The No. 7 Secret Life of Walter Mitty car, driven by Tomy Drissi and Rusty Mitchell ran as high as second in the early stages of the American Le Mans presented by Tequila Patron race at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas. The race was part of the inaugural Super Endurance Weekend with the Word Endurance Championship.
Unfortunately, Drissi was involved in contact with the CORE car, however both cars continued. Mitchell battled back throughout the caution free race, but then sustained suspension damage with just 10 laps remaining in the race.
Tomy remained upbeat given the tremendous effort made by the team after last weeks disastrous week in Baltimore.
“I had a great start in the race going from 7th in class up to 2nd. Unfortunately I got in to John Bennett which was totally my fault. I was issued a 60 sec. stop penalty which pretty much ruined our day.
“I am glad Bennett was able to keep going and that the incident didn’t mess up their race.
“Rusty got in and tried his best to make up time, but without any caution periods, it just was not going to happen. With this kind of completion, one little mistake and you’re out of it.
“I had a good run, though. It was great fighting through the field. At the start Jan Magnussen and I were side by side going into turn one. I washed out with cold tires. Fortunately, Jan gave me some room and saved us both. I’m happy he and Corvette went on to win.
“I’m especially happy for BAR1s win and for Chris Cumming. He’s put a lot into this program and finally got his first prototype ALMS win. Congratulations to him, Kyle and the No. 8 crew on their victory.
“I really enjoyed my time at Circuit of the Americas and in Texas. The track was great as were the people of Austin. It’s a fantastic facility.”
Next up for Tomy and BAR1 Motorsports is the Oak Tree Grand Prix at Virginia International Raceway on Oct. 3-5.
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty: Opening in theaters December 25, 2013. The Secret Life of Walter Mitty is an epic drama/fantasy film directed by and starring Ben Stiller. Bored office worker Walter Mitty [Stiller] spends his days creating elaborate fantasy worlds for himself in which he gets to live a life of adventure while romancing his co-worker Cheryl [Kristen Wiig]. However, when both their jobs are threatened in the real world, Walter finally shakes off his lethargy and sets off on a global journey to introduce some genuine excitement into his life.