Three GTD cars who crashed into the wall on the outside of the turn eleven hairpin on the last lap caused chaos for a number of vehicles as it partially blocked the track. The biggest loser was the No. 3 Chevrolet Corvette of Jan Magnussen and Antonio García. They had been leading the GTLM class but their path through the hairpin was blocked and they dropped from sixth outright and first in class to tenth outright and fifth in class, handing the class win to their teammates. Although the passing had happened under yellow flag conditions, IMSA officials took the view, as they had done earlier in the race when a crash at the hairpin partially blocked the track, that the passing was done to avoid completely blocking the track and no penalties were handed out.
Background
Entry list
Thirty-five cars were officially entered for the BUBBA Burger Sports Car Grand Prix, with the bulk of entries in the two Grand Touring (GT) categories: Grand Touring Le Mans (GTLM) and Grand Touring Daytona (GTD).[1] Since the majority of the remaining rounds of the 2017 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship were sprint races, teams entered their regular driver pairings for the first time this season.[2] Because of the lack of space provided by the Long Beach paddock, International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) only accepted "premium" entrants (teams participating in the whole championship) for this year's race.[1] Seven Daytona Prototype International (DPi) chassis were represented in the Prototype class, including a trio of Cadillac DPi-V.R cars and a duo of Nissan Onroak DPi and Mazda RT24-P vehicles. They were joined by three global-specification Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) cars, represented by three out of the four major chassis: one Oreca 07 entered by JDC-Miller MotorSports, a Ligier JS P217 utilised by PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports and one Riley Mk. 30 operated by VisitFlorida Racing.[3]
With the absence of the Prototype Challenge class from the field, only three racing classes were represented in Long Beach.[3] GTLM was represented by nine entries from manufacturers such as Corvette Racing, Ford Chip Ganassi Racing USA, Porsche, Ferrari (Risi Competizione) and BMW with no major changes in that field.[1] In the list of GTD entrants, sixteen GT3-specification vehicles were represented by eight different manufacturers.[2] The No. 991 The Racer's GroupPorsche 911 GT3 R was reinstated to the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship after it was withdrawn following a number of flat tires with the car at the season-opening 24 Hours of Daytona.[1][2] Although it was listed as an entrant,[1] Dream Racing's No. 27 Lamborghini Huracán did not participate despite their headquarters being within a close proximity to Long Beach.[2] Alegra Motorsports had originally planned to focus solely on the 2017 North American Endurance Cup but the team entered its No. 28 Porsche 991 GT3 R for the Long Beach round.[2]
Preview
IMSA's president Scott Atherton confirmed the BUBBA Burger Sports Car Grand Prix was part of the series' schedule for the 2017 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship at Road America's victory lane in August 2016.[4] It was the fourth consecutive year the event was held as part of the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, and the tenth annual running of the race, counting the period between 2006 and 2013 when it was a round of the Rolex Sports Car Series and the American Le Mans Series respectively.[5] The 2017 BUBBA Burger Sports Car Grand Prix was the third of twelve scheduled sports car races of 2018 by IMSA, the shortest of the season in terms of distance, and it was the first round not held as part of the North American Endurance Cup.[4] The race was held at the eleven-turn 1.968 mi (3.167 km) Long Beach street circuit on April 8.[4][6]
The Long Beach Street Circuit (pictured in 2009), where the race was held.
IMSA altered the balance of performance to try to create parity within each category for the third time in the season. All of the Cadillac DPi-V.Rs had their fuel tanks reduced by 2 L (0.44 imp gal; 0.53 US gal), and the size of their fuel hose restrictors were reduced by 0.5 mm (0.020 in) to increase the amount of its refuelling time. The Mazda RT-24Ps and the Nissan Onroak DPis had their turbocharger pressures raised for an increase in performance. The Riley/Multimatic MK30's refuelling hose restrictor was shortened by 2 mm (0.079 in). The Porsche 911 RSR had its weight increased by 10 kg (22 lb), but lost performance with a 0.3 mm (0.012 in) reduction to its air restrictors, a 2 L (0.44 imp gal; 0.53 US gal) decrease of fuel capacity, and a 5 mm (0.20 in) shortening of their refuelling hose restrictor.[8]
Ferrari's 488 GTE received a fuel cell increase by 1 L (0.22 imp gal; 0.26 US gal), a boost pressure raise from all revolution per minute ranges, and had 0.5 mm (0.020 in) added to its refuelling hose restrictor to shorten its refuelling time. The BMW M6 GTLM also received a boost pressure increase while it had a fuel cell raised by 1 L (0.22 imp gal; 0.26 US gal). The Acura NSX was given a higher top-end boost range to its twin-turbocharged engine; the two Lexus RC Fs had a horsepower reduction with the loss of 1 mm (0.039 in) to the air restrictor on the air intake of their engines. The Mercedes-AMG GT3 was given a weight increase of 10 kg (22 lb), while the Porsche 991 GT3 R had its weight lowered by 20 kg (44 lb).[8]
Practice and qualifying
A two-hour practice session was held on the Friday morning before the race.[9] Jordan Taylor led overall in the No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac DPi-V.R with a lap of 1 minute and 14.982 seconds on his final attempt of the session. The No. 2 Extreme Speed Motorsports Nissan Onroak DPi of Ryan Dalziel was second-fastest.[10] Fittipaldi was third in the No. 5 Mustang Sampling Racing vehicle, Jonathan Bomarito's No. 55 Mazda RT-24P placed fourth, with Cameron's No. 31 Whelen Engineering Racing car in the fifth position.[11] The GTLM class was topped by the No. 911 Porsche 911 RSR of Patrick Pilet with a time of 1 minute and 16.670 seconds. His teammate Kévin Estre in the sister No. 912 car was second and Magnussen's No. 3 Chevrolet Corvette C7.R placed third.[12]Paul Miller Racing's No. 48 Lamborghini Huracán of Bryan Sellers, whose lap was 0.063 seconds faster than Bleekemolen's No. 33 Riley Motorsports Mercedes-AMG. Michael Christensen in the No. 28 Alegra Motorsports Porsche 991 R rounded out the category's top three.[13]
The session was red flagged three times for on-track accidents. 41 minutes into the session, the brakes on the No. 90 VisitFlorida Racing Mk. 30 of Renger van der Zande failed, and he spun into the tire wall before going to hit the concrete barrier alongside the circuit at the turn one run-off area.[12][13] The car sustained heavy damage to its right-front and left-hand quarter panels, but van der Zande was uninjured and exited his car without external aid.[12] William Owen locked the No. 52 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports Ligier JS P2's brakes and had a similar accident to van der Zande at the first corner 23 minutes later. Owen got the car back to the pit lane and the session was stopped for six minutes while debris was cleared from the circuit.[13][11] The final stoppage came when Scott Pruett crashed the No. 14 3GT Racing Lexus RC F into the outside wall leaving the fifth corner with its left-hand quarter. Pruett was uninjured, but the car was extricated to the pit lane by course officials for repairs, and four minutes of the practice session were left to run.[10][11][13] After practice, Visit Florida Racing withdrew the No. 90 car because the left-front portion of its tub was damaged beyond repair, and the team did not transport a spare chassis to Long Beach.[14]
Ricky Taylor's No. 10 car led the second 25-minute practice session, followed by Bomarito's No. 55 Mazda by six-tenths of a second. Fittipaldi placed third after spinning in the session's closing minutes. The No. 4 Chevrolet Corvette C7.R of Oliver Gavin was fastest in GTLM and GTD was topped by Sellers's No. 48 Lamborghini Huracán. Andy Lally's No. 86 Michael Shank Racing Acura NSX was heavily damaged at its right-front after hitting the wall, and Pilet picked up right-rear suspension damage to the No. 911 Porsche when he glanced the barrier at turn nine.[15] Thursday afternoon's qualifying session was divided into three groups and lasted for a total of 90 minutes.[9] GTD cars were sent onto the track first for fifteen minutes with a ten-minute interval before those grouped in GTLM and Prototype had two separate identically timed sessions. Regulations stipulate that teams are required to nominate a single driver to qualify their cars. The competitors' fastest lap times determined the starting order. IMSA then arranged the grid so that the Prototype started in front of all GTLM cars, who in turn, began ahead of the GTD field.[16]
Ricky Taylor in the No. 10 Cadillac bettered his own lap record of the Long Beach Street Circuit from the 2014 event to clinch his first pole position of the season, his second at Long Beach, and the 14th of his career with a time of 1 minute and 13.549 seconds.[17][18] He was joined on the grid's front row by Fittipaldi whose best lap in the No. 5 Mustang Sampling Racing car was 0.204 seconds slower, and he improved his best lap during the later stages of the qualifying session.[17][19]Tristan Nunez qualified the No. 55 Mazda RT-24P in the third position.[20]Mikhail Goikhberg's No. 85 JDC-Miller MotorSports Oreca 07 was the highest-placed of all the LMP2 entrants in fourth with a lap time he set in the session's closing seconds.[21] The No. 31 Whelen Engineering Racing Cadillac of Curran started from fifth place.[22] The duo of Extreme Speed Motorsports Nissan Onroak DPis were sixth and ninth: Scott Sharp in the No. 2 car was faster than the sister No. 22 entry of Ed Brown. They were separated by the seventh-placed Tom Long in the No. 70 Mazda RT-24P and Owen's No. PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports Ligier JS P2 was eighth.[19]
In GTLM, Magnussen set a new category track record, and took his first pole position since the 2016 Oak Tree Grand Prix, and the 19th of his career with a lap of 1 minute and 16.909 seconds that he set on his tenth try.[18][23][24] He was joined by Joey Hand's No. 66 Ford GT on the grid's front row with his best lap being 0.092 seconds slower, and Toni Vilander drove the No. 62 Risi Competizione Ferrari 488 to third place.[20] Fourth-placed Laurens Vanthoor was the only Porsche to qualify after Pilet's No. 911 car was being repaired from his earlier crash in second practice. Bill Auberlen's No. 25 BMW M6 completed the top five category qualifiers.[25] Vilander lost control of his car's rear, and spun into the tire barrier at the end of the back straight but continued without any apparent damage.[19][23]Richard Westbrook ran wide coming out of turn eight, and he made contact with the tire wall leaving the corner, removing his rear wing and left-rear quarter panel.[24] Debris was littered on the track, and the session was stopped with three minutes left to allow for its removal.[22][23] On his tenth lap, Sellers took his second consecutive GTD pole position on a street circuit with a time of 1 minute and 19.243 seconds.[23][25]Jack Hawksworth's No. 14 3GT Lexus qualified second, and Daniel Morad's No. 28 Alegra Motorsports took third. Rounding out the top five in the class were the No. 16 Change Racing Lamborghini of Corey Lewis, and Lawson Aschenbach's No. 57 Stevenson Motorsports Audi R8 LMS.[21]
^1 – The No. 14 3GT Racing and No. 911 Porsche GT Team entries did not participate in qualifying after crashes in practice left them unable to participate.[21]
^2 – The No. 90 VisitFlorida Racing car was withdrawn due to a heavy amount of damage to its tub in an accident during the first practice session.[14]
Race
Weather conditions at the start were dry and clear. The air temperature throughout the race was between 64.2 and 66.6 °F (17.9 and 19.2 °C) and the track temperature ranged from 65 to 68 °F (18 to 20 °C).[27] The No. 911 Porsche 911 RSR of Pilet and Dirk Werner had many of the components attached to its sub-frame replaced overnight to allow for the car's participation in the event after the damage sustained to it in the second practice session.[28] The green flag was waved by singer-songwriter and grand marshal Chester Bennington at 13:05 Pacific Standard Time (UTC−08:00) to signal the race's commencement.[9][29] Ricky Taylor blocked Barbosa and Nunet to hold the lead on the approach to turn one. Nunez however got ahead of Fittipaldi on the inside line at the same corner for the second position. Exiting turn five, the right-rear quarter panel of Brown's No. 22 Nissan DPi was hit by Vilander's Ferrari, spinning him 180 degrees, and catching out Hand's No. 66 Ford which was close behind the pair. Magnussen made contact with the rear of Hand's car, and fell from the lead of GTLM to sixth in class. Long overtook Goikhberg for fifth overall going into turn one. A full course caution was displayed soon after, and Vilander's Ferrari and Brown's Nissan DPi retired because of the heavy amount damage to their cars.[30]
Racing resumed with 78 minutes and 3 seconds left with Ricky Taylor maintaining his lead over Nunez by using the higher amount of torque in his car and Vanthoor leading the eight-car GTLM field.[30] Goikhberg had been unsettled by the bumpy track surface,[31] and he locked his brakes on the way to running straight into the turn nine run-off area. He reversed to rejoin the track, but he dropped to 32nd overall.[30] A second full course yellow was called for on the eleventh lap when carbon fibre debris from Hand's No. 66 Ford was located by series officials on the racing line on the main straight.[30][31] Some cars from all three categories made pit stops for tires and fuel during the caution. Hand was relieved by Müller, the only driver change during the caution. At the restart on lap 15, Ricky Taylor held off Nunez on the outside line to hold the lead on the run to turn one. Curran used the slower GTD traffic to narrow the distance to Long on the main straight for fourth overall. Not long after, Auberlen blocked Gavin from overtaking him through turns eight for second in GTLM. Auberlen was later delayed by the No. 57 Stevenson Audi R8 LMS at turn six, allowing Gavin to challenge him around the inside heading towards the next corner, but Gavin was unsuccessful.[30]
Down the back stretch on the 21st lap,[31]Gunnar Jeannette's slower No. 50 Riley Mercedes-AMG made contact with the rear of Fittipaldi's No. 5 Cadillac who had just lapped him,[32] and Fittipaldi was sent spinning backwards and made a heavy impact with the turn nine tire barrier.[31] Fittipaldi's Cadillac was heavily damaged at its rear, and he drove into the pit lane for a rear bodywork assembly replacement, as the third full course caution was activated to allow for on-track debris removal.[33][34] As green flag racing resumed with just under an hour to go, some cars made their scheduled pit stops. In heavy GTD traffic, Werner's No. 911 Porsche attempted to steer left onto the inside line to pass Müller's No. 66 Ford on the main straight but Müller blocked the pass. Owen's No. 52 Ligier was under pressure from Dalziel's No. 22 Nissan DPi, and went wide into the turn one run-off area after braking later than usual for the corner. Curran overtook Long for fourth and the latter made contact with Estre's right-rear quarter panel on his No. 912 Porsche coming off the ninth corner.[30] Paul Miller Racing's No. 48 Lamborghini of Madison Snow served a stop-and-go penalty for entering the pit lane for a scheduled stop while it was closed to racing traffic.[33][35]
Porsche's No. 911 of Werner dived down the inside lane, and he ran into Müller's right-rear quarter panel at the turn eleven hairpin, sending him into a 360 degree pirouette, and removing the No. 66 Ford's rear wing after it slid backward into the outside barrier lining the track. Müller could not get the car facing in the correct direction due to the track's narrowness, and he created a temporary multi-car traffic jam, prompting the fourth full course caution.[30][31] Under caution, the majority of the Prototypes made pit stops for tires and driver changes.[34]Martin Tomczyk's No. 24 BMW M6 had earlier advanced to first in GTLM through an alternate strategy, and he took the overall lead on the 34th lap,[33] which he held at the rolling restart from Antonio García's No. 3 Chevrolet Corvette C7.R and Ryan Briscoe's No. 67 Ford.[31] At this point, Dalziel took the Prototype class lead after a short pit stop for fuel for the No. 22 Nissan DPi during the caution.[36] On lap 40, Jordan Taylor's No. 10 car was overtaken by Cameron's No. 31 vehicle driving towards the entry for the first turn for second in the Prototype category and tenth overall.[31] Cameron lost the place on the next lap when GTD traffic on the back straight impeded him and allowed Jordan Taylor to make the pass on the outside.[30]
On lap 42, the final caution was given.[37] Cameron made an unforced driving error,[33] as he carried too much speed,[32] and made contact with the inside wall at turn eight.[34] The impact put Cameron heavily into the outside retaining wall leaving the corner.[31] Cameron was injured but the No. 31 Whelen Engineering Car was retired because to the heavy amount of damage it sustained.[33][36] Tomczyk led at the restart on lap 48.[37] That lap, Dalziel moved to the overall lead by passing Tomczyk on the run to turn six. Tomczyk lost second to Jordan Taylor on the main straight at the beginning of the following lap.[30] Taylor closed to within a second per lap of Dalziel but the latter responded by setting strong lap times to maintain the first position.[31] Six minutes later, Tomczyk slowed with a suspected engine control unit failure exiting turn eight, handing the lead of GTLM to the No. 3 Chevrolet Corvette of Garcia. His teammate Tommy Milner in the sister No. 3 car got ahead of Briscoe's No. 67 vehicle for second on the run to the ninth corner.[33] With six minutes remaining, Dalziel was delayed by slower GTD traffic, allowing Jordan Taylor to challenge him.[32] Taylor took advantage of Dalziel being further bulked by GTD traffic on the approach to turn one to pass him around the outside for the lead.[36][38]
An initial attack from Dalziel to retake the first position was repelled by Jordan Taylor,[31] who kept the lead to claim his and Ricky Taylor's third win in a row, and their third overall Long Beach victory.[34][36] Dalziel followed 6.349 seconds later in second to take his and Sharp's best finish of the season at the time, and the overall podium was completed by Bomarito and Nunez's No. 55 Mazda RT-24P in third.[36] Three GTD cars crashed into the turn eleven hairpin outside wall on the last lap and created chaos for a number of vehicles as it partially blocked the track. The biggest loser was the No. 3 Chevrolet Corvette of Jan Magnussen and Antonio García whose path through the hairpin was blocked and they fell from sixth outright and first in class to tenth outright and fifth in class, handing the class win to Milner and Gavin. Although the passing had happened under yellow flag conditions, IMSA officials took the view, as they had done earlier in the race when a crash at the hairpin partially blocked the track, that the passing was done to avoid completely blocking the track and no penalties were handed out.[38][39][40] GTD was won by the No. 50 Riley Technologies Mercedes-AMG of Cooper MacNeil and Jeanette after a strategy to make an early pit stop for fuel allowed him to keep the class lead.[35]
Post-race
With a total of 105 points, Jordan Taylor and Ricky Taylor's victory allowed him to increase their advantage over Fittipaldi and Barbosa in the Prototype Drivers' Championship to 16 points. Goikhberg and his co-driver Stephen Simpson advanced from fifth to third.[41] In the GTLM Drivers' Championship, Müller and Hand extended their lead to four points over Garcia and Magnussen, while Westbrook and Briscoe moved from third after being fifth coming into Long Beach.[41] The final results of GTD meant Keating and Blekeeomen further increased their gap to nineteen points as Alessandro Balzan and Christina Nielsen took over the second position.[41] Cadillac, Ford, and Mercedes-AMG continued to top their respective Manufacturers' Championships, while Wayne Taylor Racing, Ford Chip Ganassi Racing, and Riley Motorsports kept their respective advantages in the trio of Teams' Championships with nine races left in the season.[41]
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