Scuderia Corsa qualified and finished fifth in the WeatherTech 240 at Daytona this holiday weekend, its first race back since the IMSA 24 At Daytona in late January.
The IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship welcomed race fans back to competition Saturday, July 4, with a 2 hour and 40-minute race at Daytona International Speedway. The No. 63 WeatherTech Ferrari, sporting red, white and blue for the occasion, proved that no amount of time off would slow the team’s pace. The car was consistently within striking distance of a win during the race, even setting fast lap times for the GT Daytona Class.
WeatherTech Racing Driver Cooper MacNeil was dealt a problematic stint with changing weather conditions after a storm delayed the green flag by 40-minutes and doused the track with rain. MacNeil took the car from wet to dry conditions and ran as high as second before handing it over to Ferrari Factory Driver Toni Vilander. Vilander hunted his competition down, setting fast lap after fast lap as the clock wound down.
For MacNeil, he received confirmation the team was is competitive condition and is looking forward to pushing forward to the next race.
“Obviously, finishing where we started the race is not how we wanted to finish the weekend,” MacNeil said. “The beginning of the race was difficult. The conditions were not ideal, especially to start with slick tires on a wet racetrack. It was pretty tricky, so I just did the best I could to keep the car in a winning condition. From what we could see, the Lexus and Acura cars were in a bit of a different league. Good news we had a great car; no mechanical issues and no issues in pit lane, so we had a smooth weekend. I’m looking forward to going back to Sebring. We’ve been really solid there in the past.”
For Vilander, his best effort ended with a solid points grab for Scuderia Corsa but left him wanting more.
“We unloaded really good on Friday,” Vilander said. “We were the fastest in the first practice. Cooper did a great job in qualifying, all of the GTD cars were close. We made the decision to start on slicks. Cooper really had his hands full and did a fantastic job to keep the WeatherTech Ferrari on the track and in a competitive position. When I got in, we just couldn’t match the pace of the Lexus and Acura cars today. We will go to Sebring, where we have run well in the past and look to keep improving.”
For Team Owner Giacomo Mattioli having his team unified at the track was the key take away from the weekend.
“It was important that we got back to work for the spirit of the racing community,” Mattioli said. “The weekend went seamlessly for the Scuderia team; there were no mistakes made all weekend. We had a great car, and the result doesn’t reflect how well we ran. Cooper and Toni kept the car in a competitive position, and we earned decent points as we move forward.”
Scuderia Corsa moves on the Cadillac Grand Prix of Sebring July 16-18 for another two hour and 40-minute sprint race. Scuderia Corsa has earned a podium finish at Sebring five years in a row, including a win in 2016. Expectations will be high, and to keep crews safe from COVID-19, the weekend will remain condensed. The weekend begins with Practice One Friday, July 17, at 6 p.m. ET. Then a full day of action with practice, qualifying and the race taking place Saturday, July 18.