PF Racing kicked off the 2020 season with an 11th place finish* during the 4-hour BMW Endurance Challenge at Daytona International Speedway this Friday.
The Missouri outfit’s #40 Ford Mustang was co-driven by James Pesek, Jade Buford, and Shane Lewis. The trio had promising pace all week long and showed progress throughout the sessions.
After setting the 10th fastest time during Thursday’s qualifying session, Shane Lewis took the start of the 4-hour race taking place on Friday afternoon. The Florida resident managed to stay in the Top 10 and fight his way up the field.
After a stellar performance, Lewis handed the car to James Pesek, who had a double stint. He had a lot of thrilling battles with other cars on the track, especially one exciting few laps with Marco Signoretti, who was driving the #19 Multimatic Ford Mustang.
Jade Buford then took over from Pesek and got the car back in Top 10 contention as he was battling up his way in the field. Buford drove the Ford Mustang GT4 perfectly, offering to the thousands of fans on site a great last hour of racing.
However, with less than 30 minutes remaining, Scott Maxwell’s Ford Mustang went off the track and into the tire barrier. Fortunately, the Canadian driver walked away from the accident and flew back home to Canada to attend his son’s hockey tournament.
The race ended on a full course yellow, which meant Jade Buford had to settle for the 11th place, although after taking a look at his lap time, it was clear that he had the pace to finish in the Top 10. Nonetheless, PF Racing was the highest finishing Ford Mustang this Friday afternoon. “I am extremely pleased with the way things went today,” said team owner J.R. Pesek. “The #40 crew worked very well on the car, making sure we would finish the race and be in a position to claim a Top 5 or even a podium-finish.”
“Unfortunately, the race ended on a full course yellow, and we couldn’t be more grateful for the safe cars Multimatic has provided us. Scott (Maxwell) walked out of there without a scratch, and that is what matters.”
PF Racing’s next IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge event will be during the Super Sebring annual event, March 18 to 21.
Quotes
James Pesek: “It was a difficult weekend with the weather conditions, but the crew did a great job adapting to the conditions and helped us get a great set up even with the short amount of good dry track conditions. Shane and Jade did a great job in the car; they kept it clean and brought back the car in one piece. The crew did a flawless job with the pit stops and gave us a great opportunity to get the best finish we could. I had a lot of fun on track with Marco Signoretti, and all the other cars on track.”
Jade Buford: “Overall, I think Daytona was a great weekend for us. We did good as a team in the 4-hour race on Friday. We claimed a great result and strong points for the rest of the season. We also came away as the top finishing Mustang and set the fastest Ford Mustang lap of the race. The team has shown a lot of growth as a whole, and I’m really looking forward to seeing what PF Racing can do this year.
Shane Lewis: “It was such an honor to be a driver in the top finishing Ford Mustang. Here, at Daytona, there are so many variables; the Balance of Performance, the weather, to add to the many great drivers and teams competing. Proud to be a driver with PF Racing.”