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3GT Racing Qualifies Top Two Positions at Mid-Ohio

May 7, 2018 by 3GT-Racing Leave a Comment

LEXINGTON, OHIO (May 5, 2018) — 3GT Racing’s Lexus RC F GT3 cars will lead the GTD class when the green flag waves at the Acura Sports Car Challenge at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course at 1:05 p.m., Sunday, May 6.

Jack Hawksworth, in the No. 15 Lexus RC F GT3 won his first pole position, with a fastest lap time of 1:19:317. Kyle Marcelli, in the No. 14, was less than a tenth of a second behind, with a 1:19:370 lap.

This is the first sprint race of the season and marks the return of IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship series to the 13-turn, 2.258-mile course.

Paul Gentilozzi, Managing Partner of 3GT Racing, and five-time former Trans-Am Series Champion, said his teams have had a great history of success at Mid-Ohio and that he’s hoping at race time, success with 3GT will continue that tradition.

“I’m excited for everybody on the team,” he said. “drivers, engineers, mechanics, everybody on the team and we’re all hoping that tomorrow we get to continue this success.”

Hawksworth said he was focused on finishing as close to the lead as possible. pushing through qualifying to get the lead was part of the strategy.

“Pushing through to get the lead was what we really wanted,” he said. “We want to have, in the 15 car, the gold driver in first, the silver second and then the gold third. So, we needed to pull a big gap in the beginning of the race. I wanted us to have that. I made a little mistake there near the end that might have let me go a little faster, but I’m very happy with the result.”

Marcelli was equally happy with the results in the No. 14 Lexus RC F GT3. “We worked hard at the test a couple weeks ago to get the car where we wanted it to be and I’m really happy with the results,” he said.

John Gentilozzi, Technical Director of the 3GT Racing team said that locking out the front row at Mid-Ohio is special.

“We had our first pole last year and now to get both cars in the front row, is a very nice thing,” he said. “Jack put in a great drive and Kyle put down a really great lap. That was an impressive performance by them both. All we have to do now is take that into tomorrow’s race.”

The Mid-Ohio race begins at 1 p.m. on Sunday, May 6 and will be streamed live on FSGO with FS2 authentication. Or you can listen via IMSA.com, Radio LeMans.com and Sirius XM Radio.

About 3GT Racing
3GT Racing was formed to race the Lexus RC F GT3. Owned and operated by five-time Trans-Am Series Champion, Paul Gentilozzi and his longtime partners, Tony and John Gentilozzi, the East Lansing, Michigan-based team principals have been involved in motorsports for more than 48 years and have claimed more than 75 victories and 15 manufacturer and driver championships.

Filed Under: Race Reports Tagged With: Jack Hawksworth, John Gentilozzi, Kyle Marcelli, Mid-Ohio, Mid-Ohio SportsCar Course, Paul Gentilozzi

3GT Racing Earns Top Five Finish at Historic Sebring

March 18, 2018 by 3GT-Racing Leave a Comment

SEBRING, Fla. (March 18, 2018) –The 3GT Racing team earned a top five finish at Saturday’s Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring with the No. 15 Lexus RC F GT3. Dominik Baumann, in the No. 14, had the fastest GTD lap with a time of 2:00:628. The No. 14 finished P15.

The early hours of the endurance race were dominated by both Lexus RC F GT3 cars, with the No. 15 in the lead for 45 laps and the No. 14 in the lead for eight laps.

3GT Racing at Sebring

Near the halfway point of the endurance race, the second in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship series, a few technical snafus and issues caused a loss of laps for both cars, moving them from top positions to nearer the bottom of the 18-car GTD class. In the last couple hours of the race, Hawksworth took the No. 15 from P14 to the final P5.

John Gentilozzi, 3GT Racing Technical Director said that nobody on either car team gave up.

“I’m not sure, if you were to have asked us mid-race how it would end, that we could have predicted this. Have to give a lot of credit to the No. 15 car guys, they did not give up,” he said. “Jack really drove a fantastic stint in the last couple hours of the race. It brought us to fifth and it’s a good result, but I think we still expect a lot more out of the car and out of the program.

Hopefully we’ll have a chance to show it during sprint season.”
Nearly six hours into the Saturday’s race, Philipp Frommenwiler, driving the No. 14, was P1 and David Heinemeier Hansson was P3 in the No. 15.

“The first six hours were great,” Frommenwiler said. “We were always in the top three fighting for the lead, but a few laps after I gave the Lexus over to Dominik (Baumann) in P1, we had a technical problem with the hood. The time it took to fix it lost us a few laps and we couldn’t get back.”

While Baumann was driving the No. 14, the hood came loose three times. He said he was certain that the team had a car for the podium when the race started.

“Everything went well until we had trouble with the hood. I couldn’t see anything. I hit the sign because I couldn’t see. It was not nice hitting that at 100 miles an hour,” he said “It’s hard to get a lap back this year because the level of drivers is so strong. We improved a lot over the weekend. We did a lot of set up work and we’re headed in a good direction.”

Kyle Marcelli, co-driver in the No. 14, said he thought the car was in shape to win.

“We started off so strong,” he said. “Not even just this weekend. The February test was really good and we rolled out of the trailer this weekend and had a good race car. Then, during Dominik’s (Baumann) stint the hood came up, and it’s just one of those stupid little things that you really can’t do much about.”

Gentilozzi thought the No. 14 car was positioned to get laps back on two or three occasions later in the race, but it just wasn’t possible to get past the class leader. “It’s a testament to the No. 14 drivers that they were able to drive up from behind and pass the guys that were in the lead group, but we couldn’t get past the class leader,” he said.

Heinemeier Hansson, co-driver in the No. 15 Lexus RC F GT3 said the ending of the race for the No. 15 car was a sure example of the magic of racing in IMSA.

“The right amount of luck with yellows can bring you back in contention. When Jack (Hawksworth) got back on the lead lap, he just put it down and we went up to fifth. An amazing finish given the issues that we had, two drive-throughs, the brake change, the steering wheel change. Just a lot of incidents and to finish fifth is a real victory.”

The 12-hour race along the 17 turn historic course was filled with yellow caution laps, but it was one in the closing hours that gave Hawksworth the opportunity to move the No. 15 back into a top position.

Hawksworth, who had qualified the No. 15 and started the race P3, surged into the lead of the GTD class in the first lap and continued to battle among the leaders throughout his first stint. But it was his last stint in the early evening hours that put the No. 15 in fifth place.

Hawksworth took over driving duties for the No. 15, which was P14, when he jumped in and then he just kept moving up.

“We’d had a few issues. Really, I didn’t know where we were when I got in, but I knew we were back,” he said. “I was told the cars ahead were for position, so I did my best to chase them down. The Ferrari in front was a little too fast, but I was able to overtake the Audi, the Porsches and the Acuras. Our Lexus was working well, and I was happy to salvage a top five. When you think of all the stuff that happened throughout the race and we came back and got a top five, I’m really happy.”

About 3GT Racing
3GT Racing was formed to race the Lexus RC F GT3. Owned and operated by five-time Trans-Am Series Champion, Paul Gentilozzi and his longtime partners, Tony and John Gentilozzi, the East Lansing, Michigan-based team principals have been involved in motorsports for more than 48 years and have claimed more than 75 victories and 15 manufacturer and driver championships.

Filed Under: Race Reports Tagged With: 12 Hours of Sebring, 3GT Racing, David Heinemeier Hansson, Dominik Baumann, Jack Hawksworth, Kyle Marcelli, Lexus, Lexus RC F, Lexus RC F GT3, Paul Gentilozzi, Philipp Frommenwiler, Sean Rayhall, Sebring, Sebring International Raceway

3GT Racing will start P3, P4 at 12Hours of Sebring race

March 16, 2018 by 3GT-Racing Leave a Comment

EBRING, Fla. (March 16, 2018) – 3GT Racing’s Lexus RC F GT3s earned top starting positions for tomorrow’s Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring at Sebring International Raceway, during Friday’s GTD qualifying session. The No. 15 Lexus RC F GT3 will start P3, with driver Jack Hawksworth at the wheel.

Hawksworth had a fastest lap of 1:59:251 during the 15-minute session. Only a fraction of a second behind Hawksworth was Dominik Baumann, driving the No. 14 Lexus RC F GT3. Baumann, who had a fastest lap of 1:59:476, will start the race P4.

3GT Racing’s Managing Partner, Paul Gentilozzi, said that it isn’t often that a team gets a chance, during an endurance race weekend, to go as hard as the car will go.

“I think it was an opportunity to let our two gold drivers really maximize the cars’ performance,” he said. “They did it well. And the conditions were just near perfect. So, we’re very happy.”

Baumann, who had his first race in the U.S. at the Rolex 24 at Daytona in January, said the team did a few improvements after the morning session and he was happy with the outcome.

“During qualifying the car felt really good,” the Austrian driver said. “We did our job and now we are at the front. It’s a really good starting position.”

Baumann will share driving duties in the No. 14 with Kyle Marcelli and Philipp Frommenwiler. David Heinemeier Hansson and Sean Rayhall will drive with Hawksworth in the No. 15.

Hawksworth said the balance of the No. 15 Lexus RC F GT3 felt great during the qualifying session.

“The car felt really good,” he said. “Obviously, this track position gives us a good shot in the beginning of the race, putting us up front with the leaders. It’s definitely an advantage that we’re happy to have.”

You can watch the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring race, live on FS1, beginning at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, March 17; from 12:30 to 3:40 p.m. on FS2; and for the checkered flag, from 6 to 11 p.m. on FS2. The 12-hour race is 10:40 a.m. to 10:40 p.m.

About 3GT Racing:

3GT Racing was formed to race the Lexus RC F GT3. Owned and operated by five-time Trans-Am Series Champion, Paul Gentilozzi and his longtime partners, Tony and John Gentilozzi. The East Lansing, Michigan-based team principals have been involved in motorsports for more than 48 years and have claimed more than 75 victories and 15 manufacturer and driver championships.

Top Ten Finish for 3GT Racing at Daytona’s Rolex 24

January 29, 2018 by 3GT-Racing Leave a Comment

DAYTONA, Fla. (January 29, 2018) – The No. 15 Lexus RC F GT3, with driver Jack Hawksworth at the wheel, finished P9 at the Rolex 24 at Daytona. The No. 14 finished P15, with new driver Kyle Marcelli taking the car over the finish line.

Hawksworth, who had qualified the car and began the race at P3, said he was happy to bring home the top-10 finish and to get some points early on, but he’s convinced the team and the cars are prepared for better finishes as the season progresses.

3GT Racing in the Rolex 24 at Daytona

“With all of the testing we’ve done up to this point, I could tell pretty early in the race that the grip and the balance of the car was not as good as it had been in the practice,” said Hawksworth. “I struggled a little bit in the beginning and then dropped back a bit. Then, as the night came in it got a little bit better and I felt a little bit stronger. Obviously, we had some issues towards the end with a bit of contact with a GTLM car and then we had the incident in Turn 5 and that really hurt the balance of the car.”

The Turn 5 incident occurred when Hawksworth’s co-pilot, David Heinemeier Hansson, took the No. 15 into a tire wall just two laps before he was due to come in for a driver change. DHH acknowledged having a few struggles in his first stint driving when it began to rain.

“This is the first time I’ve made it to the end of Daytona,” he said. “It’s much easier when you finish after 10 or 12 hours. But that first stint – when the rain started – was a new experience for me and I definitely struggled. The afternoon was much better until two laps before I came in. The race, for me, was definitely a baptism by fire.”

Hawksworth, who drove for nine hours, said that after the incident at Turn 5, the damage to the front caused the car to act a bit like a sail, making the straights a little slower, but smooth on the slow speed corners. He was very happy with the crew.

“The guys did a really good job with the pit stops and everyone stuck it out to the end,” Hawksworth said. “It’s really easy to lose your head in a situation when things are kind of going against you a little bit, but we kept our heads up, kept on battling and came away with a top-10, so we’ll take that.”

Dominik Baumann, one of the entirely new team of drivers on the No. 14, qualified P6 in the Lexus RC F GT3 and took the car from sixth to the lead in the early laps of the race. This was Baumann’s first race in the U.S., earlier he was the class winner in Dubai’s 24-hour race.

“After the technical problem early, it made it hard for us to show what we really can do in the Lexus RC F GT3,” he said. “I think we could finish top 5 easy, so we have to work on it keep pushing and show what the car and drivers can do.”

Kyle Marcelli, co-driver in the No. 14, noted that the race was particularly grueling because it was nearly green flag for the entire 24 hours.

“Only three cautions, only 20 laps of nearly 800 under yellow,” he said. “Hats off to the drivers and teams for keeping it safe. It was a flawless job, just goes to show the level of competition. We got really excited after qualifying – qualifying 3 and 6 – felt pretty good. But the temperature was a lot different come race time. We picked up some understeer, didn’t quite have the same pace that the car had in practice and in qualifying. But if you look at the whole race, the drivers and team pretty much executed a flawless race. No major penalties, no major mistakes. We had one hiccup at hour six, but all in all a really good job. Half the battle of these 24-hour races is just finishing.”

The Rolex 24 at Daytona was not only the kickoff to the 2018 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship series, but the race was also the last for veteran sports car driver Scott Pruett, who announced during the Roar Before the 24 that the endurance race would be his last.

Pruett is a member of the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America and the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame. The longtime sports car champion drove last year with 3GT Racing in both the No. 14 and No. 15 Lexus RC F GT3 cars. He and 3GT Racing’s Managing Partner, Paul Gentilozzi, have been friends for more than 30 years.

Gentilozzi said he is still having a hard time believing that Scott Pruett is retiring. In 1994, he and Pruett teamed up with Butch Leitzinger to win the overall Rolex 24 at Daytona. And together, Pruett and Gentilozzi, earned two class wins at Daytona, and Pruett won a TransAm Championship while driving for Gentilozzi.

“I still don’t believe it,” Gentilozzi said. “For 30-plus years, Scott’s been a competitor, a co-driver, a friend. You don’t often have competitors who are friends, but he’ll be a friend for life.”

As for 3GT Racing’s finish at the Rolex 24 at Daytona, Gentilozzi said he plans to take the lessons learned during the grueling race to heart and get ready for the next race.

“We raced for 24 hours with everybody else, we raced really hard. We learned a lot about our team and our drivers and our cars. So, I’m going to take away that satisfaction. This is not the end we want. But when you look at yourself and say ‘Well, we could have won.’ Yes, we could have won, but so could three or four other teams. Everybody has their good and bad luck. I’m happy with the team we have. We’re going to celebrate and focus on Sebring.”

Next up for the 3GT Racing team is The Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring on Saturday, March 17 beginning at 10:30 a.m.

About 3GT Racing

3GT Racing was formed to race the Lexus RC F GT3. Owned and operated by five-time Trans-Am Series Champion, Paul Gentilozzi and his longtime partners, Tony and John Gentilozzi, the East Lansing, Michigan-based team principals have been involved in motorsports for more than 48 years and have claimed more than 75 victories and 15 manufacturer and driver championships.

Brenda Brissette Mata
Communications Dir.
810-394-8910
[email protected]

Filed Under: Race Reports Tagged With: Daytona, Rolex 24, Rolex 24 at Daytona

3GT Racing Qualifies P4, P6 with Lexus RC F GT3 at Daytona

January 25, 2018 by 3GT-Racing Leave a Comment

DAYTONA, Fla. (January 25, 2018) — 3GT Racing’s Lexus RC F GT3s qualified in 4^th (No. 15) and 6^th (No. 14), at Daytona International Speedway in a 15-minute qualifying session for the Rolex 24 at Daytona.

Jack Hawksworth qualified the No. 15 P4 with a best lap of 1:46:714. During the second practice, earlier in the day, Hawksworth earned fastest lap.

Rolex qualifying

“I really enjoyed the session,” Hawksworth said. “It was probably the most enjoyable qualifying session I’ve had in this car – just from a personal perspective. I felt like I put my laps together nicely. Quite often I come away from a session thinking something went wrong here or there, but I came away from that one thinking it was pretty darned good.”

Dominik Baumann finished 6P in the No. 14 Lexus RC F GT3 with a fastest lap of 1:47:186. Earlier this month, Baumann earned fastest lap during the night test at The Roar Before the 24, and later raced in the 24H Dubai where he took first in class.

The 2016 Blancpain GT series champion, Baumann said he had a little trouble negotiating the traffic at the beginning of the qualifying session, but he quickly found his rhythm and moved ahead.

“The car was really good. I like the car a lot,” he said. “After practice, we worked together and spent a lot of time to make the car better. And, it was my first qualifying with the car. It all still feels new. But I think it’s a good starting point for the race. And I’m ready.”

3GT Racing’s Managing Partner said he was very satisfied with the team’s qualifying results.

“Qualifying at Daytona is important to the team, not important to how you finish,” he said. “I feel like our 4th and 6th place combination was really outstanding. We know that there are several cars in the field that have a BOP (Balance of Performance) that allowed them great straight line. We have cars that handle and perform and I’m very satisfied.”

The 24-hour endurance race will start at 2:40 p.m. (ET) on Saturday, January 27 and end at 2:40 p.m. on Sunday, and televised live on Fox stations, including FS1, FS2. The full race will be available on the Fox Sports GO app.

About 3GT Racing

3GT Racing was formed to race the Lexus RC F GT3. Owned and operated by five-time Trans-Am Series Champion, Paul Gentilozzi and his longtime partners, Tony and John Gentilozzi, the East Lansing, Michigan-based team principals have been involved in motorsports for more than 47 years and have claimed more than 75 victories and 15 manufacturer and driver championships.

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