After debuting the No. 19 CAG/Moorespeed Audi R8 LMS GT3 with two of the world’s most iconic endurance races, the Moorespeed GT Daytona team moves with the rest of the IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship field to Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course for a two-hour and 40-minute sprint race. Co-drivers Will Hardeman and Alex Riberas once again will sit behind the wheel for the race.
Carrying the support of Bardahl and Audi Genuine Parts on the Audi, the team visits Mid-Ohio fresh off a test session at the 2.25-mile circuit. The test session was important not just for the car development, but because it was the first appearance at the track for Riberas. Hardeman had previously raced with Moorespeed at Mid-Ohio during his IMSA Porsche GT3 Cup seasons.
The Mid-Ohio round will air live on Sunday, May 5 at 1:30 p.m. EDT on both NBC Sports Network and IMSA.tv. Additionally, the Saturday, May 4 qualifying session will be shown live at IMSA.tv beginning at 11:30 a.m. EDT.
“We had a good test at Mid-Ohio and are hopeful we have a more competitive package for the race in order to compete straight-up with the other GTD teams,” Moorespeed President David Moore said. “Everyone on the team is working hard for a good result. We are looking forward to seeing how we stack up in the sprint race format.”
Riberas finds himself in a relatively unfamiliar position at this stage in his career – racing for the first time at a track.
“For me it’s going to be a personal challenge, since this will be my first ever race in Mid-Ohio,” Riberas said. “When we came for the test I immediately fell in love with the layout and, thanks to my teammate’s tips, I was able to learn it quickly. From what I see, it’s a circuit where passing is very difficult and that means we will have to focus extra on the qualifying performance.”
Hardeman finished fourth in the Porsche GT3 Cup at Mid-Ohio a season ago, just off the podium. Now three races into the season with the Audi, he’s looking forward to a chance to be a part of the post-race celebration during the IMSA WeatherTech Championship.
A three-day weekend event, the Mid-Ohio schedule starts Friday with morning and afternoon practice sessions for the IMSA WeatherTech Championship. Saturday begins with an additional hour-long IMSA WeatherTech Championship practice at 8:00 a.m. EDT that sets the stage for GTD qualifying at 11:40 a.m. EDT.
A 20-minute warmup session for the IMSA WeatherTech Championship gets Sunday’s schedule started at 8:00 a.m. EDT before that afternoon’s two-hour and 40-minute Sportscar Challenge that goes green at 1:35 p.m. EDT.
Noteworthy:
– The No. 19 CAG/Moorespeed Audi isn’t the only car in action at Mid-Ohio during the weekend. 16-year-old wunderkind Riley Dickinson is behind the wheel of the No. 53 Moorespeed Porsche in the IMSA Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge USA by Yokohama for the doubleheader. Dickinson is currently second in the point championship after a pair of runner-up finishes in the opening weekend at Barber Motorsports Park.
