What began as a week full of promise on the streets of Long Beach ended in misfortune for Conquest Racing. Driver Manny Franco delivered impressive pace in qualifying, showcasing the speed of the #34 Corsa Horizon Ferrari 296 GT3. However, hopes were dashed when contact with the wall damaged the rear suspension, forcing an early retirement from the race.

Franco lit up the timing charts during Friday’s qualifying session, setting the fourth fastest time, just 0.291 seconds off from pole position, in a field stacked with world-class talent. The team looked poised for a strong showing in Saturday’s 100-minute sprint race.

However, the Grand Prix of Long Beach did not go as planned. “This year, we did not have a split start,” explained Franco. “Coming out of the last corner, I was on the inside line, and by the time we came around the corner while heading to the starting line, everyone had already taken off. Our Ferrari makes up its time in the corners and not in the straightaways, so unfortunately, the BMW who started behind me was quick enough to get past me by the time we reached the start-finish line. It’s hard to pass here in Long Beach, so I knew that if I didn’t get alongside him coming into Turn 1, I would lose the position. I ended up going in too deep, and I could see that I wasn’t going to make the corner. I had to bail on the turn in, and unfortunately, that was the start of our troubles.”

After dropping to the back of the field, Franco clawed back with impressive pace, recording the seventh-quickest lap of the race, as he was trying to recover ground on the tight and technical street circuit. However, 14 laps later, Franco made contact with the wall, breaking the rear toe link in the suspension. The car was brought back to pit lane for the team to examine, but they were inevitably forced to retire.

His teammate, Daniel Serra, who was set to take over the car later in the race, acknowledged the team’s setback but remained optimistic about their progress. “We showed that we have the speed to fight at the front, and Manny did everything he could to recover. Sometimes these street circuits are unforgiving. We’ll regroup, learn from this, and come back stronger. The important thing is we had the pace, which we can build on.”

Conquest Racing is already looking ahead to WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, ready to capitalize on their speed and deliver the results they’ve been chasing- and they’re wasting no time, currently on-site testing as part of their preparations for the upcoming race.

Despite some setbacks in California, Conquest Racing celebrated major success on the other side of the country at Daytona International Speedway in Ferrari Challenge North America. Dave Musial claimed a pair of podiums with back-to-back third-place finishes in the Trofeo Pirelli P-AM class. Ernst Kirchmayr stood on the top step in Coppa Shell S-AM in Race 1, while Melissa Kozyra had consistent performances, finishing in the top 5 in both races in the S-AM Class, capping off a strong weekend for the team, which had 11 entries across all categories in Daytona.