The2020 IMSA SportsCar Weekend was asports car race sanctioned by theInternational Motor Sports Association (IMSA). The race was held atRoad America inElkhart Lake, Wisconsin, on August 2, 2020. This race was the fourth round of the2020 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, and the third round of the 2020 WeatherTech Sprint Cup.
After a 21-minute weather-induced red flag sandwiched between 22 minutes of full-coursecaution, the race was won by the #7 team ofHélio Castroneves andRicky Taylor, while the LMP2 class victory was taken by theDragonSpeed entry of Henrik Hedman andBen Hanley. The GTLM class was won byAntonio García andJordan Taylor ofCorvette Racing, the team's third consecutive victory.AIM Vasser Sullivan also claimed their third consecutive victory, asFrankie Montecalvo andTownsend Bell scored their first class victory of the season.[1]
ThenInternational Motor Sports Association's (IMSA) president Scott Atherton confirmed the race was part of the schedule for the2020 IMSA SportsCar Championship (IMSA SCC) in August 2019.[2] It was the seventh consecutive year it was part of the IMSA SCC. The race was held at the fourteen-turn 4.048 mi (6.515 km)Road America on August 2, 2020.[3] The race was the third for the series after returning from theCOVID-19 pandemic, and the first besides theRolex 24 which was included on the series' initial pre-pandemic schedule. It was the third of seven races on the WeatherTech Sprint Cup calendar.
Fans were allowed to be present at the event, but the garage area was restricted to essential team personnel, when it's typically open to fans.[4] TheMazda duo ofJonathan Bomarito andHarry Tincknell entered the race as defending champions.[4]
On July 24, 2020, IMSA released the latest technical bulletin, highlighting the BoP for the race.[5] In DPi, theAcura ARX-05 andMazda RT24-P received weight reductions, while theCadillac DPi-V.R and Mazda also received reductions in fuel capacity. The Acura also received a boost increase. In GTLM, theBMW M8 GTE received a slight weight decrease and a horsepower increase, while all cars received a fuel capacity increase. The BMW also received a slight boost increase. In GTD, all cars received a fuel capacity increase, and the Ferrari saw a boost decrease. The Audi and Lamborghini saw minor horsepower increases, while the Ferrari and Lexus received almost equivalent decreases. The restrictor diameter on the Lexus was also reduced, while it was increased on the Audi and Lamborghini.
Before the race,Ryan Briscoe andRenger van der Zande led the DPi Drivers' Championship with 92 points, ahead ofOliver Jarvis andTristan Nunez with 92 points, andSébastien Bourdais andJoão Barbosa with 90 points.[6] With 35 points, Patrick Kelly andSpencer Pigot led the LMP2 Drivers' Championship with 35 points, ahead of Cameron Cassels andKyle Masson with 32 points.[6]Antonio García andJordan Taylor led the GTLM Drivers' Championship with 95 points, ahead ofEarl Bamber andLaurens Vanthoor with 94 points.[6] In GTD,Jack Hawksworth led the GTD Drivers' Championship with 57 points, ahead ofAaron Telitz with 54 points.[6]Cadillac,Chevrolet, andLamborghini were leading their respective Manufacturers' Championships, whileKonica Minolta Cadillac DPi-V.R,PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports,Corvette Racing, andAIM Vasser Sullivan each led their own Teams' Championships.[6]
A total of 31 cars took part in the event, split across four classes. 8 were entered in DPi, 4 in LMP2, 6 in GTLM, and 13 in GTD.[7] In DPi, the only change from the previous event was the return ofChris Miller to theJDC-Miller Motorsports #85 after being replaced byStephen Simpson at Sebring.[7]Simon Trummer returned in the LMP2 class after being forced to miss the previous round due to travel restrictions. The #8 Tower Motorsport byStarworks car withdrew late in the buildup to the event.[8] GTD saw the largest difference from the previous round, as Meyer Shank Racing returned with their two entries after skipping the Sebring round.[8] Heart of Racing Team also returned for the first time since the season-opening race.[7] GEAR Racing, who had previously announced their intentions to enter the event, were not on the final entry list.[7]
There were two practice sessions preceding the start of the race on Sunday, one on Friday and one on Saturday. The first session lasted one hour on Friday while the second session on Saturday lasted 75 minutes.[9]
The first practice session took place at 4:35 pmCT on Friday and ended withRicky Taylor topping the charts forAcura Team Penske, with a lap time of 1:50.654.[10]Simon Trummer was fastest in LMP2 with a time of 1:53.381.[11] The GTLM class was topped by the #911Porsche GT TeamPorsche 911 RSR-19 ofNick Tandy with a time of 2:01.492.Laurens Vanthoor in the sister #912Porsche GT Team entry was second andJesse Krohn rounded out the top 3.[12] The GTD class was topped by the #96Turner MotorsportBMW M6 GT3 ofBill Auberlen with a time of 2:06.822.[10]
| Pos. | Class | No. | Team | Driver | Time | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DPi | 7 | Acura Team Penske | Ricky Taylor | 1:50.654 | _ |
| 2 | DPi | 6 | Acura Team Penske | Dane Cameron | 1:50.929 | +0.275 |
| 3 | DPi | 10 | Konica Minolta Cadillac | Renger van der Zande | 1:50.939 | +0.285 |
| Sources:[13][14] | ||||||
The second and final practice session took place at 8:55 amCT on Saturday and ended withDane Cameron topping the charts forAcura Team Penske, with a lap time of 1:49.280.[15]Simon Trummer was fastest in LMP2 with a time of 1:52.618.[16] The GTLM class was topped by the #4Corvette RacingChevrolet Corvette C8.R ofOliver Gavin with a time of 2:00.987.Frédéric Makowiecki in the ##911Porsche GT Team was second andJordan Taylor rounded out the top 3.[17] The GTD class was topped by the #14AIM Vasser SullivanLexus RC F GT3 ofAaron Telitz with a time of 2:05.691.[17] The session wasred flagged whenRobby Foley suffered brake failure and crashed at turn 5.[16]
| Pos. | Class | No. | Team | Driver | Time | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DPi | 6 | Acura Team Penske | Dane Cameron | 1:49.280 | _ |
| 2 | DPi | 7 | Acura Team Penske | Ricky Taylor | 1:49.445 | +0.165 |
| 3 | DPi | 77 | Mazda Motorsports | Tristan Nunez | 1:49.885 | +0.605 |
| Sources:[18][19] | ||||||
Saturday's afternoon qualifying was broken into three sessions, with one session for the DPi and LMP2, GTLM, and GTD classes, which lasted for 15 minutes each, and a ten minute interval between the sessions.[9] The rules dictated that all teams nominated a driver to qualify their cars, with the Pro-Am (LMP2/GTD) classes requiring a Bronze/Silver Rated Driver to qualify the car. The competitors' fastest lap times determined the starting order. IMSA then arranged the grid to put DPis ahead of the LMP2, GTLM, and GTD cars.[20]
The first was for cars in GTD class.Aaron Telitz qualified on pole for the class driving the #14 car forAIM Vasser Sullivan, besting Frankie Montecalvo in the sister #12 AIM Vasser Sullivan entry.[21]
The second session of qualifying was for cars in the GTLM class.Laurens Vanthoor qualified on pole driving the #912 car forPorsche GT Team, beatingJordan Taylor in the #3Corvette Racing entry by more than two tenths of a second.[22]
The final session was for cars in the LMP2 and DPi classes.Ricky Taylor qualified on pole driving the #7 car forAcura Team Penske, beatingDane Cameron in the sister #6Acura Team Penske entry by over three tenths of a second.[22] Patrick Kelly set the fastest time in LMP2 driving the #52PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports car.[23]
Pole positions in each class are indicated inbold and by ‡.
| Pos. | Class | No. | Team | Driver | Time | Gap | Grid |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DPi | 7 |  Acura Team Penske | Ricky Taylor | 1:49.061 | _ | 1‡ |
| 2 | DPi | 6 | Acura Team Penske | Dane Cameron | 1:49.379 | +0.318 | 2 |
| 3 | DPi | 55 |  Mazda Motorsports |  Harry Tincknell | 1:49.607 | +0.546 | 3 |
| 4 | DPi | 77 | Mazda Motorsports | Tristan Nunez | 1:50.120 | +1.059 | 4 |
| 5 | DPi | 10 | Konica Minolta Cadillac |  Ryan Briscoe | 1:50.216 | +1.155 | 5 |
| 6 | DPi | 5 | JDC-Mustang Sampling Racing |  João Barbosa | 1:50.742 | +1.681 | 6 |
| 7 | DPi | 31 | Whelen Engineering Racing |  Felipe Nasr | 1:51.391 | +2.330 | 7 |
| 8 | DPi | 85 | JDC-Miller MotorSports | Chris Miller | 1:51.681 | +2.620 | 8 |
| 9 | LMP2 | 52 | PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports | Patrick Kelly | 1:54.474 | +5.413 | 9‡ |
| 10 | LMP2 | 81 | DragonSpeed USA |  Henrik Hedman | 1:55.427 | +6.366 | 10 |
| 11 | LMP2 | 38 | Performance Tech Motorsports | Cameron Cassels | 1:56.965 | +7.904 | 11 |
| 12 | LMP2 | 18 | Era Motorsport | Dwight Merriman | 1:57.589 | +8.528 | 12 |
| 13 | GTLM | 912 | Porsche GT Team |  Laurens Vanthoor | 2:00.590 | +11.529 | 13‡ |
| 14 | GTLM | 3 | Corvette Racing | Jordan Taylor | 2:00.854 | +11.793 | 14 |
| 15 | GTLM | 4 | Corvette Racing | Oliver Gavin | 2:00.904 | +11.843 | 15 |
| 16 | GTLM | 25 | BMW Team RLL | Bruno Spengler | 2:01.155 | +12.904 | 16 |
| 17 | GTLM | 24 | BMW Team RLL |  Jesse Krohn | 2:01.202 | +12.141 | 17 |
| 18 | GTLM | 911 | Porsche GT Team |  Frédéric Makowiecki | 2:01.305 | +12.244 | 18 |
| 19 | GTD | 14 | AIM Vasser Sullivan | Aaron Telitz | 2:06.251 | +17.190 | 19‡ |
| 20 | GTD | 12 | AIM Vasser Sullivan | Frankie Montecalvo | 2:07.038 | +17.977 | 20 |
| 21 | GTD | 76 | Compass Racing | Corey Fergus | 2:07.265 | +18.204 | 21 |
| 22 | GTD | 96 | Turner Motorsport | Robby Foley | 2:07.361 | +18.300 | 22 |
| 23 | GTD | 74 | Riley Motorsports | Gar Robinson | 2:07.911 | +18.850 | 23 |
| 24 | GTD | 63 | Scuderia Corsa | Cooper MacNeil | 2:07.924 | +18.863 | 24 |
| 25 | GTD | 86 | Meyer Shank Racing withCurb-Agajanian | Matt McMurry | 2:07.942 | +18.881 | 25 |
| 26 | GTD | 57 | Heinricher Racing withMSRCurb-Agajanian | Misha Goikhberg | 2:08.118 | +19.057 | 26 |
| 27 | GTD | 16 | Wright Motorsports | Ryan Hardwick | 2:08.269 | +19.208 | 27 |
| 28 | GTD | 22 | Gradient Racing | Till Bechtolsheimer | 2:08.520 | +19.459 | 28 |
| 29 | GTD | 23 | Heart of Racing Team | Ian James | 2:08.540 | +19.479 | 311 |
| 30 | GTD | 44 | GRTMagnus | John Potter | 2:09.822 | +20.761 | 29 |
| 31 | GTD | 30 | Team Hardpoint | Rob Ferriol | 2:10.474 | +21.413 | 30 |
| Sources:[24][25] | |||||||
The result kept Briscoe and van der Zande atop the DPi Drivers' Championship. Bourdais and Barbosa advanced from third to second while Jarvis and Nunez dropped from second to third. Derani moved to fourth after being fifth coming into Road America.[26] In LMP2, Cassels took the lead of the Drivers' Championship while Hedman advanced from fifth to third. Pigot dropped from first to fifth.[26] With a total of 130 points, Antonio García and Jordan Taylor's victory allowed them to extend their advantage over Bamber and Vanthoor in the GTLM Drivers' Championship to ten points.[26] The result kept Hawksworth atop the GTD Drivers' Championship with 87 points. Bell and Montecalvo advanced from sixth to second while Farnbacher and McMurry jumped from eighth to fourth.[26] Cadillac and Chevrolet continued to top their respective Manufacturers' Championships while Lexus took the lead of the GTD Manufactures' Championship.[26] Konica Minolta Cadillac DPi-V.R, Corvette Racing, and AIM Vasser Sullivan kept their respective advantages in their respective of Teams' Championships while Performance Tech Motorsports took the lead of the LMP2 Teams' Championship with seven rounds remaining.[26]
Class winners are denoted inbold and ‡.
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| IMSA SportsCar Championship | ||
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| Previous race: 2020 Cadillac Grand Prix of Sebring | 2020 season | Next race: 2020 Michelin GT Challenge at VIR |
