The 2023 Motul Course de Monterey (formally known as the Motul Course de Monterey Powered by Hyundai N) was a sports car race held at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca near Monterey, California on May 14, 2023. It was the fourth round of the 2023 IMSA SportsCar Championship and the second round of the 2023 WeatherTech Sprint Cup.
International Motor Sports Association's (IMSA) president John Doonan confirmed the race was part of the schedule for the 2023 IMSA SportsCar Championship (IMSA SCC) in August 2022. [1] It was the tenth consecutive year it was part of the IMSA SCC. [2] The 2023 Motul Course de Monterey was the fourth of eleven scheduled sports car races of 2023 by IMSA, and the second of seven races of the WeatherTech Sprint Cup. [3] The race was held at the eleven-turn 2.238 mi (3.602 km) WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca on May 14, 2023. [4]
After the Grand Prix of Long Beach four weeks earlier, Nick Tandy and Mathieu Jaminet led the GTP Drivers' Championship with 955 points, ahead of Pipo Derani and Alexander Sims with 954 points followed by Filipe Albuquerque and Ricky Taylor with 934 points. [5] With 375 points, the LMP2 Drivers' Championship was led by John Farano, Scott McLaughlin, and Kyffin Simpson with a twenty-five point advantage over Scott Huffaker, Mikkel Jensen, and Steven Thomas. [5] Ben Barnicoat and Jack Hawksworth led the GTD Pro Drivers' Championship with 1067 points ahead of Jules Gounon and Daniel Juncadella with 994 points. [5] In GTD, the Drivers' Championship was led by Bryan Sellers and Madison Snow with 1008 points, ahead of Roman De Angelis and Marco Sørensen with 909 points. [5] Cadillac, Lexus, and BMW were leading their respective Manufacturers' Championships, while Porsche Penske Motorsport, Tower Motorsports, Vasser Sullivan Racing, and Paul Miller Racing each led their own Teams' Championships. [5]
On May 4, 2023, IMSA released the latest technical bulletin outlining Balance of Performance for the GTP, GTD Pro, and GTD classes. In GTP, both Cadillac and BMW received weight reductions, whilst Porsche and Acura received weight increases compared to Long Beach. The Cadillac ran at 1030 kg, the BMW ran at 1031 kg, the Porsche ran at 1038 kg, and the Acura ran at 1049 kg. As a result, the Cadillac ran on 511 kilowatts of power, the BMW on 512 kW, the Porsche on 514 kW, and the Acura on 520 kW. Maximum stint energy figures were also adjusted. [6] In GTD Pro and GTD, the only changes in BoP are a 10 kg weight increase for BMW and a 5-liter decrease of fuel tank capacity for McLaren. [6]
A total of 38 cars took part in the event, split across four classes. 9 car were entered in GTP, 8 in LMP2, 5 in GTD Pro, and 16 in GTD. [7] In GTP, the entry list was headlined by the addition of the JDC-Miller MotorSports entry, featuring the first Porsche 963 customer entry on the IMSA SportsCar Championship grid. The car was driven by Tijmen van der Helm and Mike Rockenfeller. [8] In LMP2, the No. 04 CrowdStrike Racing by APR Oreca 07 also entered with Ben Hanley and George Kurtz, even though the car was initially not confirmed as a full-season entry. [7] In GTD, Andretti Autosport debuted their No. 94 Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3, driven by Jarett Andretti and Gabby Chaves. [9]
There were two practice sessions preceding the start of the race on Sunday, one on Friday and one on Saturday. The first session lasted 90 minutes on Friday while the second session on Saturday lasted 105 minutes. [10]
The first practice session took place at 4:05 pm PT on Friday and ended with Matt Campbell topping the charts for Porsche Penske Motorsport, with a lap time of 1:16.703. [11] Louis Delétraz set the fastest time in LMP2 driving the #8 Tower Motorsports entry. [12] Ben Barnicoat was fastest in GTD Pro while Frankie Montecalvo set the fastest time amongst all GTD cars. [13]
| Pos. | Class | No. | Team | Driver | Time | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GTP | 7 | Porsche Penske Motorsport | Matt Campbell | 1:16.703 | _ |
| 2 | GTP | 60 | Meyer Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian | Colin Braun | 1:17.019 | +0.316 |
| 3 | GTP | 6 | Porsche Penske Motorsport | Mathieu Jaminet | 1:17.115 | +0.412 |
| Sources: [14] [15] | ||||||
The second and final practice session took place at 8:55 am PT on Saturday and ended with Matt Campbell topping the charts for Porsche Penske Motorsport, with a lap time of 1:15.493. [16] Ed Jones set the fastest time in LMP2. [17] The GTD Pro class was topped by the #23 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 of Alex Riberas while Loris Spinelli was fastest in GTD. [17]
| Pos. | Class | No. | Team | Driver | Time | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GTP | 7 | Porsche Penske Motorsport | Matt Campbell | 1:15.493 | _ |
| 2 | GTP | 31 | Whelen Engineering Racing | Pipo Derani | 1:15.642 | +0.149 |
| 3 | GTP | 60 | Meyer Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian | Colin Braun | 1:15.716 | +0.223 |
| Sources: [18] [19] | ||||||
Saturday’s afternoon qualifying was broken into three sessions, with one session for the GTP, LMP2, and GTD Pro and GTD classes, which lasted for 20 minutes for the GTP session, and 15 minutes for the LMP2, and GTD Pro/GTD sessions. [10] The rules dictated that all teams nominated a driver to qualify their cars, with the Pro-Am LMP2 class requiring a Bronze rated driver to qualify the car. The competitors' fastest lap times determined the starting order. IMSA then arranged the grid to put GTPs ahead of the LMP2, GTD Pro, and GTD cars. [20]
Qualifying was broken into three sessions. The first was cars in the GTD Pro and GTD classes. Klaus Bachler qualified on pole in GTD Pro driving the #9 Pfaff Motorsports entry. Alec Udell qualified on pole in GTD driving the #92 Kelly-Moss with Riley entry, besting Roman De Angelis in the #27 Heart of Racing Team entry. [21]
The second session of qualifying was for cars in the LMP2 class. George Kurtz qualified on pole for the class driving the #04 car for CrowdStrike Racing by APR. [22]
The final session of qualifying was for the GTP class. Matt Campbell qualified on pole driving the No. 7 car for Porsche Penske Motorsport, beating Mathieu Jaminet in the sister #6 car for Porsche Penske Motorsport by less than one tenth of a second. [23]
Pole positions in each class are indicated in bold and by ‡.
| Pos. | Class | No. | Team | Driver | Time | Gap | Grid |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GTP | 7 | Porsche Penske Motorsport |  Matt Campbell | 1:14.774 | _ | 1‡ |
| 2 | GTP | 6 | Porsche Penske Motorsport |  Mathieu Jaminet | 1:14.864 | +0.090 | 2 |
| 3 | GTP | 60 | Meyer Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian |  Colin Braun | 1:14.979 | +0.205 | 3 |
| 4 | GTP | 31 | Whelen Engineering Racing |  Pipo Derani | 1:15.007 | +0.233 | 4 |
| 5 | GTP | 10 | Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Autosport | Ricky Taylor | 1:15.303 | +0.529 | 5 |
| 6 | GTP | 01 | Cadillac Racing | Sébastien Bourdais | 1:15.335 | +0.561 | 6 |
| 7 | GTP | 25 | BMW M Team RLL | Connor De Phillippi | 1:15.648 | +0.874 | 7 |
| 8 | GTP | 24 | BMW M Team RLL |  Philipp Eng | 1:15.747 | +0.973 | 8 |
| 9 | GTP | 5 | JDC-Miller MotorSports |  Tijmen van der Helm | 1:16.995 | +2.221 | 9 |
| 10 | LMP2 | 04 | CrowdStrike Racing by APR | George Kurtz | 1:19.262 | +4.488 | 10‡ |
| 11 | LMP2 | 52 | PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports | Ben Keating | 1:19.323 | +4.549 | 11 |
| 12 | LMP2 | 11 | TDS Racing | Steven Thomas | 1:19.718 | +4.944 | 12 |
| 13 | LMP2 | 35 | TDS Racing | François Heriau | 1:20.475 | +5.701 | 16 |
| 14 | LMP2 | 51 | Rick Ware Racing | Eric Lux | 1:20.625 | +5.851 | 17 |
| 15 | LMP2 | 20 | High Class Racing |  Dennis Andersen | 1:20.655 | +5.881 | 13 |
| 16 | LMP2 | 8 | Tower Motorsports |  John Farano | 1:21.055 | +6.281 | 14 |
| 17 | LMP2 | 18 | Era Motorsport | Dwight Merriman | 1:21.912 | +7.138 | 15 |
| 18 | GTD Pro | 9 | Pfaff Motorsports | Klaus Bachler | 1:24.529 | +9.755 | 18‡ |
| 19 | GTD | 92 | Kelly-Moss with Riley | Alec Udell | 1:24.539 | +9.765 | 19‡ |
| 20 | GTD | 27 | Heart of Racing Team | Roman De Angelis | 1:24.647 | +9.873 | 20 |
| 21 | GTD Pro | 23 | Heart of Racing Team |  Alex Riberas | 1:24.654 | +9.880 | 21 |
| 22 | GTD Pro | 79 | WeatherTech Racing | Daniel Juncadella | 1:24.706 | +9.932 | 22 |
| 23 | GTD Pro | 14 | Vasser Sullivan Racing |  Jack Hawksworth | 1:24.727 | +9.953 | 23 |
| 24 | GTD Pro | 3 | Corvette Racing | Jordan Taylor | 1:24.907 | +10.133 | 24 |
| 25 | GTD | 80 | AO Racing Team | Sebastian Priaulx | 1:25.005 | +10.231 | 25 |
| 26 | GTD | 12 | Vasser Sullivan Racing | Frankie Montecalvo | 1:25.085 | +10.311 | 26 |
| 27 | GTD | 1 | Paul Miller Racing | Madison Snow | 1:25.260 | +10.486 | 27 |
| 28 | GTD | 32 | Team Korthoff Motorsports | Mike Skeen | 1:25.433 | +10.659 | 28 |
| 29 | GTD | 96 | Turner Motorsport | Patrick Gallagher | 1:25.440 | +10.666 | 29 |
| 30 | GTD | 57 | Winward Racing | Russell Ward | 1:25.442 | +10.668 | 30 |
| 31 | GTD | 91 | Kelly-Moss with Riley | Alan Metni | 1:25.601 | +10.827 | 31 |
| 32 | GTD | 70 | Inception Racing | Brendan Iribe | 1:25.842 | +11.068 | 32 |
| 33 | GTD | 78 | Forte Racing powered by US RaceTronics | Misha Goikhberg | 1:25.927 | +11.153 | 33 |
| 34 | GTD | 97 | Turner Motorsport | Chandler Hull | 1:26.227 | +11.453 | 34 |
| 35 | GTD | 94 | Andretti Autosport | Jarett Andretti | 1:26.289 | +11.515 | 35 |
| 36 | GTD | 66 | Gradient Racing | Sheena Monk | 1:26.363 | +11.589 | 36 |
| 37 | GTD | 77 | Wright Motorsports | Alan Brynjolfsson | 1:26.365 | +11.591 | 37 |
| 38 | GTD | 44 | Magnus Racing | John Potter | 1:26.415 | +11.641 | 38 |
| Sources: [24] [25] | |||||||
The result kept Tandy and Jaminet atop the GTP Drivers' Championship, 25 points ahead of Derani and Sims. Bourdais and van der Zande advanced from sixth to fourth. [26] In the LMP2 Drivers' Championship, Loup Chatin and Keating advanced from fourth to second while Farano dropped from first to third. [26] The result kept Barnicoat and Hawksworth atop the GTD Pro Drivers' Championship. [26] The result kept Sellers and Snow atop the GTD Drivers' Championship while Iribe and Schandorff advanced from fourth to second. Cadillac, Lexus, and BMW continued to top their respective Manufacturers' Championships, while Porsche Penske Motorsport, Vasser Sullivan Racing, and Paul Miller Racing kept their respective advantages in their respective of Teams' Championships. TDS Racing took the lead in the LMP2 Teams' Championships with seven races remaining in the season. [26]
Class winners are in bold and ‡.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
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 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 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 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 2023 IMSA SportsCar Championship was the 53rd racing season sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association, which traces its lineage back to the 1971 IMSA GT Championship. It was also the tenth season of the IMSA SportsCar Championship since the merger between the American Le Mans Series and the Rolex Sports Car Series in 2014, and the eighth under the sponsorship of WeatherTech. The 2023 season marked an overhaul season for the championship, with a change in class structure and a new race on the season calendar at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The championship began with the 24 Hours of Daytona on January 28 and concluded with the Petit Le Mans on October 14 after 11 races.
The 2023 24 Hours of Daytona was an endurance sports car race sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). The event was held at Daytona International Speedway combined road course in Daytona Beach, Florida, on January 28–29, 2023. This event was the 61st running of the 24 Hours of Daytona since its inception in 1962, and the first of 11 races across multiple classes in the 2023 IMSA SportsCar Championship, as well as the first of four rounds in the 2023 Michelin Endurance Cup. The No. 60 Meyer Shank Racing Acura, driven by Tom Blomqvist, Colin Braun, Hélio Castroneves and Simon Pagenaud, took the overall win, but the team was later penalized for tire pressure data manipulation, resulting in penalties, fines and probation for those responsible. This was Meyer Shank's second Rolex 24 win in a row, and their third major endurance race win in four events. The No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Acura finished second overall and scored the most points towards the GTP championship.
The 2023 12 Hours of Sebring was an endurance sports car race held at Sebring International Raceway near Sebring, Florida from 15 to 18 March 2023. It was the second round of both the 2023 IMSA SportsCar Championship and the Michelin Endurance Cup. Cadillac Racing entered as the defending overall winners of the 12-hour event, albeit in the new-for-2023 GTP class rather than DPi.
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 2023 Grand Prix of Long Beach was a sports car race held at Long Beach street circuit in Long Beach, California on April 15, 2023. It was the third round of the 2023 IMSA SportsCar Championship and the first round of the 2023 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.
The 2023 Sahlen's Six Hours of The Glen was an endurance 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 June 25, 2023. The race was the fifth round of the 2023 IMSA SportsCar Championship, and the third round of the 2023 Michelin Endurance Cup.
The 2023 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 6, 2023. The event was the eighth round of the 2023 IMSA SportsCar Championship, and the fifth round of the WeatherTech Sprint Cup.
The 2023 IMSA Battle on the Bricks was a sports car race that was sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). The race was held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana on September 17, 2023. The event was the tenth round of the 2023 IMSA SportsCar Championship and the seventh round of the WeatherTech Sprint Cup.
The 2023 Petit Le Mans was the 26th running of the Petit Le Mans, and was held on October 14, 2023. The event was the 11th and final round in the 2023 IMSA SportsCar Championship, and the fourth round of the 2023 Michelin Endurance Cup. The race was held at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia.
The 2024 24 Hours of Daytona was an endurance sports car race sanctioned by International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). The race was held at Daytona International Speedway combined road course in Daytona Beach, Florida on January 27–28, 2024. The event was the 62nd running of the 24 Hours of Daytona since its inception in 1962, and the first of 11 races across multiple classes in the 2024 IMSA SportsCar Championship, as well as the first of five rounds in the 2024 Michelin Endurance Cup. The 2024 race was shortened due to an officiating error causing the race to end 1 minute 35.277 seconds short of the scheduled 24 hours.
The 2024 12 Hours of Sebring was an endurance sports car race being held at Sebring International Raceway near Sebring, Florida, scheduled from March 13 to 16, 2024. It was the second round of both the 2024 IMSA SportsCar Championship and the Michelin Endurance Cup.
The 2024 Motul Course de Monterey was a sports car race held at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca near Monterey, California, on May 12, 2024. It was the fourth round of the 2024 IMSA SportsCar Championship.
