Porsche’s Dane Cameron and Felipe Nasr received a topsy-turvy, rain-disrupted sixth spherical of the IMSA SportsCar Championship, The Six Hours of The Glen.
Their Porsche beat the Cadillac of Renger van der Zande and Sebastien Bourdais by 0.7s after a collection of rain showers and storms flipped the race order a number of occasions in a generally weird occasion.
Polewinner Louis Deletraz’s #40 Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Acura ARX-06 led the 56-car discipline to inexperienced on the fabled 3.4-mile, 11-turn highway course in upstate New York. Van der Zande grabbed the lead coming into The Boot part on the opening lap within the #01 Chip Ganassi Racing-run Cadillac V-Collection.R.
Phil Hanson’s #85 JDC-Miller MotorSports Porsche 963 handed Jack Aitken’s #31 Motion Categorical-run Cadillac and picked off Deletraz to run second earlier than the primary full-course yellow, as Dwight Merriman spun Period Motorsport’s Oreca – which had received each LMP2 races to date – on lap two and acquired himself caught within the grass.
On the restart, Hanson barged his well past van der Zande for the lead, banging wheels on the run to the Bus Cease and forging his option to a powerful lead within the buyer 963.
The second warning was for George Kurtz (Crowdstrike by APR LMP2) brutally ramming Roberto Lecorte’s Cetilar GTD Ferrari into the fence at Flip 8.
All GTP vehicles pitted beneath yellow, and Philipp Eng’s #24 BMW M Hybrid V8 led the restart, having taken a shorter fill of vitality, from Aitken. Erstwhile chief Hanson handed over to Tijmen van der Helm, who rejoined third however shortly tumbled again to sixth.
Aitken handed Eng the lead firstly of the second hour with a wise transfer across the exterior of Flip 7.
However after the second spherical of pitstops, the main #31 automobile required an unscheduled pitstop after Pipo Derani, who took over from Aitken, broken the nostril in an off at Flip 1. He additionally flatspotted the right-front tire, and the prolonged additional cease put him a lap down and out of the body.
That promoted Nick Tandy’s #6 Porsche Penske Motorsport 963, which he’d simply taken over from Mathieu Jaminet, to the lead as Hour 3 started, from Bourdais within the #01 Cadillac. Jordan Taylor powered previous Bourdais for second within the #40 Acura he took over from poleman Deletraz.
The third yellow was required when Joao Barbosa shunted the Sean Creech Motorsport-run Ligier LMP2 on the exit of Flip 1. The #7 PPM 963 of Cameron stayed out to guide, as Taylor picked up second from Tandy and Filipe Albuquerque within the #10 Acura – however Albuquerque was given a drive-through penalty for an unsafe launch within the pitlane.
On brisker tires, Tandy handed Taylor to make it a Porsche 1-2 by half distance – simply earlier than the heavens opened. Cameron missed the pit entry and stayed out for a gradual lap on slicks, as Tandy and Taylor pitted for wets.
The fourth yellow arrived quickly after, as Gianmarco Levorato’s Proton-run Ford Mustang shunted on the strategy to the ultimate nook and Zach Robichon spun his Aston Martin in avoidance.
The second half of the race noticed the wet-shod Tandy main Taylor and Matteo Cairoli within the sole Lamborghini SC63 (which might later be hit by overheating points). Tandy pitted instantly to modify to slicks, with Cameron rocketing again to the lead. Albuquerque rose to second, forward of Nick Yelloly’s re-tubbed #25 BMW, which was crashed in follow by Connor De Phillippi and began from the pit lane, and Bourdais.
Heavy rain arrived on lap 101, bringing out one other full-course warning that coincided with Sarah Bovy slamming her Iron Dames Lamborghini into the wall on the exit of a dry Flip 10.
Quickly after the restart on a moist monitor, Albuquerque pulled a daring transfer to Cameron – the pair banging wheels on the again straight – to seize the lead in the direction of the tip of Hour 4.
After falling again on technique, Tandy charged as much as the entrance once more, buying and selling paint with Albuquerque in a frantic duel for the lead inside two hours to go. Tandy grabbed the highest spot in a wild three-wide transfer with a backmarker within the chute in the direction of Flip 6.
Moments later, rain hammered down as soon as once more, with a number of vehicles firing off into the obstacles on their slick tires – 4 vehicles going off at Flip 8, together with Loris Spinelli’s GTD Lamborghini ploughing head-on into the obstacles, and Hunter McElrea’s LMP2 automobile slamming the Flip 1 tirewall.
There was additionally chaos within the Porsche Penske pits, as Jaminet (again in for Tandy) needed to reverse round Nasr (in for Cameron) after each vehicles overshot their pit packing containers.
That led to an Acura 1-2, with Deletraz’s #40 main Ricky Taylor’s #10. De Phillippi snatched third forward of van der Zande, Jaminet and Nasr. After a number of laps behind the tempo automobile, the race was crimson flagged with 1h20m to go.
Because the race went again to yellow circumstances, as everybody modified to slicks, Deletraz received the race off pit highway, because the #10 slumped from second to sixth. Nasr was huge gainer, going from sixth to second, with van der Zande retaining third from Jaminet and De Phillippi.
Extra drama adopted as Taylor floor to a halt as his right-rear wheel fell off simply as IMSA was getting ready to go to inexperienced. Crew-mate Albuquerque believed the sooner contact with Cameron had induced some points with that nook.
After a prolonged delay, the race restarted with simply 16 minutes remaining. Nasr dived previous Deletraz at Flip 1, with van der Zande grabbing second from him going into the Esses, and Jaminet took third from Deletraz at Flip 6.
Van der Zande couldn’t catch Nasr, who sprinted away to increase the #7 automobile’s factors lead.
#88 Richard Mille AF Corse ORECA LMP2-Gibson: Luis Perez Companc, Nicklas Nielsen, Lilou Wadoux Ducellier
Photograph by: Jake Galstad / Motorsport Photographs
AF Corse’s Le Mans winner takes LMP2
In LMP2, poleman PJ Hyett led in AO Racing’s Oreca led from Steven Thomas (TDS Racing) and Daniel Goldburg’s #22 United Autosports. Hyett was given a drive-through penalty, nonetheless, for a begin infringement – which set a development for penalties for class frontrunners.
Simply earlier than half distance, Tom Dillmann within the main #52 Inter Europol by PR1 Mathiasen entry was handed a drive-through penalty for a restart violation, as was Felipe Fraga (#74 Riley), who inherited the lead, for passing beneath yellow.
Because the race restarted, total Le Mans winner Niklas Nielsen led in AF Corse’s #88 automobile and survived contact from Fraga at Flip 7, as Ben Hanley’s #2 United Autosports entry acquired spun round by Colin Braun within the #04 Crowdstrike Oreca.
That gave Nielsen the win simply seven days on from his well-known Le Mans success with Ferrari, co-driven by Luis Perez Companc and Lilou Wadoux.
#62 Risi Competizione Ferrari 296 GT3: Daniel Serra, Davide Rigon, #23 Coronary heart of Racing Crew Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo: Ross Gunn, Alex Riberas, #3 Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports Corvette Z06 GT3.R: Antonio Garcia, Alexander Sims
Photograph by: Jake Galstad / Motorsport Photographs
Aston Martin scores last-lap victory in GTD Professional
Daniel Serra led from pole in Risi Competizione’s Ferrari 296 from Alexander Sims in Corvette Racing’s #3 Z06 GT3.R.
Jack Hawksworth’s #14 Vasser Sullivan’s Professional class Lexus RC F gained the lead after the primary spherical of pitstops from Sims, who needed to pit the #3 for brand new brake rotors within the second hour.
The longtime main #14 Lexus was given a drive-through simply earlier than half distance for ‘not sustaining tempo on the third restart, and the category lead modified palms a number of occasions through the climate interruptions.
After the crimson flag, Tommy Milner discovered himself on the entrance of the GTD Professional discipline within the #4 Corvette, forward of Ross Gunn’s Coronary heart of Racing Aston Martin and Marvin Kirchhofer’s Pfaff McLaren 720S – all three having stayed out on slicks within the downpour.
Milner survived scary moments because the GTP leaders caught him and the GTD pack with simply minutes remaining however what he couldn’t do was make it to the end on gas, and he needed to pit on the white flag.
That allowed Gunn and Alex Riberas to scoop the category honors, forward of the Pfaff McLaren and Antonio Garcia within the #3 Corvette he shared with Sims.
Philip Ellis led the pro-am class in Winward Racing’s Mercedes, having additionally slithered round on slicks – virtually going off at Flip 6 as he did so. He fended off an assault from Parker Thompson’s #12 Lexus on the Bus Cease within the closing moments.
