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Testing for 12 Hours of Sebring this week

A total of 33 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship teams are heading to Sebring International Raceway for an official test on Thursday and Friday, Feb. 25-26 prior to next months 64th Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh From Florida which will take place on Saturday, March 19.

Among the teams and drivers headed to Central Florida a few weeks early are Ed Brown, Scott Sharp, Pipo Derani and Johannes van Overbeek who will share the Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona winning No.2 Tequila Patrón Honda Ligier JS P2.

"The entire Tequila Patrón ESM team is still riding high after our Rolex Daytona 24 win," said Sharp. "What a great way to kick off our year and I'm so proud of everyone's effort! The schedule moves on and next on the list is the Sebring 12 Hour. The second leg of the Tequila Patrón North American Endurance Cup and our home track. Certainly another very important race for us. The test next week is the only chance we will get to tune our Honda/Ligier and we are excited to see how the car performs."

Also taking the advantage of the pre-race testing is Michael Shank Racing with Curb/Agajanian and their No.60 Tire Kingdom Honda Ligier JS P2. Driver Ozz Negri will be putting in precious track time during the test.

"The rough bumps, the change of the track surface and the high-speed Turns 1 and 17 make the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring all the more challenging," said Negri. "Also, the Florida heat puts a brutal beating on crew, car and driver."

A total of eight-car Prototypes are among those on the entry list for testing including the top four finishers from the Rolex 24. In addition to the pair of Honda/Ligiers four Corvette DPs, the Highway to Help Riley DP and the Panoz DeltaWing Racing DeltaWing coupe are expected to take to the bumps of Sebring this week.

GTLM class will see Ford Chip Ganassi Racing and both of its Ford GTs along with single entries from BMW Team RLL, Porsche North America and Risi Competizione Ferrari.

In the revamped GT Daytona class six manufacturers have entered machines including four Lamborghinis, three each from Audi and Porsche, and two cars from BMW, Dodge and Ferrari.

Prototype Challenge (PC) testers include the Daytona-winning JDC-Miller Motorsports ORECA FLM09 along with the 2015 Sebring winning PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports machine. Two-time defending champion CORE autosport as well as a single entry from BAR1 Motorsports will also pit in testing time.

In addition to the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship entries the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge, Mazda Prototype Lites Presented by Cooper Tire, Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge USA by Yokohama, and Ultra 94 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada by Yokohama will have alternating sessions on Tuesday and Wednesday, Feb. 23-24.

Sessions on each of the four days run from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The test will be open to the public at $10 per day Thursday and Friday, or free to ticket holders for the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh From Florida. There will be no overnight camping.

In other news from Sebring there will be a new permanent "Champions Zone" that will debut during race week. The "Champions Zone" will become the victory lane for the iconic track.

Located in the Paddock near pit lane, the new Sebring Champions Zone will give fans greater access to view the celebrations and provide journalists an unobstructed view of the post-race ceremonies.

Previously, post-race celebrations took place along the pit area following the race making fan access nearly impossible.

"Our new Champions Zone will certainly add to the Sebring experience," stated Sebring President and General Manager Wayne Estes. "Winning at Sebring is the ultimate achievement in American endurance racing, and this will allow the competitors, fans and journalists to share in this excitement."

The three-foot high Champions Zone stage will serve as the podium for post-race activities, with an 18-foot tall and 25-foot wide concrete backdrop trimmed with stacked stone. Decorative end caps will match the blue roof of the Sebring pit structure. A paved driveway entrance will enable easy access of winning cars, while special lighting and sound systems will enhance the overall Champions Zone experience.

"This will be a functional and esthetically pleasing addition to our legendary track," added Estes. "We are confident competitors and fans will be pleased with the Champions Zone.

Gates open on Wednesday, March 16th. Supporting feature events begin on March 17th and will also utilize the new Champions Zone. The 64th Sebring classic starts at 10:40 am on Saturday, March 19th.

Entry List - Testing Schedule



02/22/16