsports
team features drivers Patrick Lindey, Joerg Bergmeister
and Tim Pappas.
Ferrari will have two teams on the grid at Sebring. Scuderia
Corsa (No. 63 and No. 64) is perhaps the strongest team
in the GTD fi eld. Driver lineup includes Cooper MacNeil,
Alessandro Balzan, Gunnar Jeannette, Bill Sweedler and
Frank Montecalvo. The No. 71 Spirit of Race team brings a
tough driving squad that includes Paul Dalla Lana, Pedro
Lamy and Mathias Lauda.
Turner Motorsport is the lone BMW in the class (No. 96),
with Jens Klingmann, Martin Tomczyk and Mark Kvamme
at the wheel.
Lamborghini will be represented by the No. 48 Paul Miller
Racing entry and drivers Bryan Sellers, Madison Snow and
Corey Lewis. Always a top contender, this team has proven
it can earn the top place on the podium.
M o b i l 1 T w e l v e H o u r s o f S e b r i n g p r e s e n t e d b y A d v a n c e A u t o P a r t s 2277