The IMSA VP Racing SportsCar Challenge kicks off the second half of the season at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. The series will stage two 45-minute sprint races in Bowmanville, Ontario. GEBHARDT Motorsport from Sinsheim will field two Duqueine D09 LMP3 prototypes.
The two French LMP3 cars will be driven by Oscar Tunjo and Danny Soufi, both of whom are among the world’s best LMP3 drivers. At the last sprint weekend at Mid-Ohio, Tunjo secured a one-two finish ahead of Soufi.
Around three weeks ago, the final round of the IMSA Airbnb Endurance Challenge took place at the Virginia International Raceway. Danny Soufi and Jake Williamson finished second in the two-hour race. Valentino Catalano and Oscar Tunjo finished third, having led the race for much of the way but lost time after running off the track and suffering some bad luck with the timing of their final pit stop.
In the overall standings, which combine the sprint and endurance races, Tunjo holds a 390-point lead over Soufi from Texas. In the sprint classification, the Colombian leads the sub-championship by 270 points.
GEBHARDT Motorsport returns to the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park – formerly known as Mosport and which gained notoriety following the fatal accident involving Manfred Winkelhock in 1985 – with fond memories. The eventual title-winner, Valentino Catalano, won the race in a GEBHARDT Motorsport car. The second race had to be cancelled due to heavy rainfall. The team from Sinsheim also took part in the tragic race on 11 August 1985, fielding their in-house design, the Gebhardt JC 853 C2, in which John Graham and Frank Jelinski finished second in their class.
“Our goal for the race weekend in Canada is clear: we want to extend our lead at the top of the championship! Following our victory last year, we are heading to Canadian Tire Motorsport Park with confidence. The standard in the series has risen significantly this year, so we still have to work hard and cannot take our success for granted,” said team boss Fritz Gebhardt.
The two 45-minute sprint races of the IMSA VP Racing SportsCar Challenge at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park will start on Saturday at 14:50 and on Sunday at 17:10 German time. Both races can be watched worldwide via the official YouTube livestream.
