SEBRING, Fla. (March 17, 2025) – The Vasser Sullivan No. 12 Lexus RC F GT3 scored a second-place podium finish in Saturday’s Twelve Hours of Sebring at Sebring International Raceway with drivers Jack Hawksworth, Parker Thompson and Frankie Montecalvo. The No. 12 Lexus was in the fight for the win in the closing minutes of the race after leading the GTD class for a total of 77 laps around the 17-turn, 3.74-mile, Florida road course.

Hawksworth started third in the No. 12 Lexus RC F GT3 and the team ran among the top five for the majority of the race with the trio of drivers taking turns behind the wheel. In his final stint, Thompson got to the front of the field with a couple passes and turned the No. 12 Lexus over to Hawksworth to finish the final two hours of the 12-hour endurance event. Hawksworth quickly made his way back up to the front of the field, leading 18 laps before contact from a competitor in the closing minutes resulted in a second-place result.

In the GTD PRO category, Aaron Telitz started the race seventh in the No. 14 Lexus RC F GT3 and ran among the top 10 throughout his opening stint before handing driving duties over to Jose Maria Lopez. In hour three, a class competitor made contact with Lopez, and he was forced to bring the No. 14 Lexus to the garage for repairs to the steering rack. The team worked quickly to fix the damaged race car and returned to the race. They went on to run for the next seven hours before another competitor made contact with the No. 14 Lexus with Kyle Kirkwood behind the wheel. The Lexus went back behind the wall once again before retiring with just under two hours remaining and finished 11th.

The Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3s return to action at the Long Beach Grand Prix sprint race on Saturday, April 12 where the GTD class will compete on the Streets of Long Beach. To keep up with all the racing action, follow Lexus Racing on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok by using #LexusPerformance.

Vasser Sullivan Driver Quotes
JACK HAWKSWORTH, No. 12 Lexus RC F GT3
What did it take to get a second-place podium finish today?
“We executed nearly perfectly today. Parker (Thompson) drove amazing there to give me the car in the lead. Frankie (Montecalvo) had some amazing stints as well. The Vasser Sullivan team, the pit stops – we were just clicking. And we really needed that. Now, I feel like we’ve got something that we can build on moving forward. I would’ve loved to have won that race, but happy with the result. I don’t know if I would’ve been able to hold them off. Second was maybe all we had today.”

PARKER THOMPSON, No. 12 Lexus RC F GT3
What does it mean to get a runner-up podium finish after a tough start to the season?
“Huge props to the Vasser Sullivan team for getting us back in the position where we can fight for wins. I think I speak for everybody in the 12 car when I say when you’re leading with 20 minutes to go, you want to win the race, but the race wins aren’t what wins championships, it’s days like today. We probably didn’t have it to win, but we put Jack (Hawksworth) in a position where we collected hardware, we got some momentum and now we’re ready to go fight for a championship. I couldn’t be happier with everyone involved on this Vasser Sullivan team. Now, let’s get to Long Beach.”

FRANKIE MONTECALVO, No. 12 Lexus RC F GT3
How does it feel to get a second-place podium result?
“It feels pretty incredible to finish P2 at Sebring considering where we were a couple nights ago just getting our Lexus back out there. The Vasser Sullivan team basically rebuilt it and got everything going. It was a real team effort here. Jack (Hawksworth), Parker (Thompson) and everyone on the stand and the entire team did exactly what they needed to do to execute today. A little bittersweet – we were pretty close to winning it there, so it feels like we should’ve had it, but at the same time it was a phenomenal team effort. Everyone did their jobs today and it paid off.”

AARON TELITZ, No. 14 Lexus RC F GT3
Can you talk about your race today?
“It was a tougher day than we would’ve liked here at the Twelve Hours of Sebring for the 14 car. Just an unfortunate incident early in the race. Light contact put us back behind the wall and had to make some repairs to our Lexus. The Vasser Sullivan crew did a great job getting the car back out there and it was working great, completing laps until we had another competitor hit us and ended our day early. It’s been a little bit of a tough start for the 14 side of the garage, but we’re hoping during the sprint season that we can get some results. Obviously, wishing Ben (Barnicoat) all the best and hope he can come back soon. It was great having Jose (Maria Lopez) here to fill in. We had great chemistry, he is really fast and was a great part of the team.”

JOSE MARIA LOPEZ, No. 14 Lexus RC F GT3
What was your experience like with the Vasser Sullivan team this week?
“I have mixed feelings. I’m very happy to be here and see a podium finish for the Vasser Sullivan team. I’m disappointed with the race. I couldn’t anticipate the maneuver by the BMW who crossed the line. It was a very small contact with a very high price for us. Unfortunately, from there we were trying to survive. We didn’t really have the pace, but I think we could’ve done a good race without the contact. Then, there at the end, Kyle (Kirkwood) was trying to finish the race and someone else made contact with him. I’m happy for the Vasser Sullivan team. I think the 12 car did a great job today. Thank you very much to everyone who helped me with this race. I hope to be back soon.”

KYLE KIRKWOOD, No. 14 Lexus RC F GT3
How were you able to help the 12 car once the 14 car went out of the race today?
“Overall, can’t be upset with a second place on the 12 car. That was a huge race. I think they had the win in the bag if they didn’t get moved aside. We definitely didn’t come here with the fastest cars, but we executed well as a team. On the 14 side, things didn’t go well with a few contacts that were out of our control that took us out of contention. We went all hands on board with the 12 car (after we were out of the race) and it’s important that we all joined in for a full team effort to help them get on the podium and have a really good shot at the win. A good day overall.”