Telitz “More Confident” One Year After Penalty Defeat

Aaron Telitz says he and Todd Coleman are aiming to bank on “another year of experience” as they return to the Gulf 12 Hours one year after losing victory due to a post-race penalty.

Telitz and Coleman return to the No. 69 Optimum Motorsport McLaren 720S GT3 Evo at Yas Marina Circuit, with Ben Barnicoat coming in to replace Frederik Schandorff as the only change to the lineup.

Twelve months ago, Schandorff initially drove the McLaren to victory over Sainteloc Racing, only to be stripped of that victory after receiving a penalty after the race for speeding in the pits.

Telitz told Sportscar365 that he is optimistic returning to the Gulf 12H with Coleman, after the pairing completed a full season of GT World Challenge America powered by AWS at the wheel of the McLaren.

“Obviously, we’re here to win,” said Telitz.

“Last year, win on the road, and then end up being second place in the end…

“But everyone’s got another year of experience, Todd’s done a whole year of driving the McLaren over in America, so he’s going to be a little bit better.

“We’ve swapped out Fred for Ben, and Ben’s quite quick in a McLaren as well around Yas Marina, so I think we’re looking strong to give it another go.

“But it’s a long race, and we’re just going to take it one step at a time. We’ve got some big competition.

“There’s quite a few really good lineups and good cars, it looks like.

“So we’re just going to take it one session at a time and hope we can keep everything going to the end.”

Telitz noted that the season in GTWC America with Archangel Motorsports for himself and Coleman has helped to boost their confidence compared to last year’s edition, which was only their second race in the McLaren at the time.

“Now we just feel more prepared,” he said.

“Obviously, last year was almost a surprise for us to be going into the end of the race and being like ‘Oh, we can win this thing.’

“Where this year, we just feel more confident in all of our abilities to not only know what the car needs, but Todd to get the job done as well.

“I think we just feel a lot more confident than we would have felt last year, where last year was more of a surprise.

“This year we’re obviously thinking we should be up there anyways.”

Telitz was upbeat about the prospect of Barnicoat completing the lineup, with Schandorff unavailable as he is contesting the race in the Optimum-run No. 70 Inception Racing Ferrari 296 GT3.

“We feel Ben is the greatest fit,” he said.

“Obviously, I’ve been teammates with Ben this past year in the in the Lexus in America, so I’ve got a lot of experience with him.

“He’s a killer GT driver and he’s been in a McLaren for most of his GT career early on, so he knows the car and knows the Optimum guys. So I think it’s the best possible replacement.”