Scuderia Corsa with the No. 63 WeatherTech Ferrari 488 finished third in the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen in IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship competition as well as winning the Michelin Endurance Cup points adding to the team’s history of success at the New York circuit having won in 2016 and finished on the podium in 2017.
Another brilliantly execute endurance race has moved Scuderia Corsa into second overall in the Michelin Endurance Cup. The third-place finish continues Scuderia Corsa’s endurance race success, the team took home third at the Twelve Hours of Sebring back in March and third at the 24 Hours of Le Mans this month.
WeatherTech Racing Driver Cooper MacNeil, Ferrari Factory Driver Toni Vilander and Scuderia Corsa Veteran Jeff Westphal drove an error-free race. Their driving effort was accompanied by flawless pit stops and stellar strategy in the pit lane. The teams assured execution of today’s race continued to showcase its excellent understanding of what it takes to prosper in endurance racing.
For MacNeil, today’s positive result was amplified by driving a clean race in preparation for next week’s race.
“Other than to the Acura and BMW we had great pace,” MacNeil said. “To those other two cars, we were in a different class. That’s racing, so we have to take what it gives us and regroup. The good news is the car is in one piece because we literally have a race in seven days with the same racecar. That was huge because this place isn’t always so easy to leave unscathed.
“But another third-place finish with Jeff and Toni in the car after our third-place finish at Sebring. Then Toni and at Le Mans and now, here at Six Hours of The Glen. All and all a good weekend for Scuderia Corsa and the WeatherTech crew and Ferrari as well. We’re the only Ferrari here representing the brand pretty well on the podium I’d say.”
For Vilander, today’s accomplished proved the team’s ability to communicate and execute.
“I think this race went really good,” Vilander said. “We had a few meetings throughout the weekend on what we needed to improve, and we were able to hit all those marks. We had a really great run at Le Mans, so to continue that momentum to this race was our plan. Joe, our engineer, Giacomo and Roberto all called a fantastic race. I don’t want to complain about BOP because I am here to just do my job and drive, but the gap between us and the lead competitors is becoming too large to survive. We need a little bit of help from IMSA, but I think we can keep chipping away and working towards the championship.”
For Westphal, he took pride in clean racing and the team’s hard work.
“I think both personally, and as a team, Scuderia Corsa and WeatherTech Racing were able to extract as much as possible out of our Ferrari 488 GT3,” Westphal said. “The drivers drove flawlessly to keep the nose clean and ahead of the pack, which is all you can do. I’m really proud of all of us.”
For Team owner Giacomo Mattioli today’s race was a triumphant effort.
“Today the drivers and crew did an excellent job the entire race,” Mattioli said. “We closed the gap in the Michelin Endurance Cup, which ignites an even greater desire to chase another championship. Cooper was very competitive in his stints, Jeff once again proved himself as an endurance specialist, and Toni finished the race strong with a remarkable drive to the checkered. We are all pleased with today.”
The No. 63 WeatherTech Ferrari’s next venture is July 5-7 at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. Two practice sessions kick off the weekend, Friday, July 5. A final practice session takes place early Saturday, July 6, followed by GTD qualifying at 11:35 a.m. ET. Race day is Sunday, July 7 with the green flag set to drop at 1:05 p.m. for the Mobil 1 SportsCar Grand Prix presented by Acura. Qualifying and the race is broadcast on IMSA.tv with accompanying coverage on IMSA radio. The race is broadcast on television through NBC Sports.
