Pit+Paddock Civic Type R TCR Secures Top 8 Finish at 2024 IMSA Sebring

Back in Florida at the iconic Sebring International Raceway for the second round of the 2024 IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge, ENEOS ambassador Dai Yoshihara and the Montreal Motorsport Group (MMG) took on the challenging two-hour battle at one of the country’s oldest circuits in the Pit+Paddock Civic Type R TCR.

Having gone through several course revisions since its debut in the ‘50s to make the layout safer for drivers, it still proven difficult to master, with Turn 17 (aka, America’s gnarliest corner) putting the best to the test…especially when you factor in multiple cars attacking it at once.

Yoshihara was entrusted to pilot the Civic Type R during qualifying, as well as the first stint of the race. The team managed to qualify P8 for Friday’s contest.

From the start, the Civic Type R was strong from the start as Yoshihara took seventh place within the first 10 minutes of the race. However, drama soon followed between various competitors in the GS and TCR classes, causing damage to multiple vehicles, triggering the first wave of pit stops at just over 30 minutes of racing. But it wouldn’t be the last…

Near the halfway point, another full course caution knocked more out of competition, but Yoshihara made the most of it, climbing to P3 at the 59-minute mark restart; he carried the CTR for another 10 minutes before a P5 dive into the pits for a pivotal driver change.

Unfortunately for teammate/co-driver Karl Wittmer, a seatbelt problem during the driver change set the team behind and the following cautions weren’t kind either; as a consequence, he fell behind 14sec. With resilience still fresh on his mind from Daytona, Wittmer got back on pace the second half of the race, becoming one of the fastest drivers in the field to claw his way back into the top 10 with only two laps left, ultimately finishing P8.

“Racing is never perfect, however, the positives outweigh the negatives by a long shot this weekend,” Wittmer explained. “Montreal Motorsports Group was incredible and executed in every situation like true pros!”

“Even though I didn’t pull off what I wanted to in qualifying, I felt like I did exactly what I needed to do in this race,” said Yoshihara. “I was really happy with my driving and overall performance, to give Karl the best car for his stint. I have a lot of homework to do (in a good way), and will be training hard for the next race at Laguna Seca.”

Thanks to consistency, the team moved up to sixth place in the Michelin Pilot Challenge standings…not a bad way to close out the weekend!

NEXT RACE

Yoshihara, Wittmer and MMG head to Weathertech Raceway Laguna Seca from May 8-12, 2024 for Round 3 of the 2024 IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge.