Chevrolet Sports Car Classic Brings Entry List Of 28 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Race Cars To Motor City
Three IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship classes and a total of 28 race cars are ready for a 100-minute battle on the streets of Detroit’s Belle Isle Park for the Chevrolet Sports Car Classic on Saturday, June 3. The race will be televised live on FS2 beginning at 12:30 p.m. ET.
The entry list released today features 10 Prototype class cars, three Prototype Challenge (PC) class entries and 15 GT Daytona (GTD) machines. The GT Le Mans (GTLM) class takes its annual WeatherTech Championship break prior to the 24 Hours of Le Mans on June 17-18 and will return for the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen on July 2.
Detroit race fans will get their first opportunity to experience the new-for-2017 Prototype class up close at the race that runs as part of the Chevrolet Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix presented by Lear. Leading the way, as they have throughout the 2017 season thus far, are brothers Ricky and Jordan Taylor in the No. 10 Konica Minolta Cadillac DPi-V.R.
The brothers have won all four WeatherTech Championship races this season, which is the longest win streak in series history and the longest in major North American sports car competition since Klaus Graf and Lucas Luhr won eight American Le Mans Series races in a row in 2013.
Adding to their momentum, the Taylors return to defend their 2016 Chevrolet Sports Car Classic victory. Jordan Taylor owns a total of four Detroit victories dating back to GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series competition in 2012, while Ricky Taylor has two victories on Belle Isle.
The No. 10 entry is one of three Cadillac DPi cars that will be racing in the shadow of General Motors headquarters on Belle Isle. They’ll take on Daytona Prototype international (DPi) race cars from Mazda and Nissan, as well as global LM P2 prototypes from Multimatic/Riley, Ligier and ORECA.
In the PC class, co-drivers James French and Patricio “Pato” O’Ward look to continue their early season dominance in the No. 38 Performance Tech Motorsports ORECA FLM09. French and O’Ward have won all three PC races thus far, which also represent the team’s first three victories in WeatherTech Championship competition.
The GTD entry list features eight different manufacturers, including three – Acura, Lexus and Mercedes-AMG – that are competing in the Chevrolet Sports Car Classic for the first time this year. Mercedes-AMG is carrying the momentum of three consecutive victories to Detroit.
Two of those victories belong to No. 33 Riley Motorsports Team AMG co-drivers Ben Keating and Jeroen Bleekemolen, including the most recent round earlier this month at Circuit of The Americas. Keating and Bleekemolen currently lead the GTD point standings, and won last year’s race at Detroit in a Dodge Viper.
Practice and qualifying for the WeatherTech Championship will be held on Friday, June 2. Qualifying will be streamed live on IMSA.com with IMSA Radio commentary beginning at 4:50 p.m. ET. The Chevrolet Sports Car Classic starts at 12:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, June 3, and also will be broadcast live by IMSA Radio in addition to live FS2 television coverage in the U.S.
Tickets for the Chevrolet Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix presented by Lear are available now at DetroitGP.com.
