The IMSA Weathertech Sportscar Championship enters its homeward stretch to its 2026 campaign next weekend as the combined grid of GTP, LMP2 and GTD based entries make their way to Road America Circuit near the Great Lakes for another endurance round.
Whilst the GTD based entries were running last time out at the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park three weeks ago, the prototype-based entries haven’t run since Watkins Glenn a further two weeks before that.
That round was certainly one to forget for the #23 Heart of Racing Aston Martin Valkyrie GTP car of Ross Gunn and Roman De Angelis after the Canadian emerged from pit lane and into a wall of stationary traffic putting himself and two other cars out of the race. That lull in the schedule has at least allowed the team to make the necessary repairs to what was quite an extensively damaged Valkyrie – again all valuable information for the team running the same chassis in both IMSA and the FIA World Endurance Championship in just how the car fairs in situations like that. Fortunately, all drivers concerned were able to walk away otherwise unscathed with is the important thing at the end of the day.
Within the GTD classes, we will have just the championship leading #27 Heart of Racing Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT3 of Eduardo Barrichello, Zacharie Robichon and Tom Gamble alongside the #068 Car Blanche AMR of Valentin Hasse-Clot Trenton Estep and Marius Fossard to cheer on – ie. No return as yet of the #44 Magnus Racing AMR team this time around.
For the white #068 car, it’s also a return to the GTD class after both Hasse-Clot and the guesting Scot Andrews stepped into the realms of the GTD Pro class for the first time in what was only their second race together in the post Van Der Steur Racing and now Car Blanche era. Despite finishing at the back of the more established pack, the team and crew showed pace at but also indiscipline at times, something that pushed them down the order.
For the #27 Heart of Racing crew, Canada started well after Barrichello missed the home race of his FIA WEC campaign to concentrate upon his and the teams IMSA GTD hopes to secure his first pole position of the season. After the two hours and forty minutes of that race alongside De Angelis this time around, the P6 finish in class was still enough for the Brazilian to maintain his championship lead going into these four final rounds of the season.
Track action for the combined IMSA grid of fifty-four cars starts on Friday with Practice One before running through further practice sessions and qualifying on Saturday before being waved off to this six-hour affair at 11:40hrs local next weekend.
Photo credits – Teams / social media
