Pit stop time for Ferrari #1 and they go for four tires and so does the #34 Walkenhorst BMW. Dane Cameron should be our leader in the JAS Honda Acura NSX GT3. Martin Konrad is now fifth. Dane Cameron leads Martin Tomczyk, Markus Winkelhock, and Jordan Pepper. The #69 BGB Motorsports Porsche is in the lane. That's a GT4 car, the Porsche Cayman is being shared by Tom Collingwood, John Tecce, and Dylan Murry. There's Matt Dalton as well. Now, he goes by Matt, to honor his grandpa, but his given name is Joe, sharing that GT4 Aston Martin with Patrick Gallagher and Jonathan Taylor. Matt Dalton brings the field to green. Now you can go and here comes Dane Cameron. The rooster tails are immense. You just can't see. Jordan Pepper and Martin Tomczyk, threading the needle, and Pepper wants by Markus Winkelhock. Pepper shortcuts turns five and six. Have Bentley found the secret sauce?
Now, Winkelhock is monstering Tomczyk but gets trapped, look, by a GT4 car. The #04 Mercedes pits and Colin Braun will do a couple stints, taking over for George Kurtz. They need a large slice of luck to win the title. The drivers are still exploring for grip. The best racing line is out the window with all the rain. Nick Wittmer almost plows into Andy Lee. Nick Wittmer flies right past the McLaren and here's Bill Auberlen, too! This is a battle royal in GT4! Yikes! Matt Dalton is still leding in class. Auberlen moves by Dr. Jim Rappaport. He is an orthopedic surgeon who also happens to be a racing driver. Augusto Farfus movwes past Andy Lee as the ponds have abated in depth.
If you've driven a faster car, and are driving a slower one, you are familiar with the mindset of the bloke driving the faster automobile. Dane Cameron leads Martin Tomczyk and Markus Winkelhock. Jordan Pepper and Martin Konrad are next. In clear air, Dane Cameron has run the fastest lap so far at 1:32.28. Matt Dalton is ahead of the two GT3 leaders and he has to give way as Farfus goes by. He is a magician in the rain. He won the 2019 Rolex 24 at Daytona in another series (IMSA), and that made him a master. He has also run in DTM for BMW. The Brazilian driver is very positive, energetic, and professional. Farfus looks to the inside and goes by the #20 Porsche.
Many of these cars have a rear view camera, but that can get blurred by the water. Dane Cameron continues to lead. The lap times will fall like dominoes. An eight to ten second range is how much you can go in terms of lap time with a wet tire compared to a slick before the wet tire gives up and is totally busted. Do you risk slick tires? If you make that change, don't throw a new driver into the car because he or she will be thrown into the fire. Jordan Pepper fourth, Augusto Farfus in fifth. Dane Cameron has had clear sailing while Jordan Pepper has had to bish bash bosh his way through the field. This is a new, different race track for the new wet weather Pirelli P Zero. This track is vastly different from say Canadian Tire Motorsport Park for instance, another round of the American series.
Oh no! Drive through penalty for Mercedes #04 for entering a closed pit lane. Colin Braun's father, Jeff Braun is calling strategy for his son, and the rule books say different things for different championships. Ben Keating was at the end of his 65 minute stint, as the pits were closed but these boys hit the lane under green. If it is under yellow you can extend to 70 minutes, but they had to pit to not go over the 65 minute maximum. George Kurtz who started the car has been arguing this point. Here comes #04 to serve the penalty.
They couldn't change tires and get out quickly enough. They are a lap down now. They came in for rain tires during green flag racing. Because of the pit stop delta, they have gone down a lap. These are byzantine rules. Most of the other cars are racing for the overall trophy, but the Crowdstrike boys are trying to go for the SRO America series in the first three hours. The rain could be done and dusted, perhaps. Jeff Braun on strategy for #04 and Peter Baron for the #63, two sports car racing veterans. Dane Cameron continues to lead this motor race.
There is a difference between closing the pit lane and closing the pit exit. Dane Cameron clocks in a 1:31.77 while Augusto Farfus uncorks a 1:31.73. Dane Cameron is cooling his tires, looking for water so they don't begin to chunk. Nick Wittmer now leads GT4 with the ST Racing BMW, car #438. The pit entry was closed. Nick Wittmer leads GT4 followed by Bill Auberlen, Andy Lee, Joe Dalton, and Parker Chase. The wet tires move around on big loads. Dane Cameron continues searching for water and Martin Tomczyk, the German, is reeling in the American sports car ace. Martin Tomczyk had 200 or so DTM starts and many of those, in the rain.
Down Hulman Boulevard they go. Manage the tires. Don't burn them up. We have a long, long way to go. In GT4, it's a battle for the lead. Wittmer vs. Auberlen. Stop and hold penalty for the #82 boys! Oh dear! They will be held for 99 seconds total. The hold is the amount of time you were short on the pit stop. The penalty is 51 seconds in the lane. Auberlen is serving the penalty now and you cannot do any normal service on the car. Will Auberlen go for a driver change? You can't do that until you've served the penalty, I don't think.
If you are in the lane for a time penalty, you can do service and then take the penalty. But is it a straight drive through? No. It's a timed penalty which is different. The team might have to fight this one with the marshals, the SRO marshals. Meantime, a battle between Dane Camrrton and Martin Tomczyk for the lead of this motor race. These corners between turns four and six are amazing. Cameron goes by the #75 Mercedes and so does Tomczyk. Cameron does not have the grip compared to the BMW and a left rear tire is flat on the #93 Racer's Edge Acura, Trent Hindman at the controls. Hindman has to be extremely careful.
He has a long way to be in limp home mode. If that Pirelli tire flails, it'll do big damage to the bodywork and the suspension parts. Now, we watch this stop for fuel only and there were no fresh tires for the boys at Racer's Edge. Cameron is hanging on by a thread over Tomczyk as they lap past Max Root. You have three great drivers, make that four, at various points of their careers. The Racer's Edge team takes fuel and are going with all four tires, all new tires. The left rear tire takes a pasting 'round this circuit. Meantime, Martin Tomczyk takes the lead and also puts a lap on Max Root still at the wheel of the #20 Wright Motorsports Porsche, that's the Root/Poordad/Heylen car.
Dane Cameron is pushing really hard at the moment. Tomczyk just wrestles his way to the inside in replay. The BMW has the advantage in the low speed, technical corners. It looks like parts of this track here at "The Brickyard" are beginning to dry. Let us not forget it was Connor De Phillippi who put the sister #34 Walkenhorst BMW on the pole in the shootout yesterday. Jordan Pepper wants to scrap with Markus Winkelhock and has to give it up and let Winkelhock go. Jordan Pepper's father and sister have also done some racing. In the meantime, Max Root is fending off the challenge from Markus Winkelhock but Winkelhock says "no you don't, sunshine" and biffs Root to the side, slamming the door in his face.
That Bentley has a thundering V8 motor. It's reminiscent of the old Roush Racing Ford Mustang's in the IMSA GT series, back in the 1980s and '90s, and other cars in that particular series. In the next hour, this track might be dry. Winkelhock and Pepper are both taking dry lines and at the end of this stint, they will have to go to slick Pirelli tires. A twitchy moment there, look, for Andrew Davis in the #2 GMG Racing Porsche Cayman. That's the Davis/Bell/Liddell automobile. Winkelhock gets snookered, nearly, by the #8 Lee/Sofronas/Sabo Audi. Markus Winkelhock is the man to lead his one and only start in a Formula 1 Grand Prix. That's the only one he led. He spent five years in DTM, and also ran FIA GT1, and won the IGTC in 2017. He is the son of the late, great Manfred Winkelhock, and the nephew of Le Mans winner, Joachim Winkelhock.
He is in the lane now and Spencer Pumpelly will be back into the car. He is a co-driver for Hardpoint in a few other championships, Rob Ferriol the team boss, and this is a WRT prepped car, and not the same car they use in a different championship. Markus Winkelhock is going to have a really tricky time coming out on the road in the wet. Fuel for Dane Cameron in the Acura as well. He is out of the car and it is not known whether it will be Renger van der Zande or Mario Farnbacher in the car. Spencer Pumpelly is dirt tracking that #31 Hardpoint Audi! Wow.
Augusto Farfus leapfrogs the Audi. Farfus might have some damage on that BMW. Jordan Pepper uncorks another fast lap. 1:31.078. Now, Spencer Pumpelly will also go faster as the tires get more grip. Who is fastest on wets? Who is fastest on slicks? Slick tires, of course, are racing tires, sans any tread. Bentley will be happy, giddy, for the next race, the 24 Hours of Spa Francorchamps, in Belgium, the blue ribbon IGTC race, at the end of this month, in less than three weeks. Can't wait to bring that one to you as well.
K-PAX has Jules Gounon suited and booted, and ready to go. They want to go to slicks but it is now spritzing with rain, again. Poor old Mario Farnbacher is really having a tough old time on his current tires. The mental exhaustion with the rain is as much as the physical. It's cold at Indy, but wow. Where the heck did this rain come from? Apple, I want the money back on the iPhone weather app. It's inaccurate there, mate. Nick Yelloly is the next driver to take over BMW #35 from Martin Tomczyk. David Pittard is the third driver in BMW #35.
Jan Heylen takes over the #20 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3R from Max Root. He has been a driver coach, working with Fred Poordad and Max Root, both, who are his co-drivers. Spencer Pumpelly, on slicks, in the wet, and the two GT4 BMW M4's are going to have more grip. These GT3 machines are very aerodynamically dependent, and so, they are going to be skating around. The GT4 cars have more mechanical grip and more roll. Rain tires for the Acura team as the #35 Walkenhorst BMW pits and yes, Nick Yelloly takes over. Bentley have also been to the lane for service, and now, Augusto Farfus in the sister Walkenhorst BMW takes the lead of this motor race.
Martin Fuentes will gain a place and he is the Pro Am leader. He will secure points and the North American championship, due to the pit lane in nine or ten laps, according to team boss Gregory Romanelli. K-PAX went with fuel, no tires, and no driver change, leaving Pepper out there on the road. Getting a tire change done in under 20 seconds is the goal. Two mechanics, and one wheel gun. Mercedes #75 in the lane for service. Martin Konrad I believe, is out, and a new driver will be in the car. It is either Kenny Habul or Mikael Grenier, the Canadian. Martin Tomczyk debriefs with the team at Walkenhorst BMW.
Slow stop for the #75. Kenny Habul, team principal, at the wheel, the Bronze title winner in 2018. He is a racer and a businessman, both. Mario Farnbacher has been into the lane for wets. The #93 Racer's Edge Acura has pitted, Shelby Blackstock now at the wheel of it. Meanwhile, Martin Fuentes is running ofourth, chasing down the fifth place Mercedes AMG GT3, the #04 which is down a lap. That's the Kurtz/Braun/Keating car, and the #1 Ferrari will win the title as we are going to enter the third hour. Mark Issa is the third driver in this car.
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