Practice starts today 8/22/25 for the IMSA race at VIR race this weekend

For IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship drivers have weighed in on the new-for-2025 class split between the GTD Pro and GTD categories, with most having admitted to just being a “different” element to races.
In a change for this season, all GTD Pro class cars start each race ahead of the GTD pack, even if some of the Pro-Am driver-enforced entries end up quicker in qualifying, which is now run in separate 15-minute sessions.

Additionally, GTD Pro cars are cycled to the front of the pack while under most full-course cautions, helping provide direct on-track battles between cars in their respective classes.
This has led to mixed feelings within the paddock, particularly with GTD competitors, who had previously been able to leverage slower GTD Pro cars while fighting for positions in their own class.

“The intermingling of the two classes is interesting from the GTD field,” said Triarsi Competizione driver Kenton Koch.
“I’m sure a lot of the GTD competitors are kind of frustrated with that, but the GTD Pro guys are really, really happy about that, but that’s just kind of how the nature of the beast works.

“It’s something different that you have to adapt to, and it’s neither bad nor good. It’s just the way it is and what you have to do to make the best of the situation. It’s no complaints, it’s just different.”
Vasser Sullivan Lexus ace Jack Hawksworth, meanwhile, admits the new procedures are “pretty different” to what was in place since the launch of the GTD Pro class in 2022.

“I like it in the sense that you’re always racing the guys in your class off the start but where it does become confusing is you end up with much faster cars behind slower cars,” he said.
“For instance you look at Road America, the fastest car was the Mercedes-AMG, and they qualified on pole overall, and they had to start behind cars which in qualifying, and they were two or three seconds a lot faster than.
“So it definitely makes it interesting because you end up with a set of faster cars kind of stuck behind a set of slower cars, which bunches the field up.

“From a GTD perspective, if you were able to then get one or two of the GTD Pro cars between you and the other GTD cars, as long as another caution doesn’t come out, it’s quite a big advantage, and you can obviously then pull out a big gap artificially because you’ve got cars from the other class slowing down the front-runners in your class.

“It’s different. It makes it at the end of a race, if you’ve got a [late] restart or something, it’s kind of re-rack and kind of turns it into a shootout, which is exciting for everybody.
“Like Kenton said, it’s just different. I don’t really have an opinion on an opinion on it. It’s just different.”
When asked if it will be any different this weekend, being a GT-only race, Hawksworth said it could add a new dynamic.
“If you’re the GTD leader, you would probably want to leave a gap to the GTD Pro cars on a restart. But IMSA has been very inconsistent in the way that they call this gapping rule.

“Like sometimes you get a penalty, if you leave more than a 10 or 15-car length gap and then another time you can jump the start or be way behind and get a big run, and they allow it. So, it’s hard to know, really.
“For the GTD Pro guys, it will make a big difference because they won’t have to worry about the P2s or the GTPs in front of them, so they can time their own restart.

“But for the GTD guys, they still have the same situation [of being] held up behind the GTD Pro cars off the start and off the restart, and it becomes a kind of game of how much of a gap do you dare leave on one of these restarts.”

Koch added: “It can be frustrating for the GTD guys but by the same token, if you are buried in a pack of GTD cars, and you don’t have the pace, but you have got craft and your savvy, I think it gives those guys opportunities to potentially get track position because that backed half of the GTD Pro field on a restart that might hold up the fast guys.
“It can actually add a whole other [element that’s] maybe good for the guys in the middle of the GTD field, but, frustrating for the top half of the GTD field.”
Ford Multimatic Motorsports driver Mike Rockenfeller, a front-runner in the GTD Pro class, meanwhile, says he prefers the new system IMSA introduced this year.

“For me, personally, last year I raced the first year in GTD Pro and the restarts, we didn’t have a class split,” he said.
“I preferred much more like it is [now]. When you wanted to race the guys you are racing [in class] and sometimes there were ten cars in between you and your next GTD Pro and there’s obviously no way that you make it back to your GTD Pro guy or GTD, it doesn’t matter whoever you race or which category.

“I think it’s a lot better, the way it is. I prefer it, but of course, like Jack said, basically, if the pace difference is as big as it sometimes has been, then it’s not so much fun sometimes… for both.
“I have been in the GTD Pro [car] not being able to be fast enough compared to the quickest GTD. That is something you don’t like for sure.
“And I guess the guy in the GTD [car] is kind of not happy if he’s held up.

“It’s not like a different category, really; the cars are the same. In prototype, it’s different, you just go through, and you race your guys, but here it’s sometimes it’s tough.
“But it’s part of the game, and it sometimes plays in your way and sometimes not, but I think in general the racing, it’s a lot of fun in your own category, for sure.
“I think this year it’s much cleaner in that respect that people understand, which category you are in, because the cars are the same.
I think for the fans, it’s a lot better that we see the battles in-between each GT category. That’s my opinion.”

DragonSpeed Ferrari leads first VIR practice

Under cloudy skies, preparation for the Michelin GT Challenge at VIRginia International Raceway got underway with the No. 81 DragonSpeed Ferrari 296 GT3 recording the fastest time in the first practice session.

DragonSpeed's lead driver Albert Costa took the Ferrari to the top of the timesheets with a 1m45.032s as his best time, the best in GTD PRO.

Leading GTD was the No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO of Russell Ward, who turned in a 1m45.471s, good for second-best overall out of 23 GT3 cars.

From GTD PRO, Andrea Caldarelli was second fastest in the No. 9 Pfaff Motorsports Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2, followed by Road America winner Neil Verhagen in the No. 1 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 EVO.

The two Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports Z06 GT3.Rs, and the No. 64 Ford Multimatic Motorsports Mustang GT3, also featured in the overall top 10.

Frederik Schandorff was second in GTD aboard the No. 70 Inception Racing McLaren 720S GT3 EVO; then the No. 34 Conquest Racing Ferrari and No. 13 AWA Corvette in third and fourth.

All 90 minutes proceeded with no major incidents, and only a brief red flag for debris on circuit. The best times of all 23 cars were covered by a spread of just under two seconds.

Practice 2 starts tomorrow at 10:35am ET, with qualifying starting later that afternoon at 4:55pm ET.

After second practice for the IMSA Michelin GT Challenge at VIR, Ferraris are on top of both GT classes, and in GTD PRO, the top two cars set identical lap times.
For the second session in a row, the No. 81 DragonSpeed Ferrari 296 GT3 set the outright fastest time and the top time in GTD PRO. After Albert Costa set the pace in Practice 1, this time it was co-driver Giacomo Altoe that led the way with a 1m45.011s.

Only a minute later, Sebastian Priaulx in the "Liquid Carbon" No. 64 Ford Multimatic Motorsports Mustang GT3 (pictured above) set the exact same time as Altoe, which held up for second place.
In GTD, Onofrio Triarsi set the fastest time in the No. 021 Triarsi Competizione Ferrari, posting a 1m45.324s about 40 minutes into the 90-minute session.

All 90 minutes proceeded with no red flags, but with about 15 minutes to go,
smoke began to pour from out of the exhausts of the No. 4 Pratt Miller Motorsports Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R. Tommy Milner’s car was pulled behind the wall at Turn 1 safely, then retreated to the garage. The car will undergo a precautionary engine change ahead of qualifying.

Co-driver Nicky Catsburg had set the third-fastest time in the car earlier in the session, ahead of teammate Antonio Garcia in the No. 3 Corvette.

The No. 78 Forte Racing Lamborghini also spent most of the session in the garage with a fuel pump issue, before returning late. On the other hand, the No. 14 Vasser Sullivan Racing Lexus enjoyed an uninterrupted practice after losing most of the first session with electrical problems.

Behind the Triarsi 296, the No. 12 Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3 of Jack Hawksworth was second fastest in GTD, followed by the No. 45 Wayne Taylor Racing Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2 of Danny Formal, and the No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO of Russell Ward.

Rounding out the top five in each class, and the top ten overall, were the No. 1 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 EVO and the No. 34 Conquest Racing Ferrari.
Heading into this afternoon’s qualifying session at 4:55 ET, the field is very close around VIRginia International Raceway:
Less than one second covered the best times of 19 out of the 23 cars entered.

Giacomo Altoe secured overall pole for Sunday’s Michelin GT Challenge at Virginia International Raceway, giving DragonSpeed its fourth top-qualifying run of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season.
The Italian drove his No. 81 Ferrari 296 GT3 to a chart-topping 1:44.433, edging out the No. 1 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 EVO of Neil Verhagen by 0.045 seconds.

Altoe helped co-driver Albert Costa inch closer to the lead of the GTD Pro class championship lead. Costa entered the weekend just 30 points behind the No. 3 Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R of Antonio Garcia and Alexander Sims.
Paul Miller Racing teammate Dan Harper qualified the No. 48 BMW in third, with the pair of factory-supported Corvettes completing the top-five.

It came after a precautionary engine change for the No. 4 Corvette after issues in second practice.

Seb Priaulx was sixth quickest in the No. 64 Multimatic Ford Mustang GT3, ahead of Klaus Bachler’s No. 77 AO Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R and the No. 65 Ford of Frederic Vervisch.
The No. 14 Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3 of Aaron Telitz found trouble after spinning off course in Turn 14, although improved on his initial 1:47.044 lap time set prior to the incident.

GTD pole honors went to the No. 12 Vasser Sullivan Lexus of Jack Hawksworth.
In a reverse driver strategy that typically sees Silver-rated Parker Thompson qualify, Hawksworth reeled off a 1:44.860 to edge out points leader Russell Ward by 0.138 seconds.

Ward, who scored class pole last time out at Road America, will start second in the No. 57 Winward Racing Meredes-AMG GT3 Evo.
Road America class winner Onofrio Triarsi was third in the No. 021 Triarsi Competizione Ferrari, just 0.001 seconds slower than Ward’s time.
The No. 27 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo of Casper Stevenson and the Manny Franco-qualified No. 34 Conquest Racing Ferrari completed the top-five in class.

The Michelin GT Challenge gets underway Sunday at 2 p.m. EST with live coverage on the USA Network, Peacock, as well as IMSA’s YouTube channel for international viewers.

Corvette program looking for seventh IMSA victory in GT-only contest

ALTON, Virginia (August 23, 2025)
Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports will start fourth and fifth Sunday for the Michelin GT Challenge at VIR, looking for additional speed to contend for a long-awaited first victory this season.

Antonio Garcia led the team’s qualifying efforts Saturday at Virginia International Raceway in the No. 3 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R that shares with Alexander Sims.
A four-time winner at VIR, Garcia’s best lap was a 1:44.886 (112.235 mph) effort to take the outside of the front row.
It also was just 0.005 seconds clear of teammate Nicky Catsburg in the No. 4 Corvette that he will pilot with Tommy Milner.

Catsburg’s result was especially satisfying given a precautionary engine change following Saturday morning’s final practice.
The team suspected a faulty thermostat but elected to remove all guesswork and make the swap with enough time between sessions.

While both qualifying drivers were pleased with their respective Corvettes, both sides of the Pratt Miller garage were looking for ways to close a nearly half-second gap to the GTD PRO front row.

In GTD, DXDT Racing’s No. 36 Corvette will start eighth in class after Alec Udell’s 1:45.453 (111.632 mph) best lap in qualifying. He and Robert Wickens will share the DXDT Corvette for the final time this year, with two endurance races left in the season.

AWA’s No. 13 Corvette of Orey Fidani and Matt Bell will start 13th in GTD in their push for another Akin Award victory in the team’s push for a second straight appearance at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

The Michelin GT Challenge at VIR is scheduled for 2:10 p.m. ET on Sunday and will air live on the USA Network starting at 2 p.m.
Live-streaming on Peacock in the United States and IMSA.com outside the U.S. from 2 to 5 p.m. ET IMSA Radio will provide the audio call at IMSA.com, XM 206 and SiriusXM Online 996.

CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R POST-QUALIFYING DRIVER QUOTES

ANTONIO GARICA, NO. 3 CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

"The results are OK but the car was excellent.
There really wasn't much more we could do than that. Maybe a tenth-and-a-half, if that. When you see you're fourth-tenths off, you know you don't have that. But the Corvette was good in this session, and it felt good in practice. Let's pray for that to be enough for tomorrow."

NICKY CATSBURG, NO. 4 CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

"The crew did an awesome job getting things ready in time. It's never easy, but the Corvette was excellent in qualifying, to be honest. We had super-nice balance. I don't know what I would have changed on it. I felt like I nailed the lap, but couldn't really do much more than that. Four-tenths is too much to ask. But our car is perfect, so hats off to the guys. Let's see what we can do tomorrow."

OREY FIDANI, NO. 13 CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

"The car feels good. I'm happy with my pace overall, as that was the quickest lap time I've put in across all the sessions so far this weekend. I've been doing better and better as I turn more laps. VIR is a challenging track, but the team has done a great job getting us ready for race day and I think we'll be competitive to come tomorrow."

ALEC UDELL, NO. 36 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

"Balance-wise, the car is good.
I think we're just fighting for a bit of grip; it's probably the same for everyone. So it was just digging into a few options (Friday in practice). We made a bunch of setup changes so there was a lot of in-and-out in that session.

I think we've got a good handle on where the car should be and just adapting to the conditions this weekend.
That's kind of where we are. It's not where we thought we would be, I would say, unloading so we have got to dig into that a little bit more."