Almost, But Not Quite; Performance Tech Motorsports’ Tribulations at Mid-Ohio Sportscar Course

Performance Tech Motorsports is exiting Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course with solid points after the teams’ podium pursuits were thwarted in back-to-back races.   

The team entered the weekend with two fast Ligier JSP320s and the pace for a podium. However, Mid-Ohio Sportscar Car Course struck back, sending the team home with two mid-field finishes and a craving for podium champagne. Team Principal Brent O’Neill and his crew are well schooled in adversity, allowing them to look at the bigger picture and put their eyes forward to the next event.

“It’s always tough when you see a possible podium win or podium taken away by circumstances outside of your control,” Team Principal Brent O’Neill said. “Dan and Rasmus did a great job in the WeatherTech car, but we had the same electrical failure from Daytona and Sebring pop up again, the cause of which us and the factory do not understand. In Prototype Challenge our car was quick and probably could have been in the top three, we just need to get Oscar a bit more seat time and help him get up to speed so we can see more success at CTMP. If we can take anything away from this weekend it’s more learning, so we’ll take what we can and move onto the next one.”

To start the day the team partook in IMSA Prototype Challenge Round 2 with the No. 6 Ligier JSP320. Dan Goldburg qualified and started the car in second place, handing it over to co-driver Oscar Bittar in the same spot at the 40-minute mark. Bittar faced a few issues in Turn 5 with 24 minutes remaining, however he was able to correct his mistake, regain his composure and finish in eighth place.

After kicking off his day in IMSA Prototype Challenge Goldburg had to quickly regroup and climb aboard the No. 38 for the Lexus Grand Prix at Mid-Ohio. He rolled off in third place, made a near immediate pass for second place, then settled in for what promised to be a hot 50-minutes. As his run progressed the track got hotter and slicker, making tire management crucial.

Goldburg handled traffic and tires like the pro that he is, handing the car over to Lindh with one hour and 49-minutes remaining in first place. Lindh was closing the gap to first place when the cars season long electrical gremlin struck once more, stranding him on track. A quick tow back to the paddock allowed the crew to fix the issue and send him back on his way, but would limit the amount of positions he could redeem. After pushing for the final 70-minutes Lindh brought the No. 38 across the finish line in seventh place.

As the summer sessions begins the team’s schedule heats up in both the IMSA WeahterTech Sportscar Championship and IMSA Prototype Challenge. Next up for Performance Tech Motorsports is the Sahlen’s Six Hours of the Glen, June 24-26, at Watkins Glen International. The event is followed shortly thereafter by the teams’ first trip to Canadian Tire Motorsports Park since pre pandemic with the No. 6 and the No. 38, July 3-5.

QUOTE BOARD

Oscar Bittar, Driver of the No. 6 Ligier JSP320

“It was a nice weekend for me as I learned more from another race,” Bittar said. “I got much more time in the car which is the most important thing for me, to be in the car and get more comfortable. Day by day I was able to improve my driving so I felt comfortable with the car. I still have a lot of work to do.”

Dan Goldburg, Driver of the No. 6 Ligier JSP320 and the No. 38 Ligier JSP320

“We didn't have good finishes today, but personally, in my stints, I really kicked some butt,” Goldburg said. “In IPC I had a little mistake on the start and fell to third place. About mid-way through my stint I told myself ‘no, you are not accepting third, step it up.’ I started pushing harder, managing traffic, and was able to make the pass for second place.”

In WeatherTech, I was ready for the start this time. I was able to improve to second place on the start and then kept pace with first place. I'm good in traffic at Ohio, and I told the team ‘get me some traffic to work.’ We eventually caught the GT pack and I was able to work it and slide into first place.  Last year I started last here and drove to the lead of the bronze pack too, so I've had some good runs at Mid-Ohio. Of course, it's very disappointing to have an electrical issue that took us out when we were the fastest car out there with Rasmus in, and we were in second place with plenty of time to get to the front. We had a real good shot at a win today, and today we just have to be happy with that.”

Rasmus Lindh, Driver of the No. 38 Ligier JSP320

“First off, I want to thank Performance Tech for all of their hard work this weekend,” Lindh said. “Dan brought the car in in first place after his stint and I was able to go out and get the fastest lap. I was in the lead when we had a mechanical failure. We did a repair and went back out but by then we were a few laps down.”