Blomqvist's Dominance in the First Hour; First-Lap Drama in GTD
Photo: Mike Levitt/IMSA
Tom Blomqvist dominated the opening hour of the Motul Petit Le Mans, leading Acura Meyer Shank Racing in the No. 60 Acura ARX-06. Blomqvist held off Jack Aitken's No. 31 Action Express Racing Cadillac V-Series.R by just under a second after an hour of racing. Despite a scare involving Lilou Wadoux's No. 21 AF Corse Ferrari 296 GT3, Aitken remained in the hunt for the race lead.
Race control called a full course caution due to debris, leading to a strategic decision by Blomqvist, Aitken, Felipe Nasr, Ross Gunn, and Filipe Albuquerque to stay out on track. This move positioned them as the top five at the end of the first hour, with the No. 93 Acura being the first to pit in sixth place.
Matt Campbell's No. 7 Porsche 963 ran in seventh place, followed by the BMW M Hybrid V8s of Dries Vanthoor and Sheldon van der Linde. Porsche Penske Motorsport faced a late lineup change due to a medical emergency, with Julien Andlauer ruled out of the No. 6 machine. Laurens Vanthoor took on double duty, already entered in the No. 7 machine.
In LMP2, Jeremy Clarke maintained the lead aboard the No. 43 Inter Europol Competition Oreca 07 Gibson, ahead of AO Racing's PJ Hyett and AF Corse driver Luis Perez Companc.
Nicky Catsburg captured the lead in GTD Pro with the No. 4 Corvette Racing Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R, followed by Aaron Telitz of Vasser Sullivan, both on the same strategy. This move allowed them to surpass pole-sitter Dan Harper in the No. 48 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 EVO.
Triari Competizione dominated the GTD field with a 1-2 finish, featuring Riccardo Agostini in the No. 021 Ferrari and Kenton Koch in the No. 023 sister car.
However, the opening hour in GTD was marred by a significant incident on the opening lap, eliminating several cars. Manny Franco, in the No. 34 Conquest Racing Ferrari, lost control in the Esses and spun across the track, colliding with Brendan Iribe's No. 70 Inception Racing machine. The crash caused significant damage to several cars, including the No. 66 Gradient Racing Ford Mustang GT3, No. 45 Wayne Taylor Racing Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2, and No. 44 Magnus Racing Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo. The No. 45 car returned to the track after repairs.
Franco was taken to a local hospital for further evaluations, while all other involved drivers were checked and released from the on-site care center. The crash had major implications for the GTD championship and the Bob Akin Award, with Winward Racing crowned champions in class due to the retirements of the No. 34 Ferrari and No. 44 Aston Martin. Orey Fidani, who narrowly avoided the incident, will take the Bob Akin Award for the best Bronze-rated driver in GTD for the second consecutive year, despite Iribe's early exit from the race.
