Estre, Nasr Have “Turned the Page” After Sebring Fallout

Photo: Jordan Lenssen/Porsche

Kevin Estre and Felipe Nasr say they have both “turned the page” on the heated conclusion to last month’s Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring and that “everything is fine” between the two Porsche Penske Motorsport teammates.

Estre accused Nasr in the post-race press conference of breaking team orders, which resulted in the Brazilian and co-drivers Julien Andlauer and Laurin Heinrich claim victory in the Florida endurance classic.

Nearly one month removed from the controversial ending that saw the pair of Penske Porsche 963s dominate the race, both drivers have indicated that there’s no longer any bad blood between them.

This came after several meetings at Team Penske’s headquarters in Mooresville, N.C. the week following the race, which were held behind closed doors and understood to have been intense at times.

“After the race, as JD (Penske Racing President Jonathan Diuguid) said in some interviews, there was some talk internal and some discussion,” Estre told Sportscar365.

“I think we all put our feelings on the table and the facts and worked from there.

“From now on, everything is fine.

“We just said what we had to say and everyone had their own opinion, and we were just trying to cross back all the opinions back together after the race, which was a bit easier than in the moment.

“It’s fine. It’s a long season ahead of us so now we leave Sebring behind us and just try to work as a team and be as fast as possible.”

Nasr added: “We’ve turned the page on that one. It’s a closed chapter. It was a 1-2 team for the team, two wins for Car 7, which is fantastic.

“Honestly I’ve dreamed of those days to have those big wins on the board for Porsche and Penske.”

Estre, who has been used to adhering to team orders in the FIA World Endurance Championship, where he and longtime co-driver Laurens Vanthoor claimed the 2024 Hypercar drivers’ world championship title, said racing in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship brings different variables.

“The way the race is going is a bit different,” he said. “The middle of the race, team orders doesn’t really make sense, or you have to really take care or think about it because the race is going to come to you later.

“Towards the end of the race is always something special.”

Both Estre and Nasr will be looking to continue Porsche Penske’s winning streak continue in this afternoon’s 100-minute contest, a race that Nasr and then co-driver Nick Tandy won last year.

However, the recent success has come with a significant Balance of Performance adjustment to the factory Porsches, which gave gained 45 kg of weight since Sebring.

While not allowed to comment directly on BoP per IMSA rules, Nasr indicated that he has noticed the extra weight in the car.

“You can feel the car being a bit lazier, especially in the low-speed corners, but it’s still a street course and we’ll do everything we can to be fighting at the front,” he said.

“That’s the aim, to keep pushing for those big points.

“If we could fight for the win, of course we’ll do it. But our goal here is to maximize the weekend as much as we can and continue the work we’ve been doing so far.”

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