The No. 34 JMF Motorsports Mercedes AMG GT3 Evo of Michai Stephens and Mikael Grenier was the class of the field in GT World Challenge America’s second round at the Circuit of the Americas, and although they scored a Pro Cup win once three hours were done, their overall victory on track was stripped away due to a post race penalty, with it being handed to the No. 31 Wright Motorsports Porsche 992 GT3R of Dave Musial Jr. and Ryan Yardley, who also led the team’s 1-2 finish in the Pro-Am Cup.
The No. 34 JMF Mercedes took a leading position immediately while the No. 12 AF Corse Ferrari nearly got swallowed up by the field, but Matias Perez Companc kept it in second place Justin Rothberg had to settle for third in the No. 29 Turner BMW. While reaching the final sector for the first time, the No. 6 Dollahite Ford suffered a driveshaft failure and parked alongside the road, bringing a full course yellow as all attempts to put the car back into motion failed.
Despite being only 20 minutes into the race, a few entries opted for an alternative strategy and topped the tank and changed tires, which would put them in a later pit stop cycle. The No. 12, on the other hand, was having a mechanical overhaul in the pitlane as upshift issues appeared after the first lap, leaving the No. 29 free to chase the No. 34, with the No. 28 RS1 Porsche being the spectator in third place.
With 30 minutes of racing, even Turner Motorsport and RS1 opted for early pit stops, leaving only the No. 34 in a regular strategy. At this point, it was worth to take a look or two at the sky as the clouds covered completely the surroundings of the Circuit of the Americas. The rest of the first hour had the No. 34 in control of the race, with Michai Stephens carrying it to the second hour while the No. 31 Wright Porsche was comfortable in second overall and with the Pro-Am Cup lead, while Osvaldo Negri and Marc Austin were trading carbon fiber for the Am Cup lead, with the No. 163 AF Corse Ferrari prevailing over the No. 11 MAD Joker Lone Star Mercedes.
The final hour started badly for JMF Motorsports, with the No. 34 having a 10 second post race penalty and a drive through for an unsportsmanlike maneuver, forcing Mikael Grenier to push hard to keep the gap of more than 23 seconds to the No. 31, and of 34 seconds to the No. 29, and with Grenier serving the penalty as soon as the call came, the No. 31 took the lead and the No. 29 got below the 10 second gap that he needed to preserve.
With 20 minutes to go, Grenier crushed the gap to Ryan Yardley, easily dethroning the No. 31 and returning to the overall lead, although JMF Motorsports’ worries were with the No. 29 Turner BMW, as it could mean a double loss for the team once Grenier crossed the finish line.
While Grenier pushed hard and was easily the fastest driver of the overall top 4, this didn’t save the overall win as the No. 31 Wright Porsche was way below the 10 second mark, securing a double for the team as the Pro-Am Cup win adds to the overall one, but at least the No. 34 JMF Mercedes got the Pro Cup win as it had gap to spare to the No. 29 Turner BMW thanks to Grenier’s late push.
The No. 163 AF Corse Ferrari had competition in the Am Cup for the first time, but that didn’t intimidate Osvaldo Negri and Jay Schreibman, as they conquered the class win with a lap ahead of the No. 11 MAD Joker Lone Star Mercedes.
GTWC America - COTA race results
It won’t take much to watch more GTWC America action as teams and drivers move from Texas to Florida, with the Sebring International Raceway being the venue of the third round on 10 May.
PHOTO: SRO/Fabian Lagunas
Comments
Post a Comment
Do you have an opinion? Feel free to comment.