The2020 Petit Le Mans (formally known as the 2020MOTUL Petit Le Mans for sponsorship reasons) was the 23rd running of thePetit Le Mans, and was held on October 17, 2020. It was the 9th race in the2020 IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship, and the 3rd race of the 2020Michelin Endurance Cup, and was run atRoad Atlanta inBraselton, Georgia. The race was won overall by the #10Konica Minolta CadillacCadillac DPi-V.R after the #7Acura Team Penske and #31Whelen Engineering Racing entries made contact and spun out in the closing minutes of the race.[1]
Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta, where the race was held.
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, and the 23rd Petit Le Mans. The 2020 Petit Le Mans was the ninth of eleven sports car races of 2020 by IMSA, and the third of four races of the Michelin Endurance Cup (MEC).[3] The race took place at the 12-turn, 2.540-mile (4.088 km)Road Atlanta inBraselton, Georgia. The event was one of the first postponed by IMSA as a result of the emergingCOVID-19 pandemic, with the organization citing CDC regulations on public gatherings as the official cause of postponement.[4] The race was rescheduled from running on October 10, 2020, to October 17, 2020.[5] Due to the12 Hours of Sebring getting postponed, Petit Le Mans would not be the season finale for the first time in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.[6][7]
Before the race,Ryan Briscoe andRenger van der Zande led the DPi Drivers' Championship with 180 points, ahead ofPipo Derani in second with 177 points, andHelio Castroneves andRicky Taylor with 175 points.[8] In LMP2, Patrick Kelly led the Drivers' Championship with 98 points, 6 points ahead ofDwight Merriman andKyle Tilley.[8]Antonio García andJordan Taylor led the GTLM Drivers' Championship with 261 points, 24 points ahead ofOliver Gavin andTommy Milner in second, andConnor De Phillippi andBruno Spengler in third.[8] With 200 points, the GTD Drivers' Championship was led byMario Farnbacher andMatt McMurry, ahead ofAaron Telitz.[8]Cadillac,Chevrolet, andLexus were leading their respective Manufactures' Championships whileKonica Minolta Cadillac DPi-V.R,PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports,Corvette Racing, andMeyer Shank Racing withCurb-Agajanian each led their own Teams' Championships.[8]
Felipe Nasr andPipo Derani entered the race as defending winners.[9]
A total of 31 cars took part in the event split across 4 classes. 8 cars were entered in DPi, 4 in LMP2, 6 in GTLM, and 13 in GTD.[10] In DPi,Tristan Vautier replacedJoão Barbosa in theMustang Sampling Racing/JDC-Miller MotorSports entry.[11] In LMP2,Inter Europol Competition made their IMSA SportsCar Championship debut.[12] Era Motorsport withdrew from the event afterDwight Merriman suffered a back injury at the24 Hours of Le Mans.[13]Mikkel Jensen replacedRyan Dalziel in theTower Motorsport By Starworks entry.[14]Job van Uitert made his IMSA SportsCar Championship debut joining Mikkel Jensen and John Farano in theTower Motorsport By Starworks entry.[15]Colin Braun joined Matthew Bell and James McGuire in the Performance Tech Motorsports entry.[16] In GTD, Pfaff Motorsports made their first appearance since the season opening race at Daytona.[17]Scuderia Corsa returned after skipping the previous two rounds. Team Hardpoint expanded its campaign to include running at Petit Le Mans and the12 Hours of Sebring.[18]GRT Grasser Racing Team skipped the event due to a clash with theADAC GT Masters round at theRed Bull Ring.[16]
There were three practice sessions preceding the start of the race on Saturday, all three one on Thursday. The first session on Thursday morning lasted one hour. The second session on Thursday afternoon lasted 75 minutes. The final session on Thursday evening lasted 90 minutes.[19]
The first practice session took place at 11:15 amET on Thursday and ended withRicky Taylor topping the charts forAcura Team Penske, with a lap time of 1:10.086.[20]Mikkel Jensen was fastest in LMP2 with a time of 1:11.078.[21]Laurens Vanthoor set the fastest time in GTLM with a time of 1:17.008.[22] The GTD class was topped by the #48Paul Miller RacingLamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo ofBryan Sellers with a time of 1:19.946.[21] The session was stopped for four minutes whenChris Miller, driving the #85JDC-Miller MotorSports entry, spun at turn 5 and came to a stop facing oncoming traffic.[21]
| Pos. | Class | No. | Team | Driver | Time | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DPi | 7 | Acura Team Penske | Ricky Taylor | 1:10.086 | _ |
| 2 | DPi | 77 | Mazda Motorsports | Oliver Jarvis | 1:10.154 | +0.068 |
| 3 | DPi | 55 | Mazda Motorsports | Jonathan Bomarito | 1:10.243 | +0.157 |
| Sources:[23][24] | ||||||
The second practice session took place at 3:45 pmET on Thursday and ended withFilipe Albuquerque topping the charts forWhelen Engineering Racing, with a lap time of 1:09.230.[25]Simon Trummer set the fastest time in LMP2.[25] The GTLM class topped by the #3Corvette RacingChevrolet Corvette C8.R ofAntonio García with a time of 1:16.901.John Edwards in the #24BMW Team RLL entry was second andConnor De Phillippi rounded out the top 3.[26]Robby Foley set the fastest time in GTD.[27]
| Pos. | Class | No. | Team | Driver | Time | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DPi | 31 | Whelen Engineering Racing | Filipe Albuquerque | 1:09.230 | _ |
| 2 | DPi | 77 | Mazda Motorsports | Felipe Nasr | 1:09.757 | +0.527 |
| 3 | DPi | 10 | Konica Minolta Cadillac | Tristan Nunez | 1:09.860 | +0.630 |
| Sources:[28][29] | ||||||
The third and final practice session took place at 7:30 pmET on Thursday and ended withPipo Derani topping the charts forWhelen Engineering Racing, with a lap time of 1:10.175.[30]Mikkel Jensen was fastest in LMP2 with a time of 1:11.195.[31] The GTLM class topped by the #912Porsche GT TeamPorsche 911 RSR-19 ofLaurens Vanthoor with a time of 1:17.252.Frederic Makowiecki in the sister #911Porsche GT Team entry was second andNicky Catsburg rounded out the top 3.[32]Jack Hawksworth set the fastest time in GTD.[32] The session wasred flagged twice. 55 minutes into the session, Jakub Śmiechowski in the #51Inter Europol Competition Oreca spun at turn 10, and got stuck in the gravel trap.[33][30] 4 minutes later,Ben Keating in the #74Riley MotorsportsMercedes-AMG GT3 Evo, spun at turn 2.Chris Miller in the #85JDC-Miller MotorSportsCadillac DPi-V.R, went off track and collided with Keating's Mercedes. The #85 Cadillac received right-front damage and lost its rear wing while the #74 Mercedes suffered right-front damage.[30][33]
| Pos. | Class | No. | Team | Driver | Time | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DPi | 31 | Whelen Engineering Racing | Pipo Derani | 1:10.175 | _ |
| 2 | DPi | 10 | Konica Minolta Cadillac | Renger van der Zande | 1:10.215 | +0.040 |
| 3 | DPi | 6 | Acura Team Penske | Dane Cameron | 1:10.262 | +0.087 |
| Sources:[34][35] | ||||||
Friday'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.[19] 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.[36]
The first session was for cars in GTD class. Shinya Michimi qualified on pole for the class driving the No. 86 car forMeyer Shank Racing withCurb-Agajanian, besting Jeff Westphal in theScuderia Corsa entry.[37]
The second session was for cars in the GTLM class.Antonio García qualified on pole driving the No. 3 car forCorvette Racing, beatingConnor De Phillippi in the #25BMW Team RLL entry by less than three-tenths of a second.[38]
The final session of qualifying was for cars in the LMP2 and DPi classes.Dane Cameron secured overall pole for the event driving the No. 6 car forAcura Team Penske, beating teammateRicky Taylor in the sister No. 7Acura Team Penske entry by less than one-tenth of a second.[39] Patrick Kelly took pole in LMP2, beating Rob Hodes in theInter Europol Competition entry.[40]
Pole positions in each class are indicated inbold and by ‡.
| Pos. | Class | No. | Team | Driver | Time | Gap | Grid |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DPi | 6 |  Acura Team Penske | Dane Cameron | 1:08.412 | _ | 1‡ |
| 2 | DPi | 7 | Acura Team Penske | Ricky Taylor | 1:08.506 | +0.094 | 2 |
| 3 | DPi | 31 | Whelen Engineering Racing |  Felipe Nasr | 1:08.612 | +0.200 | 3 |
| 4 | DPi | 55 |  Mazda Motorsports |  Harry Tincknell | 1:08.636 | +0.224 | 4 |
| 5 | DPi | 10 | Konica Minolta Cadillac |  Ryan Briscoe | 1:08.850 | +0.438 | 5 |
| 6 | DPi | 77 | Mazda Motorsports | Tristan Nunez | 1:08.925 | +0.513 | 6 |
| 7 | DPi | 5 | JDC-Mustang Sampling Racing |  Sébastien Bourdais | 1:09.040 | +0.628 | 7 |
| 8 | DPi | 85 | JDC-Miller MotorSports | Gabriel Aubry | 1:09.229 | +0.817 | 8 |
| 9 | LMP2 | 52 | PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports | Patrick Kelly | 1:11.590 | +3.178 | 9‡ |
| 10 | LMP2 | 51 |  Inter Europol Competition | Rob Hodes | 1:13.161 | +4.749 | 10 |
| 11 | LMP2 | 8 | Tower Motorsports by Starworks | John Farano | 1:14.082 | +5.670 | 121 |
| 12 | GTLM | 3 | Corvette Racing |  Antonio García | 1:15.163 | +6.751 | 13‡ |
| 13 | GTLM | 25 | BMW Team RLL | Connor De Phillippi | 1:15.434 | +7.022 | 14 |
| 14 | GTLM | 24 | BMW Team RLL | John Edwards | 1:15.615 | +7.182 | 15 |
| 15 | GTLM | 912 | Porsche GT Team |  Laurens Vanthoor | 1:15.657 | +7.245 | 16 |
| 16 | GTLM | 4 | Corvette Racing | Tommy Milner | 1:15.856 | +7.444 | 17 |
| 17 | GTLM | 911 | Porsche GT Team | Nick Tandy | 1:15.858 | +7.446 | 18 |
| 18 | GTD | 86 | Meyer Shank Racing withCurb-Agajanian |  Shinya Michimi | 1:19.291 | +10.879 | 19‡ |
| 19 | GTD | 63 | Scuderia Corsa | Jeff Westphal | 1:19.464 | +11.052 | 20 |
| 20 | GTD | 12 | AIM Vasser Sullivan | Frankie Montecalvo | 1:19.563 | +11.151 | 21 |
| 21 | GTD | 48 | Paul Miller Racing | Madison Snow | 1:19.567 | +11.155 | 22 |
| 22 | GTD | 96 | Turner Motorsport | Robby Foley | 1:19.657 | +11.245 | 23 |
| 23 | GTD | 57 | Heinricher Racing withMSRCurb-Agajanian | Misha Goikhberg | 1:19.666 | +11.254 | 24 |
| 24 | GTD | 30 | Team Hardpoint | Andrew Davis | 1:19.722 | +11.310 | 25 |
| 25 | GTD | 9 | Pfaff Motorsports | Zacharie Robichon | 1:19.774 | +11.362 | 26 |
| 26 | GTD | 14 | AIM Vasser Sullivan | Michael de Quesada | 1:19.908 | +11.496 | 27 |
| 27 | GTD | 16 | Wright Motorsports | Ryan Hardwick | 1:20.399 | +11.987 | 28 |
| 28 | GTD | 23 | Heart of Racing Team | Ian James | 1:20.434 | +12.022 | 312 |
| 29 | GTD | 44 | GRTMagnus | John Potter | 1:20.453 | +12.041 | 29 |
| 30 | GTD | 74 | Riley Motorsports | Gar Robinson | 1:20.622 | +12.210 | 30 |
| 31 | LMP2 | 38 | Performance Tech Motorsports | James McGuire | No time | _ | 11 |
| Source:[41][42] | |||||||
Helio Castroneves and Ricky Taylor advanced from third to second in the DPi Drivers' Championship. Derani dropped from second to third while Bourdais moved from fifth to fourth.[43] The result kept Kelly atop the LMP2 Drivers' Championship. Braun advanced from eleventh to fifth.[43] The result kept Antonio García and Jordan Taylor atop the GTLM Drivers' Championship while Edwards and Krohn advanced from fourth to third.[43] By finishing second place, Telitz took the lead of the GTD Drivers' Championship. Farnbacher and McMurry dropped from first to fourth while Hawksworth advanced from fourth to second.[43] Cadillac, Chevrolet, and Lexus continued to top their respective Manufacturers' Championships while Konica Minolta Cadillac DPi-V.R, PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports, and Corvette Racing kept their respective advantages in their respective of Teams' Championships.[43] AIM Vasser Sullivan took the lead of the GTD Teams' Championship with two rounds remaining in the season.[43]
Class winners are denoted inbold and ‡.
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| Previous race: 2020 MOTUL 100% Synthetic Grand Prix | 2020 season | Next race: 2020 Hyundai Monterey Sports Car Championship |
