Motorsport Week previews the seventh round of the 2023 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship solely featuring Grand Touring Daytona cars at Lime Rock Park.
Lime Rock Park in Lakeville, Connecticut is the shortest circuit on the IMSA calendar, yet this 2 hour and 40 minute sprint affair is expected to deliver a thrilling spectacle.
There are 20 entries for this year’s edition divided into 5 GTD-Pro entries, and 15 GTDs.
Without the prototype classes, this round gives the opportunity for a returning spotlight on GTDs and the underrated racing thrills they put on show.
A look at the Sprint Cup leaders
The #1 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 (PMR) is the leader of the standings after winning the previous round at the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, followed previously by a runner-up result at the 6 Hours of The Glen.
Currently, they are on a roll as duo Brian Sellers and Madison Snow lead on 998 points in the Sprint Cup standings.
The #27 Heart of Racing duo Roman de Angelis and two-time WEC GT Champion Marco Sorensen are behind in second on 932 points.
PMR are contenders for scoring their fourth victory this season not just by their form so far, but as GTD winners from last year’s race.
Their win at the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park was clear and straightforward, with Snow taking the class lead early in the race and Sellers driving the final stint to the finishing line unchallenged.
However, the short and demanding curves of Lime Rock Park make it challenging to escape away from the GTD field, especially with five more GTDs than last year.
More about last year’s GTD winners
Regarding PMR’s efforts last year, it was an intense race which carried right to the final corner as the #57 Winward Racing Mercedes AMG-GT3 suffered a fuel pump failure and fell down to fifth.
Unsurprisingly, the #27 Heart of Racing duo finished second and have another chance this year to secure a victory.
The #57 struggled in qualifying as Russell Ward managed 11th on the overall grid, which was moved up after the #25 BMW Team RLL M4 GT3 was pushed to the back for a ride height infringement.
Ward was four-tenths away from the pole-sitter, which implies how close the qualifying session will be as drivers will find any improvement just to start a position or two higher.
This sprint race certainly puts emphasis on consistent lap times throughout the race, and unless a caution period is thrown, a team’s efforts to stay within winning contention can fall away if reliability woes take place.
Given the demands of the circuit which narrows up at certain parts, the risk of crashing on the account of a driver error, or contact with another car, remains higher this year with more cars on the grid.
A second time at Lime Rock for GTD Pro
GTD Pro debuted at the circuit last year, the 2022 edition representing a key moment as it was 50 years since the first IMSA-sanctioned event at Lime Rock.
Just over three-tenths of a second covered the entire five class-entries in last year’s qualifying. Matt Campbell took pole position with a fastest time of 51.079 in his #9 Pfaff Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3.R.
This year, the #9 Pfaff Motorsports Porsche will be driven by a different line-up. Klaus Bachler and works driver Patrick Pilet have three podiums and a 12 Hours of Sebring win under their name so far this year.
Furthermore, it will be the first time at Lime Rock for the newer 992 model, so expectations are up in the air in GTD Pro as to how it compares to its predecessor.
BMW is not represented in the Pro category, with the #79 WeatherTech Racing Mercedes AMG-GT3 looking to shine in the hands of Dani Juncadella and Jules Gounon, both of whom have valuable experience in the three-pointed star machine.
Redemption on the sights of Corvette Racing
Besides the mechanical retirement of two BMW M4 GT3s last year, a name which will be seeking redemption from last year will be the #3 Corvette Racing C8.R GT3, fronted once again by regulars Antonio Garcia and Jordan Taylor.
It was a challenging race for them after suffering side-to-side contact with the #97 WeatherTech Racing Mercedes shortly after Garcia took over the wheel.
The team were forced to repair the rear suspension, hampering their efforts and finishing five laps down in last place.
This case demonstrates the high stakes the IMSA Lime Rock Park event offers, as there can be no room to suffer performance-impacting damage, which gives little opportunity to spend time repairing in the pits whilst the gap to the leaders becomes too far to reach.
Lime Rock debut for Inception Racing’s McLaren
At the previous round, the #70 McLaren 720S GT3 Evo scored a second-place finish by drivers Brendan Iribe and Frederik Schandorff.
It was their second 2023 podium after a third-placed finish at the Rolex 24 at Daytona opening race.
Within the larger GTD field, their McLaren is amongst eight manufacturers who will be competing for the win at a circuit yet to be driven at for the McLaren package.
The #70 are third in the Sprint Cup Championship, so are eyeing out another podium spot as the season enters the latter half.
Irbe and Schandorff have demonstrated strong pace this season as they have been able to stay within the vicinity of the top five of GTD, and are one to watch as their challenges with qualifying could be overshadowed by asserting good race pace and strategy.
The race is set to take place this Saturday 22 July from 12pm Eastern Time.
