Now it is time, here in New Orleans, for SRO GT America race two. This is round six of the championship proper for the single driver sprint races featuring GT3 and GT4 cars. Yesterday we saw a thrilling race on the bayou and we're set to do it again. NOLA was not a venue for GTA last year but it is now. This championship has been incredible from the start of the season at St. Petersburg in Florida, through the races at Sonoma Raceway in California, and now to here at NOLA. Five of the first half dozen starters are in the Mercedes AMG GT3 which is a car that ticks all the boxes no matter what circuit. The Aston Martin Vantage does the same in the GT4 class. Adam Adelson in the Porsche is fifth quickest. In GT4, as we said, Aston Martin are indeed at the forefornt. Ross Chouest won in class yesterday.
Memo Gidley is the GT3 points leader but in this mixed class field there are 22 cars. Anthony Bartone will be a definite contender along with Jason Daskalos. This of course is the first time GT America cars have raced at New Orleans. Jason Bell leads the GT4 points but the drivers have to survive the swamp in a five point margin between the leaders. Hard work to develop tire temperatures and brake temperatures. Great to see Johnny O'Connell back. A World Challenge champion. A winner at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. A true legend of sports car racing. It is a fun mix of multiple generation GT3 cars like the Mercedes to the Ferrari 458 from many generations ago. The Callaway Corvette is as well. Fun cars to see. They aren't just museum pieces.
Flat, abrasive surface here at NOLA and 2 and 3/4 miles around. Watch the overtaking zones in the first sector. Safety car lights off. We've got a green flag and we're underway! Memo Gidley gets the jump and here comes both Anthony Bartone and George Kurtz. Here's the GT4 start. Robb Holland on pole in the Rotek Porsche Cayman. Daskalos second with Kurtz third around Bartone. Todd Treffert in the #41 Mercedes is in the mix and so is the Wright Motorsports Porsche of Adam Adelson. Daskalos is fending off the challenge and is getting his elbows out early doors. Memo Gidley has run off like a scalded cat.
Adelson, O'Connell, Schultis, Andy Wilzoch, and Alex Vogel. Memo Gidley a longtime IndyCar and sports car driver. George Kurtz looking racy after not having the races he wanted here in GT America or in GT World Challenge America. Daskalos has experience in Dodge Viper's and in the previous generation Audi R8. Jason Daskalos is aligned with CRP Racing and team boss Nick Short. Meanwhile, Robb Holland leads in GT4 over Elias Sabo and Todd Coleman who has gone around Ross Chouest and poor old Jason Bell had a not so good start and is down the order already! Oh dear. Tony Gaples makes a move in the Blackdog Speed Shop Camaro passing the Porsche in the hands of Matt Joffe. Joffe in the #99 Extreme Velocity Motorsports Porsche Cayman.
Tony Gaples in the GT4 spec Camaro, the team is working out the bugs on that Camaro with crew chief and team boss Ray Sorenson who has worked with Newman Haas in IndyCar before working with Mario and Michael Andretti and Nigel Mansell. Gidley leads Daskalos now by 2.6 seconds with George Kurtz and Anthony Bartone next in line. Memo Gidley seems to be taking the bull by the horns but is loving winning again! Touring car driver Kyle Loh congratulated Gidley and Gidley did the same thing for Kyle Loh. Very cool story. Memo Gidley's career has gotten a second win after his massive crash at Daytona a number of years ago.
Great battle between Bartone and Kurtz, still. These two had argy bargy yesterday in race one and are racing clean now. Learn how to be circumspect. Anthony Bartone and Todd Treffert are both extremely quick as new drivers in this championship. Treffert has taken to a GT3 car like a duck to water and Kenton Koch tested the car earlier in the week, the GT4 driver we will see in Pirelli GT4 America in a wee while. Oh nuts! Commentator's curse. Drive through penalty for Anthony Bartone for pre-grid procedures!
Ugh! He will try to regroup. But it will be a tall drink of water. He will need a Full Course Yellow. In GT4 it is Holland vs. Sabo vs. Coleman vs. Chouest. Porsche Cayman leading three Aston Martin's. Todd Coleman is growing and maturing as a racing driver. Holland has tons of experience including in Europe racing British Touring Cars and a Nurburgring NLS program. He came back stateside when GT America debuted. Coleman being pressed by Sabo and they are not giving each other any room. Sabo rides the curb and has to give it up. Coleman is a fighter and he is really going for it even though he had a penalty yesterday.
He had splitter damage after a couple of off course excursions yesterday. Coleman knows what is at stake for the lead of the motor race in GT4. Coleman driving for Mike Johnson and Archangel Motorsports out of St. Louis, Missouri. Todd Coleman liked driving the Toyota Supra GT4 last year and found the car edgy even though he liked it. But the Aston Martin seems to be the car for him and he is chasing down Robb Holland who has been at it for a long time as a racing driver. Coleman has to have the discipline. There is a long way to go yet. Still 27-28 minutes on the board and Elias Sabo is still pushing like crazy as well.
Jason Daskalos now working his way around the lapped Toyota Supra GT4 of Nick Shanny and he still has George Kurtz right on his six with Todd Treffert not far behind. Treffert bounding over the curbs and is getting racy trying to bring the pressure to George Kurtz and now, Treffert is right on the defending champion, George Kurtz. Treffert is really pushing but gave it up too soon. This is the difference between historic racing and professional racing. That is no disrespect to HSR or other vintage car racing championships. But wheel to wheel racing in vintage competition is frowned upon and it is a far more gentlemanly sport because the cars are worth shedloads of money, they are priceless.
It is a whole different philosophy to have fun driving priceless cars. Coleman and Sabo locking horns and now, Holland is in trouble and Coleman is shoved wide. Chouest is coming and Sabo passed and here comes Gaples! Tony Gaples is doing everything he can but cannot quite make a move on Chouest, the Louisiana native on his home track. Late move by Coleman on Holland and we can see that Coleman drove into the corner way too hot! That was nothing more than an accordion effect! Egad! I don't know if Coleman knew Elias Sabo was there! Jeepers creepers!
The stewards have pinged Todd Coleman with a driving standards warning. Kurtz has gone past Treffert and is reeling in Daskalos hand over fist. These two were first and second in the championship last year. Daskalos was the only driver to take the fight to Kurtz last year. Traffic ahead. Kurtz tries getting a run on Daskalos but can't do it. Treffert is also in the picture as they hit the GT4 traffic. Kurtz was off the road and into the marbles. The marbles are not as bad as they were earlier in the weekend. So the tire degradation should be better and the track was washed clean with the heavy rain from yesterday. The lapped Porsche Cayman is a pick, with Matt Joffe, the cork in the bottle.
You are driving blind out of the final turn as the field passes Jason Bell, 2021 GT4 champion and Adam Adelson too, is hanging in there and so is Johnny O'Connell. All of this is nine seconds behind Memo Gidley at 1:37.277 for CrowdStrike fastest lap of the race. Robb Holland holding Elias Sabo at bay. Todd Coleman's car is fine but his pace has dropped. Sabo on the attack halfway through the race. Holland in deep into turn 13. Coleman is coming and fast. The Aston Martin's are fast in this section of the course as we tick off another lap. Kurtz looking to pass Daskalos as the SRO3 leaders have caught the GT4 pack.
Everyone in a battle of their own as Daskalos almost goes off the road. Daskalos to the inside. Kurtzx cannot follow through and here comes Treffert. The speed delta between GT3 and GT4 is big. Manage the traffic in multiclass racing and that is how you separate the good sports car racers from the great ones. Sabo dives inside Adelson! GT4 on GT3! How in the world did they pull that off?! They did everything but crash there! Sabo now leada Holland in GT4. Adelson tries being the cork in the bottle and says, "I'll hold up this train." Sabo says, "forget you, dude!", licks the stamp, and sends it! Massive commitment!
All credit though to Adam Adelson for heads up driving. It's not that often that you see a big, heavy GT3 car get absolutely dusted by a GT4 with less power and less aero. It is now mano e mano between Daskalos and Kurtz. Treffort has dropped back a second and a half. Treffert is Daskalos' teammate. Four Mercedes AMG GT3's at the top of the tree. Gidley is 14 seconds to the good over this battle we are watching between Daskalos, Kurtz, Treffert, and possibly Adelson if he can stick his nose in there. Adelson, O'Connell, Schultis, Wilzoch, Vogel, the top eight. Treffert will have a say in this scrum. Kurtz is laying back to time a run through the esses with the marbles offline in turn ten.
Kurtz getting inside Daskalos' head. Great rhythm and a raceable track here at NOLA. It's awesome! A wide variety of different corners even though the track is flat. The esses are fast and high commitment. There are different configuration options. We are in the heart of Louisiana swamp country. Daskalos is digging deep as Gidley has pushed enough for his lead to balloon to 16 seconds. Many of these competitors are using GT America to get more seat time for Pirelli GT4 America and for GT World Challenge America that we will be covering later on.
The sprint race, single driver format is what World Challenge was all about for decades. Treffert is really applying the pressure. He wants to get past George Kurtz. He wants the points but this is tough sledding to get by Daskalos and Gidley extending his lead. GT4 meanwhile, Holland vs. Coleman and Coleman runs ahead in the Aston Martin dropping back to third. Vogel in the GT3 Porsche settles in behind and we still see Sabo leading GT4. Aston Martin, Aston Martin, Porsche, on the GT4 podium as Vogel tries forcing the issue and pays the price! Alex Vogel in the #043 OnlyFans Racing With P1 Groupe by MRS Porsche 911 GT3R.
Vogel still on a learning curve with limited experience. He is going to learn from this spin. Coleman is fine and continues but the commitment by Vogel meant he tagged Coleman who already has a damaged fender as we get into the final ten minutes of the race. Give a call to Elias Sabo pounding out the laps and eking out the gap by over two seconds in ther 5.11 Tactical Aston martin and poor old Treffert goes off the road! To the outside, he tucks it back to the inside and had the door closed on him causing a spin. Adelson and O'Connell go by. George Kurtz is now on the attack looing to take second away from Daskalos behind Memo Gidley.
Adelson in the Porsche is fourth and so we could see a Mercedes podium lockout. Adelson has had a quiet day today ad now, Kurtz wants an inside move on Daskalos and he has to be more patient with applying the throttle. Seven and a half minutes remaining. George Kurtz probing for a weakness he can exploit. He is working over Jason Daskalos for second place. Kurtz managing the situation and looking for a way around Daskalos. He is trying still to get into Daskalos' head. Climb over the curbs for extra grip. These two dueled to the title last year. Daskalos was fighting with one hand with the older Audi but ahs the same car with the Mercedes and can go toe to toe with Kurtz.
Todd Coleman, second in GT4, having braking issues after Alex Vogel in the Porsche #043 crunched into him. A dislodged fender but it is not affecting engine or brake cooling. Still a ahndful of minutes on the board with five minutes to run yet. This has been a great race with no letup whatsoever. Daskalos may hit traffic. Paul Kiebler in the TR3 Aston Martin and Gray Newell in the Heart of Racing Aston Martin who had an unexpected appearance at the 6 Hours of Spa too of course. Kurtz to the inside and makes his move sweeping across the bow and clears Gray Newell too!
The opportunity was there and George Kurtz read that perfectly. Memo Gidley continues to lead. Elias Sabo continues leading GT4. Coleman is quicker and the gap though is just too large. Todd Coleman though will have a bucket load of confidence. This will be Elias Sabo's second GT America win. He won race two at Sebring last fall. A top notch effort for Flying Lizard and crew chief Steven Costello, another mechanic who worked with our pal Calvin Fish racing here in the U.S. in the mid 1980s. He is the team manager at Flying Lizard doing GT4. Owen Hayes is the engineer, a longtime Porsche employee who ran the old LMP2 RS Spyder program with Roger Penske many moons ago.
Elias Sabo not drawing away from Coleman. But 1.6 seconds is a long way as we are closing in on the finish. White flag this time by I believe. One lap to go for the GT4 and GT3 leaders. Team boss Dave Traitel recovering from surgery. He should be back for the next event at Circuit of the Americas and we'll talk about that soon. Traitel has given Memo Gidley a new lease on his racing life after the rehab after his Rolex 24 accident almost a decade ago. Todd Treffert still in recovery mode. Memo Gidley breaks out the broom and sweeps! GT4 victory to Elias Sabo!
Overall/SRO3: #101 Memo Gidley TKO Motorsports with Flying Lizard Mercedes AMG GT3 Evo
GT4: #8 Elias Sabo Flying Lizard Motorsports Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4
CrowdStrike Fastest Lap of the race also awarded to Memo Gidley at 1:37.277. We are going to see a number of these drivers in race two for Fanatec GT World Challenge America coming up a bit later on. Next up for GT America is the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, coming up next weekend. So, not too much time before we see GT America back in action. For now, so long everybody from the Louisianan bayou. More racing at NOLA yet to come so stay with us.
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