Second Place for AIM Autosport at Watkins Glen.
Sweedler and Bell take commanding lead in Patron North American Endurance Cup with podium result
June 29, 2014 (Toronto, Ontario) – AIM Autosport drivers Bill Sweedler and Townsend Bell put a stranglehold on the Patron North American Endurance Cup and strengthened their lead in the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship when they drove the no. 555 AIM Autosport Ferrari 458 Italia to a second-place finish in the GT-Daytona class at Sunday’s Sahlen’s Six Hours of the Glen.
For AIM Autosport, it was the third straight year that the team finished on the podium at the annual endurance classic at the famous Watkins Glen International circuit.
After starting seventh, Bell put in a strong opening stint with the AIM Autosport team following it with a well-executed pitstop that vaulted Sweedler, now in the car, up to second position. Turning the car back over to Bell, the team’s strategy enabled the Ferrari to be one of only two cars on the lead lap of the GT-D field.
With the Sahlen’s Six Hours of the Glen making up part of the Patron Endurance Cup, Bell, Sweedler, and AIM Autosport now have a fourteen-point lead with only the final round at Petit Le Mans remaining. In the TUDOR Championship, they also remain as the championship leader, extending their lead after Sunday’s race.
“The strategy by AIM Autosports coming into this race was no mistakes,” said Sweedler. “The crew was flawless, Townsend did an amazing job, and I didn’t make any mistakes in my stint. We ran pretty much at the front the whole time. Clearly, the Ferraris have been handicapped substantially, but we knew that we had a great car that is well balanced. The Ferrari 458 Italia is incredible at the Glen, and we knew that if we didn’t have any mistakes, we’d have a shot.”
Despite logging just under four hours behind the wheel as part of one of the few two-driver lineups in the field, Bell maintained a strong pace in the Ferrari and took the checkered flag in second position.
“The Ferrari was a joy to drive as always – it was really good on old tires and very consistent,” said Bell. “I think we need a little love right now to get back on equal footing with some of the other cars in the class. But we can’t control what the other cars are doing, so we just focus on having a good run and taking care of our tires. All in all, we needed a nice, solid, mistake-free run today and we got that. Bill did an incredible job today, as always, and I’m happy to be on the podium. Hopefully we have a little bit of breathing room, but we have a lot more fighting to go.”
Team engineer Ian Willis was thrilled to see the AIM Autosport Ferrari on the podium for the third straight year at Watkins Glen International.
“Our strategy today was all about being good over the long runs and saving the tires,” said Willis. “We were able to get the most out of our Ferrari today at a track that AIM Autosport has always done well at. Bill and Townsend executed perfectly, as did our crew guys who delivered great pit stops all day. We were able to stay out of trouble and run our own race, and thankfully we came away from a track that we thought wouldn’t be our strongest with an improved position in the championship and with another podium. It was a great team effort today for AIM Autosport.”
The next round of the TUDOR Championship will be a home event for AIM Autosport. Canadian Tire Motorsports Park, located in Bowmanville, Ontario, is located only an hour from the team’s base in Toronto. The Mobil 1 Sportscar Grand Prix presented by Hawk Performance will be held on July 11-13.
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About AIM Autosport
Established in 1995, AIM Autosport is a Canadian sports team operating multi-car teams in professional sportscar racing. AIM’s success has been achieved through the dedication of its employees and the continuous support of the team’s commercial and technical partners. Away from the track, AIM Autosport serves the needs of the racing community with a purpose-built preparation shop situated in the Toronto suburb of Woodbridge, Ontario. For more information visit www.aimautosport.com or follow us on facebook www.facebook.com/AIMautosport and twitter @aimautosport.
