Chris Durand (Gravity Racing): "We had a highly optimized aerodynamic package today, which unfortunately only served to give us an excellent, unobstructed view of a Corvette pulling away at several hundred meters per minute."
The Formula Duude division descended upon Watkins Glen International for a 12-lap sprint that ultimately demonstrated the efficiency of American displacement over complex European engineering, though not without a minor mathematical insult to the victor.
Fernando Horta, starting from 13th position in the #63 Corvette C6-R, executed a steady progression through the field. While pole-sitter Chris Durand led the opening laps in the Gravity Racing Mosler MT900R, the order behind him dissolved rapidly. According to telemetry, Horta had bypassed the mid-pack traffic to sit seventh by the end of the first lap, and climbed to third on Lap 2 behind Durand and Vlado Kenats. A decisive maneuver on Lap 3 brought the Corvette to second, and by Lap 4, Horta assumed a lead he would not relinquish for the remainder of the afternoon.
The mid-race phase was characterized by Horta extending his margin, much to the quiet concern of his pit wall. Crew Chief Alan Donatellofson, monitoring the telemetry with his trademark lack of enthusiasm, was forced to intervene on Lap 8. Over the radio, Donatellofson sarcastically reminded Horta that he possessed a fifteen-second lead and should focus on staying on the pavement rather than testing the structural integrity of the Watkins Glen barriers.
While Horta maintained his commanding lead to finish 18.3 seconds clear of Durand, the real battle was fought against the stopwatch in the closing stages. Sol Leung, occupying sixth place in the Reiter Engineering Lamborghini Gallardo, had quietly set a blistering pace of 1:44.965. Upon seeing the Reiter entry claim the fastest lap on his dashboard, Horta mounted a late-race charge, pushing his Corvette to its absolute limit on Lap 12. Despite his efforts, Horta crossed the line with a personal best of 1:44.984—falling short of Leung's benchmark by an agonizing 19 milliseconds.
Behind the lead duo, Vlado Kenats secured the final step of the podium for Multimatic Motorsport, resisting a late challenge from Sam Rolfe's Gumpert Apollo. Eric Marecki completed the top five in the Phoenix Racing Audi R8, finishing just ahead of the flying Leung.
Post-Race Press Gaggle
Barry Cade (The Armco Gazette): Asked if missing the fastest lap tarnished an otherwise dominant victory, Horta was gracious regarding his rival's pace.
Fernando Horta: "When I started the last lap and saw Sol's name there, I pushed like a mad man. Got close, really close, but couldn't beat him. Kudos to him and his insanely fast Lambo!"
Otto Mobile (The Daily Tread): Questioned Durand on the deficit, with the Gravity Racing driver noting that his car ran flawlessly but simply lacked the straight-line speed of the winning Corvette.
Miles Behind (The Backmarker Quarterly): Asked if the team was satisfied, Donatellofson concluded the session by stating he was entirely pleased with the maximum points and planned to catch an early flight home to escape the paddock questions.
Ps. Mansell, your seat is still warm, mostly because someone left the telemetry laptop on it.
