We understand that three Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT4’s will also be in attendance at next weekend’s IMSA visit to Virginia International Raceway for what will be the penultimate round to the LMP3 and GSX (GT4) based series.

Whilst the entry list does only state the presence of the #45 Ruckus Racing AMR Vantage with driver Scott Blind and the #72 Rebel Rock Racing entry for their driver Frank DePew within the modest ten GSX and eight LMP3 entry, we now also understand that Brady Behrman will be coming ‘back to the party’ with his #82 Van Der Steur prepared Vantage GT4 for this round too.

The official entry list may say four, but we believe there to be more Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT4 powered crews entered into this weekend’s IndyCar support VP Racing Sportscar Challenge race from St Petersburg.

The three indicated full season entries all return albeit with one slight change aboard one of them whilst the Prosport Competition team field a guest entry for a certain reigning GT America GT4 Champion and another also chases seat time after a disappointing showing first time out this season in Michelin Pilot Challenge.

Ruckus Racing is back with Scott Blind again behind the wheel of his #45 car whilst Frank DePew should get to run in his first race of the year with his 2024 Rebel Rock Racing prepared Vantage GT4 Evo having suffered technical issues with the brand new car last time out at Daytona that prevented him from running in the opening two races at the Roar.

The #82 Van Der Steur Aston Martin is in attendance but rather than Brady Behrman behind the wheel, they will be debuting Michelin Pilot Challenge Porsche racer Jackson Lee for this event. We believe that this has been scheduled for some weeks now, but we haven’t seen any explanation as to why this is – other than perhaps, prior commitments on Behrman’s part?!

Last time out at Daytona, Archangel ran an AMR for Robbie McWilliams, but it appears that he will not be back at this street circuit round, but the team will be preparing a car for MPC full season entrant, Todd Coleman after he suffered something of a disaster at the season opener with technical issues and penalties as a result of exploits on track. This will be all about seat time and dialling himself back in before the next round of the MPC season from Sebring in a couple of weeks.

Finally, and for similar reasons for Coleman, we see that Jason Bell will be back in action at St Pete’s – not because he has suddenly enlisted upon the IMSA entry rather than for seat time at a circuit he loves (and usually wins at in a GT4) before he embarks upon a full GT3 season in GT America.

Two Free Practice sessions and Qualifying are scheduled for this Friday before running two forty-five-minute races on Saturday around the tight 1.8 mile circuit. That leaves little margin for error with the consequences that a street derived circuit can quickly bring to race cars!!

Photo credits – Teams / social media / IMSA

 

The final piece to the Roar before the 24 jigsaw was confirmed earlier today when the #22 Archangel prepared Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT4 of Robbie McWilliams had that driver’s name entered into the official timing screen as the VP Racing Sportscar Challenge Series hit the track at Daytona for the first time earlier today.

For them, the Roar is not a test weekend but their opening race weekend of their new 2024 season as ten LMP3 and twenty-three GSX (GT4) cars go head-to-head for the first time with two forty-five-minute races over the course of Saturday and Sunday for their solo driver.

 

Three runners within the IMSA VP Racing Sportscar Challenge have kept the flag of race success flying high for the Aston Martin Racing customer racing fraternity this weekend as two enjoy podium success within that series Bronze Cup class.

Competing alongside the Weathertech Sportscar Championship and Michelin Pilot Challenge Series, the bronze ranked solo driver series proved itself to be a rewarding step up and across for both Brady Behrman and Scott Blind as both raced within the series at the Virginia International Raceway for the first time this weekend.

Two forty-five-minute races saw these two Aston Martins, and that of Todd Coleman join the thirteen strong GSX class (GT4) and seven strong LMP3 class for this weekend of events.

For Coleman, he was sadly having a weekend to forget as he struggled with his dual programme Michelin Pilot Challenge commitments, but at least he was able to circulate midfield within class during both Free Practice sessions.

For both Behrman and Blind, this was still very much a learning curve for the former having departed from his dual driver programme within GT4 America in his Van Der Steur prepared #82 car and the later still only in his second topflight event having stepped up from the club like WRL Series.

Qualifying saw Blind take best placed AMR honours in P6 with Behrman just behind whilst Coleman would start from P11 and whilst he would eventually stop with technical issues just after halfway, Behrman passed Blind for position before going onto secure his first Bronze Cup podium position, P2 in that and an impressive P5 overall in GSX. Blind would not finish his opening IMSA having had to stop due to a technical issue whilst challenging for fifth in class.

Sunday’s finale saw Coleman’s weekend go from bad to worse as having gained early places from his qualifying position to run line astern to the other two Aston Martins, contact with the #96 BMW say the #69 car rotate backwards into a tyre protected barrier before flipping onto its roof.

It was a few minutes before circuit officials had righted the now obviously heavily damaged car (with Colemans still inside) before Coleman was seen exiting the vehicle unaided and without any obvious injury which is always the main thing.

Losing a quarter of the race time to that incident, it became a fifteen-minute run to flag for the rest. Despite Blind having ran as high as P2 in Bronze Cup, it was Behrman again who stole top AMR honours, finishing P5 overall/P2 in Bronze cup with Blind this time just one place behind.

So, despite the AMR powered race weekend so far, there has finally been AMR success to cheer!

Photo credits – Teams / social media

 

Seems that North America remains the hotbed of Aston Martin Racing related activity as their regional agents, CSJ Motorsport welcome another crew to their midst’s for 2023.

Themselves a new convertee to the AMR Vantage GT4 platform in time for the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge Series that starts at Daytona at the end of the month, sees the Van Der Steur team confirm a second car but this time within the SRO GT4 America Series for drivers Brady Behrman and Coby Shield.