Now, that is how you build a race. The sun has officially dipped below the horizon at Braselton, Ga., and the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship is officially inside the final two hours of the grueling 10-hour Motul Petit Le Mans.
At the sharp end of the field, Jack Aitken leads both overall and in the Grand Touring Prototype class. He is behind the wheel of the No. 31 Cadillac Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R, sharing driving duties with Earl Bamber and Frederik Vesti as the crew hunts for a repeat race win.
Class battles across the board are absolutely on fire right now. Toby Sowery holds the top spot in Le Mans Prototype 2 in the No. 04 CrowdStrike Racing by APR ORECA LMP2 07, alongside co-drivers George Kurtz and Alex Quinn. Meanwhile, over in Grand Touring Daytona Pro, Antonio Garcia commands the class in the No. 3 Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports Corvette Z06 GT3.R, which he shares with Alexander Sims and Marvin Kirchhoefer. Over in Grand Touring Daytona, Callum Ilott leads the pack in the No. 120 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) alongside Adam Adelson and Tom Sargent.
That said, the bigger story taking center stage as the clock winds down is the sheer intensity of the championship fights, particularly in LMP2 and GTD PRO. In GTD PRO, the No. 4 Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports Corvette Z06 GT3.R, the No. 1 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 EVO, and the No. 9 Pfaff Motorsports Lamborghini Temerario GT3 have all traded the top points spot unofficially as the running order evolves. As things narrowed down to the final two hours, the No. 1 BMW managed to run ahead of the No. 9 Lamborghini and the No. 4 Corvette on track while fighting to erase a points deficit and snatch the title.
The LMP2 division has been an absolute seesaw battle between the No. 04 CrowdStrike by APR machine and the No. 43 Inter Europol Competition ORECA. Add in the fight for the Bob Akin Award for GTD Bronze-rated drivers between Orey Fidani and Brendan Iribe, plus the ever-shifting IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup standings, and you have pure chaos. With two hours left on the clock, the No. 04 CrowdStrike by APR entry leads LMP2, the No. 1 PMR BMW leads GTD PRO, and the No. 21 AF Corse USA Ferrari 296 GT3 EVO leads the GTD standings in the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup, with multiple teams still very much alive for these crowns.
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