Sunday Group Management

IMSA Wire: Risi Rejoices with Commanding Rolex 24 GTD PRO Victory

Risi Rejoices with Commanding Rolex 24 GTD PRO Victory Winward Racing Takes GTD Honors for Second Time in Four Years January 28, 2024 By Jeff Olson IMSA Wire Service Rolex 24 At Daytona Unofficial Race Results DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. –At last, Risi Competizione has some fine timepieces. A successful competitor in sports car racing since 1998, Giuseppe Risi’s Houston-based team has claimed multiple class victories over the years at Le Mans, Sebring and Petit Le Mans. But until Sunday, it had not celebrated victory in the Rolex 24 At Daytona. Daniel Serra, Davide Rigon, Alessandro Pier Guidi and James Calado teamed to drive the No. 62 Risi Competizione Ferrari 296 GT3 from a fifth-place start in the Grand Touring Daytona Pro (GTD PRO) class to victory by a lap over the No. 77 AO Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R (992). Among the spoils for the veteran Risi foursome are the customary Rolex watches awarded to class winners at the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship opener. “This is the race that I was missing, that I really wanted to win,” said Serra, who drove the final stint. “Today is one of the happiest days of my racing career.” Laurin Heinrich, Seb Priaulx and Michael Christensen brought the pole-winning AO Porsche home in second place, with the No. 1 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 finishing third with co-drivers Bryan Sellers, Madison Snow, Neil Verhagen and Sheldon van der Linde. The dominance of the No. 62 Ferrari, which survived a fire in the pits in the first six hours of the race, was on display in the closing stages of the race. The car led the last 82 laps, 130 of the final 136 and 215 overall in the race. “It’s never easy, you know?” Serra said. “You start to hear some noises in the car and you think that everything is out of control in the last few laps.” The race tested the mettle of the GTD PRO cars and drivers almost from the start. Just minutes into the race, the 2023 GTD PRO champion was involved in a crash that relegated it to an 11th-place finish. Mike Conway was piloting the No. 14 Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3 when Dennis Andersen’s Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) entry spun in front of him at the exit of Turn 1. With just under two hours remaining in the race, the No. 1 Paul Miller Racing BMW stopped for a brake change while running second behind the No. 62 Ferrari. The brake issues returned shortly after van der Linde returned to the track, and the No. 77 AO Racing Porsche moved into second in class. In the end, the win and the Rolexes went to Risi Competizione, which started to show the strength of the Ferrari 296 GT3 in its debut last season. It was the first Rolex 24 win for Serra, Rigon and Calado, while Pier Guidi picked up his second watch following a Grand Touring Daytona (GTD) victory in a Level 5 Ferrari 10 years ago. “Giuseppe deserves it,” Calado said of the team owner. “He’s wanted it for a long time. I’m happy for him, and I’m happy for us. It’s a great way to start the year and puts us in good stead for the rest of the year.” Winward Racing Drives through Large GTD Field to Win You’ll forgive Daniel Morad if he was a bit emotional at the end of the race. It’s not often that one wins the Rolex 24 At Daytona. Morad led a come-from-behind effort by Winward Racing and teammates Philip Ellis, Russell Ward and Indy Dontje by anchoring the final hours of the team’s Grand Touring Daytona (GTD) class victory in the No. 57 Mercedes-AMG GT3. “I’ve won it before sitting on the sidelines and now I’ve won it in the seat of the car,” Morad said. “I almost crashed on the in-lap (after the checkered flag), I was crying so much. My voice is gone. I think I hurt myself as well.” There’s a reason for the emotion. The No. 57 Mercedes started 17th among the 23 GTD entries, yet soldiered through the field to victory, ending a run of bad luck that clouded Winward’s 2023 WeatherTech Championship season. While 12 different GTD cars led throughout the race, the No. 57 Mercedes rose to the top toward the end, leading 123 of the final 134 laps and a class-high 383 in all. Morad’s previous Rolex 24 victory came in GTD seven years ago. Ward, Ellis and Dontje were all with the class-winning Winward team in 2021. Ferrari claimed second through fourth places Sunday in GTD. The No. 21 AF Corse Ferrari 296 GT3 co-driven by Simon Mann, Francois Heriau, Miguel Molina and Kei Cozzolino finished second, 2.731 seconds behind the winners. The No. 34 Conquest Racing Ferrari 296 GT3 co-driven by Manny Franco, Albert Costa Balboa, Alessandro Balzan and Cedric Sbirrazzuoli was third, with the No. 023 Triarsi Competizione Ferrari 296 GT3 and drivers Onofrio Triarsi, Charles Scardina, Riccardo Agostini and Alessio Rovera taking fourth. In the final hour, the pole-winning No. 12 Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3 stopped with smoke pouring from beneath its hood. Parker Thompson emerged safely and tried to extinguish the fire, but the car was retired and finished 15th in class. The ensuing caution brought the field back together for the final minutes, but Morad turned his extended stint in the car to a 2.731-second class victory. “Incredible team, perfect car today,” Morad said. The WeatherTech Championship season resumes March 16 with the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring at Sebring International Raceway.

IMSA Wire: Garg Proves Fast Learner, Fast Driver in VP Racing SportsCar Challenge

Garg Proves Fast Learner, Fast Driver in VP Racing SportsCar Challenge A First-Year Driver of Prototypes, He’s Won Four Times and Leads the LMP3 Standings Heading to VIRginia International Raceway This Week August 22, 2023 By Mark Robinson IMSA Wire Service Entry List (Click Here) DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Considering he hadn’t raced a prototype until this year, it’s been a pretty amazing IMSA VP Racing SportsCar Challenge season for Bijoy Garg. Heading to this weekend’s doubleheader round at VIRginia International Raceway, the 21-year-old from Stanford, California, leads the new multiclass development series with four overall and Le Mans Prototype 3 (LMP3) class wins. He’s also dominated qualifying, collecting seven of a possible eight pole positions thus far. The fact that Garg has had limited testing in the No. 3 Jr III Racing Ligier JS P320 makes the accomplishments all the more impressive. “Honestly, it’s not been the easiest thing, especially with no testing,” the quiet but determined Garg said after sweeping the weekend last month at Lime Rock Park. “Sebring was the only track we tested at before (a race weekend). It’s just been show up, you get 40 minutes to learn the track and go send it into qualifying. I couldn’t have done it without such a great team behind me.” Garg advanced from karting to race cars in 2020, starting in an American open-wheel junior series. His first time in the LMP3 car was for the opening weekend of the VP Racing Challenge season at Daytona International Speedway in January. He sat on the pole for both races but his prototype racing inexperience showed. He finished third and fifth in those races. Since then, Garg has won four times and finished second twice. He gives full credit to the Jr III team and his driver coaches, Charles Crews and Garett Grist. “Jr III really brings great cars,” he said. “They’ve always been to my liking. Definitely big thanks to Charles and Garett for coaching me and making me the driver I am today.” The team thought so much of Garg that Jr III put him in an LMP3 earlier this month to make his IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship debut at Road America. Garg qualified a very impressive second and was still running there when he exited the car after his opening stint. While he’s performed at peak level thus far in the VP Racing Challenge, Garg holds only a 10-point lead over Dan Goldburg (No. 73 JDC MotorSports Duqueine D08) in the class standings. Goldburg has three wins this season and boasts past LMP3 experience at VIR. As has been the case most of the season, Garg has not been in a prototype at VIR but isn’t deterred. “It’ll be very interesting,” Garg said. “We’re back in the points lead and I’m really excited to go chase the championship.” The GSX class for GT4-spec cars remains “very interesting” as well. Three drivers have each won twice but all are part-time competitors and only one is entered this weekend: Gregory Liefooghe in the No. 19 Stephen Cameron Racing BMW M4 GT4 (G82). With two rounds and four races remaining, the GSX championship will likely be settled among the top four in the standings, each driver still seeking a first win. Francis Selldorff (No. 95 Turner Motorsport BMW) leads Sebastian Carazo (No. 27 Kellymoss with Riley Porsche 718 GT4 RS Clubsport) by 90 points and Patrick Wilmot (No. 88 Split Decision Motorsports BMW) and Vin Barletta (No. 96 Turner Motorsport BMW) each by 350 points. Following two practices on Friday at VIR, qualifying is scheduled for 8 a.m. ET Saturday. The first 45-minute race starts at 12:25 p.m. Saturday and the second at 8:55 a.m. Sunday. Both races stream live on Peacock and IMSA.com/TVLive.

IMSA Wire: Meyer Shank Acura’s Long Run Rewarded with CTMP Win

Meyer Shank Acura’s Long Run Rewarded with CTMP Win Fearless Fraga Forces Way to Front as No. 74 Riley Wins Third in a Row in LMP3 July 9, 2023 By John Oreovicz and Mark Robinson IMSA Wire Service Unofficial Race Results BOWMANVILLE, Ontario – Colin Braun didn’t need to answer questions about whether his No. 60 Meyer Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian Acura ARX-06 had enough fuel to finish the Chevrolet Grand Prix at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. An accident involving Renger van der Zande’s No. 01 Cadillac Racing Cadillac V-Series.R with five minutes remaining caused the two-hour, 40-minute round of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship to end under caution Sunday. For Braun, attempting to stretch his final tank of fuel for 75 of those minutes, the finish behind the safety car eased any worries he and co-driver Tom Blomqvist had about running dry. Blomqvist demonstrated the one-lap speed of the Meyer Shank Acura a day earlier by claiming the Motul Pole Award for the Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) class at the 2.459-mile, 10-turn road course – the second straight overall pole for the Brit at CTMP. This time, he was able to take the overall race victory after finishing a close second a year ago. “That’s fantastic,” Blomqvist said following his fourth career triumph in WeatherTech Championship competition. “The racing gods were looking down on us a little bit today. We rolled the dice (with pit stop strategy) to try and go long, and the only way we were going to win that race was if the yellows kind of played into our corner. Thankfully, they did. “I’m just so happy for the guys,” he added following the No. 60’s first win since the Rolex 24 At Daytona in January. “They’ve worked their back sides off all year long, really. This car has been a lot of work. We haven’t had the greatest run of recent races, so to get the pole yesterday and finish the job off today is just amazing.” The No. 60 Acura dropped from the lead to third place during a round of pit stops under caution just past the halfway mark. The decision was immediately taken to try and reach the finish without stopping again, hoping for at least one more full-course caution. Circumstances couldn’t have played into their hands any better. After the first half of the race ran caution-free, the second half saw three more full-course yellows after the initial one, giving Braun the ability to strategically manage his hybrid-powered prototype’s energy reserves. Braun had a five-second lead over Filipe Albuquerque in the No. 10 Konica Minolta Racing Acura ARX-06 when the final caution flew. Albuquerque and co-driver Ricky Taylor finished second, while the No. 25 BMW M Team RLL BMW M Hybrid V8 shared by Connor De Phillippi and Nick Yelloly earned a fourth podium finish in the last five races to close within 10 points of the GTP championship lead. The win was the 24th in IMSA competition for Braun, an amazing six of which have come at CTMP – including last year in the Le Mans Prototype 3 (LMP3) class. “I love a fast corner and it’s always been a place that’s clicked for me,” Braun said. “I’ve just always loved this place and it’s got a great rhythm to it. When you kind of get that confidence that it’s going well, you can go out and attack straight away, and when it works, it keeps the confidence high. “Everybody did a great job,” he noted. “The Acura cars have been fast all week, and our team specifically worked hard. Those yellows played into our favor and I still had a bit of fuel to save, but I knew if I could get a good jump and kind of push hard and build a gap for a lap or two, I could settle in and hit the fuel number. It was a lot of fun.” For Albuquerque and Taylor, second place was a welcome result in a season in which the No. 10 Acura has experienced difficulty reaching the finish line. Coupled with a tough day for incoming GTP points leaders Alexander Sims and Pipo Derani in the No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac (who finished eighth at CTMP), the No. 10 Acura duo is third in the standings, just 29 points out of the championship lead. “Before the race, the theme of the weekend was we need to put together a weekend like we are used to and just get back to normal,” Taylor said. “It just so happened the No. 31 had a bad day and the points came together. We’re happy about that, and happy to get back on a roll of positive momentum. We’ll take a second place to the sister (Acura) car very happily and try to build on that for Road America.” Porsche claimed positions 4-6 at CTMP, with the customer No. 5 JDC-Miller MotorSports Porsche 963 customer car driven by Mike Rockenfeller and Tijmen van der Helm besting the factory Porsche Penske Motorsport entries. Fearless Fraga Forces Way to Front as No. 74 Riley Wins Third in a Row in LMP3 Felipe Fraga saw enough of an opening and took it. The result? The third straight Le Mans Prototype 3 (LMP3) victory for Fraga, Gar Robinson and the No. 74 Riley Ligier JS P320. After dominating the first half of the Chevrolet Grand Prix under green-flag conditions, Fraga was passed by Garett Grist in the No. 30 Jr III Racing Ligier on a restart from caution with just more than an hour to go. It stayed that way until just six and a half minutes remained as the class leaders approached the 10th and final turn at CTMP. Fraga nosed the No. 74 inside of Grist in the No. 30 heading into the 90-degree right-hander, side-to-side contact ensued and Fraga regained the lead as Grist slid wide into the grass. Race control reviewed the incident but determined that no action was necessary. When the fourth full-course caution came out a minute later, that’s the way it ended. It was a repeat performance from two weeks ago at Watkins Glen International, when Fraga muscled past Grist for the lead with 50 minutes to go and went on to win. “It was a crazy race,” said Fraga, who collected his 10th career WeatherTech Championship win. “Today, I think they were a little bit faster than us, especially in the straights. … In the GT traffic I basically caught him like 2-3 seconds in two laps. Then I just had a gap, like he opened into the last corner and I think he didn’t expect me to try in the last corner, and I did it. “I tried to (pass) him inside and he just turned in me and we had big contact again like in Watkins. I think that’s what happens when you fight really hard for the win in IMSA.” Grist saw it the other way for the second race in a row. “It’s pretty clear what happened so there’s really not much to say, I guess,” Grist said. “I mean, Watkins Glen I raced clean, here I raced clean. … I guess we know how we can race, though. Three rounds left.” After falling out of the season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona early, finishing last in class (a race that did not award points toward the WeatherTech Championship for LMP3), Fraga and Robinson – who picked up career victory No. 11 – have rebounded to win three in a row. They’ve opened a sizable, 187-point lead over Anthony Mantella and Wayne Boyd, who finished third Sunday in the No. 17 AWA Duqueine D08. Grist and the No. 30 Jr III Ligier are 187 points out of the class lead with three races remaining. “I’m really happy because I was expecting to finish second today because of our pace,” Fraga said, “but I’m really happy that it worked out. It was my first time at this track and it’s one of my favorite tracks now.” Both the GTP and LMP3 classes return to action Aug. 4-6 with the IMSA SportsCar Weekend at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin.

IMSA Wire: Blomqvist, No. 60 Acura Repeat CTMP Pole-Winning Effort

Blomqvist, No. 60 Acura Repeat CTMP Pole-Winning Effort LMP3 Sees Pole Repeat as Well with Robinson, No. 74 Riley Ligier July 8, 2023 By John Oreovicz IMSA Wire Service Unofficial Qualifying Results BOWMANVILLE, Ontario – Canada proved to be Acura country in Motul Pole Award qualifying for the Chevrolet Grand Prix at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, the sixth round of the 2023 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. Acura locked out the front row overall and for the Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) class for Sunday’s two-hour, 40-minute race, with Meyer Shank Racing’s Tom Blomqvist claiming pole position for the second consecutive year at CTMP. Blomqvist, who set the track record at the circuit last year in the Daytona Prototype international (DPi) class that preceded GTP’s debut this year, lapped the 10-turn, 2.459-mile facility Saturday in 1 minute, 5.653 seconds (134.836 mph) behind the wheel of the No. 60 Meyer Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian Acura ARX-06. That was 0.081 seconds better than Ricky Taylor in the No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-06 (1:05.734/134.670 mph). Pipo Derani was another 0.095 seconds in arrears in the No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac Racing Cadillac V-Series.R. It was the fifth career pole in IMSA competition for Blomqvist, who shares the No. 60 Acura with Colin Braun, a five-time winner at CTMP. “It’s always a hell of a commitment around this track, no matter what kind of car you’re in,” said Blomqvist. “When you put new tires on and take the fuel out around here, your minimum speeds go up drastically. It’s just a night-and-day difference when you take it for a qualifying run. It’s such a good feeling. “Actually, last year, the car was a lot more of a wild ride,” he continued with a chuckle. “We’ve got a good car this year; it’s a bit more forgiving. Nonetheless, I wasn’t too happy with my personal performance in that session. It was a little bit messy from my side, but I’m still sitting here (as the pole winner), which is fantastic, and testament to the job the team has done.” In last year’s Chevrolet Grand Prix, the pole-winning No. 60 Acura held the lead through most of the race before Blomqvist’s former co-driver Oliver Jarvis was passed in traffic by Renger van der Zande’s Cadillac. The bitter memory lingers for Blomqvist. “This is a difficult track to pass, but there are so many cars on track that you always have an opportunity to pass in traffic,” he said. “But it’s also easy to get caught out if you make a bad decision and just read a competitor slightly wrong. “Tomorrow we just need to get the job done,” Blomqvist added. “Colin has been really, really quick around here. He loves this place; he loves the high-speed corners, so it’s perfect for him. I just need to do my job at the start, hopefully give the car to him in the lead, and we can get the job done from there. You’ve got to be on your game and make all the right calls. I’m confident for tomorrow.” Defending Chevrolet Grand Prix winners van der Zande and Sebastien Bourdais will start fourth in the No. 01 Cadillac Racing Cadillac, followed by Felipe Nasr and Matt Campbell in the No. 7 Porsche Penske Motorsport Porsche 963, and Augusto Farfus and Philipp Eng in the No. 24 BMW M Team RLL BMW M Hybrid V8, as all four participating GTP manufacturers qualified a car in the top six. Robust Run for Robinson to LMP3 Pole Gar Robinson was a one-man show in Le Mans Prototype 3 (LMP3) qualifying on Saturday. The 28-year-old Texan ran a series of four remarkably consistent laps in the No. 74 Riley Ligier JS P 320 – all within 0.202 seconds and all good enough to claim the Motul Pole Award for the class. His best effort, 1:12.946 (121.355 mph) bested Orey Fidani (No. 13 AWA Duqueine D08) by 0.409 seconds. It was Robinson’s fourth career pole and first since securing the top LMP3 starting spot at the same track one year ago. Robinson and co-driver Felipe Fraga lead the LMP3 point standings and are coming off consecutive race wins at Sebring International Raceway and Watkins Glen International. “I was looking at the lap time predictor on my dash and using it to try and go faster,” Robinson said. “We used qualifying as another practice session as well. We didn’t test here like some other cars in our class, so we played around with it and I wanted to try and give myself a few extra laps. Didn’t really have any reason to go faster, so we pulled in to save the tires for tomorrow.” Robinson hopes to avoid duplicating the No. 74’s experience last year at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, where the team was eliminated by a crash about two-thirds of the way through the race. “We just have to be careful because traffic is definitely going to be an issue here,” Robinson explained. “Going off into the marbles is not something you really want to do here because it’s a very high commitment track for everybody. You’ve got to take your time and calculate your way through traffic and just keep the machine going.” The Chevrolet Grand Prix airs live on NBC starting at noon ET Sunday.

IMSA Wire: Braun’s Beastly No. 60 Acura Leads Canadian Tire Motorsport Park Practice

Braun’s Beastly Acura Leads Canadian Tire Motorsport Park Practice Michelin Pilot Challenge Practice, VP Racing Challenge Qualifying Round Out Opening Day on Track July 7, 2023 By John Oreovicz and Mark Robinson IMSA Wire Service Practice 1 Results BOWMANVILLE, Ontario – Lap times during the opening practice for the Chevrolet Grand Prix at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park were extremely close for 88 minutes of the 90-minute session. Until that point Friday afternoon, all nine Grand Touring Prototypes (GTP) entered in the sixth round of the 2023 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship were clustered within eight-tenths of a second. When the green flag flew with about four minutes remaining after a brief stoppage, however, Colin Braun made the most of the limited time. He hustled the No. 60 Meyer Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian Acura ARX-06 around the 2.459-mile CTMP road course in 1 minute, 7.341 seconds (131.456 mph) to gap the rest of the GTP field by 0.780 seconds. The remaining eight GTP competitors, led by Pipo Derani in the No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac Racing Cadillac V-Series.R, were clustered within 0.769 seconds. Braun expressed surprise when informed of his margin over second place. “We were just kind of in our race plan,” Braun said. “We had made some changes to the car and just wanted to see what it was going to do. I had only done a couple laps in the car before the red flag, and I was just getting up to speed and figuring it out. “It felt good, obviously,” he added. “I just ended up getting a clear lap and I felt good about it.” Filipe Albuquerque placed the No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-06 third at 1:08.138, while Renger van der Zande improved on his final lap in the No. 01 Cadillac Racing Cadillac V-Series.R to 1:08.353. In the GT classes, Frankie Montecalvo posted the best overall lap with a 1:16.558 effort (115.629 mph) as the checkered flag flew for the No. 12 Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3 from the GT Daytona (GTD) class. That edged Frederik Schandorff in the No. 70 Inception Racing McLaren 720S GT3 EVO by 0.092 seconds. Unlike Braun, Montecalvo said that he and the Vasser Sullivan team used the final four minutes of the session as a qualifying simulation. “That’s exactly what it was, a ‘quali’ mentality to get ready for tomorrow,” said Montecalvo, the defending GTD pole winner at CTMP. “The car is great, and this is my favorite racetrack. The Lexus really loves high-speed circuits and so do I, and I think that’s why we mesh really well here. “Last year, we got taken out from pole in the first corner, so we have some unfinished business here,” he continued. “I have the utmost confidence in our team, especially rolling off a win at Watkins Glen. We should be challenging for another win.” Antonio Garcia turned the fastest lap among GT Daytona Pro (GTD PRO) entries in the No. 3 Corvette Racing Corvette C8.R GTD (1:16.724, 115.379 mph) that ranked third overall among the GT field. Garett Grist (No. 30 Jr III Racing Ligier JS P320) came out on top of a back-and-forth battle with Felipe Fraga (No. 74 Riley Ligier) for honors in the Le Mans Prototype 3 (LMP3) class. The two Ligier JS P320s were separated by 0.212 seconds at the end, with the Canadian Grist running a lap of 1:12.270 (122.490 mph). Motul Pole Award qualifying begins at 12:45 p.m. ET Saturday. Live coverage is available on Peacockand IMSA.com/TVLive. Sunday’s race airs live at noon on NBC. Recaps from Michelin Pilot Challenge, VP Racing Challenge Action A pair of other IMSA-sanctioned series were in action at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park on Friday as well. The IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge conducted a pair of practices and the IMSA VP Racing SportsCar Challenge held two practices and qualifying. IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge: Robin Liddell laid down the fast lap of the day in IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge practice on his final circuit around CTMP at the conclusion of the second session. Driving the No. 71 Rebel Rock Racing Chevrolet Camaro GT4.R that he shares with Frank DePew, Liddell was clocked at 1 minute, 22.137 seconds (107.776 mph), a full four-tenths of a second quicker than Canadian Jesse Lazare in the No. 69 Motorsports In Action McLaren Artura GT4. Karl Wittmer, another Canada native, topped the Touring Car (TCR) class leaderboard with a 1:23.867 lap (105.227 mph) in the No. 99 Victor Gonzalez Racing Team Honda Civic FK7 TCR that he turned in the morning practice. Michelin Pilot Challenge qualifying starts at 10:50 a.m. ET Saturday to set the grid for the two-hour race starting at 4 p.m. Saturday. Race coverage streams live on Peacock in the U.S. and on IMSA.com/TVLiveoutside the U.S. VP Racing SportsCar Challenge: Bijoy Garg continued his qualifying prowess by capturing the pole position for the fourth time in five races for the new sprint series. Qualifying Results The driver of the No. 3 Jr III Racing Ligier JS P320 claimed the overall and Le Mans Prototype 3 (LMP3) pole for Saturday’s race with a top lap of 1:13.157 (121.005 mph) on his final time around the track in the 15-minute session. Garg enters the CTMP weekend on a two-race winning streak and within 60 points of the LMP3 class lead. In GSX, Gregory Liefooghe (No. 43 Stephen Cameron racing BMW M4 GT4 (G82)) will start on pole for the third straight race after setting the fast lap in class qualifying. Liefooghe toured the 2.459-mile road course in 1:22.533 (107.258 mph) to better the 15 other GSX competitors. Liefooghe converted two pole positions at Sebring in March into second- and first-place race finishes. The first VP Racing Challenge race of the weekend streams live on Peacock in the U.S. and on IMSA.com/TVLive outside the U.S. starting at 11:40 a.m. ET Saturday. Race 2 streams live on the same outlets at 9:30 a.m. Sunday.

IMSA Wire: What Was It Like? Blomqvist’s Record-Setting Pole Lap at CTMP

m

What Was It Like? Blomqvist’s Record-Setting Pole Lap at CTMP The First-Person Account from the Meyer Shank Racing Driver, Then and Now, of Bravery and Commitment in 2022 Qualifying July 3, 2023 By Tony DiZinno IMSA Wire Service DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – IMSA.com is featuring a periodic series titled “What Was It Like?” where drivers and others throughout the paddock speak to special experiences they’ve encountered in their careers. The second driver up is Tom Blomqvist, who has been one of the fastest qualifiers in IMSA’s top-level prototype class the last two seasons with Meyer Shank Racing in two Acura iterations. Last year it was in his Acura ARX-05 Daytona Prototype international (DPi) car, and this year in his new Acura ARX-06 Grand Touring Prototype (GTP). As we head from one fast, flowing, high-speed, high-commitment road course at Watkins Glen International to another at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (CTMP), Blomqvist took a moment to reflect on the fastest overall speed in an IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship session. His CTMP pole speed last year was 137.472 mph, covering the 2.459-mile, 10-turn road course in just 1 minute, 4.394 seconds. It stands as the fastest official lap – it must take place in a qualifying or race session – at any track in WeatherTech Championship annals. Team co-owner Mike Shank recently called the lap a “piece of performance artwork.” What did the artist have to say? Here’s what Blomqvist offered last year in the immediate aftermath of his lap: “I gave it absolutely everything I had out there. I wasn’t sure I was going to survive the session and there were definitely a few hairy moments out there. I had to just close my eyes and be very, very brave. Our Acura has been really fast, especially in the last sector. “I think it’s a testament to these cars. Obviously, they’re a few generations old now, and we’re just getting them faster and faster. We’ve improved this package so much since the start of the season and I think that’s starting to show now on track. “Around here this is a high-, high-commitment track. The first couple of corners are insanely quick. It’s very bumpy as well, so the car is quite snappy. If you get that wrong, it’s going to be a big one. I nearly lost the car actually at basically the slowest part of the course on track (Turn 5B); I thought I was gone there. Anyway, we survived.” Twelve months later, here’s what Blomqvist added as he comes back to the scene of the speed. The bravery description still lingered. “That lap was definitely one of my more frightening qualifying moments, if that’s a way to describe a lap. “As a driver who is used to racing cars at the limit and looking for perfection, I was feeling very brave that day. Because to be honest, our car was difficult to drive and I don’t think we quite nailed the setup leading up to the qualifying session. “That track, if you risk it, you can get a better lap time. “It was definitely precision and an analytical approach and more bravery, and just putting it all on the line and trusting that I was able to take the car to pole position. “I definitely enjoyed that one, but it definitely wasn’t something that I could repeat!” The WeatherTech Championship returns to CTMP this week for the Chevrolet Grand Prix. The race airs live at noon ET Sunday on NBC.

IMSA Wire: Acura Notches Landmark GTP Win with Meyer Shank Rolex 24 Repeat

Acura Notches Landmark GTP Win with Meyer Shank Rolex 24 Repeat The New Era of WeatherTech Championship Hybrid Prototype Competition Begins with a Most Memorable Race January 29, 2023 By Holly Cain IMSA Wire Service Rolex 24 At Daytona Unofficial Results DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The debut of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship’s newest class not only lived up to expectations, but arguably outperformed it with one of the most dramatic runs to the Rolex 24 At Daytona overall victory in recent memory. It all unfolded in front of a rapt international television audience and a record crowd at Daytona International Speedway. Meyer Shank Racing’s Tom Blomqvist drove the pole-winning No. 60 Acura ARX-06 to a 4.190-second victory, to win the Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) class win in the first race with hybrid-powered prototypes. It was the second consecutive and third overall Rolex 24 victory for the Meyer Shank team, which led a race-best 365 of the 783 laps, crossing the stripe 4.190 seconds ahead of Filipe Albuquerque in the No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-06 from Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Autosport. The Cadillac Racing Cadillac V-LMDh cars from Chip Ganassi Racing finished third (with driver Renger van der Zande in the No. 01) and fourth (Earl Bamber in the No. 02). The top four cars were separated by 11.176 seconds after 24 hours of racing on the 3.56-mile Daytona International Speedway road course. “I knew we had a fantastic car, unbelievable,’’ said an excited Blomqvist, who won the 2022 Rolex 24 in his first race with Meyer Shank and went on to collect the Daytona Prototype international (DPi) class championship. “I just have to say, a massive ‘well done’ to everyone who’s been a part of this project. “What a car we’ve built and I’m so grateful to be able to drive that and be trusted with the duty to take it to the finish. Amazing, I was a bit nervous because the (No.) 10 car was definitely the second fastest car when it came down to it. But yeah, we held it off and had to take it to another level to secure this victory.’’ Blomqvist shared the car in the race with Colin Braun, Helio Castroneves and Simon Pagenaud, the latter duo also part of last year’s Rolex 24 triumph. Today’s victory, in fact, is Castroneves’ third straight in the iconic race, tying late sports car legend Peter Gregg for most consecutive overall victories in sports car racing’s renowned season opener. “This team is amazing. This is absolutely a dream come true,’’ Castroneves, the four-time Indianapolis 500 winner said after once again convincing his teammates and team owners Mike Shank and Jim Meyer to climb the track fence in celebration. “So happy to start the year like that and keep it going.’’ Pagenaud, Castroneves’ teammate on the Meyer Shank IndyCar team, was also all smiles, earning his second straight Rolex winner’s watch. “I think I’m getting used to it,’’ he joked, adding, “I’ll tell you what, it was tough out there but it was fun. I’m going to savor this one.” The MSR No. 60 Acura led the final 97 laps despite having to repair the gearbox midrace and worrying whether it would indeed make it to the end. It marks the third straight Rolex 24 overall victory for Acura, which also won with the WTRAndretti team in 2021. Nine hybrid prototypes made the highly anticipated debut of the GTP class in the race. All but one were still running at the finish, including the top six overall finishers, an impressive outing for a car making its first competitive showing in one of the longest, most grueling events on the schedule. The celebratory feeling went from track to pits to company brass. The first win in a totally new car elicited both relief and confidence. The finish of the race, the reliability and competitiveness a good sign for all. “It feels unbelievable,’’ said David Salters, president of Honda Performance Development (HPD), which developed the race winner. “The real privilege is to work with those people (Acura teams) and achieve days like today. We all know it doesn’t happen all the time. Was it worth it? It’s been two years and I think it’s the best thing I’ve been involved in in my whole life. “If that isn’t a demonstration of precision-crafted performance, I don’t know what is,’’ Salters added. “It’s a landmark moment. It’s the pinnacle of sports car racing.” Proton Competition Wins Photo Finish in LMP2 By Mark Robinson The No. 55 Proton Competition ORECA LMP2 07 went from the scrap heap to the top of the heap in the Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) class at the Rolex 24 At Daytona. Three days after the car was significantly damaged in a Rolex 24 practice session, James Allen eked out the narrowest of victories by just 0.016 seconds over Ben Hanley in the No. 04 Crowdstrike by APR ORECA. An intense four-car battle over the final 90 minutes led to the photo finish, with the Proton and Crowdstrike entries swapping the lead with the No. 35 TDS Racing and No. 88 AF Corse ORECAs. Hanley went to the front with 20 minutes left in the No. 04, overtaking Job Van Uitert in the No. 35 with a bold pass leading to the infield section that involved contact between the cars and sent Van Uitert off course and to an eventual fourth-place finish. Allen moved ahead of Nicklas Nielsen in the No. 88 AF Corse ORECA and into second place with seven minutes to go, then the 36-year-old Australian set his sights on Hanley ahead. Lapped traffic allowed Allen to slice the deficit and nearly grab the LMP2 lead on the next-to-last lap. Unsuccessful in that attempt but instilled with confidence, Allen drafted Hanley through Turns 3 and 4 of the Daytona oval on the last lap, pulled alongside in the trioval and nudged ahead as they took the checkered flag. “Going into the final lap at the start, I saw that I actually did get in front of him before the line,” Allen said, “so I thought there’s no point trying to force any late-braking moves or anything silly. I could just get him going down the final straight and that’s kind of what I did.” Even though he wasn’t sure he did. “The spotter came over the radio and said we won, and I still didn’t believe it,” Allen admitted. “I was like, ‘Are you sure?’” It was quite the recovery for Allen and co-drivers Fred Poordad, Francesco Pizzi and Gianmaria Bruni, who each collected their first Rolex 24 victory. The No. 55 ORECA sustained significant damage in a practice crash on Thursday, but the Proton crew worked overtime to repair it for the race. “Luckily, ORECA makes a very strong tub because it was still intact,” explained Allen. “But the drive shaft was buried in the diff and took the gearbox with it. The whole rear end and all the bodywork had to come off, all the suspension. It was a very long job. It was really a big job by everyone on the team and I really appreciate it. They managed to get it done and the car was on the grid.” No. 17 AWA Team Cruises to Victory in LMP3 By Godwin Kelly The No. 17 AWA Duqueine D08 turned the Le Mans Prototype (LMP3) class race into a 24-hour romp as drivers Anthony Mantella, Wayne Boyd, Nico Varrone and Thomas Merrill dominated at Daytona. “It was a relief (to see the checkered flag),” Boyd said. “All the boys were laughing at me because every two minutes on the radio I was asking how long was left.” Most other cars in the class faced mechanical or other issues during the race. The margin of victory for the No. 17 AWA Duqueine over the second-place No. 33 Sean Creech Motorsport Ligier JS P320 was a whopping 12 laps. “My teammates built that lead,” Mantella said. “My job was to keep the car clean and stay out of trouble.” The No. 17 car went to the lead for the first time on Lap 315, pushing past the No. 33 Sean Creech Ligier JS P320. Those two cars had a pitched battle until Lap 634 when the No. 33 went behind the wall for lengthy repairs to fix a shifting issue. “I was actually more nervous (with the large lead) than fighting with the other car,” Varrone said. “It was more nervous than when we were fighting another car because, if you lose, that’s OK. But if you lose with such a massive lead, it would hurt more.” It was the first IMSA victory for Mantella, Boyd and Varrone. Merrill now has two career IMSA wins. When the Creech entry had mechanical problems, no other LMP3 car was able to give chase. Creech climbed back up the leaderboard to score the second-place finish. “As always, a hard-fought (Rolex 24),” Creech said in a post-race tweet. “Once again, we brought it home P2. Proud of a super effort by the entire team to keep us on track in a race of survival.” Sean Creech Motorsport, which will run the entire series, didn’t go home empty handed, leaving Daytona with the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup points lead. Rounding out the podium was the No. 38 Performance Tech Motorsports Ligier with drivers John DeAngelis, Christopher Allen, Connor Bloum and Cameron Shields.

IMSA Wire – A Star is Born: Tom Blomqvist

A Star is Born: Tom Blomqvist The Last 12 Months Have Revealed a Hidden Gem February 2, 2023 By Tony DiZinno IMSA Wire Service DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Nearly a decade ago in the 2014 Formula 3 European Championship, three young drivers combined to win 25 of 33 races and swept the top three in points. Two of them made it to Formula 1 by 2016. The third embarked on a different career odyssey. Esteban Ocon won that championship. Max Verstappen finished third. And Tom Blomqvist finished second. If ever there was a doubt about the talent possessed by the British-born Swedish son of rally legend Stig Blomqvist, look no further than the top competitors he raced against in that single junior season. So how, then, has the 29-year-old’s star risen so much only in the last year since joining Meyer Shank Racing in the top-level prototype class of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship? It takes a second to reflect on Blomqvist’s journey, which has been an unusual path toward the top. He raced Formula E cars, DTM touring cars and GT cars, including a full season in the WeatherTech Championship GT Le Mans (GTLM) class with BMW M Team RLL in 2019. But through either tough luck or adverse circumstances, he never finished better than fifth in points in any single season. A breakthrough 2021 season racing Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) cars in Europe and Asia, downforce-type cars that more closely mirrored his junior open-wheel programs, quickly reestablished Blomqvist on the map. Arguably his biggest “wow” moment came in defeat, when he lost to another LMP2 competitor in a photo finish at that year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans. He finished second in that year’s FIA World Endurance Championship and emerged as a top-flight prototype candidate as IMSA teams readied for the final season of Daytona Prototype international (DPi) competition and the launch of the new Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) era. Mike Shank then made a call that’s changed both individuals’ trajectories since an initial test at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta in the fall of 2021. “I started looking at his numbers and I’m like, ‘We should test this guy,’” Shank said. “He got in the car and just slayed it. I called (Jim Meyer, team co-owner), I said, ‘I’ve got our guy. There’s no question about it.’” Meyer echoed the thoughts, saying, “I don’t even know who this guy is. (Shank) goes, ‘Leave it to me,’ and then literally one minute later he said, ‘We’re done. We have who we need.’” From a strong first impression to an even stronger 2022, Blomqvist emerged as perhaps the DPi driver of the season with a run of form few saw coming. With three poles, bookend wins at the Rolex 24 At Daytona and Motul Petit Le Mans and the last DPi championship (co-driving with Oliver Jarvis), Blomqvist was dynamite a year ago. He proved his quiet 2019 IMSA GTLM campaign didn’t accurately reflect his potential. His 2022 Rolex 24 drive revealed a star turn, but his 2023 Rolex 24 was perhaps even better given the newness of the GTP formula. With Rolex 24 qualifying returning to the traditional format of fastest single lap, a red flag left Blomqvist with one lap to set a flyer on new tires – and he delivered. In the race itself, he managed to set the 10 fastest single laps. He anchored the No. 60 Acura ARX-06 he shared with new recruit Colin Braun along with IndyCar aces Simon Pagenaud and Helio Castroneves en route to Meyer Shank’s second – and Acura’s third – straight Rolex 24 win. What sayeth the man himself? Humility comes first for the soft-spoken driver who just is focused on the job at hand. “Obviously I have to thank the team for putting the faith in me for both those parts,” Blomqvist said. “I think what’s so special about this team is, we are a small team compared to some of our opponents, but the atmosphere, the way we work, enables people to get the best out of themselves, and I think that’s why we’re such high achievers.” It seems his bosses will have to provide the kudos. “We love Tom. He’s the real deal, isn’t he? Immensely talented, super smart, and on it,” said David Salters, president of Honda Performance Development (HPD), which develops the Acura. “He reminds me a little bit when (Robert) Wickens came into IndyCar out of DTM,” Shank reflected. “He truly believes he’s the fastest guy out there, and he proved it tonight.” “Who can forget his qualifying run last week? It was incredible, just an incredible story,” Meyer added. “We’re thrilled to be in the Tom Blomqvist business.”

IMSA Wire: Takeaways from the 2023 Rolex 24 At Daytona

Takeaways from the 2023 Rolex 24 At Daytona The 61st Running of the Twice-Around-the-Clock Endurance Classic was one for the Record Books January 30, 2023 By David Phillips IMSA Wire Service DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -The highly anticipated 61st Rolex 24 At Daytona is in the books and it’s fair to say the race exceeded expectations. There was a record crowd on hand to witness the largely flawless debut for the ultra-complex Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) hybrids, a photo finish in Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) and the typically fierce, deep and unpredictable competition among a bevy of marques in the two Grand Touring (GT) classes – the competitors in the 2023 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship delivered quite a show. With 45 finishers from 61 starters and five class winners, there are a plethora of stories (and potential takeaways). Without diminishing James Allen’s breathtaking pass of Ben Hanley at the checkered flag to grab the LMP2 laurels (not to mention Proton Competition’s outstanding effort repairing the victorious No. 55 ORECA after a practice mishap) or AWA’s dominant LMP3 win, allow me to offer this trio of takeaways. Tip of the Hat A tip of the hat to Acura, BMW, Cadillac, Porsche, their teams and drivers for an unexpectedly smooth debut of the GTP class. After roughly 18 months to build out their hybrid prototypes, eight of the nine GTPs were running at the end of 24 hours, headed by the top two Acura ARX-06s and two Cadillac V-LMDhs in P3 and P4, all on the lead lap. Sure, the No. 25 BMW M Team RLL BMW M Hybrid V8 finished 100+ laps down after issues with the spec hybrid powertrain and the No. 6 Porsche Penske Motorsports Porsche 963 did not finish after suffering a broken gearbox. But an 89 percent finishing rate would be an outstanding record for any class in any 24-hour race, let alone one featuring such complex vehicles in their competition debut. With seven weeks before they race again, the teams and manufacturers will have plenty of learnings from the Rolex 24 to use in the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring. Of course, a dozen hours of racing on the rough ’n tumble runways, taxiways and macadam of Sebring International Raceway is every bit, if not more, demanding than 24 hours at Daytona International Speedway. But if the remarkable debut of the GTPs is any indication, Round 2 of the 2023 WeatherTech Championship should be every bit as compelling as the first. Passing the Torch? As television viewers were regularly reminded, the days when Meyer Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian could be considered a “little team” are long gone. The No. 60 MSR Acura led the race early, often and late; in other words, just about any time they darn well pleased. For those keeping score, this makes back-to-back Rolex 24 wins for the Ohio-based team and its third overall, which dovetails with its 2022 Daytona Prototype international class championship and the 2019 and 2020 GT Daytona (GTD) crowns . . . not to mention the 2021 Indianapolis 500. So, while preseason talk focused on the coming epic showdown between the teams of the reigning titans of American motorsports – Chip Ganassi and Roger Penske – it was the one owned by Mike Shank and partner Jim Meyer that took home the honors . . . and gave at least one observer pause to ponder this: Roger Penske was born in 1937 and dominated American racing in his 40s, 50s and 60s. Chip Ganassi was born in 1958 and rose to challenge Penske and, yes, dominate American racing in his 40s, 50s and 60s. Born in 1966, Shank is mounting an increasingly formidable challenge to the Penske/Ganassi domination of sports cars and Indy cars. Is he poised to become the next team owner to dominate American racing? GTD’s Big Picture Kudos to Mercedes/WeatherTech Racing and Aston Martin/Heart of Racing Team on their wins in GTD PRO and GTD respectively. But in terms of the big picture, Corvette Racing is the manufacturer that announced its intentions to be a force in GT racing this season and in years to come last week. After a comparatively disappointing GTD PRO campaign last year, the No. 3 Corvette C8.R GTD gave the GTD PRO competition all they could handle in the Rolex 24 before settling for what, under the circumstances, was a disappointing runner-up finish. That’s encouraging evidence that Corvette Racing put the lessons learned last year campaigning a C8.R born and bred for the discontinued GTLM class to good use and will be a force to be reckoned with in their sophomore season of GTD PRO. What’s more, the unveiling of Corvette’s Z06 GT3.R is ample evidence of GM’s commitment to GT racing – and a tantalizing glimpse into the future, not only for Corvette Racing in GTD PRO, but for what one must imagine will be a host of GTD teams looking to campaign the new ‘Vette in seasons to come.

IMSA Wire: Blomqvist Puts No. 60 Acura in Record Book as First GTP Hybrid Era Pole Winner

Blomqvist Puts No. 60 Acura in Record Book as First GTP Hybrid Era Pole Winner A Sizzling Last Lap Takes the Meyer Shank Racing Entry to the Top January 22, 2023 By Holly Cain and Godwin Kelly IMSA Wire Service Rolex 24 At Daytona Qualifying Results DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The first “official” marks of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship’s 2023 season were set Sunday in Motul Pole Award qualifying to establish the lineup for the Rolex 24 At Daytona season opener. Most attention was focused on the hybrid-powered prototypes making up the reborn Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) class, and the qualifying session lived up to the hype. In a dramatic final moments, Tom Blomqvist turned the best lap of the entire three days of Roar Before the Rolex 24 on-track activity, putting the No. 60 Meyer Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian Acura ARX-06 on pole position. Blomqvist will lead the 61-car field to the green flag on Jan. 28, following an impressive lap of 1 minute, 34.031 seconds (136.295 mph). Blomqvist’s fast time – set on the very last lap of the qualifying session – bettered Felipe Nasr in the No. 7 Porsche Penske Motorsport Porsche 963 by a slight 0.083 seconds. The top eight GTP cars were separated by only 0.815 seconds. “That was one of the most difficult sessions I’ve done because my tires weren’t exactly fully, fully ready and I didn’t have much of a good reference to go off of, so I was glad to win that one,’’ Blomqvist said of his fourth career Motul Pole Award and first for the Rolex 24. Ricky Taylor qualified third in the No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-06 fielded by Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Autosport (1:34.198, 136.054 mph) and will start alongside the No. 01 Cadillac Racing Cadillac V-LMDh on the second row. Sebastien Bourdais turned a best lap of 1:34.262 (135.961 mph) in the No. 01, one of two GTP cars entered by Chip Ganassi Racing. Meyer Shank Racing paced the first four practice sessions of the weekend leading up to qualifying. But the pole appeared in jeopardy when Nick Tandy went off course in the No. 6 Porsche Penske Motorsport, bringing out a red-flag stoppage with Blomqvist sitting in seventh place. Once the track was cleared, it left time for a single flying lap for each car when the green flag returned. “Thankfully that was just enough time for one lap,” Blomqvist said. “I don’t really know how I did it, but my lap was made easier because the car has been quick all weekend and I know what I had underneath me.” Blomqvist, who pitted to change Michelin tires early in the session, conceded he was worried about getting a crack at the pole position during the red-flag stoppage. “I was actually a bit bummed because I thought it was kind of done for us, and then they said, ‘You’ve got one lap,’” Blomqvist of the team radio chatter. “I didn’t know what to expect, so I just kind of went for it on the out lap and had to get past one car and make a legitimate move on the out lap. “I was lucky I had such a smooth running in terms of the car being so good and really didn’t have to do too many changes to the set-up. I knew what I had but today the track conditions were very different with the wind and the heat, so I just had to virtually send it and rely on my instincts. “Thankfully, I managed to survive that,’’ he added smiling. “That was a fun day.’’ Keating Earns Fourth Daytona Pole With LMP2 Flyer Veteran driver Ben Keating took Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) pole honors in the No. 52 PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports ORECA LMP2 07 with a lap of 1:40.541 (127.470 mph). While the conditions seemed ideal for fast laps – sunny skies, mild temperatures – Keating said the windy surroundings made it a bit treacherous. Two LMP2s spun with the help of breezy conditions and a “green track” after Saturday’s rain showers washed the rubber off the track surface. “I felt like this was one of the more tricky qualifying sessions,” said Keating, who earned his fourth Rolex 24 pole and 12th of his IMSA career. He’ll share the No. 52 in the race with Paul-Loup Chatin, Alex Quinn and Nicolas Lapierre. “You set your car up so you’re on the edge in the Bus Stop (the Le Mans Chicane on the oval backstretch),” Keating explained. “All weekend, we had a slight headwind going into the Bus Stop. Today, we had about a 19-mph tailwind, and that made a huge difference in our car.” John Farano, wheeling the No. 8 Tower Motorsport ORECA, spun and made heavy contact into a tire wall in Turn 7. Fred Poordad also went off course in Turn 6 in the No. 55 Proton Competition ORECA. “I expected it to be tricky, but it’s never quite real until you get out there and start doing it,” Keating said. “I had quite a few ‘moments’ in the car at the Bus Stop and I was not surprised to see a car go off there.” Francois Heriau in the No. 35 TDS Racing ORECA was a tick behind Keating, posting a time of 1:41.751 (125.594 mph). Steven Thomas was third in the No. 11 TDS Racing entry at 1:41.813 (125.878 mph) and inadvertently helped Keating. “I got a nice tow off of Thomas and that made about half a second worth of difference,” Keating said. Pino Procures First IMSA Pole in LMP3 Eighteen-year-old Nico Pino scored his first IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship pole with a blistering lap of 1:43.197 (124.189 mph) in the No. 33 Sean Creech Motorsport Ligier JS P320. Pino leapfrogged past Dakota Dickerson (No. 36 Andretti Autosport Ligier) on the speed chart late in the qualifying session. Dickerson wound up second fastest with a lap of 1:43.307 (124.057 mph). It was a big day for Pino and car owner Sean Creech, who has a race shop in Jupiter, Florida. It was Creech’s first Daytona pole as a car owner. “This is a special one,” Pino said. “This was my first pole (ever). We have a long race coming ahead – 24 hours. This was a 15-minute qualifying session.” Pino will share the No. 33 with Lance Willsey, Danny Soufi and four-time Rolex 24 winner Joao Barbosa. “We have done a lot of work fine-tuning the car,” Pino said. “We had our ups and downs through the practice sessions, but now we have a good baseline to start working with the team for the race. I’m looking forward to it.” Rolex 24 At Daytona practice starts Thursday. The 24-hour race begins Saturday with the start airing live on NBC at 1:30 p.m. ET Saturday and the conclusion beginning at noon Sunday, Jan. 29. Flag-to-flag coverage is available on Peacock.

IMS Try email marketing for free today!