# Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Racing Teams Finish on the Podium In 12 Hours Of Sebring



## [email protected] (Aug 15, 2012)

The No. 33 AMG-Team Riley Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT3 was driven to victory in the 12 Hours of Sebring on Saturday, 60 years after the three pointed star last competed in and won their class America's oldest sports car endurance race. The victory came in just the second race of the 2017 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, where Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing is competing for the first time.

Co-drivers Ben Keating, Jeroen Bleekemolen and Mario Farnbacher combined to lead a class-high 208 of the 325 laps they completed in the No. 33 AMG-Team Riley Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT3 on their way to a convincing GT Daytona (GTD) class victory.

Bleekemolen took the lead for good 40 minutes from the end of the race led the field by nearly 10 seconds as the 12-hour time limit expired at 10:40 pm EDT.

Third-place in the GTD class went to the pole-winning No. 75 SunEnergy1 Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3, co-driven by Kenny Habul, Tristan Vautier and Boris Said. The No. 75 team's success put two Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing entries on the victory lane podium.

The first and third place Mercedes-AMG GT3 finish in the GTD class ironically replicates the finishing order of the 1957 12 Hours of Sebring, where a pair privateer Mercedes-Benz 300SL entries placed first and third in the GT 3500 class.

While the No. 33 Mercedes-AMG GT3 team had a relatively trouble-free run to victory, the No. 75 Mercedes-AMG GT3 overcame several challenges to make it to the podium.

Vautier won the GTD pole in Friday's qualifying session only to see the team lose the top spot when they were forced to fix a fuel leak discovered in morning warm-up. The No. 75 car missed the mandatory 'call to grid' while working on repairs relegating the team to start the race from pit lane and to serve a mandatory drive-through penalty. Driver Boris Said was also assessed a pair of penalties for avoidable contact in the first half of the race but the No. 75 drivers managed to work their way back to the front of the field by the end of the race.

The No. 50 WeatherTech Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3, co-driven by Cooper MacNeil, Gunnar Jeannette and Shane van Gisbergen, also overcame an opening hour wheel speed sensor issue to run competitively in the first half of the race. The WeatherTech Racing entry ran as high as second, including during a Mercedes-AMG GT3 one-two- three lineup just past the two-hour mark, where the No. 33 car lead, No. 50 ran second and No. 75 ran third.

The No. 50's competitive run ultimately came to an end in the race's fourth hour when the Sebring circuit's notoriously bumpy racing surface took its toll. A left-front suspension issue was repaired pitside by the team and Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing technical personnel. The car returned to the race over 25 laps down and later retired when team personnel determined there was no realistic chance of improving position.

Next up for Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing and the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship is the Grand Prix of Long Beach, CA (April 7 - 8).


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