IMSA Battle on the Bricks race day news and notes

With temperatures in the mid-50s, the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship cars took to the track for a 20-minute warmup session in preparation for this afternoon’s 2h40m TireRack.com Battle on the Bricks at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Cooler weather than the teams have seen all weekend meant plenty of off-track excursions on cold tires, the most significant coming when Ricky Taylor spun the No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Autosport Acura ARX-06 in Turn 7 and made light contact with the tire wall. The car came into the pits with bodywork damage, but returned to the track in the session.

Augusto Farfus topped the time charts for the session as it came to a close, posting a 1m16.009s as the No. 24 BMW M Team RLL M Hybrid V8 passed under the checker. Other class leaders were: LMP2, Mikkel Jensen, No. 11 TDS Racing ORECA; LMP3, Joao Barbosa, No. 33 Sean Creech Motorsports Ligier; GTD, Trent Hindman, No. 77 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R; and GTD PRO, Ross Gunn, No. 23 Heart of Racing Aston Martin Vantage GT3.

Ford vs. Ferrari

To mark the return of top-level sports car racing to Indianapolis, the IMS Museum brought out its 24 Hours of Le Mans-winning 1965 Ferrari 250LM and a 1966 Ford GT40 MkII for some parade laps around the circuit after warmup. Jack Harvey and Conor Daly did the driving duties.

Mindful in Turn 1

The last time Porsche Penske Motorsport qualified one-two was at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, and the No. 7 in the hands of Matt Campbell was on pole then as well. At the start he locked up in braking for the Andretti Hairpin, lost the lead and, frankly, the race got worse for the No. 7 963 from there. Given that Campbell expects starts and restarts on cold tires to be rough for everybody in today’s race, he knows what he needs to do to avoid a repeat.

“I feel like, let’s say last two or three events, especially, I feel like race starts and also safety car restarts, our warm-up procedure and what we’re doing has been one of the strongest. We’ve been really able to turn on the tire a lot quicker than everyone else, it feels like, at least in race conditions. [The race] will just be a big challenge for everyone so I feel like we just need to try and work ’em like hell because when we take the start, our tires won’t be up to pressure and temperature, that’s for sure, so we’ll have to be very mindful at Turn 1.”

Traffic likely to be key

With 48 cars in the WeatherTech Championship race, Indianapolis Motor Speedway has been a busy place. GTD polesitter Madison Snow notes that in practice, he never showed his capabilities because getting a clean lap was difficult.

“In practice, I went out and did a mock qualy run, put new tires on and it was traffic, traffic, traffic, traffic … and then when I got a clean lap, I was all pissed off at myself and then overdriving the car,” Snow said.

That’s from a GTD driver, so you can imagine what the GTP drivers will be experiencing, especially with limited grip offline.

“Looking at quite a few sections of track, especially in the last corner where it could be a possible overtake around the outside of some GT cars, I think it is going to get possibly less and less going into the race, due to so much dirt and debris offline. I was quite surprised starting the [first] session just how dirty it was offline in that corner,” said Campbell.

Riley Motorsports crash repair

The Riley Motorsports crew went straight to work on the No. 74 Ligier LMP3 that suffered a heavy impact in a Turn 6 tire wall during qualifying with Gar Robinson at the wheel, and the car returned to the track in the hands of Josh Burdon for the morning warmup. Robinson has won every points-paying race in LMP3 this season working with different co-drivers.

The No. 91 Porsche will have to fight its way through the field. Jake Galstad/Motorsport Images

Engine change for No. 91 Porsche

The Kellymoss with Riley team changed the engine for the GTD-class No. 91 Porsche 911 GT3 R of Alan Metni and Kay van Berlo after qualifying. As a result, the car will be sent to the back of the field rather than assume it’s ninth-in-class starting position.

Rain possible

Temperatures being cooler with little sun on the track pushing conditions outside the ideal window for optimal tire warm-up aside, drivers may have another point of concern: a chance of rain around an hour into the race, albeit light. Last night’s Michelin Pilot Challenge race experienced sprinkles, but not enough for drivers to switch to rain tires.

Tire allocation

GTP and LMP2 have both been allocated three sets of tires for qualifying and race. The other classes have had seven sets to use for the event, with no set number for the race.

Drive time

Minimum drive time for LMP2 in the 2h40m race is 60 minutes. LMP3 and GTD drivers must have at least 45 minutes of drive time. Minimum drive time for the pro classes is 10 minutes.

How to watch

The race will be broadcast live on NBC and streamed on Peacock beginning at 1pm ET. Audio will be available on IMSA.com, RadioLeMans.com and on SiriusXM 207.

Winward Mercedes, JDC Miller Audi battle to MPC Indy victories

Daniel Morad and Bryce Ward scored an incredible and improbable Grand Sport (GS) class and overall victory Saturday night in the Indianapolis Motor Speedway 240, the four-hour IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge race on the famous venue’s 2.439-mile road …

Ward qualified the No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT GT4 seventh in the 27-car GS field, but he was bumped into a spin in the opening laps that dropped the No. 57 to the tail of the field. He methodically worked his way up to 13th place before a rapid driver change and pit stop by the Winward crew elevated Morad up to seventh.

From there, the 33-year-old Canadian stole the show. Morad advanced through the field and first took the lead about a third of the way into the twilight endurance race. He comfortably held the top spot into the final hour, only to see a series of full-course cautions erode his advantage, bringing the No. 47 NOLASPORT Porsche 718 GT4 RS Clubsport shared by Adam Adelson and Elliott Skeer into contention.

Skeer led into a restart with 41 minutes remaining, but Morad regained the point at Turn 7 at the end of the IMS road course’s back straight. Skeer fought back, and with half an hour to go, the Porsche and the Mercedes completed nearly two full laps battling side-by-side for the lead. Their scrap allowed Scott Andrews and the No. 27 Lone Star Racing Mercedes he shared with Anton Dias Perera into the frame.

On multiple occasions, Morad attempted to outbrake Skeer into Turn 1, but was forced to take an escape road when Skeer refused to cede the position. Morad finally seized the lead for good with just under four minutes on the clock, and his path to victory was made easier when Skeer had to make a pit stop for a splash of fuel on the next-to-last lap, dropping to 16th place in class.

Morad crossed the famous yard of bricks finish line 0.566s ahead of Andrews, with Paul Sparta and Kenton Koch claiming third place in the No. 92 Random Vandals Racing BMW M4 GT4, 7.334s in arrears.

“By far, that was the most intense race of my life,” said Morad, who earned his third victory on the IMS road course dating to 2007 but first at the track in the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge. “I think I have finished on the podium at Indianapolis every time I’ve raced here. I just can’t thank Winward enough, and Mercedes gave us a great package.”

This victory was certainly a challenge, and not just because of Ward’s early contact with the No. 59 KohR Motorsports Ford Mustang GT4 that dropped the Winward car to the tail of the field.

“Everything was kind of stacked against us, and we just couldn’t catch a break with anything,” Morad related. “The racing was aggressive. (Skeer) was moving in the brake zones every single time and it was making it so difficult. We’d have contact, and I’d have to go through the runoff. There were little things I didn’t appreciate.

“But that gave me more motivation,” he added. “One thing I know is that I drive better when I’m angry, and he gave me motivation.”

Ward, who is the owner of Winward Racing in addition to serving as a co-driver, paid tribute to Morad’s performance.

“This is a team sport, but Daniel just drove it to the front,” Ward said.

Andrews admitted that when he saw Morad and Skeer racing so intensely, he thought the victory may fall into his hands.

“We had a lapped car between ourselves and the two leaders, and that made it difficult,” he said. “I’m normally pretty quiet on the radio, but I was pretty loud then. We just couldn’t quite capitalize, but it’s an absolute testament to the team because we never give up. A one-two for Mercedes-Benz in fantastic.”

In the battle for the GS class championship, incoming points leaders Christian Szymczak and Kenny Murillo had a rough run in the No. 72 Murillo Racing Mercedes, finishing 13th after starting fifth.

That dropped them to third in the standings, 10 points behind the No. 71 Rebel Rock Racing Chevrolet Camaro GT4.R with drivers Robin Lidell and Frank DePew, who finished fourth Saturday, and 70 points behind new championship leaders Robby Foley and Vin Barletta in the No. 96 Turner Motorsport BMW (who finished fifth in the race). Mercedes pushed its GS manufacturer lead to 40 points over BMW.

Late-race pass from Taylor in No. 17 Audi at Indy creates hotly contested championship battle heading to season finale

A wild pass in the dark during the final minutes left one team happy and another angry as the Touring Car (TCR) class championship intensified in Saturday’s penultimate round of the 2023 IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge season at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Mikey Taylor passed Robert Wickens heading into Turn 7 with two minutes left, giving Taylor and polesitter Chris Miller their second consecutive victory, and third of the season, in their No. 17 Unitronic/JDC Miller MotorSports Audi RS3 LMS TCR.

“I knew if I had a big enough run, I’d be at least side-by-side,” Taylor said of his approach on the pass. “But he actually braked earlier than I expected, and I got a nice run around the outside. I don’t think he was necessarily expecting me to go there. It’s not a normal place to pass.”

The contact surrounding the pass didn’t go over well with Wickens, who, with co-driver Harry Gottsacker, managed to help maintain the TCR championship lead for the No. 33 Bryan Herta Autosport with Curb Agajanian Hyundai Elantra N TCR.

“I don’t want to be the poor loser, but I’ve never raced the No. 17 yet this year where there hasn’t been contact,” Wickens said. “I can race everyone else without any contact. It’s just the way he is. If that’s how he wants to play, that’s how we’re going to play.”

Wickens and Gottsacker will unofficially take a 20-point lead over Taylor and Miller into the season-ending race next month at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.

“We have to perform, every race, to catch back the deficit we had at the beginning of the season,” Taylor said. “We’re taking it to Atlanta now. I think the ball is in our court. If we win, it doesn’t matter what they do.”

On a restart with 11 minutes left, Taylor passed Wickens, who quickly regained the lead when Taylor tangled with the No. 79 NV Autosport Ford Mustang GT4 driven by Drew Neubauer in Turn 14.

Minutes later, Taylor pulled his Audi alongside Wickens’ Hyundai, and the final tussle for the victory commenced. When asked if there was contact in the dark, Taylor replied, “Oh, for sure.”

“It was just good racing,” he continued. “That’s how we’ve all raced all season. I have a lot of respect for them. … If I finished second at Indianapolis, I wouldn’t be happy either.”

The two shook hands during the post-race celebration, but Wickens expressed his frustration with the late move and the previous pass on the restart.

“He hit me to get by, and then he hit a GS (Neubauer),” Wickens said. “I get back in front of him, and then their car is so fast that they just catch back up. I’m blocking for my life, and eventually all he’s going to do is just hit me out of the way. That’s what he does.”

Taylor’s winning margin at the line was 1.138s. The No. 98 Bryan Herta Autosport with Curb Agajanian Hyundai Elantra N TCR co-driven by Mark Wilkins and Mason Filippi finished third.

The Fox Factory 120, the season finale for the Michelin Pilot Challenge, will be held Oct. 13 at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta. Peacock will provide live streaming coverage in the U.S.

RESULTS

Penske Porsche’s Campbell leads front row lockout at Indianapolis

Porsche Penske Motorsport continued to show the preparation-fueled dominance evident so far this weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, locking out the front row for Sunday’s TireRack.com Battle on the Bricks for the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. Matt Campbell led the qualifying to put the No. 7 Porsche 963 on pole with a 1m13.672s lap, an average of 119.18mph around the 2.439-mile, 14-turn circuit.

“A one-two for the team, obviously, it’s a big thing.” Campbell said. “It’s our home track more or less and we put in a lot of effort and miles here in testing and it’s really paid off, I think. Fantastic for that result, and now on to tomorrow, but great results so far. And I think tomorrow’s race will be really, really tough.”

Mathieu Jaminet fell 0.152s short of putting the No. 6 963 on pole, and will instead start on the outside of the front row alongside his teammate. Locking out the front row was no surprise given the way the team has been dominant at the boss’s race track, and Campbell put that down to the testing they’d been able to do at the facility.

“I’d say each time we’ve come here, the track’s been a little bit different with track conditions and weather and so forth. But certainly coming here as a package and as a group, we could really hit the ground running and knew exactly where we were when we started the weekend. And I think that’s really paid off. We’ve only had to really make small changes and tuning to the car for each of the sessions,” Campbell explained.

Tom Blomqvist put in some outstanding laps for Meyer Shank Racing to start the No. 60 Acura ARX-06 on the inside of the second row thanks to a 1m13.864s lap. Sebastien Bourdais will start the No. 01 Cadillac Racing V-Series.R alongside Blomqvist.

The pair of BMW M Team RLL M Hybrid V8s looked good in the morning session, but couldn’t maintain their position, and will start sixth (Philipp Eng in the No. 24) and seventh (Nick Yelloly in the No. 25), Ricky Taylor having qualified the No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Autosport Acura ahead of them in fifth.

Gar Robinson’s No. 74 Riley Motorsports Ligier LMP3 hammered into the tires at Turn 6 with about seven minutes having elapsed in the combined LMP2/LMP3 qualifying session, bringing out a red flag. The time ran out before the car could be recovered and the track cleared, but officials added sufficient time for the session to have 10 minutes total, the minimum amount for it to be considered an official qualifying session. Had they not, it would have been, ironically, Robinson on the LMP3 pole because he’s leading the points.

As it turns out, the extra time didn’t make a big difference; the two drivers who had set the fast time before the red flag had the fast time afterward as well. Ben Keating did improve with his extra flyer, but he was already on the LMP2 pole. His 1m17.950s in the No. 52 PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports ORECA was 0.440s better than George Kurtz, who will start the No. 04 Crowdstrike by APR ORECA alongside Keating. The pole was Keating’s 13th in IMSA competition, moving him out of a tie to sole ownership of second on the all-time list, and two behind leader Ricky Taylor.

“Something I’ve been working hard on this whole year is to bring my tires up to temperature as quickly as I can because typically in qualifying, with either the P2 or the GTP class, the fast laps usually come at the very end because it takes such a long time to get your tires up to pressure. I’ve been working really hard on doing that safely without ruining the tires that I have to run in the race, and I think that was the difference today, really – especially with the red flag that we had,” Keating explained.

With Robinson out of qualifying, VP Racing SportsCar Challenge LMP3 points leader Bijoy Garg took the LMP3 pole in only his second WeatherTech Championship race. Garg pushed the No. 29 Jr III Racing Ligier to a 1m20.513s lap to take the pole ahead of Nolan Siegel in the other Jr III Racing Ligier. Those two had 0.469s between, them, and it was another 1.5s back to Orey Fidani in the No. 13 Sean Creech Motorsport Duqueine.

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“It was a real team effort. We started decently far off – I didn’t think the car felt that good. But, you know, we’ve been making changes all throughout practice and especially between first and second practices, it felt like we made a massive step in the right direction. I knew we had a good car and it was just a matter of putting a lap together early and we did that. Really happy for the whole team especially to get a one-two.”

Madison Snow turned in yet another stellar qualifying performance, claiming not only the GTD pole, but the overall GT pole for the No. 1 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3. Snow was fastest in every sector to post a 1m23.075s lap (105.69mph) and put four GTD PRO cars between him and the next GTD competitor, the No. 32 Korthoff/Preston Motorsports Mercedes AMG GT3 qualified by Mikael Grenier. It was Snow’s 12th pole position in IMSA competition, temporarily putting him in a four-way tie for second all-time with James French, Keating and Jordan Taylor until Keating got his 13th a short time later.

“I think it’s special and it means a lot for the team,” said Snow. “It means a lot for me to see where we qualified and how we were able to improve from the practice sessions. The car honestly was perfect for us out there; I don’t think I’ve said that before. It did everything that I wanted it to do. And that was down to the Paul Miller Racing team to get everything set up how it was. As far as the race goes. I’ve definitely said this before: It’s awesome to have a gap to the class cars. It also makes me very nervous to have that caliber driver right behind me and especially a lot of them.”

After co-driver Patrick Pilet set the fast time for the morning session in the No. 9 Pfaff Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R, Klaus Bachler echoed that performance by claiming the GTD PRO pole to start on the outside of the first row of GT cars. Bachler was 0.165s off Snow’s time at 1m23.140s.

“The team did a very good job,” declared Bachler, who with co-driver Patrick Pilet is trying to overtake Corvette Racing for second in the championship. “We struggled a bit the last weekend. We also got a BoP change, which is helping us. Definitely feels good to be on pole. It’s my second one. I think tomorrow will be a hard race with all the different classes here again, and you’ve seen in practice many things happen already. It’s good to be on pole, but tomorrow is what counts with the big points and as the championship also comes to an end.”

Jules Gounon improved on his final lap, but it wasn’t enough to surpass Bachler and the No. 79 WeatherTech Racing Mercedes AMG will start on the inside of the second row as Gounon recorded a best time of 1m23.290s. Jack Hawksworth in the No. 14 Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3 will start alongside Gounon.

Alex Riberas will start the No. 23 Heart of Racing Aston Martin GT3 on the inside of the third row, accompanied by Grenier, who recorded a 1m23.424s to qualify second in GTD, 0.233s quicker than Patrick Gallagher in the No. 96 Turner Motorsport BMW M4 GT3 that will start on the inside of row 4, Jordan Taylor in the GTD PRO No. 3 Corvette Racing C8.R alongside. Misha Goikhberg (No. 78 Forte Racing Powered by US RaceTronics Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo2) and Russell Ward (No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes AMG) were fourth and fifth in GTD.

Up Next: A 20-minute warmup session Sunday at 8 a.m. ET, ahead of a 1:10 p.m. start for the 2h40m race.

RESULTS

Penske Porsches 1-2 in second IMSA practice at Indy

Former Pfaff Motorsport co-drivers and reigning GTD PRO champs Matt Campbell and Mathieu Jaminet put on battle for supremacy within both the Porsche Penske Motorsport squad and overall as the team’s two 963s went one-two in the second practice …

Campbell came out on top in the No. 7 963, posting a 1m14.085s time as he went under the session-ending checker to best Jaminet in the No. 6 by 0.185s. They had traded fast laps for the final eight minutes of the session in what was perhaps a preview of qualifying later today. The two Porsches were followed by the pair of BMW M Team RLL M Hybrid V8s, Philipp Eng coming out on top of Nick Yelloly in the intra-squad rivalry. Eng had a 1m14.550s lap in the No, 24, only 0.012s better than Yelloly in the No. 25.

Sebastien Bourdais was fifth for Cadillac Racing in the No. 01 Chip Ganassi Racing V-Series.R, and Tom Blomqvist made Meyer Shank Racing the better of the two Acura squads in sixth. The top nine GTP cars were within a second, with only the No. 5 JDC-Miller Motorsports Porsche 963 outside that delta.

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The times for both the GTP cars and GTD PRO teams tumbled in the final 15 minutes as the two classes were alone on track, and Porsche ended up on top of GTD PRO as well with Klaus Bachler’s 1m22.905s lap in the No. 9 Pfaff Motorsports 911 GT3 R. Jules Gounon saved his best for last, pushing the No. 79 WeatherTech Racing Mercedes AMG to second in PRO with a 1m23.168s on his final lap. Jack Hawksworth, who was quickest in yesterday’s first practice, was third, just over half a second back of Bachler.

Mikkel Jensen once again was quickest in LMP2, piloting the No. 11 TDS Racing ORECA to a 1m16.758s to better Ben Hanley in the No. 04 Crowdstrike Racing by APR ORECA by 0.065s. Ryan Dalziel was third for Era Motorsport with a 1m17.002s.

The Era Motorsport ORECA was one of the cars involved in one of three incidents that interrupted the session. Dwight Merriman was at the wheel of the No. 18 when Dennis Andersen in the No. 20 High Class Racing ORECA LMP2 plowed into him in the brake zone for Turn 1. Other red flags were for Louis Deletraz spinning the No. 8 Tower Motorsports ORECA LMP2 off Cours at the exit of Turn 1 and for Orey Fidani ending up in the gravel in Turn 4 in the No. 13 AWA Duqueine LMP3, just as the time for the Pro-Am classes to be on track ended.

Before Fidani’s spin, though, his co-driver Matthew Bell turned the quickest lap for the LMP3 class with a 1m20.840s in the No. 13. Dakota Dickerson was second quickest in the No. 54 MLT Motorsports Ligier, but only by 0.003s. Bijoy Garg was third in the No. 29 Jr III Racing Ligier at 1m20.885s.

Loris Spinelli bettered his GTD position by one from yesterday’s session, topping the class with a 1m23.0125s lap in the No. 78 Forte Racing Powered by US RaceTronics Lamborghini Huracán and splitting the top two in GTD PRO. Mikael Grenier was second in the No. 32 Korthoff/Preston Motorsports Mercedes AMG, 0.459s off Spinelli, while Kay van Berlo was third in the No. 91 Kellymoss with Riley Porsche 911 GT3 R at 1m23.826s. Philip Ellis (No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes AMG) and Bill Auberlen (No. 97 Turner Motorsport BMW M4 GT3) completed the top 5 in GTD.

UP NEXT: Qualifying, beginning at 1 p.m. ET, broadcast live on IMSA.tv.

RESULTS

Campbell fast for Penske and Porsche in IMSA’s first practice at Indy

Porsche Penske Motorsport posted the top time in the first practice session for the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship’s return to Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Friday. Matt Campbell turned a 1m15.184s lap in the No. 7 Porsche 963, an average …

“It’s the boss’s race rack, so high expectation this weekend to be able to perform very well and try and get a good result here, especially going on from our recent race in Road America,” Campbell said. “But generally, our car was quite good; we struggled a little bit at the start of the session but then towards the end we were reasonably happy, or somewhere close to it. Track is difficult – traffic is very busy out there as expected, but just goes to show, I think, how much more difficult it will be to be able to manage it in the race.”

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Campbell’s best was just a tick ahead of Filipe Albuquerque, who was only 0.022s off that top time in the No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Autosport Acura ARX-06. Sebastien Bourdais was third in the No. 01 Cadillac Racing V-Series.R with a 1m15.4s lap. To make it all four marques in the top four, the BMWs occupied the next two spots, with Connor De Phillippi in the No. 25 BMW M Team RLL M Hybrid V8 besting teammate Philipp Eng in the No. 24.

Mikkel Jensen was quickest in LMP2, posting a 1m17.231s lap in the No. 11 TDS Racing ORECA, with Ryan Dalziel 0.055s off in the No. 18 Era Motorsport entry. Dalziel’s best lap was just enough to claim second in the session – Ben Hanley’s best in the No. 01 Crowdstrike Racing by APR was only 0.001s slower.

Garett Grist, sharing the No. 30 Jr III Racing this weekend with Nolan Siegel instead of Ari Balogh, was quickest in LMP3 with a 1m20.737s lap. Matthew Campbell was second-quickest at 1m20.799s in the No. 13 AWA Duqueine, followed by Guilherme de Olivera in the No. 29 Jr III Racing Ligier, 0.437s back.

Jack Hawksworth, leading the GTD PRO points with Ben Barnicoat, topped the session for both GTD PRO and GTD overall, turning a 1m23.636 lap (104.98mph) in the No. 14 Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3.

Hawksworth and the No.14 Vasser Sullivan Lexus team set the early weekend benchmark in GTD PRO. Michael Levitt/Motorsport Images

“Towards the end there we put some new tires on and tried to get a feel and understanding of where the car’s at going into tomorrow,” explained Hawksworth.

“It’s really difficult to read too much into any of the lap times from anybody in that session. But it was more to get an idea of where the balance is at and then any adjustments we need to make for tomorrow afternoon. Tomorrow’s practice session is pretty early in the morning, so what we had just there is probably a little bit more representative of what we’re going to have in qualifying and in the race. So it was an important session and I felt like we were in reasonable shape.”

Klaus Bachler was second in GTD PRO in the No. 9 Pfaff Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R with a 1m24.221s lap, fourth GT driver overall as the rest of the GTD PRO cars were sprinkled through the field. Jules Gounon was third, nearly a second off Hawksworth’s time in the No. 79 WeatherTech Racing Mercedes AMG.

Patrick Gallagher led GTD in the No. 96 Turner Motorsport BMW M4 GT3, posting a 1m24.019s lap. Loris Spinelli was 0.123s off Gallagher in the No. 78 Forte Racing Powered by US RaceTronics Lamborghini Huracan, with Russell Ward third at 1m24.235s in the No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes AMG. Mikael Grenier (No. 32 Korthoff/Preston Motorsports Mercedes AMG) and Trent Hindman (No. 77 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R) completed the top five in GTD.

The 90-minute session was interrupted by two red flags, the first for Alan Brynjolfsson getting stuck in the gravel in the No. 77 Porsche, and another for Jarett Andretti’s No. 94 Aston Martin Vantage GT3, which slowed on the front straight, spitting flames out the right-side exhaust before coming to a stop at Turn 7.

RESULTS

UP NEXT: A 1h45m split practice session beginning at 8:55am ET on Saturday.

Racing on TV, September 14-17

All times Eastern; live broadcasts unless noted. Thursday, September 14 Bristol practice/ qualifying 4:00-5:30pm Bristol 6:00-8:00pm Bristol 8:00-9:00pm pre-race 9:00-11:00pm race Friday, September 15 Singapore practice 1 5:25-6:30am Singapore …

All times Eastern; live broadcasts unless noted.

Thursday, September 14

	Bristol practice/ qualifying	4:00-5:30pm
	Bristol	6:00-8:00pm
	Bristol	8:00-9:00pm pre-race 9:00-11:00pm race

Friday, September 15

	Singapore practice 1	5:25-6:30am
	Singapore practice 1	5:25-6:30am
	Singapore practice 2	8:55- 10:00am
	Singapore practice 2	8:55- 10:00am
	Bristol practice/ qualifying	2:30-4:00pm
	Bristol practice/ qualifying	4:30-6:30pm
	Bristol	7:00-7:30pm pre-race 7:30-10:30pm race
	Maple Grove qualifying 1 (SDD)	10:30pm- 12:00am

Saturday, September 16

	Singapore practice 3	5:25-6:30am
	Singapore practice 3	5:25-6:30am
	Singapore qualifying	8:55-10:00am
	Singapore qualifying	8:55-10:00am
	Indianapolis race 1	11:45am- 12:40pm
	Indianapolis qualifying	12:55-2:10pm
	Indianapolis race 1	2:25-3:10pm
	Indianapolis	4:30-8:30pm
	Bristol	6:30-10:30pm race
	Joliet	7:30pm
	Sardinia 1 finals	11:00pm- 1:00am (SDD)

Sunday, September 17

	Singapore GP	6:30-7:55am pre-race 7:55- 10:00am race
	Singapore GP	6:30-7:55am pre-race 7:55- 10:00am race
	Indianapolis race 2	9:35-10:20am
	Indianapolis race 2	10:35- 11:30am
	Maple Grove qualifying 2 (D)	12:30- 2:00pm
	Indianapolis race	1:00-4:00pm
	Maple Grove finals	2:00-4:00pm 4:30-6:30pm
	Road America	8:00-9:00pm (D)
	Sardinia 2 finals	11:00pm- 1:00am (SDD)

Key: SDD: Same day delay; D = delayed; R = Repeat/Replay

A variety of motor racing is available for streaming on demand at the following sites:

MAVTV.com

MotorTrendOnDemand.com

SRO-america.com
SCCA.com
SpeedSport1.com
Ferrari Challenge
The Trans Am Series airs in 60-minute highlight shows in primetime on the MAVTV Network. For those wishing to tune in live, the entire lineup of SpeedTour events will stream for free on the SpeedTour TV YouTube page. SpeedTour TV will also air non-stop activity on Saturday and Sunday (SVRA, IGT and Trans Am). You can also watch all Trans Am event activity on the Trans Am YouTube page and Facebook page.
All NTT IndyCar Series stream live on Peacock Premium.

IMS Cup debut a dream but also scary for Supercars’ Kostecki

Brodie Kostecki is finally getting to live out a dream of competing in a NASCAR race this weekend at Indianapolis, but his initial reaction to the opportunity wasn’t vigorous excitement. “I was actually very scared when I found out I was doing this …

Brodie Kostecki is finally getting to live out a dream of competing in a NASCAR race this weekend at Indianapolis, but his initial reaction to the opportunity wasn’t vigorous excitement.

“I was actually very scared when I found out I was doing this race,” said Kostecki, a regular in Australia’s Supercars series.

The Indianapolis road course was not the cleanest of races for the NASCAR Cup Series in its first two seasons. A tight right-hander into Turn 1 is just too enticing for drivers, which has resulted in contact and carnage. It is what stood out to Kostecki when he began reviewing tape ahead of his debut.

“I went back through the last two years and went to study pretty quickly how the race played out and what it was like into Turn 1,” Kostecki said. “But obviously this weekend has been changed with the restart zone. It was sort of a bit interesting going back through and watching how the races played out, but I honestly think it’ll be quite a bit different with the restart zone.”

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In hopes of cleaning up the first turn, NASCAR has backed the restart zone up this weekend to between Turns 13 and 14. It is before the field makes the turn onto the front straightaway, and it is not required they to stay in line before crossing the start/finish line — which NASCAR hopes means the field will be more spread out before Turn 1.

“I think what we do back home is quite similar in a way,” Kostecki said of the physical nature of Cup Series racing. “There are probably a little bit more rules around our racing back home, but it is pretty similar in a way. I’ll do what I do best and drive the car and see what happens.”

Kostecki has plenty of road racing miles in Supercars with Erebus Motorsport, but knows that for all the similarities, the IMS Cup race will be a different animal. Mark Horsburgh/Motorsport Images

Kostecki is one of two Supercars interlopers in the field this weekend, joining rival Shane van Gisbergen, who won on his Cup debut at Chicago earlier this season. However, Kostecki’s first laps in the Next Gen car came Saturday during practice and qualifying as his only preparation time has been about 13 to 14 hours on the Chevrolet simulator.

“Honestly, there’s a lot of similarities between the Camaro I’m racing today and what I race back home in Australia,” Kostecki said.

Getting a ride in the Cup Series has been two years in the making for Kostecki and Richard Childress Racing. Options had been limited in making the schedule work without conflict, and the two races that stood out were Chicago and Indianapolis.

“With how RCR performed here last year, we circled that one on the calendar quite a while ago,” Kostecki said. “Obviously, what Shane did at Chicago was quite amazing, but I think it’s very different circumstances where this weekend.”

This is not a new infatuation with NASCAR for Kostecki. He is a former competitor of the K&N East (now ARCA Menards) Series and also ran late models in America in the early 2010s. But he’s made a name for himself back home in Australia as one of the most decorated drivers in Supercars competition.

“To get this opportunity with everyone at RCR and Richard [Childress] to come and make my Cup debut, I’ve sort of done a full circle,” Kostecki said, “which is pretty cool.”

McDowell leads the way in Indy Cup practice

Michael McDowell was fastest overall in NASCAR Cup Series practice on the Indianapolis road course Saturday morning at 98.516 mph. McDowell ran 10 laps in his Front row Motorsports Ford. He was quickest ahead of Kyle Larson, who ran 98.436 mph. …

Michael McDowell was fastest overall in NASCAR Cup Series practice on the Indianapolis road course Saturday morning at 98.516 mph.

McDowell ran 10 laps in his Front row Motorsports Ford. He was quickest ahead of Kyle Larson, who ran 98.436 mph. McDowell was also fastest in the best 10 consecutive lap average.

Todd Gilliland, McDowell’s teammate, was third quickest. Gilliland ran a fast lap of 98.403 mph but then went off course and got stuck in the gravel trap to end the practice session.

Ty Gibbs was fourth fastest at 98.329 mph and Alex Bowman completed the top five at 98.265 mph.

Christopher Bell was sixth fastest at 98.259 mph, Austin Cindric was seventh fastest at 98.251 mph and Daniel Suarez was eighth fastest at 98.232 mph. William Byron was ninth fastest at 98.054 mph and Martin Truex Jr. rounded out the top 10 in practice at 98.049 mph.

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In his return to the Cup Series after his Chicago triumph, Shane van Gisbergen was 12th fastest in practice. van Gisbergen ran a fast lap of 97.957 mph.

Defending race winner Tyler Reddick was 15th fastest in practice at 97.939 mph.

Kamui Kobayashi was 31st fastest in practice. Kobayashi is making his Cup series debut with 23XI Racing.

Brodie Kostecki, also making his Cup Series debut, was 38th fastest in practice. Kostecki is in a third Richard Childress Racing entry.

Mike Rockenfeller was 39th fastest in practice. Rockenfeller is in the No. 42 for Legacy Motor Club for the next two races.

IndyCar announces three grid penalties for Indy road race

IndyCar announced a six-position starting grid penalty for three series entries – the No. 06 Meyer Shank Racing Honda driven by Helio Castroneves, the No. 18 Dale Coyne Racing with HMD Honda of David Malukas and the No. 30 Rahal Letterman Lanigan …

IndyCar announced a six-position starting grid penalty for three series entries — the No. 06 Meyer Shank Racing Honda driven by Helio Castroneves, the No. 18 Dale Coyne Racing with HMD Honda of David Malukas and the No. 30 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda driven by Jack Harvey — for unapproved engine changes following last week’s race at Nashville.

The named teams were in violation of Rule 16.2.3.2: “A fifth Engine is eligible to earn Engine Manufacturer points if a Full Season Entrant has completed the Full Season Entrant Engine Mileage with its first four (4) Engines. Otherwise, a fifth (5th) or more Engine does not earn Engine Manufacturer points and will be considered an Unapproved Engine change-out.”

The specified penalty for violation of this rule is a six-position starting grid penalty on road and street course events and nine positions at oval events and will be served at the series’ next event, which is Saturday’s Gallagher Grand Prix on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.

Big Game Boomer: Notre Dame biggest college brand in…Illinois?

Not sure we agree with this.

It’s no secret that a large portion of Notre Dame’s fan base is in the Chicago area. That’s reflected by the fact that every writer on this site is based there. But is that reflective of the state of Illinois as a whole?

Big Game Boomer, a top college sports list and graph aficionado on social media, has been mentioned on here many times before. His latest entry as of this writing is a U.S. map that lists the biggest college brand by state. Notre Dame is listed for Illinois and the only school not located in the state it represents:

The Biggest College Brand In Every State 📈 pic.twitter.com/hPVB7ec8GK

— Big Game Boomer (@BigGameBoomer) July 31, 2023

Inevitably, someone asked about this, and he was quick to respond:

Because everyone in Chicago is a Notre Dame fan.

— Big Game Boomer (@BigGameBoomer) July 31, 2023

And when asked why Indiana doesn’t have Notre Dame, he said this:

Walk through the Indianapolis airport. There are vendors selling Indiana and Purdue gear. Notre Dame gear is nowhere to be found. It’s a Hoosier state.

— Big Game Boomer (@BigGameBoomer) July 31, 2023

The first event I covered on location for this site was the now-defunct Crossroads Classic in Indianapolis. Even though the Irish were the designated home team, the crowd at Bankers Life Fieldhouse was heavily for the Hoosiers. So the statement about the Hoosiers owning the Hoosier State is not wrong.

Still, as nice as it is to see Notre Dame represented on this map, it’s hard to call it the best college brand in the Land of Lincoln. Sure, Northern Illinois is too small for consideration, and everyone is distancing themselves from Northwestern right now, but what about Illinois? While the Illini football program has done little to help the brand lately, it’s a little unfair to discount those fans.

Anyone who lives in Illinois knows that the further south you go, the more you’ll find people who don’t care for Chicago. I won’t go into the reasons for that here, but this is one case where Chicago probably shouldn’t represent the whole state.

Illini fans reign supreme throughout Illinois, and one merely needs to travel throughout to find them. They are proud, and they are passionate about their team. Many of them still are mourning the loss of Chief Illiniwek as an official university symbol.

So as nice as it is to have Notre Dame as Illinois’ representative on this map, it really should be a school from Illinois. And Illini fans probably are most deserving to represent the state. After all, Chicago is a pro sports town first, so it should not be taken into account when making a map like this. Consider the rest of the state please next time, Big Game Boomer.

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Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89