Saturday, November 14, 2020

12 Hours of Sebring: Hour 10

Let me correct myself.  Mario Andretti's Sebring wins came in 1967 and '70.  One with Ford and one with Ferrari.  Robby Foley is off the road in the #96 Turner Motorsports BMW M6 GT3.  He lost the rear end and spun in turn three.  The exhaust is glowing bright orange even under the bonnet.  Foley is now back on the road and we stay clean and green.  Lamborghini #11 is in the pit lane fopr service.  This is the car we've mentioned quite a lot today, the Heistand/Schothorst/Perera entry.  We also watch the Paul Miller Racing Lamborghini, car #48.  The Turner Motorsports BMW has made it back to pit lane, and there will be a driver change or so it appears.  Robby Foley out and either Dillon Machavern or Nick Yelloly into the car.  

The championship battle is still down to the #7 and the #31 as well as the #10.  We are closing in on the normal time span of a sprint race, at 2 hours and 40 minutes.  Porsche #912 into the pit lane.  Laurens Vanthoor had the damage and are they going to clip the fender on?  Yes.  The Porsche might be a padiddle, a car with one working headlight.  It may not need the other headlight.  Like The Wallflowers sang, "we can drive it home, with one headlight."  We do ride onboard, around Sebring with the #912 Porsche.  Yours truly just ate dinner and there has been a lot going on.  Porsche has pitted.  Corvette has had more trouble with their wheels on the #3 car.  

We have seen a battle in GT Daytona.  We saw the #96 Turner Motorsports BMW spin and we saw the #86 MSR Acura battling with the #48 and #16 cars.  We saw the Heart of Racing Aston Martin in the fight.  More importantly, more recently, we have seen contact, again, between the #6 and the #31 and Derani has damage to the steering.  Maybe a rod end was broken.  So the pit crew is working on the car and they have dropped a fastener.  This is going to be iffy.  We see a lead change as the #86 Acura has gone around the #63 Ferrari, Matt McMurry passes Alessandro Balzan.

Mario Farnbacher and Matt McMurry are just ahead of Patrick Long and Ryan Hardwick for the championship in GTD.  Yours truly is a bit confused about what has happened in some of the other classes, with this overall lead battle taking a lot of attention.  The #86 Acura of Matt McMurry is fending off a challenge from Alessandro Balzan.  The #31 is two laps behind now.  So much is happening.  For the #31, they have a long road to hoe as the steering arm, hopefully will work out.  Olivier Pla has gapped Harry Tincknell.  

Simon Pagenaud was really pushing and had an over 3 second lead.  Juan Pablo Montoya was not comfortable in the automobile.  Montoya is in the car.  The #10 Scott Dixon driven WTR Cadillac is in the car and now, Helio Castroneves is getting into the #7 Acura.  He is looking for his first ever championship, is the three-time Indianapolis 500 winner.  Just over two hours to go in the race and the season.  Drive through penalty for the #31 for working on the car while refueling.  Mazda have just pitted the #77 car as well.

Balzan and McMurry continue to scrap for the GT Daytona lead.  We are getting to the end of the tenth hour.  Patrick Long has won a lot of race and is a very cerebral driver.  He needs to win, but how will he do so?  Can he leapfrog the other cars?  Can he do so in pit lane?  So, Jonathan Bomarito and Olivier Pla lead for Mazda.  Balzan and McMurry are really pushing each other for the GTD lead.  Balzan is going to turn under in turn one.  Contact.  Contact again!  Balzan moves past McMurry.  Patrick Long is right in this fight as well, look. 

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