2023 GT Sports Cars & Prototypes Races/Results

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Supercar-Studded Spa 24 Hours Recap

From Autoweek:

"While Le Mans and Daytona feature exotic prototypes along with race-prepped sports cars, the Fanatec GT World Challenge features GT3 cars only. This year’s CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa featured every supercar you ever wanted to have in your garage, or at least on a poster. Earning a spot in the grid were an Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3, Audi R8 LMS GT3 EVO II, BMW M4 GT3, Ferrari 296 GT3, Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2, McLaren 720S GT3 EVO, Mercedes-AMG GT3, and Porsche 911 GT3 R (992). This year 70 cars took the green flag under cloudy skies but dry weather. None of the rain for which Spa is so well known fell during the race. That left the racing to the teams and drivers and not Mother Nature."

https://www.autoweek.com/racing/more-ra ... d568259d8a

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Porsche No. 7 wins its first race of the season, bringing Porsche Penske Motorsport a second victory.

IMSA Road America Results: GTP Title Up for Grabs.

IMSA 2023-08-06 Road America WTSCC results.pdf

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https://www.autoweek.com/racing/more-ra ... d568259d8a

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2024 IMSA Schedule Released

https://www.autoweek.com/racing/more-ra ... d568259d8a


2024 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Schedule:

Jan. 19-21: Roar Before the 24, Daytona, GTP/LMP2/GTD Pro/GTD
Jan. 28: Rolex 24 at Daytona, GTP/LMP2/GTD Pro/GTD
March 16: Sebring, Fla., GTP/LMP2/GTD Pro/GTD
April 20: Long Beach, Calif., GTP/GTD
May 12: WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, Calif., GTP/GTP Pro/GTD
June 1: Detroit, GTP/GTD Pro
June 30: Watkins Glen, N.Y., GTP/LMP2 /GTD Pro/GTD
July 14: Canadian Tire Motorsports Park, Ontario, Canada, LMP2/GRD Pro/GTD
Aug. 4: Road America, Elkhart Lake, Wis., GTP/LMP2/GTD Pro/GTD
Aug. 25: Virginia International Raceway, GTD Pro/GTD
Sept. 22: Indianapolis Motor Speedway, GTP/LMP2/GTD Pro/GTD
Oct. 12: Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta, GTP/LMP2/GTD Pro/GTD

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Porsche wins at Road America — All four 963s finish on the lead lap

From today's PCA e-Brake News. There's a good video recap in the article too.
https://www.pca.org/news/porsche-963-wi ... -tech-tips


The #5 JDC Miller Motorsports Porsche 963 GTP entry - what an absolutely gorgeous and phenomenal racing machine.

963 GTP #5 JDC Miller Motorsports Rd America 2023-08-06.jpg (166.45 KiB) Viewed 871 times

(PCA e-Brake News)

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IMSA Michelin GT Challenge Results at VIR Saturday Aug 27th

https://www.autoweek.com/racing/more-ra ... d568259d8a

IMSA 2023-08-27 VIR Michelin GT Challenge results.pdf

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As mentioned by WillyDaP here earlier today, BoP took away any chance for Porsche to compete.

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As 996C438 pointed out earlier today, the Porsche 963's took 1st & 2nd in the GTP class at yesterday's IMSA Indy Race. Congrats to Porsche as they've apparently found their mojo.

The Championship will be settled at the season's final race, Road Atlanta's 10-hour Petit Le Mans October 14th.

https://www.autoweek.com/racing/more-ra ... -speedway/

IMSA 2023-09-17 IMS WTSCC results.pdf

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Porsche 963 GTP #6 IMSA winner IMS 2023-09-17.jpg (118.39 KiB) Viewed 758 times

IMSA Photo

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Connor Zilisch Dominates Saturday's TA2 Race at World Wide Technology Raceway (Gateway)

Running the road course layout at the WWTR/Gateway facility where many groups race - IndyCar & Nascar on the oval and SCCA, TransAm, PCA and others racing on the infield road course.

TA-TA2 2023-09-23 Worldwide Tech Raceway (Gateway) results.pdf

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zilisch-gateway-650f9d39a90a9.jpg (124.47 KiB) Viewed 738 times

Silver Hare Racing

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Paraphrasing some of the Autoweek article along with my own thoughts, yesterday's 10-hour Petit Le Mans enduro at Road Atlanta, the season finale for the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, was a good one for fans, but maybe not so much for some of the cars and drivers in the crowded field of 52 cars racing in the five different classes. Not all drivers were happy. “Some of these guys don’t know how to drive side-by-side,” said Andy Lally,

The race was full of action - lots of great racing along with the expected incidents and unfortunate occurrences - some questionable. This was especially true for Nick Tandy’s GTP Porsche 963 which was blindsided and sent into a gravel trap early in the race, taking championship contenders Tandy and Mathieu Jaminet out of contention in the second hour. Tandy, who with Jaminet, entered the race five points out of the lead in the driver championship, was resigned to his fate: “You get good days and bad days,” he said. “It makes it bitter.”

A huge questionable move at the end of the 9th hour was that of Filipe Albuquerque's attempt in the WTR Konica-Minolta Acura GTP to pass on the outside of Pipo Derani's Whelen Engineering Cadillac GTP at speed in the very fast, off-camber, treacherous Turn-1 coming out of the front straight. Apparently Albuquerque, who was also racing for the the championship, knew that his chances were shrinking for gaining on the in-class cars in front of him. Still, there was an hour of racing left so I don't imagine Wayne Taylor was pleased with the almost sure to fail move. I understand that it's sports car racing at the highest level with a lot on the line so risks will be taken, but there is no room for mistakes at that particular turn. Zero.

The Rd Atlanta infield, the grandstand and and other places to watch were packed with fans - the attendance was one of the largest turnouts in the 26-year history of the race which was great. They got their money's worth.

It was an excellent first year for the new Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) cars. The cars are incredible - among the fastest and most capable in the entire racing world. Adding to the mix for next season are the new GT3 cars that will race here in IMSA and overseas in WEC events. I think next season will be an especially good one both here and abroad.

"Surprises Aplenty in IMSA WeatherTech Finale"
"Action Express Cadillac, Pipo Derani, Alexander Sims claim season championships in GTP class"

https://www.autoweek.com/racing/more-ra ... ch-finale/

Porsche had a somewhat disappointing but still respectable day. The remaining GTP 963's finished 3rd, 4th, & 5th in class. The Pfaff Motorsports 911 992 GT3 R was second in GTD Pro and Wright Motorsports 911 992 GT3 R was on the podium in third in GTD.

IMSA 2023-10-14 Rd Atlanta Petit LeMans WTSCC results.pdf

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[WillyDaP]

Hard to believe the Pfaff Motorsports Porsche is going away next year, as the Team has such a legacy with Porsche , but will wander over to McClaren in 2024. I imagine the fact that the BOP rulings have seemed to favor everyone except Porsche over the past few years has led them to view other alternatives. Porsche needs to bump up their Race Marketing savvy, as it seems to be an issue in many Series Worldwide of late. Nice to see the 2nd and 3rd Place runs in GTD Pro and GTD , though and I have confidence the 963 program will reap plenty of benefit from the works and privateer teams this year --- it was a bigger learning experience more so for Porsche after no real program in the top echelon group for awhile.

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Hard to believe the Pfaff Motorsports Porsche is going away next year, as the Team has such a legacy with Porsche , but will wander over to McClaren in 2024. I imagine the fact that the BOP rulings have seemed to favor everyone except Porsche over the past few years has led them to view other alternatives. Porsche needs to bump up their Race Marketing savvy, as it seems to be an issue in many Series Worldwide of late. Nice to see the 2nd and 3rd Place runs in GTD Pro and GTD , though and I have confidence the 963 program will reap plenty of benefit from the works and privateer teams this year --- it was a bigger learning experience more so for Porsche after no real program in the top echelon group for awhile.

I know. Sad to see Pfaff go - they have become a Porsche icon for GT racing.