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Practice report

Sebring 12 Hours: Castroneves tops first practice for Penske

Three-time Indy 500 winner Helio Castroneves topped the times in first practice for this weekend's Sebring 12 Hours for the Penske Acura team. 

#7 Acura Team Penske Acura DPi

#7 Acura Team Penske Acura DPi

Greg Aleck - Fastlines

Castroneves posted a 1m48.237s in his Acura ARX-05 DPi early in the one-hour session. 

He knocked Spirit of Daytona driver Tristan Vautier off the top spot by a tenth and a half in the first track acton head of Saturday's second round of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. 

The Frenchman retained second position with his 1m48.387s aboard his Cadillac DPi-V.R to the end of the session, ending up just 0.28s ahead of Renger van der Zande in the Wayne Taylor Racing Caddy. 

Olivier Pla took fourth in the fastest of the Extreme Speed Motorsports Onroak-Nissan DPis with a 1m48.461s, which put him less than a tenth up on Jonathan Bomarito in the best of the Joest-run Mazda RT24-Ps. Pipo Derani took sixth in the second of the ESM Nissans. 

The first nine cars, all DPis, were within a second of Castroneves in the Acura.

Fastest of the LMP2 cars in 11th was the Performance Tech Oreca 07 in which Patricio O'Ward posted a 1m49.457s right at the end of the session. 

The United Autosports Ligier was 14th-quickest, 2.5s off the pace, with Paul di Resta at the wheel.

Ford fastest in GTLM

Dirk Muller ended up fastest in the GTE Le Mans class aboard his Chip Ganassi Ford GT. His 1m57.567s put him two and a half tenths up on Toni Vilander in the Risi Competizione Ferrari 488 GTE. 

Richard Westbrook was just two thousandths behind in the second of the Ganassi Fords. 

The GT Daytona category was led by Lawson Aschenbach in the fastest of the Michael Shank Racing Acura NSX GT3s. 

A 2m00.337s put him eight hundredths up on Daniel Serra's AF Corse-run Spirit of Race Ferrari 488 GT3.

First practice results:

Pos.NumDriverClassChassisTimeGap
1 7 brazil Helio Castroneves 
united_states Graham Rahal 
united_states Ricky Taylor 
P Acura DPi 1'48.237  
2 90 united_states Matt McMurry 
france Tristan Vautier 
italy  Eddie Cheever III 
P Cadillac DPi 1'48.387 0.150
3 10 united_states Jordan Taylor 
united_states Ryan Hunter-Reay 
netherlands Renger van der Zande 
P Cadillac DPi 1'48.415 0.178
4 2 united_states Scott Sharp 
united_kingdom Ryan Dalziel 
france Olivier Pla 
P Nissan DPi 1'48.461 0.224
5 55 united_kingdom Harry Tincknell 
united_states Spencer Pigot 
united_states Jonathan Bomarito 
P Mazda DPi 1'48.544 0.307
6 22 brazil Pipo Derani 
united_states Johannes van Overbeek 
france Nicolas Lapierre 
P Nissan DPi 1'48.675 0.438
7 31 united_kingdom Mike Conway 
united_states Eric Curran 
brazil Felipe Nasr 
P Cadillac DPi 1'48.753 0.516
8 77 united_kingdom Oliver Jarvis 
germany René Rast 
united_states Tristan Nunez 
P Mazda DPi 1'48.764 0.527
9 6 colombia Juan Pablo Montoya 
france Simon Pagenaud 
united_states Dane Cameron 
P Acura DPi 1'48.950 0.713
10 5 brazil Christian Fittipaldi 
portugal Filipe Albuquerque 
portugal Joao Barbosa 
P Cadillac DPi 1'49.386 1.149
11 38 united_states James French 
united_states  Kyle Masson 
mexico Patricio O'Ward 
P ORECA LMP2 1'49.457 1.220
12 85 switzerland Simon Trummer 
france Nelson Panciatici 
united_states Robert Alon 
P ORECA LMP2 1'50.378 2.141
13 99 canada Mikhail Goikhberg 
united_states Chris Miller 
south_africa Stephen Simpson 
P ORECA LMP2 1'50.651 2.414
14 32 united_kingdom Paul di Resta 
united_kingdom Alex Brundle 
united_kingdom Phil Hanson 
P Ligier LMP2 1'50.759 2.522
15 52 colombia Gustavo Yacaman 
mexico Roberto Gonzalez 
colombia Sebastian Saavedra 
P Ligier LMP2 1'50.907 2.670
16 66 france Sébastien Bourdais 
united_states Joey Hand 
germany Dirk Müller 
GTLM Ford GT 1'57.567 9.330
17 62 united_kingdom James Calado 
finland Toni Vilander 
italy Alessandro Pier Guidi 
GTLM Ferrari 488 GTE 1'57.819 9.582
18 67 australia Ryan Briscoe 
new_zealand Scott Dixon 
united_kingdom Richard Westbrook 
GTLM Ford GT 1'57.821 9.584
19 911 united_kingdom Nick Tandy 
france Patrick Pilet 
france Frédéric Makowiecki 
GTLM Porsche 911 RSR 1'57.958 9.721
20 912 italy Gianmaria Bruni 
new_zealand Earl Bamber 
belgium Laurens Vanthoor 
GTLM Porsche 911 RSR 1'58.116 9.879
21 24 united_states John Edwards 
finland Jesse Krohn 
netherlands Nick Catsburg 
GTLM BMW M8 GTLM 1'58.360 10.123
22 25 united_states Bill Auberlen 
united_states Connor de Phillippi 
united_kingdom Alexander Sims 
GTLM BMW M8 GTLM 1'58.500 10.263
23 3 denmark Jan Magnussen 
spain Antonio Garcia 
germany Mike Rockenfeller 
GTLM Corvette C7.R 1'58.762 10.525
24 4 switzerland Marcel Fassler 
united_kingdom Oliver Gavin 
united_states Tommy Milner 
GTLM Corvette C7.R 1'58.983 10.746
25 93 united_states Justin Marks 
united_states Lawson Aschenbach 
germany Mario Farnbacher 
GTD Acura NSX GT3 2'00.337 12.100
26 51 portugal Pedro Lamy 
canada Paul Dalla Lana 
austria Mathias Lauda 
brazil Daniel Serra 
GTD Ferrari 488 GT3 2'00.424 12.187
27 29 belgium Alessio Picariello 
germany Christopher Mies 
south_africa Sheldon Van Der Linde 
GTD Audi R8 LMS GT3 2'00.461 12.224
28 44 united_states Andy Lally 
united_states Andrew Davis 
united_states John Potter 
GTD Audi R8 LMS GT3 2'00.531 12.294
29 15 denmark David Heinemeier Hansson 
united_kingdom Jack Hawksworth 
united_states Sean Rayhall 
GTD Lexus RC F GT3 2'00.740 12.503
30 58 united_states Patrick Long 
denmark Christina Nielsen 
germany Robert Renauer 
france Mathieu Jaminet 
GTD Porsche 911 GT3 R 2'00.929 12.692
31 14 canada Kyle Marcelli 
austria Dominik Baumann 
switzerland Philipp Frommenwiler 
GTD Lexus RC F GT3 2'00.966 12.729
32 86 portugal Alvaro Parente 
united_kingdom Katherine Legge 
united_states Trent Hindman 
GTD Acura NSX GT3 2'01.024 12.787
33 96 united_states Don Yount 
finland Markus Palttala 
united_states Dillon Machavern 
GTD BMW M6 GT3 2'01.060 12.823
34 75 australia Kenny Habul 
germany Thomas Jäger 
canada Mikael Grenier 
GTD Mercedes-AMG GT3 2'01.135 12.898
35 48 united_states Corey Lewis 
united_states Bryan Sellers 
united_states Madison Snow 
GTD Lamborghini Huracan GT3 2'01.233 12.996
36 64 united_states Townsend Bell 
united_states Frankie Montecalvo 
united_states Bill Sweedler 
GTD Ferrari 488 GT3 2'01.244 13.007
37 33 netherlands Jeroen Bleekemolen 
united_states Ben Keating 
germany Luca Stolz 
GTD Mercedes-AMG GT3 2'01.278 13.041
38 63 united_states Cooper MacNeil 
united_states Gunnar Jeannette 
italy Alessandro Balzan 
GTD Ferrari 488 GT3 2'01.429 13.192
39 69 united_states Ryan Eversley 
united_states Tom Dyer 
united_states Chad Gilsinger 
GTD Acura NSX GT3 2'01.505 13.268
40 73 germany Jörg Bergmeister 
united_states Tim Pappas 
united_states Patrick Lindsey 
GTD Porsche 911 GT3 R 2'01.609 13.372
41 36 united_states Marc Miller 
canada Kuno Wittmer 
united_states Till Bechtolsheimer 
GTD Acura NSX GT3 2'01.967 13.730
42 71 united_states Kenton Koch 
italy  Loris Spinelli 
colombia  JC Perez 
GTD Mercedes-AMG GT3 2'02.009 13.772

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