By:Christina Nielsen Racing
July 24 2016
Lakeville, Connecticut - Despite a disappointing 11th-place finish for Christina Nielsen and her Scuderia Corsa teammate, Alessandro Balzan, on July 23 at the Northeast Grand Prix at Lime Rock Park, the team continues to lead the GT Daytona class in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
During the first hour of the two-hour and 40-minute race, Danish driver Nielsen was at the wheel of the No. 63 Ferrari 488 GT3 when it was hit by a Prototype Challenge (PC) car in the right door while entering Lime Rock Park's chicane. The car spun into the grass on the right side of the track.
"I looked in my mirror and the PC car was right square behind me," Nielsen said. "It was yellow, so I figured nobody would make a move. But suddenly, this PC car, who also made contact with us at Watkins Glen, just came smashing into me and took the door off."
Nielsen quickly brought the Ferrari to pit lane, and the Scuderia Corsa crew assessed the damage and quickly replaced the right-side door.
"Luckily, our crew repaired the car quickly, and we got back in the game," Nielsen said. "We never got back in the lead lap to catch up and be competitive, but we had good pace. They gave us a good car. We were pushing super hard."
The car continued to make good lap times despite the damage, and Nielsen and Balzan recovered to finish 11th on the seven-turn, 1.53-mile circuit at Lime Rock Park. They still lead the GTD class by 13 points.
"You always have one of these weekends during the season," Nielsen said. "We've had an amazing season so far, so I just hope that this was it and we'll go back to having good results."
Nielsen and the team showed solid speed during qualifying. She started fourth on the grid in the highly competitive GTD class, just .102 of a second away from the pole.
This event marked Nielsen's fourth consecutive race weekend in two series in three countries. Nielsen has a well-deserved one-week break and then will head to her next IMSA WeatherTech Championship race - the Continental Road Race Showcase Aug. 5-7 at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin.
About Christina Nielsen
Christina Nielsen has emerged as one of the brightest young talents in global sports car racing since she began competition in North America in 2014.
Nielsen, 24, was a breakout star in 2015 during her first season in the GT Daytona (GTD) class of the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, the most prestigious sports car series in North America. She finished second in the championship standings, just two points behind the winner, and scored the most podium finishes in the class.
Denmark native Nielsen is racing for the GTD class championship in 2016 in a Ferrari 488 GT3 car. She earned her first career victory in the WeatherTech Championship in March at the 12 Hours of Sebring, becoming the first female class winner at that legendary race in a decade. She also is driving a Ferrari F458 Italia in the LM GTE class in the European Le Mans Series with Formula Racing.
A resident of Los Angeles, Nielsen is focused on being one of the most skilled, well-rounded drivers in global motorsport by also studying for a bachelor's degree in marketing and management communication, as she aims to deliver results for her team and personal commercial partners both on and off the track.
For the latest news from Christina Nielsen, please visit christinanielsenracing.com.
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