Team Proton Competition number 88 withdrawn after incident during Thursday practice.

Team Proton Competition were all set to take on the WEC 1.000 Mile Race on Friday, after a great start to the day on Thursday during the free practice season one.  

However, disaster struck in free practice two when their number 88 was hit by the Cadillac Racing Hypercar piloted at the time by Richard Westbrook that cut across the track, sending Ryan Hardwick directly into the wall. Luckily Ryan was ok and left the car unharmed despite heavy damage to the car that resulted in the first of two red flags on the day.

Although the Richard Westbrook was found to be completely at fault by the race stewards after an inquiry, the damage to number 88 car was severe and could not be repaired here at the track. As a result of the damage, Proton Competition sadly had to withdraw from the race.

Team quote

It's been a tough blow for us, especially considering that car number 88 was fast and we were confident about the race. It is an unfair start for Ryan, who is racing in the WEC for the first time after moving across from the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in which he finished second in the GT Daytona class last year.

But we won't let this setback get us down. We're keeping our focus forward.

We want to thank the race stewards for their fair judgment. Safety is paramount in this sport, and we hope everyone will abide by the rules to ensure a safe and fair competition.

The third free practice session of the day takes place at  on 11h55 local time on Thursday morning (16 March).