The No. 25 BMW M Team RLL BMW M Hybrid V8 won the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen on Sunday after the No. 6 Porsche Penske Motorsport Porsche 963 was assessed a penalty in postrace technical inspection.
Driving the No. 6 Porsche, Mathieu Jaminet made a daring pass of Connor De Phillippi in the No. 25 BMW for the lead, while both cars battled through lapped traffic with just five minutes remaining in the historic six-hour IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship race at Watkins Glen International. That’s the way the cars finished as a full-course caution came out a lap later and the race finished under yellow.
During postrace inspection, however, the No. 6 Porsche was found with a skid block measuring less than the permitted minimum thickness and was moved to the rear of the Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) finishing order, elevating the No. 25 BMW to victory. It is the first win for the German manufacturer in the modern GTP era, meaning all four marques participating in the hybrid-electrified class in this debut season have now won in the first five races. The victory is the sixth of De Phillippi’s WeatherTech Championship career. Co-driver Nick Yelloly picked up his maiden series win.
Pipo Derani, Alexander Sims and Jack Aitken (No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac Racing Cadillac V-Series.R) finished second in the revised podium. Tom Blomqvist and Colin Braun finished third in the No. 60 Meyer Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian Acura ARX-06.
Nine GTP cars were among the record-tying field of 57 entries for the race, the fifth of the 2023 WeatherTech Championship season, but several GTPs encountered issues during the race. The No. 24 BMW crashed into the Turn 1 barrier on the opening lap and was eliminated. The No. 01 Cadillac Racing Cadillac sustained damage an hour into the race after spinning while trying to avoid a slower GT Daytona (GTD) car. The No. 7 Porsche 963 led 35 laps early before heading to the garage for repairs to its hybrid power system. And the No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-06 fell from contention when it lost a wheel assembly on track and had to slowly make its way to pit lane for a replacement. Watch Extended Race Highlights here. (Thank you to John Oreovicz/IMSA Wire Service)
(Galstad/IMSA)
Two weeks after winning the Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) Pro-Am class at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, George Kurtz joined with Ben Hanley and Nolan Siegel to capture Sunday’s LMP2 portion of the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen. The trio led 109 of the 196 LMP2 laps completed in the No. 04 Crowdstrike by APR ORECA LMP2 07, including the final 24 circuits. Hanley finished in the car, cycling to the lead during the final round of pit stops with just under 40 minutes to go. The Brit built a lead of more than seven seconds and was never threatened, taking the checkered flag ahead of the No. 18 Era Motorsport ORECA driven by Christian Rasmussen and Ryan Dalziel under caution. The win was the second in the WeatherTech Championship for Kurtz and the first for the 18-year-old phenom Siegel. It also elevated the No. 04 Crowdstrike into the LMP2 championship lead. The LMP2 class returns at the IMSA SportsCar Weekend at Road America, Aug. 4-6. (Thank you to Mark Robinson/IMSA Wire Service)
(Galstad/IMSA)
A back-and-forth battle for Le Mans Prototype 3 (LMP3) honors was resolved in favor of the No. 74 Riley Motorsports Ligier JS P320 piloted by Gar Robinson, Felipe Fraga and Josh Burdon, but not before the No. 30 Jr III Racing Ligier of Dylan Murry, Garett Grist and Dakota Dickerson spent its share of the day at the front of the field. Indeed, it wasn't until Fraga executed a bold move on Grist heading into the Inner Loop with 50 minutes remaining that the final order was established. Not that the contest for first place was resolved then and there, as the Ligiers ran side-by-side through the Inner Loop and into the Loop itself before Fraga emerged in first place. Fraga built a comfortable gap on Grist of some eight seconds before taking the checkered flag under the race-ending full-course yellow, with the No. 17 AWA Duqueine D08 of Anthony Mantella, Wayne Boyd and Nico Varrone finishing in third place. The LMP3 class is back in action in two weeks at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park for the Chevrolet Grand Prix. (Thank you to David Phillips/IMSA Wire Service)
(Levitt/IMSA)
While Jack Hawksworth held off a fierce challenge to win the Grand Touring Daytona PRO (GTD PRO) class, teammate Aaron Telitz cruised to victory in the GTD class in the Vasser Sullivan sister Lexus RC F GT3 for a rare team double victory in the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen at Watkins Glen International. Telitz, with help from co-drivers Frankie Montecalvo and Parker Thompson, found himself with a comfortable 35-second lead in GTD late in the six-hour race. He idled to victory after a late crash involving Bill Auberlen that caused the race to end under caution. “Everything was working,” Telitz said. “I think this is the best day Lexus Racing and Vasser Sullivan has ever had. … Pit stops were amazing, strategy was amazing, the car was hooked up. Everything finally fell our way today.” Telitz moved the car into the lead in the first hour and – with help from Montecalvo and Thompson – didn’t give it up for long after that. With slightly more than two hours remaining, Thompson regained the lead from Jan Heylen and the No. 16 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R (992), and the No. 12 Lexus began to pull away. The result was Montecalvo’s first victory with Vasser Sullivan since 2020. Madison Snow finished second in GTD in the No. 1 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 he co-drove with Bryan Sellers and Corey Lewis. Heylen shared the third-place finish with co-drivers Ryan Hardwick and Zacharie Robichon. (Thank you to Jeff Olson/IMSA Wire Service)
(Dole/IMSA)
Completing the Vasser Sullivan sweep wasn’t as easy as it appeared. Jack Hawksworth had to chase down and pass the No. 3 Corvette Racing C8.R GTD driven by Antonio Garcia late in the race, then defend against a strong pursuit from Daniel Serra in the No. 62 Risi Competizione Ferrari 296 GT3. “The car was great,” Hawksworth said. “We just kept pushing. I’ll never give up. That’s what this team is all about. A win for the 12 and a win for the 14. This is the best day in Vasser Sullivan and Lexus Racing history. What a day.” The team was leading the GTD PRO class when Hawksworth had to serve a penalty for a pit lane speed violation. That dropped the No. 14 Vasser Sullivan Lexus behind Garcia’s Corvette. Hawksworth began chasing. He passed Garcia with 23 minutes remaining, but so did Serra, who then began to pursue Hawksworth for the lead. With less than 4 minutes left, the No. 95 Turner Motorsport BMW M4 GT3 flipped on the exit of Turn 10. Bill Auberlen emerged from the wreckage, but the resulting yellow flag let Hawksworth and Barnicoat celebrate victory and an increase in their lead in the GTD PRO championship points standings. Serra held on for second with co-driver Davide Rigon, while Garcia maintained the podium finish with co-driver Jordan Taylor. The WeatherTech Championship resumes July 7-9 with the Chevrolet Grand Prix at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in Bowmanville, Ontario. Live coverage of the 2-hour, 40-minute race begins at noon ET on NBC. (Thank you to Jeff Olson/IMSA Wire Service)
(Photo of "Pecco" Bagnaia by AE Special Contributor Whit Bazemore)
Blood Red.
By Whit Bazemore
Bend. “Pecco” Bagnaia (No. 1 Ducati Lenovo Team) was mistake free in winning the Dutch MotoGP at the famous and unforgiving TT Circuit Assen. Under immense pressure from his good friend and rival, Marco Bezzecchi (No. 72 Mooney VR46 Racing Team Ducati) in both the race and the Championship, Bagnaia moved into the lead on lap three, and kept a small gap to Bezzecchi in second despite the fact that Bezzecchii had been quicker all weekend, and had narrowly beaten Bagnaia in Saturday’s sprint race. With the win, Bagnaia extended his Championship lead by 35 points over second place Jorge Martin (No. 89 Prima Pramac Racing Ducati; 5th in the race) and Bezzecchi, third in the Championship, 36 points behind. All three are on the dominant Ducatis.
The weekend was notable for Marc Marquez (No. 93 Repsol Honda Team) declining to start the race due to three lingering injuries from the previous weekend’s German GP. Marquez, arguably the greatest Motorcycle racer ever, and certainly the greatest pure talent racing today, pushed through the pain on Friday and Saturday to qualify 17th, but doing so with a broken finger, bruised and twisted ankle, plus a BROKEN RIB all proved to be too much of a hindrance! If you’ve ever suffered from a rib injury, you understand how unrelentingly competitive this guy is. But, in a season of immense difficulties for the six-time Champion, the Assen decision and the events leading up to it have been described as the “low point of my career” by Marquez. His 2023 Repsol Honda is by far the worst bike in MotoGP today, almost unrideable according to several of the five different riders who have raced it this year, and the fact that the three of the five all have missed several races, including Assen, with broken bones says everything.
Marquez and the rest of the MotoGP teams now have a much-needed and very important five-week summer break to recharge, heal and have casts removed...
Next race: Silverstone, August 6th.
(Watch the Race Highlights from Assen here.)
(Trans Am Series)
Chris Dyson (No. 16 CDR GYM WEED Ford Mustang) came from third to win the Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli race at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course last Saturday in one of the closest battles of the season so far. With the top four running in a tight pack for the first half of the race, Dyson was able to reel in Justin Marks (No. 99 Trackhouse Chevrolet Camaro) and Boris Said (No. 2 Weaver/Householder/Technique Dodge Challenger), while holding off competition from his teammate Matthew Brabham (No. 20 GYM WEED Ford Mustang) to visit GYM WEED Victory Lane for the third time this year. Brabham had charged from the back to finish second, Marks, third. “It was an absolute thrill racing with Justin [Marks], Boris [Said] and Matthew [Brabham] as he was coming up through the field,” said Dyson in GYM WEED Victory Lane. “I think we put on a great show for everyone out there. The No. 16 car was just amazing today. I was pretty disconsolate in qualifying, so I was really hoping it was going to be dry today because we were really good in the first test session. Good Lord willing, things worked out for us. I’m honestly so honored for the CD Racing guys to come out here and have some success. We’re putting together a nice championship campaign, and I’m really looking forward to going to Road America with the GYM WEED cars and staying up front.” CD Racing's 1-2 finish was the team’s fourth of the year and fifth victory of the season. Dyson has won a total of three races in 2023 and Brabham has earned two victories. CD Racing has won all but one race this season.
(John Harrelson/NKP/Motorsport Images)
Ross Chastain capped off a “perfect” race weekend, hitting all the right notes in the Music City to earn the winner’s guitar trophy in Sunday’s Ally 400 at Nashville Superspeedway — his first NASCAR Cup Series race victory of the season, a day after claiming his first career pole position. But before hoisting his new guitar, the 30-year-old Chastain had a watermelon to smash — his trademark victory celebration — a nod to his family’s multi-generation watermelon farm in rural Alva, Florida. And the sold-out Nashville crowd — home to his race team owner Justin Marks — roared with enthusiasm for the long smoke-filled victory burnout he did in front of the grandstands to his enthusiastic melon drop. “This is incredible,” a grinning Chastain said. “This is why every little kid out there, anyone in the world when you get criticized, and you’re going to if you’re a competitor, they will try to tear you down, and you’ll start believing it, and you can’t do that. Go to your people. Trust in the process. Read your books and trust in the Big Man’s plan upstairs. And just keep getting up and going to work on it. A lot of self-reflection through all this, but I had a group that believed in me, and they didn’t let me get down,” he said of his challenges in 2023. It’s the first race win of 2023 for Chastain, who led the championship standings for seven weeks early in the year, and the first win of the year and inaugural pole position for Trackhouse Racing. Ultimately, Chastain had to hold off Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Martin Truex Jr. (No. 19 Toyota) and Denny Hamlin (No. 11 Toyota) by 0.789 seconds for the win — leading a race-best 99 of the 300 laps, including the final 34. Watch Extended Race Highlights here. (Thank you to Holly Cain/NASCAR Wire Service)
(Corvette Racing)
Chevrolet and Pratt Miller Motorsports officials announced Friday the formation of a program that will lead competition and development efforts with the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R – Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports. Starting with the 2024 Rolex 24 At Daytona, Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports will campaign a pair of the new-for-2024, GT3-spec Corvettes for a full season in the GT Daytona (GTD) PRO category of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. The factory-supported effort is the first of two 2024 WeatherTech Championship programs that feature the Corvette Z06 GT3.R with additional customer programs set to announce in the coming weeks. Drivers for the GTD PRO effort will be announced at a later date, as well. The link-up between Chevrolet and Pratt Miller Motorsports (PMM) is a natural fit. The current full-factory Corvette Racing program is in the midst of its 25th season with 125 race victories to date, the most recent coming at the 24 Hours of Le Mans for the team’s ninth class win at the famed French classic. Also, for the second year in a row, Corvette Racing has programs in both IMSA and the FIA World Endurance Championship with the Corvette C8.R, now in its final season of competition. Corvette Z06 GT3.R customer teams will compete under the umbrella of Corvette Racing, which also will include customer and technical support to help carry on the tradition of Corvette Racing excellence that began in 1999. With an eye toward the future, Chevrolet Motorsports Competition Engineering and Pratt Miller began planning more than two years ago for the Corvette GT3 era. Pratt Miller – located in New Hudson, Michigan – is the constructor of the Z06 GT3.R. Pratt Miller engineers have worked hand-in-hand with Chevrolet Motorsports engineers on development, build and testing to date. With Pratt Miller dedicated to chassis builds and engineering on the Z06 GT3.R, GM Propulsion Performance and Racing Center in Pontiac, Michigan, also has been busy with development and refinements on the 5.5-liter, flat-plane crankshaft DOHC LT6 V8 engine that will power the racecar. The LT6 engine for the Z06 GT3.R originates from the Performance Build Center in Bowling Green, the same line on which all production Corvette Z06 engines are built. The racing engines are delivered to the Performance and Racing Center where they are fitted with certain race-specific components. The 5.5-liter powerplant shares more than 70 percent of its parts with the production Z06 engine, including the crankshaft, connecting rods, cylinder heads, fuel injectors, coils, gaskets and a variety of other sensors. Since September of last year, Corvette Racing and Pratt Miller have accumulated nearly 9,000 kilometers (5,500 miles) with the Corvette Z06 GT3.R. The car currently is undergoing its final homologation testing in Europe with additional testing planned for the summer and fall to fine-tune the Z06 GT3.R to multiple brands of tires for use across an array of championships around the world. Editor-in-Chief's Note: Halle-frickin-luja! GM Racing gets it right, against all odds. But let me be very clear about this - there was a faction within GM Racing who, for the longest time, didn't believe a factory team was necessary, that the participating teams would just figure it out. As incredibly stupid as that flawed logic was, cooler heads prevailed and the Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports deal was struck. It exactly mirrors the approach that Porsche has taken with its 911 racing program for years, with a factory team leading the charge in development, while sharing its learnings with its other participating customer teams. I am thrilled that the official name for this endeavor gives Pratt Miller its due, because frankly, without PM, the Corvette Racing program would be nowhere. -PMD
Our dearly departed billboard at Road America. As most of you know, Peter coined the phrase "America's National Park of Speed" and gifted it to the track. -WG
The overall vision of Road America grew out of the dreams of Clif Tufte, a highway engineer, who chose 525 acres of Wisconsin farmland outside the Village of Elkhart Lake for the track. The natural topography of the glacial Kettle Moraine area was utilized for the track and for fan viewing areas, sweeping around rolling hills and plunging through ravines. Since opening in 1955, countless facility improvements have been made over the years, but the 4.048-mile, 14-turn road course itself is virtually the same today as it was when it was first laid out. Now in 2023, an entirely new track surface stands ready for racers and enthusiasts alike. - Road America
Editor's Note: You can access previous issues of AE by clicking on "Next 1 Entries" below. - WG
Sunday, June 25, 2023 at 02:23PM 
