PCCNA: Ashley Freiberg overcomes adversity with strong recovery drives in Miami
- LIAM REDFORD
- 13 hours ago
- 5 min read
Despite being spun out in both races at the Miami International Autodrome, Ashley Freiberg delivered two impressive recovery drives in Porsche Carrera Cup North America, gaining over 20 positions across the weekend and finishing ninth in the Pro class after charging from the back of the pack.
Despite being spun out of both races at the Miami International Autodrome, Ashley Freiberg produced two excellent recovery drives in latest round of Porsche Carrera Cup North America. In race one, the Kellymoss driver recovered from 25th to 11th, while finishing ninth in the Pro class, before Freiberg drove from 27th to 19th in the overall standings during race two.
Following an excellent debut weekend in Porsche Carrera Cup North America, Freiberg was looking to carry this momentum into Miami. The Kellymoss driver secured a top-10 finish during the opening round at Sebring International Raceway as she regularly battled against more experienced drivers. Her consistency in both races allowed Freiberg to score valuable championship points to kickstart her rookie season.
Competing at the Miami International Autodrome was a new experience for Freiberg with the temporary circuit offering new challenges. Despite a number of her competitors previously having raced at the track, Freiberg’s first laps came on Friday morning as the drivers were given two free practice sessions.
It was an excellent start to the event for the Kellymoss driver who spent the majority of the first 30-minute practice session inside the overall top-6. As some of the more experienced drivers improved in the closing stages, Freiberg ended the session in tenth position overall, ninth in the Pro class with a fastest time of a 1:59.727.
Free practice two was held in cooler conditions early on Friday evening. Freiberg was able to finish the day with a fastest time of a 1:58.824 which placed her in 15th position overall, 13th in the Pro class. The Kellymoss driver was just over a second away from the top-5 to underline the high level of competition in Porsche Carrera Cup North America.
Qualifying took place on Saturday and Freiberg was targeting further improvements after a strong first day at the Miami International Autodrome. Despite a red flag halting her rhythm early in the session, Ashley again impressed and found over three-quarters of a second of lap time improvements from the previous day. Her quickest time of a 1:58.074 placed her in 12th overall, while her second fastest lap was tenth quickest in the Pro class.
For the opening race of the weekend late on Saturday afternoon, Freiberg started from 11th position after the post-qualifying exclusion of Riley Dickinson. It was an excellent start from the Kellymoss driver who quickly jumped into ninth position while ensuring she remained ahead of the Pro-Am class leaders. Her progress was quickly halted as Marco Cirone’s car required recovery and therefore the safety car was deployed on lap two.
The race resumed at the beginning of lap five and Freiberg was required to defend from the drivers behind. As the drivers exited turn 11, Freiberg was spun by Sabre Cook and this relegated Ashley to the rear of the field. Fortunately, there was little damage to her car and despite falling to 25th overall, 15th in the Pro class, there was still time to execute a strong comeback drive.
After Cook retired with damage and Paul Bocuse pitted with a separate issue, Freiberg had quickly gained by two positions within the Pro class. On lap eight, she overtook the Pro-Am class machine of Thomas Collingwood and following a second safety car, this time for debris, Freiberg caught the rear of the field.
On the restart, Ashley was keen to make moves and she overtook four cars on the first lap of green flag racing. After Ryan Yardley was spun out of second position on lap 11, Freiberg was back inside the top-10 of the Pro class and after passing two further Pro-Am machines, she moved her Kellymoss car into 15th position overall.
Freiberg continued to make up ground in the closing stages and after passing Javier Ripoll on lap 13, she was up to 14th overall. Following a great pass on Juan Pablo Vega, Ashley was up to ninth in the Pro class and superb final lap pass on former Pro-Am champion Alan Metni saw her take the chequered flag in 12th position overall, ninth in the Pro class. Her overall position was improved further after a post-race penalty was assessed to Kenton King and therefore Freiberg was classified in 11th position after an excellent comeback drive.
For the second and final race of the weekend on Sunday morning, Freiberg started from ninth position. The Kellymoss driver enjoyed a clean start and although she dropped to tenth after lap one, she was still holding down a solid position. Riley Dickinson then moved his Kellymoss machine ahead and as a result, Freiberg came under pressure from the leading drivers in the Pro-Am class.
On lap three, misfortune struck as Freiberg was spun by JP Martinez at the final turn and this relegated her to rear of the field. After an exceptional comeback drive in race one, Ashley was looking for a safety car period in order to bring her back into contention in race two. Freiberg ran in 27th overall, 16th in the Pro class and was now detached from the rear of the field.
Nonetheless, her determination was once again on display as she regularly lapped on pace with the drivers inside the top-10. By lap eight, she caught both Todd Parriott and Thomas Collingwood and moved ahead with clean overtakes. Javier Rippoll was the next driver ahead and Freiberg passed the Citimarine Motorsports driver on lap 11, while Andre Renha Fernandes had a spin.
Following his contact with Freiberg earlier in the race, Martinez now served a drive-through penalty and he rejoined behind the Kellymoss racer. Freiberg was now on the tail of Pro class rival Madeline Stewart and the Kiwi driver was defending her position well. Although Ashley was unable to pass the JDX Racing machine, she still gained three further positions following a spin for Alan Metni and penalties issued to both Marco Cirone and Kenton King.
As a result, Freiberg was classified in 19th position overall at the end of race two while claiming 16th position in the Pro class. Due to two incidents not of her own making, Freiberg was unable to secure the points which her pace deserved at Miami, however her tenacity should be commended as she passed over 20 cars across the two races.
Freiberg will be looking to translate this speed into improved results when Porsche Carrera Cup North America returns at Montreal on the weekend of June 14th/15th.