3GT Racing Top Five in IMSA GTD, Heads to Lime Rock
(EAST LANSING, MI) July 17, 2018 — 3GT Racing holds its rank among the top GTD teams as the last half of the 2018 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship series gets underway at the Northeast Grand Prix in Lakeville, Connecticut.
The No. 15 Lexus RC F GT3, with drivers Jack Hawksworth and David Heinemeier Hansson, holds the fifth-place ranking just two points from fourth and twelve points from third. Hawksworth’s tire problem the last two laps at CTMP dropped him from third to seventh in finish position and cost the duo a third-place ranking in the Drivers Championship.
Lime Rock Pre Race
The No. 14 took first place at Mid-Ohio and second on the podium at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. Marcelli said it’s been great to have the success of two podiums and a win, but he and Baumann aren’t planning to slow down.
“Where we are in the point standings means it’s going to be difficult to get in the top three,” Marcelli said. “But we’ve got four sprint races and one endurance race to go this season and Dominik and I are eager to accumulate more victories. We’ve had some tough luck in the endurance races. But we are now approaching each race one at a time with the goal of finishing the best we can, ultimately to win.”
Each race is a new experience for Marcelli’s Austrian co-driver, who is racing in the U.S. for the first time this year.
“Another track that I have not been to,” Baumann said. “But I trust Kyle and what he tells me. And, I’ve been doing some SIM training and watching videos, which I hope gives me good direction on the track. I know in real life it is a short track, but I think it will be a quick learn for me.”
Hawksworth and Heinemeier Hansson in the No 15, are tied in points at fifth place among the GTD drivers. Heinemeier Hansson will not be at this Saturday’s two-hour, 40-minute race at Lime Rock Park due to a business commitment.
Mario Farnbacher of Germany, who partnered with the Hawksworth at the six-hour endurance race at Watkins Glen, will share the driver seat in the No. 15 Lexus RC F GT3 with him again at Lime Rock.
Hawksworth has earned three pole positions and recorded the fastest laps at three of the last six races, Mid-Ohio, Watkins Glen and Canadian Tire Motorsport Park.
“I enjoy working with David but obviously David is true gentlemen racer, a businessman who also races,” Hawksworth said. “He’s been doing really well. It will be different to be racing with Mario, a professional driver who’s been around a long time. We will probably be the strongest driver lineup on the grid. I’m really looking forward to it and to see what we can do.”
While Heinemeier Hansson has plenty to do in his other life, he said he’s more than happy to see how Jack will do at Lime Rock with Mario and he looks forward to being back at Road America in August.
Farnbacher, who has been racing in the IMSA GTD class in the States, has earned three wins in 2016, a win at Sebring in 2017 and at the Detroit Grand Prix in 2018. He said he’s happy to be back at 3GT Racing.
“3GT Racing is definitely a good fit for me,” he said. “It’s like a family and Lime Rock is going to be an important race. We will have good strategy. It’s an interesting track, the shortest on the calendar. Short time, short laps and pits are so important. It’s tough with only the GTLM’s around. Lime Rock is hard to over-take and we know you have to be careful letting a GTLM go by, they are always in packs and it’s easy to lose position.”
Nicknamed the “Bullring,” Lime Rock is the seventh of 11 races in the IMSA series and the first of two GT-only races. The track is 1.474 miles long with 6 right hand turns and one left. There will be 18 cars in the field, 10 GTD and 8 GTLM. The race starts at 3 p.m. (ET) on Saturday, July 21, and will be televised (delayed) beginning at 4 p.m. on FS1.
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.
