Sunday, January 30, 2022

Rolex 24: Hour 22

The #54 CORE Autosport LMP3 car of Colin Braun, and Spencer Pumpelly in the #44 Magnus Racing Aston Martin.  These two cars need a yellow.  The #44 wants to get a lap back.  The #31 Whelen Cadillac comes out of the pits.  In comes the #5 Mustang Sampling Cadillac for fuel, tires, and a driver change.  Wayne Taylor Racing is back in the lead, and we have Acura's running 1-2 over the Cadillac's.  We are coming up to the time of a sprint race.  Going as hard as you can, sometimes can be a fallacy.  Watch the curbs in the Le Mans chicane.  To the lane, the #01 Ganassi Racing Cadillac.  Mike Conway is back aboard the #31 as we see the two Ganassi Cadillac's have had trouble along with the second AXR Cadillac, the #48 Ally entry.  It's indeed sprint race time.  #10 now in the pit lane.  Conway moving up and Blomqvist now leading in the #60 entry.

Racing is the epitome of a team sport.  Having done 3/4 of a day's work, then the race begins, and then, they have to take a whole day to tear down the pit boxes and load the car and the transporter.  No mistakes.  Everyone has to be on their A game.  Richard Westbrook is now third and we see the #60 Acura in.  Richard Westbrook and then Tristan Vautier to finish?  No.  Loic Duval might be the closer.  Cadillac has the speed while Acura has the fuel advantage.  Tom Blomqvist will hand the #60 over to Helio Castroneves.  Three-wide into the International Horseshoe.  LMP3 argy bargy across the grass for Rasmus Lindh in the #36 Andretti Autoport entry.  I got it, I got it.  I don't got it.  

A penalty for speeding in the lane for the #54 CORE Autosport LMP3 entry.  Matteo Cairoli slides to a stop in turn five.  He overcooked the corner.  That was bizarre.  Townsend Bell is back in the #12 Lexus RC F GT3 for Vasser Sullivan.  Bell is on his third stint right now.  Zacharie Robichon still leads GTD and Frankie Montecalvo will be back in the #12 Lexus.  There is an airbag in the helmet, and it is inflated to push the helmet off if there is a head injury.  It has never had to be used, the helmet airbag.  Richard Westbrook is in the lead in the #5 JDC-Miller Cadillac.  Ricky Taylor will finish out the motor race in the Acura.  The Cadillac's are burning fuel while the Acura's are more efficient.  But this event will again come down to a shootout, probably.

Dennis Olsen for KCMG and Matty Campbell for Pfaff battle in Porsche's for GTD Pro.  Ganassi Cadillac's have had issues for the fuel pump for the #02 entry and a litany of woe for the #01 as well.  Danielle Shepherd is a simulator engineer who has become a lead engineer at CGR on Cadillac #02.  Wright Motorsports did not race here last year but they are pressing on for a possible win in GTD this year.  The AXR/WTR battle resumes as Mike Conway battles Filipe Albuquerque.  This Porsche scrum in GTD Pro has been fascinating.  KCMG vs. Pfaff, trading blows all day, all night, and all day again.  This battle between #10 and #31 is for second.

Mike Conway was spooked into lifting.  Filipe Albuquerque almost runs right into the back of Mike Conway!  Yikes!  That was scary business!  Richard Westbrook is pulling away.  Just a shade over two hours to go.  The ambient and track temperatures will continue to change.  Wright Motorsports now in the lane and now, Jan Heylen is getting into the #16 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3R.  Zacharie Robichon is getting out of the car.  Heylen won the 2021 Michelin Pilot Challenge championship.  Robichon, at the outset of the pandemic, took up bread baking.  Anyhow, back to the racing.  Mike Conway.  Wheel to wheel.  MSR and AXR and Conway seems to get the best of Tom Blomqvist for now.  

Blomqvist is closing up.  This is a breathtaking scrum in DPi!  Blomqvist goes outside Conway and makesit stick.  How will Conway respond?  Loic Duval will finish out this race in the #5 Cadillac.  Westbrook hits the pit lane.  One more stint for Westbrook.  He will then hand it over to Loic Duval to bring it home.  Mike Conway will do his last stint.  Pipo Derani will finish the race for AXR.  The Cadillac's have the speed.  The Acura's might have the fuel mileage.  Loic Duval, Ricky Taylor, Helio Casroneves, Pipo Derani.  Traffic, traffic, traffic.  Acura #10 has yet to pit.  He leads Blomqvist, Westbrook, and Conway.

WTR can do three stops so Taylor will do a quadruple stint.  #31, #5, and #60 will go in and do driver changes on the next stop while Taylor does a quadruple stint.  Josh Pierson, age 15, and he will be 16 very soon.  Here comes #10.  Josh Pierson says he has done well in his firstRo;ex 24 and is ecstatic to be here.  Pit stop time in the #10 camp.  The ace driver in the car.  Will this be an advantage for WTR?  Limit risk.  MSR in the lane.  Josh Pierson racing PR1 in IMSA LMP2 and United in LMP2 in World Endurance Championship.  Pierson supports Alzheimer's as his grandfather has Alzheimer's.  Great cause.  

Closing in on two hours to go with the #60 MSR Acura in the lead of the motor race.  Matthieu Jaminet leads Laurens Vanthoor in the GTD Pro battle of the Porsche's.  Mike Conway is now back to fourth place.  

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