Motorsport Week previewed the annual Sportscar Weekend at the famed Road America circuit with the full quadrant of IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship categories participating.
For the penultimate sprint race on the 2024 calendar, the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship will return to the historic Road America venue.
A 2-hour and 40-minute race will be only sprint this year encompassing all four WeatherTech categories: GTP, LMP2, GTD and GTD Pro.
The previous round at the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (CTMP) set a thoroughly positive impression for the LMP2 category as they fought closely for the overall win.
It is, however, back to the usual for the GTP class at the top having last raced in the 6 Hours of the Glen on 23 June.
Road America is a high-speed circuit incorporating two long straights and various fast, exciting corners, most of which will give way to close-proximity racing during the Sportscar Weekend.
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GTP returns since the Six Hours of the Glen
Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) cars are set to resume their racing campaign with the exclusion of Lamborghini Iron Lynx’s #63 SC63, which is only competing in the Endurance Cup rounds.
Nevertheless, we should expect a thrilling show as last year’s first GTP outing gave way to a close fight towards the end with Porsche Penske’s Felipe Nasr fending off Tom Blomqvist for Meyer Shank Racing.
That marked Porsche’s second win, but the first for Nasr and his then-#7 co-driver Matt Campbell.
In comparison to this year, the #7 Porsche 963 has claimed two wins so far: One at the 24 Hours of Daytona, and the latest at the Glen.
The latter of which came at great form by Nasr, who firstly made a move on #40 WTRAndretti Acura ARX-06 driver Louis Deletraz before fending his lead during the final sprint to the finish.
Expect Porsche Penske to fight with WTRAndretti at Road America, with each fielding two entries, although the #01 Chip Ganassi Cadillac V-Series.R will linger too.
A crucial difference between last year and this year is that the #7 crew are at the sharp end of the championship standings.
Nasr and #7 co-driver Dane Cameron lead on 2044 points, as the sibling #6 Porsche crew – Mathieu Jaminet and Nick Tandy – are third on 1912, just 39 points behind #01 Cadillac drivers Renger van der Zande and Sebastien Bourdais.
The GTP drivers’, teams’ and manufacturers’ titles are far from being decided, but there is pressure for these protagonists with such close margins.
Ultimately during this sprint, they will need to avoid drama with GTD cars whilst managing their tyres and fuel for the climactic phase of the race, as we should expect the three other categories to make it a challenging endeavour for them.
LMP2 proven as exciting as ever
CTMP made way for a third LMP2 winner after four races (which includes the LMP2 category), being the #52 Inter Europol by PR1 Mathiasen Oreca 07 team.
The #52 and their drivers Nick Boulle and Tom Dillmann secured their first LMP2 win after a triumphant effort by the duo, especially Dillmann, to take the win.
As those who watched the CTMP round can attest, the victory was narrowly taken by just 0.658 seconds on the #74 Riley Oreca 07 driven by Felipe Fraga, who leads the LMP2 standings with co-driver Gar Robinson.
The fact a quadrant of GTP drivers in LMP2 machinery did not emerge and fight for the win demonstrated how exciting the category is in its current state, with some notable talent spotlighted owing to the CTMP race.
Whilst it is difficult to predict the winner in LMP2, we can expect PJ Hyett’s #99 AO Racing to fight for his fourth consecutive pole.
Furthermore, the key will be to steer away from penalties as what cost some of the teams a competitive result at CTMP, in addition to the Bronze-graded drivers avoiding errors which could hamper their team’s chances at a win.
Likely protagonists in GTD and GTD Pro
Conversely, GTD Pro has Corvette Racing at the centre of attention after they claimed their first ever 1-2 finish at the CTMP, with the new-for-2024 Z06 GT3.R.
Vasser Sullivan’s #14 Lexus RC F was unusually uncompetitive with reigning champions Ben Barnicoat and Jack Hawksworth, as the GTD #12 entry also struggled to turn their class-pole position into a race win.
At Road America, we should expect Ford Multimatic Motorsports to shine further having made steady yet positive progress in the past few rounds, with Harry Tincknell having fought for the podium places at CTMP in the #64 Mustang GT3.
Julien Andlauer, a masterful and talented driver, will replace Seb Priaulx and has already demonstrated his top level abilities in the FIA World Endurance Championship.
Having competed in the two most gruelling races of the IMSA 2024 calendar, the Frenchman will be one to watch co-driving the #77 AO Racing ‘Rexy’ Porsche 911 GT3.R with Laurin Heinrich which leads the GTD Pro standings.
Conquest Racing joins Heart of Racing and Vasser Sullivan in having entrants in both GTD categories, with their #35 Ferrari 296 and co-drivers Daniel Serra and Giacomo Altoe.
The former driver has much experience for the Maralleno make, as Altoe has only made one IMSA appearance last year in a Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2, so Road America will become the perfect ground to showcase what the only Pro Ferrari can deliver.
GTD will continuate Winward Racing’s dominant campaign in the #57 Mercedes-AMG GT3 as Russell Ward and Phillip Ellis lead the standings by 340 points over the #96 Turner Motorsport BMW M4.
By emulating Paul Miller Racing’s form in last year’s season, the #57 team have been rewarded for their strong pace and consistent results as they will target their fourth win of 2024 without a great deal of pressure on them.
GTD offers a diverse representation of 12 manufacturers in a 15-car field, which will make the Sportscar Weekend an exciting watch with Winward Racing, Heart of Racing (Aston Martin Vantage) and Vasser Sullivan amongst the key protagonists.
How to watch the eighth round of the 2024 season
All IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship sessions are broadcasted via IMSA Radio as Alkamel hosts the live timing.
Additionally, qualifying and the race will be live-streamed on the IMSA YouTube channel as well as via IMSA TV for those outside the USA, and you can also access live telemetry for the GTP cars.
Qualifying will commence at 10.20pm BST or 4.20pm (UTC -6) on Saturday 3 August, and the 160-minute race will commence on Sunday 4 August at 8.10pm BST or 2.10pm (UTC -6).
