Wikipedia

2018 IMSA Michelin Encore

The 2018 IMSA Michelin SportsCar Encore was the inaugural edition of the non-championship sports car race held at Sebring International Raceway on 9 November 2018. The race was contested with LMP3 cars, GT4-spec cars and TCR-touring car. The event was organized by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA).[3]

Race details
Date 11 November 2018[1]
Official name IMSA Michelin SportsCar Encore
Location Sebring, Florida, United States
Course Permanent circuit
6.02 km (3.74 mi)
Distance Main Race
4 Hours[2]
LMP3
Pole
Drivers United Kingdom Matthew Bell
Netherlands Kay Van Berlo
United States James McGuire Jr. 		K2R Motorsports
Time 1:57.102
Podium
First Canada Roman De Angelis
United States Kyle Kirkwood		 ANSA Motorsports
Second United Kingdom Matthew Bell
Netherlands Kay Van Berlo
United States James McGuire Jr.		 K2R Motorsports
Third United States David Grant
United States Keith Grant
United Kingdom Katherine Legge		 Polestar Motor Racing Inc.
GS
Pole
Drivers Canada Kyle Marcelli
United States Dean Martin
United States Nate Stacy 		KohR Motorsports
Time 2:11.352
Podium
First Canada Kyle Marcelli
United States Dean Martin
United States Nate Stacy		 KohR Motorsports
Second United States Jason Bell
United States Andy Lally
United States James Sofronas		 GMG Racing
Third United States DJ Randall
United States Rod Randall
Canada Kenny Wilden		 KohR Motorsports
TCR
Pole
Drivers Canada Marco Cirone
Canada Remo Ruscitti 		Mark Motors Racing
Time 2:14.426
Podium
First Canada Marco Cirone
Canada Remo Ruscitti		 Mark Motors Racing
Second United States Michael Johnson
South Africa Stephen Simpson		 JDC-Miller Motorsports
Third United States Luke Rumburg
United States Tanner Rumburg		 Rumcastle, LLC

The race was won by Roman De Angelis and Kyle Kirkwood, driving a Ligier JS P3 entered by ANSA Motorsports. Kirkwood and teammate Dakota Dickerson signed up at the last minute, given the opportunity by Onroak Automotive North America as a reward for respectively winning the F3 Americas Championship and Formula 4 United States Championship. The event marked Kirkwood's sports car debut.[4]

Report edit

The race was held as a standalone event, open to Pro-Am teams and drivers regardless of whether they had participated in any IMSA sanctioned events in 2018. Continental would not be providing tyres for the 2019 IMSA SportsCar Championship, leaving Michelin as the sole supplier going forward. For this event, Michelin tyres were mandated to give teams the opportunity to sample them.[5][6]

Pole position went to the #26 K2R Ligier, qualified by Kay van Berlo in his first race in the United States, from the #13 ANSA Ligier of Roman De Angelis. Van Berlo pulled away from De Angelis in the early phase of the race. The first round of pit stops started on lap 24. Van Berlo extended his stint, but the caution came out on lap 28 when Dean Baker touched the kerb with the underbody of his #4 ANSA Ligier. The cars that had stayed out were forced to pit under yellow and lined up at the tail end of the field. To add insult to injury, the #26 car was caught speeding on pit road and its second driver James McGuire was forced to take a drive-through penalty.

The #2 ANSA Ligier retired with engine issues on lap 51, leading to the race's third caution period. The #13 car had only just pitted and De Angelis inherited the lead as the other cars pitted under yellow. Lance Willsey lost control of his #33 ESM Ligier while warming his tyres and stalled his car on the grass, which brought his race to an end.

The #19 Performance Tech Ligier stopped at the end of pit lane on lap 60. The #25 P1 Ligier suffered a heavy crash on lap 87 when Kenton Koch lost the rear on entry to Turn 3. Koch escaped unharmed. All cars had already made their final pit stop, so the ensuing caution served to compress the field ahead of a 26-minute sprint finish.

At the final restart, the #13 car of De Angelis led from the #26 of Matthew Bell. Bell kept within two seconds of De Angelis but was unable to make an overtake, and the victory went to De Angelis and Kyle Kirkwood. The #11 car of Nico Rondet and the #40 car of Katherine Legge battled hard for the final step on the podium until, with four minutes to go, Rondet hit the back of Legge's car at Turn 15 and span.

The only non-Ligier LMP3 car in the field was the ADESS-03, the car making its racing debut at the event in the hands of the Atlantic Racing Team. Mechanical issues forced it into the pits after roughly 30 minutes of racing. After an extended repair period, the team were able to get the car out on track again just before the halfway point of the race. They used the remainder of the event as a test session and reached the finish albeit 33 laps down.

The GT4 class was controlled by the #60 and #59 KohR Ford Mustangs, the two cars holding first and second from the #22 GMG Audi R8. The Audi managed to take second place by the end of the race, but victory went to the #60 Ford of Nate Stacy, Kyle Marcelli and Dean Martin.

The TCR class became a battle between the two Audi RS3s after the #31 Rumcastle Volkswagen Golf lost two laps in the pits with a rear wing replacement. The #82 Mark Motors Audi led the class for most of the race but the #54 JDC-Miller Audi was ahead at the final restart. The #82 retook the lead with a lap and a half remaining, but the #54 car ran out of fuel anyway on the final lap. In the end, the all-Canadian entry driven by Marco Cirone and Remo Ruscitti were able to cruise to victory.[7][8][9]

The Encore proved popular, and was renewed for a second edition in 2019.[10]

Classes edit

  • Le Mans Prototype 3 (LMP3)
  • Grand Sport (GS) (run to GT4 regulations)
  • Touring Car (TCR) (run to TCR regulations)

Entry List edit

LMP3 edit

Team Car Engine No. Drivers
  ANSA Motorsports[11] Ligier JS P3 Nissan VK50VE 5.0L V8 2   Jon Brownson[11]
  Dakota Dickerson[11]
  Neil Alberico
4   Dean Baker[11]
  Michal Chlumecky[11]
  Zacharie Robichon[11]
13   Roman De Angelis[11]
  Kyle Kirkwood[11]
  Atlantic Racing Team[11] ADESS-03 Nissan VK50VE 5.0L V8 6   Jim Antunes[11]
  Tazio Ottis[11]
  Robin Shute
  Simraceway Motorsports[11] Ligier JS P3 Nissan VK50VE 5.0L V8 11   Nico Rondet[11]
  Maurice Smith[11]
  John Schauerman
  Performance Tech Motorsports[11] Ligier JS P3 Nissan VK50VE 5.0L V8 19   Bradley Baker[11]
  Jan Heylen[11]
  Bruno Junqueira[11]
  P1 Motorsports[11] Ligier JS P3 Nissan VK50VE 5.0L V8 25   Joel Janco[11]
  Jonatan Jorge[11]
  Kenton Koch[11]
  K2R Motorsports[11] Ligier JS P3 Nissan VK50VE 5.0L V8 26   Matthew Bell[11]
  James McGuire Jr[11]
  Kay van Berlo
64   Alex Barron[11]
  Naveen Rao[11]
  Extreme Speed Motorsports[11] Ligier JS P3 Nissan VK50VE 5.0L V8 33   Max Hanratty[11]
  Lance Willsey[11]
  Polestar Motor Racing Inc.[11] Ligier JS P3 Nissan VK50VE 5.0L V8 40   David Grant[11]
  Keith Grant[11]
  Katherine Legge[11]
  JDC-Miller Motorsports[12] Ligier JS P3 Nissan VK50VE 5.0L V8 84   Guy Cosmo[12]
  Patrick Byrne[12]

Grand Sport edit

Team Car Engine No. Drivers
  GMG Racing[12] Audi R8 LMS GT4 Audi 5.2 L V10 22   Jason Bell[12]
  James Sofronas[12]
  Andy Lally
  KohR Motorsports[11] Ford Mustang GT4 Ford 5.0 L Coyote V8 59   Rod Randall[11]
  Kenny Wilden[11]
  DJ Randall
60   Kyle Marcelli[11]
  Dean Martin[11]
  Nate Stacy[11]
  NOLAsport[13] Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport MR Porsche 3.8 L Flat-6 72   Jason Hart[13]
  Matt Travis[13]
  Mike Vess[13]
  Carbahn Motorsports[11] Audi R8 LMS GT4 Audi 5.2 L V10 93   Sameer Gandhi[11]
  Mark Siegal[11]
  Jeff Westphal[11]

Touring Car edit

Team Car Engine No. Drivers
  Rumcastle, LLC[11] Volkswagen Golf GTI TCR Volkswagen 2.0 L I4 T/C 31   Luke Rumburg[11]
  Tanner Rumburg[11]
  JDC-Miller Motorsports[12] Audi RS 3 LMS TCR Audi 2.0 L TFSI 54   Michael Johnson[12]
  Stephen Simpson[12]
  Mark Motors Racing[11] Audi RS 3 LMS TCR Audi 2.0 L TFSI 82   Marco Cirone[11]
  Remo Ruscitti[11]

Race results edit

Class winners denoted in bold and with ‡

Pos Class No. Team / Entrant Drivers Chassis Laps Time/Retired
Engine
1 LMP3 13   ANSA Motorsports   Roman De Angelis
  Kyle Kirkwood 		Ligier JS P3 107 4:01:53.298‡
Nissan VK50VE 5.0L V8
2 LMP3 26   K2R Motorsports   James McGuire Jr
  Matthew Bell
  Kay van Berlo 		Ligier JS P3 107 +2.278
Nissan VK50VE 5.0L V8
3 LMP3 40   Polestar Motor Racing Inc.   Keith Grant
  David Grant
  Katherine Legge 		Ligier JS P3 107 +22.356
Nissan VK50VE 5.0L V8
4 LMP3 11   Simraceway Motorsports   Maurice Smith
  John Schauerman
  Nico Rondet 		Ligier JS P3 107 +46.180
Nissan VK50VE 5.0L V8
5 LMP3 64   K2R Motorsports   Naveen Rao
  Alex Barron 		Ligier JS P3 106 +1 Lap
Nissan VK50VE 5.0L V8
6 LMP3 84   JDC-Miller Motorsports   Patrick Byrne
  Guy Cosmo 		Ligier JS P3 106 +1 Lap
Nissan VK50VE 5.0L V8
7 GT4 60   KohR Motorsports   Nate Stacy
  Kyle Marcelli
  Dean Martin 		Ford Mustang GT4 99 +8 Laps‡
Ford 5.0 L Coyote V8
8 GT4 22   GMG Racing   Jason Bell
  James Sofronas
  Andy Lally 		Audi R8 LMS GT4 99 +8 Laps
Audi 5.2 L V10
9 TCR 82   Mark Motors Racing   Marco Cirone
  Remo Ruscitti 		Audi RS 3 LMS TCR 99 +8 Laps‡
Audi 2.0 L TFSI
10
DNF 		TCR 54   JDC-Miller Motorsports   Michael Johnson
  Stephen Simpson 		Audi RS 3 LMS TCR 98 Out of fuel
Audi 2.0 L TFSI
11 GT4 59   KohR Motorsports   Kenny Wilden
  Rod Randall
  DJ Randall 		Ford Mustang GT4 98 +9 Laps
Ford 5.0 L Coyote V8
12 TCR 31   Rumcastle, LLC   Luke Rumburg
  Tanner Rumburg 		Volkswagen Golf GTI TCR 97 +10 Laps
Volkswagen 2.0 L I4 T/C
13
DNF 		LMP3 4   ANSA Motorsports   Dean Baker
  Zacharie Robichon
  Michal Chlumecky 		Ligier JS P3 94
Nissan VK50VE 5.0L V8
14
DNF 		LMP3 25   P1 Motorsports   Kenton Koch
  Joel Janco
  Jonatan Jorge 		Ligier JS P3 87 Accident
Nissan VK50VE 5.0L V8
15 LMP3 6   Atlantic Racing Team   Robin Shute
  Jim Antunes
  Tazio Ottis 		ADESS-03 74 +33 Laps
Nissan VK50VE 5.0L V8
16
DNF 		LMP3 33   Extreme Speed Motorsports   Lance Willsey
  Max Hanratty 		Ligier JS P3 67 Stalled
Nissan VK50VE 5.0L V8
17
DNF 		LMP3 19   Performance Tech Motorsports   Bradley Baker
  Jan Heylen
  Bruno Junqueira 		Ligier JS P3 60
Nissan VK50VE 5.0L V8
18
DNF 		LMP3 2   ANSA Motorsports   Jon Brownson
  Dakota Dickerson
  Neil Alberico 		Ligier JS P3 51 Engine
Nissan VK50VE 5.0L V8
19
DNF 		GT4 72   NOLAsport   Mike Vess
  Matt Travis
  Jason Hart 		Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport MR 30
Porsche 3.8 L Flat-6
20 GT4 93   Carbahn Motorsports   Sameer Gandhi
  Mark Siegal
  Jeff Westphal 		Audi R8 LMS GT4 95 +12 Laps
Audi 5.2 L V10
BOX SCORE

The #93 Carbhan Motorsports Audi R8 LMS GT4 was moved to the rear of its class for failing to meet the minimum required driving time.

References edit

  1. ^ "2018 Michelin IMSA SportsCar Encore". imsa.com. Archived from the original on 2 January 2022. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  2. ^ "Official Race Results" (PDF). International Motor Sports Association. 2018-11-13. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-12-09. Retrieved 2018-12-09.
  3. ^ Kilshaw, Jake (6 October 2017). "IMSA Confirms Sebring Encore Race for November 2018". sportscar365.com. Archived from the original on 10 April 2021. Retrieved 23 September 2018.
  4. ^ SCCA (8 November 2018). "Kirkwood, Dickerson set for Ligier sports car debut at Sportscar Encore". racer.com. Archived from the original on 15 January 2021. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  5. ^ IMSA Wire Service (6 November 2018). "Michelin gears up for 2019 IMSA expansion". racer.com. Archived from the original on 15 January 2021. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  6. ^ IMSA Wire Service (10 November 2018). "IMSA SportsCar Encore notebook: GMG back for first race since Daytona". racer.com. Archived from the original on 15 January 2021. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  7. ^ Volk, Stefan A. "IMSE 2018 - Michelin IMSA SportsCar Encore at Sebring". americansportscar.racing (in German). Archived from the original on 2 January 2022. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  8. ^ IMSA Wire Service (11 November 2018). "Kirkwood, De Angelis win Michelin IMSA SportsCar Encore". racer.com. Archived from the original on 15 January 2021. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  9. ^ SCCA (12 November 2018). "Kirkwood continues winning ways at IMSA SportsCar Encore". racer.com. Archived from the original on 15 January 2021. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  10. ^ IMSA Wire Service (7 January 2019). "Sebring Encore event set to return Nov. 8-10". racer.com. Archived from the original on 8 January 2019. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an ao ap aq ar as at au av aw ax Dagys, John (31 October 2018). "20 Entries for Michelin Encore; No GT3 Cars". sportscar365. John Dagys Media. Archived from the original on 8 May 2021. Retrieved 31 October 2018.
  12. ^ a b c d e f g h i Dagys, John (22 October 2018). "Preparations, Interest Building for Michelin Encore". sportscar365.com. John Dagys Media. Archived from the original on 14 May 2021. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
  13. ^ a b c d Kilshaw, Jake (26 October 2018). "NOLAsport Enters Michelin Encore With Porsche GT4". sportscar365. John Dagys Media. Archived from the original on 9 November 2020. Retrieved 26 October 2018.
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