Nico Pino subs for Lance Willsey with Sean Creech Motorsport at Road America

Sean Creech has competed in in a multitude of sports car series from 1990 until the present day, including Group C, IMSA GTP, WSC, Grand-Am, and the SRO World Challenge. But last year’s IMSA SportsCar Weekend at Road America marked a new milestone for the veteran racer: the first time his eponymous team earned a pole position in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, setting a new LMP3 track record in the process.

The team returns to Road America for the two hour and 40-minute IMSA SportsCar Weekend, determined to capture that elusive top step of the podium. Chilean Nico Pino – the team’s endurance race driver – joins João Barbosa as Lance Willsey will be absent due to other commitments. After weeks spent studying video and working on the simulator, Pino will see his first action on the legendary 14-turn, 4.048-mile circuit on Friday.

Sean Creech Motorsport moved to the WeatherTech series in 2021, having captured the IMSA Prototype Challenge championship title in 2018. The team parlayed victory at the 2022 Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring into a run at the championship title, a top-three finish in the Michelin Endurance Cup (awarding points through the four endurance classics) and a pole position at Road America.

But in last year’s race, the No. 33 SCM Focal One Ligier JS P320 was caught up in another car’s off-road excursion after an early-race rainstorm, ending the team’s day. But as the team prepares to return to the legendary Wisconsin circuit, Barbosa knows that the team’s hard work has paid off.

“What I think that pole position showed is how prepared we were last year,” said Barbosa. “And I have to say, I feel that we’re even more prepared this year given all the experience we’ve accumulated. Everyone really took notice of the team last year, with the win at Sebring and with the pole here. We were competitive everywhere and that trend is continuing.”

Barbosa continued: “We were having a great race here last year but unfortunately, we were involved in someone else’s mistake. It’s so disappointing: the team did a great job all weekend, we had a strong car – but unfortunately, we couldn’t show it at the end where it mattered. We’ll look forward to making up for that this year.”

Every team looks forward to racing at one of the most scenic racetracks in North America, and one that is an absolute fan favorite. Even the names of the turns – Hurry Downs, Kettle Bottoms and the Carousel – are famous the world over.

“Road America is such an old-school racetrack,” said Barbosa, who has four podiums including a victory at the legendary circuit. “I mean that in the best way possible. It’s also quite unforgiving so a mistake in the wrong place can be very costly. With the right pavement, it will make for even better racing.”

Speaking of pavement – added to the mix this year is the off-season complete repaving of the circuit – a repaving that ensures that more than a few of the team members will be paying attention to other series racing at Road America before the IMSA weekend.

“We have a good setup to start with, but we tested here in July to make sure we knew everything we needed to know about the new racing surface,” said Creech. “But we know some things won’t change – you need the top speed, that’s first and foremost, but you also have to balance that with speed through the Carousel and the Kink. That balance is the key to going fast at Road America.”

“We had two good days of testing here two weeks ago, which is good, because the track is so different than it was last year,” said Barbosa. “It will be quite a challenge – the track is considerably faster but it’s still slippery offline. We’ll see if that changed after NASCAR was here last weekend. It’s great to have Nico back with us, we’re looking forward to a good result.”

For Pino, it may come as an advantage to be learning the circuit now, coming to the race weekend with no preconceptions about the racing line – since that line has obviously changed.

“Road America looks very challenging,” said Pino, 18. “It’s a very long track, very challenging. It reminds me of some of the British circuits, with the wall and the grass so close to you all the time. There’s no margin for mistakes but I like those kinds of tracks, where you have to be on point all the time. The main goal is obviously to get the win – strategy is so important in the shorter races and I know we’ll be competitive.”

The team recently announced its entry into the 2024 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship’s LMP2 class, with its recent addition of a Ligier JS P217. SCM will continue the season with a dual focus – finishing the 2023 season on a high note and preparing for 2024.