Hartanto Guest Stars in a USTCC TC Class 350Z, Earns Podium Finish
Andrie Hartanto and the Prima Racing crew found themselves back in action in a familiar place as they participated in the USTCC’s season opening two-hour endurance race at Buttonwillow Raceway Park. A few things were different this time, as Hartanto would be lending a hand to rookie driver, Patrick Chio as they teamed up to compete in the tightly-contested TC (Touring Car) class in Chio’s Nissan 350Z.
This was the same event last year in which Hartanto and Prima Racing stunned the GT field with a modestly-powered Honda S2000, pulling out a surprise victory through consistent driving, flawless pit crew execution and a little bit of luck.
This time around, Hartanto would be playing the support role, assisting Chio in getting him up to speed at his first race, dialing in some final adjustments to the 350Z and closing out the race during the night session of the endurance event.
In practice, the rookie Chio performed well, putting in the third fastest lap, turning a 2:01.399 in the first session’s times and demonstrating that he had the pace to be a respectable competitor within the TC Class. Hartanto then took over for the second practice session, focusing solely on setup of the car for the race. In the process however, Hartanto managed to set the fastest TC Class time of the day with a 1:58.568, drawing some extra attention from the tech officials, warranting further inspection.
Following further scrutiny, Chio’s 350Z was found to be fully compliant and legal. While the discrepancy in speed wasn’t a massive difference between Chio and Hartanto, it prompted a discussion around the strategy of whom should take the wheel for qualifying.
Ultimately it was determined that since Chio would be on the grid during the standing start of his debut race, it would be best for Chio to qualify within his own pace on the starting grid. The risk of Hartanto putting it on the pole only to have impatient drivers ruin the race for Chio early on seemed to be too great of risk.
Fortunately for the duo, Chio improved his lap times during qualifying, putting the car in the third grid spot for the TC Class with a lap time 1:59.713.
“My expectations at the moment are just to finish the race,” Chio commented when asked about his prospects for the race. “This is my first race and I only have a provisional license. At this point I can’t risk that by putting any wheels off-track or by making any contact. There are a lot of great and experienced racers here in USTCC and I want to make sure I run a clean race.”
When the race started, Chio found himself sitting on the pole position due to the top two competitors arriving late to the grid. He was caught off guard when a competitor lined up on the far inside of the grid before the start, boxing him in and leaving the rookie with nowhere to go.
In a frenzied start, Chio dropped back into fifth position shortly after the green flag dropped, but ran a clean consistent race. His steady driving amidst a tough field allowed Chio to quietly work his way back up to third place in the TC Class field when it came time to hand the car over to Hartanto.
After a strong initial showing in Chio’s first ever race, a stroke of misfortune hit the team. The team executed a flawless pit stop and driver change, however the safety car was dispatched right as Hartanto was sent out to resume the race, thus holding the 350Z in seventh place after the pit stop.
Once the incident on-track had been cleared and the all-clear had been given to resume racing, Hartanto pushed hard until the last lap of the race. By the time the race had ended, Hartanto had clawed back to regain all of the positions lost after the pit stop and lengthy safety car period. In doing so, Chio earned his first podium finish of the USTCC TC Class and a podium finish in his first race of his rookie season.
Post-race, it was determined that the race winner was underweight, thus bumping Chio and Hartanto into second position.
“The Z is surprisingly competitive,” Chio remarked after the race. “There are a few things that we still have to figure out, such as the brakes, but we should definitely have a good chance of finishing within the top positions.”
Hartanto echoed Chio’s comments. “We got the 350Z in the mix right away and we even topped the time sheet in practice. The car is fun to drive and shares a lot of similarities with the BMW. I had a lot of fun and would be glad to do it again.”
Hartanto even heaped some praise on the rookie’s first outing. “Patrick did an awesome job. He performed really well, especially being in the thick of it with the top guys.”
Chio remarked, “Working with Andrie to help me get up to speed at my first race has been amazing. He truly pours his heart into motorsport. His work ethic, his thought process and approach to racing is impressive. What really stands out is his sportsmanship. The way he constantly helps out others is a good example of how drivers should be.”
Be sure to follow Patrick Chio’s endeavors in the USTCC TC class all season long.
Furthermore, be sure to follow Andrie’s upcoming home race in the IMSA Continental Tire Sportscar Challenge at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca with the BimmerWorld Racing team!
