Fittipaldi said he was confused by the no-call based on his understanding of the parameters laid out by (IMSA Race Director) Beaux Barfield during the pre-race drivers’ meeting on Saturday.
“Was it a clean pass? I don’t know,” Fittipaldi admitted. “It was decided the way it was decided. … To my understanding, Beaux, in the briefing, was very clear about if you generate a problem or if you generate contact, you will probably be penalized for it. So I don’t know.”
On the flip side of the coin, Taylor responded to the Action Express team during the winning team’s post-race press conference and explained his side and view of the finish.
“The way I saw it, we came through GT traffic. I was closer than I had been. He’d been struggling in turn one,” Taylor said. “Their car didn’t look very good there, and we were really strong on the brakes, and so I have thought about doing this for years and years, and this has always been something -‑ people always open up after that little kink in turn one, they open their hands a little bit, and it’s just so easy to release the brake there and pop in there.
“If you get enough alongside, you can make it work, and I think he saw me coming, he saw me committing, and like he said, I guess, he closed the door. But I think Beaux (Barfield, IMSA race director) always talked about shared responsibility, and if he knew I was committing, why would you close the door and make us crash?”
For a driver and team who had finished second in three of the previous four Rolex 24s at Daytona, Taylor stressed that he wasn’t about to finish second again — especially considering that it was his mentor Angelelli’s final sports car appearance.
“Everybody is going to take a risk. … From my perspective, it’s Max’s last race. There’s a lot of emotions going on. I wanted to win terribly. We were either going to make a move and do something and win or sit there in second and wait for — wait until next year, basically. I didn’t want to do that.”
About the Writer
Jacob Seelman is the Managing Editor of Race Chaser Online and creator of the Motorsports Madness radio show, airing at 7 p.m. Eastern every Monday on the Performance Motorsports Network.
Seelman grew up in the sport, watching his grandparents co-own the RaDiUs Motorsports NASCAR Cup Series team in the 1990s.
The 22-year-old is currently studying Broadcast Journalism at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, S.C., and is also serving as the full-time tour announcer for the Must See Racing Sprint Car Series.
Email Jacob at: [email protected]
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