2016 SportsCar Grand Prix

The 2016 Mobil 1 SportsCar Grand Prix was a sports car race sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) held at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park near Bowmanville, Ontario on July 10, 2016.[1] The race was the seventh round of the 2016 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and the event marked the 31st IMSA sanctioned sports car race held at the facility.

Canadian Tire Motorsport Park

Background edit

 
Canadian Tire Motorsports Park, where the race was held.

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.[2] It was the third consecutive year the event was held as part of the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, thirty-fifth annual running of the race.[2] The 1 Mobil 1 SportsCar Grand Prix was the second of seventh scheduled automobile endurance races of 2016 by IMSA, and was the fourth round not held on the held as part of the North American Endurance Cup.[2] The race was held at the ten-turn 2.459 mi (3.957 km) Canadian Tire Motorsports Park in Bowmanville, Ontario, Canada on July 10, 2016.[2] For 2016, the WeatherTech Championship race featured all four classes, Prototype (P), Prototype Challenge (PC), GT Le Mans (GTLM) and the GT Daytona (GTD) for the first time since the 2013 edition of the Grand Prix.[3] The weekend also included races for the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge, Mazda Prototype Lites, the Global MX-5 Cup and the Nissan Micra Cup.[4]

Practice edit

There were three practice sessions preceding the start of the race on Sunday: two on Friday and one on Saturday. The first two one-hour sessions were on Friday morning and afternoon while the third session on Saturday morning lasted one hour.[5]

The first practice session was held in damp weather.[6] Jordan Taylor set the fastest lap in the No. 10 WTR Corvette DP at 1 minute, 11.158 seconds, 0.985 seconds faster than Tristan Nunez's No. 55 Mazda. Ryan Dalziel in VFR's No. 90 vehicle was third, and Oswaldo Negri Jr.'s No. 60 MSR ligier was fourth.[7] The seven-vehicle PC class was led by PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports's No. 52 car, driven by Tom Kimber-Smith with a time of 1 minute, 13.154 seconds.[6][7] The two Corvette Racing team cars of Oliver Gavin (No. 4) and Antonio García (No. 3) led GTLM. Andy Lally's No. 44 Magnus Audi R8 recorded the fastest time in GTD.[7]

Rain continued to affect the track in the second practice session. Jordan Taylor was fastest with a time of 1 minute, 11.206 seconds, followed by the AER cars of Fittipaldi and Cameron in second and third.[8] A 1:12.131 lap saw Renger van der Zande's No. 8 Starworks vehicle lead PC.[9] Bill Auberlen led GTLM in the No. 25 BMW with a 1-minute, 15.961 lap. Tommy Milner's No. 4 Corvette was second. Müller in the No. 66 CGR Ford GT was third in GTLM.[8] Lally's No. 44 Magnus Audi R8 led GTD, and Spencer Pumpelly, in the No.16 Change Racing Lamborghini, was second in class.[9]

The final practice was held on a dry race track which allowed for faster lap times.[10] Negri's MSR Ligier set the fastest overall lap of 1:10.522, 0.002 seconds faster than Bomarito's No. 55 Mazda.[11][10] van der Zande led the PC class with a 1 minute, 11.884 second lap in Starworks' No. 8 car.[11] Corvette Racing paced GTLM with García's No. 3 car lapping 1:15.233, ahead of the two BMW M6 GTLMs.[11] With a 1:17.888 lap, David led the GTD class in the No. 6 Stevenson Audi R8.[11]

Qualifying edit

In Saturday afternoon's 90-minute four-group qualifying, each category had separate 15-minute sessions. Regulations stipulated that teams nominate one qualifying driver, with the fastest laps determining each class' starting order. IMSA arranged the grid to put Prototypes ahead of the PC, GTLM and GTD cars.[12][5]

Qualifying results edit

Pole positions in each class are indicated in bold and by ‡. P stands for Prototype, PC (Prototype Challenge), GTLM (Grand Touring Le Mans) and GTD (Grand Touring Daytona).

Pos. Class No. Team Driver Time Gap Grid
1 P 55   Mazda Motorsports   Tristan Nunez 1:10.126 _ 1 ‡
2 P 10   Wayne Taylor Racing   Ricky Taylor 1:10.435 +0.309 2
3 P 70   Mazda Motorsports   Tom Long 1:10.572 +0.446 3
4 P 5   Action Express Racing   Christian Fittipaldi 1:10.761 +0.635 4
5 P 31   Action Express Racing   Eric Curran 1:11.177 +1.051 5
6 P 90   VisitFlorida Racing   Marc Goossens 1:11.296 +1.170 6
7 P 60   Michael Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian   John Pew 1:11.760 +1.634 7
8 PC 54   CORE Autosport   Colin Braun 1:11.946 +1.820 151
9 PC 38   Performance Tech Motorsports   James French 1:12.372 +2.246 8‡
10 PC 85   JDC-Miller MotorSports   Stephen Simpson 1:12.448 +2.322 9
11 PC 20   BAR1 Motorsports   Matt McMurry 1:12.471 +2.345 10
12 PC 52   PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports   Robert Alon 1:12.505 +2.379 111
13 PC 8   Starworks Motorsport   Alex Popow 1:13.197 +3.071 12
14 P 0   Panoz DeltaWing Racing   Katherine Legge 1:14.077 +3.951 13
15 PC 88   Starworks Motorsport   Mark Kvamme 1:15.020 +4.894 14
16 GTLM 3   Corvette Racing   Antonio García 1:15.198 +5.072 16‡
17 GTLM 66   Ford Chip Ganassi Racing   Dirk Müller 1:15.236 +5.110 17
18 GTLM 67   Ford Chip Ganassi Racing   Richard Westbrook 1:15.430 +5.304 18
19 GTLM 100   BMW Team RLL   Lucas Luhr 1:15.446 +5.320 19
20 GTLM 25   BMW Team RLL   Bill Auberlen 1:15.501 +5.375 20
21 GTLM 4   Corvette Racing   Oliver Gavin 1:15.549 +5.423 21
22 GTLM 62   Risi Competizione   Giancarlo Fisichella 1:15.780 +5.654 22
23 GTLM 912   Porsche North America   Earl Bamber 1:16.230 +6.104 23
24 GTLM 911   Porsche North America   Nick Tandy 1:16.476 +6.350 24
25 GTD 23   Team Seattle/Alex Job Racing   Alex Riberas 1:18.245 +8.119 25‡
26 GTD 6   Stevenson Motorsports   Andrew Davis 1:18.582 +8.456 26
27 GTD 16   Change Racing   Spencer Pumpelly 1:18.672 +8.546 27
28 GTD 96   Turner Motorsport   Bret Curtis 1:18.673 +8.547 28
29 GTD 73   Park Place Motorsports   Patrick Lindsey 1:18.745 +8.619 29
30 GTD 9   Stevenson Motorsports   Matt Bell 1:18.832 +8.706 30
31 GTD 27   Dream Racing   Cédric Sbirrazzuoli 1:19.000 +8.874 31
32 GTD 33   Riley Motorsports   Ben Keating 1:19.132 +9.006 32
33 GTD 48   Paul Miller Racing   Madison Snow 1:19.151 +9.025 33
34 GTD 63   Scuderia Corsa   Christina Nielsen 1:19.332 +9.206 34
35 GTD 97   Turner Motorsport   Michael Marsal 1:20.070 +9.944 35
36 GTD 44   Magnus Racing   John Potter 1:20.197 +10.071 362
37 GTD 22   Alex Job Racing   Cooper MacNeil 1:20.269 +10.143 37
Sources:[13][14]
  • 1 The No. 54 CORE Autosport entry was moved to the back of the PC field as per Article 43.1 of the Sporting regulations (Change of starting driver).[12]
  • 2 The No. 44 Magnus Racing entry was moved to the back of the GTD field as per Article 40.1.5 of the Sporting regulations (Change of starting tires).[12]

Report edit

Race summary edit

The race was won overall by Eric Curran and Dane Cameron, driving a Chevrolet Corvette DP for Action Express Racing. They finished ahead of the Action Express Racing sister car of João Barbosa and Christian Fittipaldi, while the podium was completed by Ricky and Jordan Taylor of Wayne Taylor Racing. In sixth place overall, CORE Autosport won the Prototype Challenge class with drivers Jon Bennett and Colin Braun, while the GT Le Mans honors were taken by Ford Chip Ganassi Racing drivers Ryan Briscoe and Richard Westbrook in the Ford GT in fourteenth place overall. The GT Daytona class was won by Bret Curtis and Jens Klingmann in the Turner Motorsport BMW M6 GT3.[15][16][17][18][19][20][21]

Race results edit

Class winners are denoted in bold and ‡.

Final race classification
Pos Class No. Team Drivers Chassis Tire Laps Time/Retired
Engine
1 P 31   Action Express Racing   Eric Curran

  Dane Cameron

Corvette Daytona Prototype C 125 2:41:22.601‡
Chevrolet 5.5 L V8
2 P 5   Action Express Racing   João Barbosa
  Christian Fittipaldi
Corvette Daytona Prototype C 125 +10.112
Chevrolet 5.5 L V8
3 P 10   Wayne Taylor Racing   Jordan Taylor
  Ricky Taylor
Corvette Daytona Prototype C 125 +18.124
Chevrolet 5.5 L V8
4 P 90   VisitFlorida Racing   Marc Goossens
  Ryan Dalziel
Corvette Daytona Prototype C 125 +32.183
Chevrolet 5.5 L V8
5 P 70   Mazda Motorsports   Tom Long
  Joel Miller
Mazda Prototype C 125 +42.575
Mazda MZ-2.0T 2.0 L I4 Turbo
6 PC 54   CORE Autosport   Jon Bennett
  Colin Braun
Oreca FLM09 C 123 +2 Laps‡
Chevrolet 6.2 L V8
7 PC 8   Starworks Motorsport   Alex Popow
  Renger van der Zande
Oreca FLM09 C 123 +2 Laps
Chevrolet 6.2 L V8
8 PC 52   PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports   Robert Alon
  Tom Kimber-Smith
Oreca FLM09 C 123 +2 Laps
Chevrolet 6.2 L V8
9 PC 38   Performance Tech Motorsports   James French
  Kyle Marcelli
Oreca FLM09 C 123 +2 Laps
Chevrolet 6.2 L V8
10 PC 85   JDC-Miller MotorSports   Misha Goikhberg
  Stephen Simpson
Oreca FLM09 C 122 +3 Laps
Chevrolet 6.2 L V8
11 P 60   Michael Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian   John Pew
  Oswaldo Negri Jr.
Ligier JS P2 C 122 +3 Laps
Honda HR35TT 3.5 Turbo V6
12 PC 20   BAR1 Motorsports   Matt McMurry
  Johnny Mowlem
Oreca FLM09 C 122 +3 Laps
Chevrolet 6.2 L V8
13 P 0   Panoz DeltaWing Racing   Katherine Legge
  Sean Rayhall
DeltaWing DWC13 C 121 +4 Laps
Élan (Mazda) 1.9 L I4 Turbo
14 GTLM 67   Ford Chip Ganassi Racing   Ryan Briscoe
  Richard Westbrook
Ford GT M 119 +6 Laps‡
Ford EcoBoost 3.5 L Twin-turbo V6
15 GTLM 4   Corvette Racing   Oliver Gavin
  Tommy Milner
Chevrolet Corvette C7.R M 119 +6 Laps
Chevrolet LT5.5 5.5 L V8
16 PC 88   Starworks Motorsport   Mark Kvamme
  Richard Bradley
Oreca FLM09 C 119 +6 Laps
Chevrolet 6.2 L V8
17 GTLM 3   Corvette Racing   Antonio García
  Jan Magnussen
Chevrolet Corvette C7.R M 119 +6 Laps
Chevrolet LT5.5 5.5 L V8
18 GTLM 25   BMW Team RLL   Bill Auberlen
  Dirk Werner
BMW M6 GTLM M 119 +6 Laps
BMW 4.4 L Turbo V8
19 GTLM 66   Ford Chip Ganassi Racing   Dirk Müller
  Joey Hand
Ford GT M 119 +6 Laps
Ford EcoBoost 3.5 L Twin-turbo V6
20 GTLM 912   Porsche North America   Earl Bamber
  Frédéric Makowiecki
Porsche 911 RSR M 119 +6 Laps
Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
21 GTLM 62   Risi Competizione   Toni Vilander
  Giancarlo Fisichella
Ferrari 488 GTE M 119 +6 Laps
Ferrari F154CB 3.9 L Turbo V8
22 GTLM 911   Porsche North America   Patrick Pilet
  Nick Tandy
Porsche 911 RSR M 119 +6 Laps
Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
23 GTD 96   Turner Motorsport   Bret Curtis
  Jens Klingmann
BMW M6 GT3 C 116 +9 Laps‡
BMW 4.4 L Turbo V8
24 GTD 6   Stevenson Motorsports   Andrew Davis
  Robin Liddell
Audi R8 LMS C 116 +9 Laps
Audi 5.2L V10
25 GTD 48   Paul Miller Racing   Bryan Sellers
  Madison Snow
Lamborghini Huracán GT3 C 116 +9 Laps
Lamborghini 5.2 L V10
26 GTD 63   Scuderia Corsa   Christina Nielsen
  Alessandro Balzan
Ferrari 488 GT3 C 116 +9 Laps
Ferrari F154CB 3.9 L Turbo V8
27 GTD 16   Change Racing   Corey Lewis
  Spencer Pumpelly
Lamborghini Huracán GT3 C 116 +9 Laps
Lamborghini 5.2 L V10
28 GTD 73   Park Place Motorsports   Jörg Bergmeister
  Patrick Lindsey
Porsche 911 GT3 R C 116 +9 Laps
Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
29 GTD 22   Alex Job Racing   Cooper MacNeil
  Leh Keen
Porsche 911 GT3 R C 115 +10 Laps
Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
30 GTD 27   Dream Racing   Cédric Sbirrazzuoli
  Fabio Babini
Lamborghini Huracán GT3 C 115 +10 Laps
Lamborghini 5.2 L V10
31 GTD 9   Stevenson Motorsports   Lawson Aschenbach
  Matt Bell
Audi R8 LMS C 114 +11 Laps
Audi 5.2L V10
32

DNF

GTD 44   Magnus Racing   John Potter
  Andy Lally
Audi R8 LMS C 112 Accident
Audi 5.2L V10
33 GTD 33   Riley Motorsports   Jeroen Bleekemolen
  Ben Keating
Dodge Viper GT3-R C 110 +15 Laps
Dodge 8.3L V10
34 GTLM 100   BMW Team RLL   John Edwards
  Lucas Luhr
BMW M6 GTLM M 108 +17 Laps
BMW 4.4 L Turbo V8
35 GTD 23   Team Seattle/Alex Job Racing   Mario Farnbacher
  Alex Riberas
Porsche 911 GT3 R C 106 +19 Laps
Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
36

DNF

P 55   Mazda Motorsports   Jonathan Bomarito
  Tristan Nunez
Mazda Prototype C 60 Rear hub
Mazda MZ-2.0T 2.0 L I4 Turbo
37

DNF

GTD 97   Turner Motorsport   Michael Marsal
  Markus Palttala
BMW M6 GT3 C 34 Gearbox
BMW 4.4L Turbo V8
Sources:[22][23]
Tyre manufacturers
Key
Symbol Tyre manufacturer
C Continental
M Michelin

References edit

  1. ^ "IMSA announces schedule for 2016 WeatherTech SportsCar season". Fox Sports. August 8, 2015. Retrieved June 23, 2016.
  2. ^ a b c d Pruett, Marshall (August 8, 2015). "IMSA: 2016 schedule revealed". Racer. Archived from the original on January 1, 2020. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
  3. ^ Dagys, John (August 8, 2015). "2016 WeatherTech SportsCar Schedule Released". sportscar365.com. Retrieved June 23, 2016.
  4. ^ Chalmers, Ryan (November 17, 2015). "CTMP unveils 2015 major events schedule". Inside Track Motorsport News. Retrieved June 23, 2016.
  5. ^ a b "Continental Tire Keys to the Race: CTMP". sportscar365.com. July 7, 2016. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
  6. ^ a b Pruett, Marshall (8 July 2016). "IMSA: Wayne Taylor Racing leads damp FP1". racer.com. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
  7. ^ a b c Wouters, Vincent (July 8, 2016). "WTR Corvette DP Tops Rain-Affected Practice 1 at CTMP". sportscar365.com. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
  8. ^ a b Wouters, Vincent (July 8, 2016). "Taylor Quickest on Mixed Condition Friday at CTMP". sportscar365.com. John Dagys Media. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
  9. ^ a b Pruett, Marshall (8 July 2016). "IMSA: Weather hits CTMP in FP2". racer.com. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
  10. ^ a b Wouters, Vincent (July 9, 2016). "MSR Ligier Honda Goes Fastest, Then Crashes in Practice 3". sportscar365.com. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
  11. ^ a b c d Pruett, Marshall (9 July 2016). "IMSA: Shank Ligier-Honda leads dry Canada FP3". racer.com. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
  12. ^ a b c "2016 IMSA Sporting Regulations & Series Supplementary Regulations of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship" (PDF). International Motor Sports Association. May 25, 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 5, 2016. Retrieved January 2, 2020.
  13. ^ "03_Results.PDF" (PDF). results.imsa.com. Retrieved 12 April 2023.
  14. ^ "01_Starting_Grid.PDF" (PDF). results.imsa.com. Retrieved April 12, 2023.
  15. ^ Dagys, John (July 10, 2016). "Action Express Racing takes 1-2 at Mosport". Fox Sports. Retrieved July 25, 2016.
  16. ^ DiZinno, Tony (July 10, 2016). "IMSA: Action Express Corvette DP, Ford double up again at CTMP". NBC Sports. Retrieved July 25, 2016.
  17. ^ McDonald, Norris (July 10, 2016). "Cameron, Curran win Mobil 1 SportsCar Grand Prix". The Toronto Star. Retrieved July 25, 2016.
  18. ^ "Action Express Corvettes dominate Canadian IMSA race". Autoweek. July 10, 2016. Retrieved July 25, 2016.
  19. ^ DeGroot, Nick (July 10, 2016). "Cameron, Curran earn first win of the season at CTMP". Motorsport.com. Retrieved July 25, 2016.
  20. ^ Pruett, Marshall (July 10, 2016). "IMSA: Action Express, Ford rule in Canada". Racer.com. Archived from the original on July 13, 2016. Retrieved July 25, 2016.
  21. ^ Cole Smith, Steven (July 11, 2016). "Action Express Racing Corvette DP wins at CTMP". Inside Track Motorsport News. Retrieved July 25, 2016.
  22. ^ "03_Results.PDF" (PDF). results.imsa.com. Retrieved July 10, 2023.
  23. ^ "2016_Mobil_1_Sportscar_Grand_Prix/TU/". racing-reference.info. Retrieved July 10, 2023.

External links edit

IMSA SportsCar Championship
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6 Hours of Watkins Glen
2016 season Next race:
Northeast Grand Prix