Tag: Barber Motorsports Park

DXDT Racing made their eighth consecutive trip to victory lane in the Fanatec GT World Challenge America powered by AWS championship at Barber Motorsports Park, and Alec Udell and Tommy Milner have in turn drastically reduced the points gap to the leaders heading into the final round of the season. In Pro-Am, Jeff Burton and Phillip Ellis’ strategy played out perfectly to take the victory.

Pro

Kenton Koch got his elbows out early, making progress on the opening lap of the race in the No. 99 Random Vandals Racing BMW M4 GT3 to move up into first in class and third overall as he maneuvered past some Pro-Am competitors.

A little further down the road, Elliott Skeer was pushing hard to keep his No. 120 Wright Motorsports Porsche 992 GT3 R within range of Milner in the No. 63 DXDT Racing Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R.

As the halfway mark approached and drivers made their way down pit lane to swap with their teammates, a slower pit stop for Random Vandals Racing and Conor Daly brought DXDT Racing’s Udell that much closer to the frontrunner. Wright Motorsports opted to extend Skeer’s stint a little longer before handing over the machine to Adam Adelson, and he remained close to the top two as he returned to the track.

They had to contend with some out-of-class traffic with just over 30m to go, but the obstacles aided Daly in putting some space between himself and Udell. However, a full course caution emerged a few laps later, bringing them right back together again. Daly and Udell handled the restart masterfully, and Bill Auberlen put himself in prime position on board the No. 28 ST Racing BMW M4 GT3 to sneak past Adelson and move up into third place.

Just as everything looked as though it was said and done, in the final laps Daly had to make a trip down pit lane for a splash of fuel, promoting Udell into the overall lead as the Random Vandals Racing machine dropped to the back of the field. Meanwhile, Luca Mars made a daring overtake in his No. 93 Racers Edge Motorsports Acura NSX GT3 EVO22 on Adelson, snatching away the final podium position with just a couple of laps to go.

When Udell took the checkered flag, the gap between DXDT Racing and current Pro class championship leaders Wright Motorsports was reduced to a mere seven points, making it a winner-takes-all situation for the Indianapolis 8 Hour.

When discussing the unconventional win, Udell went on to say that, “The Random Vandals Racing car was just super fast. Conor and Kenton have been quick all weekend and really showed their pace in the race today. We were just trying to hitch a line to them and stay close for as long as we could. It’s a bummer for them, but we’ll pick up the pieces and take the win. You just have to take what comes to you and we maximized today. We got very lucky that the No. 99 had an issue, which you never like to see as from a racing perspective, but we’ve been on that side of the game before, all of us have. It comes and it goes.”

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“It was very hard today, for sure,” echoed Milner. “We got lucky at the start. I got hit twice on the left-rear and thought something was broken or wrong, but I think the track was just super-dirty. We were lucky to get away with that one. As we expected, we weren’t the fastest car. Alec did a great job and we had a great pit stop. This DXDT team just excels in every area. I’m really proud to be part of this race team and to drive this Corvette Z06 GT3.R. Everyone keeps asking about the championship and I didn’t want to talk about it for a long time. But after today for us, things are falling into our hands. Now it’s a discussion, and I’m happy to go to Indy with a good chance to win it.”

Touching on the upcoming Indy 8 Hour and their chances of winning, Milner added that, “The driver lineup won’t be a problem. The car won’t be a problem. The team won’t be a problem. It’ll be about our pace once we get there and how we compare to everyone else. I’m excited to get there now, to go racing for eight hours there and go for a championship.”

Pro-Am

Robby Foley had a clean getaway as he led the field into turn 1 after starting from the overall pole position in his No. 29 Turner Motorsport BMW M4 GT3. Neil Verhagen was trying to hunt him down in the No. 38 ST Racing BMW M4 GT3, but Foley continued to clock in fastest laps, building a gap to the fellow BMW factory driver behind.

As Justin Rothberg jumped in to replace Foley behind the wheel, Verhagen continued to clock in a couple more rapid laps before exchanging with teammate Samantha Tan. She initially returned to the track just ahead of Rothberg, but he used his tire advantage to take the position back a few corners later. The two championship contenders continued to run nose to tail lap after lap, and as Rothberg began to struggle for grip, Tan sought an opportunity to capitalize on the situation.

Elias Sabo went spinning off-track in the No. 8 Flying Lizard Motorsports BMW M4 GT3 with just under 30m to go. This brought out a brief full course caution and packed the field tightly together as they prepared for a sprint to the finish.

This played perfectly into the hands of Ellis in the No. 91 Regulator Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3, who got to work very quickly, passing both Tan and Rothberg to propel himself into the class lead with less than 20m on the clock, and speeding ahead all the way to the finish line.

When reflecting on his performance throughout the weekend, Burton commented that, “Today and this whole weekend was probably my best driving. There’s some things that you’ve just got to learn, and I haven’t done this for a long time. It’s taken a long time for me to kind of figure it out, because driving is not as easy as people think, but today was really good.”

“I mean, it could have dropped a little bit earlier,” Ellis said about the yellow flags that ultimately favored their strategy. “It would have been a bit more relaxed, but it was good that it happened. I already passed a couple of front cars at that point, and the restart made things a little bit easier for me. I think everybody struggled for grip after the restart as we had quite a lot of dirt on the tires, so everybody was just sliding around and trying to figure out how much grip we had in the next few laps. I think that just helped me since I have a bit more experience than the other guys I’m racing.”

The Fanatec GT World Challenge America Powered by AWS field will return for the season finale event – the coveted Indy 8 Hour – at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, October 3-6.

RESULTS

Pro-Am drivers Roman De Angelis and Gray Newell were the overall winners in the Pirelli GT4 America championship at Barber Motorsports Park following a stellar strategy execution by the Heart of Racing Team. In the Silver class, Kenton Koch and Kevin Boehm have reduced the points gap once again by securing another victory for Random Vandals Racing. Meanwhile, Lance Bergstein and Anthony Geraci took the top step of the podium for the first time in the Am class.

Silver

Tyler Gonzalez started on the front row in the No. 68 Smooge Racing Toyota Gazoo Racing GR Supra GT4 EVO and moved up into the overall lead on the opening lap. However, a lap one incident involving multiple cars brought out an early safety car. As the yellow flags waved, Koch was running in second position in the No. 97 Random Vandals Racing BMW M4 GT4 G82, followed by Zac Anderson and John Capestro-Dubets in the No. 51 AutoTechnic Racing BMW M4 GT4 G82 and No. 28 RS1 Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport.

Troubles soon arose for Gonzalez though, who had to make a trip down pit lane after suffering a puncture, thus promoting his fellow Silver class competitors up one position each.

Driver changes began to unfold just before the halfway mark of the race, and the green flag running resumed shortly thereafter, as did some extra servings of drama. AutoTechnic Racing’s Colin Garrett had to serve a 90s stop-and-go penalty for incident responsibility caused by teammate Anderson.

Smooge Racing appeared as though they recovered well, beating everyone to the punch as Corey Lewis returned to first place following their driver change. However, he had to make another visit down pit lane with a drive-through penalty for a short pit stop.

Boehm was charging ahead in the No. 97 BMW, picking through traffic to slot himself into the class lead once again ahead of the No. 26 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4 of Hannah Grisham.

The RS1 Porsche shuffled out of podium contention as Eric Filgueiras was forced down pit road to serve a drive-through penalty with 6m remaining in the race. Meanwhile, the end of the race was nothing short of thrilling as newcomer Alex Ellis had his sights set on a podium result. He did not hesitate to make his intentions known to Lewis in the last few laps. It was a mad dash to the finish between those two, swapping positions again and again. Ultimately, Lewis prevailed and secured third place, exchanging bodywork in the process with the No. 77 VPX Motorsports Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport of Ellis.

Boehm claimed the Silver class win, and second place overall, with Hannah Grisham crossing the finish line in second place.

“ I knew the Random Vandals Racing crew gave us a good car today,” said Boehm. “I was just excited to get in and see what it felt like. It’s great to get this result today. We’ve just been out of reach a few times, but I don’t think this will be our last win.”

Pro-Am

Although Matheus Leist lost the overall lead on the opening lap, he retained the Pro-Am class lead in his No. 89 RENNtech Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT4, staying just ahead of No. 82 BimmerWorld BMW M4 GT4 G82 of Tyler McQuarrie.

It was a heartbreaking day for championship leader Kay van Berlo as his No. 7 ACI Motorsports Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport as he was struck and sent for a spin in the lap one incident, bringing his race to an early end.

Following pit stops and driver changes, Heart of Racing found themselves in prime position as their strategy played out perfectly. De Angelis returned to the track in the class lead on board the No. 24 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4 EVO.

Johan Schwartz and Matt Bell were locked in a tight battle for second place, going nose to tail with their respective No. 23 TechSport Racing Nissan Z NISMO GT4 and No. 43 P1 Groupe Mercedes-AMG GT4 machines.

De Angelis built up a 12s lead over the rest of the field, but a secondary full course caution reduced that gap with just over 15m remaining. Nevertheless, the Canadian handled the restart perfectly, and had some Silver class competitors serving as a buffer to protect him.

It was a great day at the office for the Heart of Racing Team duo, executing perfectly and claiming their second victory of the season, and bringing the championship fight even closer heading into the final rounds. Bell was ultimately able to sweep past Schwartz for second place, while Schwartz fended off an attack from James Walker Jr. to retain third.

“I can’t take much credit for that one because, honestly, all I did was avoid getting caught in that massive crash,” Newell said. “On the radio, Ian calmly said, ‘Car spun ahead,’ and as I came over the crest, there was chaos unfolding right in front of me. Somehow, I managed to get through it when many others didn’t. Our team absolutely nailed the strategy. They were doing the math the entire time, and it paid off perfectly. So here we are, and I’ll gladly take this one.”

“It feels great,” De Angelis said. “We’re one of the teams running an alternate strategy in the Pro-Am class, with me qualifying and starting with the Am drivers in race one, and doing the finishing stint in race two, we really needed that caution to save us. The team made the right call to pit us early, and we basically jumped everyone. We were pretty far back after the accident, but Gray did an amazing job avoiding it. It’s good to get a win, but the focus is on the championship. Wins are great, but championship points are even more important. Big credit to the Heart of Racing for their strategy calls, and congratulations to the whole team.”

Am

Am class pole sitter Jaden Lander was ultimately unable to capitalize on any opportunities in race two, as his No. 099 Rotek Racing Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport was swept up in the opening lap chaos along with Kris Wilson and James Clay in the No. 98 Random Vandals Racing BMW M4 GT4 G82 and No. 36 BimmerWorld BMW M4 GT4 G82.

Chris Walsh, who previously won the TCX championship in TC America earlier in the day, was able to avoid the mess, moving into the class lead in the No. 20 Carrus Callas Raceteam BMW M4 GT4 G82. However, Bergstein, at the helm of the No. 72 KRUGSPEED Toyota Gazoo Racing GR Supra GT4 Evo, took over the class lead when Walsh came down pit lane for a driver change with Nicholas Shanny.

Bergstein was further aided by a train of Pro-Am entries separating him from the battle for second between Shanny and the No. 52 NOLASPORT Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport of David Peterman.

“We had a great strategy, and we got really lucky at the start,” Geraci said. “That collision was just out of control, but Lance handled the pressure behind him incredibly well. I’m very proud of him.”

“The guys at Smooge Racing and KRUGSPEED gave me such a good car by the end of the race,” Bergstein said. “Even on old tires, I felt like I could still push, and we had great pace. We were just focused on running our race. There were cars around me from other classes, but we kept the big picture in mind and executed perfectly. It was awesome.”

The Pirelli GT4 America field will return for the season finale event at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, October 3-6.

RESULTS

Jason Daskalos was dominant once more in the GT America powered by AWS series’ SRO3 class as he took the top step of the podium for the second time this weekend at Barber Motorsports Park. In the GT4 class, it was Isaac Sherman who walked away with another victory and the championship crown.

SRO3

Saturday’s winner and Sunday’s polesitter Daskalos had a great start from the front of the field in his No. 27 CRP Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3, with Justin Rothberg trying to stay close to him in the No. 29 Turner Motorsport BMW M4 GT3.

In the opening laps, Ross Chouest was applying pressure on Johnny O’Connell as there was barely any distance between their No. 50 Chouest Povoledo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 and No. 3 SKI Autosports Audi R8 LMS GT3 machines. However, the battle was brought to an early close, as Chouest’s race ended abruptly when the No. 007 ProSport Competition Aston Martin Vantage GT3 commanded by Tim Savage lost control, taking the Mercedes out in the process.

The incident brought out an early safety car, and Daskalos got another clean getaway as the race went back to green, only for a second full course caution to emerge later in the same lap due to a GT4 car running off into the gravel.

The race resumed once again at the halfway mark, but the drama wasn’t over yet. Rothberg’s BMW suffered a tire puncture, bringing him back into pit lane as he dropped down the running order. Meanwhile, O’Connell was able to get past Washington to reclaim a position to move up into second place.

His Audi appeared to be coming back to life, with a pace advantage rapidly cutting into Daskalos’ lead as the final laps approached. The gap was reduced to less than a second, but Daskalos was pushing with all his might to stay ahead.

It was a tough fight all the way to the line, but Daskalos was able to keep his Mercedes firmly ahead, picking him his second consecutive win and extending his championship points lead in the process ahead of O’Connell, with Kyle Washing rounding off the podium in race two.

Washington was given a drive-through penalty, converted to a 39s post-race time penalty, for incident responsibility. As a result, Jason Bell was promoted to third place in the No. 2 Flying Lizard Motorsports Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 EVO.

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“This win was crucial, especially after the brake failure in Virginia,” Daskalos said. “I feel like things are even now, and we’re thrilled as a team. I love having Sheldon Miller by my side, making sure I’m ready to go. He’s facing a huge battle, and we’re right there with him, determined to win the championship for Sheldon. We came to test here, and the car broke down after just 20m. The weekend didn’t start well—our car wasn’t performing, but Nick stepped up and did an amazing job. To come away with two victories is more than we could have hoped for.”

GT4

Sherman was calm, cool, and collected in his No. 098 Rotek Racing Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport as he took off down the road as soon as the sprint endeavor got underway. Despite two safety car restarts, it didn’t take him long to pull away from the rest of the pack as he continued to re-establish a gap.

Behind him, Curt Swearingin was looking in the mirrors of his No. 7 ACI Motorsports Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport as Gray Newell was on the attack in the No. 25 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4.

The battle for second and third place allowed Sherman to move further and further ahead, and as the checkered flag waved, he not only clinched an impressive eleventh win this year, but the championship title as well.

After a near-flawless debut season in the series, Sherman delivered another spectacular performance this weekend in Alabama, once again showcasing his dominance, and now standing out as a deserving champion.

“Winning the championship is an absolute dream come true,” Sherman said. “I can’t thank the team enough—they were incredible all season. Even during the tough moments, they pulled through, and our consistency really paid off. Huge thanks to them, as well as to Super Cuts and Porsche. This has been an amazing experience.”

The GT America Powered by AWS field will be back on track at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, October 3-6 for the season finale event.

RESULTS

Celso Neto crossed the finish line first in the final TC America powered by Skip Barber Racing School event of the weekend at Barber Motorsports Park, but the champagne tasted a little sweeter for Chris Walsh as he clinched the TCX class championship. Jeff Ricca swept the weekend in the TC class, taking home the title in the process. In TCA, it was a great homecoming affair for Karl Hertel, who won race two.

TC

As soon as the green flag waved to commence race two, Cristian Perocarpi did not lose any time applying pressure on Ricca’s No. 76 Ricca Autosport Hyundai Elantra N1 TC for the class lead. However, Perocarpi began to lose ground as his No. 37 MINI JCW Team MINI JCW TC Pro experienced an apparent mechanical failure and was brought into pit lane for repairs.

Perocarpi’s machine then had to go behind the wall for further assessment, which brought major implications into play as Ricca’s points lead was suddenly dramatically extended.

As Perocarpi was unable to return to the track and earn partial points, Ricca was therefore far enough ahead in the standings to clinch the championship early, cruising to victory for the second time this weekend and spraying some extra special champagne.

Sally McNulty joined her teammate on the podium, scoring a second-place finish in her No. 780 Ricca Autosport Hyundai Elantra N1 TC, while Scott Thomson earned his first top three result of the season with the No. 66 MINI JCW Team MINI JCW TC Pro.

“Ron (Zaras) had to fly home early, but if he were here, I’d be cheering him on,” Ricca said. “None of this would have been possible without his help. I can’t thank the team enough—everyone, from the guys in Korea to the ones in the U.S., and Hyundai. This weekend has been something special. It started off on a real low, but to come out with a high like this—I honestly didn’t expect it. This is amazing, and I’m so grateful to everyone who has helped us. Until next time!”

TCX

Neto started from pole position in the No. 22 Skip Barber Racing Acura Integra Type S ahead of Walsh in the No. 104 Carrus Callas Raceteam BMW M2 CS (Cup), who immediately began applying pressure on the race leader.

The gap between the two frontrunners remained essentially nonexistent lap after lap, but Neto was positioning himself perfectly throughout each corner in order to keep his advantage on track.

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Walsh made a late overtake attempt for the lead with 13m remaining in the race, which gave way to an intense battle between him and Neto, as the Brazilian fought back to reclaim the position, running Walsh wide and briefly off-track in the process.

Despite finishing second, the Carrus Callas Raceteam driver was able to clinch the TCX championship title as the checkered flag dropped. Drama unfolded for Cooper Broll and Aaron Kaplan on the last lap as the two made contact, resulting in a puncture for the No. 19 Skip Barber Racing Acura Integra Type S a few corners away from the checkered flag. Although Kaplan was originally sent spinning, he was able to recover to third place, rounding off the podium in his No. 18 Kaplan Racing Systems BMW M2 CS.

“The track conditions were really tough today—super dirty out there,” Neto said. “The whole race was about staying calm and reminding myself not to burn through the grip. At one point, I got a little wide in the marbles and had a big slide, but it was a hard-fought race with a great battle. Yesterday was another intense race with solid competition, but unfortunately, we made contact—something no driver ever wants. Still, I have to thank my entire team, Skip Barber Racing, all my sponsors, and Honda Racing HRC. The car was fantastic today, and I couldn’t be happier to take the win!”

“All I can feel is gratitude,” Walsh said. “The team has been incredible, and the people who have supported me all year to make this happen. It takes more than just driving; it’s everyone working behind the scenes that makes this possible. I just want to say thank you to everyone who’s been there for me, and I’m proud to bring this home for them. I’m just humble and grateful—that’s all I can say.”

TCA

Saturday’s winner and recently crowned champion PJ Groenke once again led the TCA class from pole position in his No. 62 MINI JCW Team MINI JCW.

Local driver Hertel made an early pass in his No. 93 HART Alabama Honda Civic Si FE1 to move into second place ahead of Alex Garcia in the No. 14 Skip Barber Racing Honda Civic Si FE1.

However, Groenke faced a few challenges, with a couple of on-track spins followed by a loss of power. The issues played into Hertel’s hands, and he was able to move into first place in the final 10m, claiming the win at his home track.

“The team was giving me feedback, telling me we were starting to close the gap,” explained Karl Hertel. “We just kept pushing, hoping for an opportunity—and it came. We’ve been in and out of this series for about 10 years. Yesterday was our first time on the podium, and today we’re standing on the top step. It’s been an incredible weekend.”

The TC America powered by Skip Barber Racing School field will return on track at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the season finale event, October 3-6.

RESULTS

There was no shortage of action in Race 1 of the Fanatec GT World Challenge America powered by AWS championship. It was a perfect day at the office for DXDT Racing, who clinched the race one wins in the Pro class with Alec Udell and Tommy Milner, and the Pro-Am category with Bryson Morris and Bryan Sellers.

Pro

Udell retained the lead in his No. 63 DXDT Racing Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R as the green flag waved to commence the first 90-minute race of the weekend. Luca Mars ran into some trouble early on, as the driver of the No. 93 Racers Edge Motorsports Acura NSX GT3 EVO22 was swallowed up by the pack and overtaken by Conor Daly in the No. 99 Random Vandals Racing BMW M4 GT3.

ST Racing opted for an alternate strategy as Bill Auberlen took the opening stint in the No. 28 BMW M4 GT3, and moved ahead of Mars as well before engaging in a tight battle with Daly.

As Milner took over from Udell during the driver change and pit stop, it appeared as though they would continue to sail around the track on their own terms. However, Kenton Koch had other plans as he took over the reins of the Random Vandals Racing machine, trying with all his might to hunt down the leading Corvette.

Koch continued to chip away at the gap, clocking in some of the fastest laps of the race in the process, and the two were running nose to tail for a big portion of the second half of the race. However, Milner expertly managed the mounting pressure from behind, and responded in turn to keep Koch behind.

The Team Chevy driver took the checkered flag to claim the team’s seventh consecutive win of the season, running undefeated ever since they made their debut in the championship back in Austin. The string of victories has truly brought them into championship title contention with only a couple of races to go as they have once again reduced the points gap to Wright Motorsports.

Meanwhile, Zach Veach made a daring move on Varun Choksey in the final laps to move his Racers Edge Motorsports machine back up into podium position to take home third place.

When speaking about his battle with Koch, Milner said, “He definitely pushed me hard today. We knew track position was going to be crucial, and while we didn’t think we had the fastest car, the support on the tires at the end was fantastic. Kenton really pushed me, no doubt, but he could have made it even tougher. I appreciate that, though. I’m expecting a more intense race next time. I’m really excited for DXDT Racing, for Alec, my teammate, and for this incredible team. Seven wins in seven races—it’s beyond anything we could’ve ever dreamed of. I’ve gotten so comfortable with this Corvette after all the time I’ve spent driving it. With the recent testing and practice, I knew right away what the car needed. We had the preferred strategy, and that first lap really helped create a gap that let me run my own race.”

Pro-Am

It was a dramatic start for Pro-Am championship contenders ST Racing and Turner Motorsport, as Samantha Tan, driving the No. 38 BMW M4 GT3, made contact with Justin Rothberg in the No. 29 BMW M4 GT3 on the opening lap. The latter was sent spinning off-track, and Tan had to serve two consecutive drive-through penalties for a start violation and incident responsibility.

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Meanwhile, Phillip Ellis was doing what he does best on board the No. 91 Regulator Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 – putting in rapid laps and creating a gap to the rest of the class field. He was running second overall before handing over the machine to co-driver Jeff Burton, who was given a 43s advantage to utilize.

Burton put in a stellar performance as he went wheel-to-wheel and held his own alongside Pro competitors, however, he had a 2s post-race time penalty looming over him for a short pit stop.

Sellers was fast-approaching in the No. 64 DXDT Racing Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R, joined by Trent Hindman in the No. 85 RS1 Porsche 992 GT3 R just behind, and they caught up to Burton in the final laps.

With just 3m on the clock, Sellers made a deep dive into the inside of Burton to move up into the Pro-Am lead, going on to take DXDT Racing’s second Pro-Am victory of the year. The time penalty for Regulator Racing ultimately promoted RS1’s Hindman and Jake Pedersen to second place on the podium, while Robby Foley and Rothberg were able to recover to third place, an important result for their championship pursuit.

“He’s young but has the racing IQ of someone with decades of experience,” Sellers said about his teammate Morris. “He’s done an outstanding job for us. It’s not easy to come into a team full of veterans and be the young guy, but he fits in perfectly and performs exceptionally well. His first stint was incredible—super consistent—and we’re just thrilled to have him on board. He’s someone who’s going to grow and become a major force in this sport.”

“It feels great to have two wins now,” echoed Bryson. “I’m getting more and more comfortable with the car, and of course, Bryan has been a huge help in that. I’m grateful he was able to finish strong and bring home the win today. A big thanks to everyone, and congratulations to DXDT for their double podiums here today.”

In the Am class, Jay Schreibman and Oswaldo Negri finished fourteenth overall in the No. 163 AF Corse Ferrari 296 GT3.

“That was probably one of the toughest drives I’ve ever done, but a win’s a win, and we’ll gladly take it. It was a lot of fun,” Schreibman said.

“It’s amazing to be back at Barber—it’s such a great, technical, and challenging track,” explained Negri. “We’re here getting ready for next year, finding our rhythm, and I’m really enjoying it. They pulled me out of the cobwebs, and here I am, happy to be back. I couldn’t ask for more.”

The Fanatec GT World Challenge America Powered by AWS field will return for race two on Sunday, September 8th at 2:15 p.m. CT.

RESULTS

AutoTechnic Racing claimed their second win of the season after a late charge through the Silver class pack at Barber Motorsports Park in Pirelli GT4 America, with BimmerWorld doing the same in the Am class. Meanwhile, in Pro-Am, it was NOLASPORT who made another appearance in victory lane.

Silver

Corey Lewis led the field to the green flag from the overall pole position in his No. 68 Smooge Racing Toyota Gazoo Racing GR Supra GT4 EVO, but came under threat quickly from Pro-Am driver Roman De Angelis, who snatched the spot away.

Lewis retained the top spot in the Silver class as Eric Filgueiras, in the No. 28 RS1 Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport, had his hands full to keep the No. 77 VPX Motorsport Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport of Alex Ellis behind throughout the opening corners.

As teams performed their driver changes near the halfway mark under full course caution, RS1 got the jump over Smooge Racing as John Capestro-Dubets managed to squeeze ahead of Tyler Gonzalez in pit lane as they returned to the track.

The race returned to green flag running with 27m remaining, and Dubets took the opportunity to sweep ahead into the overall lead, but Zac Anderson was on the charge in the No. 51 AutoTechnic Racing BMW M4 GT4 G82, with Kenton Koch looming closely behind in the No. 97 Random Vandals Racing BMW M4 GT4 G82 as well.

Another safety car brought the pack back together again, and Dubets felt the heat as the race restarted again with under 10m remaining. Anderson and Koch were able to sweep past into first and second, with Dubets dropping down to fourth as Gonzalez took away the final spot in the top 3.

Koch raised a challenge to Anderson, but the AutoTechnic Racing driver kept his composure to go on and claim the overall victory.

“Oh man, the amount of debris and rubber buildup on the track was intense,” Anderson said. “I was on the radio with the team saying, ‘I hope the other drivers are dealing with this much stuff on their tires because it’s going to make for a wild restart.’ I adjusted for it and knew JCD would leave me a lane—he’s still my guy from last year, and always will be. I have to thank the AutoTechnic crew for always giving us these rocket ships, and a huge thanks to my teammate Colin Garrett, 11/11 Veteran Project, Operation Motorsport, and everyone who has made this season possible. This win feels great. It’s been since Sonoma, and we really needed it. We’ve fought hard to get here.”

“Zac and I are pretty tough on ourselves, and we’ve been that way all season,” Garrett said. “When our performance is there but the season isn’t going quite as we hoped, these races mean a lot more. My drive today wasn’t my best, and Zac always finds the areas where I fall short. He’s been an amazing teammate, and we’ve become like brothers. I’m really happy to be working with the AutoTechnic crew. This feels great—congrats to everyone on the win!”

Pro-Am

Roman De Angelis started from the front row in the No. 24 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4 EVO, but he wasted no time moving up into the overall lead on the opening lap.

Comparatively, Matt Bell, who was running second in class in the No. 43 P1 Groupe Mercedes-AMG GT4, had a challenging first lap and dropped some positions, promoting Matt Travis up ahead of him in the No. 47 NOLASPORT Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport.

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De Angelis, who was running on an alternate strategy, got to work as he began to build a gap to the rest of the field. However, his advantage dwindled when a safety car came out due to the No. 23 TechSport Racing Nissan Z NISMO GT4 grinding to a halt on track just before the halfway mark.

Gray Newell took over from teammate De Angelis, but dropped some positions on the race restart, with NOLASPORT’s Jason Hart taking over the class lead instead. Soon after, Newell found himself under threat from Tyler McQuarrie in the No. 82 BimmerWorld BMW M4 GT4 G82 as well.

In the final laps, McQuarrie powered ahead of Hart, with Matheus Leist taking the opportunity to do the same in the No. 89 RENNtech Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT4. The fight wasn’t over just yet, as the two went nose to tail and Leist ran into the back of the BMW, sending McQuarrie for a spin.

The incident resulted in a post-race time penalty for Leist for incident responsibility, which therefore promoted NOLASPORT’s Hart and Travis back into the class lead at the finish line. The No. 7 ACI Motorsports Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport of Curt Swearingin and Kay van Berlo and the No. 5 Flying Lizard Motorsports Nissan Z NISMO GT4 of Damir Hot and Rodrigo Baptista benefitted from the argy-bargy, completing the podium.

“I want to thank Matt and NOLASPORT for bringing me back for this race,” Hart said. “It’s been such a long time since I’ve raced at Barber, so it was a lot of fun to jump in the car, especially with the rain yesterday and how the cautions played out today. I’ve never driven a (Porsche) RS here before, but it was an absolute blast.”

Am

As the green flag waved, Rotek Racing’s Robb Holland retained the lead in the Am class in his No. 099 Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport, but Charlie Postins had his sights set on the top of the field, inching closer at every lap in his No. 36 BimmerWorld BMW M4 GT4.

Postins translated this mounting pressure into an overtake for the lead on lap 15, however, Holland remained on his rear bumper until the first full course caution emerged. As James Clay took over the helm of the No. 36 BimmerWorld BMW, he didn’t miss a beat and stayed in first place after the restart. Kris Wilson advanced in the class as well, commanding the No. 98 Random Vandals Racing BMW M4 GT4 and moving up to second place.

Drama unfolded as Wilson and Clay made contact with less than 20m to go. The Random Vandals machine came to a halt a lap later, bringing out the safety car once more.

With Wilson’s car out of the way, racing resumed with 8m left to the race. Jaden Lander in the No. 099 Porsche took advantage of the restart to try to catch back up to Clay, but he was unfazed and remained completely focused on taking the win. The BimmerWorld duo returned to victory lane for the second time in 2024, with Rotek Racing joining them on the podium, as well as Nicholas Shanny and Chris Walsh in the No. 20 Carrus Callas Raceteam BMW M4 GT4 G82.

“This feels really sweet,” Postins said at the podium celebrations. “I’m not sure why, but it seems like, for the first time in a long time, we’ve actually gone out and earned a win. It was a tough race, but I like to think we raced fairly. It feels like we truly won this one, rather than having it handed to us. That’s why this win feels so good, and to have James bring it home, that was just awesome. It really was a great race.”

James Clay echoed his teammate’s thoughts; “As Charlie said, it’s great to win one. It feels like it’s been a while—because it has been—but we know we’re capable of winning races, even strings of races. We came into this weekend determined to win, like we do every weekend, but this time, it felt like we had a car that could deliver. Let’s see how tomorrow goes, and of course, the next race. The championship’s not over yet.”

The Pirelli GT4 America field will return for race two on Sunday, September 8th at 10:45 a.m. CT.

RESULTS

Although the 2024 GT America powered by AWS championship is nearing the closing stages of the season, the intensity continues to rise, especially as tight battles resulted in a dramatic turn of events in race one at Barber Motorsports Park.

Though it looked like Justin Rothberg had the opening win of the weekend in the bag, a last-lap pass by Jason Daskalos shuffled the podium order in SRO3. Meanwhile, it was smooth sailing for Isaac Sherman, who led from start to finish in the GT4 class.

SRO3

The action kicked off immediately in the SRO3 class, as polesitter Rothberg in the No. 29 Turner Motorsport BMW M4 GT3 came under threat from Johnny O’Connell in the No. 3 SKI Autosports Audi R8 LMS GT3. The two went side by side in the first few corners, with O’Connell momentarily snatching away the lead before Rothberg went on to take it right back.

However, it was Daskalos who was charging through the field in his No. 27 CRP Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3, picking off competitors one by one before closing in on the leaders, putting in fastest laps in the process.

His first challenge was to overtake O’Connell, and as the championship frontrunners drove side by side on lap 16, Daskalos used every inch of the road in order to stay on track and propel himself up into second place. From there, he focused on hunting down Rothberg in the lead.

Major championship implications arose as O’Connell suffered a late stage puncture, dropping him down the running order as he had to make a trip down pit lane for repairs.

The drama did not end there, as Daskalos closed in on Rothberg in the final minutes. They were running nose to nail, with no room for error on either side. The fight for first intensified even further as the two made contact on the last lap of the race. As a result of the impact, which saw Daskalos clip the back of the BMW, he was able to move up into the lead and cross the finish line to claim the race one victory.

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The race win, combined with O’Connell’s misfortunes, has enabled Daskalos to reclaim the championship lead heading into the next race. Nevertheless, the points gap between the top three has been reduced significantly.

“That was a win that almost rivals our victory in Long Beach,” Daskalos said, celebrating his fifth win this season. “We struggled all weekend with the car, and this win is all because of my crew chief, Sheldon Miller, Nick, and Ryan Dalziel.”

Daskalos recalled his last-lap incident with Justin Rothberg, saying; “I was to the outside. He hit the inside curb and launched himself into my car, and we made contact. I was completely to the outside of him.”

GT4

Sherman took the green flag in his No. 098 Rotek Racing Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport and never looked back. With a clear road ahead of him, he set off down the track and continued to gradually expand his lead over the rest of the field.

Curt Swearingin ran in second position in the No. 7 ACI Motorsports Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport, but was ultimately unable to raise a challenge to Sherman. Gray Newell also ran comfortably in third in the No. 25 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4.

The trio completed the race in the same order they qualified in, with Sherman claiming an impressive ninth win this season, while Swearingin and Newell made their podium returns for the tenth and ninth times, respectively.

“ It’s a very tough and technical track,” Sherman said. “There’s no room for error as there are blind corners all around. I just got into a rhythm and a good flow and pulled a gap, so I’m very happy.”

The GT America Powered by AWS field will return to the track for race two on Sunday, September 8th at 8:40 a.m. CT.

RESULTS

Chris Walsh secured his eighth TCX win of the season in the TC America powered by Skip Barber Racing School championship at Barber Motorsports Park, bringing him that much closer to claiming the title. It was a similar story for Jeff Ricca, who overcame adversity in the TC class in order to extend his points lead. Meanwhile, it was a sweet victory for PJ Groenke, who was crowned the TCA champion.

TCX

Walsh led the pack to the green flag from pole position in his No. 104 Carrus Callas Raceteam BMW M2 CS (Cup). Celso Neto stuck close to the leader in the No. 22 Skip Barber Racing Acura Integra Type S, and the two drivers pulled a healthy gap over the rest of the field.

A little further behind, Aaron Kaplan and Cooper Broll were involved in their own battle for the remaining podium position. As the halfway mark approached, Broll maneuvered his No. 19 Skip Barber Racing Acura Integra Type S past the No. 18 Kaplan Racing Systems BMW M2 CS (Cup) in order to move up into third place.

Thanks to traffic, the fight for the lead was considerably reduced. As the frontrunners made their way past a TCA class competitor, Walsh dipped a wheel into the grass but recovered well. However, this allowed Neto to get a clear run alongside him. The battle reached a boiling point when they dove into the next corner, which resulted in a collision that sent Walsh off-track into the gravel. He rejoined the track in second position, but was promoted back into the lead once Neto was handed a drive-through penalty for incident responsibility.

The Brazilian served his penalty and then focused on recovering lost ground, eventually getting back up to second position, albeit 22s behind the leader. Walsh went on to cruise to his eighth victory of the season, bringing the championship title that much closer to his reach. Teammates Neto and Broll completed the podium.

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“We ran into some TC traffic,” Walsh said. “I checked up a little bit because I was just being patient with him (Neto) and saw that he went around the outside. I lost sight of him, but I knew he was there, and I gave him space. It seemed like he missed the apex, hit my door pretty good when I went in, but I kept it together and kept the car on track. I was impressed with how the BMW held up after one of those hits. I couldn’t be happier about the win today.”

TC

Ricca uncontestedly won the opening race in his No. 76 Ricca Autosport Hyundai Elantra N1 TC, borrowing his teammate’s car in order to keep his championship hunt alive following a mechanical failure in Friday’s practice session, a great testament to the level of collaboration and sportsmanship at Ricca Autosport.

At the beginning of the race, Cristian Perocarpi was keeping Ricca honest aboard his No. 37 MINI JCW Team JCW TC Pro. However, Ricca was able to capitalize and gain momentum to pull a healthy gap.

Behind them, the fight intensified between the No. 780 Ricca Autosport Hyundai Elantra N1 TC of Sally McNulty and the No. 66 Scott Thomson MINI JCW Team JCW TC Pro for the last spot on the podium. It was a hard fought battle, but McNulty was able to fend off the attacks, claiming her third consecutive podium finish.

“I want to thank Ron Zaras for forfeiting his car because of my unfortunate accident, we won this race because of that,” Ricca said. “I’m pretty sure that we sealed the manufacturer’s title. I am extremely happy. The team worked all night long last night. The guys at Hyundai in Korea and in the USA are such a huge part of my program. This is redemption.”

TCA

Groenke masterfully navigated the twists and turns of Barber Motorsports Park, clinching his 7th win of the season and effectively claiming the championship title at the halfway point of the race. Behind the No. 62 MINI JCW Team MINI JCW, the fight intensified between Karl Hertel and Alex Garcia.

Garcia, commanding the No. 14 Skip Barber Racing Honda Civic Si FE1, started from third place in the TCA Class. However, he didn’t lose time pressuring local driver Karl Hertel for second place on the podium. The No. 93 HART Alabama Honda Civic Si FE1 driver ultimately finished third.

“I woke up knowing I had a job to do,” said the 2024 TCA Champion. “I wanted to bring it home for MINI USA, for MINI JCW, for all my partners. Oh man, second-time champion in this series. It just means the absolute world to me. Thank you to all my partners for letting me live my childhood dream and letting me do what I have always dreamed of doing. This is for everyone and for all the fans and the partners!”

The TC America powered by Skip Barber Racing School will return Sunday, September 8th for race two at 9:40 a.m. CT.

RESULTS