AIM/Doncaster - Rolex 24 18hr

Doncaster Racing led the GT class during the third quarter of the Rolex 24 At Daytona, but the team's No. 17 MineStar Tim Hortons Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car was then slowed by a water hose leak, forcing a 13-minute garage stop that dropped the team back 10 laps. At the 18-hour mark, the team was ninth in class as Dave Lacey, Greg Wilkins, Lance David Arnold, Tom Papadopoulos and Johnny Mowlem worked to regain lost track position.

AIM Autosport maintained a steady pace to hold seventh place overall for the No. 61 Lexus-powered Riley Mk XI sponsored by Exchange Traded Gold in partnership with Barrick Gold Corporation. Mark Wilkins, Burt Frisselle, Brian Frisselle and David Empringham combined with the crew for faultless pit stops.

class race position

 

car             start              6h             12h             18h
24h

 

17 GT          10                 5                 3               9

61 DP          17                 8                 6               7

                  

race report

 

car          time             driver                  action

 

17           12h56           change                 pit – Lacey in, rain
tires, fuel

               14h31           Lacey                   GT leader

               14h41           Lacey                   pit – rain tires,
fuel, replace wiper arm

               15h09           change                 pit – G Wilkins in,
fuel, dry tires

               15h42           G Wilkins             pit – fuel

               15h51           G Wilkins             GT leader

               16h08           change                 pit – Arnold in,
tires, fuel

               16h39           Arnold                  garage – replaced
coolant hose, rear brake pads

               16h52           Arnold                  back on track

               16h56           Arnold                  pit – coolant

               16h59           Arnold                  pit – coolant

               17h46           Arnold                  pit – rain tires,
fuel

 

61           12h25           change                 pit – Burt Frisselle in,
rain tires, fuel

               15h16           change                 pit – Empringham in,
dry tires, fuel

               16h50           change                 pit – M Wilkins in,
tires, fuel, front brake pads

               17h39           M Wilkins             pit – rain tires, fuel

Dave Lacey: "The car was handling so well in the wet, but we always had an issue. The first issue we had was we had no windshield wipers; the windshield wiper had snagged on the tear-away. It was very difficult to see – I missed the turn-in a couple of times and I spun once. But the car was just really, really hooked up, I felt very confident in the wet. But it started to dry out and we were rolling in drier weather than I anticipated. The car was a real handful. It was fun, but it wasn't very fast."

Greg Wilkins: "The race for the GT car had gone remarkably well. It was really our best effort at competing for a win. Even though we've been on the podium a couple of times before, this race we were on the pace and we were running and able to stay in the lead. So it was really disappointing to have a small, little mechanical problem put us behind the wall. The record books won't look that impressive, but for awhile the run looked really strong."

Brian Frisselle: "It's been prettty positive for the whole AIM Autosport crew. The team is just amazing – they're new to the series, yet they prepared such a good race car, that's really why we're up front right now. We've spent no time in the garage and only a little time in the pits with some small problems. I thank Lexus for building a reliable motor. it's been a lot of fun, but it's also been a lot of hard work with the weather. There have been some tough stints, but hopefully we'll finish well."

– aimautosport.com –