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The two-day event was not without its share of drama. At the end of Friday afternoon practice, the No. 09 Aston Martin experienced a coolant issue when the cooling fan shut off just before the checkered flag.<\/p>\nMONTEREY, Calif. (14 September 2019) \u2013 The Stoner Car Care Racing fielded by Automatic Racing squad battled through adversity during a rough and tumble WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca 120 for the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge series Saturday, bringing both Aston Martin Vantage GT4s to the checkered flag in the top 15.<\/p>\n
Rob Ecklin Jr. and Aston Martin Academy Driver Akhil Rabindra took the wheel of the No. 09 Stoner Car Care Aston Martin Vantage GT4 this weekend, while Gary Ferrera and Kris Wilson piloted the No. Invisible Glass Aston Martin.<\/p>\n
The team continued the learning curve on its pair of new-for-2019 Aston Martins through a promoter\u2019s test day session on Thursday and two practice sessions on Friday, working on the cars\u2019 balance and grip which are critical on WeatherTech Raceway\u2019s tricky 2.238-mile, 11-turn configuration.<\/p>\n
The two-day event was not without its share of drama. At the end of Friday afternoon practice, the No. 09 Aston Martin experienced a coolant issue when the cooling fan shut off just before the checkered flag.<\/p>\n
The team jumped into action and quickly determined that no damage had been done to the engine, though significant amounts of Stoner Car Care cleaner was required to return the Aston Martin\u2019s engine compartment to pristine condition. Armed with an additional sensor on the coolant fan, Ecklin qualified the car he termed \u201cperfectly balanced\u201d in seventh position in the Grand Sport class, with Ferrera placing the No. 97 Invisible Glass Aston Martin on the eighth row of the starting grid.<\/p>\n
At the drop of the green flag, Ecklin took the fight to the drivers ahead, setting lap times consistent with the leaders and working his way into fifth position. Ecklin held his position despite tire degradation late in his stint, handing the wheel to Rabindra 45 minutes into the two-hour race. Rabindra continued the fight, making smart passes and staying out on track late into the stint, working his way into second position. The team gambled on strategy, hoping for a late yellow, but in the end, needed a pair of quick late splashes of fuel, bringing the car home in 15th position.<\/p>\n
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\u201cThat was a really fun run,\u201d said Ecklin. \u201cI have to give it to the Automatic Racing team; they had that car ready to go despite the cooling issues we had yesterday. I was able to just race the car and go deep into my stint on the tires. We were able to run with the leaders in lap times. We\u2019re frustrated not to finish in the top 10, or even the top five. We just didn\u2019t get the break we needed with the yellow late in the race. The car is competitive and we\u2019re so close, we\u2019re just one race away from a very good finish.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRob did an excellent job to start the race,\u201d said Rabindra. \u201cHe got us up to P5 and was putting down some really competitive lap times, doing a great job with tires and fuel. We were in a very good position to score points and even podium. When I got in, we started fuel saving during the yellow and that\u2019s when the temperature started to go up again. We tried to gamble on strategy, to try to make it to the end on fuel, but unfortunately, we didn\u2019t win that. I\u2019m not sure what happened with the fuel, whether it was an issue in the car or in the fueling rig. But the team did a great job, we\u2019ll look forward to next time.\u201d<\/p>\n
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The No. 97 Invisible Glass Aston Martin had an equally adventurous afternoon, with Ferrera starting 15th and Wilson jumping into the car 45 minutes into the race. Both ran afoul of the same car during their stints, the No. 82 BMW, with Ferrera putting a wheel off midway through his stint to avoid the BMW exiting Turn 11. Late in the race Wilson came up on the battle between the 82 and another car, with both braking late in the corner ahead of him. Wilson had nowhere to go, making contact with the BMW and damaging the front splitter. Despite the damage, Wilson brought the car home in 11th position.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe got moving right from the start,\u201d said Ferrera. \u201cIt was a group of cars battling hard from the outset. There were guys dive bombing, but I wanted to finish the race, so I tried to stay out of that. I ended up going off at (Turn) 11 because I didn\u2019t want to turn in on the guy and get hit. Kris drove like crazy and ended up having contact with the guy that caused me so many problems, but it all worked out. It\u2019s a lot of fun to race with these guys, we all work so hard.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGary did an awesome job,\u201d said Wilson, who also acts as Ferrera\u2019s driver coach. \u201cHe battled his way up to 11th position until he had the problem with the 82 car. I\u2019ve worked with him for three years and he is getting better and better, and he\u2019s working so hard, doing his homework and improving his race craft. We went with two tires on our last stop to try and make up positions, but by the end of the race, there were too many cars around me that had even fresher tires. I was sliding around so much, I felt like a sitting duck. The Automatic Racing guys have done such a great job, though. We\u2019re still learning the new car but we\u2019re getting better every time out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Next up for the Stoner Car Care Racing team will be the final event of the season at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta, part of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship\u2019s Petit Le Mans weekend. The green flag will fly on the Fox Factory 120 Friday, October 11 at 1:25 p.m. Eastern live on IMSA.tv. NBCSN will broadcast a two-hour race recap the following Friday, October 18, at 7:00 p.m. Eastern.
\nAbout Invisible Glass<\/strong><\/p>\n