Filipe Albuquerque has admitted that he would have been ashamed to have won the Rolex 24 at Daytona had the roles been reversed on Sunday with Ricky Taylor.
Taylor in the #10 Wayne Taylor Racing Konica Minolta Cadillac was fighting Albuquerque in the #5 Mustang Sampling Racing Cadillac for the lead heading into final five minutes when the former made an opportunistic move into turn one that spun around the #5, costing the team the overall victory.
Albuquerque, who finished less than a second down on Taylor at the chequered flag after attacking to attempt to reclaim his position at the front, felt the move was unjust and that Taylor was not a true racer for what happened.
“It was a good fight until I got hit, to be honest,” said Albuquerque. “There is not much to say. I had some GTs ahead of me so I could not brake so late.
“I closed the door and then I got spun. The officials took the decision, it is what it is, and we finished second. In Tour de France, when one guy falls, the other guys wait for him. This is a big race, and we dive in and brake late. It happens. We could see Wayne Taylor, the dad, with his hands on his head.
“If he’s a true racer who did a mistake, just back off. Wait, don’t leave. And he left! A true racer, in my opinion, in the end, deep inside, I’d feel a little bit ashamed of the win.”
