Shift Up Now Athletes Ashley Freiberg and Loni Unser competed in round two of the Porsche Sprint Challenge (PSC) North America by Yokohama at Barber Motorsports Park on April 26-28, 2024.
The PSC race weekend took place alongside the NTT IndyCar Series on the picturesque, 2.38- mile, 16-turn track. PSC competition for Freiberg and Unser included two 35-minute races - plus one lap - for each driver, one on Saturday and the other on Sunday.
Driving the No. 222 for MDK Motorsports and competing in the GT3 Cup category, Freiberg ran a special black and gold livery on her 992 Porsche Cup car to commemorate Mobil1’s 50th anniversary in racing.
Unser competed for Kellymoss Racing in the Porsche Cayman GT4 category in the Pro-Am class. Her purple No. 4 Porsche Cayman GT4 RS is sponsored by Speedway Motors Inc, Trustage and Mobil1.
On Friday, both drivers took to the track for two test sessions. Neither had tested at Barber prior, so the focus was setup. Freiberg ran in the top three during both sessions and finished P2 in the first practice session. Unser made strides from the first session to the second, finishing just outside the top ten in P12.
Both drivers had a strong qualifying performance on their Yokohama tires. Freiberg earned a P3 spot for race one, while Unser set her best lap times of the weekend, and qualified P10 overall.
Race one took place on Saturday afternoon. Amidst a field of 36 cars, Freiberg maintained her P3 position with her MDK Motorsports teammate right behind her. She trailed the leader by about 13 seconds, however the gap between herself and the P2 and P4 cars was less than one second. Freiberg was able to hold off her teammate’s passing attempts until late in the race. With 10 minutes to go, he made the pass, giving her a P4 finish.
Unser started race one in P10 in a field of 23 competitors. She battled several competitors that were within a few seconds of her. Despite the lack of passing opportunities at Barber, she was able to advance one spot in turn two, finishing P9 overall, and P4 in the Pro-Am class.
On Sunday afternoon, Freiberg again started race two in P3. Just before the second (of three) full- course yellows, she dropped one position to P4. But it didn’t take long for her to regain it under green, reclaiming her P3 and maintaining it to the checkered flag.
“I’m definitely feeling the challenge of showing up to these competitive race weekends, with short practice sessions, and no prior testing,” said Freiberg. “However, I’m so thankful for the work my crew is putting in with limited time we have each weekend. And Sunday was a strong day for me, putting our Mobil1 Racing car back on the podium. I’m feeling really good about our program this year, and what we have to come.”
Unser started race two in P10 and spent the entire competition battling hard with her teammate in the position just ahead. When the checkered flag fell, she was just 0.3 seconds behind him, earning a P10 finish, and P5 in the Pro-Am class.
“I love that Porsche Motorsport North America has brought together such a huge field of competitors this year in the Porsche Sprint Challenge Cayman GT4 RS class,” said Unser. “And while I’m happy to leave this weekend with a pair of P4 finishes in class, and two top-ten finishes overall, I’m also working hard to take those next steps to get on the podium, and to the top.”
Round three of the PSC North America by Yokohama championship will take place at Circuit of the Americas on May 24-26, 2024.
