Add-Vantage: Second Aston Martin Racing Entry for Sebring

BRASELTON, Ga. – Aston Martin Racing will have two factory Aston Martin Vantage GTE entries on the grid for the 61st Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh from Florida. After a preseason test session at Portimão in Portugal, AMR will test both cars at Road Atlanta before heading to south to Sebring for the opening round of the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón on Saturday, March 16.

Darren Turner, Stefan Mücke and Bruno Senna will drive the No. 97 Aston Martin at Sebring, and Canadian Paul Dalla Lana, American Billy Johnson and ex-AMR factory driver Pedro Lamy driving the No. 007 at Sebring. Dane Cameron, another of America’s young road-racing talents, will test with the team at Atlanta.

“Although this isn’t the first time we have run the new Vantage GTE, it’s the first time we’ve been able to run it in anger and put some serious mileage on the car,” Turner said of the test in Portugal. ‘It does feel like a very good step forward. The team has done a great job over the winter and made some significant improvements. For me personally, it was probably as exciting to drive for the first time as the first drive of the DBR9. I have a really good feeling about the car and I’m looking forward to the next test in Atlanta in a few weeks time.”

Aston Martin Racing will look for its first victory at Sebring since 2005 when the DBR9 won its worldwide debut in the GT1 class. This time around, Aston Martin will face off against factory and works-supported efforts from BMW, Chevrolet, Ferrari, Porsche and SRT.

“The car has started this year like it finished last with great pace and reliability; although, of course, we don’t know how much our competitors have also improved during the winter,” AMR team principal John Gaw said. “Importantly, all the drivers gelled and were close on lap-times – it’s an excellent start to the team’s working relationship – and we exceeded our ambitions for the first test session.”

The 61st Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh from Florida is set for 10:45 a.m. ET on Saturday, March 16 from Sebring International Raceway. SPEED's live coverage begins at 10:30 a.m. ET.

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