With LMP2 having Canadian Tire Motorsports Park off, and the Michelin Endurance Cup-only teams going back into hibernation until Petit Le Mans in September, the entry list for the sixth round of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship is up 10 entries from last year, but pared significantly from the 57 cars at Watkins Glen International last weekend.
The full-season teams and drivers that will be there are probably glad – 34 cars is a much more manageable number around the 2.459-mile, 10-turn circuit. The increase comes from nine cars in GTP vs. five in DPi last year, and a big jump in GTD entries. Last year, CTMP was a non-points race in GTD.
Without the hectic three-day turnaround between finishing the Sahlen’s Six Hours of the Glen and loading in at CTMP, it’s a little more relaxed between the two races; some years have had the races on consecutive weekends, while this year there is a weekend in between. Teams with damaged cars from crashes in the Six Hours will certainly appreciate a little extra time.
But with the slight date change that means the race is no longer on the Canada Day holiday weekend. There may be a few local drivers happy to be able to spend Canada Day with family rather than racing that weekend, and there are quite a few Canadian drivers in the field. Notable among those is defending GTD champion and CTMP race winner Roman De Angelis, currently third in the GTD standings with his Heart of Racing teammate Marco Sorensen. Other Canadians in the field include GTD competitor Misha Goikhberg, LMP3 drivers Garrett Grist – who holds the LMP3 track record – Orey Fidani, Anthony Mantella, and one-offs Antoine Comeau and George Staikos in an Ave Motorsports Ligier. Then there’s the Canadian team wearing lumberjack plaid, Pfaff Motorsports. Based on the outskirts of nearby Toronto, the Porsche GTD PRO team and defending winners will have a huge number of friends, family and fans on hand.