2024 Michelin GT Challenge at VIR explained

The 2024 Michelin GT Challenge at VIR was a sports car race held at Virginia International Raceway in Alton, Virginia, on August 25, 2024. It was the ninth round of the 2024 IMSA SportsCar Championship.

Background

Preview

International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) president John Doonan confirmed the race was part of the 2024 IMSA SportsCar Championship (IMSA SCC) in August 2023.^[1] It was the eleventh consecutive year the IMSA SCC hosted a race at Virginia International Raceway. The 2024 Michelin GT Challenge at VIR was the ninth of eleven scheduled sports car races of 2024 by IMSA.^[2] The race was held at the seventeen-turn 3.27miles Virginia International Raceway on August 25, 2024.^[2]

Balance of performance

Ahead of the event, IMSA published a bulletin regarding the latest balance of performance (BoP) changes in the GTD Pro and GTD classes.^[3] The Acura was given a 1-liter increase in fuel capacity to accommodate the 11.5 horsepower gained across all power levels. Additionally, the Lamborghini saw an increase in weight of 15 kilograms. This was countered by an increase of 5.3 horsepower across all power levels, and a 2-liter fuel capacity increase. Finally, the Ferrari saw an increase of 10 kilograms in weight, with no adjustments to the power level.^[3]

Standings before the race

Preceding the event, Laurin Heinrich led the GTD Pro Drivers' Championship with 2256 points, 76 points ahead of second-placed Ross Gunn. Ben Barnicoat and Jack Hawksworth sat in third place, a further 97 points behind.^[4] The GTD Drivers' Championship was led by Philip Ellis and Russell Ward with 2396 points. They had lead of 268 points over second-placed Robby Foley and Patrick Gallagher. Parker Thompson sat in third, 526 points behind Ellis and Ward.^[4] The Manufacturers' Championships were led by Porsche and Mercedes-AMG, respectively, whilst AO Racing and Winward Racing led the Teams' Championships.^[4]

Entry list

The entry list was revealed on August 14, 2024, and featured 23 entries: 9 entries in GTD Pro, and 14 entries in GTD.^[5] Klaus Bachler replaced Julien Andlauer in the No. 77 AO Racing Porsche, to race alongside Laurin Heinrich. Furthermore, Kyle Marcelli re-joined Danny Formal in the No. 45 Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Lamborghini, after missing the previous round due to an arm-related injury.^[6] Both the No. 023 Triarsi Competizione and No. 35 Conquest Racing Ferraris did not appear at the start after one-off appearances at Road America.^[7]

	Entrant	Car	Driver 1	Driver 2
GTD Pro (GT Daytona Pro) (9 entries)
1	Paul Miller Racing	BMW M4 GT3	Bryan Sellers	Madison Snow
3	Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports	Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R	Antonio García	Alexander Sims
4	Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports	Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R	Nicky Catsburg	Tommy Milner
9	Pfaff Motorsports	McLaren 720S GT3 Evo	Oliver Jarvis	Marvin Kirchhöfer
14	Vasser Sullivan	Lexus RC F GT3	Ben Barnicoat	Jack Hawksworth
23	Heart of Racing Team	Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 Evo	Ross Gunn	Alex Riberas
64	Ford Multimatic Motorsports	Ford Mustang GT3	Mike Rockenfeller	Harry Tincknell
65	Ford Multimatic Motorsports	Ford Mustang GT3	Joey Hand	Dirk Müller
77	AO Racing	Porsche 911 GT3 R (992)	Klaus Bachler	Laurin Heinrich
GTD (GT Daytona) (14 entries)
12	Vasser Sullivan	Lexus RC F GT3	Frankie Montecalvo	Parker Thompson
13	AWA	Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R	Matt Bell	Orey Fidani
27	Heart of Racing Team	Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 Evo	Roman De Angelis	Zacharie Robichon
32	Korthoff/Preston Motorsports	Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo	Mikaël Grenier	Kenton Koch
34	Conquest Racing	Ferrari 296 GT3	Albert Costa	Manny Franco
45	Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti	Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo 2	Danny Formal	Kyle Marcelli
55	Proton Competition	Ford Mustang GT3	Giammarco Levorato	Corey Lewis
57	Winward Racing	Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo	Philip Ellis	Russell Ward
66	Gradient Racing	Acura NSX GT3 Evo22	Stevan McAleer	Sheena Monk
70	Inception Racing	McLaren 720S GT3 Evo	Brendan Iribe	Frederik Schandorff
78	Forte Racing	Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo 2	Misha Goikhberg	Loris Spinelli
86	MDK Motorsports	Porsche 911 GT3 R (992)	Anders Fjordbach	Kerong Li
96	Turner Motorsport	BMW M4 GT3	Robby Foley	Patrick Gallagher
120	Wright Motorsports	Porsche 911 GT3 R (992)	Adam Adelson	Elliott Skeer
Source:

Practice

There were two practice sessions preceding the start of the race on Sunday, one on Friday afternoon and one on Saturday morning. The first session on Friday afternoon lasted 90 minutes while the second session on Saturday morning lasted 105 minutes.^[8]

Qualifying

Saturday's afternoon qualifying session lasted 15 minutes, with one combined session for the GTD Pro and GTD cars. The rules dictated that all teams nominated a driver to qualify their cars.^[8] The competitors' fastest lap times determined the starting order.^[9]

Qualifying results

Pole positions in each class are indicated in bold and with .

	Class		Entry	Driver	Time
1	GTD Pro	1	Paul Miller Racing	Madison Snow	1:43.206	—	1
2	GTD Pro	3	Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports	Antonio García	1:43.346	+0.140	2
3	GTD Pro	64	Ford Multimatic Motorsports	Harry Tincknell	1:43.630	+0.424	3
4	GTD Pro	65	Ford Multimatic Motorsports	Joey Hand	1:43.729	+0.523	4
5	GTD Pro	4	Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports	Tommy Milner	1:43.745	+0.539	5
6	GTD	55	Proton Competition	Giammarco Levorato	1:43.900	+0.694	6
7	GTD	32	Korthoff/Preston Motorsports	Kenton Koch	1:44.106	+0.900	7
8	GTD	120	Wright Motorsports	Elliott Skeer	1:44.118	+0.912	8
9	GTD Pro	14	Vasser Sullivan	Jack Hawksworth	1:44.177	+0.971	9
10	GTD Pro	9	Pfaff Motorsports	Oliver Jarvis	1:44.297	+1.091	10
11	GTD	27	Heart of Racing Team	Zacharie Robichon	1:44.362	+1.156	11
12	GTD	96	Turner Motorsport	Patrick Gallagher	1:44.392	+1.186	12
13	GTD Pro	77	AO Racing	Klaus Bachler	1:44.417	+1.211	13
14	GTD Pro	23	Heart of Racing Team	Alex Riberas	1:44.499	+1.293	14
15	GTD	45	Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti	Kyle Marcelli	1:44.504	+1.298	15
16	GTD	12	Vasser Sullivan	Frankie Montecalvo	1:44.541	+1.335	16
17	GTD	78	Forte Racing	Misha Goikhberg	1:44.793	+1.587	17
18	GTD	57	Winward Racing	Russell Ward	1:44.855	+1.649	18
19	GTD	70	Inception Racing	Brendan Iribe	1:45.020	+1.814	19
20	GTD	66	Gradient Racing	Sheena Monk	1:45.069	+1.863	20
21	GTD	34	Conquest Racing	Manny Franco	1:45.348	+2.142	21
22	GTD	86	MDK Motorsports	Kerong Li	1:46.754	+3.548	22
23	GTD	13	AWA	Orey Fidani	1:47.306	+4.100	23
Sources:^[10] ^[11]

Race

Post-race

The final results of GTD Pro meant Heinrich continued to lead the GTD Pro Drivers' Championship, but his advantage was reduced to 17 points by third-place finisher Gunn. Sellers and Snow jumped from fifth to third.^[12] Ellis and Ward's third-place finish allowed them to extend their advantage over Foley and Gallagher in the GTD Drivers' Championship. Porsche and Mercedes-AMG continued to top their respective Manufacturers' Championships while AO Racing, and Winward Racing kept their respective advantages in their of Teams' Championships with two rounds remaining.

Race results

Class winners are in bold and .

	Class		Team	Drivers	Chassis		Time/Retired
	Class		Team	Drivers	Engine		Time/Retired
1	GTD Pro	1	Paul Miller Racing	Bryan Sellers Madison Snow	BMW M4 GT3	86	2:40:49.112
1	GTD Pro	1	Paul Miller Racing	Bryan Sellers Madison Snow	BMW P58 3.0 L Turbo I6	86	2:40:49.112
2	GTD Pro	64	Ford Multimatic Motorsports	Mike Rockenfeller Harry Tincknell	Ford Mustang GT3	86	+3.368
2	GTD Pro	64	Ford Multimatic Motorsports	Mike Rockenfeller Harry Tincknell	Ford Coyote 5.4 L V8	86	+3.368
3	GTD Pro	23	Heart of Racing Team	Ross Gunn Alex Riberas	Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 Evo	86	+4.199
3	GTD Pro	23	Heart of Racing Team	Ross Gunn Alex Riberas	Aston Martin M177 4.0 L Turbo V8	86	+4.199
4	GTD Pro	65	Ford Multimatic Motorsports	Joey Hand Dirk Müller	Ford Mustang GT3	86	+11.688
4	GTD Pro	65	Ford Multimatic Motorsports	Joey Hand Dirk Müller	Ford Coyote 5.4 L V8	86	+11.688
5	GTD	32	Korthoff/Preston Motorsports	Mikaël Grenier Kenton Koch	Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo	86	+16.103
5	GTD	32	Korthoff/Preston Motorsports	Mikaël Grenier Kenton Koch	Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8	86	+16.103
6	GTD Pro	9	Pfaff Motorsports	Oliver Jarvis Marvin Kirchhöfer	McLaren 720S GT3 Evo	86	+16.404
6	GTD Pro	9	Pfaff Motorsports	Oliver Jarvis Marvin Kirchhöfer	McLaren M840T 4.0 L Turbo V8	86	+16.404
7	GTD Pro	14	Vasser Sullivan	Ben Barnicoat Jack Hawksworth	Lexus RC F GT3	86	+18.620
7	GTD Pro	14	Vasser Sullivan	Ben Barnicoat Jack Hawksworth	Toyota 2UR-GSE 5.0 L V8	86	+18.620
8	GTD	78	Forte Racing	Misha Goikhberg Loris Spinelli	Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo 2	86	+19.086
8	GTD	78	Forte Racing	Misha Goikhberg Loris Spinelli	Lamborghini DGF 5.2 L V10	86	+19.086
9	GTD Pro	77	AO Racing	Klaus Bachler Laurin Heinrich	Porsche 911 GT3 R (992)	86	+19.754
9	GTD Pro	77	AO Racing	Klaus Bachler Laurin Heinrich	Porsche M97/80 4.2 L Flat-6	86	+19.754
10	GTD	57	Winward Racing	Philip Ellis Russell Ward	Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo	86	+20.017
10	GTD	57	Winward Racing	Philip Ellis Russell Ward	Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8	86	+20.017
11	GTD	96	Turner Motorsport	Robby Foley Patrick Gallagher	BMW M4 GT3	86	+20.311
11	GTD	96	Turner Motorsport	Robby Foley Patrick Gallagher	BMW P58 3.0 L Turbo I6	86	+20.311
12	GTD Pro	4	Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports	Nicky Catsburg Tommy Milner	Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R	86	+22.410
12	GTD Pro	4	Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports	Nicky Catsburg Tommy Milner	Chevrolet LT6 5.5 L V8	86	+22.410
13	GTD	34	Conquest Racing	Albert Costa Manny Franco	Ferrari 296 GT3	86	+24.110
13	GTD	34	Conquest Racing	Albert Costa Manny Franco	Ferrari F163 3.0 L Turbo V6	86	+24.110
14	GTD	13	AWA	Matt Bell Orey Fidani	Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R	86	+24.433
14	GTD	13	AWA	Matt Bell Orey Fidani	Chevrolet LT6 5.5 L V8	86	+24.433
15	GTD	55	Proton Competition	Giammarco Levorato Corey Lewis	Ford Mustang GT3	86	+27.346
15	GTD	55	Proton Competition	Giammarco Levorato Corey Lewis	Ford Coyote 5.4 L V8	86	+27.346
16	GTD	120	Wright Motorsports	Adam Adelson Elliott Skeer	Porsche 911 GT3 R (992)	86	+28.220
16	GTD	120	Wright Motorsports	Adam Adelson Elliott Skeer	Porsche M97/80 4.2 L Flat-6	86	+28.220
17	GTD	12	Vasser Sullivan	Frankie Montecalvo Parker Thompson	Lexus RC F GT3	86	+57.555
17	GTD	12	Vasser Sullivan	Frankie Montecalvo Parker Thompson	Toyota 2UR-GSE 5.0 L V8	86	+57.555
18	GTD	86	MDK Motorsports	Anders Fjordbach Kerong Li	Porsche 911 GT3 R (992)	85	+1 Lap
18	GTD	86	MDK Motorsports	Anders Fjordbach Kerong Li	Porsche M97/80 4.2 L Flat-6	85	+1 Lap
19	GTD	45	Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti	Danny Formal Kyle Marcelli	Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo 2	85	+1 Lap
19	GTD	45	Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti	Danny Formal Kyle Marcelli	Lamborghini DGF 5.2 L V10	85	+1 Lap
20	GTD	66	Gradient Racing	Stevan McAleer Sheena Monk	Acura NSX GT3 Evo22	72	+14 Laps
20	GTD	66	Gradient Racing	Stevan McAleer Sheena Monk	Acura JNC1 3.5 L Turbo V6	72	+14 Laps
21 DNF	GTD	70	Inception Racing	Brendan Iribe Frederik Schandorff	McLaren 720S GT3 Evo	68	Engine
21 DNF	GTD	70	Inception Racing	Brendan Iribe Frederik Schandorff	McLaren M840T 4.0 L Turbo V8	68	Engine
22	GTD	27	Heart of Racing Team	Roman De Angelis Zacharie Robichon	Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 Evo	86	+17.000
22	GTD	27	Heart of Racing Team	Roman De Angelis Zacharie Robichon	Aston Martin M177 4.0 L Turbo V8	86	+17.000
23	GTD Pro	3	Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports	Antonio García Alexander Sims	Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R	57	+29 Laps
23	GTD Pro	3	Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports	Antonio García Alexander Sims	Chevrolet LT6 5.5 L V8	57	+29 Laps
Source:^[13]

Standings after the race

+GTP Drivers' Championship standings		+/–	Driver	Points
align=center	1	align=left		Dane Cameron Felipe Nasr	align=right	2386
align=center	2	align=left		Mathieu Jaminet Nick Tandy	align=right	2286
align=center	3	align=left		Sébastien Bourdais Renger van der Zande	align=right	2201
align=center	4	align=left		Jack Aitken Pipo Derani	align=right	2144
align=center	5	align=left		Louis Delétraz Jordan Taylor	align=right	2107
Source:

+LMP2 Drivers' Championship standings		+/–	Driver	Points
align=center	1	align=left		Nick Boulle Tom Dillmann	align=right	1564
align=center	2	align=left		Felipe Fraga Gar Robinson	align=right	1537
align=center	3	align=left		Ryan Dalziel	align=right	1473
align=center	4	align=left		Ben Hanley Ben Keating	align=right	1467
align=center	5	align=left		Dan Goldburg	align=right	1372
Source:

+GTD Pro Drivers' Championship standings		+/–	Driver	Points
align=center	1	align=left		Laurin Heinrich	align=right	2519
align=center	2	align=left		Ross Gunn	align=right	2502
align=center	3	align=left	2	Bryan Sellers Madison Snow	align=right	2408
align=center	4	align=left	1	Ben Barnicoat Jack Hawksworth	align=right	2358
align=center	5	align=left	1	Antonio García Alexander Sims	align=right	2318
Source:

+GTD Drivers' Championship standings		+/–	Driver	Points
align=center	1	align=left		Philip Ellis Russell Ward	align=right	2718
align=center	2	align=left		Robby Foley Patrick Gallagher	align=right	2434
align=center	3	align=left	1	Mikaël Grenier	align=right	2178
align=center	4	align=left	1	Parker Thompson	align=right	2114
align=center	5	align=left		Albert Costa Manny Franco	align=right	2060
Source:

Note: Only the top five positions are included for all sets of standings.

+GTP Teams' Championship standings		+/–	Team	Points
align=center	1	align=left		7 Porsche Penske Motorsport	align=right	2386
align=center	2	align=left		6 Porsche Penske Motorsport	align=right	2286
align=center	3	align=left		01 Cadillac Racing	align=right	2201
align=center	4	align=left		31 Whelen Cadillac Racing	align=right	2144
align=center	5	align=left		40 Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti	align=right	2107
Source:

+LMP2 Teams' Championship standings		+/–	Team	Points
align=center	1	align=left		52 Inter Europol by PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports	1564
align=center	2	align=left		74 Riley	align=right	1537
3	align=left		18 Era Motorsport	1473
4	align=left		2 United Autosports USA	1467
5	align=left		22 United Autosports USA	1372
Source:

+GTD Pro Teams' Championship standings		+/–	Team	Points
1	align=left		77 AO Racing	2519
2	align=left		23 Heart of Racing Team	2502
3	align=left	2	1 Paul Miller Racing	2408
4	align=left	1	14 Vasser Sullivan	2358
5	align=left	1	3 Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports	2318
Source:

+GTD Teams' Championship standings		+/–	Team	Points
1		57 Winward Racing	2718
2		96 Turner Motorsport	2434
3	align=left		32 Korthoff/Preston Motorsports	2178
4	align=left		34 Conquest Racing	2060
5	align=left		12 Vasser Sullivan	1921
Source:

Note: Only the top five positions are included for all sets of standings.

+GTP Manufacturers' Championship standings		+/–	Manufacturer	Points
1		Porsche	2555
2		Cadillac	2466
3		Acura	2416
4		BMW	2188
5	align=left		Lamborghini	572
Source:

+GTD Pro Manufacturers' Championship standings		+/–	Manufacturer	Points
1		Porsche	2579
2		Aston Martin	2540
3	1	Lexus	2427
4	1	Chevrolet	2426
5	1	Ford	2329
Source:

+GTD Manufacturers' Championship standings		+/–	Manufacturer	Points
1		Mercedes-AMG	2832
2	align=left	4	Lamborghini	2300
3	1	BMW	2296
4	1	Lexus	2276
5	3	Aston Martin	2255
Source:

Note: Only the top five positions are included for all sets of standings.

Notes and References

Web site: IMSA reveals 2024 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship calendar. Bradley. Charles. August 4, 2023. August 14, 2024. Motorsport.com.
Web site: 2024 IMSA Schedules Revealed at Road America. August 4, 2023. August 14, 2024. imsa.com.
Web site: Acura NSX GT3 Evo22 Gets Power Increase for VIR. Dagys. John. August 14, 2024. August 14, 2024. Sportscar365. John Dagys Media.
Web site: 00_Championship Points - Official.pdf. August 7, 2024. August 14, 2024. imsa.results.alkamelcloud.com. Alkamel Systems. https://web.archive.org/web/20240810052207/https://imsa.results.alkamelcloud.com/Results/24_2024/14_Road%20America/01_IMSA%20WeatherTech%20SportsCar%20Championship/00_Championship%20Points%20-%20Official.pdf. August 10, 2024. live.
Web site: Michelin GT Challenge at VIR – Pre-Event Entry List. August 14, 2024. August 14, 2024. imsa.com. IMSA.
Web site: 23 Entries for Michelin GT Challenge at VIR. Dagys. John. August 14, 2024. August 14, 2024. Sportscar365. John Dagys Media.
Web site: 23 Cars Entered For IMSA VIR GT Challenge. O'Connell. RJ. August 14, 2024. August 14, 2024. Dailysportscar.
Web site: 2024 IMSA Official Schedule and SR VIR REV 081524 V1. August 15, 2024. August 25, 2024. imsa.results.alkamelcloud.com. Alkamel Systems.
Web site: 2024 IMSA Sporting Regulations and Series Supplementary Regulations. November 1, 2023. August 25, 2024. imsa.com. International Motor Sports Association.
Web site: 03_Results_Qualifying.PDF. August 24, 2024. August 25, 2024. imsa.results.alkamelcloud.com. Alkamel Systems.
Web site: 01_Grid_Race_Official.PDF. August 25, 2024. August 25, 2024. imsa.results.alkamelcloud.com. Alkamel Systems.
Web site: 9 September 2024 . 00_Championship Points - Official.pdf . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20240909182903/https://imsa.results.alkamelcloud.com/Results/24_2024/15_VIRginia%20International%20Raceway/01_IMSA%20WeatherTech%20SportsCar%20Championship/00_Championship%20Points%20-%20Official.pdf . 9 September 2024 . 9 September 2024 . imsa.results.alkamelcloud.com . Alkamel Systems.
Web site: September 9, 2024 . 03_Results_Race_Official.PDF . September 10, 2024 . imsa.results.alkamelcloud.com. Alkamel Systems.