Can’t Stop Won’t Stop
Performance Tech Motorsports ends the 2020 season with champagne showers and a third-place finish at its home track.
Serving as an unprecedented season finale it was clear that the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Presented by Advanced Auto Parts would be even more trying and ruthless than usual. On top of close battles and chaotic traffic the team endured eight hours of starter issues that prohibited the drivers from turning the car off during pit stops. Staying true to its can-do attitude the team persevered through each battle it faced to finish in third place, earning its fourth podium at the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring.
“This year has been crazy, there’s no other way to put it,” Team Principal Brent O’Neill said. “But at the end of the day we stayed together as a team and pushed through it which really speaks volumes about our whole operation. I’m proud of Don, Patrick and Guy for hopping in, getting up to speed and ultimately finishing on the podium at our home track. This is exactly the type momentum we want going into 2021. Now it’s time to head back to the shop and get to work!”
The team’s 2020 endurance driver Don Yount began the weekend on a high note by earning third place in qualifying. Yount spent the majority of his stints managing traffic while keeping the nose clean so the team had a car to fight with come sunset. His preservation allowed the team to have exactly what it needed to fight for a podium at the end.
Driver Patrick Byrne was new to the team and the ORECA LMP2; however, he piloted the No. 38 like a Sebring International Raceway veteran. He carefully maneuvered the car over the track’s notorious bumps during the most difficult time of day to drive; sunset. As track temperatures dropped, he chipped away at his lap times and the gap to the competitors ahead.
Seasoned pro Guy Cosmo partook in his 8th Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring and earned his first podium at the event. He led the team into the night with his target locked on one of the coveted top-three spots. Being mindful of the battered and bruised car he meticulously piloted the No. 38 home in third place, a perfect way to wrap up the 2020 season.
The team now heads back to its Deerfield Beach headquarters to continue with preparation for the quickly approaching 2021 season. No driver pairings or entries have been confirmed yet; however, the team plans to begin announcements in the coming weeks. Follow the team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to stay up to date on the latest and greatest in the Performance Tech Motorsports realm.
Don Yount, Driver of the No. 38 Centinel Spine LMP2
“This was a great race for the whole team,” Yount said. “Patrick and Guy brought the car home in third. We lost the starter with about 8 hours remaining so those guys could not let the car turn off, even during pit stops. It was really impressive. I was concerned that it would be an issue but Brent and his team put together such a great car it didn’t even slow us down. I need to thank the whole Performance Tech operation for a great weekend. I’m looking forward to my next chance to drive with them.”
Patrick Byrne, Driver of the No. 38 Centinel Spine LMP2
“For us meshing as one unit or one machine is really important,” Byrne said. “Don was so easy going and great to get along with and Guy is my full-time teammate who I’m really close with so we all immediately got along. Getting up to speed in the car was my biggest concern and it definitely was a learning curve. It was the fastest thing I’ve ever driven and so fun. I feel like we did a pretty good first run for us as a group, especially finishing on the podium. I have to thank Guy for finishing the race. The caution came out at the perfect time, we put him in and he was a superstar straight to the end. I think the result today is a testament to our effort. I’m really happy I was able to do this and get to race with Performance Tech Motorsports at Sebring.”
Guy Cosmo, Driver of the No. 38 Centinel Spine LMP2
“I think the drivers and team meshed really well. Brent is such an easy going and open guy,” Cosmo said. “He tells it like it is. He greatly helped us all learn the car and adapt to the car. We had a learning curve and had questions but he was there to help us through all of it. The whole team was really phenomenal. They made the process really easy.”
“We just needed the time in the car. This is our first time in the ORECA and first time in the current generation of LMP2 and they are significantly faster and more capable than all of the other cars we’ve driven. It was a steep learning curve but man was it fun. The car ran flawlessly, despite some of the issues we had with the tail. We didn’t have any issues that set us back too far.”
“This is my first podium in many, many tries at the Sebring Twelve Hour. My first Sebring was back in 2003. It’s really nice to finally get this one.”