The weather throughout the weekend was nothing less than unpredictable for the Trans Am series as it headed to Mid-Ohio for the next event on the 2023 schedule. The test day offered just one short session and it was raining during it. Since Michele had never been to Mid-Ohio in the rain the team found it beneficial to go out for the session. Only 14 of the 33 entered cars took on the wet circuit for the testing. “This track is like nothing I’ve ever been on in the rain – I am glad I went out, because it definitely showed me what not to do when it’s raining”, Michele laughed.
Fortunately first practice 1 and qualifying were both in the dry, so this gave the opportunity to dial in the car and work on the set up. “I struggle here with pace, but the team and I planned to use the qualifying session as another test session to try some different techniques in my driving style. Unfortunately, we knew this could jeopardize our opportunity for a good time in qualifying, but this is something that I was willing to risk since I haven’t been able to do any testing outside of races,” Michele explained. She would start at the back of the pack for Sunday’s featured race.
Although slotted for the 32nd position, after some teams received penalties or took tires Abbate took the green in the 28th position. Mid-Ohio has always been a treacherous track with lots of attrition. Abbate drove a clean race without any contact, mistakes, or incidents and she crossed the line in the 17th position at the checkered flag. Her clean driving kept her out of trouble and she made up 11 positions during the 100-mile race.
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“I can’t be disappointed with a top 20 finish, but it’s definitely left me wanting more. This weekend was a tough one for me mentally and I’m looking forward to a short week to recoup my thoughts and hyper focus on what I need to do to get faster as we head to Road America”, Michele said.
You can catch the race highlights on MAVTV on Thursday, June 29 at 8:00 p.m. ET. following that you can see the latest episode of Road to Glory immediately after on MAVTV!
