SAMAX - Rolex 24 12h

Two SAMAX Motorsport cars remained in contention at the halfway point of the Rolex 24 At Daytona. Unfortunately, the No. 71 SAMAX/Doncaster Racing Porsche was out of the race after 10h12. The crew found loose studs in three of the car's wheels and the car was retired to ensure the safety of the drivers Dave Lacey, Brent Martini, Greg Wilkins and Mark Wilkins.

The No. 17 SAMAX Porsche continued a strong pace during the second quarter of the race, with drivers Johnny Mowlem, Bryan Sellers, Lance David Arnold and Jan Seyffarth racing to fifth place in the GT class. The No. 11 Tuttle/SAMAX Riley Mk XI was 14 th in the Daytona Prototype class at half-distance, paced by Brian Tuttle, Boris Said and Kyle Petty.

John Lacey, Doncaster Racing owner: "We have studs loose on three wheels and we can't guarantee new studs going in will be firm enough to race on a safe basis. When it comes to driver safety, we're making the right decision by pulling out of the race. With this banking at 180 miles an hour, we're not going to take a chance with our drivers."

Dave Lacey: "It's an unfortunate situation. John made a decision in favor of driver safety, as he should, and it caused us to retire from the race. It's an unfortunate situation. The guys worked really hard."

Brent Martini: "This is the first time I had a chance to participate with SAMAX and Greg and Mark and Dave. It has been a real privilege. They are just a class act - impeccably prepared guys who are very focused, incredible professionals. Dreams still come true. I'm a 46-year-old kid driving a Porsche around a race track and loving every second of it."

Greg Wilkins: "The car was running well, so it's disappointing we had a couple of mechanical glitches - a small part in the gearshift lever which set us down a number of laps and then the studs. Unfortunately, they cost us the ability to compete."

young direction

Travis Braun, 15, provides youthful direction as the data engineer for the No. 17 Porsche. His talent belies his age, as he calmly and expertly calls the team strategy. Braun's father Jeff is the strategist for the No. 75 Krohn Racing Daytona Prototype; brother Colin is a driver for Krohn Racing. Ironically, Travis Braun sees his future in journalism, not engineering.

Travis Braun: "It's really fun working with the whole SAMAX crew - they're a great group of guys. I've got a general strategy before the race, but once the race starts, that all goes out the window, so you have to play a lot of it by ear. Some of it's instinct, but my dad taught me a lot, so I have to give him a lot of credit. As long as he's doing well, my brother's doing well and we finish well, it's going to be great."

class race position
car       start         6h      12h
11         26            12        14
17          9              11         4
71        13                9       out

race report
car      time              driver             action
11        6h27             Tuttle              contact right rear
                                   Said in            pit - driver change, fuel, repair bodywork
             7h5                                        hit right rear; pit - tires, repair bodywork
             8h6                                        pit - tires, fuel
             8h45                                      garage - broken third gear; replaced gear cluster
             9h14             Petty in            pit - driver change, fuel, back on track
             9h20                                      pit - fuel adjustment
             10h17                                    pit - tires, fuel
             11h20                                    pit - tires, fuel
             11h55                                    pit - tires, fuel

17         6h5               Mowlem          regained lap
             6h28                                       pit - tires, fuel
             7h27                                       avoided stopped car, touched wall left rear
                                 Sellers in           pit - driver change, tires, fuel, taped bodywork
             8h12                                       pit - tires, fuel; contact with DP leaving pit
             8h15                                       pit - remove part of rear bumper cover
             9h23            Arnold in           pit - driver change, tires, fuel
             10h14                                     pit - tires, fuel
             11h18          Seyffarth in       pit - driver change, tires, fuel

71         6h25           M Wilkins in       pit - driver change, tires, fuel
              7h21                                        pit - tires, fuel; garage - broken gearshift bolt
              7h32                                        back on track
              8h17           Martini in             pit - driver change, tires, fuel
              9h21                                         pit - fuel
              10h12         G Wilkins in        pit - driver change, tires fuel
                                                                 garage - loose wheels studs, out of race