Archive for February, 2023
Burton, Smith Win IMPC Opener
Harrison Burton Holds off Sports Car Vet Spencer Pumpelly by 0.688 Seconds
By Holly Cain and Godwin Kelly
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – NASCAR driver Harrison Burton held off hard-charging sports car veteran Spencer Pumpelly by a slight 0.688 seconds to earn the overall victory in Friday’s BMW M Endurance Challenge, the season-opening IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge race on the 3.56-mile Daytona International Speedway road course.
Pumpelly, who co-drove with Jeroen Bleekemolen and Tom Collingwood, moved the No. 83 BGB Motorsports Porsche 718 GT4 RS Clubsport from fifth place to second in the final 30 minutes of the four-hour race, applying pressure on Burton as he cut into the lead with each lap.
But the 22-year-old Burton – who drives the famed Wood Brothers Ford fulltime in the NASCAR Cup Series – steered mistake-free, high-pressure circuits of his own in the No. 42 PF Racing Ford Mustang GT4 to ensure he and teammate Zane Smith – the 2022 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion making his IMSA debut – became the first NASCAR regulars to take the victory in this race.
Ben Rhodes, the 2021 NASCAR trucks champion, and fellow NASCAR truck series driver Hailie Deegan finished third in the No. 41 PF Racing Mustang to complete the podium for the 32-car Grand Sport (GS) class.
Smith, 23, qualified an impressive third and moved forward immediately on the start, holding a sizable lead with just under three hours remaining. Late pit strategy by the competition, however, shifted the lineup as the No. 41 Mustang pitted to change drivers – Smith out and Burton in – just past the midpoint.
Burton ran third with just under 50 minutes to go, steadily making his way forward. He took the lead for good when leader Elliott Skeer in No. 47 Nolasport Porsche had to retire with 22 minutes remaining.
“I felt like I was a little bummed out early because we got shuffled back a little after the first pit stop,’’ said Burton, making his second start in the race. “It was taking me a little bit to get back to the lead and I was like, ‘I don’t want to be the guy that lets the team down and not finish the race off like we should.’
“But a few restarts came our way and I kinda shuffled my way through there. A lot of hard racing, ‘’ he added with a grin. “Pretty similar to NASCAR racing, to be honest with you, the amount of bumping and aggressive dive bombs and stuff. I felt kinda home in that. That was fun.”
Smith, who will attempt to make his first Daytona 500 start in February, gave a thumbs-up to his friend Burton’s work.
“Watching Harrison at the end with Spencer coming had me shaking in my boots, but he didn’t make a mistake,’’ Smith said, delighting in the win at the famous track. “If you can win anything at Daytona, whether it’s a dirt bike or a go-kart or a stock car and now a GT4 Mustang, is just so dang cool.
“Daytona just brings such a different vibe than really any other racetrack. Not only to win at Daytona but in our first start is just so cool.’’
*Original Press Release from imsa.com
Griffin Sweeps VP Racing SportsCar Challenge
Goldburg and Griffin Complete Weekend Sweeps in the New Sprint Series for LMP3 and GT4 Cars
By Mark Robinson
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – They took different paths, but Dan Goldburg and Billy Griffin completed weekend victory sweeps Sunday in the debut of the IMSA VP Racing SportsCar Challenge. Goldburg cruised to a dominant win in the Le Mans Prototype 3 (LMP3) class while Griffin battled from behind to triumph in the GSX class for GT4-spec cars.
Both drivers started from their respective pole positions in the 45-minute race. Goldburg, in the No. 73 JDC MotorSports Duqueine D08, was hounded by Bijoy Garg in the No. 3 Jr III Racing Ligier JS P320 until Garg spun in the Le Mans Chicane while working through lapped traffic with 15 minutes remaining. Relieved of that pressure, Goldburg went on to win by 9.739 seconds over Brian Thienes in the No. 77 US RaceTronics Ligier.
As he did in Saturday’s first race, Griffin took a patient approach and relinquished the GSX lead on the opening lap to avoid potential confrontations. Dropping to third place in the No. 14 KohR Motorsports Ford Mustang GT4, Griffin bided his time before overtaking Sebastian Carazo (No. 27 Kellymoss with Riley Porsche 718 GT4 RS Clubsport) for the lead on the tri-oval section of Daytona International Speedway with seven minutes to go. Griffin pulled away to win by 3.735 seconds over Carazo.
Goldburg credited his LMP3 experience – three previous years overall, including 10 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship races in the past two seasons – with his success negotiating slower traffic that led to the two VP Racing Challenge wins.
“I think the key was running WeatherTech last year and learning how to manage GT traffic,” said the 44-year-old from Delray Beach, Florida. “That came in really handy today.
“I like having the traffic to work with. I had good success last year in WeatherTech with it, so I like it. There’s definitely a big enough gap between the speeds of the (LMP3 and GSX) cars that’s manageable and can be used well. It’s good.”
It was that traffic and over-aggressive driving in his class that Griffin was on the lookout for in his bid to repeat as the GSX winner, and it wound up costing a pair of contenders. He and Carazo were locked in an intense four-car battle with Moisey Uretsky (No. 44 Accelerating Performance Aston Martin Vantage GT4) and Patrick Wilmot (No. 88 Split Decision Motorsports BMW M4 GT4) when Uretsky and Wilmot tangled in Turn 3 of the infield section with 14 minutes remaining.
Wilmot’s BMW sustained significant damage and retired. Uretsky was assessed a drive-through penalty for incident responsibility and taken out of contention, leaving Griffin and Carazo to battle it out for the win.
“I lost the lead (on Lap 1) again because of aggressiveness and the way they were crowding in there but was able to regroup,” Griffin said. “I knew that the patience thing was going to pay off for me in the long run. I really just took my time and let the battle happen.”
Griffin got a run on Carazo through Turns 3 and 4 of the Daytona oval and made the decisive pass as they crossed the start-finish line.
“I made the move, it worked … and I was able to check away,” the Venice, Florida, resident and IMSA newcomer added. “It’s an amazing feeling; thrilled to death. Definitely a lifelong dream come true.”
*Original Press Release from imsa.com.
ROUSH YATES ENGINES CELEBRATES 20TH SEASON
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