In pursuit of a top standing, Mario Farnbacher and his team colleague Ian James were disappointed after the seventh round of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship in Elkhart Lake. The young man from Lichtenau, driving a Porsche 911 GT America on the over six kilometre long Road America Circuit in U.S. Wisconsin, finished eighth in the GTD class. Heavy rain during training and a top speed deficit in the race dashed all the Alex Job Racing team’s hopes of success.
“Things didn’t turn out as we’d imagined”, said a disappointed Mario Farnbacher. “We encountered problems while training and we only drove five laps in the first two sessions.” Conditions were better in the third free training session. “The weather improved and we were able to begin our training programme. But the car was very difficult to drive”, reported Farnbacher. “And strangely enough, we couldn’t find the error and made no progress as a result.” Due to extreme wear and tear on the tires, Alex Job’s crew had to change them after qualifying and this meant starting the two hour and 45 minute race from the back of the field.
At first, the Alex Job Racing team made a good start into the popular sports car series. Despite a lack of top speed, Ian James took up a successful chase early in the race and then handed the car over to Mario Farnbacher for the second stint. “When I got behind the wheel, I realized early on that something was wrong”, said the Franconian. “I had to save fuel so that we could make an attack before the end. But the top speed was missing throughout the race and things just got worse after each lap. I was fighting a losing battle.” Finally, the 23-year-old and team colleague Ian James were forced to finish eighth. “With regard to the championship, it was a disappointing weekend for us all, but now we are focusing on Virginia”, Farnbacher nevertheless commented confidently. “We’ll look for the problem and fix it, so that we are ready for the next battle.”
The upcoming round of the American sports car championship takes place on the Virginia International Raceway. On the 23rd August, the Porsche duo will be aiming at the next podium finishes and the championship certainly remains exciting. Mario Farnbacher stands good chances of claiming a top position.
