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Sebring: Orbit Racing race report

top-10 Orbit Racing scored a top-10 GT finish in the Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring, despite mechanical problems that plagued the team during the last few hours of the race. Mike Fitzgerald, Jay Policastro and Joe Policastro drove the No. 42 Classic ...

Published: Mar 17, 2003, 11:09 PM

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Orbit Racing scored a top-10 GT finish in the Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring, despite mechanical problems that plagued the team during the last few hours of the race. Mike Fitzgerald, Jay Policastro and Joe Policastro drove the No. 42 Classic Industries Porsche to ninth in class, after maintaining a top-10 position for most of the 12-hour race. It was the Policastros' first 12 Hours of Sebring.

Fitzgerald and Jay Policastro alternated driving stints in the second half of the race, moving up to seventh in class . They encountered oil and water temperature problems at 9h20, followed by a broken left-rear axle at 10h50. Despite several pitstops, including a 25-minute stop to replace both rear axles, the car finished ninth in GT.

The team's No. 43 YES Network Porsche retired after the first hour of the race with an engine problem.

team owner Rodger Hawley
"At the end of a 12-hour race I'm both happy and disappointed. Disappointed that the best car in the field lost an engine an hour into the race, but I'm very happy that my other two customers were able to finish. I think it's a very good entrance to the American Le Mans Series for them. The 12-hour race was one that many drivers didn't finish and Jay and Joe Policastro, with the excellent addition of Mike Fitzgerald, did an outstanding job."

Mike Fitzgerald
"We had a relatively successful race. We had a busted axle with a little over an hour to go, and we would have been seventh if it hadn't been for that. I think most of the drivers did a great job in this race. You only saw one full-course caution in the whole race. The last hour everybody got a little goofy, but prior to that I hadn't seen a race as well-driven as this one in a long time."

Jay Policastro
"We finished 12 hours! The last hour was pretty eventful, with a few minor mechanical woes. But we only lost one position. We finished in the top 10 and we're thrilled to death. The Orbit guys as usual were top performers and kept us in the fight at the end. We'll take this one and go home."

Joe Policastro
"Great race! The crew did one hell of a job changing those axles and keeping us right up there. We're really proud of everybody and a top-10 finish again."

-or/sp-

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