Alex Job Racing Moving On After Sebring Controversy

Photo: WeatherTech Racing

Alex Job Racing will return to TUDOR United SportsCar Championship action this weekend for the first time since the controversial penalty inflicted on the team at last month’s Twelve Hours of Sebring.

An officiating error resulted in IMSA incorrectly penalizing AJR’s No. 22 WeatherTech-sponsored Porsche 911 GT America for contact with another car that had actually been triggered by a GTLM-class Porsche 911 RSR, which went on to claim class honors without serving a penalty.

While IMSA offered an apology and refunded the team’s race entry fee for the error, there was no change made to the result of the race, which saw drivers Cooper MacNeil, Leh Keen and Philipp Frommenwiler relegated to a fourth place finish in the GTD class.

“It seems like an eternity since we were at Sebring,” Job said. “With everything that happened there and the fallout afterwards, we are just ready to get back to doing what we do best and that is racing.

“Cooper and Leh are motivated and may have a little chip on their shoulder after Sebring. We will use that to keep the fire lit throughout the season and keep our focus on winning a third straight championship.”

In the six weeks since, IMSA has imposed changes to race control, including the addition of a third driver advisor, an upgrade to HD video review equipment and the enforcement of each car number being visible in on-board cameras.

There were no officiating-related issues at the last TUDOR Championship round at Long Beach, which featured Prototype and GTLM cars only.

The AJR team sits sixth in the class championship standings entering this weekend’s Continental Tire Monterey Grand Prix, the first split race for GTD cars, which pair with PC entries for a standalone race.

“After the controversy that happened at Sebring, all I can hope for is that Laguna goes smoothly,” MacNeil said. “We will keep pushing our hardest, just as we always do however, I really hope the officiating has improved because we have too much invested and my crew works too hard for another disaster to happen.”

MacNeil, a junior at the University of Colorado in Boulder, will miss Saturday’s practice and qualifying due to a final exam and will get his first laps in the car in warmup on Sunday morning.

The PC/GTD race takes the green flag at 1:15 p.m. ET, with live coverage on FOX Sports 1.

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