Category: IMSA

Bowmanville, Ontario (July 3, 2022) — The No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-05 battled its way to a sixth-place finish in today’s IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Grand Prix at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. Teammates Ricky Taylor and Filipe Albuquerque leave Canada trailing the championship-leading No. 60 Acura by 56 points with two races remaining on the 2022 calendar.

Taylor took the green flag for the blue and black Konica Minolta team, holding position in second, before his right rear tire delaminated mid-way through his stint. He pitted for emergency service before pitting again under yellow to avoid penalty. Despite the early setbacks, a good result was still possible, if not probable.

Albuquerque took his turn behind the wheel and was back on the heels of the DPi pack within three laps. After fighting with Cadillacs ahead for many laps, Filipe handed the driving duties back to Ricky for the run to the finish, exiting the pits in third place with an hour and a half remaining.

The team made one final scheduled stop for a splash of fuel and were running second on track, closing down the leader, when a chasing Cadillac dove up the inside into Turn 5a, spinning Taylor into the barrier. He carried on but spun into the wall again due to contact while trying to make a move for fifth position into Turn 9, five minutes later. The team came into the pits once more, changed the front wing, and Ricky drove a damaged Acura machine to the checkered in sixth, concluding a difficult day on track.

“Today was a rough day, to be honest,” said Ricky Taylor. “From the get-go it was challenging. The puncture was bad luck, but from there, we had an additional couple of issues. The incident with the No. 02 came when we had great track position after a restart and sent us to the back of the field. From there, I was in the mindset of trying to get as many points as possible and didn’t have much to lose. I have to apologize to the No. 31. They didn’t lose because of it, but I didn’t make a very good move on them trying to get by in Turn 9. I was trying to get every position that I could because I could see the championship points going away. Unfortunately, it caused a yellow and put the No. 60 in a tough position as well. It was a bad day, but we’ve still got two races to go. As quickly as we’ve lost the points lead in this one round, it can always swing back. We’ve shown how we can recover from Long Beach to Laguna and from Detroit to Watkins. We’ll have to do the same from CTMP to Road America.”

“What an awful day in the office today,” said Filipe Albuquerque. “Everything happened to us. We had a puncture from debris that put us in last. It would’ve been a long stint for me to go to the finish—two hours and 20 minutes. On this track, that was too much, so I decided to hand it back to Ricky, and he was really on it. It was the right call there. The team did a great job on strategy to put us back in contention. We were in second position in the last stint and solid there. Unfortunately, an optimistic Earl Bamber spun us—not acceptable driving there. They are not fighting for the championship and we are. It’s okay for them to be aggressive, but that was not nice. Ricky was driving to catch the back of the field and had contact with the No. 31—a racing incident—which put us into the wall. It was painful to come back and the entire race, things kept happening to us. When it’s not meant to be, it’s not meant to be. We’ll come back stronger for the next one.”

The 2022 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season continues next month with the IMSA SportsCar Weekend at Road America, the final sprint race of the year, August 4th-7th. Practice 1 begins on Friday, August 5th at 12:05 p.m. ET. Green flag for the two-hour and 40-minute sprint race will wave at 2:40 p.m. ET on Sunday, August 7th. Full coverage is available on Peacock beginning at 2:40 p.m. ET.
ABOUT KONICA MINOLTA

Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A., Inc. is reshaping and revolutionizing the Workplace of the Future. The company guides and supports its clients’ digital transformation through its expansive office technology portfolio, including IT Services (All Covered), intelligent information management, managed print services and industrial and commercial print solutions. Konica Minolta has been included on CRN’s MSP 500 list nine times and The World Technology Awards recently named the company a finalist in the IT Software category. Konica Minolta has been recognized as the #1 Brand for Customer Loyalty in the MFP Office Copier Market by Brand Keys for fourteen consecutive years, and received Keypoint Intelligence’s BLI 2021 A3 Line of The Year Award and BLI 2021-2023 Most Color Consistent A3 Brand Award for its bizhub i-Series. Konica Minolta, Inc. has been named to the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index for nine consecutive years and has spent four years on the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World list. Konica Minolta partners with its clients to give shape to ideas and works to bring value to our society. For more information, please visit us online and follow Konica Minolta on Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn and Twitter. The No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-05 effort and Wayne Taylor Racing is supported by an outstanding lineup of partners including Harrison Contracting, Acura Motorsports, Hammer Nutrition and CIT.

Eric Foss and No. 56 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4 Move Closer to Championship Points Lead

BOWMANVILLE, Ontario, Canada – Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing teams Murillo Racing and Capstone Motorsports secured a double victory and top-two overall podium sweep in a dominating performance by the Mercedes-AMG GT4 Saturday in the two-hour IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge race at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (CTMP). The No. 56 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4 was driven to its second Pilot Challenge victory in the last three races by co-drivers Eric Foss and Marc Miller. The winners crossed the finish line .338 of a second ahead of their teammates Kenny Murillo and Christian Szymczak who finished second in the No. 72 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4. The Bronze Cup class victory was secured for the fifth time in the six Pilot Challenge races to date this season by Gary Ferrera and Kris Wilson who finished 13th overall in the No. 11 Capstone Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT4.

The one-two overall and Grand Sport (GS) class sweep capped a weekend of domination for Murillo Racing and the Mercedes-AMG GT4 on the 2.459-mile CTMP circuit. Kenny Murillo won his first career pole in Friday qualifying in the No. 72 to lead a run of three Murillo Racing entries in the overall top five of Saturday’s starting grid.

Miller, making his first career start in a Mercedes-AMG GT4 and with Murillo Racing, qualified the No. 56 third while the team’s third entry, the No. 65 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4, was driven to a career-best fifth-place qualifying effort by Tim Probert.

At the start of Saturday’s race, Miller got the jump from third on the grid to move to second place going into the first turn. Murillo and Miller then ran in a tight, one-two formation at the front of the field for more than the first hour of the race, while Probert not only led the Bronze Cup class but held fifth overall in one of the best drives of his career.

The Murillo team’s only issue on the weekend occurred 45 minutes into the race when Probert’s career run was slowed by a misfire on the No. 65. He brought the car into the pits where the Murillo team cleared the engine’s issue and Probert’s co-driver Brent Mosing took the wheel. Mosing continued in the race, but the misfire issues persisted, and the No. 72 was retired.

Meanwhile, Murillo’s race-leading duo pitted one lap apart early in the race’s second hour. Foss took over for Miller in the No. 65 while Szymczak replaced Murillo in the No. 72 one lap later. Both pit stops were flawless, and the Murillo team continued its one-two dominance, but with Foss and the No. 65 just edging Szymczak and the No. 72 for the race lead. The teammates continued the one-two run straight to the race finish for the Murillo team’s first career one-two sweep in Pilot Challenge GS competition.

In Bronze Cup, Ferrera took over the class lead when the Murillo No. 65 faltered and then handed the No. 11 off to Wilson who sealed the victory for Capstone for the fifth time this season. The only race Capstone has lost this year was at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in May where Probert and Mosing took the win.

The No. 56 and No. 72 Murillo entries combined to lead all but two laps Saturday when the GS field cycled through green-flag pit stops at mid-race. Murillo led a race-high 42 laps from the start while Foss set pace for the final 33 laps.

Foss and the No. 56 team remain second in the GS class driver and team championships but have closed the gap on the leaders from 140 points to 90 points with the CTMP win.

Foss and the No. 56 team won for the first time this season at Mid-Ohio with co-driver Kenton Koch. After Miller’s one-off and winning start this weekend, Koch will return to co-drive the No. 56 with Foss in two weeks in the next round of the Pilot Challenge season at Lime Rock Park, July 15 – 16.

Foss and co-driver Jeff Mosing co-drove the No. 56 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4 to victory last year at Lime Rock. Miller and Koch have filled in the last four races this year while Jeff Mosing – Brent Mosing’s brother – recovers from fractured and bruised ribs sustained in a fall while docking his boat in April.

Eric Foss – No. 56 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4: “The Murillo Racing team has always been on top of things and a great communicating team. Having Kenny Murillo and Christian Szymczak come into the team this year has given us another push and added an incredible amount of additional data with two more talented drivers on the team. Christian was very generous today. I made a couple of mistakes toward the end of the race, and he had the opportunity to pounce, but we definitely wanted to make sure we stayed clean. It’s just amazing to bring both Mercedes-AMG GT4s home one-two like that and get the great result here. The biggest strength the Mercedes-AMG GT4 has is its balance. It is very driver friendly.”

Marc Miller – No. 56 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4: “I have known the Murillo guys and Jeff Mosing for years, and when Eric called me, and I could do it, I didn’t hesitate. I called my wife and said ‘hey, we are going to Canada.’ It was our weekend off, but I really wanted to fill in for Jeff and do this for Eric. It was really important to make the move at the start. It is easier to defend a position here than get one, and our goal was to try to save fuel too, and it is easier to do that in a tandem. The start was really great for me. I just rode it as deep as possible on the inside and was able to take the position and close the door in turn two.”

Christian Szymczak – No. 72 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4: “It is awesome for the team. Since we rolled the cars off the truck, they have been great, and we knew we were going to be in for a good finish for the weekend. I came out of the pits and Eric had already cycled through the pits. He was on warm tires, I was on cold, and he was just able to get by me for the lead. I would have tried to make a move if I could have, but there was just no viable place to make a move. It was just great to bring home the one-two finish. We just need to keep showing up, doing what we do, and hopefully good results will keep coming our way.”

Kenny Murillo – No. 72 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4: “Christian and I both worked hard coming into this event. Anything less than a podium was not going to feel good. If we were going to get beat, it was going to be by our teammates. I am really happy for the team, they have been working really hard all weekend long. Canada always brings some logistical challenges, so we were working with just half the crew, it was especially hard on the crew, so to bring them a one-two finish just feels really good.”

Kris Wilson – No. 11 Capstone Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT4: “Gary did a great job, the crew did a great job and we even had to call in some last-minute recruits from other teams to help us in just the last couple hours before the race today. This kind of track is where the Mercedes-AMG GT4 excels. It likes a fast, flowing circuit where you don’t really have to slow down. You just keep up the momentum, you are really hanging on, but it makes for a good car around this place.”

Tim Probert – No. 65 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4: “Our Mercedes-AMG GT4 has been super reliable. Brent and I aren’t upset at all because we can’t remember the last time we had a problem. It has just been a super reliable car and Murillo gave us a wonderful setup. I had a ball. Running in the overall top five and six is just not something I normally do, and I really felt we could have a great result today.”

Brent Mosing – No. 65 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4: “It was a great weekend. Tim qualified the best of his career and turned 71 today, so a great birthday present for him. He was right there in the pack until we had the car problem, but that car has been a beauty for a year. We have finished every race in the past year, so maybe we were due, but now it is behind us, and we can’t wait to get to Lime Rock. The way the car and Tim have been performing, it is going to be another great race.”

Nick Galante and Sean McAllister Finished 14th in Saturday’s IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge Race at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park

BOWMANVILLE, Canada (July 2, 2022) – Hardpoint’s Nick Galante and Sean McAllister climbed as high as fourth on the timing chart before settling in to a 14th place finish in the No. 22 Racing To End Alzheimer’s Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport on Saturday at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park, Round Six of the IMA Michelin Pilot Challenge season.

No. 22 Hardpoint Porsche Cayman News and Notes

Saturday’s race was made even more difficult following a practice one crash on Friday. The contact, made with a concrete wall in Turn One rather than a tire barrier, caused damage to the left side, including most suspension pieces. The force of the contact also damaged the transmission and exhaust, forcing repairs all day on Friday and through the day Saturday to make the start of the race.

Galante made up two spots on the opening lap and a third position on the second lap, gaining ground early from the last and 17th starting position. The Racing to End Alzheimer’s Porsche Cayman was up to 13th position at the first full course caution of the race, just under 20 minutes into the race.

Hardpoint elected not to pit under that full course caution, which elevated them to eighth on the restart. Galante picked up another position on the restart to get to seventh.

Galante dove to pit lane with 55 minutes to go in the race after climbing to fourth place. McAllister rejoined the race following the green-flag pit stop in 13th position, but good to go to the end of the race.

McAllister had a big off with just under 20 minutes to go, but was able to keep it out of the tires in the high speed turn three and finish the race one lap down, finishing 14th.

Hardpoint, Galante, McAllister and the No. 22 Racing To End Alzheimer’s Porsche Cayman return to action in just two weeks, July 15-16 at the Lime Rock Park 120 at Lime Rock Park in Lakeville, Connecticut.

Hardpoint Quote Board

Nick Galante, Driver, No. 22 Porsche Cayman: “The start was great. Even though we started at the back, we were able to work our way to seventh. The crew worked all night and I had a little extra fire to not let them down and have all their hard work go for something. We were down on pace overall from the leaders so we had to do it with strategy. Our engineer Charles Hamm made a good call, we pitted perfectly just as the car was running out of gas. The leader’s pace was just a little more than we could handle, though and those yellows didn’t come at the right time. But I’m really happy to be part of the Racing to End Alzheimer’s foundation which is taking off and we’re on our way to getting 222 names on the car in honor of our car 22 here at Hardpoint. You can be a part of it at R2EndAlz.org too!”

Sean McAllister, Driver, No. 22 Porsche Cayman: “The race went well. We had a little bit of an off going through Turn Three, but we were able to get the finish secured. It was a great job by the Hardpoint crew to get the car back together. They did a hell of a job. They were out here for 12 hours working on it, so I have to thank them for putting together a car that we were able to race.”

About Hardpoint:

Hardpoint was founded by Rob Ferriol in 2018 with the vision of combining his experience as a successful entrepreneur with his passion for racing. Headquartered at VIRginia International Raceway, the team captured the 2021 Porsche Carrera Cup North America Pro-Am championship in its inaugural season and competes full-time in the IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship in the No. 99 GridRival Porsche 911 GT3 R with co-drivers Ferriol and Katherine Legge, joined by Stefan Wilson for Michelin Endurance Cup races. In 2022, Hardpoint has added the No. 22 Racing To End Alzheimer’s Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport driven by Nick Galante and Sean McAllister in IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge Grand Sport (GS), as well as the No. 428 TradeCentric Porsche 911 GT3 Cup driven by Brady Behrman in International GT. More information on Hardpoint can be found at www.hardpoint.com or through its strong social media presence on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

BOWMANVILLE, Ontario, Canada – Six Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing teams competing in three different classes across a pair of IMSA racing series make their first visit to Canada since 2019 this weekend at Canadian Motorsport Park (CTMP), July 1 – 3. Mercedes-AMG GT3 teams WeatherTech Racing Proton USA and Winward Racing compete in the GTD Pro and GTD classes, respectively, in Sunday’s featured two-hour and 40-minute IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship race. On Saturday, four Mercedes-AMG GT4 entries from two different teams – Murillo Racing and Capstone Motorsports – compete in that day’s featured two-hour IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge race.

Mercedes-AMG Motorsport customer teams in both series made the trek to Canada just days after last weekend’s IMSA WeatherTech and Pilot Challenge races at Watkins Glen International in upstate New York. The full weekend event marks the first top-tier IMSA races in Canada since 2019 after the CTMP events scheduled the last two years were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sunday’s WeatherTech Championship race is scheduled to start at 3:05 p.m. EDT with live coverage in the U.S. on the flagship NBC Network beginning at 3 p.m. EDT. International viewers can watch a free livestream of the race at www.IMSA.tv.

The No. 79 Weather Tech Racing Proton USA Mercedes-AMG GT3 will be shared by full-season driver Cooper MacNeil and Daniel Juncadella at CTMP in the GTD Pro division. Russell Ward and Philip Ellis in turn co-drive the No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3.

Both teams ran competitively in last Sunday’s Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen only to see a race win for Winward and a possible podium finish by WeatherTech thwarted by the implications of a red-flag stoppage due to a thunderstorm late in the race.

When the race resumed with 35 minutes to go – with an adjusted “drive time” and nearly 10 minutes of cars on track during a clock hold – both Mercedes-AMG GT3 teams saw their chances of making it to victory lane evaporate.

Ellis drove the Winward No. 57 across the finish line in first place after joining Ward and the team’s third driver, Marvin Dienst, in leading a class-high 52 laps and pacing the GTD field for the majority of the last half of the race.

Unfortunately, Ellis and Winward had no way of meeting the adjusted drive time requirement, and the No. 57 was one of nine finishers – including seven in the GTD class – moved to the back of the race’s finishing order for drive time violations. Ellis’ total time at the wheel was less than a minute shy of the adjusted drive time and the No. 57 was relegated to an 11th-place finish.

The WeatherTech No. 79 was one of several entries forced to the pits for a splash of fuel in the final minutes but recovered to secure a top-five GTD Pro finish.

Both teams have left the disappointment of last Sunday’s race back in the United States, and instead head to CTMP encouraged by the overall performance of the Mercedes-AMG GT3 at The Glen. The Mercedes-AMG GT3 has also been successful at CTMP, winning in the GTD class in the 2018 IMSA WeatherTech race in addition to securing victories in other sports car racing series events on the 2.459-mile Canadian circuit.

Mercedes-AMG GT4 teams competing in the top-level Grand Sport (GS) class at The Glen last Saturday were as competitive as their GT3 counterparts and were able to leave with the results to show it.

The top overall finisher was the No. 72 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4 and team drivers Christian Szymczak and Kenny Murillo who garnered their first podium finish in their inaugural season of GS competition together. Both starting driver Murillo and closer Szymczak led the race, and their combined seven laps up front was the same number of laps led as the race winner.

Szymczak led a tight field of other GS top contenders to the green flag for the final restart of the race with just under 15 minutes to go. The ensuing battle was one of the highlights of the overall weekend, and Szymczak stayed in the thick of it to the checkered flag and a season-best third-place finish.

Eric Foss and Kenton Koch overcame mechanical issues through the weekend to join Murillo teammates Szymczak and Murillo as the only driving duos to lead laps in the Watkins Glen race. Foss and Koch combined to lead nine laps and secured a sixth-place finish in the No. 56 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4. Foss and the No. 56 team remain second in the GS class driver and team championships, just 140 points out of first place heading into Saturday’s race at CTMP.

Another Mercedes-AMG GT4 entry has led its Pilot Challenge championship since the first race of the season at Daytona in January. Gary Ferrera and Kris Wilson won their fourth Bronze Cup class race in the year’s first five races at Watkins Glen in the No. 11 Capstone Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT4.

The only race the Capstone teammates didn’t win was at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in May where Brent Mosing and Tim Probert took the win in the No. 65 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4.

Saturday’s two-hour Michelin Pilot Challenge race, which is scheduled to start at 4:10 p.m. EDT, promises to be another bronze battle between the Capstone No. 11 and the Murillo No. 65.

Szymczak and Murillo will be looking to improve two podium positions over last Saturday’s race at The Glen while Foss will be looking to close the gap on the GS championship lead with debuting co-driver Marc Miller.

Cooper MacNeil, Driver – No. 79 WeatherTech Racing Proton USA Mercedes-AMG GT3: “It will be good to get right back at it just five days after The Glen. We thought we deserved more at the last race. Canadian Tire Motorsport Park is a tough and fast track. From the exit of Turn 10 all the way to the exit onto the Mario Andretti straight, you are up on the wheel running the car on the absolute edge. We will have to unload with a setup in the handling window to have a good weekend. It’s good to have Daniel back, I think he is really going to like the CTMP circuit. We haven’t really had a good result together yet this year, so hopefully we can get on the podium come Sunday.”

Daniel Juncadella, Driver – No. 79 Proton WeatherTech Racing USA Mercedes-AMG GT3: “I have never raced at CTMP. However, I think it is going to be my new favorite circuit. I have practiced on the SIM a lot. I know the layout very well and I love the way it flows. There are a lot of high-speed corners. I think my favorite part is sector one, where there are three high-speed corners. I think it really suits my driving style, and I think the layout of the track will also suit our WeatherTech Mercedes-AMG GT3 as well. It is a good car in the high-speed sections where downforce helps. I am looking forward to driving again with Cooper and the WeatherTech Racing Proton team this weekend.”

Russell Ward, Driver – No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: “I am super proud of the team. We have had a rough year so far. We have always had the pace but haven’t quite been able to put it all together, but last weekend we did. I love Watkins Glen International. It’s one of my favorite tracks on the calendar, and the Mercedes-AMG GT3 is a sweet car to drive around there. We even overcame a couple of issues during the race, a radio failure and the failure of an air gun on the first pit stop. So, just really proud of the guys overall. We jumped a lot of guys in pit lane, passed a few on the race track and brought it home for what we know was a victory. There are some definite similarities between The Glen and CTMP, so we think the setup we had at Watkins is going to work equally well at Canada. We are in high spirits, we know the pace is there, the crew is ready to go, and we are looking forward to it.”

Philip Ellis, Driver – No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: “I think we will take the momentum we had at Watkins Glen up to CTMP. For me personally, it is another new track to learn, as it was for Watkins Glen last weekend. It will be a cool experience, and it’s great to not have a big break between races. It’s nice to go there directly after the run we had, which was a great team performance and a great Mercedes-AMG GT3. Honestly, to me the tracks in North America are a lot more fun and much more old school to drive than a lot of the tracks we have in Europe, except for maybe the Nordschleife. It’s more fun to drive over here because you don’t have the runoffs that allow you to make a mistake. That makes it much more risk-reward, so it’s a lot more driver related than in Europe.”

Kenny Murillo – No. 72 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4: “We are feeling very good heading to Canadian Tire Motorsport Park after our first podium finish of the season at Watkins Glen. Honestly, I am more relieved we didn’t get hit and taken out again at The Glen. It’s great to be able to finish a race and have it be a third-place result. I am incredibly grateful to be driving a Mercedes-AMG GT4 with Christian Szymczak under the Murillo Racing tent. I couldn’t ask for more. I am so excited for the team. We finally caught a break, and we will be on the top step this weekend in Canada. It was a good team effort, and we are coming off a really good overall team result.”

Gary Ferrera – No. 11 Capstone Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT4: “The Capstone team has been flawless this season. It’s all about the team. The car setup, we’re having struggles with, but the team did their pit stops perfectly last weekend at Watkins Glen and we had no baubles with the seat belts as we have in the past. In a series as competitive as the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge, it is more about not making mistakes, not getting flat tires and things like that, and that’s really helping us out this season. For me, that’s the key.”

Nick Galante and Sean McAllister Back In Action at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park

BOWMANVILLE, Canada (June 30, 2022) – Hardpoint’s No. 22 Racing To End Alzheimer’s Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport is back for another two-hour race, this time at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in Bowmanville, Ontario. Nick Galante and Sean McAllister will continue to co-drive the purple Porsche in Round Six of the 10-race IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge Grand Sport (GS) championship, July 1 – 2.

Saturday’s race will take the green flag at 4:10 p.m. ET, streaming live on Peacock in the United States.

No. 22 Hardpoint Porsche Cayman News and Notes

• The race weekend marks IMSA’s return to CTMP, formerly known as Mosport, for the first timesince the pre-pandemic days of 2019.
• Nick Galante’s last appearance at the track was in 2018 in the ST class of the championship. Galante won by 5.205 seconds after qualifying on the class pole during that race.
• Galante’s win came in a BMW, but don’t count out his ability to drive a Porsche at CTMP. In 2016, Galante teamed with past Hardpoint driver Spencer Pumpelly to finish on the podium with a runner-up finish in an ST-class Porsche Cayman. The duo landed on the box after starting the race 13th.
• “This track is so much fun, but it takes a lot of commitment. It’s been a few years, but I’m really looking forward to being back,” Galante said.
• McAllister will be making his first IMSA start at CTMP.
• The Racing to End Alzheimer’s Porsche Cayman is currently carrying 113 names on the livery this weekend at CTMP. Each of those names represents a $250 donation made in honor or in memory of a loved one suffering from Alzheimer’s. Charity founder Philip Frengs matches each of the donations through his company, Legistics, bringing the total raised this season alone past the $50,000 mark.
• This weekend is a two-day event for IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge in Canada. The team and series will have two practices on Friday, along with qualifying. Saturday’s race begins at 4:10 p.m. ET, live on Peacock.

Hardpoint Quote Board

Nick Galante, Driver, No. 22 Porsche Cayman: “I love Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. It’s fast and it really requires full commitment to get the job done here. it’s been great to me, with a win and a podium, so even though it’s been a couple of years I can’t wait to get back. We had a tough weekend at Watkins Glen, so we’ll forget about that, focus on what we can control, and continue to push forward in honor of all of the names on our Racing To End Alzheimer’s Porsche Cayman.”

Sean McAllister, Driver, No. 22 Porsche Cayman: “This is my first time at CTMP, but I did some sim work at Force Dynamics in New York and it is a rollercoaster of a track. It’s got very fast corners, a long back straight, and it seems very busy. I’m excited to get in the car and see how close to the sim it is but it should be a very fun weekend of high speed racing. I can’t wait!”

About Hardpoint:

Hardpoint was founded by Rob Ferriol in 2018 with the vision of combining his experience as a successful entrepreneur with his passion for racing. Headquartered at VIRginia International Raceway, the team captured the 2021 Porsche Carrera Cup North America Pro-Am championship in its inaugural season and competes full-time in the IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship in the No. 99 GridRival Porsche 911 GT3 R with co-drivers Ferriol and Katherine Legge, joined by Stefan Wilson for Michelin Endurance Cup races. In 2022, Hardpoint has added the No. 22 Racing To End Alzheimer’s Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport driven by Nick Galante and Sean McAllister in IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge Grand Sport (GS), as well as the No. 428 TradeCentric Porsche 911 GT3 Cup driven by Brady Behrman in International GT. More information on Hardpoint can be found at www.hardpoint.com or through its strong social media presence on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Bowmanville, Ontario (30 June 2022) – Jr III (“Junior Three”) Racing will make its Canadian Tire Motorsport Park debut on July 3 for the Chevrolet Grand Prix as the team heads to the circuit with both its IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship (July 3rd, 3:00pm ET, NBC) and IMSA Prototype Challenge (IPC) LMP3 (July 3rd, 11:35am ET, Peacock) entries.

To jumpstart the second half of the season, IMSA returns to Canada for the first time since 2019 with the race having been put on hold due to the pandemic.

The Fourth of July race weekend will see the No. 30 Airbnb Ligier JS P320 return to IMSA WeatherTech competition with Garett Grist and Ari Balogh. The driver duo will drive the No. 30 IPC LMP3 in WeatherTech competition due to the damage that occurred during the pit incident at Watkins Glen on Sunday. The tight turn-around time between events led to the team to make the decision to not initiate repairs to the Ligier until returning to the newly-expanded team shop in Mooresville following the CTMP weekend.

After an intense run at last weekend’s Watkins Glen Six Hour that saw Balogh and Grist’s race come to a premature end, the pair will now be looking to reclaim the IMSA WeatherTech LMP3 championship lead, trailing the leaders by 50-points.

The No. 30 Airbnb machine has collected two podiums this season at the Twelve Hours of Sebring and the Lexus Grand Prix at Mid-Ohio. Although Jr III Racing has yet to race professionally at the 2.459-mile road course, the team had a great showing at its test at the track in May.

Coming into the weekend with a hometown advantage, Grist is looking forward to making his CTMP return having grown up competing at the circuit. Grist last competed at CTMP in 2019 in IPC. Qualifying on the front row, Grist closed out the race seventh in the order.

“This track is even a step up from the Glen,” said Grist. “The track is high speed, high commitment and it’s a track that you always have to be switched on. It’s one of those tracks that’s very exciting, very on edge. It’s probably one of my favorite tracks. In my first year of racing cars, I did Formula 4 in the Ontario Championship racing there for a year, so it’s my home track but I don’t really get to race it much. We tested really well there in May, and it definitely felt on the good side of things. We could tell by the way the car felt even when no one else was there as a benchmark, but we made some great changes. Ari did an amazing job and is getting more comfortable with the high speeds of the P3 car. We’re really positive going into the weekend for sure.”

Kicking off the CTMP weekend, Jr III Racing’s IPC program will be back at it after a six-week hiatus with Crone and Balogh pairing up in the No. 3 Jr III Racing Ligier for the third round of the 2022 season.

The No. 3 Jr III Racing Ligier JS P320 had an impressive showing at Mid-Ohio which saw Crone and Terry Olson race their way to the top five in the IPC championship standings. Olson and Crone raced through the 16 car field to finish 10th.

Balogh, competing in the IPC Bronze Cup, will substitute for Olson, who cannot compete due conflicting commitments.

Crone is looking forward to making her CTMP debut as she and the Jr III Racing team continue to make championship gains.

“Going into CTMP fifth in the points championship has an added motivation for me to stay consistent,” said Crone. “We are hoping to come out of CTMP in either the same or better position in the points standings. Given I have never been to CTMP, I am really looking forward to this experience that everyone has told me about, and finally visit one of the most coveted tracks in North America.”

The third round of the IPC will go green on Sunday, July 3rd at 11:35am ET with live coverage on Peacock. The IMSA WeatherTech Chevrolet Grand Prix is set for 3:00pm start time with the race broadcast on NBC.