Shift Up Now Athlete Tatiana Calderón, along with teammates Till Bechtolsheimer and Joey Hand, earned a sixth-place finish - their best of the season so far - at the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) “Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen” at Watkins Glen International on June 19-22, 2025.
Driving the No. 66 Ford Mustang GT3 for Gradient Racing on the 3.4 mile, 11-turn road course, the trio had two practice sessions to dial in the car’s setup before qualifying. They qualified 17th and lined up on the inside of row nine overall for the six-hour competition.
Bechtolsheimer was behind the wheel first in what would prove to be a race full of tricky weather conditions. He endured a pop-up rain shower that left as quickly as it came within the first hour, then put the team inside the top ten before handing the car over to Calderón.
The Colombian driver completed 64 consistent laps across three stints, despite losing time when the team had to change the car’s nose during her second pit stop.
Hand then took the final two-hour stint, in which the race pace steadily increased. With only 11 minutes remaining in the competition, the final full-course caution flag flew. On the restart, Hand was running ninth, but capitalized on other cars’ issues to cross the finish line in sixth.
For Calderón, the result was her first top-10 finish in IMSA competition. Additionally, it was Gradient Racing’s best finish to date in its first season using Ford Machinery.
“It was a difficult race that had just about everything – first rain, then a lot of heat and sun, and so many yellow flags,” said Calderón. “It was a case of surviving, and finishing sixth is like a victory for us, to be honest.
“At the beginning of the weekend, we were struggling to find pace during practice, but we managed to turn it around in time for the race and we were much closer. We should be proud that we made no mistakes, and that the team did a great job with the strategy and the pit stops.
“Personally, I was happy to get more time in the car, because every time I am driving I feel I am adapting better to the Mustang and getting quicker. We are happy with the result but equally we know there’s also a lot of work still to be done to prepare for the final two rounds at Indianapolis and Road Atlanta.”
Next up, the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup heads to Racing Capital of the World for the penultimate event of the season, the TireRack.com Battle on the Bricks at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on September 19-21, 2025.
