Good morning, everyone and welcome to day two of racing, on Sunday, at Sonoma Raceway in the northern California wine country. It is time for the second and final event of the weekend for SRO GT America with its combination of production sports car platforms from GT2, GT3, and GT4. This championship hearkens back to the original idea of World Challenge when it came about in the late 1980s and early 1990s of short, sprint races, featuring a single driver in each car. We have a relatively split grid of SRO3 and GT4 cars, and there are three GT2 spec automobiles in the field to add extra spice. Yesterday, we saw victories for Jason Daskalos in SRO3, Aaron Farhadi in GT2, and GT4 was won by Isaac Sherman. Who will emerge in the winners' circle today? We'll find out in the next 40 minutes.
It seems there is a slight delay before we get started. Hang on, ladies and gentlemen. We should be ready, momentarily. We are in the second leg of the northern California twin bill. It is official, and we will get ready to race. The grid and the deck have been reshuffled on this brisk northern California morning as we have Ryan Myrehn, and Calvin Fish in the booth, and Amanda Busick in the pit lane, ready to go. Hello to our friends the sheep. Stay warm while you are munching the grass. We have had changes since yesterday with an epoxy sealer being laid down on the asphalt, the new asphalt. It is "frisky biscuits", cold weather, as our mate Calvin Fish said.
A warm coffee is suitable this morning. With the tire strategy, some are using fresh slick Pirelli tires and some others on scrubbed ones. Turn three has been touched up. Jason Daskalos has been the runner-up in SRO3 in GT America the last two years. This year he wants the big trophy. Sonoma Raceway opened in 1968 and the elevation change of this place is unreal with many blind corners. The grip is very much increased with the new surface. Drivers will be on tiptoes this morning. James Sofronas on pole for having fastest lap in race one yesterday.
Safety car lights out and we are ready to race. Watch the grip in the cold here. Be very careful through turn two. Jason Daskalos will try squeezing inside George Kurtz climbing the hill. Two green flags, for SRO3 and GT2 followed by GT4. Green flag, and away we go! Sofronas to the lead followed by Kurtz and Daskalos. Tim Savage giving Mirco Schultis all he can handle. Now the GT4 cars start and it is clean. Curt Swearingin going for it on Gray Newell. Yikes! The gap is growing immediately. Trouble for James Sofronas! Oh, my heavens! He and Daskalos have been swallowed up!
The 30-year veteran of World Challenge, James Sofronas will be making his way back to the front. Kurtz, Chouest, Rothberg, the top three. Johnny O'Connell and Jason Daskalos fighting for position. Well, well, well. In The Carousel, Kurtz nudged Sofronas out of the way and poor old Sofronas did a half spin. Incident under review from SRO Race Control. Single driver, sprint race, no scheduled pit stops. Kurtz's Mercedes is just fine. But he incurs a drive through penalty for incident responsibility! At least the penalty is early.
Ross Chouest now leading in his SRO3 debut. Todd Parriott sends Nick Shanny spinning and Parriott too, cops a drive through penalty. Oh dear. Gray Newell in the meantime, is back up on the horse and is motoring ahead in the GT4 class. Parriott too, cops a drive through penalty for that shemozzle. You spend 50 seconds traversing the pit lane. Parriott had trouble with the paddle shifters on the car yesterday. James Sofronas is mired back in fifth place even though James Sofronas was a lucky luck boy to save the car from spinning. In The Carousel, you can take a variety of lines, but it is hard to make it work.
Ross Chouest now finds himself leading the motor race in only his third GT3 start in this race and in Fanatec GT World Challenge America. Chouest has uncorked the CrowdStrike Fast Lap of the race. Justin Rothberg is up to second spot. Two debutants proving themselves and Chouest's lap time is 1:36.674. Nothing too stellar right now. Chouest takes a shallow entry to turn two. Curt Swearingin goes off and on in the #7 Porsche Cayman GT4 out of The Carousel. The Porsche's have had trouble, in GT4 trim. I think the grip levels have led the Porsche racers to be scratching their heads.
This is ACI Motorsports. Swearingin drives and owns the car. Isaac Sherman though, he is building a gap and whistling off into the distance. In GT2 Brent Holden in the Mercedes is keeping Aaron Farhadi at bay. Mercedes-AMG GT2 vs. Lamborghini Huracan Super Trofeo. The GT2 cars are a blast to drive. Tons of power and limited downforce compared to a GT3 car. Meanwhile, at the top of the shop in SRO3, this is a catch all category for GT3, but you don't have to run a brand-new car. You can race cars that are out of homologation. The Callaway Corvette, previous Audi's and Ferrari's, those are acceptable. But lately, we have seen the new cars excel. It is like me. I need an evo kit every handful of years! Hardy har har.
I think the battle for the top five might compress before long. In GT4 we have a battle of the Aston Martin's. Gray Newell putting the pressure on Todd Coleman. Two GT4 Aston Martin's. Heart of Racing vs. Archangel Motorsports. Gray Newell slithers his way up the hill. He finished on the podium yesterday but is in the thick of it this morning. Now, the GT2 battle is heating up. Holde under pressure from Farhadi. Glad to see the track staff have made the new surface ship shape with the epoxy coating and everything to prepare the track. We have seen some great GT2 grids in Europe and believe me, if I had time, I would love to blog some of the European GT2 races in the near future.
Time will tell. Mixed class racing, if you want to climb the sports car racing ladder, this is what you must do. Sofronas is right on Jason Daskalos' six and so, the Mercedes man is feeling the heat and Sofronas has an incredible save before the car goes light under braking! Holy cow! It was hard to see but he almost spun in The Carousel! Calamity corner! Ross Chouest and Justin Rothberg, they are really pouring on the steam. Especially Rothberg. He is reeling Chouest in hand over fist. George Kurtz has reset CrowdStrike Fastest Lap at 1:35.289. But he is working on reeling in the tail of the SRO3 pack. Tim Savage and Jason Bell, both in Aston Martin's, are ahead.
Isaac Sherman is leading in the GT4 class once again. This is the Rotek Racing Porsche Cayman, car #098. Todd Coleman is second in the #69 Aston Martin Vantage GT4 for Archangel Motorsports. Gray Newell closing in, in a big hurry. We have seen Todd Coleman in GT4 in another championship, in IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge. GT America will be back at the Long Beach Grand Prix sharing with IndyCar and with IMSA I believe. So, it will be a fun thing to see, in a couple of weeks. Sofronas has the bit between his teeth right now as well. We are approaching halfway through the sprint race for GT America and we have loads more racing today to watch.
Johnny O'Connell has been a professional racer for 40 years with a massive CV. He is a great of sports car racing. O'Connell is a four-time World Challenge champion driving with Cadillac. Cadillac of course are now firmly entrenched in prototype racing. Justin Rothburg, a driver from Ferrari Challenge, Daskalos is being aggressive and so is O'Connell. James Sofronas is also back there. The Chouest and Rothburg scrap is really and truly what we are watching. This is massively good stuff. Something has gone wrong with Brent Holden in GT2 and Adam Farhadi is back to the lead and there's poor old Holden, limping his way to the pit lane.
He must have a mechanical issue on that Mercedes-AMG GT2. Maybe the suspension is busted, and the car is crabbing. He will score some points past the halfway mark. Isaac Sherman is still leading GT4. Something must be broken in the left rear. The paint scheme is like an old war bird, a WW. II. fighter plane, a P-51 Mustang or something. Justin Rothburg is showing prowess. He and Robby Foley are teamed up in GT World Challenge America as well. The Kurtz and Sofronas dust up early doors has turned this motor race on it's ear.
Sofronas is off the road and back on. He missed his braking point. Tunnel vision on trying to make a pass on his competitor, Jason Daskalos. Daskalos is the shark and O'Connell is the minnow. Daskalos can smell blood, but I wonder if he will stuff it down the inside on a veteran like Johnny O'Connell. O'Connell, Daskalos, and Sofronas battle, and Dsskalos runs wide allowing Sofronas to pass in turn seven. Alan Grosberg in the Lamborghini is slow, and this compresses the pack! Poor old Sofronas almost ran over the top of Johnny O'Connell. Jason Daskalos will keep digging. That is for sure.
Rothburg racing GT3 for the first time and is scrapping with the legend, Johnny O'Connell. O'Connell gets pinched. Sofronas tries it, gets baleked by Rothberg and now. Rothberg is spun! O'Connell and company boxed Rothburg in! The SKI Autosport team are elated! That all went pear shaped quickly. Ross Chouest's lead balloons to three seconds. In this replay, Rothbrg goes to the right, Sofronas locks horns with Rothburg and Nick Shanny was also there. There was nowhere O'Connell could go. Same with Jason Daskalos. He had no place to go. Race Control reviewing that shemozzle now.
Isaac Sherman in GT4 is on a Sunday drive. Team boss Robb Holland is looking on. Isaac Sherman's grandfather, Miguel Sherman, is bullish about his grandson's racing chances. Ross Chouest leads still by 2.8 seconds over Johnny O'Connell while Jason Daskalos resets CrowdStrike Fastest Lap at 1:35.249. Five minutes to go and we should hopefully see a verdict on the recent incident we just spoke about. Ross Chouest is on a Sunday drive, currently, managing traffic incredibly well. His GT4 experience has given him insight on how to manage traffic. He was balked by the GT2 Lamborghini and now, here comes Johnny O'Connell!
Holy moly! Things are beginning to change. Well, well, well. O'Connell is pedal to the metal and is really going for it. If you throw it away from the lead, you look like an idiot, but with a veteran like O'Connell on your six, you really need to push it. A new car for Johnny O'Connell with a newer Audi R8 platform. Chouest locks the brakes in turn 11 and got away with it. Both of these cars now have just uncorked their fastest lap of the race. Chouest at 1:35.7. Daskalos, paying the penalty, incident responsibility. Drive through penalty issued. Rothburg makes the pass. Chouest locking the brakes again, pushing hard.
Ross Chouest is loving the extra downforce of a GT3 car. Will there be traffic ahead? O'Connell keeps the car underneath him. But now, O'Connell is chasing Chouest. Can Ross Chouest win his first GT3 race? Adjust the brake bias to change the dynamic of the car. Use your tools. But O'Connell is running out of time. Sofronas resets the fastest lap into the 1:34 range. The chicane for the last time. Daskalos resets fastest lap. 1:35.249. Ross Chouest will win GT America race two at Sonoma! Kyle Washington spins out of fourth place right at the end in the #32 GMG Racing Porsche 911 GT3R.
Mirco Schultis slows down the Callaway Corvette and Kurtz and Washington pass him! Holy smokes! Aaron Farhadi wins GT2 and in GT4 it is Isaac Sherman.
Overall/SRO3: #50 Ross Chouest Chouest Povoledo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3
GT2: #127 Aaron Farhadi TPC Racing Lamborghini Super Trofeo EVO2
GT4: #098 Isaac Sherman Rotek Racing Porsche Cayman
Cue the dance music for the results. I think there are some position swaps. Mirco Schultis does cop a penalty in the Callaway Corvette. The next set of events in GT America, are in just a couple of weeks, supporting both IMSA and IndyCar on the street course in Long Beach, California. We will see you there.
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