International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) president Scott Atherton confirmed the race was part of the schedule for the 2016 IMSA SportsCar Championship (IMSA SCC) in August 2015.[1] It was the second consecutive year the event was held as part of the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and the twenty-fifth annual running of the race. The 2016 Northeast Grand Prix was the eighth of twelve scheduled sports car races of 2016 by IMSA, and was the fifth round not held on the held as part of the North American Endurance Cup.[1] The race was held at the seven-turn 1.530 mi (2.462 km) Lime Rock Park in Lakeville, Connecticut on July 23, 2016.[2] The GTLM category would participate in the event for the first time since the 2013 running.[3]
IMSA altered the balance of performance to try to create parity within the GTLM category. The BMW M6 GTLM received a reduction in turbo boost pressure and a 2-litre fuel capacity reduction. The Ferrari 488 GTE received an increase in turbo boost pressure, and a 2-litre fuel capacity increase as well as a 1.0 mm refuelling hose restrictor reduction increase. The Ford GT received a 0.1 mm refuelling hose restrictor reduction. The Porsche 911 RSR had its weight increased by 20kg (44 lb).[4]
Thirty-one cars were officially entered for the Northeast Grand Prix, with most of the entries being in the Grand Touring Le Mans (GTLM) and Grand Touring Daytona (GTD) categories. The Prototype Challenge (PC) class was composed of eight Oreca FLM09 cars: three from Starworks Motorsports. BAR1 Motorsports, CORE Autosport, JDC-Miller MotorSports, Performance Tech and PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports entered one car each.[6] GTLM was represented by nine entries from five different brands.[6] In the list of GTD entrants, fourteen GT3-specification vehicles were represented by six different manufacturers.[6] With the absence of the Prototype (P) class from the field, only three racing classes were represented in Lime Rock.[2]
Practice
There were two practice sessions preceding the start of the race on Saturday, both on Friday. The two one-hour sessions were on Friday afternoon.[7]
In the first practice session, Renger van der Zande set the fastest time in the No. 8 Starworks car with a time of 48.808 seconds, 0.214 seconds faster than Colin Braun's No. 54 CORE Autosport vehicle, and Stephen Simpson's No. 85 car was third.[8] The GTLM class was topped by the No. 4 Chevrolet Corvette C7.R of Oliver Gavin. Joey Hand in the No. 66 Ford GT was second and Toni Vilander's Risi Ferrari was third.[9] Audi paced GTD with Magnus Racing's R8 of Lally lapping at 52.807, followed by Jens Klingmann's No. 96 Turner Motorsport BMW M6.[9] The session was stopped for 10 minutes when John Edwards No.100 RLL BMW M6 stopped on track due to a driveline failure.[8]
Braun led the final practice session in CORE's No. 54 car with a lap of 48.990 seconds. Kimber-Smith's No. 52 PR/1's vehicle was second fastest. Marcelli was third fastest for Performance Tech.[10] BMW topped GTLM with Werner's No. 25 car lapping at 51.164 seconds. Vilander was second fastest for Risi Competizione and Milner's No. 4 Corvette was third.[10] Farnbacher led the GTD class in the No. 23 Porsche, followed by Liddell's No. 6 Stevenson Motorsport Audi R8.[10][11]
Qualifying
Friday afternoon's 65-minute three-group qualifying session gave 15-minute sessions to all categories. Cars in GTD were sent out first before those grouped in GTLM, and PC had two separate identically timed sessions. Regulations stipulated teams to nominate one qualifying driver, with the fastest laps determining each classes starting order. IMSA would arranged the grid to put all PCs ahead of the GTLM, and GTD cars.[12][7]
Qualifying results
Pole positions in each class are indicated in bold and by ‡.
1 The No. 54 CORE Autosport entry was sent to the rear of the PC grid as per 43.1 of the Sporting regulations (Starting driver change).[12]
2 The No. 27 Dream Racing Lamborghini was sent to the rear of the GTD grid as per 43.1 of the Sporting regulations (Starting driver change).[12]
3 The No. 33 Riley Motorsports Dodge was sent to the rear of the GTD grid as per 40.1.5 of the Sporting regulations (Tire change).[12]
Race
Post-race
With a total of 267 points, Popow and van der Zande's victory allowed them to extend their advantage in the Prototype Challenge Drivers' Championship to 17 points over Alon and Kimber-Smith.[5] The final results of GTLM meant Gavin and Milner's victory allowed them to extend their advantage in the Drivers' Championship by 5 points over Briscoe and Westbrook. García and Magnussen advanced from fifth to third.[5] Balzan and Nielsen's eleventh-placed finish allowed them to keep their advantage in the GTD Drivers' Championship, but their advantage was reduced to 13 points as race winners Lally and Potter jumped to second.[5] Chevrolet continued to the GTLM Manufactures' Championship while Audi became the leader of the GTD Manufactures' Championship. Starworks Motorsport, Corvette Racing, and Scuderia Corsa kept their respective advantages in their of Teams' Championships with four rounds left in the season.[5]
