2022 Twelve Hours of Sebring results: In only the car’s second race, Chip Ganassi Racing’s No. 02 Cadillac DPi-V.R captured the 70th running of prestigious Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring.
Earl Bamber, co-driving with Alex Lynn and Neel Jani, took the checkered flag after overcoming two incidents (that encompassed a spin and a drive-through penalty) during his final stint at Sebring International Raceway.
“Honestly it’s right up there,” Bamber, the 2019 GTLM champion for Porsche who joined Ganassi this year, told NBC Sports reporter Brian Till. “Chip Ganassi Racing and the Cadillac was amazing this weekend. We had such a good lead, and I managed to throw it away twice. Once on the out lap, and I thought, ‘Man, I can’t do this, these guys have worked so hard on the car.’ Got back to the lead and then got clipped by a GTD.
RESULTS: Click here for the final overall finishing order l Click here for the class breakdown.
“I’m just exhausted. Thanks to everyone at Cadillac and Chip giving me the chance to drive this car, it’s just incredible.”
Just after Earl Bamber took the overall lead, he spun!
— Motorsports on NBC (@MotorsportsNBC) March 20, 2022
He's come from behind before today. Will he do it again with less than one hour to go?@IMSA // #Sebring12
📺 : @USA_Network and @peacockTV pic.twitter.com/niL9w25Pre
Ganassi expanded to a second Cadillac this season after entering the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Series’ premier division last year with the No. 01, which earned the pole position Friday with Sebastien Bourdais.
Though mechanical problems knocked the No. 01 out of contention, the No. 02 picked up the slack as Bamber managed to stave off a late charge by Tristan Vautier, who was trying to deliver the second consecutive Twelve Hours of Sebring victory for JDC MotorSports.
“Just the level of competition,” Bamber said when asked what left him so spent after his second Sebring victory (but first overall). “We had all the cars within a 10th (of a second), and we all finished within about 10 seconds at the end. I’m so happy to get our first win in the 02 and to get one for Chip so early in the season. And a big one, Sebring. They deserved it last year, and now they’ve finally got it.”
It marked the 61st IMSA victory for Chip Ganassi Racing and second at Sebring (but first in the DPi overall category).
A rundown of winners in other categories:
GTD Pro
Corvette Racing rebounded from a disappointing outing in the season opener as the No. 3 C8.R of Antonio Garcia, Jordan Taylor and Nicky Catsburg scored the brand’s 12th victory at Sebring.
After the No. 3 dominated in winning the 2021 championship of the final year in the GTLM division, its debut in the new GTD Pro class resulted in a 30th in the Rolex 24 at Daytona.
Garcia found redemption by taking the checkered flag for his 27th career victory in IMSA.
“Really, really happy for Corvette Racing,” Garcia told NBC Sports’ Parker Kligerman after his 27th career win and fourth at Sebring. “This C8.R managed to get all the way. There was unfinished business from last year. Big thumbs up to Jordan and Nicky. They drove really, really good. It was a tough race with all the conditions.
“I’m also learning and Corvette Racing is also learning. Now we have the first real data from the race, and next year, we’ll come back even stronger next year.”
GTD
In the first victory for Cetilar Racing, Italians Roberto Lacorte, Giorgio Sernagiotto and Antonio Fuoco drove the No. 47 Ferrari 488 GT3 to the win. All three drivers were first-time IMSA winners.
LMP2
With a victory from the pole position, the No. 52 PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports ORECA LMP2 07 of Ben Keating, Scott Huffaker and Mikkel Jensen won the Twelve Hours of Sebring for the second consecutive year (and the third straight for PR1 Mathiasen).
LMP3
The No. 33 Sean Creech Motorsport Ligier JS P320 of Joao Barbosa, Lance Willsey and Malthe Jakobsen scored the victory. It was the 25th career win and third at Sebring for Barbosa while Willsey and Jakobsen earned their inaugural IMSA victories.
STATS PACKAGE FOR MOBIL 1 TWELVE HOURS OF SEBRING:
Fastest laps by driver after race (over the weekend)
Fastest laps by driver and class after race
Race distance and speed average
NEXT: The IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship will resume with the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, April 8-10.