After a setback in testing, Spirit of Daytona Racing got a welcome boost from chassis manufacturer Coyote Cars when the Daytona Beach-based squad was able to secure an all-new chassis on short notice.
The team, which was the first to debut the Chevrolet Corvette DP at Daytona International Speedway in late 2011, saw the primary No. 90 VisitFlorida.com machine suffer significant damage in a testing accident in the recent IMSA test days at Daytona International Speedway.
Driver Richard Westbrook emerged unscathed from the Daytona Prototype after a series of spins and flips at high speed.
“We are grateful that Pratt & Miller builds such a strong chassis and that Richard was able to walk away from that accident,” said team owner Troy Flis. “Everyone is working to learn as much as we possibly can about what happened, and take that information so we can avoid anything like that happening in the future.”
With a range of new performance-enhancing technical upgrades for the Daytona Prototypes still being evaluated and deployed on track for the first time, every lap is critical for teams as they prepare for the Rolex 24 which marks the opening round of the 2014 TUDOR United SportsCar Championship.
With a tight deadline looming, Spirit of Daytona was pleased with the efforts from Coyote Cars, as the Charlotte-based Daytona Prototype constructor was able to quickly provide Spirit of Daytona with a new chassis.
“We had our accident on Tuesday, and they said we would have a new Coyote in the shop by Monday but they went even better and had it to us on Friday,” said Flis, who saw his team break through for three Prototype victories in 2012.
“It is chassis 007, and we are hoping it will bring us a little bit of luck. Getting the new chassis so quickly is a big help. We are working from behind a little bit to be ready to go for the next test, so to get a new car to use as our starting point is a huge help so we are really appreciative of this kind of support from Coyote.”