Have you ever heard of a sponsor of a race series like IMSA where WeatherTech is also the boss ?
How about they bias the race by entering 3 cars, 2 different nameplates in same class (GTD-Pro) and now finding they are using their top driver to
drive 2 cars in the same class and race ?
Yet, multi BoP rules against the C8.Rs but not WeatherTechs 3 cars ?
They claim no team orders between the WeatherTech Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evos and Porsche 911 GT3 R in the Rolex 24 at Daytona according to Cooper MacNeil, who is set to pull double duty for the first time in his driving career.
MacNeil, who claimed three GT Le Mans class victories last year, including the final race of the category at Motul Petit Le Mans, will split his driving time in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season-opener between the No. 97 Mercedes and his full-season No. 79 Porsche entry, both competing in the GTD Pro class.
An additional Mercedes has been entered in the class by a joint effort from Proton and Multimatic, although it is also sponsored by WeatherTech and not directly involved with MacNeil’s racing program.
MacNeil won Motul Petit Le Mans courtesy of a last-lap reversal of positions between the two WeatherTech Porsche 911 RSR-19s that were running 1-2 in class at the time of the race.
When asked if team orders could be deployed again in the Rolex 24, MacNeil said “no, not here.” (I say BS)
“I’m driving both cars,” he states. “I wasn’t driving both cars at Petit.”
The No. 15 Mercedes, which features the three-driver lineup of Dirk Mueller, Austin Cindric and Patrick Assenheimer, will also have the chance to go for the class win.
“We’re just the title sponsor of the livery of that car,” MacNeil said. “We’re not funding any of the race itself for that car. We don’t have the jurisdiction, so to say, to do that.
“If they win, great, good for them. It would be nice to have any WeatherTech car in the center of the podium, I just hope it’s one of the two I’m driving.”
MacNeil said he’s “super excited” to be pulling double duty for the first time and sees benefits in driving cars from two different GT3 manufacturers.
“The idea is to double our chances at winning the race,” he explained. “I think having two different makes is important as well.
“Obviously driving two different cars of the same manufacturer doesn’t make that much sense.
“Driving a Mercedes and a Porsche, hopefully you have a decent BoP in one of the two. That’s what we all hope for.
“I’ve never had double duty before in a race, especially a race this big. It will be interesting.
“We just have to stay out of trouble and get my minimum drive time out of the way and let the other guys [focus] and let the strategy take it away from there.”
