Drivers expect clean GT race at VIR

Here's the thing about VIRginia International Raceway: it has earned a reputation as the cleanest track on the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship schedule since the GTD PRO class was introduced in 2022. Now, 46 drivers arrive for the Michelin GT Challenge facing renewed questions about discipline following a longer, treacherous round at Road America.

Tommy Milner, who shares the No. 4 Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports Corvette Z06 GT3.R with Nicky Catsburg in the GTD PRO class, points out that the GT cars actually exhibited better driving standards at Road America this year compared to last season. Milner and Catsburg sit second in the tightly packed GTD PRO standings, 15 points behind leaders Neil Verhagen and Connor De Phillippi in the No. 1 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 EVO. Milner predicts another clean weekend, though he anticipates a long drivers' meeting and continued strict enforcement from Race Director Beaux Barfield.

Barfield agreed with that assessment during a media roundtable discussion Thursday. Historically, the rural Virginia circuit has rewarded clean racing thanks to its long, flowing layout and the absence of IMSA's prototype classes (GTP and Le Mans Prototype 2). The 2017 two-hour, 40-minute race ran entirely caution-free, won by Corvette Racing's No. 3 entry driven by Jan Magnussen and Antonio Garcia. Furthermore, the races in 2018, 2021, 2022, and 2024 featured only one caution apiece.

Not that last year's event was entirely without drama. Two of the three cautions occurred late in the race, including a terrifying incident for Danny Formal when his No. 45 Wayne Taylor Racing Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2 caught fire. Formal escaped a conflagration with 40 minutes remaining at the end of the backstraight, calling it the scariest moment of his career and life.

Ironically, Formal's car number remains heavily involved in the GTD championship battle, where just 45 points cover the top four entries. Dudu Barrichello leads the standings in the No. 27 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage GT3 EVO. Russell Ward and Philip Ellis sit second in the No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3, 24 points back, while Robby Foley and Patrick Gallagher hold third in the No. 96 Turner Motorsport BMW M4 GT3 EVO, 26 points out. Aaron Telitz and Benjamin Pedersen round out the top four in the No. 12 Vasser Sullivan Racing Lexus RC F GT3, 45 points back.