Snapped Belt Breaks Championship Momentum For Stevenson Motorsports

Jun 8, 2009

Fluid leak puts No. 57 Pontiac GXP.R into gravel with minutes to go

The fight for the season championship went off track for the No. 57 Stevenson Motorsports /
BryanMark Financial Pontiac GXP.R at the Sahlen’s Six Hours of the Glen, the fifth race of the
2009 Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No.16. After starting
third on the grid in the GT class, drivers Andrew Davis and Robin Liddell were charging hard
when, late in the race, a belt snapped taking the power steering line with it. Fluids leaking onto
the tires led to a spin into the gravel traps with just a few laps remaining in the race.
Coming into this weekend, the No. 57 Stevenson Motorsports / BryanMark Financial Pontiac
GXP.R had been struggling to finish in the top five. In the first four races they took one win (at
VIR) and had to settle for two 6th and one 5th place finish in the other three races. At The Glen,
the team once again found they had to deal with several niggling issues just to finish in the top
ten.
Team Manager Mike Johnson reflects on the difficulties the Stevenson Motorsports team
encountered this weekend. “Last year it seemed like we could do no wrong, and this year we
can’t do anything right. Right off the bat, we had a master cylinder lock up on us which caused
us to miss a majority of the first practice and then we had to play catch up from there. We were
able to give Robin a very fast car for qualifying and we felt pretty confident for the race, but we
learned after about seven laps into the first stint that we were too stiff in the rear and blistered
our first set of tires. From there the team worked extremely well together to get the tires to last.”
Davis: “We certainly made it quite difficult on ourselves by starting out the weekend with
mechanical problems. However, we were able to fight back and develop a strong car for
qualifying. The team was optimistic heading into the race, and the initial laps only fueled our
excitement as Robin took the lead and pulled away.”
Liddell: “”We missed a chunk of practice time due to a mechanical issue so we were making
changes to the car during the first few pit-stops. After the first few stops, and with a few tweaks
to the set-up, we had a car which was working quite well over a stint, although we just didn’t
seem to have the pace of the Porsches. Andrew and I split the first half of the race and I got
back in at the three hour mark to do the last three hours.”
Davis: “Probably the biggest disadvantage to losing the time in the first practice session was our
inability to put together any long runs to evaluate tire wear. Early into the first stint, we realized
that our BryanMark Financial Pontiac GXP.R was seriously blistering both rear tires. The
middle stints of the race were spent managing the rear tire wear, and continuing to make
changes to the car at each pit stop.”
Johnson “After making continuous tire changes during pit stops, and with a few hours remaining
in the race, we worked our way back into the lead. Unfortunately, we dialed a bit too much push
into the car to save tires, and fell back to fourth with just a few laps remaining, and then we
received the final blow when we lost the belt that runs the power steering and water pump.
Robin lost control of the car when the belt tore the power steering lines and oiled up the tires
and we finished in the gravel.”
Liddell: “I was in a comfortable fourth position but with two laps to go, the power steering/water
pump belt broke. This resulted in power steering fluid spraying on to my tires and I spun off into
the gravel trap. Unfortunately I couldn’t drive out of the gravel, although to be honest we couldn’t
have finished anyway as the water temperature had rocketed up due to the water pump belt
having come off. The engine was cooking.”
The team’s eighth place finish pushed them downwards in the point’s race for the Team and
Driver’s Championships. After finishing second overall in 2008 – with just 9 points keeping them
from winning both championship titles – this team knows they need to concentrate on collecting
every possible point for the balance of the season. There are seven races remaining and
Johnson sees each race to come as a new opportunity to begin again the process of garnering
enough points to put the team back on course for the top spot.
Johnson: “Right now, all we can do is look forward and figure out how we are going to get
ourselves out of this rut. We have had podium cars for every race this year, but have only been
able to close the one race at VIR. It’s going to be very important that we roll off the truck at Mid-
Ohio fast and reliable and get back to our winning ways.”
Liddell and Davis both agree with Johnson that a turn of fortunes is needed to invigorate the
team’s championship aspirations.
Liddell: “We actually led the race for 31 laps, the second highest number of any car. But we’re
not out of the title race by any stretch and we will keep on fighting! Thanks again to the guys for
their hard work and to John and Susan Stevenson as well as our sponsor, Bryan Mark
Financial.”
Davis: “We have been going a bit backwards in the points standings since our win at VIR, and
we realize that we have to return to proper form in order to stay in contention for this
championship. Our focus for the remainder of the season is to minimize mistakes, and focus on
getting Stevenson Motorsports back into victory lane.”
Team owner John Stevenson has not lost faith in his team to overcome the deficit of good
fortune they have experienced thus far this season. He is convinced his team will be spraying
champagne from the podium once again.
Stevenson: “Robin Liddell and Andrew Davis both drove a flawless race. Mike Johnson’s race
strategy was dead on the money but multiple mechanical failures throughout the weekend lead
us to a dismal eighth place finish. We have lost our luster due to these mechanical failures.
However, I, as well as the entire team, are determined and committed to address our
mechanical issues and return to Mid-Ohio in our traditional full force position. We will back on
the podium.”
The next race on the 2009 Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask
No.16 will be at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on June 21st.
More information about the Stevenson Motorsports team, and the new Stevenson performance
shop, can be found at www.stevensonmotorsports.com
For more information on the Grand-Am Rolex Series, go to www.grand-am.com/rolex/
Stevenson Motorsports operates out of a facility located in Jacksonville, North Carolina.