Jan 31, 2017
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.—Freedom Autosport kicked off the 2017 IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge season with a top-ten finish for all three of the team’s Mazda MX-5s. The four-hour season opener at Daytona International Speedway went flawlessly for the Freedom Autosport drivers and crew.
Chad McCumbee and Stevan McAleer brought home the highest result for Freedom, finishing sixth in the No. 25 ModSpace/Premier Building Systems/Spartan Cargo Trailers Mazda MX-5. The No. 26 Semper Fi Fund Mazda MX-5 of Liam Dwyer and Andrew Carbonell was ninth, followed across the line by the No. 27 TRUMPF Mazda MX-5 of Robby Foley and Britt Casey, Jr.
The race was the first in the series for Foley. It was also his first time in a Freedom Autosport MX-5 and his first visit to Daytona. Foley said, “It was a great weekend overall, and everyone was really helpful with getting me up to speed. We went over a lot of video and data. It was a condensed schedule so it all happened quite fast, but I learned the track, the car and the Continental tire. I had about 20 laps in the car before the race, so I had time to get comfortable with both the car and IMSA’s procedures.”
Daytona marked the first time that Freedom Autosport has competed in a four-hour race, which is a longer format than the Continental Series has had in the past. All three of the Mazdas had different strategies, but ultimately the team opted to keep things simple by focusing on their strengths. There were 10 pit stops total for Freedom Autosport, and the crew executed them all flawlessly. On track, the drivers did not get caught up in any incidents, of which there were plenty. In fact, the numerous cautions gave the MX-5s a competitive edge at a track that does not suit the MX-5s well.
Fans can watch the race on Fox Sports 1 on Sunday, February 12, at 1:30p.m. EST.