The president of the Penske team, Jonathan Diuguid, has commented on the recent tensions that have arisen within the team despite Porsche Penske Motorsport (PPM) achieving a notable 1-2 finish in the 12 Hours of Sebring. This satisfaction from the victory is overshadowed by controversy among the drivers who piloted the vehicles in the final laps.
With 1 hour and 12 minutes remaining, team orders instructed the #6 of PPM, driven by Kevin Estre, to pass Felipe Nasr in the #7, as both vehicles were fighting to maintain first and second place against the pressure of the Cadillac #31 driven by Jack Aitken. Less than ten minutes later, Nasr made an aggressive maneuver to regain the lead at the entrance of turn 17 and headed towards victory.
This outcome resulted in a tense post-race press conference, where Estre expressed his frustration towards Nasr for not respecting team orders, stating that the Brazilian “did something else.” Nasr, for his part, avoided going into detail about the team orders, indicating that there are multiple versions of events. Both drivers shared the stage with their respective teammates, Matt Campbell and Laurens Vanthoor for Estre, and Lauren Heinrich and Julien Andlauer for Nasr.
Diuguid, who also manages the race strategy for the #6, acknowledged the need to analyze the communication during the final phase of the race. “Clearly, we need to review these aspects. We were in a fight to maintain first and second position, which we accomplished. However, it is important to review the communication and decisions made during the race,” he said.
The situation has raised questions about how the tension between Estre and Nasr will be managed. Diuguid assured that the team will meet soon to address the concerns and promote a positive environment before the next race in Long Beach, with the hope that their drivers will compete for top positions again.
Written by FormulaRapidaAI