Thursday, August 10, 2023 – Highlands, NJ – Vasser Sullivan drivers Frankie Montecalvo and Aaron Telitz finished fifth in the GTD class at Road America over the weekend.
Montecalvo qualified the No. 12 Lexus RC F GT3 third in class for the two hours and forty minutes race around the newly paved 4.048-mile road course. While the new track surface allowed drivers to complete faster lap times than previous years, the sessions leading up to the race were riddled with red flags as the limits of the track were tested. Several teams gambled on strategy, thinking that the race would see multiple yellow flag periods. However, apart from one yellow flag just after the start, the race remained green for the duration.
“It was great to get back to Road America for the eighth round of the IMSA WeatherTech Championship. It’s Aaron’s home track, so we always have a great group of fans for this round,” said Montecalvo.
“The race was interesting. We anticipated a lot more yellow flags because we saw so many incidents during the practice sessions, but with the exception of the first yellow, the race stayed green until the checkered flag. We were able to stay in the top five for the majority of the race, but it was definitely a hard fought P5.”
“We struggled a bit in the first practice session of the weekend, but the Vasser Sullivan guys were able to get our Lexus dialed in by the second practice. The guys did a phenomenal job in the pits and kept us running strong all weekend long. Aaron and I were able to keep the car clean on track and made no mistakes, so it’s great to come away from the weekend back in the top five.”
Montecalvo and Telitz currently sit fourth in the championship, only eleven points behind third place. With three races remaining on the calendar, the GTD championship is not out of reach for the No. 12 duo.
“We slipped slightly in the championship standings this weekend, but I’m still happy to head into the final three races only a few points outside of the top three positions in the GTD Championship. Congratulations to Jack and Ben on their second-place finish and taking the lead in the GTD Pro category. We’re looking forward to getting back to VIR in a few weeks and continuing our championship hunt in the final GT-only race of the season.”
The next event for Montecalvo is the Michelin GT Challenge at VIR on August 20th. Be sure to follow Frankie on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date with all of his racing news.
