Tuesday, October 15, 2019 – Highlands, NJ – AIM Vasser Sullivan driver Frankie Montecalvo finished a grueling Motul Petit Le Mans P11 in class. Montecalvo and full season co-driver Townsend Bell were joined by Aaron Telitz for the 10-hour endurance race at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.
“Petit Le Mans was definitely an interesting race for us. We tested a few weeks before the event on a different tire than we were issued for the race, so when we got out on track with a new tire compound at the start of the weekend, we had a bit a curveball thrown at us that we had to work with,” explained Montecalvo.
“We were working on setup during every session of the weekend, including morning warm-up, just two and half hours before the start of the race. We were able to get the car into a good position before qualifying and even better for the start of the race.”
Montecalvo qualified the car P8 in class on Friday. He started the race and did a triple stint before handing the car over to Telitz.
“Going into the race we had a good car under us. It was pretty consistent on pace. It might not have been the fastest car outright, but with a ten-hour race, consistent pace is key. The start of the race went well. It was fairly hectic for a ten-hour race, but I was able to pass a couple cars on the first two laps and then settle into a rhythm.”
“I did a triple stint right off the bat, and we were able to fight our way into the top six. I handed the car over to Aaron, and unfortunately on his out lap he had a bit of contact with a prototype overtaking him, which sent him into the wall. The car sustained a lot of damage to the left side where he was sent into the wall, and the right side from the prototype hit.”
“The car had to be towed back to the garage, and the team put it on high stands and went to work. The team did a phenomenal job to reassemble every corner of the car and some driveline components that got damaged. After losing more than 140 laps to our leaders, all we could do is get the car back out and finish Townsend’s minimum drive time so that we could score points.”
“It wasn’t the way that we wanted to end the season, but I’m extremely proud of the team and all of the hard work they put in to get us back on track, and I’m grateful for an incredible 2019 season. It’s been an absolute pleasure working with this team and to drive with Townsend again this year. I can’t thank AIM Vasser Sullivan and Lexus Racing enough for working so hard day in and day out to give us the best car possible at every stop on the calendar this year.”
Montecalvo is back to work in New Jersey at Bayshore Family of Companies and is working to put a 2020 racing package together. Montecalvo hopes to announce his 2020 racing plans in the coming weeks, so be sure to stay tuned to Frankie’s Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date with all of his racing news.