IMSA at VIR on 8/25/24

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A total of 23 cars are set for next weekend’s Michelin GT Challenge at Virginia International Raceway, in the sole GT-only IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship round of the season.

Released on Wednesday, the entry list for the two-hour and 40-minute race is largely unchanged for the full-season GTD Pro and GTD class entries.
The most notable change comes in the GTD Pro championship-leading No. 77 AO Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R, which will see Klaus Bachler team up with points leader Laurin Heinrich.

Fellow Porsche-contracted driver Julien Andlauer filled the seat formerly held by Seb Priaulx at Road America.
Kyle Marcelli, who missed Road America due to an arm-related injury, meanwhile, will be back in the No. 45 Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Lamborghini Hurcan GT3 EVO2 alongside Danny Formal.

A total of nine cars are set to do battle in GTD Pro, with 14 in GTD.
It includes the No. 120 Wright Motorsports Porsche of Elliott Skeer and Adam Adelson, which will now complete the remainder of the season after originally being slated to only contest the Michelin Endurance Cup rounds plus Long Beach.

Neither the second Conquest Racing Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo, which won the GTD Pro class at Road America, nor the No. 023 Triarsi Competizione Ferrari, will be present at VIR.

Track action for the final sprint race of the season gets underway on Fri. Aug. 23 with opening practice, followed by a second session and qualifying on Sunday and the race that following Sunday, beginning at 12:05 p.m. EDT.

 

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The Chevy Corvette Z06 GT3.R and DXDT Racing look to remain unbeaten in GT World Challenge America’s Pro class as the series travels this weekend for two 90-minute sprint races at Road America.

The team will have a pair of the first-year Corvette GT3s at the 4.048-mile, 14-turn road course just off Lake Michigan in Wisconsin. Tommy Milner and Alec Udell, in the No. 63 DXDT Racing Z06 GT3.R, have been the dominant pairing since making their debut together, with four consecutive Pro-class wins and three pole positions in two events.

The strong performance has carried over to the No. 08 DXDT Corvette. DXDT Racing will debut a new lineup of team veteran Bryan Sellers and newcomer Bryson Morris, who will make his first career start in GT World Challenge in the Z06 GT3.R and tested the Corvette last week at Road America.
There is momentum in the No. 08 Corvette camp, as well, with a Pro-Am podium finish the last time out at VIR.

This weekend will be the second event at Road America for the Z06 GT3.R in three weeks, following a round of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs swept the first row of the GTD PRO grid, with the race ending with top-five finishes in both the GTD PRO and GTD classes.

DXDT Racing spent two days testing at Road America last week, armed with feedback and input on chassis and aero setups from the IMSA programs.
Those lessons should help the team establish an optimal baseline for Friday’s opening practice.

DXDT Racing will race in the first of two GT World Challenge America races at Road America at 3:10 p.m. ET on Saturday, followed by Sunday’s second race at 2:15 p.m. ET. Live coverage of both races plus timing & scoring will be available at gt-world-challenge-america.com and SRO’s GT World YouTube channel.

DXDT RACING CORVETTE PRE-EVENT QUOTES

TOMMY MILNER, NO. 63 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“We tested last Monday and Tuesday, and adding data from the recent MSA event, there’s a lot that will apply to the SRO weekend. I’ve already realized that across the two weekends that I’ve done. Car knowledge plays a big role in helping to drive the direction of the Corvette on the Pirelli tire.
This is the first direct, back-to-back correlation just with the test but also the race. Our Corvette was good on the IMSA weekend. We were 1-2 in qualifying and were excellent in the race. We’ll try to build on that and have another good weekend here with DXDT.”

ALEC UDELL, NO. 63 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“I’m excited about the Road America race weekend with DXDT in the Corvette Z06 GT3R. Road America is an iconic venue on the SRO schedule. It brings exciting racing and attracts great fans. Tommy has a lot of knowledge coming off a strong race weekend with the Pratt Miller team, so I’m looking to pick up as much info from him as I can and roll that into another great weekend with the team.”

BRYAN SELLERS, NO. 08 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“After a strong showing in VIR I’m really looking forward to getting to Road America.
The team is working hard to continue to produce results, and I’m hopeful that in this next round we are able to convert that hard work into good results.”

BRYSON MORRIS, NO. 08 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“I’m super excited and honored to race with DXDT Racing this weekend at Road America. It will be my GT3 debut in the U.S., and I could not ask for a better team to do it with. We had a strong test together not too long ago, and I believe we will be in strong contention to at least be on the podium.”

CHRISTIE BAGNE, CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R PROGRAM MANAGER:

“To say that we are pleased with DXDT Racing and the competitiveness of the Corvette Z06 GT3.R in GT World Challenge America is an understatement.
The same spirit of enthusiasm and collaboration that we saw in the first days of this effort remains evident.

Four race wins and five podium finishes is an impressive start that shows the capability of the team as well as the reliability and performance of our Corvette GT3 car in customer hands.”

 

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How they qualified

Philip Ellis and Robby Foley have scored poles for the pair of Fanatec GT World Challenge America powered by AWS races at Road America.
Ellis stormed to a best lap of 2:03.976 in the No. 91 Regulator Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo in the Pro-Am entry to edge out Pro class pole-sitter Alec Udell by 0.714 seconds.

Bill Auberlen qualified third in the No. 28 ST Racing BMW M4 GT3, followed by Luca Mars in the No. 93 Racers Edge Motorsports Acura NSX GT3 Evo22 and Madison Snow in the debuting No. 99 Random Vandals Racing BMW.

The No. 19 Esses Racing Mercedes-AMG of Will Hardeman claimed pole in the Am class for Race 1, with the debuting No. 163 AF Corse Ferrari 296 GT3 of Ozz Negri set to start Race 2 from the top spot in the class.

Foley’s 2:03.762 lap time in Q2 was 0.281 seconds clear of Pro class pole-sitter Tommy Milner in the No. 63 DXDT Corvette, in second.

Elliott Skeer qualified third overall and second in Pro in the No. 120 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R, with Tom Sargent and Bryan Sellers completing the overall top-five for GMG Racing and DXDT, respectively.

It came before a spin in the wet grass for Sellers in the closing minutes of Q2.
A total of 15 cars are now set to take part this weekend following the withdrawal of the No. 50 Chouest Povoledo Racing Mercedes-AMG, which crashed out in opening practice on Friday.

The team had planned to press its GT America powered by AWS chassis into Fanatec GT America action, but it suffered mechanical issues following Friday’s second session.

The first 90-minute race of the weekend start at 3:10 p.m. CDT with live coverage on SRO’s GT World YouTube channel and on Twitch.

 

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Tommy Milner and Alec Udell picked up their fifth consecutive Fanatec GT World Challenge America powered by AWS victory, continuing their undefeated streak in the Pro class Saturday at Road America with their GT3.R Z06

Milner took over the overall lead of the race from the No. 91 Regulator Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo of Jeff Burton with 38 minutes to go and stretched out to a lead over Zach Veach, who came home second in the No. 93 Racers Edge Motorsports Acura NSX GT3 Evo22.

It came despite a late-race yellow for the No. 28 ST Racing BMW M4 GT3 of Varun Choksey, who ran out of fuel on track, and set up a five-minute shootout to the finish that saw Veach initially challenge Milner but cross the line 0.771 seconds behind.

Veach’s co-driver Luca Mars charged to the lead of the race at the 30-minute mark, but the car lost time in the pits during the driver change with an issue with their seat insert that initially put them out of contention until the late-race yellow.

The No. 120 Wright Motorsports Porsche of Elliott Skeer and Adam Adelson completed the overall and Pro class podium in third, despite having a slow pit stop to tear off the car’s damaged diffuser, which appeared to give Skeer an advantage in straight line speed afterward.

Robby Foley, meanwhile, passed Burton for the Pro-Am class lead and eventual win with two laps to go, moments after Burton’s Mercedes-AMG nearly spun and dropped down the running order.
It came after Burton’s co-driver Philip Ellis started from the rear of the 15-car starting field due to a technical infringement in qualifying and moved into the lead during the pit stop sequence.

Foley shared top class honors in his No. 29 Turner Motorsport BMW with Justin Rothberg, who rebounded from an early race spin.
The No. 32 GMG Racing Porsche of Tom Sargent and Kyle Washington finished second in Pro-Am after a late-race battle between the Australian and the No. 92 MMG Porsche of Kyle Marcelli, who completed the class podium with fellow countryman Jean-Frederic Laberge in his Fanatec GT America debut.

Am class honors went to the No. 19 Esses Racing Mercedes-AMG of Will Hardeman and Alan Metni, which finished seventh overall after running as high as fourth in the early stages of the race that was marred by a series of early race pit stops and penalties.

It included an opening lap spin by the debuting No. 99 Random Vandals Racing BMW of Madison Snow, which collected Bryson Morris’ No. 08 DXDT Corvette in Turn 3 and brought out the race’s first yellow.

Bill Auberlen in the No. 28 ST BMW was served with a drive-through penalty for incident responsibility.

Race 2 for Fanatec GT America gets underway on Sunday at 2:15 p.m. CDT, with live coverage on SRO’s GT World YouTube channel and on Twitch.

 

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Race 1 finishing order

 

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Saturday’s first race in the Fanatec GT World Challenge America powered by AWS championship saw intense battles, strategy gambles, and full course yellows come into play as the weather luckily cooperated during the 90-minute event.

DXDT Racing’s Alec Udell and Tommy Milner displayed their prowess in the Pro class, adding another overall victory to their running tally. In Pro-Am, Justin Rothberg and Robby Foley overcame challenges and clawed their way to the top spot.
Pro
Contact on the first lap between Bill Auberlen in the No. 28 ST Racing BMW M4 GT3 and Madison Snow in the No. 99 Random Vandals Racing BMW M4 GT3 brought out a brief full course yellow, but the green flag running resumed shortly thereafter.

Udell, who started from pole position in the No. 63 DXDT Racing Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R, found himself in an intense battle for the lead with Luca Mars in the No. 93 Racers Edge Motorsports Acura NSX GT3 EVO22. After running nose-to-tail for the opening third of the race, Mars saw an opportunity to pull off an overtake in Canada Corner, sweeping into first place with one hour to go.

However, as the driver changes unfolded at the halfway mark, DXDT Racing’s Milner regained the track position advantage over the Racers Edge Motorsports’ Zach Veach, who ran into issues with the seat insert during the team’s pit stop.

A full course caution emerged just before the final 10 minutes of the race as Varun Choksey momentarily pulled his ST Racing machine off-track, bringing the field together again. The green flag running resumed for the final five minutes, with Veach challenging Milner with all his might on the restart. Despite the mounting pressure, the Corvette factory driver remained composed and fended off the attacks, going on to clinch DXDT Racing’s fifth consecutive win of the season.

Racers Edge Motorsports finished second overall to score their best result of the year thus far, with Elliott Skeer following closely behind in the No. 120 Wright Motorsports Porsche 992 GT3 R to claim the final podium position.
“Everything went perfectly for us,” said Milner.

“We had a huge lead in our class, but then the yellow flag bunched everyone back up. The other teams, especially the Acura and Porsche, were posting impressive lap times, and I thought, ‘Man, I can’t match that.’ I learned earlier this year that not preparing the tires properly before a restart can cost you, so I made sure to focus on that. Fortunately, I had just enough of a gap and managed to bring this Corvette home in first place again. It’s unbelievable!”

Pro-Am

The running order in the Pro-Am class changed drastically within the opening laps, as on-track drama unfolded almost immediately.
The No. 08 DXDT Racing Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R was involved in a lap one incident, bringing Bryson Morris’ debut race in the series to an early end.

A number of teams took a gamble with the weather and started the race on wet tires, which ultimately resulted in them being forced to pit early to switch to slicks. This played perfectly into the hands of Phillip Ellis in the No. 91 Regulator Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3, as he made his way from last to fifth position overall within the opening ten minutes of the race.

Ellis was challenging the Pro class front-runners before coming into pit lane to hand over his machine to teammate Jeff Burton, who retained the Pro-Am class lead as he returned to the track. Meanwhile, Foley was on the move in the No. 29 Turner Motorsport BMW M4 GT3, gradually inching closer to Burton lap after lap.
The gap between the two was reduced entirely as a full course yellow came out in the final laps, with Foley now breathing down Burton’s neck with only five minutes left on the clock. The green flag waved once again, and with that, Foley took the opportunity to move past Burton into the class lead, and went on to take the race one Pro-Am victory at Road America.

Burton momentarily ran off-track shortly after being overtaken, allowing Tom Sargent to move up to second place in the No. 32 GMG Racing Porsche 992 GT3 R, followed by Kyle Marcelli in the No. 92 MMG Porsche 992 GT3 R, earning a podium finish in the team’s championship debut.

“It was a crazy race,” Foley said. “I wasn’t really expecting that full course yellow at the end, and to be honest, I didn’t really want it, but it worked out. My stint was pretty easy in the dry, and we had a great BMW M4 GT3 under us today. Turner Motorsport provided us with a fantastic car, as they always do at this track. Thanks to LATICRETE, all of our partners, and of course, Justin and Will. We’re on a roll here, so let’s keep it going.”

“It’s been an amazing day,” echoed Rothberg, who won earlier in the day in GT America as well. “I’ve never had a two-for-two day, so I’m feeling excellent. If you had told me when I was sitting back on the wall that I’d end up on the podium, I would have disagreed with you, but here we are.”

The Fanatec GT World Challenge America Powered by AWS field will return for race two on Sunday, August 18th at 2:15 p.m. CT.

 

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DXDT Racing scored a double victory in Sunday’s Fanatec GT World Challenge America powered by AWS race at Road America, with the team’s Chevy Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs claiming the Pro and Pro-Am class wins.

Alec Udell drove the No. 63 Corvette to his and Tommy Milner’s sixth consecutive Pro category victory, taking overall honors in the 90-minute race despite having a 1.07-second post-race penalty due to not meeting the minimum pit stop time.

Bryson Morris, in his debut weekend with the team, drove the No. 08 entry to Pro-Am class honors with co-driver Bryan Sellers, having finished second overall.
It marked the No. 08 Corvette’s first victory of the season.

While the overall pole-sitting No. 29 Turner Motorsport BMW M4 GT3 of Robby Foley dominated the first half of the race, a right-front puncture just moments after the tire and driver change to Justin Rothberg took them out of contention.

It promoted the No. 38 ST Racing BMW of Samantha Tan and Neil Verhagen to second in class and fourth overall, behind the third-place finishing No. 120 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R of Pro class points leaders Elliott Skeer and Adam Adelson.
The No. 93 Racers Edge Motorsports Acura NSX GT3 Evo22 of Luca Mars and Zach Veach, which finished runner-up on Saturday, came home fifth overall and third in Pro, ahead of the No. 28 ST BMW of Bill Auberlen and Varun Choksey.

Philip Ellis made a late-race comeback to finish third in the Pro-Am class in his No. 91 Regulator Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo that was started by Jeff Burton.
Am class honors went to the No. 163 AF Corse Ferrari 296 GT3 of Ozz Negri and Jay Schreibman, who combined for a 13th place finish.

It came after the only other Am class car, the No. 19 Esses Racing Mercedes-AMG, served multiple penalties for various infractions.

 

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All in all, it was a picture-perfect Sunday for DXDT Racing Z06s in the Fanatec GT World Challenge America powered by AWS championship at Road America, the team scoring both wins in the Pro and Pro-Am classes, in addition to securing a 1-2 finish overall.

Pro

There was an immediate change for the Pro class lead as Elliott Skeer in the No. 120 Wright Motorsports Porsche 992 GT3 R charged past the No. 63 DXDT Racing Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R of Tommy Milner into Turn 1.

Milner remained within proximity over the course of his stint, not allowing Skeer to pull a gap.
As the two made a trip down pit lane near the halfway mark to perform driver changes, the battle was reignited as Adam Adelson took hold of the Porsche, with Alec Udell jumping in the Corvette.

The advantage swung in DXDT Racing’s direction as they returned to the track for the second half of the race, with Udell further aided by Pro-Am class traffic coming into play, serving as a buffer to keep Adelson at bay. As soon as he had a clear track ahead of him, he set off and continued to build his gap over the rest of the field.
Udell went on to take the checkered flag, clinching an impressive sixth consecutive win for the team.

They were in a league of their own at the National Park of Speed, sweeping the weekend once again. Wright Motorsports concluded their time at Road America with a second-place finish, with Luca Mars and Zach Veach returning to the podium thanks to a strong drive in the No. 93 Racers Edge Motorsports Acura NSX GT3 EVO22.

“With the limited dry running time this week due to the weather, I’m really happy to be on the podium,” said Udell. “The Corvette performed beautifully at Road America, and I’m thrilled with the platform. Tommy had a great first stint, though he might have gotten caught in some traffic and dirty air. We had a bit of a battle with Adam (Adelson), who drove really well in the opening laps of his stint.

There was some congestion as cars were coming out of the pit lane, but we were able to take advantage and run cleanly to the finish. I’m really happy for Bryson and Bryan as well; it was fantastic to see their car up front. Overall, it was a great team effort.”

Pro-Am

Robby Foley had a strong start, leading the pack as he started from the overall pole position in his No. 29 Turner Motorsport BMW M4 GT3. The fight for the remaining podium positions was taking place further behind, with Tom Sargent, Bryan Sellers, and Neil Verhagen running in sequence.

As Justin Rothberg took over from Foley, he cleared the way for the Pro class fight that was shaping up around him, focusing on his own race. However, heartbreak followed as he suffered front tire damage, forcing him to limp all the way back to pit lane as he tumbled down the order.

There were shakeups on the leaderboard as pit stops were completed, with multiple cars exiting pit lane simultaneously. Bryson Morris went on the attack in the No. 08 DXDT Racing Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R, moving himself into the class lead and second overall. Samantha Tan had a strong hold over second in class in her No. 38 ST Racing BMW M4 GT3 as she sat fourth overall on the leaderboard.

Further behind, Phillip Ellis was on the charge in the No. 91 Regulator Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3, closing in on the final podium position in the last five minutes. Elias Sabo put up a great fight, defending in his No. 8 Flying Lizard Motorsports BMW M4 GT3 in an attempt to hold his place, but nevertheless Ellis found a way to sweep past him.

In his debut weekend in the championship, Morris crossed the finish line to claim his maiden win in the series, earning DXDT Racing’s first Pro-Am win as well. After a difficult first race, ST Racing was back in podium position, while Regulator Racing made the alternate strategy work in their favor again as Ellis and Jeff Burton wrapped up their weekend in Wisconsin with a third-place finish.

“It was a pretty tough stint, but luckily Bryan Sellers got me out in the lead,” said Morris. “I just had to pass one car and was able to hold onto the position from there. Huge thanks to everyone at DXDT Racing, my manager, and the entire team couldn’t have done it without them. I was definitely aware of the gaps closing at times and knew Samantha was quick and determined, but we managed to hold on and take the win. I’m incredibly grateful for that.”

 

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DXDT Racing recorded more landmark results in its first season with the Chevy Corvette Z06 GT3.R by sweeping the GT World Challenge America weekend at Road America and posting victories in multiple classes for the first time.

Tommy Milner and Alec Udell won their fifth race in a row Saturday and added their sixth straight Sunday in the No. 63 Corvette Z06 GT3.R. It’s the third straight weekend sweep in the Pro class for the first-year duo. More notably, they led a team 1-2 overall finish Sunday as the No. 08 Corvette of Bryan Sellers and Bryson Morris won the Pro-Am category in their first race as a pairing.

The results give the first-year Z06 GT3.R eight race victories since debuting in January and a 1-2 finish for the second time the first coming via Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.

The strategy from both the 63 and 08 teams was spot-on Sunday. Milner started on the class pole and drove the first 40 minutes in a six-car train of traffic. He handed off to Udell in hopes of getting clean air and clear track, which worked perfectly as he made the eventual winning pass with 40 minutes left and the three lead Pro-Am cars coming out of pitlane.

Udell pounced from second place and into the lead at the first turn, which also allowed Morris to make his challenge for the class lead and second overall. By the time both Corvettes emerged from Turn Five a few seconds later, Udell and Morris ran 1-2 and stayed that way to the end.

It was a nice redemption for the No. 08 Corvette, which was collected by a spinning car in Saturday’s opening race of the weekend. In that contest, Udell started from pole with Milner having to hold off the field on a restart with five minutes to go. He had led by as much as 19 seconds before the late full-course yellow.

DXDT RACING CORVETTE POST-EVENT QUOTES

TOMMY MILNER, NO. 63 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“All in all, it was a great weekend, with two wins again and six in a row. That’s pretty special. On the surface it seems easy, but it’s not! There are so many things that can go wrong. I can’t tell you how many times in my career where we’ve had cars that should have won races but didn’t because something went wrong. I’m super-proud to be part of Corvette Racing and with DXDT Racing.
They’ve over the last couple of years made a huge effort to improve every aspect of their program. It’s great to have results that show all the hard work that a lot of people have put in to making this a great team. I’m proud and happy to be part of it.”

ALEC UDELL, NO. 63 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“The crew did a great job with the car. There was limited dry running time this week with all the weather that was moving through. I’m happy to be here, and the Corvette performed beautifully here at Road America. I’m really happy with the platform. Tommy had a great first stint and maybe got caught in some traffic and dirty air. We had a little bit of a battle with the Porsche in the opening laps of our stint.
There was a little bit of a traffic jam with some Pro-Am cars, and I was able to take advantage of that and run clean to the finish. I’m really happy for Bryan and Bryson as well. It’s great to see that car up front. I’m happy for the team and for a great team effort.”

BRYAN SELLERS, NO. 08 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“Bryson did a great job for us. It for sure was a difficult situation for him. He got the call just a few days before the race. He was eager to get here with us. We ran him in a test about a week ago, and he was fantastic. He’s a great kid and listens really well.
We were really impressed with his ability to come in and fit in seamlessly. When it came to this race, he was an easy choice.

“I had an excellent in-lap and he had a fantastic out-lap. We talked before the race in the strategy meeting that it would be the difference-maker between him and some of the other drivers because we knew it would be tough to race them. The 29 BMW stopped a lap ahead of us, which I think went in our favor because it gave us another opportunity for a flier. We were able to jump them in the pits and come out right with the leaders and made a great move to get the lead.”

BRYSON MORRIS, NO. 08 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“It was a pretty difficult stint but lucky Bryan did a great job to help me get into the lead. I just had to pass one car on the out-lap to get the lead and was able to hold it from there. Thanks to everyone at DXDT Racing. I couldn’t have done it without them. I was getting the gaps to second place from the team and it was coming down a little bit, but we were able to take the win. I’m really excited.”

CHRISTIE BAGNE, CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R PROGRAM MANAGER:

“Congratulations to DXDT Racing on today’s 1-2 finish at Road America and victories in both GT World Challenge America Pro and Pro-Am classes. The team continues to show the potential of the Corvette Z06 GT3.R in the hands of customer teams.
The strategy and execution on both Corvettes was perfect today and led to this landmark result.”

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