MOMO NGT Motorsport looking to continue championship lead

The No. 30 MOMO NGT Motorsport team is looking to continue its GTC class championship lead at the American Le Mans Monterey race at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, May 9-11, 2013.

#30 NGT Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 Cup: Henrique Cisneros, Sean Edwards

Photo by: Oliver Petalver

Cisneros, who is currently leading the Driver’s Championship in GTC class, wants to add another victory to his 2013 results. Cisneros and Edwards paired for a victory at Round 2 last month in the Long Beach Grand Prix. The two were joined by German Marco Seefried for a third place finish in the 12 Hours of Sebring.

Henrique Cisneros, No. 30 MOMO NGT Motorsport driver:

Nick Tandy is filling in for Sean for the ALMS race at Laguna Seca this week. You have previously co-driven together. Please share with us about your past experience/s together and how this arrangement came about.... “Nick Tandy drove with me at the 2012 24 Hours of Dayton along with Sean Edwards before he was a Porsche Factory driver.

He has always been very impressive behind the wheel of a Porsche GT3 Cup and we have been friends ever since. The most interesting aspect of the race was that Sean and Nick were always huge rivals in Porsche Supercup and Carrera Cup so I thought the best thing to do was to put them both in the same car and have them play nice. Now I have the data to prove who is faster but it's a secret!”

You have been driving the Porsche 911 GT3 cars for several years now. Do you think the car is well suited for the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca circuit? “Laguna Seca is a very challenging track. The mixture of elevation changes, off camber corners and fine sand blowing onto the track make for some interesting moments when you're at the limit of the car.

The Porsche GT3 tends to have a lot of understeer here so set up is very crucial. As the tires wear, the balance of the car completely changes and it is important to have that sweet spot figured out before the race.”

You are coming off a victory at Long Beach in the GTC class and currently lead the points chase. Does that add more pressure on you for success this weekend? “As of now, there is no added pressure for being in the championship lead. It's a long season and anything can happen.

The top four cars are all within three to four points so it’s basically tied across the top. The team has great momentum from the win at Long Beach so hopefully we can bring another trophy home.”

Nick Tandy, No. 30 MOMO NGT Motorsport driver:

Have you previously driven at Laguna Seca? If so, tell us about your race/s... “I competed in the race last year, also in the GTC class, with TRG. We had a great week and were super competitive, leading the race in the first hour before a drive line failure put us many laps behind.

It was good fun. I enjoyed the challenge of the circuit and I'm looking forward to coming back this year. I have unfinished business in Monterey!”

You are a factory Porsche driver and will be driving the MOMO/NGT Porsche 911 GT3 race car. Is the Porsche GT3 well suited for the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca circuit? “The 911 GT3 car is very good where you need to be hard on the brakes, and then get the car rotated quickly to get straight as possible out of the corner to use the great traction renowned for the Porsche.

Laguna Seca has many of these types of corners so the car is well suited. I think the key aspect between the teams in the GTC class will be who can make the most of this aspect of the car but also giving the car a good balance for the fast and medium speed corners of the middle sector of the lap.”

The GTC class in ALMS is very competitive. How do you and the team plan on coming out on top in this weekend’s race? “This year the GTC class is super competitive with many cars and teams in with a good chance of winning races.

The most important part of the year though is the championship race so if we cannot win, which you cannot do at every weekend, we will make sure we score the maximum points we can without taking too many risks. The team had yet to be off the podium this year and I'm intending on keeping it that way!”

Ramez Wahab, NGT Motorsport Owner/No. 30 MOMO NGT Motorsport Team Manager:

What has the NGT Motorsport team’s previous experience and successes been at Laguna Seca? “We won Laguna multiple times in the IMSA GT3 Cup Series. The ALMS GTC class is more competitive than ever. The key is finding the grip at Laguna; you need mechanical grip for the slow turns and downforce for the faster ones.”

Nick Tandy is filling in for Sean for the ALMS race at Laguna Seca this week. Please share with us how this arrangement came about. “NGT has a very good relationship with Nick Tandy.

He drove for us in the 2012 24 Hours of Daytona and since then I was very impressed by his performance. I always wanted to have him back in one of our Porsches and now we had a good opportunity to do that since Sean Edwards has other duties which conflicted with Laguna Seca.”

The team is coming off a victory at Long Beach in the GTC class and currently leads the points chase. Does that add more pressure on the team for success this weekend? “Long Beach was perfect for us. We showed our strength and, of course, we intend to keep that up for the upcoming Laguna Seca race. The pressure is always on.”

MOMO NGT Motorsport