News

Trouble at the Bus Stop for Ostella at The Glen

Posted on: June 30th, 2013 | No Comments

WATKINS GLEN, NY (June 30, 2013) – Rookie David Ostella joined the IMSA GT3 Cup Challenge by Yokohama series for his first time this weekend with high hopes. The Ultra 94 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada by Michelin Series points leader was looking to build his experience in the Porsche GT3 Cup car and try his hand against the seasoned competition in the US-based counterpart to his own series.

Yesterday’s Race One proved a bit disappointing as the Ontario native found trouble at the Bus Stop (aka, Inner Loop) on the historic 3.4-mile, 11-turn road course at Watkins Glen International. The first-lap contact left him battling back to a 12th-place finish from the rear of the 28-car field after starting sixth.

The 21-year-old Canadian started today’s race in the fifth position, giving the rookie much-needed confidence to stay in contention for a podium finish or even a win.

The IMSA GT3 Cup Challenge field took the green today under sunny skies at the southern tip of Seneca Lake and quickly fell into line for a 45-minute sprint to the finish. Ostella settled into fifth position and readied himself for an opportunity to advance.

Ostella working fifth position in Turn 1 at Watkins Glen International

 

On his second trip around the circuit, trouble once again found Ostella at the Bus Stop, where he spun and found the wall.

“Today’s race was not as expected,” Ostella said. “Started P5, one position better than yesterday. I had a good start. On the second lap, heading into the Bus Stop, it seemed like I had a little bit of lockup or something, but we’re going to go through the data to make sure we know what happened. I spun and ran into the wall.”

The incident brought out the only yellow flag of the race and his day ended in 26th place.

“It was unfortunate for my sponsor Global Precast and my SpeedMerchants guys,” Ostella continued. “They worked hard after yesterday’s incident to get the car setup again for today’s race. It was still a good experience here at Watkins Glen and being here for the 100th race of the IMSA GT3 Cup Challenge series (yesterday). I look forward to coming back to race with the US series again in the future. We’ll see what happens, but now we’re just going to focus on the Canadian championship, go for more wins, and try to increase our points lead.”

David Ostella and his SpeedMerchants Motorsports team are headed back to Canada for the 2013 Grand Prix of Mosport at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park July 19-21. Ostella holds a seven-point advantage on his competition for the Platinum Cup Championship after two wins and a podium in the first four races.