Sebring Wednesday Notebook

Photo: Jonathan Grace

***A total of 56 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship entries are set for this weekend’s 73rd Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring. Teams unloaded Wednesday morning ahead of the start of on-track action on Thursday that will feature three practice sessions, including night practice.

***Several cars are sporting special liveries this weekend, including both of the factory-supported Pratt Miller Motorsports Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs, which attempted to create a retro livery from Greg Pickett’s 1987 Corvette GTO, as well as the No. 14 Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3, also in GTD Pro, and the No. 31 Action Express Racing Cadillac V-Series.R, all for the race’s title sponsor Mobil 1.

***The No. 25 BMW M Hybrid V8 has a revised design that celebrates the 50th anniversary of BMW North America, which launched on March 15, 1975, while the No. 52 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports Oreca 07 Gibson is in a new aqua-colored livery, as its new full season design, after running Ben Keating’s signature Wynn’s livery in the Rolex 24 at Daytona.

***Meyer Shank Racing’s Acura ARX-06s have also received livery updates since Daytona.

***AO Racing’s Porsche 911 GT3 R has an altered nose section to reflect ‘Rexy’ wearing braces after the car’s late-race accident at Daytona that ripped off the front bodywork, which depicts the dinosaur’s teeth. The team’s updated livery reveal for Sebring ultimately resulted in an uproar on social media, based on alleged copyright claims to the ‘Rexy’ design that the team later clarified to fans and supporters.

***Pfaff Motorsports provided the fan, Willow, who was involved with the initial AO incident on social media, with free tickets to this weekend’s race. Willow’s previous Rexy-inspired Scion FR-S is now adorned with plaid on the hood of the road car, according to a social media post.

***IMSA re-created the LMP2 podium from January’s Rolex 24 at Daytona on Wednesday afternoon, which included the official handover of the Rolex watches to the class-winning United Autosports team of Paul di Resta, Daniel Goldberg, Rasmus Lindh and James Allen, after the No. 22 team inherited the win following Tower Motorsport’s post-race technical infraction that was announced three days after the race’s conclusion.

***Sportscar365 understands that the Anglo-American squad flew in Allen, who is not racing this weekend, to take part in the podium ceremony.

***Jeremy Clarke is set for his WeatherTech Championship debut this weekend in the No. 43 Inter Europol Competition Oreca, filling in for fellow Bronze-rated driver Jon Field who has been sidelined due to a “medical issue” according to a team statement. Clarke, a graduate of Ferrari Challenge, is coming off the 2024-25 Asian Le Mans Series season in one of AF Corse’s LMP2 entries.

***The No. 40 Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac has been repaired and not replaced since Louis Deletraz’s race-ending accident at Daytona according to Jordan Taylor, who tested at Sebring along with Deletraz and No. 10 full season co-drivers Ricky Taylor and Filipe Albuquerque in an ex-Chip Ganassi Racing Cadillac chassis last month that was also used for the Rolex 24.

***A Cadillac spokesperson confirmed the No. 40 car’s tub was transported to Dallara in Indianapolis for a full scan, where superficial repairs were made following the race. WTR is debuting Dallara chassis 023 for its No. 10 entry this weekend.

***The younger Taylor brother, 33, was named earlier this week the 2025 annual membership chairperson for the International Motor Racing Research Center in Watkins Glen, N.Y., joining a roster of previous membership chairpersons including Brian Redman, Helio Castroneves, Mario Andretti, Lyn St. James, Phil Hill, Dan Gurney and Sir Stirling Moss.

***Jordan is also coming off competing in the Ultraman Florida, which consisted of a 6.2-mile swim, 223.4 miles of bike riding and a double marathon — 52.4 miles — over a three-day period last month. “When Ricky did his Ironman last year, I just felt I wanted to do something crazy again and signed up for it kind of on the spot,” he said.

***Several Porsche Penske Motorsport drivers, including Mathieu Jaminet and Laurens Vanthoor, are arriving directly from a test at Imola ahead of next month’s FIA World Endurance Championship race.

***Porsche Penske managing director Jonathan Diuguid indicated that confirmation on its third driver for the team’s third factory Porsche 963 entry at the 24 Hours of Le Mans should be made official in the “coming weeks” with the team and German manufacturer having recently narrowed down the choices on who will pilot the No. 4 car alongside full-time WeatherTech Championship drivers Felipe Nasr and Nick Tandy.

***Nico Mueller, who makes his Porsche 963 debut this weekend in the No. 85 JDC-Miller Motorsports entry, is believed to be in contention for the seat, alongside fellow Porsche Formula E driver Pascal Wehrlein.

***Diuguid revealed that there were discussions about running a third car for this year’s Rolex 24, although it did not materialize. “It’s something we look at when there’s an opportunity,” he said. “Obviously we don’t want to take away from any other part of the program and Le Mans remains a big focus, so that will be the main focus of the PPM program until we can stand on the top of the podium there. Obviously with the RS Spyder program, we did it when it benefitted us in the championship and it’s something that’s always on the table.”

***Porsche factory LMDh director Urs Kuratle clarified the purpose of Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin getting laps in Penske’s Porsches in last month’s IMSA-sanctioned teat at Sebring. “Team Penske has a lot of drivers,” he said. “Every now and then we give some a ride in the car. Felipe was in a [Penske] IndyCar. It’s something we try to do on a regular basis that’s good for the drivers. There’s no bigger plan behind this. [Le Mans] was never in discussion. We try to [just] give it as a treat to the drivers.”

***Kuratle reaffirmed that the plan remains for Kevin Estre and Laurens Vanthoor, who are third drivers again in the pair of Porsche Penske entries this weekend, to be back in the cars for the season-ending Motul Petit Le Mans.

***He said: “Petit is the plan but we try to keep it open. We have the eight [core PPM] drivers, and the two endurance drivers should be the endurance drivers in the other series, the two extra drivers, like we do it in WEC. It makes sense, unless something happens, one way or another, these guys will also be in the car for Petit.”

***Sean Heckman, known for his and Ryan Eversley’s ‘Dinner with Racers’ podcast/video series, has joined Pfaff as race strategist. Heckman had previously worked with Magnus Racing in the same position through January’s Rolex 24, in what marked the John Potter-owned team’s final scheduled race appearance.

***Dennis Olsen, Christopher Mies and Frederic Vervish made a visit to Ford’s global headquarters on Tuesday in Dearborn, Mich. for a Rolex 24 victory celebration event that included a visit to the Flat Rock assembly plant and a Q&A session with employees. The No. 65 Ford Mustang GT3, which was also on display, is understood to have been retired from competition.

***IMSA is expected to unveil the 2026 WeatherTech Championship and Michelin Pilot Challenge schedules this week. The sanctioning body announced its 2025 calendars this time last year, becoming the first major motorsports series to do so, and would again hold that mark again.