Despite mixed results at Mid-Ohio earlier this month, Swedish racer Henrik Hedman and his DragonSpeed-run Ferrari 458 GT3 remain in contention for the GT-A (amateur) class championship of the Pirelli World Challenge going into the penultimate double-header at Sonoma, California on 22-24 August. He lies second in the standings, 27 points adrift of Michael Mills (Porsche) and just ahead of fellow rookie Dan Knox (Viper).
Mid-Ohio began well, with Hedman lining up fourth in GT-A and 14th overall in his most competitive qualifying performance to date, just half a second off the class pole. Under threatening skies, the start of race one saw Henrik sensationally thread the needle to grab the GT-A lead by the first turn, only to drop down to 37th after a spin on lap two. Yellow flags, torrential rain, and finally a red flag hobbled his comeback effort, leaving him eighth in class and 20th overall at the end. The result relegated Hedman to 22nd on the grid for Sunday’s race, from which he was only able to score another eighth place.
Sonoma marks the first anniversary of DragonSpeed’s Pirelli World Challenge debut, the Florida-based team having run its Audi R8 LMS ultra last year to assist in developing rules for the FIA GT3 machinery admitted to the series this season. The team’s future is also in the news, with confirmation that Hedman and DragonSpeed will combine to contest the Blancpain Endurance Series – including the famed Spa 24 Hours – in Europe next year alongside its World Challenge program. The search is already on for a another Ferrari, premises, equipment, and co-drivers for the BES campaign.
Henrik Hedman: “We’ve shown we’re on the pace the last couple of races and further improved our set-up in testing since Mid-Ohio. Now we have to translate that into results if we want to win the GT-A championship. My only focus this weekend is to deliver for the team, myself, and Ferrari.”
Elton Julian: “The best way to put Mid-Ohio behind us will be a strong performance at Sonoma. It’s satisfying to see where we are a year after we entered World Challenge, and exciting to look ahead to adding Blancpain in 2015, but the clear priority is the job in front of us this weekend. There’s a championship to play for, it’s still within reach, and we’re all up for it.”