DOUBLE STINT: DTM Recap; News Roundup & More (4-30-24)

Davey Euwema joins Jonathan Grace for this week's episode of Double Stint...

https://sportscar365.com/podcasts/double-stint-dtm-recap-news-roundup-more/

Jeddah Endurance Cup Finale Pushed Back by One Week

Breaking news from SRO GT World Challenge Europe!  FYI!  Check this out.

SRO Motorsports Group announces schedule change for Endurance Cup finale; now set for final weekend of November...

https://sportscar365.com/sro/world-challenge-europe/jeddah-finale-pushed-back-by-one-week/

LIVE | Race | Silverstone 500 | 2024 British GT Championship

 

The big one is here.  Race coverage of the Silverstone 500 for the British GT Championship, round three of the championship.  Andy McEwen and Joe Osborne call the racing action from the broadcast booth with Bryn Lucas covering the action in the pit lane.  Enjoy.

LIVE | Warm-up | Silverstone 500 | 2024 British GT

 

It is Silverstone 500 day, the blue riband event of British GT.  Here is the morning warmup.  Andy McEwen and Joe Osborne call the action in the commentary box with Bryn Lucas reporting from pit lane.  The race is coming up.  Stay tuned.  

LIVE | Qualifying | Silverstone 500 | 2024 British GT

 

Qualifying for the biggest race of the SRO British GT Championship, the Silverstone 500.  Andy McEwen and Joe Osborne are in the commentary box calling the action, with Bryn Lucas reporting from the pit lane.  Race coverage is coming up soon.  

LIVE | Race 2 | Circuit Paul Ricard | GT4 European Series powered by Rafa Racing Club 2024 (Eng)

 

The second race of the weekend at the Paul Ricard circuit on the Cote d'Azur in the south of France for the SRO GT4 European Series on SRO GTWorld as we join David Addison and Charlie Fagg in the commentary box, and Antonia Rankin reporting from the pit lane, for all of the racing action.  

SRO GT4 European Series: Paul Ricard, Race 2

Hello again, everybody, and welcome to Paul Ricard in the south of France for race two of the weekend for the SRO GT4 European Series season opener as we have David Addison and former GT4 Europe champion Charlie Fagg, in the commentary box.  Yesterday, we saw a dominant victory for Enzo Joulie and Etienne Cheli in their Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO.  This morning it is cooler and overcast.  We are set for the second one-hour race of the weekend.  This massive grid of cars is getting formed up and ready to go racing.  Aston Martin's dominate the grid here today for race two.  Toyota Gazoo Racing France were on another level in the race yesterday.  They really were.  We are also going to keep a watchful eye on the two Elite Motorsports McLaren Artura GT4's.  The #78 entry of Josh Rattican and Thomas Lebbon had a great race yesterday.  But the sister #77 car had one they'd just as soon forget, Thomas Emson, alongside his Irish co-driver Alex Denning.  

Hendrik Still is the polesitter.  He won races last year in 2023 but in a Porsche Cayman, now at the wheel of an Aston Martin, car #100 for PROSport Racing.  The Aston, with tons of power and a front engine layout, should also be competitive here.  Lots of work has been done on the car as well.  Don't squabble too much and get to the pit window which is 25-35 minutes within the race.  We will also keep a close eye on the #91 Porsche Cayman for Wimmer Werk Motorsport.  Danish race Nicolaj Moller-Madsen starts the car and will hand over, at the halfway point, to co-driver Ivan Ekelchik.  

Everyone must serve a regular pit stop and must be line to line for 88 seconds for the pit delta with a one second joker you can use just one time per weekend.  Alex Denning is a very, very quick driver.  In that aforementioned Aston Martin, the #100, Hendrik Still will take the second stint in the race today and before him it will be his co-driver Fabio Rauer starting the race.  Our pit reporter, Antonia Rankin, interviews Fabio Rauer who hopes for the best and knows he and Hendrik will be pushing hard.  Focus on the front.  Check the situation at the halfway mark, adapt to it, and go through with the driver change.

This is the same strategy here in GT4 Europe that we always see in the GT4 America SRO races we cover for you on the blog.  We're also going to have a sharp eye on the Alpine, the #36 Alpine A110 GT4 for Code Racing Development with Antoine Leclerc starting and then handing off to Nelson Panciatici, in this all-French team.  Yesterday, Panciatici was the king of overtaking.  We are also going to be keeping an eye out for the #82 Racing Spirit of Leman Aston Martin Vantage GT4 being started by Jamie Day and he will hand over to Matteo Villagomez in the race's second half.  Enzo Jouliet is confident, and the race is long.  

The grid for this race is down to the qualifying session that took place for it.  We will also have a Captain Cook at the oft mentioned #39 Aston Martin Vantage GT4 of Brazilian forrmer Formula 3 open wheel driver Roberto Faria sharing with Frenchman Baudouin Detout.  The GT4 cars are so much more like a road car.  Faria is adapting to the production-based coupe.  One of the cars is having to start from the pit lane for this event and that is the #44 entry, the Allied-Racing Porsche Cayman being shared by Oskar Kristensen from Denmark and Maksymilian Angelard, the Polish rookie driver.  

We've got a couple more key players, or ones to watch, before we get going.  Yesterday, we saw the second #99 PROSport Racing Aston Martin come to the fore.  This is Raphael Rennhofer sharing with Hugo Sasse.  We'll see who else we might have to talk about before this race begins.  Yesterday, Rennhofer and Sasse had a wheel break on the car.  The weekend is not over for them yet.  If you are in the middle of the pack, be very, very careful.  Yesterday was pretty clean.  But today, oh my heavens, we could see more argy bargy.  There is time to repair the cars before the next race which is actually coming up soon.  Green flag waves and the formation lap is underway.  

Raphael Rennhofer, it looks like he races under an Asutralian license.  Will we see the only driver in the field going Marco Solo, actually on the grid today?  That is the Porsche Cayman, car #131 for JSB Competition, Mathieu Casalonga start this race today?  It is possible.  Watch out for contact.  It is so hard to see the braking point through the first chicane on the Mistral straightaway.  The blue and black lines on the side of the road really mess with your mind.  Who will get the best reaction times off the starting line?  That's a good question.  We have an hour of motor racing ahead of us.  Here comes the field.  

Hendrik Still and Raphael Rennhofer on the front row.  60 minutes.  One hour of racing.  The lights flash green!  Let's go!  It is blastoff!  Roberto Faria makes a good start and take a deep breath to squeeze through the trurn.  Rennhofer off and back on.  Gabriele Piana in one of the BMW M4 GT4's is off and back on.  Lots of curb hopping but everyone makes it through Virage du Camp.  Poor old Roberto Faria got swamped.  Rennhofer cuts the chciane and must give his spot back.  Roberto Faria makes a good pass and another car runs wide over the curbs as they wriggle their way through.  This is a crowded house as Alex Papadopoulos is squeezed in the #15 Mercedes-AMG GT4.  Mercedes #15 for NM Racing Team is off the road.  Papadopoulos sharing that automobile, the American, with Lluc Ibanez Trullols of Spain.

Alex Denning and Tom Lebbon in the two Elite Motorsports McLaren's are moving up as we speak.  One lap in the books with Hendrik Still leading and Roberto Faria for GPA Racing, he is turning it on right now.  Oh, shoot.  A spin there for the #20 Mercedes-AMG GT4.  That is the EastSide Motorsport Mercedes-AMG GT4 of Denis Bulatov and Lukas Mayr, both registered under German flags.  We also see a slow Aston Martin that could have been involved, too, the Racing Spirit of Leman entry of Swiss driver David Kullmann and Alex Machado, the rookie Brazilian driver.  

Trouble in paradise again for the #15 NM Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4 who runs wide and is going to get mugged by an opponent.  Papadopoulos is not having the best start to his motor race.  Hendrik Still, he is on a Sunday drive because he has put a good bit of daylight between himself and this massive traffic jam behind him.  Aston Martin, Toyota, Alpine, McLaren.  Faria, Rennhofer, Cheli, Day, Leclerc, Lebbon, and Denning are all back there trying to keep up.  One lap done.  But everyone else really need to book it to catch Still.  You cannot do loads with GT4 cars for setup but maybe the GPA car has less rear wing on it.  

Reigning GT4 Europe champion Gabriele Piana is on the back foot.  He is languishing in 34th place.  There's contact noted as well between car #300, and #98.  #300 is French rookie Nicolas Markiewicz sharing with countryman Adrien Paviot aboard the Team Speedcar Audi R8 LMS GT4 and #98 is the Lestrup Racing Team BMW M4 GT4 shared by Swedish drivers Joakim Walde and Victor Bouveng.  Contact before the race start does not tend to go well with Race Control.  Nicolaj Moller Madsen is wasting no time, and he makes his move on Ricardo van der Ende.  Wimmer Werk Racing Porsche Cayman on L'Espace Bienvenue BMW M4 GT4.  

Yellow in sectors one and three, both.  Moller Madsen and van der Ende are running nose to tail.  Robert Consani in the Audi and Matt Niccoll-Jones in the Ford Mustang GT4, the #62 car.  That is the Academy Motorsport car.  In the lead, Hendrik Still is only 7/10ths of a second up on Roberto Faria in second place.  Etienne Cheli is remaining in the fight and if he stays where he is and hands it off in one piece to co-driver Enzo Jouliet, then they could be in the pound seats to score a W this morning.  Consani and van der Ende run into each other!  Oh my!  What has happened there?!  van der Ende is forced out wide and Matt Nicoll-Jones goes by.  Robert Consani has damage as well.  

Meanwhile, look, Jamie Day makes a move on Rafael Rennhofer!  This is classic GT4 racing!  Antoine Leclerc fending off Alex Denning.  Antoine Leclerc has raced at a level as high as the old FIA GT1 World Championship.  But believe me, Alex Denning is all over him like a cheap suit.  Mustang and BMW side by side and Marco Signoretti, the Canadian, thwacks into the side of Pedro Carvalo Ebrahim, another Brazilian rookie, in the #11 Borusan Otomotiv Motorsport BMW M4 GT4 he shares with Yagiz Gedik, the Turkish driver.

The Mustang and the BMW are two of the meanest, biggest, most in-your-face GT4 cars out there.  We're just five minutes into this race and we've got a big picture to think about.  Believe me.  A lot of the drivers are new to working as a team and sharing a car with another driver.  This is not about them alone.  It is about them being a true team player.  Aston Martin #99 uses the moemntum to make a great pass.  Raphael Rennhofer makes a great pass on Jamie Day.  Meanwhile, Moller-Madsen in the Porsche passes Consani in the Audi.  Moller-Madsen won the Silver division in GT4 Europe years ago but excels in these cars.  Consani is a former rally driver turned circuit racer.

The two of them are immediately followed by Matt Nicoll-Jones.  The rest of the order behind them is van der Ende, Miller, Signoretti, and Ebrahim Carvalho.  Trouble too for the #74 Aston Martin.  Consani fending off the Mustang through the chicane.  French hillclimb champion Cindy Gudet has gone off the road in the #66 Matmut Evolution Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO she shares with Czech lady racer Gabriela Jilkova.  Tom Lebbon in the first of the two Elite Motorsport McLaren's is gaining on Antoine Leclerc in the Alpine.  Leclerc's pace is good, and the tire wear is better because it is lighter.  Gerald Duvel, Race Director, calls a penalty for one of the drivers for leaving the track.  

It sounds like the call is to car #11.  It is.  Pedro Ebrahim, leaving the track with an advantage.  Three-wide, Moller Madsen, Consani, and more!  Alex Denning leaves the Porsche hung out to dry and he makes the pass.  Moller Madsen right in the slipstream of the McLaren.  The Mustang gobbling up the traffic like Pac Man!  Consani off the road and back on down the Mistral straight.  Ricardo van der Ende in the BMW and Josh Miller in the Aston Martin also in a battle of their own.

Matt Niccoll-Jones cannot find an opening as the Audi runs wide and then the BMW of van der Ende makes his move while poor old Consani in the Audi has bodywork damage.  Robert Consani is not going to roll over and have his tummy scratched.  He is going to keep fighting and nipping at the heels of these other blokes who have wrangled him out of the way.  Matt Nicoll-Jones gets sideways as he is pinballed by both the McLaren and the BMW into the last corner at Virage du Pont!  Oy yoy yoy!  Niccoll-Jones' Mustang and Alex Denning's McLaren both suffer big damage in that little fracas.  Ricardo van der Ende went to the inside, answering the bell, and making up two places.

Robert Consani has good aero and makes it stick on van der Ende in the BMW!  Wow!  This is a short braking zone.  Calm down, dear.  Save your scrapping for a later time, please.  Rafael Rennhofer, who we saw losing spots earlier, he has uncorked the fastest lap of the motor race thus far in GT4 Europe race two here at Paul Ricard.  All of this scrapping we have been looking at is for ninth through 13th place.  Ricardo van der Ende won the GT4 Europe event at Spa last year.  Consani in the Audi has the straight-line speed.  Roberto Faria is still second and within striking distance of Hendrik Still. Faria uncorks fastest lap of the motor race so far.  Denning and van der Ende in their battle and van der Ende makes his move!  

Roberto Faria, as I said, he has set fastest lap of the motor race thus far.  The pit window is coming soon.  That was a local yellow.  Matt Nicoll Jones has both Miller and Ebrahim-Carvalho right behind him.  Tom Lebbon is sixth and now, down the inside goers the BMW on the Aston Martin.  Front left puncture for Marco Signoretti and he is in limp home mode in the sister Academy Motorsports Mustang.  He will need to make two stops, one for the tire, and one, the regulation pit stop for a driver change.  Here, look, this is the battle between Rafael Rennhofer and Etienne Cheli for third spot.  Aston Martin vs. Toyota.  

Rennhofer is now back at the races and beginning to push.  Younger drivers might be inexperienced, but they appear to have the pace.  Believe me.  Miller also wants a bite of the cherry and poor old Alex Denning is losing spots.  Tom Lebbon in the other McLaren has uncorked first sector fastest time and so he is pushing, pushing, pushing, in some contrast to his teammate who is on the back foot.  Josh Miller slithers out wide and now he has Nicolai Moller Madsen coming in a big hurry.  Moller Madsen also has a head of steam on the McLaren, the Denning automobile.

The McLaren is fast through the turns but might not have the straightaway speed.  That is actually the sister Porsche Cayman for Wimmer Werk Motorsport.  It is car #92 of Emil Heyerdahl from Norway sharing with American driver Nicholas Maloy.  Emil Heyerdahl is making up places as Marco Signoretti is in the pit lane changing the tire.  Leading the Pro-Am division is the #75 AV Racing Porsche Cayman of the all-French duo of Noam Abramczyk and Paul Petit.  Abramczyk driving now and Petit will take over for the second stint.  The McLaren Artura is relatively new and the car can have overheating woes.  GT4 cars have road going car components and not race bred parts.  So the reliability is different.  

If your car is overheating, you will lose top speed.  If you overheat you lose pace and get caught in traffic and it is a vicious cycle.  The Porsche's are beginning to come alive.  Tom Lebbon is ahead of his teammate.  The BMW makes a pass and Denning knows he will have to box early and do a driver change.  Gabriele Piana is at the wheel of the Borusan BMW.  He is an expert GT4 driver.  The McLaren is having more troubles being drubbed by the Alpine.  Gabriele Piana is a very experienced driver who can definitely motor through the field.  He has ten or so minutes left in his drive time before handing the car to his teammate.

Yesterday's Am class winners, look, are back at the top of the shop in the Am class again today.  This is the predominantly black #55 Alpine A110 GT4 EVO for Schumacher CLRT, the French duo of Pascal Huteau and Laurent Hurgon.  Robert Consani in the Audi has also been busy as he makes a pass on Nicolaj Moller Madsen.  Ricardo van der Ende is closing in on these two, for eighth, ninth, and tenth.  Three different cars through Virage du Camp.  Audi R8 LMS GT4 vs. Porsche Cayman (718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport, the proper title), and BMW M4 GT4.  In the meantime, Hendrik Still continues on his merry way in the lead.  He is two seconds to the good over everybody else.

Roberto Faria may have had a concentration lapse but is now back on the button and you cannot forget about Raphael Rennhofer either.  Rennhofer in third spot right now.  He is in the #99 PROsport Racing Aston Martin.  A time penalty has been given to the #3 car of Robert Consani.  Time penalty, five seconds for track limits.  He'll serve it at the pit stop.  He is eighth and will drop down the order after the pit stop.  Good to see an Audi in GT4 racing.  We don't see many of them here in Europe or in the North American SRO GT4 championship either.  Consani though has two penalties.  One for track limits and another for causing a collision!  

So, that is a 15 second penalty.  He will only be back into the fight if there is a safety car scramble.  OK.  That clarifies things.  Benjamin Lariche, the Frenchman, will take over the car at the pit stop.  Consani and Lariche though, will do nothing but hemorrhage time.  Rennhofer and Cheli are both moving up.  Now, the pit lane is open, and we've got early takers.  It's busy, like Castellet International Airport right next to the circuit.  Josh Rattican will be next into the McLaren to finish the motor race.  The top three have remained on track.  Remember, in GT4, there are no tire changes.  Make the Pirelli tires last the whole time.  This rule applies in Europe as well as in the GT4 America championship.  So, it's constant.

Lebbon, Josh Miller, and many others are making the pit stops handing over to the faster drivers.  Gabriele Piana will stay out as long as possible before handing to Berkay Besler and Josh Miller has now handed the #5 Mirage Racing Aston Martin to Ruben Del Sarte.  Nelson Panciatici has taken over the Alpine.  Hendrik Still, still leads... no pun intended.  The team is maximizing Still's drive time before he hits the lane and hands off to Fabio Rauer to bring the car to the finish.  Roberto Faria has made his way to second, the Brazilian, and Robert Consani is in a phony third spot.  It is artificial and not his true position.

Alex Denning brings the #77 Elite Motorsports McLaren to the lane with what looks like damage to the right rear corner.  More pit action and driver changes.  You do not get tons of track time.  So, use the rest of the race as a test session in this second half.  That is your best bet.  Hendrik Still is really doing quite the job at the front.  Nelson Panciatici in the Alpine is also running consistently.  Still runs wide and now hits the pit lane.  Roberto Faria is in the lane, too.  The window is going to close soon.  So, Fabio Rauer is now in the car.  We've got a battle developing between the two Aston Martin's.  

In the foreground of the picture, we also notice the Lotus Emira GT4.  This is the #96 Mahiki Racing car being shared by the British duo of Max Bird and Dexter Patterson.  The engineers on these cars come from the University of Bolton in England and their National Engineering Center including team member Elise Lewis.  If her name is Elise, which it is, working on a Lotus is appropriate since they had a car many moons ago called an Elise which was and is one of their most popular models.  Great to see another brand on the grid.  The Lotus Emira has looked fast in the British GT Championship also sanctioned by the SRO.

Enzo Joulie, who won race one yesterday, he has now rejoined the motor race ahead of the #100 Aston Martin of Hendrik Still.  Excuse me, Fabio Rauer.  I think Josh Rattican has also passed by the Aston Martin of Roberto Faria.  This race is in it's second half.  The Aston Martin's are first and third split by a Toyota Supra in second spot.  Hugo Sasse is now at the controls of the sister #99 PROsport Aston Martin.  Benjamin Lessennes, the Belgian driver, has taken over from Ricardo van der Ende at the wheel of the #17 L'espace Bienvenue BMW M4 GT4 as well.  Hugo Sasse has leapfrogged his teammate and also, Josh Rattican in the McLaren.

Rattican must pass the Aston if he hopes to battle for the victory.  #100 in third place was just under 95 seconds while the sister car had an 89 second stop.  So, it was a slow pit stop for the #100 car.  Rattican is not close enough to make his move.  PROSport Aston Martin are in a spot of bother.  Hugo Sasse in the sister car is whistling off into the distance but the scoop is, too, Enzo Joulie in the Toyota Supra the #9 car, he is going to be reeling in the Aston as well.  At this moment though, Sasse is pushing the bye bye button as he has two seconds in hand over the Toyota.  Fabio Rauer not as experienced but he is keeping Josh Rattican at bay, currently.

Nelson Panciatici has trouble brewing because he is on his last warning for track limits before the stewards ping him with a penalty, a drive through penalty.  Fabio Rauer just barely ahead of Josh Rattican.  Is it power or aerodynamics?  They remain nose to tail.  I think the Aston Martin will be able to stretch his legs a wee bit.  Hang on.  I hear a telephone ringing.  Is there a phone call?  Oh.  Nope.  It's OK.  Wait.  I know who was ringing the phone!  It was the crew chief for one of the teams saying to his driver, "please, don't wreck the car!"  That warning fell on deaf ears, or nobody answered the bell because the Porsche and the Audi have tangled in the chicane on the Mistral straight!

Benjamin Lariche and Ivan Ekelchik have tangled!  Poor old Benjamin Lariche!  When it's not your day, it is not your day!  He has had penalties and is now caught in someone else's tangle.  Ekelchik was ahead and Lariche had the door slammed in his face.  Hugo Sasse leading the motor race.  Benjamin Larchie when through, Ekelchik stood his ground, and they both spun out.  Enzo Joulie is the fastest man on the road and now, Josh Rattican makes the move on Fabio Rauer!  Holy smokes!  Josh Rattican knows he has more pace and needs to defend with 20 minutes to go, into the final third of GT4 Europe race two at Paul Ricard.

Hugo Sasse remains two seconds ahead of Enzo Joulie.  Badouin Detout is fifth in the red Aston Martin.  A 15 second penalty for a short pit stop for Benjamin Lariche!  Oh no!  OK.  Benjamin, I have an idea.  Give it up, park the car in the garage, get a nice bottle of Rose wine and go hang out at the beach and take a nap.  Mate, you deserve it.  You have been through the ringer way too much today, sunbeam.  Treat yourself good.  When it's not your day, it's not your day.  Rattican is trying to go outside of a backmarker and ends up on the curb, over the blue paint!  Oh man!  That's close!  

Josh Rattican seems to be in good shape though, considering he has cleared Fabio Rauer.  Rattican is closing in on Joulie.  But, in turn, Hugo Sasse's margin over Enzo Joulie continues to grow.  The German is now a second and a half up on the Andorran licensed/Andorran domiciled Frenchman.  In the Pro-Am class though, the battle is beating up.  The #7 Mirage Racing Aston Martin is the class leader.  Stanislav Safronov at the controls.  Safronov is in a massive battle, right on the tail of Will Moore in the #62 Academy Motorsport Ford Mustang GT4 he is sharing with Matt Niccoll-Jones.  

Lluc Ibanez and Tom Emson are in this fight and so is the BMW of Yagiz Gedik.  Ford, Aston Martin, Mercedes, BMW, Porsche, all in one lump of traffic.  It just proves the competitiveness in GT4.  Let's take a look at the Pro-Am Cup standings on the screen.

1. #7 Safronov/Vaintrub        Mirage Racing Aston Martin Vantage GT4 EVO

2. #75 Petit/Abramczyk        AV Racing Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS CS 

3. #30 Zulauf/Kronberg       W&S Motorsport Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS CS

4. #66 Jilkova/Gudet           Matmut Evolution Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO

5. #90 Skaras/Holmlund     Toyota Gazoo Racing Sweden Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO

6. #317 Guilvert/De Barn   CHAZEL Technologie Course BMW M4 GT4 G82

7. #98 Bouveng/Walde       Lestrup Racing BMW M4 GT4 G82

8. #13 Vladykin/Solukovtsev Teichmann Continental Racing Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO

9. #70 Bouthoorn/Erdem       Razoon xAutomotive Racing BMW M4 GT4 G82

10. #37 Meloni/Meloni         W&D Racing Team BMW M4 GT4 G82

11. #60 Xavier/Wolf              Razoon-more than racing Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS CS

12. #20 Bulatov/Mayr           EastSide Motorsport Mercedes-AMG GT4

13. #812 Lancaster/Martinez RAFA Racing McLaren Artura GT4

14. #33 Lecertua/Leandri      CHAZEL Technologie Course Alpine A110 GT4 EVO

The Mercedes is attacking the Aston Martin and defending from the McLaren.  Maybe the McLaren has cooled down a bit.  A brave move there from Dennis Safronov, making the Aston Martin as wide as possible to defend from Will Moore in the Mustang!  Lluc Ibanez and Yagiz Gedik are also in the battle.  Safranov is motoring away and Ibanez makes his move on Will Moore.  The Mercedes has a good drive through the corner as the BMW M4 GT4 squeezes the Ford Mustang GT4 to the outside.  Tom Emson in the #77 McLaren, he is beginning to come back but two of the Porsche Cayman's are not entering the frame.  Finn Zulauf and Paul Petit.

Paul Petit has moved up to 19th place.  Enzo Joulie is now finding pace to move in on Hugo Sasse.  More trouble for the Lotus Emira as that car is back in the pit lane, the #96 entry we talked about earlier from Mahiki Racing with Max Bird and Dexter Patterson.  Bird at the wheel of it, with a shredded tire.  He has a punctured tire and before coming into the GT4 ranks he was successful in one make championships in cars like Mini's, Ginetta's, and Porsche's.  Hugo Sasse is responding to Enzo Jouliet's challenge eking out a gap of a second and a half.  

The Porsche's, the McLaren, and the Ford Mustang are all pushing.  We have run 20 laps with 15 minutes remaining.  We have run about 72 miles.  But in these sprints, mileage does not really matter.  Not like the 500 kilometer GT3 race we covered from Paul Ricard for you a wee while ago.  Emson and company in the McLaren do not have the pace and they know that.  But they want to see about what positives they can gain but the McLaren is now passed by the Porsche and the Cayman's have far more speed than the McLaren's.  Finn Zulauf has made his way past Will Moore.  

Pascal Huteau is the leading Am class racer in the #55 Schumacher CLRT Alpine.  Eric Evans is behind him in the #61 Ford Mustang GT4, and he was the joint champion in 2023 in the GT4 class in the British GT Championship with Matt Cowley.  Another Lotus Emira has spun in the final turn on the course.  This is the #69 car of rookie British racer Jordan Kerridge in the sister Lotus Emira to the #96 from Mahiki Racing.  He has been penalized for pitting outside of the window.  He is back on his way.  Murphy's Law, if something can go wrong it will, has applied to two cars today, the #69 Lotus and the #3 Audi.

Hugo Sasse remains in the lead with a second and a half cushion over Enzo Joulie.  There is traffic ahead.  Ten second time penalty for the #91 Porsche against the #3 Audi.  That is Igor Ekalchik's car.  It is instant justice, but it is good the penalties are applied during the race rather than after it is over.  Quite a lot to shake out with this huge grid of cars.  Hugo Sasse is on a Sunday drive as we watch Badouin Detout in fifth spot with the BMW M4 GT4 #17 of Benjamin Lessennes right behind him.  Badouin Detout might have his fifth place in jeopardy.

Josh Rattican is the only driver who has been lapping in the 2:13 range and has just set his fastest lap and uncorks the fastest lap of the motor race.  Back in the pit lane late in the race, for the second day in a row is the #33 Alpine in the hands of Lorens Lecertua, the Belgian, who had a wheel break yesterday.  A fraught, forgettable weekend for the Chazel Technologie Course team.  Benjamin Lessennes continues closing in on Baudouin Detout.  Benjamin Lariche is now trying to wriggle his way in the Audi, past the Aston Martin of Ruben del Sarte.  But he is having a tough go of it.  

So, while we are at it before this race ends in less than ten minutes, let's take a look at the overall top ten places.  All of them are occupied by Silver graded cars.  

1. #99 Sasse/Rennhofer            PROsport Racing Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4

2. #9 Joulie/Cheli                     Matmut Evolution Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO

3. #78 Rattican/Lebbon            Elite Motorsport with Entire Racing Engineering McLaren Artura GT4

4. #100 Rauer/Still                   PROsport Racing Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4

5. #39 Detout/Faria                  GPA Racing Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4

6. #17 Lessennes/van der Ende L'Espace Bienvenue BMW M4 GT4 G82

7. #12 Besler/Piana                   Borusan Otomotiv Motorsport BMW M4 GT4 G82

8. #36 Panciatici/Leclerc          Code Racing Development Alpine A110 GT4 EVO

9. #82 Villagomez/Day             Racing Spirit of Leman Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4

10. #3 Lariche/Consani            Team Speedcar Audi R8 LMS GT4

Oh dear!  Another puncture and it looks like this one is on the left front of the #70 BMW of Dutchman Rick Bouthoorn.  He is at the very bottom of the circuit and has four kilometers to go to get back to the other end of the track.  These curbs are brutal and cause the punctures.  Lluc Ibanez is going around the inside of Ivan Ekelchik who has a penalty in his future, and now, look, Baudouin Detout has been caught by Benjamin Lessennes as well!  The clock is ticking with less than nine minutes of racing left on the board.

GT4 racing is so competitive, if you don't have the pace, a car can come out of nowhere and catch you up quickly.  Lessennes is really pushing hard and he goes to the inside as Detout outbrakes himself and slows down waiting for Lessennes to catch up.  Yikes!  Detout did the right thing, but Benjamin Lariche retires with a punctured left rear tire!  Oh man!  Just when you thought poor old Lariche's day couldn't get any worse!  Stanislav Safronov and Aleksandr Vaintrub are once again leading in Pro-Am.  Hugo Sasse as paulled away from second place.  Josh Rattican is chipping away at Enzo Joulie with just six minutes to go.  All the different cars are pretty much tied together.  

Lluc Ibanez has made a pass.  He and Alex Papadopoulos are teamed up in the NM Racing Mercedes.  Miguel Villagomez is all over him, but Ibanez fends off his challenge.  Bring the car home with a long season ahead.  Yagiz Gedik goes through our picture as a Porsche Cayman runs wide behind.  That is Nick Malloy running deep into Le Beauseilles.  That is the #92 entry, the second Wimmer Werk Motorsport Cayman.  Malloy is passed by Finn Zulauf who has been yoyoing up and down the order.  34 of the 48 starters are still running.  14 officially retired.    The Porsche is all over the Aston Martin.  

Yagiz Gedik makes the pass on Stanislav Safronov.  

25 laps into the race with three minutes to go.  The Porsche passes the Aston Martin which is hung out to dry.  Now, there's more side-by-side racing, Porsche, Toyota, Mustang, McLaren, Lotus etc.  Jordan Kerridge rejoins the race but way back in 36th place.  It is a shame we have just two minutes to go because the racing here is phenomenal!  Finn Zulauf is really beginning to push hard and he is the second-place car in the Pro-Am class.  He is chasing the class leader, Stanislav Safronov with about a lap to go.  Ivan Ekelchik in the meantime, he is the cork in the bottle.

Zulauf now needs to push and he is coming straight back at the Aston Martin in this Pro-Am class battle.  Safronov, Zulauf, Petit.  30 seconds remaining.  One lap to go.  Zulauf has more opportunities to chase down Safronov.  They are fighting too for the Silver division.  Rattican has caught Joulie.  Which car is stronger on the overall lap?  It is Toyota Supra vs. McLaren Artura.  Josh Rattican wants it coming into Signes.  He does not have the straight line speed, but he can catch him into Le Beauseilles.  Rattican tries finding a gap where there isn't one and Joulie slams the door in his fase.

Hugo Sasse wins the race.  Joulie holds Rattican off for second place!  Wow!  What a race!  Stansilav Safronov will win the Pro-Am class and Pascal Huteau will win in the Am division.  Two out of two in Pro-Am.  

Overall/Silver: #99 Sasse/Renhofer                PROsport Racing Aston Martin Vantage GT4

            Pro-Am: #7 Safronov/Vaintrub           Mirage Racing Aston Martin Vantage GT4

           Am: #55 Huteau/Hurgon                      Schumacher CLRT Alpine A110 GT4 EVO

So, that's a wrap from Paul Ricard!  Next up is a doubleheader of races at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli on the Adriatic coast in Italy, in a couple more weeks.  We'll see you in Italy.  For now, au revoir from Paul Ricard and the Cote d'Azur.  Bye bye.  

Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach Race Broadcast

The race broadcast of last Saturday's IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach on IMSA TV and IMSA Radio.  John Hindhaugh and Jeremy Shaw have the call trackside from the global broadcast center with Shea Adam reporting from the pit lane.  

https://www.imsa.com/tv/

FULL RACE | Race 1 | Paul Ricard | GT4 European Series powered by Rafa Racing Club 2024 (Eng)

 

The first racing action of the season for the GT4 European Series Powered by RAFA Racing Club. Expect fights up and down the field as a packed grid goes head-to-head for those all-important early championship points.  David Addison and GT4 European Series champion, Charlie Fagg, are in the commentary box for this one.  Check it out.  

SRO GT4 European Series: Paul Ricard, Race 1

Hello everyone, and welcome to the opening doubleheader of races for the 2024 SRO GT4 European Series.  A whole new season is ready to go at a sunny Paul Ricard.  This is the first of two 60-minute races, just the same as Pirelli GT4 America run by the SRO, stateside.  We have a massive grid, and mandatory pit stops for driver changes.  We join our mate David Addison along with GT4 European Series champion driver, Charlie Fagg, in the commentary box for today's race.  We don't really have a form guide for this.  Who will come out on top?  I do hope to blog more of the GT4 Europe races.  I have wanted to but have missed out because of other races.  I shall do everything I can to talk about these races this year.  Let's see how things turn out.  

Our polesitter for this first GT4 Europe race of 2024 is the #9 Matmut Evolution Toyota Supra GT4 EVO being shared by Andorran licensed Frenchman, Enzo Joulie and his co-driver, Frenchman, Etienne Cheli.  Alongside Enzo Joulie on the front row is the first of the Elite Motorsports with Entire Race Engineering McLaren Artura GT4's.  This is the car of Josh Rattican sharing with Thomas Lebbon, an all-British duo.  Keep out of trouble going through the esses.  We have Antonia Rankin reporting from the pit lane and Enzo Joulie is happy to be here racing and to be on the pole.  He is looking forward to this race.  There is no real strategy except to lead and be focused.  

We have a massive grid of 49 cars.  Turn one and the esses are going to be a handful with all these cars going through.  Look, everyone, we've seen this same scenario, in the American GT4 series from SRO, and it can be a real bugaboo to get all these cars funneled through tight corners.  So, everyone will have to be patient and just hang on as this race gets underway.  Don't try gaining places through the corner by cutting it off.  The first lap will be mayhem.  Yes, this is a one-hour race with a pit stop.  This is a flat-out sprint.  Drivers are cutting qualifying lap after qualifying lap.  Trust me.  You can only do one lap around to the grid.  You cannot do multiple installation laps.  Championship runner up, from France, Benjamin Lariche.  

Lariche sharing with fellow Frenchman Robert Consani.  Consani is a former rally driver turned French GT racer.  They are in the #3 Team Speedcar Audi R8 LMS GT4.  Try to get airflow through these closed coupes.  Drivers are nervous and want to go for it as we look at the #5 Mirage Racing entered Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4.  This is the car of Dutchman Ruben del Sarte, and he will share it with another Brit, Josh Miller.  They have a two-car team in the races this weekend.  The sister car is #7.  It has two drivers from Russia at the controls, Stanislav Safronov and Aleksandr Vaintrub.  We have a real mix of brands in this event.  

Toyota, Ford, Mercedes, Porsche, Alpine, and many more.  We have seen a ton of competition in the last five years.  We have Silver, Pro-Am, and Am driver rating categories with all GT4 spec cars in the field.  The engines have fired.  One minute until rolling off for the start.  Rafa Racing Club is part of this championship.  American driver Rafael Martinez is also the team boss.  They have a couple of McLaren Artura's entered in the series.  We shall talk about that.  Martinez is sharing his #812 McLaren with British driver Jon Lancaster.  

We have a car stalled on the grid before we have even started.  There is a BMW M4 GT4 that is having mechanical troubles.  It is parked by the side of the track.  I have no idea why that car is off the grid.  Is there trouble with it?  There is an access gate to the pit lane.  Let's see if the BMW will move.  We are on the final formation lap to warm up the tires and brakes.  Enzo Joulie on pole.  Again, we have 49 cars.  A massive grid.  The cars turn out of the chicane on the Mistral straight.  We can see there is a car with trouble.  This is the #317 Chazel Technologie Course BMW M4 GT4 with Frenchman Gregory Guilvert at the controls.  He is sharing alongside his countryman Antoni De Barn.  He may start from the pit lane.  Guilvert is a Pro-Am champion in GT racing.  

So, we'll see if he is going to be able to get going.  Don't count out Josh Rattigan in the McLaren.  Keep an eye on the #17 BMW M4 GT4 as well.  This is the L'Espace Bienvenue car of Benjamin Lessennes of Belgium sharing with Dutchman Ricardo van der Ende.  Everyone is double file for the start.  Enzo Joulie and Josh Rattigan have control of the field.  We will see one pit stop between 25-35 minutes with a maximum pit delta of 88 seconds.  Into Virage de la Tour and Virage du Pont, they come.  Toyota and McLaren front row, Aston Martin second row lockout.

Red lights on.  The lights flash green and away we go!  Jouliet gets the jump on the field, and now Hugo Sasse is beginning to charge, the German racer starting the #99 ProSport Racing Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4 he shares with countryman Rafael Rennhofer.  Rattigan runs wide over the curb onto the blue paint and more cars are indulging in autocross through the chicane at the end of the Mistral straight!  There is a spinning car, and we have more delayed automobiles who are stuck in this pack.  Enzo Joulie, in the meantime, is motoring away from the field.   Into the chicane on the Mistral straight they come.

We are onboard the #12 BMW M4 GT4 for Borusan Otomotiv Motorsport.  Berkay Besler, from Turkey, at the wheel of it, sharing with experienced Italian GT4 racer Gabriele Piana.  We could have a safety car as the cars wriggle to Signes corner.  Three wheels on me wagon for the #33 car.  This is the Chazel Technologie Course Alpine A110 GT4 EVO shared by Belgian rookie Lorens Lecertua and Frenchman Jean Mathieu Leandri.  We are behind the safety car as the reigning Alpine Cup champion is in trouble.  In the middle of the pack, you cannot avoid carnage.  So many cars into a tight corner.  A marshal is retrieving the wheel with suspension attached.  Ugh.  Game over.  Greg Guillvert has not started the race.

We have one absent car that did not even start.  That is the #131 JSB Competition Porsche Cayman that was supposed to have Frenchman Mathieu Casalonga at the wheel of it, driving these races Marco Solo, without a co-driver.  Jon Lancaster has gained many spots and is up to 11th place.  Berkay Besler is trying to recover and is down in 28th place.  Drivers are going through the motions currently following the safety car.  We are looking at the replay trying to figure out what happened.  One of the McLaren's spun, the Alpine spun, and then, everything went sideways.  Joj Lancaster, he clonks into someone and runs out of road before going back onto the track.

Frustration for the drivers in the queue under yellow.  Get temperature into the brakes and the tires.  Enzo Joulie needs to make his move.  He has moved ahead of Josh Rattican.  We go green, again.  Here's your top ten.

1. #9 Joulie/Cheli                             Matmut Evolution Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO

2. #78 Rattican/Lebbon                    Elite Motorsport with Entire Race Engineering McLaren Artura GT4

3. #99 Sasse/Rennhofer                    PROsport Racing Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4

4. #7 Safronov/Vaintrub                   Mirage Racing Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4

5. #15 Ibanez Trullols/Papadopoulos NM Racing Team Mercedes-AMG GT4

6. #5 Del Sarte/Miller                       Mirage Racing Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4

7. #36 Panciatici/Leclerc                  Code Racing Development Alpine A110 GT4 EVO

8. #20 Bulatov/Mayer                      EastSide Motorsport Mercedes-AMG GT4

9. #3 Lariche/Consani                      Team Speedcar Audi R8 LMS GT4

10. #22 Nuredini/Pichler                  Allied-Racing Porsche Cayman GT4

Lariche gets his nose chopped off by Dennis Bulatov.  Intense racing in the middle of the pack.  Rattican must hold off Sasse.  Enzo Jouliet is motoring away and has best time in the first sector back onto the Mistral straight once more.  Enzo Joulie is making good his escape.  The Toyota GR Supra is looking ideal for this track so far.  Enzo Joulie cannot take too much out of the tires or out of the car.  Now a battle is brewing between the #90 Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO of Toyota Gazoo Racing Sweden.  This car is driven by Swedish duo Emil Skaras and Hans Holmlund.  Skaras has the Porsche Cayman of Julien Briche all over him.  Frenchman, Briche, is sharing the #46 Porsche Cayman with countryman Jean-Laurent Navarro  

Briche and Navarro driving for JSB Competition.  Two French drivers, for a French team, at a French raceway.  Emil Skaras is a double Scandinavian GT4 champion.  Hugo Sasse is now being harried by Stanislav Safronov in a battle of the Aston Martin's.  Benjamin Lariche in the Audi has passed Dennis Bulatov in the Porsche Cayman.  Bulatov is trying to come back onto the Mistral straight.  No dice yet.  Luc Ibanez has done the best first sector time but my gosh, Enzo Joulie is checking out and he is on a Saturday drive.  Josh Rattican in the McLaren really is the best of the rest in second place and we have been racing for just ten minutes.

Ruben del Sarte is pushed wide.  I don't know if the Aston Martin can defend from Nelson Panciatici.  Panciatici in the Alpine is a very experienced sports car driver and makes his move.  I remember Nelson Panciatici in prototypes, in LMP2 cars mostly.  Now he is trying his hand at GT4.  Benjamin Lariche and Dennis Bulatov also want a bite of the cherry!  Panciatici is surviving all comers at this moment.  Ruben del Sarte came out of the Ginetta Junior Championship.  Enzo Joulie now leads Josh Rattican by 1.6 seconds.  From sixth place on back we have a land rush of GT4 cars.  It is what the late, great NASCAR broadcaster Ken Squier used to call an Oklahoma land rush on the plains and prairies, stampeding horses.  This time, we are on the Cote d'Azur of the French riviera and we have stampeding horsepower with all these GT4 race cars!

Will Moore after a pit stop rejoins the track.  This is one of the Ford Mustang GT4's in the field.  Moore aboard the #62 Academy Motorsport car sharing it with Matt Niccoll-Jones.  This is a team I believe that also participates in the GT4 class in the British GT Championship.  Nelson Panciatici, we have not heard the last from him.  He is still charging.  Benjamin Lariche in the Audi, he is turning it on as well, look.  Panciatici, Del Sarte, Lariche, Bulatov, and Nuredini all in this scrap in the back half of the top ten.  

Josh Rattican finally settling down into a rhythm taking time out of Enzo Joulie as Jon Lancaster is having trouble being run out wide by one of the Toyota Supra's.  Lancaster in the McLaren is shown some hip and shoulder by the #66 Toyota Supra GT4 EVO.  That is the other Matmut Evolution Supra in the field of Czech lady driver Gabriela Jilkova and French lady racer Cindy Gudet.  Another all-female duo in sports car racing.  Great to see.  Again, men and women both participate in racing.  The car does not know the difference.  Ruben del Sarte, meanwhile, is diving inside of Nelson Panciatici!  Panciatici, elbows out, defending from both del Sarte and Lariche! 

The Audi tries the inside through Virage de la Tour and Virage du Pont.  Gabriela Jilkova is truly going for it.  Lariche makes his move.  For a time, he drove in the MSV run FIA Formula 2 championship in the open wheel cars.  He has also raced in the old FIA GT1 World Championship and in Porsche Carrera Cup France.  Dennis Bulatov, in the meantime, wants by Ruben del Sarte. Del Sarte has been pushing hard and has more speed than Panciatici and he is getting passed again and is being driven crazy because he cannot show the pace he has.  We now watch the #81 Rafa Racing Club McLaren Artura with Cameron Lawrence at the wheel.  We have seen Cameron Lawrence in GT4 racing stateside in both IMSA and SRO competition I believe.

The pit window will open in ten minutes and teams always seem to have a plan.  Keep the Pro drivers out on track as long as possible.  For the Silver drivers it is more evened out, just the same as we see in Pirelli GT4 America.  Gabriele Jilkova is now closing fast on the #30 W&S Motorsport Porsche Cayman of German racer Finn Zulauf.  Zulauf sharing the car with fellow German Max Kronberg.  Zulauf is challenging the #22 Allied Racing Porsche Cayman of Herolind Nuredini.  Zulauf trying hard to force Nuredini into a mistake.  Gabriele Jilkova makes a pass for 11th place, in the Matmut liveried Toyota Supra.

Lancaster in the McLaren is running down one of the Aston Martin's.  He is chasing down the #82 Racing Spirit of Leman Aston Martin Vantage GT4 of Mateo Villagomez, sharing that car with Jamie Day.  Balance of Performance is a pain to figure out, but the scoop is, it makes the racing absolutely wonderful.  So, it has it's bad points, but it has good points as well.  Josh Rattican is really motoring trying to catch Enzo Joulie and now, look, the battle for sixth between Nelson Panciatici and Benjamin Lariche is really heating up.  Lariche is still going for it.  Benjamin Lariche is closing on Nelson Panciatici.  Audi vs. Alpine.

They come back to Virage du Pont again.  Lariche just cannot pass.  Panciatici slams the door in his face.  Lariche late on the brakes and tries the undercut, but no.  Lariche is stymied and Del Sarte and Bulatov are coming in a big hurry.  Lariche, up the inside, makes a textbook move and must reel in the top five.  The pit window is looming in less than five minutes.  Lariche is making good his escape.  Take a deep breath and refocus.  Let's take a look at the Pro-Am Cup running order.

1. #7 Safronov/Vaintrub             Mirage Racing Aston Martin Vantage GT4

2. #20 Bulatov/Mayer                EastSide Motorsport Mercedes-AMG GT4

3. #30 Zulauf/Kronberg             W&S Motorsport Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS CS

4. #66 Jilkova/Gudet                  Matmut Evolution Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO

5. #812 Lancaster/Martinz         RAFA Racing Team McLaren Artura GT4

6. #98 Bouveng/Walde               Lestrup Racing Team BMW M4 GT4 G82

7. #46 Briche/Navarro               JSB Competition Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS CS

8. #75 Petit/Abramczyk             AV Racing Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS CS

9. #70 Bouthoorn/Erdem           Razoon xAutomotive Racing BMW M4 GT4 G82

10. #90 Skaras/Holmlund         Toyota Gazoo Racing Sweden Toyot GR Supra GT4 EVO 

11. #37 Meloni/Meloni             W&S Racing Team BMW M4 GT4 G82

12. #60 Xavier/Wolf                 Razoon-more than racing Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS CS

13. #13 Vladykin/Solukovtsev Teichmann Continental Racing Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO

14. #33 Lecertua/Leandri         Chazel Technologie Course Alpine A110 GT4 EVO

Safronov leading the class.  Dennis Bulatov finally manages to dive inside of Ruben del Sarte.  Del Sarte is fading a wee bit.  Drivers want to get into the cars, the second drivers, to show what they can do.  Last of the late brakers to the chciane and Bulatov makes the pass on Del Sarte!  Del Sarte trying everything.  Take a big, deep breath, and turn into Signes, and Del Sarte back in position through Le Beauseille!  The pit window opens next time by.  Bulatov cannot pass Del Sarte.  Rafael Del Sarte, Ruben's dad, raced in open wheel racing in England in Formula First and other championships.

Bulatov will be defending from one of the other Porsche's.  That is Finn Zulauf in the Porsche behind Bulatov.  The highlighter yellow Porsche Cayman.  Jon Lancaster is being given a five second pit penalty for gaining advantages from going off the road and the same for Finn Zulauf who we were just talking about.  Drivers will plead innocence, but the marshals will not put up with it.  Take your medicine and deal with it.  There was a Porsche Cayman with a puncture and that is stopped in the middle sector.  Herolind Nuredini in the #22 Allied Racing Porsche Cayman has a puncture and even more trouble.  

He has pulled it behind the wall at one of the corner stations, I think.  That is a local yellow as the pit window is open.  Enzo Joulie is clear and controlling the pace.  Joulie has had a very easy stint thus far.  Nelson Panciatici, Berkay Besler, and others are in the pit lane now.  The order is beginning to shuffle with the ten-minute pit window for driver changes.  We now look at the Am class leader.  This is the #55 Schumacher CLRT Alpine A110 GT4 EVO being driven by Pascal Huteau.  He shares that car with fellow Frenchman Laurent Hurgon.  CLRT is Come Ledogar Racing Team running in GT3 and GT4.  Elite Motorsport have opted to pit early.  #77 is in the lane.  Englishman Thomas Emson and Irishman Alex Denning sharing the car.  

Denning is now in the car, and that is the first of the two McLaren Artura GT4's for Elite Motorsport with Entire Race Engineering.  Enzo Joulie leads having run 12 laps ahead of Josh Rattican.  Jouliet and Rattican stay out and so does Hugo Sasse.  Remember, there is a minimum pit time so you must stay in the lane until the clock runs down.  We see the #444 car in the pit lane.  That is the other Team Speedcar Audi R8 LMS GT4 of the French duo of Julien Ripert and Philippe Thalamy.  I think Thalamy will take the car to the checkered flag.  Rattican is caught in traffic.  Rattican has made the pass on the many times aforementioned #22 Allied Racing Porsche Cayman now with Leo Pichler at the controls.  The team and the drivers know that their cars might just be alive on older Pirelli tires.  

So, we are officially into the second half of race one in GT4 Europe here at Paul Ricard and Hugo Sasse has pitted and John Lancaster is under investigation again who is 11th on the road in the #812 McLaren.  Rattican is leaving nothing on the table.  He is pushing, pushing, pushing.  Rattican and Jouliet in the pit lane.  Laurent Hurgon has taken over the Am class leading Alpine from Pascal Huteau but they were outside of the minimum pit time delta and are being investigated by the stewards.  They have not used their joker yet or maybe they already have.  Taking over the #78 McLaren Artura GT4 is now Tom Lebbon.  The #15 car is also in, the NM Racing Team Mercedes-AMG GT4.  Lluc Ibanez Trullols hands the car over to Alex Pappadopoulos, so the Spaniard hands off to the American driver.

The race order is shuffling.  Robert Consani passes Lukas Mayer.  Past Mayer goes the Aston Martin as well now with Josh Miller taking over from Ruben del Sarte in the #7 Aston Martin.  The leaders are now sorting themselves out.  Etienne Cheli now leading Tom Lebbon.  The gap is 3.9 seconds.  Cheli was 8/10ths under the pit time and Tom Lebbon was half a second over the limit.  A good battle going on for 12th place between the #30 Porsche Cayman, the #12 BMW M4 GT4, and the #100 Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4.  Max Kronberg vs. Gabriele Piana, vs. Hendrik Still.  Still has taken over the #100 PROsport Racing Aston from Fabio Rauer who started the race, a German driving duo.

Piana passes Kromberg and Kromberg gets mugged by two cars!  Josh Miller now right on the back of Robert Consani.  Miller tries going the long way around and, on the inside, Consani runs wide!  Yikes!  That was hard racing!  Miller will accuse Consani of cutting the course while Consani will say, "I had no place else to go!"  Etienne Cheli is maintaining his nearly four second lead and is quicker in the sectors than the McLaren behind him in the hands of Tom Lebbon.  The other ProSport Aston Martin is next up with Raffaele Rennhofer.  It looks like Rennhofer is racing under an Australian license.  

Miller looks to pass, and it is a matter of when, with only 22 minutes on the board left in race one.  There are other Toyota's in the race, but so far, they cannot match car #9.  Nobody else has really had an answer to Etienne Cheli's riddle yet.  The Am class leading Alpine of Laurent Hurgon still has this Damocletian investigation over it, from the stewards.   He goes by the #4 Porsche Cayman, the all-French duo driving for AV Racing, Lonni Martins and Sacha Bottemanne.  Let's take a look at the Am Cup standings.  

1. #55 Huteau/Hurgon     Schumacher CLRT Alpine A110 GT4 EVO

2. #72 Grisaud/Jimenez   GPA Racing Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4

3. #16 Cantu/Malagamuwa NM Racing Team Mercedes-AMG GT4

4. #155 Brunnhagen/Brunnhagen Toyota Gazoo Racing Sweden Toyota GR Supra GT4

5. #300 Paviot/Markiewicz           Team Speedcar Audi R8 LMS GT4

6. #444 Ripert/Thalamy                Team Speedcar Audi R8 LMS GT4

7. #97 Olsson/Nilsson                   Lestrup Racing Team BMW M4 GT4

8. #69 Kerridge/Lake                    Mahiki Racing Lotus Emira GT4

The Alpine is in traffic but has no opposition from his fellow Am drivers.  Cindy Gudet in tenth place, is now driving the #66 Toyota Supra, the Matmut Evolution car.  She comes from a background that includes ice racing, rallying, and winning six championships in French hill climbing.  Jamie Day has passed and now Gabriele Piana is bidding to make a move.  Jamie Day won in British GT in the GT4 category at their Oulton Park Easter race that was posted in video here on the blog a wee while ago.  Cindy Gudet is not taking anything lying down, and shoves Gabriele Piana out of the way!  The Toyota and the BMW, remember, run on the same kind of "floor plan" as it were.  Identical running gear in both of those cars.

Hendrik Still in the Aston Martin tries passing Piana.  No chance.  Piana says, "not now, sunshine."  We still have 18 or so minutes remaining, and we have seen some wonderful racing today.  We have seen clean racing today, but now, look at this!  Piana door slams both Gudet and one of the Mercedes' which goes straight down the track to take evasive action!   Lukas Mayer was forced up the escape road!  Pianan comes out of that shemozzle smelling like a rose and poor old Mayer had to avoid, and thankfully, he is unscathed.  The BMW is looking racier than we thought and should be in the box seat for tomorrow's second race with 17 minutes left in this one.

Robert Consani now passes Aleksandr Vaintrub.  Vaintrub taking over from co-driver Stanislav Sofranov.  Alex Pappadopoulos is his next target who has taken over from Lluc Ibanez Trullols in the #15 NM Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4.  Josh Miller is now reeling in Robert Consani.  Etienne Cheli is on a Saturday drive.  Nobody can catch him.  Their speed has been unbelievable.  For his short pit stop, Laurent Hurgon has an 11 second time penalty added to the end of his race onto whatever race time he clocks in at the end of the hour.  He and Pascal Huteau are bound to drop down the order no matter what.  He is the Am class leader over the Aston Martin of Kenny Jimenez.

Still, Day, and Piana, are all hurrying on.  Antoine Leclerc has made his move on Vaintrub and other drivers.  Cosnai in fifth spot.  It has been a hard race.  Antoine Leclerc has passed by Josh Miller.  Audi, Alpine, Aston Martin.  Just 12 minutes before race one of the weekend, is completed.  20 laps now in the bag, as Piana passes Day for ninth spot.  Piana clears Day and is making good his escape.  Antoine Leclerc is now right on Robert Consani's six.  Oh dear!  The Aston Martin runs wide with a broken left front wheel!  Raphael Rennhofer is out and so is ProSport Racing!  Was that a result of a curb strike?

The curbs are vicious here at Paul Ricard.  Game over, and game over as wellfor another Aston Martin!  This is a bad time to be an Aston Martin driver!  Brazilian Roberto Faria pulls off the circuit aboard the #39 GPA Racing Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4 he is sharing with Frenchman Baudouin Detout.  Never mind.  Faria has found a gear and gotten back on track.  On the Mistral straight, towards the chicane they come, it is a battle for fourth spot between Antoine Leclerc in the Alpine and Robert Consani in the Audi.  There is some contact.  The Alpine A110 is nimbler while the Audi R8 GT4 looks rigid.  Robert Consani is a rally driver but he knows how to defend.  

Leclerc has another go at Consani with Josh Miller lurking.  Leclerc anticipated Consani would run wide but no.  Miller is beginning to reel in these two chaps.  Through Virage de la Tour they go again with eight minutes on the board.  The Audi on the inside loses out, and the Alpine's speed shows.  Miller is pressing Consani who must defend for all he is worth!  The changing fortunes of cars in this race have been incredible to watch.  Good, clean racing.  Consani is a veteran GT4 driver.  Miller in sixth, Piana in seventh, five seconds behind.  Lukas Mayer has been given a five second penalty for gaining an advantage when he could not turn and was forced up the escape road.

Max Kromberg is 13th in the overall.  Marco Signoretti, the American racer, has passed Cindy Gudet in the Toyota Supra for position.  This is the #61 Academy Motorsports Ford Mustang GT4 that the Canadian racer is sharing with American racer Erik Evans.  Will they find more pace for race two?  Alex Denning has also passed the McLaren Artura #81 which is the car Jemina Hepworth has taken over from Cameron Lawrence for the second stint in the race.  Etienne Cheli can reduce his pace and bring it home.  The McLaren has had faster outright pace but the Toyota drivers have strategized everything perfectly today.  

Alex Papadopoulos is being chased down by Antoine Leclerc.  Mercedes-AMG vs. Alpine.  We should have one more lap of racing here in GT4 Europe race one at Paul Ricard.  Leclerc is catching Papadopoulos.  Hendrik Still who has won in GT4 is chasing down Jamie Day as it is a scrap between the older Aston Martin and the new Evo version.  Final lap of the race now.  The margin is some six and a half seconds between Etienne Cheli and Tom Lebbon.  Leclerc trying to distract Pappadopoulos.  Etienne Cheli can coast to the end of this one but now, there's a massive scrum in the middle of the pack and three cars get together with one of the Porsche Cayman's getting the worst of it!  Aston Martin, Porsche, McLaren all get together and the Porsche spins and has front end damage!      

Debris all over the road.  Etienne Cheli and Enzo Joulie win the first GT4 Europe race of the year.  Tom Lebbon and Josh Rattican will finish second and third, I think.  Papdopoulos fends off Leclerc.  There was all that smashing on the bottom end of the circuit just before the race ends.  

Overall/Silver: #9 Joulie/Cheli                     Matmut Evolution Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO

             Pro-Am: #7 Vaintrub/Safronov        Mirage Racing Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4

             Am: #55 Huteau/Hurgon                  Schumacher CLRT Alpine A110 GT4 EVO

In this replay, we can see the wreck that happened right at the end of the motor race.  Former Renault Clio racer Kevin Jimenez in the #72 GPA Racing Aston Martin comes into contact with the #46 JSB Competition Porsche Cayman of Jean Laurent Navarro.  Jiminez tries avoiding running into the Porsche.  This turns the Porsche around, both cars have damage, and poor Jemima Hepworth in the #81 McLaren has no place to go, except, ker-runch!, right into the side of the #46!  That is such an awkward accident.  What a tight corner in turn five.  Hepworth was completely unlucky, and Kevin Jimenez dropped 11 seconds away from winning the Am division.  So, GT4 race one from Paul Ricard is in the bag.  Race two is coming up soon.  We'll be back for that one very soon.  Au revoir from Paul Ricard for the time being, everybody.  We have plenty more racing to bring to you from the Cote d'Azur.  Stay tuned.  

IMSA GTP Class Secrets | The Super Power of Torque Fill | Featuring Porsche Penske and Nick Tandy

 

What makes it possible for turbocharged and naturally-aspirated hybrid IMSA GTP internal combustion engines to fight on equal terms at a tight street course like Long Beach? It's all about the hybrid powerplants and their super power: Torque Fill.

We interview Porsche Penske Motorsport's Managing Director, Jonathan Duiguid, as well as factory driver Nick Tandy on the subject. 

POSTCARD | Long Beach Street Circuit presented by 5.11 | GT America powered by AWS 2024

 

Relive the action from the Streets of Long Beach presented by 5.11 in GT America powered by AWS’ latest event postcard.

Avoidable CHAOS at the Hairpin! 2024 Long Beach Post Race Report

 

From Off in the Esses.  Things got just a bit chaotic in IMSA’s first street race of the season! It’s time to break it all down!

IMSA 2024 Long Beach Review

 

From Formula Jonah.  

The 2024 addition of the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach is complete! This race review goes over what happened during this 3rd round of the 2024 IMSA WeatherTech Championship season. A lot happened during this event, and you will find it all fully explained in this video!

Daskalos Sweeps Long Beach Weekend

Sweeps completed in each class, with Jason Daskalos leading a perfect weekend for CRP Racing...

https://sportscar365.com/sro/gt-america/daskalos-sweeps-long-beach-weekend/

LIVE | Race 2 | Long Beach Grand Prix | GT America powered by AWS

 

Race two of the weekend for SRO GT America on the streets of Long Beach, California, on SRO GTWorld.  Ryan Myrehn and Calvin Fish call all the action from the broadcast booth, with Amanda Busick reporting from the pit lane.   

GT America: Long Beach, Race 2

Welcome back, everybody, to the streets of Long Beach, California, for the second and final race of the weekend for SRO GT America.  It is the final race of the day, the final race of the weekend on Sunday evening.  Race one yesterday was truly a barnburner that ran clean from green flag to checkered flag.  It was a fabulous duel between the winner, Jason Daskalos, and runner up Johnny O'Connell who has raced here for many years, since 1986.  We have blue skies and a slight breeze, similar weather to yesterday's race.  The IndyCar race was just finished.  Is their Firestone rubber compatible with the Pirelli tires on these GT cars?  We'll have to see.  We join Ryan Myrehn, and Calvin Fish in the broadcast booth, and Amanda Busick in the pit lane.

The plan for the runner up contender, Johnny O'Connell plans to race smartly today.  In GT2, Aaron Farhadi hopes he can match the Mercedes' straight-line speed for Dan Knox.  In the GT4 class, it is truly the story of the teacher and the student at Rotek Racing, with Robb Holland, the veteran driver and the teacher, and his teammate, Isaac Sherman, the pupil.  In the GT4 battle it is also car owner vs. one of the drivers.  At a certain moment, Robb Holland believes himself to be a racing driver far more than a car owner.  Once the helmet goes on, the thought process goes out the window.  We have SRO3 cars (GT3 cars), GT4 cars, and GT2 cars.  

This is the biggest grid we have had of GT2 cars in the United States.  That's pretty incredible.  Aaron Farhadi hopes to get track position over the Mercedes-AMG GT2 of Dan Knox.  Great to see Knox, Lone Star Racing, and their team manager, A.J. Peterson.  The Mercedes-AMG GT2 has loads of power but not loads of downforce.  The GT2 cars are likely the most powerful cars here next to the IndyCars and possibly the IMSA GTP prototypes as well.  Brent Holden is also in this GT2 field and so is C.J. Moses.  You have the Lamborghini Super Trofeo GT2, the Mercedes-AMG GT2 and the Audi R8 LMS GT2 of C.J. Moses.  Moses loves that car.  

These are the dream cars that young fans have posters of on their bedroom wall.  Southern California is a car crazy part of the country.  There are some mouthwatering exotic cars even in the parking lots around Long Beach.  So, we are setting up for another great race in GT America.  Jason Daskalos' team at CRP Racing, they did not change the car in any way from the win yesterday.  Again, Sheldon Miller, Jason Daskalos' crew chief has stage four cancer.  God Bless Him.  A wreck in a preceding race earlier today caused some track and catch fence repairs in the hairpin turn before the start/finish line.  

We have a great mix of experienced veterans and fresh-faced rookies in this race.  Long Beach, an iconic circuit.  Next year will be the 50th anniversary of the Long Beach Grand Prix.  The field is beginning to pack together for the rolling start, and 40 minutes of racing action.  Johnny O'Connell and Jason Daskalos on the front row and away we go!  Daskalos in the lead and now, James Sofronas is side by side with O'Connell and Kyle Washington in the Porsche goes to second and the two Audi's get together and trade paint!

Johnny O'Connell may have lost some bodywork as the GT4 class starts and Gray Newell ducked out of line.  Nick Shanny, Elias Sabo, and Todd Coleman go three deep at the back of the pack.  Oh no!  Nick Shanny taps Todd Parriott and turns right into the Aston Martin driver who gets off the course and almost has a clatter with the barriers!  Parriott in the #13 Flying Lizard Motorsports Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4.  Parriott is able to continue.  It was hit square in the wheel well, but I am not sure if there is damage.  He was tagged on the right rear corner.  

Single driver, 40-minute races, no pit stops.  It is go time.  Jason Daskalos has sprinted away by 8/10ths of a second over Johnny O'Connell and now, Kyle Washington is up to second.  Johnny O'Connell has slid behind James Sofronas and there is bodywork damage to the left side of the #3 SKI Autosports Audi R8 LMS GT3.  Kyle Washington has a lot of focus and coaching him this weekend is his co-driver and teammate Thomas Sargent who is paired with him in the Fanatec GT World Challenge America championship.  Washington is running down Daskalos, but he has been issued a penalty for a start procedure violation.

GMG has brought in an ace engineer who has worked in Europe with Manthey Racing Porsche.  Sofronas is bullish about what this engineer is bringing to the table and another incident between Parriott and Shanny is under review.  So, the SRO America race stewards are busy.  O'Connell bogs down and Daskalos accelerates and then, Washington changes columns before the control line.  Meanwhile, James Sofronas is now up to second in the #14 GMG Racing Audi R8 LMS GT3.  GMG has three cars this weekend and over 200 people checking out the team operations.  James Sofronas' son Jenson is giving his dad the most pressure.  So far, Sofronas seems to be putting his money where his mouth is and has uncorked the CrowdStrike Fastest Lap right off the bat at 1:21.253. 

Sofronas typically does not race a full season, as he is managing the racing and the aftermarket parts business here in southern California.  Jenson Sofronas has been racing go karts and will get a chance to drive a Porsche soon.  Isaac Sherman is leading in the GT4 class currently.  Kyle Washington on the rebound as one of the GT2 Lamborghini Super Trofeo Huracan's spins.  That is Alan Grossberg and he is running again but he is off the race.  Now, Kyle Washington is coming through all this traffic with the GT2, SRO3, and GT4 cars all in a bunch.  Traffic was a massive deal for the leaders in race one yesterday and it is again for this second event.

Nick Shanny serves his drive through penalty and we watch the battle between the GT3 Porsche and the GT2 Lamborghini.  The Lambo has the acceleration but the aero of the GT3 cars makes them better performers in the corners.  Sofronas is chasing Jason Daskalos.  Not too much tire degradation even on these bumpy and rough streets around Long Beach.  Without tire falloff the pace increases.  Right now Dan Knox leads GT2 again, the winner from yesterday's race.  Mirco Schultis in the SRO3 Callaway Corvette had no transponder yesterday.  He was extremely fast in race one yesterday, though, but he is getting stymied behind the GT2 cars who are steaming away from him.

Dan Knox finished third in the Pirelli World Challenge GTA championship in 2014 and that is the precursor to the modern SRO America championship we see today.  That too was with Lone Star Racing, but Knox was driving a GT3 spec Dodge Viper at that time.  How cool is that?!  Sorfronas is right on Daskalos' six.  Daskalos is hitting his marks and getting back to power quickly.  We saw Daskalos, Sofronas, and O'Connell battling for victory in yesterday's race and now the same three characters are going for it again.  

Looking at the sector times in sector one on the Race Vision tracker powered by AWS, it seems everyone in sector one is hitting the 23 second bracket.  In GT4, Todd Coleman is traffic stymying Daskalos.  Sofronas has a run on Daskalos as they pass the GT4 Aston Martin of Todd Coleman.  Sofronas nearly chops Coleman, but they coexist.  Now, guess who else is coming into the frame?  It is Justin Rothberg in the #29 Turner Motorsports BMW M4 GT3.  Rothburg is a Ferrari Challenge driver, and it was actually the Monegasque driver Cedric Sbirrazuoli who was Rothburg's Ferrari Challenge driving coach.  We have seen Cedric Sbirrazuoli racing in other SRO championships like Intercontinental GT Challenge and GT World Challenge Europe.

Rothburg is a tall lad at 6"6'.  His crash helmet is rubbing against the roof and fits well into the BMW.  He tested two or three other GT3 cars but could not get his frame into the car.  Robby Foley needs to see over the dashboard, and so, they are making the adjustments for the two driver races in SRO GT World Challenge America.  Everyone will be at the next races at Sebring International Raceway.  Looking forward to bringing those events to you.  We'll talk about them soon, at the end of this race.  Now, Robb Holland from second in GT4 is in the pit lane.  That makes me wonder.

This sets Isaac Sherman loose to go for it.  Second place belongs to Samantha Tan and it is her debut here at Long Beach as she is back in a GT4 spec BMW M4 GT4 compared to the GT3 spec model she normally races.  This is the new BMW M4 model which she did not drive last year.  Samantha Tan will be racing in the GT4 European Series support races for the 24 Hours of Spa which is the crown jewel of GT3 racing that takes place in Belgium later this summer and we'll cover it for you.  I am really excited about that one.  One of the best sports car races on the face of the planet.  

American drivers are migrating to the European waters to go racing.  I wonder if the front end of Johnny O'Connell's Audi has been damaged.  We'll have to get a good camera angle and see what the scoop is.  I think the left front fender and the dive planes are missing.  The leaders pass by Isaac Sherman in the GT4 Porsche Cayman.  Isaac Sherman raced in oval track racing with modifieds and legends cars.  He got to go road course racing in the Legends cars.  Now we watch the GT4 battle between a couple really good teams both racing Aston Martin Vantage GT4's.  Todd Coleman for Archangel Motorsports and Elias Sabo for Flying Lizard Motorsports.  

Mike Johnson is the leader of the Archangel team while the Flying Lizard team is led by Darren Law.  A couple real legends of the sports car racing scene.  Almost half of this race is done and dusted and the top three remains Daskalos, Sofronas, and O'Connell.  1.8 seconds separating the top three.  Mercedes has the edge in two of the three sectors while the Audi also has speed.  Daskalos sets the fastest lap and now O'Connell steals it at 1:20.412.  Some teams thought the tire situation would be OK and others said, no.  The Pirelli rubber is not compatible with the Firestone rubber from the tires the IndyCars use.  Meantime, Samantha Tan is being harried by The Heart of Racing Aston Martin with Gray Newell at the controls.

Curt Swearinging in the Porsche is reeling them in.  Oh man!  Now the SRO3 battle is coming to a boil!  They pass Alan Grossberg in the GT2 Lambo and right here, look, it is Johnny O'Connell back on James Sofronas' six once again!  Is O'Connell slowing?  He cannot get a low gear to accelerate out of the corner with the paddle shifter.  Dear, oh dear.  Jason Daskalos' margin is now a second and a half as we are halfway home.  Daskalos' car came alive in the second half of race one yesterday.  Could that be the same today?  

A couple GT4 retirements.  Robb Holland had a puncture; the pit crew changed the tire and sent him back into the fight.  But he has come back in and has retired.  Same story for Nick Shanny with splitter damage on the BMW.  Game over.  Sebring is in less than two weeks.  They will focus on those races, coming up very soon.    In the meantime, Jason Daskalos resets the CrowdStrike Fastest Lap at 1:20.243.  He wants to break out the broom and sweep the weekend.  The lead has ballooned to over two seconds between Daskalos and Sofronas.  He has a tenth or two over the chasing Audi's.  They could be picking up a tow.  Hard to tell.  

Johnny O'Connell has reported to the team at SKI Autosport that the engine has been cutting in and out and he was able to refire it.  He has caught up to James Sofronas.  The key is now, he will be ready to hit the start or the ignition switch.  In the meantime, at the tail of the SRO3 field, a battling is brewing between Jason Bell in the #2 Flying Lizard Motorsports Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3, the new evolution Aston Martin, and the #32 GMG Racing Porsche 911 GT3R (991.II) of Kyle Washington.  Washington has the second generation 991 model, not the new 992 version of the Porsche.  Washington is flying, though.  He is closing in.

I think Kyle Washington is really becoming a serious GT3 racer while Jason Bell is a GT4 champion but is a GT3 rookie.  Bell pulls out to pass Washington but decides discretion is the better part of valor.  Track surface troubles at Sonoma Raceway did not allow for testing and so, Jason Bell is on the back foot but at Sebring he will be able to find his feet and acclimate to the car.  The GT3 car and the GT4 car are so different from each other.  In the month of May, SRO America has their own big events.  We think of the Indianapolis 500 in the month of May and that is true.  But there are two big race weekends for SRO America.  One at Sebring International Raceway in Sebring, Florida.  The other at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas.

Johnny O'Connell has been closing more on James Sofronas, although Mirco Schultis has just uncorked a 1:19.87!  The Callaway Corvette has speed!  Somewhere, Reeves Callaway, is smiling.  The late, great Reeves Callaway, whose family has also been in the golf business.  This old dog can still fight and still bite.  New CrowdStrike Fastest Lap of the motor race to Mirco Schultis at 1:19.875.  He is reeling in Justin Rothburg in the BMW M4 GT3 hand over fist.  Schultis loves GM power.  He digs in to set up the car with his team.  In Germany, to haul his dirtbikes around, he ended up with a Chevrolet Blazer.  

Mirco Schultis is a former class winner at the Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta.  There are reports this could be the final event for Mirco Schultis.  I hope not.  Let's hope that is not the case.  There is a new GT3 Corvette Z06 with the mid-engine format.  However, I don't believe Mirco Schultis intends to have a new Corvette and is sticking only with the Callaway because the old girl still has life left in her.  We'll have to see what he will do.  Only 12 minutes of the race remaining.

Schultis continues to chase Justin Rothberg.  Many experienced Bronze-rated drivers can race against the rookies in GT3 competition.  The Callaway Corvette is based on the old C7 which was very successful even though the Callaway is long in the tooth.  Robby Foley is bullish on Justin Rothburg.  The sponsor, Ladycrete, that company was founded by Justin's grandfather, and what they make is concrete adhesive.  Just ten minutes to go.  Jason Daskalos could indeed win again which would be great for him and his team, after telling the story of crew chief Sheldon Miller dealing with cancer.  Again, God Bless You, Sheldon.  Keep up the good fight.  

Traffic giveth.  Traffic taketh away.  Domination though, in GT4 from Isaac Sherman.  He is dominating again at Long Beach.  He was a late entry at Sonoma last time out and won, and so, he has now committed to a full season.  He has a ten second gap over Samantha Tan in second place.  Dan Knox continues to lead in the GT2 class over Aaron Farhadi.  Farhadi has slipped away by some 20 seconds.  Ross Chouest is the second Mercedes in the picture but is in SRO3.  I wonder if Farhadi went off the road or clonked the barriers or something.  The GT2 Mercedes is based on the track series Mercedes-AMG with a twin turbocharged 4-liter V8 putting out 707 brake horsepower, unrestricted.  

It is the first Mercedes race car with a swan neck rear wing on it.  That was popularized in recent years by Porsche.  The swan neck rear wing design came about because the track series car has a double rear wing on it.  Meanwhile, Mirco Schultis is pouring on the steam, chasing down Justin Rothberg.  Curt Swearingin in the Porsche Cayman in the GT4 class.  Many of the SRO drivers got a t chance to see the IndyCar race earlier on.  A lot of these amateur drivers are thrilled that they can actually race on the streets.  

Schultis tries to pass Rothburg but has to give it up.  What an iconic race the Long Beach Grand Prix is.  Everyone circles the race on the calendar going for the win.  James Sofronas is uncorking some great laps and Daskalos has been stymied in traffic and now James Sofronas is catching up in a big hurry.  Lap 25 was a traffic lap for Daskalos.  Yesterday's wnner, who loves street course racing, is going for the sweep.  James Sofronas is going for it, being rooted on by his son Jenson and his daughter Chloe.  They will be moving to a new shop over at the Thermal Club this summer, running 30 customer cars.  GMG will retain a presence in southern California.  

James Sofronas raced the first ever World Challenge event here at Long Beach back in 1994.  Jason Daskalos is using all of the road on the corner entrances and creating a massive radius.  The setup on that CRP Mercedes, Daskalos is feeling it.  Daskalos has gained more of a lead on James Sofronas.  New CrowdStrike Fastest Lap to Kyle Washington in the Porsche at 1:19.774.  Meanwhile, the GT4 battle is still spicy, too!  It is Samantha Tan being harried by Gray Newell.  BMW vs. Aston Martin.  Newell right in the tire tracks.  

The BMW looks really strong down the straightaway!  Time is running out.  Through the hairpin they go.  Newell has to be frustrated that he cannot get there.  Traffic ahead.  It is Jason Bell.  Daskalos and Sofronas play through.  This is the final straightaway.  Checkers are waving.  Daskalos does the sweep!  He takes the win by 8/10ths of a second with James Sofronas second and Johnny O'Connell third.  In the GT4 class, Isaac Sherman has made four GT4 starts and has won all of them!  Isaac Sherman and Rotek Racing have had a perfect beginning to the 2024 season in GT America!

Samantha Tan holds off Gray Newell for second.  In the GT2 class, Dan Knox has done the double and sweeps the weekend!

Overall/SRO3: #27 Jason Daskalos        CRP/Daskalos Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT3

             GT2: #10 Dan Knox                   Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT2

             GT4: #098 Isaac Sherman          Rotek Racing Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport

We have told the story about Jason Daskalos and Sheldon Miller, Miller in his valiant battle with cancer.  Jason Daskalos had great results with an older Audi R8 in the past and has transitioned now to modern GT3 cars with the Mercedes.  What a fabulous weekend for Jason Daskalos and for the CRP team.  The car took a while to settle in but it worked.  No mistakes, a cushion built up in traffic.  Daskalos is now the points leader in GT America heading for the next event on the calendar.  CRP Racing can celebrate as we cue the dance music and look at the results sheets.

Rothburg held off Mirco Schultis by half a second.  Ross Chouest and Kyle Washington did well for a while but did not have the results they wanted today.  Dan Knox is thrilled with his GT2 results.  A double winner.  More dance music, and the GT2 results sheet.  Brent Holden completes the GT2 podium.  GMG Racing had some great results.  Isaac Sherman is batting a thousand in GT4!  It is a team effort at Rotek Racing.  Isaac Sherman did not see any walls today and focused on the win, and he got it.  He has a bright future.

More dance music, and the GT4 results.  Sherman won this race by 12 seconds.  So, that's all she wrote for the SRO GT America races at Long Beach.  We will join you next, at the fabled concrete of the WW. II. B-17 and B-25 bomber training base turned into a racetrack at Sebring International Raceway in Sebring, Florida, the first weekend in May.  Very excited to bring you all the action.  We'll see you at Sebring, everybody, as we celebrate three classes being swept by all the respective winners.  We were treated to a wonderful weekend of racing in GT America.

We're off to Sebring and it will get bumpier.  We'll see you in a couple of weeks.  Bye for now.