DAYTONA BEACH, Florida (November 20, 2015) – Paul Miller Racing teammates Bryan Sellers, Madison Snow and Bryce Miller tested together for the first time Wednesday at Daytona International Speedway where all three team drivers put in laps at the wheel of a Lamborghini Huracán GT3.
The test was the first time the recently announced driver pairing of Sellers and Snow have driven with Bryce Miller in preparation for the team’s 2016 campaign in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship’s GT Daytona (GTD) class. Sellers and Snow were recently confirmed as Paul Miller Racing’s full-season drivers following last month’s announcement that the team has switched to the Lamborghini Huracán GT3 for the 2016 season.
“The car is definitely confidence inspiring,” Sellers said. “You get in, you feel comfortable, the grip level is high, and the stability of the car under braking and all the things that are challenging when you get in a new car are all very good.”
Sellers and Snow drove the Lamborghini in a shakedown test with the team last month at Road Atlanta before the duo was even officially announced as the team’s 2016 drivers. Wednesday’s test provided even more track time on the 3.56-mile Daytona road course that will host 2016’s season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona in late January, which will be preceded by the annual Roar Before the Rolex 24 Test early in the New Year.
“It was definitely great to get to Daytona before the Roar and figure out what the car feels like around the banking, get comfortable with the car and get the seat positioning and everything correct,” Snow said. “That was good, we all got to be in there and figure out roughly where we all want the seat and how it will fit in the car.”
Bryce Miller drove the Lamborghini for the first time on Wednesday. He returns to the team in 2016 as an additional driver for the longer endurance races, a critical role he capably filled this year.
“I was really impressed with the car,” Bryce Miller said. “It felt really solid to me, very predictable, and it was a good opportunity just to get a little bit of a taste of it and get oriented. There’s a lot of changes from the other car we’ve been running with the last few years. It’s always good to get acquainted and have a frame of reference about what to expect and so forth.”
Sellers is no stranger to Paul Miller Racing, and Bryce Miller was among his co-drivers when he helped the team earn a second-place GT finish in the 2011 Rolex 24.
“Bryce and I have known each other a long time now so the relationship and the driver pairings and stuff was really easy, which I think is huge,” Sellers said. “We’ve all been in a position when you go into a program and don’t know your co-driver, and it takes some time to build that, but here that’s not the case. It’s good, we can come in and laugh and talk about old times and just kind of roll forward from where we left off.”
The Lamborghini Paul Miller Racing has been testing with is a factory-supplied Huracán GT3 begin shared with other racing teams.
“It’s tough because this isn’t our car, we couldn’t completely start making adjustments that we could keep, but it was still nice for all of us to get in the car,” Snow said. “It helps to know a car when you leave the track because you have it in the back of your brain that when you come back to the track that you will know the car right away.”
Paul Miller Racing will continue its off-season testing program next week at Sebring International Raceway with two more sessions scheduled in what has now become the fairly familiar green Lamborghini Huracán GT3.
Noteworthy
– The Daytona test was a productive one despite on-and-off rain showers on Wednesday. “It’s been kind of funny because, this past season, I had four races being a North American Endurance Cup driver and a lot of the races were rain races, including my last two at Petit Le Mans and The Glen,” Bryce Miller said. “So, to show up a little bit rusty from the irregularities of scheduling for tests and so forth, and just having the seat time, it’s been a little bit tricky. Then, showing up here again today and is wet, it just seems like the rain clouds keep following me around! I did get some dry track time, that was good, but it was definitely green conditions. Still, it’s just awesome to be in the car and to be able to let loose from the office a little. It’s a nice change of pace to be able to switch things up from an office environment.”
– Snow is a resident of Utah but Florida has been his home away from home recently. Right after the Daytona test he drove straight to Sebring International Raceway where he is competing in this weekend’s Lamborghini Super Trofeo World Final. He moved off to a good start this morning with a dominant win the weekend’s opening Super Trofeo North America round. “I am here in Florida for a week but I was here last week too,” Snow said. “I did a test for Super Trofeo car last week, so I got the track time, flew home for pretty much just the weekend, got back down here and did the Daytona test, and then we are back here after this weekend’s four Super Trofeo races for two days back in the Huracán GT3 car. I have been down here in Florida quite a bit and it is humid down here, but seat time is seat time, and going back-to-back-to back definitely makes it easier.”
About Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A.: Founded in 1963, Automobili Lamborghini is headquartered in Sant’Agata Bolognese, in Northeastern Italy. The Lamborghini Huracán LP 610-4, which made its world debut at the Geneva Motor Show in 2014, is the successor to the iconic Gallardo and, with its innovative technology and exceptional performance, it redefines the driving experience of luxury super sports cars. The Coupé and Roadster versions of the Aventador LP 700-4 and the Aventador LP 750-4 Superveloce and Superveloce Roadster are the new benchmark in the world of luxury super sportscars with the V12 engine. With 135 dealerships throughout the world, Automobili Lamborghini, in half a century, has created a continuous series of dream cars, including the 350 GT, Miura, Espada, Countach, Diablo, Murciélago, and limited series including Reventón, Sesto Elemento and Aventador J. The Veneno Coupé, Egoista and Veneno Roadster were produced to celebrate the 50th birthday of the company in 2013.
