John Potter, owner and co-driver for IMSA TUDOR Championship GTD class Porsche team Magnus Racing, will be blogging for RACER.com this season.

Probably the coolest part about being both the team owner and one of the drivers is after a race like Sebring, you can take double the satisfaction. There’s always the man-ego satisfaction that as a driver, you did your part to keep the car in contention for the win. However, almost more satisfying is the feeling after Sebring of a total victory as the crew on this team was a big part of our survival and ultimate victory. It’s tough to put into words the satisfaction of knowing that we’ve assembled such an amazing team with a never-say-die attitude.

I know the folks at RACER are looking for me to provide fun, alternative viewpoints on the sports car scene at large, but I’m afraid I’m going to disappoint you on this one. This is going to be a gushing review of how awesome everyone is around me. We just won Sebring, so I don’t care.

Sebring is a very special place for me as it is for so many others. It’s definitely one of the places that really amped up the habit as I ran several Skip Barber races there early on, and the bills have only gotten bigger since.

In 2011, we ran the race in the former GTC category and came dangerously close to winning. It was a strong, neck-and-neck fight with several teams and we were in strong shape to win until we made contact with a prototype with only a couple hours left.

I don’t believe that a track ever “owes you,” but Sebring is a place where I’ve really wanted some redemption.

Daytona was a bit of a disappointment for us. To be honest, we were simply never a factor. We struggled on pace, we were plagued with technical issues that kept us down the order, and even though everyone on the team did their best, there was a feeling that we never really had a shot.

Sebring, however, was a different feeling. It was where we did our first test of the all-new GT America back at the end of October, and we’ve since had two additional visits to the track. Though the late rule changes always go some toward taking you off your plan, we were as prepared as we could be, and it showed.

We decided to have me start the race and I believe it was a good call. One of the things I absolutely love about the new series is minimum drive time. It means that a driver like me, one who doesn’t have a lifetime of experience like Andy Lally, still has to earn his part of the race. Knowing how important the end of the race would be, we all agreed that doing my part of the race early would help free up Andy for a hard run at the end.

Unfortunately, that almost all went to shame halfway through my second stint. Dane Cameron, in the No. 94 BMW, was behind me and he ran me off headed into Turn 13. I felt the impact against my left-rear bumper and by that point I was already hard on the brakes, and there was nothing more I could do other than collect the car after it spun and keep on going. I didn’t feel any significant damage, so I kept running, and we’re lucky it didn’t ruin the race. The only downside, beyond front grill damage, was a lot of dirt came through the helmet blower and, to cycle it all through, I was covered in dirt for the next 20 minutes, having to continuously wipe off my eyes as I was driving.

The prep from the crew was impressive as they didn’t waste any time fixing the front grill when I came in for our scheduled pit stop. They’ve spent a lot of time preparing and drilling, and they were able to get it fixed with a minimum of time lost.

Several hours later, when the air compressor on the gear change failed (again), it was the same story. Rehearsal and preparation showed and it’s why we never lost huge ground. In other words, the team kept us in a position to give the car to Andy at the end and, combined with some good pit calls, Andy did his job to take the win.

It’s just surreal. At Daytona, we weren’t sure what it would take. This weekend, it felt a lot like last year. It was a true team victory and both as a driver and a team owner I couldn’t be more proud of what we’re doing.

I’d say after winning we should go to Disneyworld, but alas there’s a busy sprint season to prepare for.

-John