Conquest Racing with Ferrari concluded the 2024 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship on a high note, claiming the win in the 27th Annual Motul Petit Le Mans. Manny Franco, Albert Costa Balboa, and Cedric Sbirrazzuoli co-drove the #34 Corsa Horizon Ferrari 296 GT3 to a hard fought victory in the GTD class after ten hours of intense racing at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta. Additionally, the strong result in the final event of the season saw the team move up to fourth place in the final class championship standings.
A solid performance from Manny Franco in the qualifying session put the team in a competitive spot from the very beginning, taking the green flag from the 8th grid position. As the race got underway on Saturday afternoon, he made steady progress through the field, picking up positions one by one as he completed back-to-back stints. After nearly two and a half hours behind the wheel, Franco had been running as high as second place before handing over the Ferrari to Endurance Cup driver Cedric Sbirrazzuoli.
Following the full service pit stop and driver change, the Monegasque returned on track in fourth position in class, and he picked up where Franco left off by maneuvering back up the running order quickly. The two exchanged stints once more with six hours remaining on the clock, with Franco returning to second in class again. However, he was pushed wide and off-line by another competitor, dropping him down to fifth. Nevertheless, the team remained in striking distance to the frontrunners, and as Sbirrazzuoli and Albert Costa Balboa took turns commanding the prancing horse in the second half of the race, the team knew they were able to challenge for a podium.
Once they began to settle into the night portion, Costa Balboa was in the driver’s seat for the final stages. The crew had to replace the door due to a broken mirror, but their quick work resulted in no time lost in the pit box, and the Spaniard was able to quickly continue on his way and set his sights on the cars ahead. With two hours to go, he was sitting in fourth when he was briefly pushed off-track into the grass by another competitor, but he was able to recover without losing a position. From there, the hunt was on as he charged towards the top 3 in the last hour.
He dug deep and caught up to the frontrunners, and with only 30 minutes remaining in the race, he completed a perfect overtake to propel himself into first place. His work wasn’t over, as he had to fend off attacks from the car behind, with the two drivers separated by less than half a second lap after lap, in addition to navigating through out-of-class traffic. Costa Balboa kept his Ferrari perfectly positioned and emerged triumphant as he took the checkered flag. This not only marks the first win for Conquest Racing in the GTD class, but it also serves as the first IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship victory for all three drivers.
“This is an amazing feeling,” expressed Manny Franco at the podium celebrations. “It’s fantastic for us and Conquest Racing, and everyone involved, because this is such a team sport. You can’t win a race by yourself, the crew made the difference and they did an exceptional job. This is amazing for us as a team, and for me personally. This is my first year competing in this championship, my first time racing in Petit Le Mans, and for me to drive the way I did and for my teammates to go on and put in the performances they did, it’s just incredible. This is a moment I will never forget.”
“I’m so happy,” exclaimed Albert Costa Balboa. “We had to wait until the very last race to get a win, but this one feels really good. My stints were really tough, we had an issue with the drink system so I didn’t have water during my time in the car, so in addition to driving I was also trying to manage my energy. I knew that the end of the race was going to be intense and it would be a close battle, I was doing everything I could to stay focused. The car was absolutely perfect, and Manny and Cedric did an amazing job, and the team was flawless. They gave me exactly what I needed so I could go out there and do what I needed to do and fight for the win.”
“I’m overjoyed,” echoed Cedric Sbirrazzuoli. “A Petit Le Mans win was on my bucket list for sure, and it feels so good to check that one off. I said it before the race, we’ve finished third, we’ve finished second, we were just missing first place, and now it was time for us to finally get that win. Hopefully there will be even more victories to come. I am very proud of the whole team, everyone did an amazing job, Manny was so strong, and Albert coming in at the end was phenomenal to watch. I’m really happy to be a part of this.”
“I am very proud of our team, and our drivers did a brilliant job all day long,” stated Eric Bachelart, Team Owner. “We have exceeded our expectations this year with a total of four podium finishes, including this win and another win in the GTD Pro category at Road America. I can’t wait to continue building and carry what we have learned this season into 2025.”
Conquest Racing will be back in action at the famed 24 Hours of Daytona in 2025 with Manny Franco at the helm of the #34 Corsa Horizon Ferrari 296 GT3. The full lineup will be announced in the coming weeks.