Juncos Hollinger Racing was one of four teams at Monday’s private test session, and was able to effectively use the time to evaluate all aspects of the operation.
Now that the current DW12 IndyCar chassis is getting long in the tooth and the Aeroscreen has been run for a couple seasons, there is not much that changes with the car year on year.
Most teams, therefore, use their allocated test days to evaluate new drivers and to refine their shock packages, one of the few areas that are open to development.
But with Juncos just getting back into IndyCar and gearing up for its first full season in the series, there were plenty of areas throughout the team that could be assessed during long day at Sebring.
“Today was a very successful day for our final time on track before the new year,” team co-owner Ricardo Juncos said. “We have a lot of new members and new equipment that we were able to work with, along with Callum [Ilott] as this was his first time on track at Sebring.
“Everyone performed amazingly together all day and we made a lot of progress and positive steps. We applied some of the knowledge gained at the end of the season, and the new protocols for 2022 to help us prepare for next year.
“It was also a big day for us, being able to show off our new livery for the 2022 season. I want to thank everyone for all of their hard work to put this car together and work together as a new group over the past month.
“We have a lot of work still to do, but I can’t wait for us to get back on track and get started with the 2022 season!”
Callum Ilott, despite driving for Juncos last season for all three races at the end of the year, will still be eligible for the 2022 rookie of the year by competing in his first full season in the series.
The now 23-year-old used the opportunity to get reacquainted with the car, and help to build a working relationship with his growing team.
Ilott completed 110 laps around Sebring’s short course, and was just as pleased as the team owner with how well they all worked together.
“Overall, it was a very positive day at Sebring for the Juncos Hollinger Racing team,” said Ilott.
“We started early in the morning with a bit of fog. This was my first time at Sebring and the first time for me with the team since the end of the season, so we had some catching up to do.
“It was good to get going and find our feet and find our rhythm together again. It was a really positive day to finish the year off strongly with a positive test. We will regroup after a bit of analysis and attack at the beginning of next year.”
The 2022 NTT IndyCar season begins on February 27, on the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida.
