The 2020 Hyundai Monterey Sports Car Championship was a sports car race sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). The race was held at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey County, California, on November 1, 2020. This race was the tenth round of the 2020 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, and the seventh round of the WeatherTech Sprint Cup.
The overall race was won by Hélio Castroneves and Ricky Taylor, their fourth victory of the season. In LMP2, PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports secured the class victory by default, as no other teams were entered. The GTLM class was won for the second consecutive race by Porsche, albeit this time with the #912 team of Earl Bamber and Laurens Vanthoor. In GTD, Mario Farnbacher and Matt McMurry scored their second victory of the season. [1]
Then International Motor Sports Association's (IMSA) president Scott Atherton confirmed the race was part of the schedule for the 2020 IMSA SportsCar Championship (IMSA SCC) in August 2019. [2] It was the seventh consecutive year it was held as part of the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. The 2020 Hyundai Monterey Sports Car Championship was the tenth of eleven sports car races of 2020 by IMSA, and the event was the last of seven races on the WeatherTech Sprint Cup. [3] The race was held at the eleven-turn 2.238 mi (3.602 km) WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. [4]
Initially scheduled to be run on September 13, the event was rescheduled for the weekend of November 1st, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. [5] The event was run behind closed doors in order to maintain compliance with California state gathering regulations, as it was the only DPi round, and second GT round (Virginia International Raceway the other round in the season) to be held as such, as the second Daytona, Road America, Mid-Ohio, Charlotte, and both Sebring and Road Atlanta rounds were run with spectators. [6] In May, Hyundai was announced as the new title sponsor of the event. [7]
No changes were made to IMSA's balance of performance from the previous round at Road Atlanta.
Before the race, Ryan Briscoe and Renger van der Zande led the DPi Drivers' Championship with 215 points, ahead of Hélio Castroneves and Ricky Taylor in second with 207 points, and Pipo Derani in third. [8] In LMP2, Patrick Kelly led the Drivers' Championship with 126 points. [8] Antonio García and Jordan Taylor led the GTLM Drivers' Championship with 293 points, 28 points ahead of Oliver Gavin and Tommy Milner. [8] With 228 points, Aaron Telitz led the GTD Drivers' Championship, ahead of Jack Hawksworth. [8] Cadillac, Chevrolet, and Lexus were leading their respective Manufactures' Championships while Konica Minolta Cadillac DPi-V.R, PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports, Corvette Racing, and AIM Vasser Sullivan each led their own Teams' Championships. [8]
A total of 28 cars took part in the event, split across four classes. 8 were entered in DPi, 1 in LMP2, 6 in GTLM, and 13 in GTD. DPi's only changes were between the two JDC entries. With João Barbosa's exit from the team, Tristan Vautier was drafted in to replace him. As a result, Stephen Simpson returned to the #85 to partner Matheus Leist. [9] LMP2 was reduced to just one entry due to a back injury sustained by Era Motorsport driver Dwight Merriman, leaving championship leaders PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports as the only entrant. [10] In GTD, Alessandro Balzan replaced Toni Vilander as Scuderia Corsa's pro driver. [10] Sprint competitors Team Hardpoint and Compass Racing also returned after skipping Petit Le Mans. [9]
There were two practice sessions preceding the start of the race on Sunday, both on Saturday. The first session lasted one hour on Saturday morning while the second session lasted 75 minutes on Saturday afternoon. [11]
The first practice session took place at 8:00 am PT on Saturday and ended with Pipo Derani topping the charts for Whelen Engineering Racing, with a lap time of 1:15.851, ahead of the #10 Cadillac of Renger van der Zande. [12] Simon Trummer set the fastest time in LMP2. [13] The GTLM class topped by the #3 Corvette Racing Chevrolet Corvette C8.R of Antonio García with a time of 1:21.898. [13] Nick Tandy was second in the #911 Porsche GT Team entry and Earl Bamber rounded out the top 3. Bill Auberlen was fastest in GTD. [14] 44 minutes into the session, Tristan Nunez, driving the #77 Mazda RT24-P, hit a trackside sign at turn 9 whilst trying to avoid hitting the #85 JDC-Miller MotorSports Cadillac of Stephen Simpson. Debris became scattered across the track and brought out the red flag. [13] The Team Hardpoint Audi only completed three laps due to broken drive shaft. [15]
Pos. | Class | No. | Team | Driver | Time | Gap |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | DPi | 31 | Whelen Engineering Racing | Pipo Derani | 1:15.851 | _ |
2 | DPi | 10 | Konica Minolta Cadillac | Renger van der Zande | 1:16.370 | +0.519 |
3 | DPi | 6 | Acura Team Penske | Juan Pablo Montoya | 1:16.410 | +0.579 |
Sources: [16] [17] |
The second final practice session took place at 12:00 pm PT on Saturday and ended with Oliver Jarvis topping the charts for Mazda Motorsports, with a lap time of 1:15.692, 0.185 seconds faster than Dane Cameron's #6 Acura. [18] The PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports did not set a time in LMP2. [19] The GTLM class was topped by the #3 Corvette Racing Chevrolet Corvette C8.R of Jordan Taylor with a time of 1:22.279. Connor De Phillippi in the #25 BMW Team RLL entry was second and Nick Tandy rounded out the top 3. [20] Robby Foley set the fastest time in GTD. [18] The #85 Cadillac of Matheus Leist crashed in turn 2 after suffering a mechanical issue. [19] Felipe Nasr and Hélio Castroneves collided at turn 3 after they exited the pits and Nasr tried letting Castorneves pass. The #7 Acura Team Penske Acura cut across the #31 Whelen Engineering Racing Cadillac and both cars received damage. Castroneves received a stop-and-hold plus 60 second penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct while Nasr was given a drive-through penalty. [15] [21]
Pos. | Class | No. | Team | Driver | Time | Gap |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | DPi | 77 | Mazda Motorsports | Oliver Jarvis | 1:15.692 | _ |
2 | DPi | 6 | Acura Team Penske | Dane Cameron | 1:15.877 | +0.185 |
3 | DPi | 55 | Mazda Motorsports | Juan Pablo Montoya | 1:16.037 | +0.345 |
Sources: [22] [23] |
Qualifying was broken into three sessions. The first session was for cars in GTD class. Matt McMurry qualified on pole for the class driving the #86 car for Meyer Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian, beating Robby Foley in the Turner Motorsport entry by less than two-tenths of a second. [24]
The second session was for cars in the GTLM class. Jordan Taylor qualified on pole driving the #3 car for Corvette Racing, besting Laurens Vanthoor in the #912 Porsche GT Team entry. [25]
The final session of qualifying was for cars in the LMP2 and DPi classes. Juan Pablo Montoya took overall pole for the event driving the #6 car for Acura Team Penske, beating teammate Hélio Castroneves in the sister #7 Acura Team Penske by less than two-tenths of a second. [26] Patrick Kelly secured the LMP2 pole by default. [27]
Juan Pablo Montoya took overall pole for the event. Patrick Kelly secured the LMP2 pole by default, while Jordan Taylor started first in GTLM. In GTD, Matt McMurry scored pole position for Meyer Shank Racing. [27]
Pole positions in each class are indicated in bold and by ‡.
Pos. | Class | No. | Team | Driver | Time | Gap | Grid |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | DPi | 6 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:15.174 | _ | 1‡ |
2 | DPi | 7 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:15.333 | +0.159 | 2 |
3 | DPi | 77 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:15.411 | +0.237 | 3 |
4 | DPi | 31 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:15.420 | +0.246 | 4 |
5 | DPi | 5 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:15.461 | +0.287 | 5 |
6 | DPi | 55 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:15.580 | +0.406 | 6 |
7 | DPi | 10 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:15.729 | +0.555 | 8 1 |
8 | DPi | 85 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:15.852 | +0.678 | 7 |
9 | LMP2 | 52 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:19.598 | +4.424 | 9‡ |
10 | GTLM | 3 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:21.483 | +6.309 | 10‡ |
11 | GTLM | 912 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:21.725 | +6.551 | 11 |
12 | GTLM | 4 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:21.853 | +6.679 | 12 |
13 | GTLM | 25 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:22.054 | +6.880 | 14 2 |
14 | GTLM | 24 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:22.120 | +6.946 | 15 3 |
15 | GTD | 86 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:25.126 | +9.952 | 16‡ |
16 | GTD | 96 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:25.140 | +9.966 | 17 |
17 | GTD | 63 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:25.318 | +10.144 | 18 |
18 | GTD | 57 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:25.426 | +10.252 | 19 |
19 | GTD | 12 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:25.475 | +10.301 | 20 |
20 | GTD | 23 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:25.676 | +10.502 | 21 |
21 | GTD | 76 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:25.826 | +10.652 | 22 |
22 | GTD | 22 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:26.012 | +10.838 | 23 |
23 | GTD | 16 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:26.171 | +10.997 | 24 |
24 | GTD | 44 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:26.359 | +11.185 | 25 |
25 | GTD | 14 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:26.404 | +11.230 | 26 |
26 | GTD | 30 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:26.791 | +11.617 | 27 |
27 | GTD | 74 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:29.460 | +14.286 | 28 4 |
28 | GTLM | 911 | ![]() | ![]() | 1:32.856 | +17.682 | 13 |
Sources: [28] [29] | |||||||
As a result of winning the race Hélio Castroneves and Ricky Taylor took the lead of the DPi Drivers' Championship. Bomarito and Tincknell advanced from fifth to fourth. [31] By starting the race, Patrick Kelly clinched the LMP2 Drivers' Championship. [31] [32] As a result of Gavin and Milner's disqualification, Antonio García and Jordan Taylor clinched the GTLM Drivers' Championship. [31] [33] As a result of winning the race, Mario Farnbacher and Matt McMurry took the lead of the GTD Drivers' Championship. Hardwick and Long advanced from third to second while Telitz dropped from first to third. [31] Cadillac, and Chevrolet continued to top their respective Manufacturers' Championships while Acura took the lead of the GTD Manufactures' Championship. [31] PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports and Corvette Racing their respective advantages in their respective of Teams' Championships while Acura Team Penske took the lead of the DPi Teams' Championship. Meyer Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian took the lead of the GTD Teams' Championship with one round remaining in the season. [31]
Class winners are denoted in bold and ‡.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The 2019 24 Hours of Daytona was an International Motor Sports Association (IMSA)-sanctioned endurance sports car race held at the Daytona International Speedway combined road course in Daytona Beach, Florida, on January 26–27, 2019. It was the 57th running of the race, and the first of 12 races in the 2019 IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship, and the first of four rounds of the 2019 Michelin Endurance Cup. The race was ended ahead of the 22nd Hour, due to heavy rainfall. The race was won overall by Renger van der Zande, Jordan Taylor, Fernando Alonso, and Kamui Kobayashi in the #10 Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac DPi-V.R. The LMP2 class was won by the #18 DragonSpeed Oreca 07, piloted by Pastor Maldonado, Roberto Gonzalez, Sebastián Saavedra and Ryan Cullen. The GTLM class was won by the #25 BMW Team RLL BMW M8 GTE of Connor de Phillippi, Augusto Farfus, Philipp Eng, and Colton Herta. The GTD class was won for a second consecutive year by the #11 GRT Grasser Racing Team Lamborghini Huracan GT3 Evo of Rolf Ineichen, Mirko Bortolotti, Rik Breukers, and Christian Engelhart.
The 2019 BUBBA Burger Sports Car Grand Prix was a sports car race sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). It was held at Long Beach street circuit in Long Beach, California on 13 April 2019. The race was the third round of the 2019 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
The 2019 Acura Sports Car Challenge of Mid-Ohio was a sports car race sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). The race was held at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio, on May 5, 2019. It was the fourth round of the 2019 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and the first round of the 2019 WeatherTech Sprint Cup.
The 2019 Sahlen's Six Hours of the Glen was an endurance race sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). The race was held at Watkins Glen International in Watkins Glen, New York, on June 30, 2019. This race was the sixth round of the 2019 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, as well as the third round of the 2019 Michelin Endurance Cup.
The 2019 Road Race Showcase at Road America was a sports car race sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). The race was held at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin on August 4, 2019, as the ninth round of the 2019 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, and the fifth round of the 2019 WeatherTech Sprint Cup.
The 2020 12 Hours of Sebring was an endurance sports car race held at Sebring International Raceway near Sebring, Florida from 11–14 November 2020, after being postponed from its original date on 14–15 March 2020 due to the COVID-19 outbreak. The race was the final round of the 2020 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, as well as the final round of the Michelin Endurance Cup. Action Express Racing entered as the defending overall winners of the 12-hour event.
The 2020 Petit Le Mans was the 23rd running of the Petit Le Mans, and was held on October 17, 2020. It was the 9th race in the 2020 IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship, and the 3rd race of the 2020 Michelin Endurance Cup, and was run at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia. The race was won overall by the #10 Konica Minolta Cadillac Cadillac DPi-V.R after the #7 Acura Team Penske and #31 Whelen Engineering Racing entries made contact and spun out in the closing minutes of the race.
The 2020 IMSA SportsCar Weekend was a sports car race sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). The race was held at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, on August 2, 2020. This race was the fourth round of the 2020 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, and the third round of the 2020 WeatherTech Sprint Cup.
The 2021 12 Hours of Sebring was an endurance sports car race held at Sebring International Raceway near Sebring, Florida from 17 to 20 March 2021. It was the second round of both the 2021 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and the Michelin Endurance Cup. Mazda Motorsports entered as the defending overall winners of the 12-hour event.
The 2020 TireRack.com Grand Prix at Road Atlanta was a sports car race sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). The race was held at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia, on September 5, 2020. This race was the sixth round of the 2020 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, and the second round of the 2020 Michelin Endurance Cup.
The 2020 Acura Sports Car Challenge at Mid-Ohio was a sports car race sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). The race was held at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio, on September 27, 2020. This race was the seventh round of the 2020 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, and the fifth round of the 2020 WeatherTech Sprint Cup.
The 2019 Mobil 1 SportsCar Grand Prix was a sports car race sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). The race was held at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in Bowmanville, Ontario, on July 7, 2019. This race was the seventh round of the 2019 IMSA SportsCar Championship, and the third round of the 2019 WeatherTech Sprint Cup.
The 2021 SportsCar Challenge at Mid-Ohio, known for sponsorship reasons as the 2021 Acura SportsCar Challenge, was a sports car race held at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course near Lexington, Ohio on May 16, 2021. The race is the third round of the 2021 IMSA SportsCar Championship, and the first round of the 2021 WeatherTech GT Daytona Sprint Cup.
The 2021 Detroit SportsCar Classic was a sports car race sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). The race was held at The Raceway on Belle Isle in Detroit, Michigan on June 12, 2021. This race was the fourth round of the 2021 IMSA SportsCar Championship, and the second round of the 2021 WeatherTech Sprint Cup.
The 2021 WeatherTech 240 at The Glen was a sports car race sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). The race was held at Watkins Glen International in Watkins Glen, New York on July 2, 2021. This race was the sixth round of the 2021 IMSA SportsCar Championship, and the third round of the 2021 WeatherTech Sprint Cup.
The 2021 Petit Le Mans was the 24th running of the Petit Le Mans, and was held on November 13, 2021. It was the 12th and final race in the 2021 IMSA SportsCar Championship, and the 4th race of the 2021 Michelin Endurance Cup. The race was held at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia. This race was the last ever race for the GTLM Class.
The 2022 Hyundai Monterey SportsCar Championship was a sports car race held at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca near Monterey, California on May 1, 2022. It was the fourth round of the 2022 IMSA SportsCar Championship and the second round of the 2022 WeatherTech Sprint Cup. Wayne Taylor Racing's No. 10 car piloted by Ricky Taylor and Filipe Albuquerque collected their first victory of the season.
The 2019 Monterey Grand Prix was a sports car race sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). The race was held at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey County, California, on September 15, 2019. This race was the eleventh round of the 2019 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, and the seventh round of the WeatherTech Sprint Cup.
The 2021 Grand Prix of Long Beach was a sports car race sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). The race was held at Long Beach street circuit in Long Beach, California on September 25, 2021. It was the tenth round of the 2021 IMSA SportsCar Championship, and seventh the round of 2021 WeatherTech Sprint Cup.
The 2021 IMSA Monterey Grand Prix was a sports car race sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). The race was held at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna in Monterey, California on September 12, 2021. The race was the ninth round of the 2021 IMSA SportsCar Championship and the sixth round of the WeatherTech Sprint Cup.