Sebring 12 Hour in the Driver's Own Words

Hear from the drivers about the 2019 12 Hours at Sebring, in their own words Toni Vilander.  “Again, [we had] the famous six minutes to go and a full course yellow,” Vilander said. “It got nuts. People were spinning all over the place. The contact and the aggression levels were so high. I got hit at the restart in Turn 17. I collected all the marbles, so it was difficult to keep the rhythm. I dropped down to fourth. I was surprised, but I kept calm. Somehow, I knew it was going to happen [the final pass for third] and it did happen. I managed to come back to third and finish the race. “I wanted to do well after the difficult conditions we had at Daytona. We had a chance to score a good result [at Daytona], but it didn’t happen. So, [at Sebring] I really wanted finish the race, finish on the podium, and build the foundation from there. “Cooper did a fantastic job at the start of the race with the amount of water and everything. And Jeff, what a drive. He was fast – no mistakes – and pushed it to the front. It was a good trio, good combination. We’ll keep working and hopefully we’ll find more speed.”

Jeff Westphal.  “The 12 Hours of Sebring is one of the more grueling events so you start with the mindset of trying to conserve the car,” Westphal said. “The aggression you use and the risks you take in the first six hours are very different than the what you will do in the second six hours. You start pushing harder and taking more chances. You try not to be too risky, but make moves that you know will land you on the podium like today. I can’t say enough about all the drivers and crew. Cooper and Toni did a great job. It means so much to be on the podium here, I can’t say enough about how great this is and how great Scuderia Corsa is.”

Cooper MacNeil.   “It’s a shame the race started under yellow but it was the right call,” MacNeil said. “The track was really treacherous even once we went green so with eleven hours to go it was less about pace and more about survival. A lot of people were driving like it was the last lap but I knew a nice steady race would be key. Anytime you finish on the podium here is impressive, especially in the GTD class. This is the fifth consecutive podium for Scuderia Corsa so it’s great to be a part of it. The guys and gals of Scuderia Corsa have worked overtime to make this happen so they deserve as much credit as the drivers.”