Justin Wilson will re-join Michael Shank Racing for this weekend’s Twelve Hours of Sebring as the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship returns to action with the second round of the Tequila Patron North American Endurance Cup.
Wilson, who was part of the line-up that won the Rolex 24 at Daytona in 2012 for Shank’s team, brings extra experience in both P2 equipment and of the brutally bumpy airfield track which is a regular fixture on the Indycar Series’ pre-season testing calendar.
MSR and regular drivers Ozz Negri and John Pew are one race into their first season with their Honda engined Ligier JS P2 design after taking a respectable fifth from the season opener at Daytona International Speedway. Now they are to take on the 3.74 track laid out around Sebring Regional Airport, a track that arguably suits the high downforce P2 more than the Daytona Prototype they raced in the inaugural TUDOR Championship season.
Twelve months ago the Ohio based team took a ninth place finish from the first appearance at the famous Sebring track, when Wilson was also part of the driving squad. However, as extensive testing – including two days at Sebring – helps the team find the handle on their new steed team owner Mike Shank is optimistic heading into perhaps the most physically grueling race of the TUDOR Championship season.
“We are very much looking forward to getting back to it at Sebring,” he said. “We’re thrilled to have Justin back with us for this race. He’s one of the best in the business and he’s been a good friend of the team for many years. This is a very physical track and all three drivers – John, Ozz and Justin – have been training hard to be at their best for this 12 hour race. We found out even more about this car when we tested at Sebring a few weeks ago so we’re excited to see what we can do here this weekend.”
On track action at Sebring begins on March 19 with three practice sessions before qualifying the following day. The race itself is scheduled to start at 10:40am local time on Saturday March 21.
