More Sportscar365 season reviews for 2020.
Sportscar365’s GT Drivers of The Year
Sportscar365’s Prototype Drivers of The Year
Thursday, December 31, 2020
Wednesday, December 30, 2020
Muehlner Set for Dual LMP3 Program
WeatherTech Championship, Prototype Challenge plans in works for 2021...
https://sportscar365.com/imsa/iwsc/muehlner-set-for-dual-lmp3-program/
Briscoe Headlines Scuderia Corsa GTD Effort for Rolex 24
Scuderia Corsa firms up Rolex 24 effort for GTD effort without WeatherTech backing...
https://sportscar365.com/imsa/iwsc/briscoe-headlines-scuderia-corsa-gtd-effort-for-rolex-24/
In Memoriam: John Paul Jr.
Sad news to report today. Sports car racing veteran, John Paul Jr. has passed away, at age 60 after a long battle with Huntington’s Disease. Rest In Peace, John Paul Jr. You will be missed.
https://sportscar365.com/imsa/john-paul-jr-passes-away-at-60/
https://www.imsa.com/news/2020/12/30/racing-world-remembers-talented-kind-john-paul-jr/
...and
https://www.racingsportscars.com/driver/photo/John-Paul%2c%20Jr._-USA.html
Tuesday, December 29, 2020
Scuderia Corsa Puts Together Strong Rolex 24 Lineup
Scuderia Corsa's lineup for the 2021 Rolex 24 has been mentioned at least once before. But, it is worth mentioning again, as they could be contenders in the GT Daytona class.
Ryan Briscoe, winner with Wayne Taylor Racing, overall, in 2020, will be on the team alongside Marcos Gomes, who last ran at the Rolex 24 in 2019 and scored GT Daytona class pole. They will be paired up with sports car veteran Bret Curtis and IndyCar veteran, Ed Jones.
https://www.imsa.com/news/2020/12/28/scuderia-corsa-puts-together-strong-rolex-24-lineup/
Relive the Long-Lasting 2019-20 Season in 52 Minutes
The movie of season 8 of the FIA World Endurance Championship.
Monday, December 28, 2020
Weekly Racing Roundup (12-28-20)
News and notes including 24H Dubai lineups, Walkenhorst’s 2021 plans and more...
https://sportscar365.com/features/roundup/weekly-racing-roundup-28-12-20/
Saturday, December 26, 2020
Briscoe Headlines Scuderia Corsa GTD Effort for Rolex 24
Scuderia Corsa firms up Rolex 24 lineup for GTD entry without WeatherTech backing...
https://sportscar365.com/imsa/iwsc/briscoe-headlines-scuderia-corsa-gtd-effort-for-rolex-24/
Friday, December 25, 2020
Sportscar365 season review: Part 1
Merry Christmas! Here is part one of 2020 in sports car racing. Should there be a part two to this list, you will see it, here.
Sportscar365’s Rookie of the Year
Sportscar365’s Race of the Year
Sportscar365’s Team of the Year
Sportscar365’s Manufacturer of The Year
More to come, or so I would think.
Thursday, December 24, 2020
Car Guy Calls Off GTE-Am Plans Due to Travel Restrictions
Travel restrictions for Japanese-based drivers, crew force them to cancel WEC plans...
https://sportscar365.com/lemans/wec/car-guy-calls-off-gte-am-plans/
Wednesday, December 23, 2020
Michelin by the Numbers
Official partner brings tires and a lot more to IMSA.
https://www.imsa.com/news/2020/12/23/michelin-by-the-numbers/
Aston Martin Confirms End of Factory GTE Program
Aston Martin pulls factory GT racing program; focus shifts to supporting customer teams...
https://sportscar365.com/lemans/wec/aston-martin-announces-end-of-factory-gte-program/
IMSA headlines (continued)
More IMSA headlines, as we look forward, in another month, to the beginning of the 2021 season.
Tandy Hoping to “Follow in the Footsteps” of Gavin at Corvette
Two of the major entrant stories already touched on, seeing the return of both DragonSpeed in LMP2, and Risi Competizione in GTLM.
Risi to Make Rolex 24 Return
DragonSpeed Adds LMP2 Entry for Endurance Cup
IMSA Challenges Taylor to Compete at Highest Level
Tuesday, December 22, 2020
IMSA Notebook: DragonSpeed Returning to Defend Rolex 24 Title + the return of Risi Competizione
DragonSpeed and Risi Competizione, in LMP2 and GT Le Mans, are two teams returning to Daytona in 2021, searching for success.
https://www.imsa.com/news/2020/12/22/imsa-notebook-dragonspeed-returning-to-defend-rolex-24-title/
Reflecting on Oliver Gavin’s incredible career at Corvette Racing
A two part series on Oliver Gavin and his fabulous career as a Corvette Racing driver.
Legacy of Greatness: Gavin Reflects on Stellar IMSA Career (Part 1)
...and
Gavin’s Career Loaded with Milestones and Memories (Part 2)
Monday, December 21, 2020
VOLT Racing with Archangel Expands to Compete in IMSA Prototype Challenge
VOLT Racing with Archangel is expanding its IMSA horizons in 2021, adding an IMSA Prototype Challenge full-season entry for driver Alan Brynjolfsson.
Gradient Focused on Building Successful Future in IMSA
After a successful 2020 campaign, Gradient Racing, running in the GT Daytona class in the IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship, looks to continue their success into the 2021 racing season.
Weekly Racing Roundup (12-21-20)
GT Masters team news, Lambo's latest track-focused car, WEC champs honored, and more...
https://sportscar365.com/features/roundup/weekly-racing-roundup-12-21-20/
Sunday, December 20, 2020
Porsche 911 RSR-19 ''2021 Customers Specs'' testing on track w/ central-rear exhaust!
From 19Bozzy92 on YouTube.
Back in August, Porsche was at Monza Circuit with two of their Porsche 911 RSR-19 cars. As you may remember these '2019/2020' specs GTE racers featured a fully revised body kit, from a new front bumper and hood, new mirrors, rear diffuser, wing profile, to that new side exhaust system placed on the side of the car, just in front of the rear wheels. The RSR-19 introduced also an upgraded 4.2-liter flat-6 engine. Customers and private teams were still using the previous-gen 911 GTE car for the 2019/2020 season but it was obvious that sooner or later Porsche would have provided them the new spec RSRs.
So back to the actual video up here, these two RSR-19s weren't with the factory side exhaust but with a revised rear exiting arrangement, similar to the one of the infamous screming RSR 2017. The only 'problem' was the visible and audible presence of a muffler on this exhaust. Thanks to being back to a rear-central layout, the cars have in fact regained the high-pitched sound we all love and loved but sound level is quite far from the 2017-spec cars. It's in a good middle way between these and the GT3-class 911 GT3 R, to be fair.
Of course back in August I wasn't aware of what they were testing. I mean, I thought that new exhaust was there for their factory cars maybe in view of the (at that time) upcoming Le Mans 24h or a 2021 spec RSR but still for the factory team. But in these last months it turned out they were testing the RSR-19 GTEs as the private teams will received them starting from next year. It also seems confirmed by Porsche itself that this muffled exhaust layout has been tested and adopted to reduce and comply with new decibel limits coming in 2021 and also to allow teams to join test days at more race tracks where noise rules are stricter. In fact the RSR-19 with side exhaust was even louder than the 2017 RSR by a couple of dB while with this muffled exhaust it should be around 10 dB quieter.
What do you think?
First Entries Confirmed for New-Look European Sports Club
First entries confirmed for SRO's new GT2 Europe, GT Rebellion competitions...
Saturday, December 19, 2020
FIA WEC news (continued)
More pertinent news headlines from the FIA WEC and one that has been highlighted already in IMSA as Racing Team Nederland, in addition to their 2021 WEC campaign, will also tackle the Rolex 24 at Daytona.
Nederland Confirms WEC Continuation, Rolex 24 Entry
Some major reshuffling going on across the board for Porsche's 2021 sports car racing efforts. Here's the plan for their World Endurance Championship GTE-Pro program. Neel Jani replaces Michael Christensen.
Jani Replaces Christensen in Porsche GTE-Pro Squad
Peugeot Reveals LMH Powertrain Details
Hypercar Driver Selection "Not a Hurry" for Peugeot
Albuquerque, Hanson Return to United With New Co-Driver
Toyota Makes "More Good Progress" in Second LMH Test
Friday, December 18, 2020
IMSA news (continued)
More news from IMSA and the WeatherTech Sports Car Championship, including moving the two race dates in California at Laguna Seca and Long Beach, from their original April dates, to September.
Wright Confirms Long, Hardwick for 2021
Long Beach, Laguna Seca Rounds Moved to September
Bortolotti Rejoins Lamborghini; Mitchell Promoted to Factory Squad
Doonan Expecting "Several" Additional LMDh Commitments
Duval, Vautier Confirmed in JDC-Miller's Full-Season Lineup
It's official. Chase Elliott, 2020 NASCAR Cup Champion, will drive in the Rolex 24 for Action Express.
NASCAR Champion Chase Elliott Joins Action Express for Daytona
Thursday, December 17, 2020
Audi to Produce Evo Kit for GT3 Car in 2022; Eyeing Electric GT
Audi to follow Lamborghini in planning update to existing GT3 car for new regulations...
https://sportscar365.com/industry/audi-to-produce-evo-kit-for-gt3-car-in-2022/
Headlines from the official IMSA website
Headlines, in preparation for the 2021 season, on the official IMSA website.
Dutch Treat for Rolex 24 with Racing Team Nederland Entry
Pfaff Plaid Porsche Back for Full 2021 Season With New Driver Lineup
WeatherTech Championship Notebook: Fehan Leaving Corvette Racing Program
TF Sport Joins Competitive GT Daytona Field for Rolex 24
As Christmas and New Years' approach, the Taylor family has much to celebrate.
Taylors Have Three Crowning Reasons for Added Holiday Cheer
Porsche Announces Plan to Develop LMDH Prototype
New LMDH Cars Signal Bright Future for Prototype Racing
Wednesday, December 16, 2020
Porsche RETURNS to Le Mans -- OFFICIAL
From David Land on YouTube, more about the Porsche LMDh announcement.
IMSA news (continued)
Still more news absolutely pouring out of the IMSA spigot at the moment. Here’s the latest.
Riley Confirms Management Structure for Triple IMSA Effort
Porsche will not be away from IMSA on a factory level, for long, after cancelling their GT Le Mans program. They will be back with a program in LMDh.
Porsche Confirms LMDh Program for 2023
Porsche Eager to Supply Customer LMDh Cars
Pratt & Miller has been sold, but this will not affect their motorsports involvement one bit.
Pratt & Miller Sold to Oshkosh Corp in $115 million deal
IMSA + Michelin 2020 Season In Review
Wow. Shocking news! Doug Fehan, project manager for Corvette Racing, has been released from General Motors after working with them for a quarter century or more!
Fehan Let Go from Corvette After 25 Years
Tuesday, December 15, 2020
more IMSA news
More news from the IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship, drawing closer to the 2021 season.
News pertinent to both the FIA World Endurance and IMSA championships, as Racing Team Nederland will run the Rolex 24 and continue in WEC as well.
Nederland Confirms WEC Continuation, Rolex 24 Entry
MSR Completes "Very Positive" First Test with Acura DPi
Bamber into New GT3 Role as Porsche Adjusts Factory Lineup
Fraga Lands Full-Time Drive in Riley LMP3 Entry
Vanthoor Joins Pfaff in Full Season Porsche GTD Effort
AF Corse to Tackle Rolex 24 with Italian GT Class Champions
PR1/Mathiasen Sets Daytona Lineup; Double Duty for Keating
Monday, December 14, 2020
Robert Renauer Wins Porsche Cup
Robert Renauer picks up second Porsche Cup title in last five years...
https://sportscar365.com/other-series/24hseries/robert-renauer-wins-porsche-cup/
Weekly Racing Roundup (12-14-20)
News and notes from around sports car racing plus Super Taikyu, 6H Rome in action...
https://sportscar365.com/features/roundup/weekly-racing-roundup-12-14-20/
Kyalami 9 Hours race broadcast
The full race broadcast of the Kyalami 9 Hours, at the Kyalami circuit in Johannesburg, South Africa. David Addison and John Watson call the action from the broadcast booth, and Jemma Scott, reports on everything taking place in the pit lane. Enjoy.
Sunday, December 13, 2020
Kyalami 9 Hours Race Highlights
Highlights after the Kyalami 9 Hours. Stay tuned for a video of the full race broadcast. For now, David Addison and John Watson, have the race recap.
post-race news after the Kyalami 9 Hours
Post-race headlines after a wet and wild Kyalami 9 Hours.
Race Recap:
Pole-Sitting Honda Leads Lively Opening Stint at Kyalami
Honda in Control at Halfway as Bentley's Title Bid Falters
Catsburg, Farfus Champions as Walkenhorst Wins Kyalami 9H
Post-race news:
Bortolotti to Depart Audi
Honda "Incredibly Unlucky" to Miss Out on Kyalami Victory
Race highlights, coming up, next.
Saturday, December 12, 2020
Kyalami 9 Hours: Post-race final thoughts
Wow. What a wild race, ending in the rain. Two wins for Walkenhorst Motorsports. Sheldon van der Linde gets a home win. Augusto Farfus is a stalwart of BMW racing having also raced touring cars for Alfa Romeo. Walkenhorst are champions, too! Wow. Well done, boys. Celebrate! You deserve it! The drivers collect their trophies and can party now, socially distanced of course. Porsche win the manufacturers' cup. The drivers are warm, safe and dry, and the rain and lightning at Kyalami continues. The Audi boys finish second, heroincally, not being able to see, aquaplaning like nobody's business. A bittersweet race for the Audi boys. Joy for BMW. Audi wanted a few more meters, and of course, they had to reset their drive time as well.
Mirko Bortolotti will be racing for a different brand next year. We wonder where he will go. Porsche wins the manufactueer's cup, while BMW misses the manufacturer's cup but scores the driver's championship. Who will prevail in 2021? We shall see. It flew by, the whole race. GPX Racing and Porsche are third. Matt Campbell, Patrick Pilet, and Matthieu Jaminet, third. Porsche, again, are manufacturer's champions. Patrick Pilet is happy for Porsche through the difficulties of 2020, for everyone, and especially for racing drivers.They will be back next year.
Augusto Farfus and Nicky Catsburg are champions, five points ahead of Jaminet, Pilet, and Campbell. Earl Bamber and Laurens Vanthoor are next, and then, the other drivers. The sodden Kyalami Grand Prix circuit says farewell for another year. Where is Mirko Bortolotti going? Please, Mirko. Let us know where you will be. Porsche or BMW, possibly, or, could it be Lexus? We'll have to see. Watch this space. The trophies are being presented now. Everyone collects their trophies. Too bad we can't have the podium and the trophies. Maybe we will have a greater sense of freedom for the driver's to celebrate, and also, the fans to come back. None of this existed last year, and well, let's hope it does not exist next year and in the future.
The final celebration gets underway. The drivers are ready. Dylan Pereira, Saul Hack, and Andre Bezeidenhout get their trophies. Rest In Peace, Walter Lechner Sr. You are never forgotten. Godspeed. This is more like a regular podium with the trophies. Andre Bezeidenhout has a trophy in a race he saw with his family, as a small boy. If you have the money, you can race with your heroes. Way to go Lechner Racing and Team Perfect Circle! Celebrate. You deserve it.
We congratulate the Silver Cup winners, Dennis Marschal, Martin Lechman, and Milan Dontje for Audi Sport Team Car Collection, from German GT racing and the Nurburgring 24 Hours. More trophies. Martin Lechman recovers from a spin and gets a winning trophy at Kyalami! There's smiles all around behind the masks. The champagne sprays! We have one more podium, the overall podium, to celebrate.
Matt Campbell, Matthieu Jaminet, and Patrick Pilet, so near, and so far. They are third. Second place goes to the Audi team, Audi Team WRT, Fred Vervisch, Mirko Bortolotti, and Charles Weerts. More fist bumps, and first place, the winners, the #34 Walkenhorst BMW team, Sheldon van der Linde, Nick Catsburg, and Augusto Farfus! The German national anthem plays for the team. The trophies are presented. Once again, we congratulate the winners, Walkenhorst Motorsports BMW. By the way, the trophies are brake discs! Awesome!
The crowd goes wild for Sheldon van der Linde, winning his home race. Here is the original trophy for Walkenhorst. They can hang onto iut for a little while, the silver cup. Kyalami has a great sports car heritage and has given us another wonderful race. Nicky Catsburg and company spray the champagne! Take a swig of champagne. The mayor of Johannesburg is very happy to support motor racing. They are excited to host this motor race again next year. Now, the championship awards. Porsche win the manufacturer's championship. Augusto Farfus and Nicky Catsburg step forward to claim their trophies for the Intercontinental GT Challenge powered by Pirelli.
Congratulations, boys. The winning sashes and trophies are presented. They played to their strengths and did extremely well. The 2020 Intercontinental GT Challenge champions are crowned. Spray the champagne! This has been great for South Africa and Johannesburg. We will have the highlights videos and all of that good stuff, coming your way, tomorrow. All the post-race news as well. So, plenty more Kyalami 9 Hours content is coming. The race may be done and dusted. The story isn't quite over yet.
This season of IGTC has been a huge challenge but it has been competitive, too, and thankfully, there was racing for us to enjoy, at Bathurst, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Spa Francorchamps, and Kyalami. Next year, we have to start this race, earlier on, to avoid the big, massive thunderstorms at the end of the motor race. It's been a great race again. So long, from the Kyalami 9 Hours, everybody. We thank you for sticking with us today and for the whole season. Take care.
Kyalami 9 Hours: Hour 9 (the finish)
The rain is tipping down. Full Course Yellow, still. Full Course Yellow speed is slower than Safety Car speed. These could be monsoon conditions as they trundle down The Mineshaft. This does matter as a champiopnship event. The track will be totally saturated. It's 7PM now. You will have to order room service at the end of this one. No delicious sausages and other delights tonight. Only leftovers. We want the drivers top be safe, but, we are stymied if it is going to be wet and be under Full Course Yellow. There's not enough pace and not enough cars on track to clear the water away. The drivers are saying, "we are struggling, even at slow speed." We saw this in the dark at Spa Francorchamps too. It is wet and dangerous out there.
Everyone might just want to call for a red flag. Right now we are under Full Course Yellow. Fred Vervisch leads the motor race. The cars are crawling around Kyalami as we speak. This is exactly the same as the 2019 race that you read about on the blog. We hope for the race to resume, but it is very dangerous. Will the rain stop? It might stay for a good while and we will end the race in the wet, with just 53 minutes on the board. 52 now. Saul Hack is changing over to sticker wet tires at Perfect Circle. This is the last round of pit stops unless you have to make repairs. Everyone is just trundling around out there.
We don't want to see a red flag or a safety car, but realistically, we will just have to see what happens. We have a Full Course Yellow and it will be until we finish the race in 50 minutes. The old Group C prototype sports cars, were and are awesome cars, and fantastically fast, but they leaked like sieves and you'd have water in the cockpit and get your overalls all full of water. Honda are fifth. GPX Porsche could be in the pound seats for the championship. 48 minutes on the board. Maybe we can get one more pit stop done. But there's a pointless situation here, waiting to see what the cars do. Running to the end will be OK except the grid is locked up and you can't move. The puddles are getting worse and the rain is out there.
Deja vu all over again. Wow. This is fodder for armchair Race Directors, armchair quarterbacks. Bertrand Baguette says Honda have lost the race due to the weather. They are losing time with 45 minutes left. It is hard to race in these conditions. Bertrand Baguette does not know what the slow Audi is doing. They seem to be going for a championship which Honda is as well. The gaps could come down. It is still raining. Hard to tell if it is tipping down or if it is lessening. Look at the rivers on the road. Wow. If there was a restart, bring the gaps down using the safety car.
There's inches of water on the road between Leeukop and Mine Shaft. Audi #32, Fred Vervisch, runs through the pit lane, to reset the stint time. #44 assists #32. These are the Car Collection and WRT Audi's and the WRT car is leading. 40 minutes left to go. The fuel tank is not running dry. 266 laps on the board, 758 miles. Honda leads for eight hours and in the final hour, they might just get mugged here. There's no steering control with the deep water at Sunset corner. It's a small ocean you've got. Clubhouse is also wet. Audi #32 leads. Nicky Catsburg has somehow gotten himself into the lead. Where is Freddie Vervisch?
Did Vervisch take his drive through penalty? Hmmm. Puzzling. BMW does lead the motor race. Nicky Catsburg leads Fred Vervisch and third is the #12 GPX Porsche. I've run out of permutations for the race and the championship. Throw caution to the wind, folks. Some drivers still need to make pit stopos with 35 minutes to go. Audi and BMW have both reset their drive times or their positions. It's the positions. Did Fred Vervisch run off track for a brief moment? The Audi points the BMW by. Mirko Bortolotti is not sure what happened.
The Aud had to give a spot back to the BMW. It is hard to see in the rain and the darkness. The Audi, after their reset pit stop, accelerated ahead of the BMW. Audi had to give a spot back to the BMW boys. Audi #44 pits and gives a spot back to Honda #30, who are going to be hanging their heads in shame here because of the rain and the Full Course Yellow even though it was out of their control. You have missed nothing. Nicky Catsburg is splashing his way through.
Augusto Farfus and Nicky Catsburg could win the title if they don't have another stop to make. There's boatloads of standing water. The safety car cannot go out to scoop up the field. It looks as though the rain has stopped but there's so much standing water on the road. BMW #34 for Walkenhorst Motorsports leads the motor race. Porsche have not had the best day today. BMW #34 and Porsche #12 have to drive through the pit lane to reset their driver stint time clock. We may have missed it. It's wet on the radar.
The rain is plumb over the track, but the intensity has lessened. 25 minutes to go. There's a massive puddle these blokes keep running through going into Sunset. The electronics are sealed by silicone, but you've got to be careful. Again, the vintage race cars, leaked like sieves in the rain. Augusto Farfus says that Walkenhorst and his team are set. They gambled and lost the motor race last year, but they might have a good chance in 25 minutes. It is impossible to restart and drive at 80 clicks. Heroics are out of the question.
Porsche #12 also pitted on the hour mark. The safety car has been put on standby. Nicky Catsburg and Augusto Farfus could win the championship. Wow. The whole race has been turned on it's ear in the last 45 minutes or so. Jerome Duval is the safety car driver, and his father is the Deputy Race Director and his father drove in this race last year. 20 minutes to go. The rain is easing up. Hey, maybe we can get back to a semblance of racing here. The safety car will close the cars up. Will we have a restart. 272 laps completed, 775 miles.
Charles Weerts says Audi'ssituation is unclear as they are behind the BMW. Some decisions the Race Director can make himself and others are up to the stewards. Eight hours and 44 minutes, 16 minutes to go. Maybe we should do with this race like Bathurst, starting in darkness, and then into daylight. The rain is tipping down. Nine hours has flown by. Audi has not been able to use one of their cars to assist another. BMW are in the pound seats, and JAS Honda have been snookered.
Patrick Pilet's Porsche is in third spot. Patrick Pilet says "I just want to race." The safety car is not the best idea. Pilet wants to race. Pilet says the best should win on track, but of course, the Full Course Yellow was for too much water. Matt Campbell is in the car. Many hours ago, Campbell set a new lap record as Nicky Catsburg is the leader. BMW will be putting in a new GT car and this will be a good way, should they win, for the M6 to say goodbye. The Porsche 992 GT3R, the BMW M4 GT3, and other cars will be upgraded. The Mercedes AMG GT3 is being revised. GT3 is set for another golden age.
Manufacturers still are going to build these wonderful cars for the road, that will evolve into race cars. Kyalami will be back on the 2021 schedule next year. Let us hope that fans can be back. Many young drivers want to be in GT racing, Charles Weerts for example. There are so many great venues, cars, and drivers in GT3. We won't start 2021 until the 24 Hours of Spa next year. The Bathurst 12 Hours has been cancelled for 2021 due to the pandemic of course. The Balance of Performance has equalized every brand. A single manufacturer dominating, is not the right idea. They phenomenally engineer their cars, but the public wants to see variety and unpredictability.
Two laps to go. The safety car is on track. We have one lap to go, ending under Full Course Yellow. GT3 cars going at it on a track like Kyalami, is awesome, and we got away with it last year, but not this year. The safety car will up the pace but we will have a ceremonial finish. Walkenhorst BMW is going to win this race with Nicky Catsburg, Augusto Farfus, and Sheldon van der Linde. A South African will win his home race! Wow! Break out the champagne! Don't hit the puddles. This is the run into Ingwe, turn 16. One lap to go. The nine hours will be up at the end of this lap. Walkenhorst Motorsports are going to win the Kyalami 9 Hours. Their second win this year.
Nicky Catsburg has won the Spa 24 Hours, the Nurburgring 24 Hours, the Indianapolis 8 Hours, and now, the Kyalami 9 Hours. BMW, Audi, Porsche. Porsche will win the manufacturer's cup. Dylan Pereira, Saul Hack, and Andre Bezuidenhout, win Pro Am. So, this is it. Augusto Farfus and Nicky Catsburg are the winners, and the season champions. The rain will not relent. Weend under yellow. Nicky Catsburg, Augusto Farfus, and Sheldon van der Linde win Kyalami!
#34 Farfus/Catsburg/Van der Linde Walkenhorst Motorsports BMW M6
That's the race, ladies and gentlemen. Intercontinental GT Challenge 2020 is complete. We have another feather in the at for Walkenhorst. Lechner Moitorsports have won Pro Am. Car Collection Motorsports wins the Silver Cup class.
#9 Hack/Bezuidenhout/Pereira Lechner Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3R
#45 Marschal/Lechman/Dontje Car Collection Audi R8 LMS
Nicky Catsburg is a new champion! Congratulations! Some post-race thoughts, coming up.
Kyalami 9 Hours: Hour 8
The #30 Honda NSX GT3 still leads the motor race. The car has been running like a top the whole race. However, Bertrand Baguette is only five or so seconds ahead of Audi Sport Team Car Collection and Patric Niederhauser. Niederhauser is 5.5 seconds behind, with Mirko Bortolotti next up in the #32. No further action for the pit stops for Honda #30 and Porsche #12. Thank goodness. This is wise judgment on the part of the stewards. The #44 Audi is pressing on, and is reeling in the Honda. We are 237 laps into the motor race, 675 miles. So, the pit stops are expected around lap 251 or so. Some dirt tracking at the bottom of the Mine Shaft for David Pittard! Yikes! He was dirt tracking that BMW! There are a couple spritzes of rain on the circuit, but they are very slight. Pittard was offline headed down through the Mine Shaft. All cars are reminded about having their lights on. Pittard was in the gravel trap, but he did keep the car under control.
He was on the dirty line as well. Good save for Pittard. Kelvin van der Linde is ninth in the Audi. Now, the gap is closing between Baguette and Niederhauser. The Honda leads the Audi of Patric Niederhauser. Did Bertrand Baguette lose time trying to move around the #45 Audi? That's odd. Bertrand Baguette has some decisions to make but to not overreact either. Working lap 239 if I am right. The gap is coming down to 2.8 second. Patric Niederhauser is closing up. The Audi could affect the outcome of the championship. Goodness gracious. We are seven hours and 15 minutes into the race. This final hour and 45 minutes is going to be mega.
Look for another pit stop in the next dozen laps and then, one more left on the board. The teams are back timing this race as the light is fdading. The gap is down to 2.5 and now, Baguette is going to be feeling the heat because Niederhauser is applying the blowtorch. Well, well, well. The lights are bleaching out the camera lens as the darkness is coming. 241 laps now completed, 687 miles. 2.6 seconds the gap between Bertrand Baguette and Patric Niederhauser who has been stymied just a bit. Mirko Bortolotti is next up and if we'd had a safety car and a Full Course Yellow, the field would have been closed up a lot tighter than it is now.
We wonder what has happened with the #12 Porsche and it's diffuser. It's still circulating in fifth, but the lap times are slower. #44 and Patric Niederhauser could win the title by winning the race. That's really interesting. The gap is up now to three seconds as Bertrand Baguette is responding. Honda has the advantage. Audi has to scrap and dig here with just an hour and 40 minutes on the board before the race is done and dusted. This is a real deal motor race and now, the track conditions are changing. Rain reported on track at turn 10 at the highest point at Leeukop. The light and the track surface are changing in conditions simultaneously. So, this could really shuffle the deck.
That report of rain could have been a spritz. But now, the gap is closing. Niederhauser is two seconds behind. Honda needs nine more laps. Why is Bertrand Baguette struggling? He knows this car and the circuit having raced here last year. The Audi could have an extra turn of speed and be in it's ideal performance zone compared to the Honda. The gap is stable at 2.2 seconds. The gap has dropped like a stone. Baguette is still pushing as darkness is falling with an hour and a half to go. It is indeed getting darker. Eyes wide open right now. Renger van der Zande is very nervous. There's more rain at Clubhouse. There are rain clouds gathering.
Lightning is also on it's way. It's going to be a wild finish with darkness and a thunderstorm, and an hour and a half left. Matthieu Jaminet in fifth place, he is still in the fight. If we get a deluge like last year, we don't want to have the safety car trundle 'round and then have a green, white, checker finish. Here comes the rain and the light changing as well, look. Are the weather God's going to have it in for the Honda boys? We will see. There's rain at the top of the hill. Yikes. The Honda will stay on track and Patric Niederhauser has lost some time. 250 laps, 712 and a half miles. The pit window is so darn close.
Will the weather skirt around the speedway? Or will it bucket down? With the high temperatures, both ambient and air temp, the rain won't be so bad./ The gap is widening. The Honda could be getting used to the conditions while Patric Niederhauser ispushing. Alex Buncombe has spun off at Crowthorne, and Walkenhorst pits for routine service and slick tires. The Bentley slithers offlineand we see there has been some lightning around. Full Coyrse Yellow. Is it raining? It is. We can see it on the camera and hear it pounding on the roof. Everyone is going to have to go for wet weather tires.
The rain is getting heavier, and we hear thunder as well. Honda are ready on Full Course Yellow to pit for wet tires, early. If the rain quits, the track will dry fairly quickly. Watch the pit lane. It is wet and greasy there, mate. Bertrand Baguette stays in the car after a tire change and maybe a refuel? Nope. Just tires. It is now wet for tires only. It's a regulation wet pit stop. Full Course Yellow on the road. Mirko Bortolotti stays in the #32 Audi. BMW #35 pits for tires and a driver change. Mattia Drudi takes over Audi #44. Just like we saw last year in 2019. Mathieu Jaminet is in the lane as well. Bentley #8 is out of the gravel but is the motor running?
The marshals are going to rescue Alex Buncombe, wetter than a mermaid's flannel. Look at the puddles in the lane. #44 did a normal pit stop and the Honda will do the same, so, it will balance out but #44 is off. Bentley #8 has spun off the road another time. Another pit stop for the Bentley boys. Bentley #8 burbles away and back onto the track. #30 trundles through Sunset. Honda, Audi, Audi, BMW, Porsche, BMW, the top six. Mattia Drudi and Christopher Haase will finish out this race for the Audi boys. Will the Full Course Yellow translate into a safety car? The amount of water on the road is getting worse. Now, the safety car is on the road.
Last year it was severely wet, and this year, it is wet, but it is not as bad as what we saw in '19. How quickly can that production Porsche safety car go in these conditions? The race cars have deeper, wider tread on their Pirelli P Zero tires. Where's the race track? We are looking at headlights, with an hour and 15 minutes to go. Fully wet, and fully dark. Haven't we been here before? Deja vu. No overtaking. Stints are only extended if the safety car is out at the end of the stint time. Fuel is not a factor in the stint times. Alex Buncombe braked in the wet, spun into the gravel, and had to try making his way back with gravel on the tires, and aquaplaning all over the shop.
The thunder is rumbling around as well. Keep the car on the road. Safety car into the lane this time by. Safety cars breed safety cars. This is going to be a wild one. Deja vu all over again, mate. Five cars on the lead lap. The spray will hang in the air. No dry line on the road. Puddles everywhere. As a driver, you want more grip, so run the rain line. Don't sail off into oblivion. The lightning is flashing all ove as well. Green flag. We're back to racing. Mattia Drudi has to clear the traffic and does so, chasing Bertrand Baguette. They tiptop through Crowthorne.
Heavy rain, and the darkness. It is a lot like a rally stage. Bertrand Baguette will finish the race for Honda. Farnbacher and van der Zande are championship contenders. Mario Farnbacher could be the next driver into the car. There's more aquaplaning, which is no surprise at all. We might just need to put the safety car out and run slower. Someone has spun. It is an Audi, and it's Mattia Drudi spinning out of second! Deary me! He's dropped down the order. You can't see the track from Barbeque up through Jukskei Sweep. Full Course Yellow it is.
We're coming towards the final hour of this race. Once again, we are under Full Course Yellow. The race leader pits and so does the Kevin Estre driven Porsche. Honda elects to make a pit stop. Frederic Vervisch in Audi #32 will lead ahead of Matt Campbell in Porsche #12. Mario Farnbacher will go into the car. Everyone else now needs to pit to reshuffle the order. What if there is a red flag? What if the race is stopped? We will have to see. If it was, the results would go back to a prior lap. Drivers are really struggling oiut there in these diabolical conditions. Fred Vervisch leads Matt Campbell and Nicky Catsburg who all have to pit yet. Wow. This is wild.
Kyalami 9 Hours: Hour 7
Farnbacher could only lose a small amount of time, although the championship is still wide open. Bamber and Vanthoor are just three points behind the Honda of Farnbacher and Van der Zande. Will this damoclesian penalty have an effect? Laurens Vanthoor continues on, being chased by Patrick Pilet, the new lap record holder here at Kyalami. Patrick Pilet can go further. The GPX Porsche has the Porsche Targa Florio livery. Gulf and Porsche are associated with each other a lot. McLaren and Mirage have also had Gulf Oil liveries and so have Ford GT40's and Aston Martin's. Mario Farnbacher continues in the lead, and he is about to lap the BMW #35, David Pittard at the controls. 201 laps, 573 miles. Farnbacher makes his way past Pittard and now, Christopher Haase is chasing, 9.8 seconds behind the Honda NSX GT3.
Farnbacher leads Haase, Van der Linde, Bortolotti, and Vanthoor. Sheldon van der Linde is now third with the #34 BMW M6 GT3 and Mirko Bortolotti is pulling away from Laurens Vanthoor as well. Bortolotti in turn, is closing on the BMW. Sheldon van der Linde has run 205 laps, 584 miles. The light is beginning to fade here at Kyalami, but could there be rain clouds in the distance once again? I suppose we shall find out. The wind hasn't picked up too much. Maybe it is just getting dark. It goes dark very quickly here at Kyalami. Mirko Bortolotti continues to run third. Kelvin van der Linde, his brother, is ninth overall in one of the Audi's.
The wind isn't really picking up. So we don't know if there will be more rain or not, with two hours and 45 minutes left on the board. So far we've only seen one cut down tire. We should have pit stops in the next 13 minutes. Forecasting lap 214 which will be 610 miles into the motor race. Laurens Vanthoor is losing time to both the Audi and the BMW as well as the Honda. Porsche #54 have had a fraught race here at Kyalami today. Problems with the front air dam spoiler on the Porsche. It's split on the right front corner. We've seen some personal best lap times in the last few laps with the cooling temperatures. The Porsche's splitter is peeling away. Not good. Will Laurens Vanthoor be able to hold on? It isn't a quick fix.
The Audi is catching the Porsche and theoretically, the Audi is faster. A roll of gaffer tape is the best tool you have. A drill bit and rivets could work but would be too slow. Just yank out the gaffer tape. Hopefully they don't have to push the car back to the garage. No news about Honda #30 from Race Control as the Honda of Mario Farnbacher continues in the lead. They will pit in six or so laps and four laps before Christopher Haase returns to the pit lane. Christopher Haase still has to pass David Pittard in the BMW. Headlights on here at Kyalami at 5:20 P.M. in Johannesburg also known as Joburg. The circuit is family owned, and it is a newly reconfigured version of the old, classic circuit. We've had just one retirement, and that was the #7 Bentley. Jules Gounon and Jordan Pepper were sure they could win, and so, they were emotionally destroyed.
It was a very sad sight. M-Sport Bentley wanted more titles and race wins than they were able to get. Seb Morris in the #8 Bentley has not had the best race. Dylan Perreira hangs on in the Team Perfect Circle Porsche #9 which is caked in rubber, from tire clag. The fuel goes in, the car is off the air jacks, and is back into the motor race. The fuel tank is way high up in the front mounted trunk, or "frunk" as some people call it. The front splitter problem for Porsche #54 is getting worse. They will have to repair that after their scheduled regular maintenance is done and dusted. The light is fading here at Kyalami.
Darkness is coming. People are starting to use their headlights. Laurens Vanthoor moves around the Perfect Circle Porsche. Working lap 214, 610 miles. Mario Farnbacher leads, with two and a half hours to go. Porsche #12 has lost out on points and the team manager was requested to go to the stewards' office. It must be some kind of pit stop issue, but we've not gotten that information yet. #34 BMW in the lane for an unscheduled pit stop. Although maybe it is scheduled. Ditto for the #54 Porsche. 37 laps to a stint. These are scheduled stops then. Forgive me. #54 has dollies go under the car, and the whole front bodywork is damaged. They are moving it into the garage. This is the goodbye kiss for the Porsche's championship hopes.
They are affecting repairs on the front nose of the car. The fittings hopefully have not been damaged, the clips and stays that hold the nose onto the car. They are having issues with trying to hold the car together as far as the nose clamps. They are going to go down a lap or two, maybe, even though everything will be lined up for installation. The only lifeline is the #12 Porsche being under investigation for a pit stop infringement by the stewards. Into the lane, the #30 Honda NSX GT3 from the lead, and the #44 Audi R8. The Porsche is back on track. But that is a mega sized disappointment as Kevin Estre takes over the controls.
Patrick Pilet leads the motor race. Rain is being predicted at 8PM. So, we may see rain coming. We don't know if it is coming or not. The race is slated to finish at 8PM local time in South Africa. Kevin Estre is two laps down now. David Pittard pits the #35 BMW. Currently running sixth. Mathematically the #35 could win the title, but that's not likely. David Pittard is out of the car. Not sure who got into it. It is either Martin Tomczyk or Nick Yelloly.
The flags are flying in a horizontal manner. With Porsche dropping down and Audi going up to third and fourth, depending on the race outcome, Audi could maybe beat Porsche in the manufacrturer's cup. BMW #34, Sheldon van der Linde being shown in the car, but it could be a different driver. Patrick Pilet is under investigation for the tire disposal procedure. So, the Porsche is under investigation. Porsche #12 does have a looming pit stop while Sheldon van der Linde is chasing Mirko Bortolotti. BMW vs. Audi. Big slide for Patrick Pilet! Either the tires are dead, or there's rain on the road. That was all through The Crocodile.
No indication of rain. Maybe some fluid, some oil, or maybe gravel, on the road. 221 laps for Patrick Pilet before he needs to pit. 630 miles. Could the conditions playing into the favor of Audi? We will have to wait and see. Kelvin van der Linde is still three laps down aboard the #31 Audi for Audi Sport Team WRT. That's the van der Linde/Winkelhock/Vanthoor car. The light is fading and we have more chances of rain, two hours and 17 minutes left on the board. Will Matthieu Jaminet take a single stint and Matt Campbell take a double before the end. Sheldon van der Linde is the leading South African driver. Patrick Pilet in the lane from the lead, and Matthieu Jaminet does take over. Tires and fuel as well. Tires onto the car, and fuel in the tank.
The Porsche howls its way down to turn two. Alex Buncombe is now second in the sole remaining #8 Bentley. Mirko Bortolotti third, and Sheldon van der Linde fourth. The last pit stops will be within the final 20 minutes of the race and we have over two hours to go yet. Patrick Pilet was losing a left rear tire, a cut left rear tire. Porsche #12 are fifth. Mario Farnbacher and Renger van der Zande are up in the championship lead by four points. Audi is closer in the manufacturer's championship, but Porsche is still leading. Porsche #54's hopes have been dashed, and they are two laps down. You control your own fate. Porsche #12 is staying on the lead lap currently.
But it is game over for the #54 team. In fifth place, Matthieu Jaminet, has run 228 laps, 650 miles. The race has calmed down a little, but there's still been plenty to talk about. Things can still bite teams in this final two hours or so. Bertrand Baguette leads Patrick Niederhauser by 5.7 seconds. Porsche #12 has some more damage, possibly a broken diffuser. Patric Niederhauser is back in the #44 Audi. As the left rear wheel comes off, the #12 pit crew had an out of control wheel, bouncing around. The wheel should be handed from A to B, not tossed or bounced. There could be a further penalty but the marshals have not made the decision. The splitter on the #12 is lower to the pavement through Crocodile and/or Cheetah.
It is rubbing on the deck. A flappy diffuser. I have all their records. The Flappy Diffusers. Hardy har har. The leading edge of it, attaching to the chassis, is really oscillating. That diffuser is going to keep shimmying around for another two hours. How long can the darn thing stay intact without delaminating? Bertrand Baguette, the Belgian, continues to lead by 6.1 seconds over Patric Niederhauser in the Audi #44. The race has come to Audi, somehow. Very interesting. Martin Lechman pits his Audi as well. 231 laps now on the board.
Kyalami 9 Hours: Hour 6
Honda continues to lead. The Honda NSX is fantastic looking, with it's twin turbo (or normally aspirated as the case may be), V6 motor. Honda has designed this car as a race car for the road, much like how Ferrari has done things with the 488, a car that we do not see in this race, sadly. 165 laps, 470 miles. Mattia Drudi makes his way down The Mine Shaft, and there are birds, as well as snakes. A cobra? A viper? Oops. Those are cars. Sorry, mate. Well, they are snakes as well. IN the meantime, that Porsche vs. BMW battle between Farfus and Bamber is simmering along nicely, thank you, through Barbecue and then Sunset. Simmering barbecue? Yum. Once again, someone must be hungry. Bear in mind, these two cars we've talked about, are close to their pit stops, and they will pit on the same lap, so they can't leapfrog each other.
Renger van der Zande still leads with just three hours and 50 minutes left in the motor race. The #30 Honda has not been headed yet. The top five are covered by less than 20 seconds and the skies around Kyalami are beginning to brighten up. We had rain in Kyalami in 2019, but we might not have it this year in 2020. We shall see. Maybe there could be a joker played by Mother Nature. Mattia Drudi is continuing with 4.2 seconds or so to make up over Matthieu Jaminet. Jaminet is 5.1 seconds behind Renger van der Zande. Catching is one thing, and passing, is another entirely different issue altogether. We have about 14 or so minutes before more pit stops can be expected.
Earl Bamber goes through Crowthorne, Jukskei, and Barbecue. They plunge back down through the Mine Shaft and then, to the Crocodile. 171 laps, 487 miles for the BMW #34. The depth of concentration to drive a race car at it's limit, on a high work rate circuit, is incredible. As a racing driver, you have to condition your body. At altitude, your lung capacity is limited by the altitude you are at, and the darkness will be a bear as well. You need a driver who is experienced at driving in the darkness. Some drivers relish driving at night. There is no circuit lighting here at Kyalami. There's illumination in the pit lane but the other lighting is from residential or industrial buildings.
Charles Weerts is reeling in Earl Bamber little by little. Farfus is eight minutes away from the end of his stint. Renger van der Zande still leads, but Matthieu Jaminet has been reeling the Honda man in. Another delicacy here in South Africa is Biltong jerky. It is a South African product that is made in the United States. Meantime, Audi #44 swings its way through Sunset corner. 175 laps, 499 miles. We are essentially 500 miles into the race. We continue to watch the battles on the road and now, Charles Weerts is closing up onn Earl Bamber. Weerts is in the #32 Audi he is sharing with Fred Vervisch and Mirko Bortolotti.
Honda still leads the motor race. Magnus Racing of course, will campaign an Acura NSX GT3 in IMSA next year. Matthieu Jaminet is running very well, and now, after Van der Zande has negotiated that car, Jaminet also has to go by the sole remaining Bentley, #8, of Oliver Jarvis. The GPX team is asking the marshals to show blue flags to the Bentley of Jarvis. BMW and Porsche are in the lane now. Farfus and Bamber in from fourth and fifth and now, Charles Weerts is running fourth in the Audi. Great overhead camera shot in the pit lane as we watch the crews working on the car. New boots and a tank of petrol. Knock yourself out. Grab the bull by the horns.
Augusto Farfus moves past his team mate, Nick Yelloly, in the second Walkenhorst BMW M6 GT3, #35. Farfus may or may not be at the controls of #34. Farfus could double stint again. We shall see. Now, Mario Farnbacher is about to take over from Renger van der Zande in the Honda. 37 laps to a stint for Porsche and BMW. That's approximately 105 miles. So, the Honda is in the lane for service on lap 179. 510 miles. This is a very clewan stop for fuel and tires. No tear off screens on the windscreen in this series.
Give the windscreen a quick wash. Mathieu Jaminet comes to the lane from the lead of the motor race. Three and a half hours to go now. Tires and fuel for the #12 Porsche. Earl Bamber seems to have stayed in the #54 car. There is a driver change for the boys at the #12 team. Mirko Bortolotti has moved ahead of Sheldon van der Linde and here comes Earl Bamber as well. Sheldon van der Linde has lost a spot, and Mirko Bortolotti just wrestled his way by. The BMW is losing time and spots stint by stint. What is going on with #34? There's a spot of bother at Walkenhorst. Meantime, Van der Linde is going tro have to fend off the challenge from Bamber.
Sheldon Van der Linde is pushing, but might have brake fade, as he is chasing Mirko Bortolotti. Bortolotti hangs on to fourth place. Van der Linde is both attacking and defending at the same time. Honda are in the pound seats thus far. They have more to pull out of the can. Van der Zande says that the cars are pretty equal but there's understeer in the Honda on used up Pirelli tires. Mario Farnbacher is now at the wheel of the NSX GT3. Mario Farnbacher is ten seconds ahead now of Patrick Pilet. In the meantime, Earl Bamber is just hanging onto the back of the BMW of Sheldon van der Linde, who, in turn, is chasing the Audi with Mirko Bortolotti at the controls.
Patrick Pilet is losing time and being monstered by the Audi. This is Christophe Haase in the #44 Audi, the man who has won more races than anyone in IGTC competition. Haase sticks a pass in the esses! Wow! Great racing! Veni vidi vici, for Chistophe Haase. Positional points are all that is being awarded. Porsche #12 in the lane. Is thee something wrong at Porsche? It may have been a slow puncture of a Pirelli tire. Was it debris? Was it hitting a curb? This is a wrench thrown into the works for the GPX boys. So, Honda now will be in the pound seats, possibly, insofar as the championship, with less than three hours and 20 minutes to go.
Farnbacher/Van der Zande/Baguette, this team, could have a penalty coming from the stewards! Oh my! We will keep you posted. #30 leads by 13 seconds despite the pit stop being under review. We have to find out. We don't want to be conspiratorial on this. It is just a motor race. Three hours and 15 minutes left on the board. Ah. What happened on the pit stop? Dive change and tie change look outine. Samke with the fueling of the ca. Hard to tell. Too many crew members over the wall? A left rear puncture was quickly remedied for the GPX Porsche.
Porsche #54 is moving into the picture and so is the #34 BMW. Honda, Audi, BMW, Audi, Porsche, Audi, Porsche, the top six. We ought to keep tabs on Patrick Pilet's pace as he has fresher tires than everyone else. There's no real litter on the road, although Mario Farnbacher does drop a wheel off the curb slightly and the inside shoulder of the tire hits it. This track is mostly clockwise. Reviewing the pit stop again for the Motul JAS Honda team, the officials are still looking. The engine did go onto the rev limiter for a short time. Maybe the windscreen cleaner touched the car too soon.
Mario Farnbacher is in the clear right now with Christopher Haase second, Sheldon van der Linde thid, Laurens Vanthoor fourth, and Mirko Bortolotti, fifth. Through Barbecue Bend Farnbacher goes. Christopher Haase could win the race, but not a championship. Mabe this penalty fo Honda would be eithe too many people over the wall, or, the engine fired up before the pit crew finished working. That's got to be the explanation for the problem. The windscreen cleaner was doing his job. Did the driver hit thew starter button or did the crew chief call it. There's a Van Morrison song on the "Astral Weeks" album, "Cleaning Windows". Mirko Bortolotti, meanwhile, is chasing Laurens Vanthoor.
Vanthoor is doing everything he can to run down and catch Sheldon van der Linde. Vanthoo vs. Bortolotti is still a hot and heavy battle. Lamborghini has had a shuffling of drivers and championships, although Mirko Bortolotti has moved to Audi. This race is going down at a tremendous clip. We will have three hours to go, in mere minutes. The Audi is quick through the Mine Shaft and the Crocodile. Bortolotti dives late inside on Laurens Vanthoor. Vanthoor wants it through Barbecue, but no dice. Be creative. Think outside the box. Vanthoor sees the launch down the inside but he cannot react before Bortolotti seals the deal. Good stuff. Good stuff!
197 laps. 561 miles. Mario Farnbacher still leads. It is cruel if a driver is not responsible for an infringement. We'll see, but the driver is out on the track, driving the wheels off the car. Ah. The Team Manager is requested to the Stewards office.
Kyalami 9 Hours: Hour 5
We are into the heart of this race, and not quite at the halfway mark, but definitely into the meat of it, the main meal as it were. Hungry? Have a sausage, mate. Meanwhile, the gap is 8.4 seconds between Baguette and Catsburg. Poor old Niederhauser is just having a tough old time trying to move in on the Porsche and Nicky Catsburg has lost a shed load of time as well. Bertrand Baguette is right on the button at the moment. 131 laps complete, 373 miles. From Crowthorn into Jukskei, and Barbeque, Niederhauser is still having a bear of a time getting to the Porsche. The Audi is very strong here at Kyalami. Well, Niederhauser is now pushing Pilet, and they have moved towards and will move around a back marker. That's the beleaguered #45 Audi R8, the Marschal/Lechman/Dontje car. Catsburg and Pilet run really wide out of Barbeque as the dust hangs in the air.
Niederhauser has to strike while the iron is hot. Patrick Pilet is a tad ragged from being monstered by the Audi. Patrick Pilet is being warned for the final time about track limit abuse through the final turn, turn 16 at Ingwe. So, Monsieur Pilet has to mind his P's and Q's. The warnings go to the car, but there is a reset after given amounts of time in these endurance races, through the Mine Shaft and into the Crocodile. Pilet is still chased by Niederhauser through turn one at The Kink. Is Nicky Catsburg losing time as he wriggles through Barbeque Bend?
Everyone will be pitting for fuel and fresh tires, and perhaps driver changes, in the next ten or so minutes. Pilet is no longer infringing upon track limits it seems. He is OK. Nicky Catsburg's margin is still hovering around 2.4 seconds. So, the Dutchman is still pressing on through Sunset and Clubhouse. Bertrand Baguette is 9.4 seconds up the road. He's whistling off into the distance, dominating the motor race so far. There's still four and 3/4 hours remaining. We will be headed for darkness as well. Plus, everyone is going to be going for championship points.
Niederhauser is just unable to pry open the door. Thank you, Balance of Performance. These cars are all different, but they are so equally matched because of the Balance of Performance and of course tire grip is another factor entirely. BMW #34 pitted earlier than the #44 Audi, and the #12 Porsche was on a totally different strategy as well. BMW, Audi, Porsche, the top three. More dust from Nicky Catsburg through Barbecue. Yikes. Honda #30 came into the lane on the same lap as Audi #44. BMW #34 of Nicky Catsburg should be in the lane in the next three laps or so. Patrick Niederhauser carries speed out of The Mine Shaft, and into the Crocodile but then loses time going off in the dirt. 138 laps, 393 miles.
Is there gain from running off the road at Barbecue? It doesn't seem to be the case. But there is a way to raise the ire of the Race Director through turn 16 at Ingwe. The gap is 1.992 seconds now, between the Porsche and the Audi. The BMW should pit this time by or next time by. Down to Leeukop, we'll see what happens. Earl Bamber is not in the picture at the moment, somehow. The BMW pits from second spot. It is true. Nicky Catsburg is in. There will be a driver change, along with tires, and fuel is added. Earl Bamber in the lane in the #54 as well. Earl Bamber stays in the car. Bentley will pit their sole remaining #8 car soon and Oliver Jarvis will step in.
Bamber and Catsburg stay in for a double stint, both of them. Naturally aspirated engines tend to suffer at altitude more than a turbocharged motor does. Oliver Jarvis is now at the controls of the #8 Bentley. Augusto Farfus is in the #34 BMW and Andre Bezuidenhout stays in the #9 Porsche. Earl Bamber has stayed in the #54 Porsche. Still leading, the Honda. Markus Winkelhock goes off the road and into the gravel trap between Crowthorne and Jukskei. Honda #30 in the lane for service on lap 142. 142 laps, 405 miles. Niederhauser is in the lane. Pilet takes the lead for now.
Mattia Drudi takes over the #44 Audi. Patrick Pilet in the pit lane for service. Tires and fuel, as well as a driver change. A full service pit stop as Matthieu Jaminet takes over behind the wheel while #54 has Earl Bamber at the controls. Mattia Drudi will take over second spot. Augusto Farfus, meantime is scrapping, and GPX will leapfrog both Walkenhorst and the Audi. Farfus is a danger man here, pushing the Audi. That is Mattia Drudi of course. Matthieu Jaminet's team has used up one of their joker pit stops, gaining the Frenchman a little bit of time. So Jaminet leapfrogs Drudi and Farfus. It's manna from heaven for "Jam Jam" because Farfus and Drudi are scrapping. Meanwhile, Renger van der Zande is leading the motor race as we head for the second half of the Kyalami 9 Hours.
Poor old Augusto Farfus has lost oodles of time to Mattia Drudi after fluffing the pit stop. Farfus is also falling into the clutches of Earl Bamber. The final hour of this race is going to be in the darkness. We may see stars out tonight, but for the most part the driver's will have to use their headlights to guide them. Augusto Farfus is dropping back from Mattia Drudi. Renger van der Zande leads by 6.9 seconds over Matthieu Jaminet. Matthieu Jaminet is indeed making inroads. Reset of all track limits. All those damoclesian warnings, are erased. The #30 Honda still leads, but Matthieu Jaminet wants to nibble more seconds out of the gap. It has actually increased to 7.1 seconds.
Patric Niederhauser says he is back into a rhythm as the race approaches the halfway mark. Niederhauser says the Audi is losing top speed to the Porsche. Niederhauser and company still have a joker pit stop they can use. Matthieu Jaminet is pushing, with clear road ahead. The Porsche has more straight line speed while the Audi handles better in the corners. The engines are different, the aerodynamics of each car are also different. The engine is not the only part, although every racer has told the tale of woe of "I need some more power. Bring me more power." Through Sunset, through the esses, and we'll have 150 laps on the scoreboard, very soon. 150 laps, 427 and a half miles.
A safety car, and retirements for other cars, would help some drivers. Meantime, Mattia Drudi is scampering up the road, away from Earl Bamber. Matthieu Jaminet has eaten into Renger van der Zande's lead. 6.4 seconds between the two of them. A tenth here, a tenth there. Minuscule shifts in the gaps. ,Matthieu Jaminet is keeping the car out of trouble, and he is staying in a rhythm. He is not catching the Honda, but even if the Honda wins the motor race, they won't win the title, and the Porsche blokes will. We are just over halfway home. There's a long, long way to go.
Sheldon van der Linde is optimistic BMW will do well. Augusto Farfus, his co-driver, is fourth, 3.5 seconds behind the third place Audi. The gap between first and second is back down to 6.5 seconds. It will yo-yo as we continue to watch. Earl Bamber pounds on up the hill. Bamber is chasing Farfus for fourth spot. The Dinamic Porsche did not shine in this race last year, but, they are running well now. Another place change beckons. The Walkenhorst BMW boys could lose another spot here. Dennis Marschall runs 11th right now in the #45 Audi. They've had a fraught race. Marschall has been racing in ADAC GT Masters lately.
Marschall has uncorked the fastest lap for that car in the motor race at 1:43.4. A commendable effort from those blokes. Renger van der Zande still leads. Marschall turns through Clubhouse. Car Collection has an Audi Sport affiliated entry and a regular entry, having run NLS at the Nurburgring and ADAC GT Masters. They are running in a long distance race whereas they are more accustomed to shorter events. 156 laps, 445 miles. Milan Dontje is in that car as well. All sorts of rubber clag has junked it's way onto the front straight. More snakes as well. Snakes! You are making me nervous! Egad! Mathieu Jaminet has been taking chunks out of the Honda's lead, but Renger van der Zande continues to lead the motor race.
Mattia Drudi runs third. Drudi is in hot pursuit of Matthieu Jaminet. 5.7 seconds between first to second and 3.6 seconds between second and third as Saul Hack is back at the wheel of the #9 Perfect Circle/Coca Cola Lechner Racing Porsche. Renger van der Zande completes 159 laps, 453 miles. Milan Dontje is a GT4 Silver Cup champion. So, now we have a fair fight for fourth place. Farfus vs. Bamber. Both of these driver teams are fighting for the championship, but they are being humbled by GPX with "Jam Jam", Matthieu Jaminet, at the controls of the #12 Porsche. This race has been very clean with very few accidents, probably because of the small field.
We'd like to see more rain if we want more action, but who knows what the weather is going to do. Keep your position. Stay on the lead lap. Keep your powder dry. No lightning in the sky right now. Thank goodness. Bamber is reeling in Farfus right now. Oh wow. This will be a good battle, but once again, blokes, keep your powder dry. The rain has vanished. We won't see any moisture. We will see sunshine. So, throw the weather strategy out the window and leave your nighttime specialist driver to the end of the motor race as we are closing in on four hours to go and five hours completed. Earl Bamber has indeed chipped away at the gap to Augusto Farfus.
Earl Bamber is not thrashing the #54 Porsche. He is adaptable and more efficient than Kevin Estre is. The gap is coming down consistently here as the Porsche is closing up on the BMW. Bamber will not make too much movement in the championship but he is still in a good space.
Kyalami 9 Hours: Hour 4
Strategy is the focus. We are watching Christopher Haase. Audi had trouble here last year and this year, they are a tad behind the eight ball, but they have a huge number of star drivers. A stellar, stellar driver team. Christopher Haase is closing in on Sheldon van der Linde. The curbs and the race track surface are dry. Mario Farnbacher also continues to push very, very hard. Sheldon van der Linde, running very hard. Haase is driving perfectly through the corners. He is not overrunning the curbs at all. Matt Campbell is eating slowly but consistently into the gap held by Christopher Haase. Honda leads BMW. Audi in third place. Looking across the countryside, back to Johannesburg, and we might have more rain coming. Will it be a spritz? Or will it be more? Saul Hack is driving the #9 Perfect Circle Porsche. Andre Bezeudenhout, says that we just have to hold on and wait for the deluge. Have your boots ready, says Andre. It's really quiet. There's no wind. The barometer has dropped.
Saul Hack is being chased by Mirko Bortolotti. It's the amateur, Perfect Circle Porsche vs. the professional Audi Sport Team WRT car. Sheldon van der Linde is closing up on Mario Farnbacher, and fast. The top three have now all concertinaed into a formation of sorts. These three cars are extended to their limits without being in overdrive. Christopher Haase is really pushing. There will be more pit stops coming in the not too distant future here. Seb Morris does as well, and we see David Pittard and Mirko Bortolotti in, and the Honda has also made a pit stop for Bertrand Baguette getting in the car, replacing Mario Farnbacher on the pit exhcange. It is nip and tuck between the Audi and the BMW and the BMW moves by.
That was fortuitous for BMW. Patric Niederhauser in for a second stint into the #44 Audi. Pit stop time as well for Matt Campbell, the GPX Porsche, #12. Patrick Pilet will be in that car. Laurens Vanthoor stays at the wheel of the #54 Dinamic Motorsports Porsche which has also just pitted. Pilet has to stay ahead of the #44 Audi of Niederhauser, and he does. Niederhauser has to pounce now. Into Sunset, Niederhauser is stymied, and Patrick Pilet consolidates his spot through Sunset and Clubhouse as well through Leeukop. Niederhauser is still pushing down the hill into the Crocodiles. No dice . Niederhauser is right on Pilet's six, look.
This is a mega sized battle. The Honda still leads. Bertrand Baguette now driving and Baguette leads by quite a few seconds. Charles Weerts, Nick Yelloly, Alex Buncombe, Saul Hack, and Markus Winkelhock, round out the top ten. Niederhauser really, really has the pace. We might see more bad weather. It is still possible, without a doubt. Maybe some rain on one part of the circuit while other sections remain dry. Braking down into turn two, climbing through the sweep, Patric Niederhauser losing ground to Patrick Pilet. 109 laps, 311 miles. Sheldon van der Linde says BMW is having some brake issues, but they are running well in the #34 car for Walkenhorst Motorsports.
Maybe the rain might just come back. Sheldon van der Linde is counting on more rain coming before this motor race is done and dusted. There are no mega high speed areas of the course here at Kyalami. Meantime, Niederhauser is pushing Patrick Pilet but he might find that discretion is the better part of valor. Niederhauser tries to get a tow. Not quite. They are losing ground relative to the top two. Bertrand Baguette first, Nicky Catsburg, second, in his first stint at the controls of the #34 Walkenhorst BMW.
The next pit stops are estimated to be in 45 minutes. We don't have published stint times for a race like the Kyalami 9 Hours because of the odd numbered duration. Bertrand Baguette has a 4.8 second lead now over Nicky Catsburg. This has been a great race so far and the #7 Bentley, very sadly, is still the only car retired from the motor race. Patrick Pilet continues to run in third spot. Patrick Niederhauser is still fourth. Amazingly, Honda has continued to be absolutely metronomic in their performance thus far. Laurens Vatnhoor is chasing the Audi, I believe. Check that. It is Earl Bamber in the #54 Dinamic Motorsports car. It is warm out there, but with less humidity. In the old days, you had manual synchromesh gearboxes.
More dust on the road. Ah yes. Earl Bamber is indeed in the #54 Porsche. More overrunning out of the corner as Nicky Catsburg is thrashing the BMW at the moment. Nicky Catsburg has won the 8 Hours of Indianapolis, the 24 Hours of Spa, and the Nurburgring 24 Hours. But today, he is fighting that BMW M6 GT3 indeed. The pace is dropping. Catsburg was a master driving the BMW Z4 GT3 as well, for Marc VDS Racing, several years ago. Porsche #12, with crude math, they could win the championship at the end of this motor race. GPX could be champions by a single point. Porsche #12 is whittling its way up the order. The Porsche is a 50+ year old design. Patric Niederhauser is coming and so is Earl Bamber.
Baguette leads, but is not as quick as Pilet, Niederhauser, or the others. 118 laps on the board, 336 miles. The weather is changing again. Humid, no wind, clouds. The track temps are coming up. Temperatures are increasing very slightly. The humidity is there and there's no wind, as we heard from Andre Bezuidenhout earlier. Patrick Niederhauser, again, is like a little terrier. He is GT3 racing's version of Scrappy Doo, Scooby Doo's little brother. Bamber wants to get the pace back. The Dinamic Porsche is pushing. Niederhauser is trying his hardest to catch Patrick Pilet in the Porsche.
Bertrand Baguette leads by six and a half seconds. Baguette can race his own pace and maybe, so can everyone else, in this portion of the motor race as we are going to be at half distance before you know it, or the halfway mark in terms of time I should say. Patrick Pilet is not quite being caught by Patrick Niederhauser, although the Patrick and Patrick show has been quite entertaining, don't you think? Niederhauser is bish bash boshing it right now, but through The Crocodile, he is still pressing hard and is right on Pilet's tail. Niederhauser wants to make the move.
Earl Bamber is still not as quick as these two. Patric Niederhauser closes up under braking through Crowthorne. Pilet ran wide onto the dirt. Up the hill and through Leeukop they go. It's horses for courses, or rather, parts of the circuit suit the Porsche and other sections suit the Audi. These cars are so amazingly evenly matched. Bamber has clear road ahead of him. He is pushing, pushing, pushing, but is the car willing? Nicky Catsburg too, is being warned about track limits, moving between the Mine Shaft and The Crocodile. We are ten minutes shy of the end of the fourth hour of the motor race.
The halfway mark is fast approaching. Meantime, Jaminet/Pilet/Campbell are currently a point ahead of Farnbacher/Van der Zande. They have to hope the #12 slides down the race order. The teamwork for Team Honda Racing, has been incredible. Keep out of trouble. Stay on the lead lap. The final hour of the motor race is the key. You have to be in contention. Who knows what will come. Rain? Lightning? Last year, we saw loads of all of that. Nicky Catsburg is dropping into the clutches of Patrick Pilet. A queue of cars is forming up behind Pilet or so it seems. Nicky Catsburg is seven and a half seconds behind the leading Honda.
It's like chiseling a sculpture piece by piece, and a bad image if you like, of a yappy little terrier doing sculpture. Oh boy. If fans were here, you'd have some really nice Italian cooking to try for lunch. Saul Hack brings the Lechner Perfect Circle Porsche into the lane for service. Niederhauser is chiseling his way into Pilet's space on the road. Nick Yelloly is being monstered by Markus Winkelhock. However, Winkelhock is two laps down. It was three laps down earlier on in the race. Look after your Pirelli P Zero tires. Current thinking from the locals is that it will stay dry. Maybe we won't have any rain. We have five hours left on the board.
Dropping through the Mine Shaft, it is still Pilet vs. Niederhauser. Poor old Patrick Niederhauser is just not having the best time trying to move around the GPX Porsche. Andre Bezuidenhout stays clear of the leaders.
Kyalami 9 Hours: Hour 3
We are going to go Full Course Yellow. The Bentley is on fire! Maxime Soulet is out of the car. The engine is cooked. What a horrendous shame for the Bentley Boys in their final race. Kevin Estre says the Porsche is running well, and the weather is going to go crazy eventually. The clouds are around and we could see moisture here in the not too distant future. But, the wind is not changing direction at the moment. Audi #31 pitted, but it is definitely came over for Bentley. The engine blew due to a misfire of some kind. It's an end of an era for Bentley. It has been a very tough year for the Bentley boys. The only silver lining was their dominant win at Bathurst in Australia, back in February at the start of 2020 before the virus hit. #7 was slow out of the pit lane. Jordan Pepper is absolutely gutted, in his home race. If one car had trouble, back in the day, you could swap drivers into the sister car, but that policy does not work anymore about cross entering drivers in two cars.
We will perhaps go to a safety car in a few moments time. Laurens Vanthoor and Matt Campbell are pitting and so is the Walkenhorst Motorsports BMW M6 GT3. These are drive through stops to reset the stint times back to another 65 minutes for a double or triple stint. The order is being shuffled with Honda in the lead of the motor race. Mario Farnbacher leads now ahead of Christopher Haase. In replay we watch the pit stop for Bentley and the #7 was let go first and then #8 transgressed on the demarcation line. It's getting gloomier and darker. The rain is coming, and fast.
Dense black smoke filled the cockpit of the Bentley as Jules Gounon was bailing out. Everyone is maintaining the gaps as we remain under Full Course Yellow, waiting for a safety car deployment. Milan Dontje is four laps down. Dries Vanthoor in the #31 Audi is three laps down, setting the fastest race lap so far at 1:43 dead, 1:43.046. Dylan Pereira is running well in the #9 Lechner/Perfect Circle Porsche as well. Nobody can guess. We will just have to see what happens as the safety car stays on the road. Where will Jules Gounon and Jordan Pepper go next? Gounon has won the 24 Hours of Spa.
We have four Intercontinental GT Challenge races scheduled for next year. So, stay tuned for more racing in 2021. Meanwhile, the rain is going to start falling very soon. Watch for the windscreen wipers. No fans here at Kyalami as it is being run behind closed doors. But, we will see the driver's switching on their windscreen wipers if the deluge begins. It is going to be reminiscent of the 1983 Group C prototype six hour race that was run here, that yours truly has written about on another blog. We are back to green flag racing for the moment with just over six and a half hours to go. Laurens Vanthoor wants by Christopher Haase for third, and Matt Campbell comes out of nowhere to make a mkove! Campbell wants by and Vanthoor runs wide. Vanthoor and Bortolotii are three wide!
Thank you, Clubhouse corner! Oh dear. Campbell is pressing David Pittard and Dries Vanthoor, both. Matt Campbell was caught napping. The rain is falling and the lightning bolts are in the distance. "Super Mario" Mario Farnbacher leads Sheldon van der Linde in the BMW. The sole remaining Bentley of Seb Morris is battling Matt Campbell out of Crowthorne, up through Jukskei Sweep, into Barbeque, down through Sunset, and into Leeukop. Then through The Mineshaft, and into Leeukop. Matt Campbell is pressing David Pittard. The rain is coming.
In a half hour or so, we may see more pit stops. But will that coincide with the rain? Raindropsnon the camera lens, look, but track conditiojns seem OK. The wet weather Pirelli's are coming out into the pit lane. The bulk of the rain might skirt the circuit here at Kyalami. We'll see. Some drivers will be brave and run in the damp on slicks. Gambling is one thing, but if it is wrong, well, we'll see. Windscreen wipers are on. The rain is still threatening while Dries Vanthoor resets new fast lap and Matt Campbell goes inside Audi #32 and BMW #35. Bortolotti and Pittard get snookered. The rain is coming. David Pittard fights back against Mirko Bortolotti through Crowthorne.
We have wind, rain, and lightning. The track temperature has dropped ten degrees. The sky has opened looking back towards Johannesburg. Seb Morris is looking at David Pittard and wants by the BMW but can't make it. Audi #45 has more woes. Farnbacher/Van der Zande lead Bamber/Vanthoor and Farfus/Catsburg. Sheldon van der Linde, the fastest lap of the race so far as the rain is coming. 79 laps, 225 miles. Sheldon van der Linde is catching Mario Farnbacher. Sheldon van der Linde second. He is a factory BMW driver and his brother Kelvin van der Linde is a factory Audi driver. Meantime, Matt Campbell is the bloke who has reset fastest lap.
This smashes Nick Tandy's 2019 lap record! Wow! Sheldon van der Linde now does absolute best in the first sector. Farnbacher, Sheldon van der Linde, Christopher Haase, Matt Campbell, and Mirko Bortolotti, and here comes Sheldon van der Linde. He is flying, moving in on Mario Farnbacher. Yikes! Fabulous racing and a fabulous lap by the South African BMW driver. The BMW is very compliant and confidence inducing all around the Kyalami Grand Prix circuit. Dylan Pereira in Porsche #9 has had a final warning from the stewards on track limits.
Now, maybe, the rain is going away. There will be further rain systems coming. So, there could be further interventions from Mother Nature. We will see. The track could dry out just a little bit here in the next few minutes. Drama, drama, and more drama. Laurens and Dries Vanthoor are both racing right now. Dries in the #31 Audi and Laurens in the #54 Porsche. 81 laps on the board and Honda have led every lap so far. 82 laps, 234 miles. There could be rain through Crowthorne. At the higher parts of the circuit, like Sunset and Clubhouse, it's drier. Although there could be more moisture out there. We will just have to see.
Dries Vanthoor, new lap record, 1:42.560, on the greasy track. Next year, in GT3 competition, BMW will introduce the new M4. The M4 is a completely new car. The grand old lady, she is still competitive. Matt Campbell is closing on Laurens Vanthoor. Dylan Pereira is still being warned about track limits. Laurens Vanthoor is being given a hard time by Matt Campbell as well. The water is evaporating and so this race could be back on the button. The beauty of racing in a subtropical climate is that high ambient and track temps have very little effect on the track itself. Track conditions are spot on for setting lap records.
Mario Farnbacher leads the motor race over Sheldon van der Linde, Christopher Haase, Laurens Vanthoor, and Matt Campbell. Matty Campbell is setting lap record after lap record! Wow! Laurens Vanthoor, off in the dirt, look, exiting Barbecue. Six hours and 12 minutes on the board yet. Don't hit a curb at a bad angle because you will cut a tire down in a heartbeat. As rallying legend Marku Alen used to say, "maximum attack." Mario Farnbacher is picking up the pace again. Another hour will be done and dusted very soon. Laurens Vanthoor is having to push harder than Matt Campbell is at the moment. It is Porsche vs. Porsche.
Will these chaps change spots on the road, or during the pit stop exchange? Christopher Haase in the #44 Audi is up the road, in the Audi Sport Team Car Collection entry. Vanthoor needs to gain places and points but he is giving away boatloads to Mario Farnbacher and company in the Honda NSX GT3 #30. Dylan Pereira is running extremely well, ninth overall to match the car number of the Team Perfect Circle, Lechner Racing Porsche. Pereira sharing with Saul Hack and Andre Bezeidenhout. Laruens Vanthoor makes a mistake at The Crocodile and Matt Campbell goes through. Don't give those moves away.
Perfect Circle, is an engine oil additive that has been around for years and years. Did Vanthoor have a braking issue? Did he get loose? He didn't need a second invitation to come to the ball, and has moved by. Will Porsche #54 be an earlier caller to the pit lane. Seb Morris is using the windscreen wipers on the sole remaining Bentley. Seb Morris has taken over from Oliver Jarvis. Jarvis says that he and his team are lacking pace. Of course, they are the sole remaining Bentley in the field. They seem to be losing time in sector two. Alex Buncombe will be next into Bentley #8 before Oliver Jarvis takes over. Bentley #7 had the extra turn of speed, and sadly, they are out. Game over, of course. In case you missed it, the engine went bang, in a huge way.
We have six hours to go. We're roughly 1/3rd of the way through. We'll be done tonight by 8PM local time. Mario Farnbacher still leads. The gap is growing to 2.4 seconds. The Honda is in the pound seats right now indeed, look.
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