The Plaid Porsche is back at Sebring
CANADIAN PORSCHE TEAM RETURNS TO SEBRING WITH MOTUL “PLAID PORSCHE” AFTER STRONG SHOWING IN 2019 SEASON
SEBRING, FL, MARCH 18, 2021 // Returning to Sebring International Raceway following a one-year absence due to the coronavirus pandemic, Pfaff Motorsports is looking to build on its strong showing at the former airbase, where it qualified third in its rookie season in the 2019 IMSA Weathertech SportsCar Championship GTD class.
With a driver lineup featuring Porsche factory driver Laurens Vanthoor (BEL), 2019 IMSA GT Sprint champion Zach Robichon (CAN), and Porsche engineer and Nürburgring production car lap-record holder Lars Kern (GER), the team returns as an established outfit with two series wins and the experience to approach this season’s 12-hour race with new perspective.
“Last time we raced here was 2019. It was our second race in the series and we showed very good speed,” team manager Steve Bortolotti said. “The keys for us this year are to make it to the end – Sebring is so competitive and there’s a lot of traffic, so survival is of utmost importance. If we can execute that and have a clean race, I think we’ll be at the top when it matters most.”
Both Robichon and Vanthoor have experienced podium success at Sebring – Robichon with wins in Porsche GT3 Cup, and Vanthoor with two third-place finishes in the top-level Porsche RSR – but the Belgian is hoping to exceed those results with the plaid-liveried Motul Porsche 911 GT3 R.
“I’ve come close a couple times with races that were strong but we just weren’t there in the end,” Vanthoor said. “Our performance and preparation [at Pfaff] is very good, so if we can reproduce that for Sebring I think we’ll have a good chance this week.”
Qualifying takes place tomorrow, March 19 at 11:15 am ET, with the 69th annual 12 Hours of Sebring happening on Saturday, March 20 at 10:10 am.
Content and image Pfaff Motorsports / Lenssen Photo
