A 4th of July weekend with a German Flavor
With less than two weeks after the 2017 edition of 24 Hours of Le Mans, the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship started back up again with the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen, which was also the third race in the Tequila Patrón North American Endurance Cup, the championship within the championship. This event continues our coverage of the endurance events in the championship. While we’ve been focusing on the cross-town rivalry between GM and Ford, Porsche and BMW, and Ferrari also play into the mix in the hotly contested GTLM class. In the GM camp, The Magnussen/Garcia lineup in the No. 3 Corvette C7.R came into Watkins Glen with a six-point advantage in the driver’s standings, while Chevrolet was at the top of the Team and Manufacturer’s standings. This was a thin margin to the second place Ford squad. A mixed weather forecast for the extended 4th of July weekend proved to be a challenge for all the teams with the unpredictable upstate New York weather playing a key role in finding the right race setup.
For the GTLM regulars it was again business as usual. The Ford and Chevy squads were back on this side of the pond to continue their flight for the championship. The Corvette team was looking for a place at the top of the class podium after their disappointing run at Le Mans, when their likely victory was cut short as a result of tire issues in the final laps. The Ford team also had numerous issues at Le Mans and was also looking to regain their winning ways. The usual nine car GTLM field with five manufacturers was reduced to four as the sole Ferrari entry has been sidelined until the end of the season.
In the fifteen-minute qualifying session, a late run by Joey Hand at the wheel of the No. 66 Ford GT saw him reel off a 1:42.507 lap to claim the pole. The No. 67 Ford was in fourth with a 1:42.884 time, while the No. 4 Corvette C7.R was in the sixth spot with a 1:43.189 lap. The No. 3 C7.R was at the back of the eight-car GTLM pack with a 1:43.243.
On race day, at the drop of the green flag, the BMW’s proved that they had the pace when both of their M6 GTLM’s dropped the pole sitting No. 66 Ford GT to the third spot before the first turn. As the race progressed, the lead changed numerous times, usually as a result of the full course cautions, and the pit stops that followed. By the mid point in the race, the No. 4 Corvette was leading but the entire GTLM field was separated by only 3.4 seconds. As the race progressed, more cautions continued to shuffle the running order. Towards the end of the race, with only twenty minutes left, the No. 25 BMW M6 GTLM was at the front, followed by the No. 67 Ford GT and the No. 912 Porsche a close third. Just outside the podium position was the No. 3 Corvette. With only minutes left in the race, six of the eight GTLM cars were still on the lead lap separated by a scant seven-second margin. At the wave of the checkered flag, the No. 25 BMW claimed the top spot on the podium, followed by the No. 67 Ford GT, and the No. 3 Corvette in third. A late race tire puncture for the No. 912 Porsche saw it lose their podium spot to the Corvette. In a testament to the strength and competitiveness of the GTLM class, all but one car in the eight-car GTLM class led at one point during the race.
The next endurance round will be at Road Atlanta for the ten-hour Petit Le Mans that will wrap up the season.
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