For this weekend’s IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Michelin GT Challenge at VIR, 18 cars will do battle on VIRginia International Raceway’s 3.27-mile Full Course in the season finale for the IMSA WeatherTech Sprint Cup. It’s rather convenient for the track because they have exactly 18 covered garage stalls in the paddock.
In the GT Le Mans class, there are just the three full-time entries from Corvette Racing and WeatherTech Racing. At WeatherTech Racing, there is one driver change. Kevin Estre will be behind the wheel of the No. 79 Porsche 911 RSR-19 alongside Cooper MacNeil. Estre replaces Mathieu Jaminet, who drove at Long Beach.
In the GT Daytona class, there are 15 entries, down from 17 at Long Beach. GMG Racing’s Porsche and Scuderia Corsa’s Ferrari are not entered. In addition, Compass Racing has opted out of the WeatherTech Sprint Cup finale in order to prepare for next weekend’s Intercontinental GT Challenge Indianapolis 8 Hour.
Added to the grid are Alegra Motorsports, who will race for the first time since the Sahlen’s Six Hours at the Glen in June. Daniel Morad and Michael de Quesada will drive the No. 28 Mercedes. Gilbert/Korthoff Racing is back for the first time since Road America in August. This time, Mike Skeen has joined the team and will drive in place of Shane Lewis.
With Compass Racing not making the trip, Mario Farnbacher joins Gradient Racing to drive the No. 66 Acura alongside Till Bechtolsheimer. This move was announced last week due to regular driver Marc Miller suffering an Achilles injury during a workout.
IMSA WEATHERTECH SPORTSCAR CHAMPIONSHIP MICHELIN GT CHALLENGE AT VIR ENTRY LIST
The Michelin GT Challenge at VIR is scheduled to go green at 12:10 p.m. ET Saturday afternoon. The race will air live on NBC starting at Noon ET.
Phil Allaway has three primary roles at Frontstretch. He's the manager of the site's FREE e-mail newsletter that publishes Monday-Friday and occasionally on weekends. He keeps TV broadcasters honest with weekly editions of Couch Potato Tuesday and serves as the site's Sports Car racing editor.
Outside of Frontstretch, Phil is the press officer for Lebanon Valley Speedway in West Lebanon, N.Y. He covers all the action on the high-banked dirt track from regular DIRTcar Modified racing to occasional visits from touring series such as the Super DIRTcar Series.
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