MLT Motorsports Battles Weather and a TPMS Sensor to Finish Eighth at Watkins Glen

Watkins Glen, NY (June 26, 2023) – MLT Motorsports entered the Sahlen’s Six Hours at the Glen race with high hopes. The team fielded the No. 54 Belle Haven Investments/Aufgang Architecture/AdeptID/OwnBackup LMP3 Ligier JS-320 entry with drivers Jason Rabe, Andrew “Pinky” Pinkerton, and Stevan McAleer, for the team’s first IMSA WeatherTech race of 2023.

The start of this year’s Sahlen’s Six Hours at the Glen weekend was fit for a duck. Rain soaked the historic track for the first two days of the weekend. Even cancelling LMP3 qualifying on Saturday leaving the class to start by points placing the MLT Motorsports team 10th for the drop of the green flag.

Rabe kicked things off behind the wheel of the No. 54 LMP3 battling hot, slick track conditions. He was able to make his way up to seventh before handing the wheel over to Pinkerton.

“I’m happy with my LMP3 WeatherTech Championshi debut,” said Rabe. “I feel like I checked all the boxes. Avoiding a lot of the carnage, keeping pace with the LMP3 class, respecting, and racing with other class cars, and bringing the car in for Pinky and Stevan, we were up to 5th at one point and in the fight! I believe I proved that I belong in the IWTC paddock, especially for having the least amount of seat time and budget then most.”

The race marked Rabe’s first career start at the track. He added, “As a rookie in the field, it was an absolute blast- if you enjoy on-track controlled chaos. Between avoiding a few incidents on restarts, especially in Turn 11- that was a close call. I battled back threw the GTD cars and passed some LMP3s, some cool battles out there with the veterans.”

Rabe continued, “I can’t thank MLT Motorsports enough for their hard work and believing in me in this Watkins Glen six-hour journey. It’s cool being a part of this organization and their return to the WeatherTech Championship. We all showed that we belong there as a team and we can win together. NOTLAD Racing, Belle Haven Investments, Aufgang Architecture, OwnBackup, AdeptID are all rockstar partners and it wouldn’t have been possible without their support. Thank You!”

MLT Motorsports engineer, and now driver, Pinkerton, made his way up to as high as fifth place before pitting during his double stint. Upon exiting pit road, a failed TPMS sensor caused a flat tire forcing the team down several laps which they could not overcome in a mostly green-flag race.

"We battled with the weather all week leading up to race day, lots of rain and cooler conditions,” said Pinkerton. “Then on Sunday the sun came out and things got hot and greasy on track. Between fighting those conditions and how brutally physical the almost all green flag double stint I had, I am happy with how I performed. The team battled through a few issues as well to keep us out there and in the fight. Unfortunately, a failed TMPS sensor caused a flat as I left pit lane for my second stint. This set us back several laps, that we were not able to recover from. Again, I can’t thank Dr. Mike and the whole of MLT for trusting me with their race car on track and on the timing stand before and after my stints."

McAleer assumed driving duties for the last one-third of the race and kept pace with the leaders. However, a lack of caution flags pinned the team several laps down with nowhere to go, forcing them into an eighth-place finish.

“I had a fantastic time under MLT.” McAleer continued, “We were in the fight on the lead lap but just past the halfway marker of the race Pinky got a flat tire. That was the start of the bad luck for us as we had to come in again the lap after and then we lost the dash and had to replace steering wheels during my stint, so we lost quite a bit of time in the pits. It’s a bummer because we had pace at the end matching the leaders but too many laps down to fight for a podium. I will say I had a blast out there finishing the race. IMSA WeatherTech racing doesn’t get any better and a big thanks to everyone sponsors, crew and drivers for having me on board.”

The MLT Motorsports returns to action for the VP Racing Challenge July 7-9 at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park as part of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Challenge Chevrolet Grand Prix weekend.

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About MLT Motorsports:

Founded in 2018 by Dr. Mike Thompson, MLT Motorsports has established itself as a premier team amongst the IMSA paddock in the LMP3 category. Based near Road Atlanta the team has easy access to some of the best road courses in the country and importantly Florida, where the sportscar racing world kicks off every winter at Daytona and Sebring. Constant investment and maintenance have seen the team arrive at each race weekend with top-notch race cars and state-of the art equipment.

Early success can be attributed to the hard work and experience the team possesses as the first win came on their second start at Mid-Ohio in 2019. During the 2021 season MLT finished off the podium only once on the way to a double championship win; earning the IMSA Prototype Challenge Team’s and Driver’s Championship with drivers Dakota Dickerson and Josh Sarchet. Parlaying the success of 2021 Championship MLT made its IMSA Weathertech Championship debut at Mid-Ohio in May of 2022 joining the ranks of the best sportscar teams in the world.

For inquiries on testing and race programs email us at: info@mltmotorsports.com