Jump to content

2017 Monterey Grand Prix

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Track map of Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca

The 2017 Monterey Grand Prix was a sports car race sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA).The Race was held at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, California on September 24, 2017. The race was the eleventh round of the 2017 IMSA SportsCar Championship.

Background

[edit]
Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, where the race was held.

IMSA's president Scott Atherton confirmed the Monterey Grand Prix was part of the series' schedule for the 2017 IMSA SportsCar Championship at Road America's victory lane in August 2016.[1] It was the fourth consecutive year the event was held as part of the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. The 2017 Monterey Grand Prix was the eleventh of twelve scheduled sports car races of 2017 by IMSA, and was the eighth round not held on the held as part of the North American Endurance Cup.[2] The race was held at the eleven-turn 2.238 mi (3.602 km) Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey County, California on September 24, 2017.[2] After wrapping up the two "West Coast Swing" rounds also consisting of Long Beach in previous years, Laguna Seca moved to September and swapped places on the calendar with Circuit of the Americas.[1] The event also returned to a single race format after utilizing a split race format the previous year due to the field size.[3] For the first time since the 2009 running of the event, the PC class would not be competing.[4]

After the Michelin GT Challenge at VIR four weeks earlier, Jordan Taylor and Ricky Taylor led the Prototype Drivers' Championship with 258 points, ahead of João Barbosa and Christian Fittipaldi with 232 points, and Dane Cameron and Eric Curran with 227 points.[5] Antonio García and Jan Magnussen led the GTLM Drivers' Championship with 274 points, ahead of Bill Auberlen and Alexander Sims with 258 points.[5] In GTD, the Drivers' Championship was led by Alessandro Balzan and Christina Nielsen with 282 points, ahead of Jeroen Bleekemolen with 269 points. Cadillac, Chevrolet, and Mercedes-AMG were leading their respective Manufacturers' Championships, while Wayne Taylor Racing, Corvette Racing, and Scuderia Corsa each led their own Teams' Championships.[5]

On September 19, 2017, IMSA released the latest technical bulletin outlining Balance of performance for the event.[6] In P, the Nissan Onroak DPi received a reduction in turbo boost and a fuel capacity reduction of 1 liter. The Cadillac DPi-V.R received an increase in the cars minimum rear wing angle as well as a fuel restrictor reduction of 1 mm. In GTLM, the Porsche 911 RSR received a 0.6 mm larger air restrictor, 1 extra liter of fuel capacity, and a 0.5 mm larger fuel restrictor. The BMW M6 GTLM received a fuel restrictor reduction of 1 mm while the Chevrolet Corvette C7.R got a fuel restrictor increase of 0.5 mm. In GTD, the Audi R8 LMS and Acura NSX GT3 received fuel restrictor increases of 1mm and 0.5 mm, respectively. The BMW M6 GT3 and Lexus RC F GT3 received fuel capacity increases of 6 and 7 liters, respectively.

On September 20, 2017, Continental Tire announced their exit from IMSA after the 2018 season.[7] Following the announcement, IMSA announced Michelin would replace Continental Tire as their official tire supplier beginning in 2019.[8]


Entries

[edit]

A total of 33 cars took part in the event split across 4 classes. 8 cars were entered in P, 9 in GTLM, and 16 in GTD.[9] In GTD, Ben Keating returned to the #33 Riley Motorsports - Team AMG entry.[10] No changes happened in P and GTLM.

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. The third on Saturday morning lasted an hour.[11]

Practice 1

[edit]

The first practice session took place at 10:00 am PT on Friday and ended with Jordan Taylor topping the charts for VisitFlorida Racing, with a lap time of 1:18.462.[12] The GTLM class was topped by the #67 Ford Chip Ganassi Racing Ford GT of Ryan Briscoe with a time of 1:23.344.[13] Patrick Long set the fastest time in GTD.[14]

Pos. Class No. Team Driver Time Gap
1 P 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Jordan Taylor 1:18.462 _
2 P 2 Tequila Patrón ESM Ryan Dalziel 1:18.628 +0.166
3 P 90 VisitFlorida Racing Renger van der Zande 1:19.045 +0.583
Sources:[15][16]

Practice 2

[edit]

The second practice session took place at 2:50 pm PT on Friday and ended with Ryan Dalziel topping the charts for Tequila Patrón ESM, with a lap time of 1:18.026.[17] The GTLM class was topped by the #62 Risi Competizione Ferrari 488 GTE of Toni Vilander with a time of 1:22.635. Alexander Sims was second in the #25 BMW Team RLL entry and Oliver Gavin rounded out the top 3.[18] Oswaldo Negri Jr. was fastest in GTD.[17]

Pos. Class No. Team Driver Time Gap
1 P 2 Tequila Patrón ESM Ryan Dalziel 1:18.026 _
2 P 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Ricky Taylor 1:18.112 +0.086
3 P 22 Tequila Patrón ESM Pipo Derani 1:18.449 +0.423
Sources:[19][20]

Practice 3

[edit]

The third and final practice session took place at 8:00 am PT on Saturday and ended with Jordan Taylor topping the charts for Wayne Taylor Racing, with a lap time of 1:18.216.[21] The GTLM class was topped by the #66 Ford Chip Ganassi Racing Ford GT of Dirk Müller with a time of 1:22.678.[22] Bryan Sellers was fastest in GTD with a time of 1:24.711.[23]

Pos. Class No. Team Driver Time Gap
1 P 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Jordan Taylor 1:18.216 _
2 P 52 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports José Gutiérrez 1:18.285 +0.069
3 P 2 Tequila Patrón ESM Ryan Dalziel 1:18.294 +0.078
Sources:[24][25]

Qualifying

[edit]

Saturday afternoon's 65-minute three-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 then arranged the grid to put Prototypes ahead of the GTLM and GTD cars.[26][11]

The first was for cars in GTD class. Madison Snow qualified on pole for the class driving the #48 car for Paul Miller Racing, besting Daniel Morad in the Alegra Motorsports entry.[27]

The second session of qualifying was for cars in the GTLM class. Toni Vilander qualified on pole driving the #62 car for Risi Competizione, beating Dirk Müller in the #66 entry Ford Chip Ganassi Racing by over two tenths of a second.[28]

The final session of qualifying was for the P class. Ricky Taylor qualified on pole driving the #10 car for Wayne Taylor Racing, beating Christian Fittipaldi in the #5 entry from Mustang Sampling Racing.[29]

Qualifying results

[edit]

Pole positions in each class are indicated in bold and by ‡.

Pos. Class No. Team Driver Time Gap Grid
1 P 10 United States Wayne Taylor Racing United States Ricky Taylor 1:16.853 _ 1‡
2 P 5 United States Mustang Sampling Racing Brazil Christian Fittipaldi 1:17.682 +0.829 2
3 P 90 United States VisitFlorida Racing Belgium Marc Goossens 1:17.730 +0.877 3
4 P 31 United States Whelen Engineering Racing United States Eric Curran 1:17.809 +0.956 4
5 P 52 United States PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports Mexico José Gutiérrez 1:17.822 +0.969 5
6 P 2 United States Tequila Patrón ESM United States Scott Sharp 1:17.998 +1.145 6
7 P 22 United States Tequila Patrón ESM United States Johannes van Overbeek 1:18.039 +1.186 7
8 P 85 United States JDC-Miller MotorSports Canada Mikhail Goikhberg 1:18.646 +1.793 8
9 GTLM 62 United States Risi Competizione Finland Toni Vilander 1:21.914 +5.061 9‡
10 GTLM 66 United States Ford Chip Ganassi Racing Germany Dirk Müller 1:22.156 +5.303 10
11 GTLM 24 United States BMW Team RLL United States John Edwards 1:22.177 +5.324 11
12 GTLM 25 United States BMW Team RLL United Kingdom Alexander Sims 1:22.178 +5.325 12
13 GTLM 67 United States Ford Chip Ganassi Racing Australia Ryan Briscoe 1:22.580 +5.727 13
14 GTLM 911 United States Porsche GT Team France Patrick Pilet 1:22.756 +5.903 14
15 GTLM 3 United States Corvette Racing Denmark Jan Magnussen 1:22.789 +5.936 15
16 GTLM 912 United States Porsche GT Team Belgium Laurens Vanthoor 1:22.840 +5.987 16
17 GTLM 4 United States Corvette Racing United Kingdom Oliver Gavin 1:23.009 +6.156 17
18 GTD 48 United States Paul Miller Racing United States Madison Snow 1:24.469 +7.616 18‡
19 GTD 28 United States Alegra Motorsports Canada Daniel Morad 1:24.721 +7.868 19
20 GTD 73 United States Park Place Motorsports United States Patrick Lindsey 1:24.954 +8.101 20
21 GTD 96 United States Turner Motorsport Germany Jens Klingmann 1:25.086 +8.233 21
22 GTD 14 United States 3GT Racing United States Sage Karam 1:25.394 +8.541 22
23 GTD 16 United States Change Racing United States Corey Lewis 1:25.499 +8.646 23
24 GTD 86 United States Michael Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian Brazil Oswaldo Negri Jr. 1:25.518 +8.665 24
25 GTD 15 United States 3GT Racing United States Scott Pruett 1:25.533 +8.680 25
26 GTD 63 United States Scuderia Corsa Denmark Christina Nielsen 1:25.603 +8.750 26
27 GTD 50 United States Riley Motorsports - WeatherTech Racing United States Cooper MacNeil 1:25.643 +8.790 27
28 GTD 93 United States Michael Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian United Kingdom Katherine Legge 1:25.800 +8.947 28
29 GTD 57 United States Stevenson Motorsports United States Andrew Davis 1:25.832 +8.979 29
30 GTD 33 United States Riley Motorsports - Team AMG United States Ben Keating 1:26.260 +9.407 30
31 GTD 54 United States CORE Autosport United States Jon Bennett 1:27.304 +10.541 31
32 GTD 80 United States Lone Star Racing United States Dan Knox 1:27.325 +10.472 32
33 GTD 75 United States SunEnergy1 Racing Australia Kenny Habul 1:27.447 +10.594 331
Sources:[30][31]
  • 1 The No. 75 SunEnergy1 Racing entry was moved to the back of the GTD field as per Article 43.6 of the Sporting regulations (Change of starting tires).[26]

Race

[edit]

Post-race

[edit]

The result kept Jordan Taylor and Ricky Taylor atop the Prototype Drivers' Championship with 288 points, 29 points ahead of second-place finishers Cameron and Curran. Barbosa and Fittipaldi dropped from second to third in the standings.[32] In the GTLM Drivers' Championship, Briscoe and Westbrook advanced from fourth to second. Hand and Müller dropped from third to fourth.[32] As a result of winning the race, Balzan and Nielsen extended their points lead to twenty-six points ahead of Bleekemolen in the GTD Drivers' Championship. Lally and Legge advanced from seventh to fourth while Aschenbach and Davis dropped from fourth to sixth.[32] Cadillac and Chevrolet continued to top their respective Manufacturers' Championships. Ferrari took the lead of the GTD Manufactures' Championship while Wayne Taylor Racing, Corvette Racing, and Scuderia Corsa kept their respective advantages in the Teams' Championships with one round left in the season.[32]

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 90 United States VisitFlorida Racing Belgium Marc Goossens
Netherlands Renger van der Zande
Ligier JS P217 C 114 2:41.04.538‡
Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8
2 P 31 United States Whelen Engineering Racing United States Dane Cameron
United States Eric Curran
Cadillac DPi-V.R C 114 +2.248
Cadillac 6.2 L V8
3 P 10 United States Wayne Taylor Racing United States Ricky Taylor
United States Jordan Taylor
Cadillac DPi-V.R C 114 +8.391
Cadillac 6.2 L V8
4 P 85 United States JDC-Miller MotorSports Canada Mikhail Goikhberg
South Africa Stephen Simpson
Oreca 07 C 114 +9.321
Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8
5 P 5 United States Mustang Sampling Racing Portugal João Barbosa
Brazil Christian Fittipaldi
Cadillac DPi-V.R C 114 +10.411
Cadillac 6.2 L V8
6 P 2 United States Tequila Patrón ESM United States Scott Sharp


United Kingdom Ryan Dalziel

Nissan Onroak DPi C 114 +21.241
Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Turbo V6
7 P 52 United States PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports France Olivier Pla
Mexico José Gutiérrez
Ligier JS P217 C 114 +52.076
Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8
8 P 22 United States Tequila Patrón ESM United States Johannes van Overbeek
Brazil Pipo Derani
Nissan Onroak DPi C 113 +1 lap
Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Turbo V6
9 GTLM 24 United States BMW Team RLL United States John Edwards
Germany Martin Tomczyk
BMW M6 GTLM M 110 +4 Laps‡
BMW 4.4 L Turbo V8
10 GTLM 62 United States Risi Competizione Finland Toni Vilander
Italy Giancarlo Fisichella
Ferrari 488 GTE M 110 +4 Laps
Ferrari F154CB 3.9 L Turbo V8
11 GTLM 911 United States Porsche GT Team France Patrick Pilet
Germany Dirk Werner
Porsche 911 RSR M 110 +4 Laps
Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
12 GTLM 3 United States Corvette Racing Denmark Jan Magnussen
Spain Antonio García
Chevrolet Corvette C7.R M 110 +4 Laps
Chevrolet LT5.5 5.5 L V8
13 GTLM 67 United States Ford Chip Ganassi Racing Australia Ryan Briscoe
United Kingdom Richard Westbrook
Ford GT M 110 +4 Laps
Ford EcoBoost 3.5 L Twin-turbo V6
14 GTLM 66 United States Ford Chip Ganassi Racing Germany Dirk Müller
United States Joey Hand
Ford GT M 110 +4 Laps
Ford EcoBoost 3.5 L Twin-turbo V6
15 GTLM 25 United States BMW Team RLL United States Bill Auberlen
United Kingdom Alexander Sims
BMW M6 GTLM M 108 +6 Laps
BMW 4.4 L Turbo V8
16 GTLM 4 United States Corvette Racing United Kingdom Oliver Gavin
United States Tommy Milner
Chevrolet Corvette C7.R M 107 +7 Laps
Chevrolet LT5.5 5.5 L V8
17 GTLM 912 United States Porsche GT Team Italy Gianmaria Bruni
Belgium Laurens Vanthoor
Porsche 911 RSR M 107 +7 Laps
Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
18 GTD 63 United States Scuderia Corsa Denmark Christina Nielsen
Italy Alessandro Balzan
Ferrari 488 GT3 C 107 +7 Laps‡
Ferrari F154CB 3.9 L Turbo V8
19 GTD 93 United States Michael Shank Racing with Curb Agajanian United States Andy Lally
United Kingdom Katherine Legge
Acura NSX GT3 C 107 +7 Laps
Acura 3.5 L Turbo V6
20 GTD 73 United States Park Place Motorsports Germany Jörg Bergmeister
United States Patrick Lindsey
Porsche 911 GT3 R C 107 +7 Laps
Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
21 GTD 54 United States CORE Autosport United States Jon Bennett
United States Colin Braun
Porsche 911 GT3 R C 106 +8 Laps
Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
22 GTD 96 United States Turner Motorsport Germany Jens Klingmann
Finland Jesse Krohn
BMW M6 GT3 C 108 +8 Laps
BMW 4.4L Turbo V8
23 GTD 50 United States Riley Motorsports – WeatherTech Racing United States Cooper MacNeil
United States Gunnar Jeannette
Porsche 911 GT3 R C 108 +8 Laps
Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
24 GTD 48 United States Paul Miller Racing United States Bryan Sellers
United States Madison Snow
Lamborghini Huracán GT3 C 108 +8 Laps
Lamborghini 5.2 L V10
25 GTD 33 United States Riley Motorsports – Team AMG Netherlands Jeroen Bleekemolen
United States Ben Keating
Mercedes-AMG GT3 C 108 +8 Laps
Mercedes AMG M159 6.2 L V8
26 GTD 16 United States Change Racing United States Corey Lewis
Netherlands Jeroen Mul
Lamborghini Huracán GT3 C 108 +8 Laps
Lamborghini 5.2 L V10
27 GTD 86 United States Michael Shank Racing with Curb Agajanian United States Jeff Segal
Brazil Oswaldo Negri Jr.
Acura NSX GT3 C 108 +8 Laps
Acura 3.5 L Turbo V6
28 GTD 57 United States Stevenson Motorsports United States Andrew Davis
United States Lawson Aschenbach
Audi R8 LMS C 108 +8 Laps
Audi 5.2L V10
29 GTD 75 United States SunEnergy1 Racing France Tristan Vautier
Australia Kenny Habul
Mercedes-AMG GT3 C 108 +8 Laps
Mercedes AMG M159 6.2 L V8
30 GTD 15 United States 3GT Racing United States Scott Pruett
United Kingdom Jack Hawksworth
Lexus RC F GT3 C 108 +8 Laps
Lexus 5.0L V8
31 GTD 14 United States 3GT Racing United States Robert Alon
United States Sage Karam
Lexus RC F GT3 C 105 +9 Laps
Lexus 5.0L V8
32 GTD 80 United States Lone Star Racing United States Dan Knox
United States Mike Skeen
Mercedes-AMG GT3 C 105 +9 Laps
Mercedes AMG M159 6.2 L V8
33

DNF

GTD 28 United States Alegra Motorsports United States Patrick Long
Canada Daniel Morad
Porsche 911 GT3 R C 47 Drivehsaft
Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
Sources:[33][34]
Tyre manufacturers
Key
Symbol Tyre manufacturer
C Continental
M Michelin

Standings after the race

[edit]
  • Note: Only the top five positions are included for all sets of standings.
  • Note: Only the top five positions are included for all sets of standings.
  • Note: Only the top five positions are included for all sets of standings.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b Dagys, John (August 5, 2016). "2017 WeatherTech Championship Schedule Released". sportscar365.com. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  2. ^ a b Dagys, John (November 15, 2016). "2017 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship schedule released". foxsports.com. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  3. ^ "2017 IMSA SCHEDULE REVEALED". michelinracingusa.com. August 5, 2016. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  4. ^ "IMSA: 2017 WeatherTech series calendar set". Racer. August 5, 2016. Archived from the original on August 24, 2022. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  5. ^ a b c "2017 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Point Standings: After Round 10" (PDF). IMSA. August 29, 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 July 2023. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  6. ^ Dagys, John (September 19, 2017). "Nissan DPi Slowed, Porsche Gets Break for Monterey". sportscar365.com. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  7. ^ Dagys, John (September 20, 2017). "Continental Tire to Exit IMSA at End of 2018". sportscar365.com. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  8. ^ Malsher-Lopez, David (September 20, 2017). "Michelin replaces Continental in IMSA from 2019". us.motorsport.com. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  9. ^ Dagys, John (September 13, 2017). "33 Entries for Monterey". sportscar365.com. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  10. ^ Allaway, Phil (September 20, 2017). "Entry List: America's Tire 250". frontstretch.com. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  11. ^ a b Dagys, John (September 21, 2017). "Continental Tire Keys to the Race: Monterey". sportscar365.com. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  12. ^ Malsher-Lopez, David (September 22, 2017). "Laguna Seca IMSA: WTR Cadillac and Fords lead in FP1". motorsport.com. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  13. ^ Pruett, Marshall (September 22, 2017). "Taylor Cadillac tops IMSA opening Monterey practice". racer.com. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  14. ^ Dagys, John (September 22, 2017). "Taylor Quickest in Opening Practice at Monterey". sportscar365.com. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  15. ^ "03_Results.PDF" (PDF). results.imsa.com. September 23, 2017. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  16. ^ "07_ Driver Fastest Lap.PDF" (PDF). results.imsa.com. September 23, 2017. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  17. ^ a b Dagys, John (September 22, 2017). "Dalziel Tops Friday at Monterey". sportscar365.com. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  18. ^ Pruett, Marshall (September 22, 2017). "Nissan moves ahead in second Monterey practice". racer.com. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  19. ^ "03_Results.PDF" (PDF). results.imsa.com. September 23, 2017. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  20. ^ "07_ Driver Fastest Lap.PDF" (PDF). results.imsa.com. September 23, 2017. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  21. ^ Dagys, John (September 23, 2017). "Taylor Quickest Again in Practice 3". sportscar365.com. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  22. ^ Pruett, Marshall (September 23, 2017). "Taylor Cadillac back to the top in Monterey". racer.com. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  23. ^ Malsher-Lopez, David (September 23, 2017). "Laguna Seca IMSA: Cadillac and Ford back on top in FP3". us.motorsport.com. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  24. ^ "03_Results.PDF" (PDF). results.imsa.com. September 23, 2017. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  25. ^ "07_ Driver Fastest Lap.PDF" (PDF). results.imsa.com. September 23, 2017. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  26. ^ a b "2017 IMSA Sporting Regulations & Series Supplementary Regulations of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship sanctioned by IMSA" (PDF). IMSA. April 10, 2017. pp. 39, 81–83, 125. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 6, 2022. Retrieved August 6, 2022.
  27. ^ Pruett, Marshall (September 23, 2017). "Taylor smashes IMSA field in Monterey qualifying". racer.com. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  28. ^ Malsher-Lopez, David (September 23, 2017). "Laguna Seca IMSA: Ricky Taylor sets astounding pole". us.motorsport.com. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  29. ^ Dagys, John (September 23, 2017). "Taylor Takes Monterey Pole". sportscar365.com. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  30. ^ "03_Results.PDF" (PDF). IMSA. September 23, 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 July 2023. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  31. ^ "01_Starting Grid - Official.PDF" (PDF). IMSA. September 24, 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 July 2023. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  32. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o "2017 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Point Standings: After Round 11" (PDF). IMSA. September 26, 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 July 2023. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  33. ^ "03_Results - Official.PDF" (PDF). results.imsa.com. September 26, 2017. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  34. ^ "2017 CONTINENTAL TIRE MONTEREY GRAND PRIX". racing-reference.info. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
IMSA SportsCar Championship
Previous race:
Michelin GT Challenge at VIR
2017 season Next race:
Petit Le Mans