Albuquerque Leads for WTR Andretti at Halfway Mark

Photo: Jake Galstad/IMSA

The No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Autosport Acura ARX-06 of Filipe Albuquerque led the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring at the halfway mark.

Albuquerque took over control following a well-timed pit stop moments before the race’s fourth full-course caution due to a crash by the No. 35 TDS Racing Oreca 07 Gibson of Francois Heriau.

The Portuguese star managed to keep control, extending into a slight gap over the pair of contending Cadillac V-Series.Rs from Chip Ganassi Racing and Action Express Racing.

Jack Aitken ran second at the six-hour mark, following what appeared to be a strategic position swap between the two Cadillacs on the front straight.

Aitken passed the No. 01 CGR Cadillac of Renger van der Zande, who encountered a challenging opening stint on double-stinted Michelin tires.

The Dutchman suffered an off-course excursion and spin after contact with a prototype, although he had retained the lead at the time.

The No. 25 Team RLL BMW M Hybrid V8 of Sheldon van der Linde was fourth, followed by the No. 6 Penske Porsche 963 of Dane Cameron.

The car bounced back from a left-rear puncture in the fourth hour after contact with the No. 66 Gradient Racing Acura NSX GT3 Evo22 and an unscheduled stop to clear gas fumes from the cockpit of the Porsche.

Porsche Penske’s No. 7 entry lost time during a pit stop to fix an issue with the kinematics on the right-front corner of the car.

Matt Campbell ran one lap behind in seventh as a result.

The No. 3 Chevrolet Corvette C8.R GTD continued to hold command of GTD Pro, while the No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo of Indy Dontje was credited with the GTD class lead at the halfway mark.

LMP2 was led by the No. 52 PR1/Mathisen Motorsports Oreca 07 Gibson of Paul-Loup Chatin, with Gabby Chaves out front of LMP3 in the No. 36 Andretti Autosport Ligier JS P320 Nissan.

John Dagys

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John