IMSA / Sebring – On, can Acura and WTR Andretti overcome the curse?

On paper, the 24 Hours of Daytona result isn’t exactly bad for WTR Andretti. If No. 10 didn’t make it to the finish due to electrical problems, No. 40 went under the checkerboard in third place. But the American team has never weighed in the race. The main fault is the BoP apart from supporting the Acura ARX-06, which weighed 1072 kg in standard – or 42 more than in 2023 – compared to 1051 kg for the Porsche 963 or even 1030 kg for the Cadillac V. -Series.R .

The only reason we found for this is that Acura was punished following the cheating case that Meyer Shank Racing was found guilty of last year.. « We knew we didn’t have a car that could compete with Cadillacs, BMWs and Porsches. » team principal Wayne Taylor was pleased to announce the end. As for Louis Delétraz, he had ceased to be ” I am glad to be able to benefit from this situation. »

Still, the WTR Andretti men must have been relieved when the BoP used at Sebring was made official, including a return to normal in terms of weight: 1055 kg. It is enough to suggest the most likely trio of Filipe Albuquerque / Ricky Taylor / Brendon Hartley and Louis Delétraz / Jordan Taylor / Colton Herta, registered at number 10 and 40 respectively.

« We ended up doing well at Daytona due to the conditions, Jordan explains. But we should be more in the mix at Sebring. I think we reached good levels during the tests done here as well as last week in the simulator. This is always a fast race where a lot can and will happen, so I’m hoping for a clean race and to be in contention at the end. »

As a reminder, last year, the only ARX-06 fielded by WTR Andretti was in a battle for victory with a famous pile-up that took down several top players (video below) less than 20 minutes from the finish line. ” The 2023 version was chaotic, crazy and wild, recalls Filipe Albuquerque, driving at the time. It will probably be the same this year. It is our hope that we will reach the end this year. »

➡️ IMSA – Schedule, entries, BoP, announcements… Our guide to the 12 Hours of Sebring

And Wayne Taylor concludes: “ I think the team has matured a lot since Daytona. We did a great test here a few weeks ago, with cars that were great and fun to drive. Although we didn’t have much luck at Sebring, we always had a fast car there. And I don’t think the drivers could be more motivated to give the team its first win at Sebring since 2017. »

Six years of starvation, this is another heavy weight to carry that WTR Andretti would do well to shed. And what about Acura / Honda, whose only success at a former military airport in Florida began in 2016, as an engine manufacturer…