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2016 Northeast Grand Prix

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Track map of Lime Rock Park

The 2016 Northeast Grand Prix was a sports car race sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). The race was held at Lime Rock Park in Lakeville, Connecticut on July 23, 2016. The race was the eighth round of the 2016 IMSA SportsCar Championship.

Background

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Preview

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Lime Rock Park, where the race was held.

International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) president Scott Atherton confirmed the race was part of the schedule for the 2016 IMSA SportsCar Championship (IMSA SCC) in August 2015.[1] It was the second consecutive year the event was held as part of the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and the twenty-fifth annual running of the race. The 2016 Northeast Grand Prix was the eighth of twelve scheduled sports car races of 2016 by IMSA, and was the fifth round not held on the held as part of the North American Endurance Cup.[1] The race was held at the seven-turn 1.530 mi (2.462 km) Lime Rock Park in Lakeville, Connecticut on July 23, 2016.[2] The GTLM category would participate in the event for the first time since the 2013 running.[3]

IMSA altered the balance of performance to try to create parity within the GTLM category. The BMW M6 GTLM received a reduction in turbo boost pressure and a 2-litre fuel capacity reduction. The Ferrari 488 GTE received an increase in turbo boost pressure, and a 2-litre fuel capacity increase as well as a 1.0 mm refuelling hose restrictor reduction increase. The Ford GT received a 0.1 mm refuelling hose restrictor reduction. The Porsche 911 RSR had its weight increased by 20kg (44 lb).[4]

Before the race, Alex Popow and Renger van der Zande led the Prototype Challenge Drivers' Championship with 231 points, ahead of Robert Alon and Tom Kimber-Smith in second by 14 points, and Stephen Simpson and Misha Goikhberg in third with 209 points.[5] With 192 points, Oliver Gavin and Tommy Milner led the GTLM Drivers' Championship, 5 points ahead of Ryan Briscoe and Richard Westbrook.[5] In GTD, the Drivers' Championship was led by Alessandro Balzan and Christina Nielsen with 191 points; the duo held a twenty two-point advantage over Mario Farnbacher and Alex Riberas.[5] Chevrolet and Ferrari were leading their respective Manufacturers' Championships, while Starworks Motorsport, Corvette Racing, and Scuderia Corsa each led their own Teams' Championships.[5]

Entry list

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Thirty-one cars were officially entered for the Northeast Grand Prix, with most of the entries being in the Grand Touring Le Mans (GTLM) and Grand Touring Daytona (GTD) categories. The Prototype Challenge (PC) class was composed of eight Oreca FLM09 cars: three from Starworks Motorsports. BAR1 Motorsports, CORE Autosport, JDC-Miller MotorSports, Performance Tech and PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports entered one car each.[6] GTLM was represented by nine entries from five different brands.[6] In the list of GTD entrants, fourteen GT3-specification vehicles were represented by six different manufacturers.[6] With the absence of the Prototype (P) class from the field, only three racing classes were represented in Lime Rock.[2]

Practice

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There were two practice sessions preceding the start of the race on Saturday, both on Friday. The two one-hour sessions were on Friday afternoon.[7]

In the first practice session, Renger van der Zande set the fastest time in the No. 8 Starworks car with a time of 48.808 seconds, 0.214 seconds faster than Colin Braun's No. 54 CORE Autosport vehicle, and Stephen Simpson's No. 85 car was third.[8] The GTLM class was topped by the No. 4 Chevrolet Corvette C7.R of Oliver Gavin. Joey Hand in the No. 66 Ford GT was second and Toni Vilander's Risi Ferrari was third.[9] Audi paced GTD with Magnus Racing's R8 of Lally lapping at 52.807, followed by Jens Klingmann's No. 96 Turner Motorsport BMW M6.[9] The session was stopped for 10 minutes when John Edwards No.100 RLL BMW M6 stopped on track due to a driveline failure.[8]

Braun led the final practice session in CORE's No. 54 car with a lap of 48.990 seconds. Kimber-Smith's No. 52 PR/1's vehicle was second fastest. Marcelli was third fastest for Performance Tech.[10] BMW topped GTLM with Werner's No. 25 car lapping at 51.164 seconds. Vilander was second fastest for Risi Competizione and Milner's No. 4 Corvette was third.[10] Farnbacher led the GTD class in the No. 23 Porsche, followed by Liddell's No. 6 Stevenson Motorsport Audi R8.[10][11]

Qualifying

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Friday afternoon's 65-minute three-group qualifying session gave 15-minute sessions to all categories. Cars in GTD were sent out first before those grouped in GTLM, and PC had two separate identically timed sessions. Regulations stipulated teams to nominate one qualifying driver, with the fastest laps determining each classes starting order. IMSA would arranged the grid to put all PCs ahead of the GTLM, and GTD cars.[12][7]

Qualifying results

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Pole positions in each class are indicated in bold and by ‡.

Pos. Class No. Team Driver Time Gap Grid
1 PC 54 United States CORE Autosport United States Colin Braun 48.824 _ 81
2 PC 52 United States PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports United States Robert Alon 48.840 +0.016 1‡
3 PC 38 United States Performance Tech Motorsports United States James French 48.930 +0.106 2
4 PC 7 United States Starworks Motorsport Mexico José Gutiérrez 48.978 +0.154 3
5 PC 8 United States Starworks Motorsport Venezuela Alex Popow 49.222 +0.398 4
6 PC 20 United States BAR1 Motorsports United States Matt McMurry 49.266 +0.442 5
7 PC 85 United States JDC-Miller MotorSports Canada Misha Goikhberg 49.659 +0.835 6
8 GTLM 67 United States Ford Chip Ganassi Racing United Kingdom Richard Westbrook 50.748 +1.924 9‡
9 GTLM 25 United States BMW Team RLL Germany Dirk Werner 50.834 +2.010 10
10 GTLM 4 United States Corvette Racing United States Tommy Milner 50.858 +2.034 11
11 GTLM 62 United States Risi Competizione Finland Toni Vilander 50.902 +2.078 12
12 GTLM 66 United States Ford Chip Ganassi Racing United States Joey Hand 51.015 +2.191 13
13 GTLM 3 United States Corvette Racing Denmark Jan Magnussen 51.264 +2.440 14
14 GTLM 911 United States Porsche North America France Patrick Pilet 51.346 +2.522 15
15 GTLM 100 United States BMW Team RLL United States John Edwards 51.431 +2.607 16
16 GTLM 912 United States Porsche North America France Frédéric Makowiecki 51.445 +2.621 17
17 PC 88 United States Starworks Motorsport United States Mark Kvamme 51.629 +2.805 8
18 GTD 16 United States Change Racing United States Spencer Pumpelly 53.178 +4.324 18‡
19 GTD 6 United States Stevenson Motorsports United States Andrew Davis 53.222 +4.354 19
20 GTD 9 United States Stevenson Motorsports United States Matt Bell 53.250 +4.398 20
21 GTD 63 United States Scuderia Corsa Denmark Christina Nielsen 53.250 +4.426 21
22 GTD 48 United States Paul Miller Racing United States Madison Snow 53.330 +4.506 22
23 GTD 23 United States Team Seattle/Alex Job Racing Germany Mario Farnbacher 53.538 +4.714 23
24 GTD 96 United States Turner Motorsport United States Bret Curtis 53.588 +4.764 24
25 GTD 73 United States Park Place Motorsports United States Patrick Lindsey 53.609 +4.785 25
26 GTD 27 United States Dream Racing Monaco Cédric Sbirrazzuoli 53.680 +4.786 312
27 GTD 97 United States Turner Motorsport United States Michael Marsa 53.695 +4.871 26
28 GTD 44 United States Magnus Racing United States John Potter 53.698 +4.874 27
29 GTD 22 United States Alex Job Racing United States Cooper MacNeil 53.784 +4.960 28
30 GTD 33 United States Riley Motorsports United States Ben Keating 53.983 +5.159 303
31 GTD 540 United States Black Swan Racing United States Tim Pappas 54.949 +6.155 29
Sources:[13][14]
  • 1 The No. 54 CORE Autosport entry was sent to the rear of the PC grid as per 43.1 of the Sporting regulations (Starting driver change).[12]
  • 2 The No. 27 Dream Racing Lamborghini was sent to the rear of the GTD grid as per 43.1 of the Sporting regulations (Starting driver change).[12]
  • 3 The No. 33 Riley Motorsports Dodge was sent to the rear of the GTD grid as per 40.1.5 of the Sporting regulations (Tire change).[12]

Race

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Post-race

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With a total of 267 points, Popow and van der Zande's victory allowed them to extend their advantage in the Prototype Challenge Drivers' Championship to 17 points over Alon and Kimber-Smith.[5] The final results of GTLM meant Gavin and Milner's victory allowed them to extend their advantage in the Drivers' Championship by 5 points over Briscoe and Westbrook. García and Magnussen advanced from fifth to third.[5] Balzan and Nielsen's eleventh-placed finish allowed them to keep their advantage in the GTD Drivers' Championship, but their advantage was reduced to 13 points as race winners Lally and Potter jumped to second.[5] Chevrolet continued to the GTLM Manufactures' Championship while Audi became the leader of the GTD Manufactures' Championship. Starworks Motorsport, Corvette Racing, and Scuderia Corsa kept their respective advantages in their of Teams' Championships with four rounds left in the season.[5]

Race Results

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Class winners are denoted in bold and ‡. PC stands for Prototype Challenge, GTLM (Grand Touring Le Mans) and GTD (Grand Touring Daytona)

Final race classification
Pos Class No. Team Drivers Chassis Tire Laps Time/Retired
Engine
1 PC 8 United States Starworks Motorsport Venezuela Alex Popow
Netherlands Renger van der Zande
Oreca FLM09 C 169 2:40:43.254‡
Chevrolet 6.2 L V8
2 PC 52 United States PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports United States Robert Alon
United Kingdom Tom Kimber-Smith
Oreca FLM09 C 169 +0.815
Chevrolet 6.2 L V8
3 PC 38 United States Performance Tech Motorsports United States James French
Canada Kyle Marcelli
Oreca FLM09 C 168 +1 Lap
Chevrolet 6.2 L V8
4 PC 20 United States BAR1 Motorsports United States Matt McMurry
United Kingdom Johnny Mowlem
Oreca FLM09 C 168 +1 Lap
Chevrolet 6.2 L V8
5 GTLM 4 United States Corvette Racing United Kingdom Oliver Gavin
United States Tommy Milner
Chevrolet Corvette C7.R M 167 +2 Laps‡
Chevrolet LT5.5 5.5 L V8
6 GTLM 3 United States Corvette Racing Spain Antonio García
Denmark Jan Magnussen
Chevrolet Corvette C7.R M 167 +2 Laps
Chevrolet LT5.5 5.5 L V8
7 GTLM 67 United States Ford Chip Ganassi Racing Australia Ryan Briscoe
United Kingdom Richard Westbrook
Ford GT M 167 +2 Laps
Ford EcoBoost 3.5 L Twin-turbo V6
8 GTLM 62 United States Risi Competizione Finland Toni Vilander
Italy Giancarlo Fisichella
Ferrari 488 GTE M 167 +2 Laps
Ferrari F154CB 3.9 L Turbo V8
9 GTLM 66 United States Ford Chip Ganassi Racing Germany Dirk Müller
United States Joey Hand
Ford GT M 167 +2 Laps
Ford EcoBoost 3.5 L Twin-turbo V6
10 PC 88 United States Starworks Motorsport United States Mark Kvamme
Canada Remo Ruscitti
Oreca FLM09 C 165 +4 Laps
Chevrolet 6.2 L V8
11 GTD 44 United States Magnus Racing United States John Potter
United States Andy Lally
Audi R8 LMS C 162 +7 Laps‡
Audi 5.2L V10
12 GTD 6 United States Stevenson Motorsports United States Andrew Davis
United Kingdom Robin Liddell
Audi R8 LMS C 162 +7 Laps
Audi 5.2L V10
13 GTD 33 United States Riley Motorsports Netherlands Jeroen Bleekemolen
United States Ben Keating
Dodge Viper GT3-R C 161 +8 Laps
Dodge 8.3L V10
14 GTD 48 United States Paul Miller Racing United States Bryan Sellers
United States Madison Snow
Lamborghini Huracán GT3 C 161 +8 Laps
Lamborghini 5.2 L V10
15 GTD 9 United States Stevenson Motorsports United States Lawson Aschenbach
United States Matt Bell
Audi R8 LMS C 161 +8 Laps
Audi 5.2L V10
16 GTD 96 United States Turner Motorsport United States Bret Curtis
Germany Jens Klingmann
BMW M6 GT3 C 161 +8 Laps
BMW 4.4L Turbo V8
17 GTD 97 United States Turner Motorsport United States Michael Marsal
Finland Markus Palttala
BMW M6 GT3 C 161 +8 Laps
BMW 4.4L Turbo V8
18 GTD 16 United States Change Racing United States Corey Lewis
United States Spencer Pumpelly
Lamborghini Huracán GT3 C 161 +8 Laps
Lamborghini 5.2 L V10
19 GTD 22 United States Alex Job Racing United States Cooper MacNeil
United States Leh Keen
Porsche 911 GT3 R C 161 +8 Laps
Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
20 GTD 73 United States Park Place Motorsports Germany Jörg Bergmeister
United States Patrick Lindsey
Porsche 911 GT3 R C 160 +9 Laps
Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
21 GTD 63 United States Scuderia Corsa Denmark Christina Nielsen
Italy Alessandro Balzan
Ferrari 488 GT3 C 160 +9 Laps
Ferrari F154CB 3.9 L Turbo V8
22 GTD 540 United States Black Swan Racing United States Tim Pappas
United States Andy Pilgrim
Porsche 911 GT3 R C 160 +9 Laps
Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
23 GTLM 911 United States Porsche North America France Patrick Pilet
United Kingdom Nick Tandy
Porsche 911 RSR M 159 +10 Laps
Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
24 GTD 27 United States Dream Racing Monaco Cédric Sbirrazzuoli
United States Lawrence DeGeorge
Lamborghini Huracán GT3 C 158 +11 Laps
Lamborghini 5.2 L V10
25

DNF

GTD 23 United States Team Seattle/Alex Job Racing Germany Mario Farnbacher
Spain Alex Riberas
Porsche 911 GT3 R C 142 Tie rod
Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
26

DNF

PC 85 United States JDC-Miller MotorSports Canada Misha Goikhberg
South Africa Stephen Simpson
Oreca FLM09 C 108 Did Not Finish
Chevrolet 6.2 L V8
27

DNF

PC 7 United States Starworks Motorsport Mexico José Gutiérrez
United States Sean Rayhall
Oreca FLM09 C 100 Clutch
Chevrolet 6.2 L V8
28

DNF

GTLM 25 United States BMW Team RLL United States Bill Auberlen
Germany Dirk Werner
BMW M6 GTLM M 89 Crash
BMW 4.4 L Turbo V8
29

DNF

GTLM 912 United States Porsche North America New Zealand Earl Bamber
France Frédéric Makowiecki
Porsche 911 RSR M 89 Crash
Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
30

DNF

PC 54 United States CORE Autosport United States Jon Bennett
United States Colin Braun
Oreca FLM09 C 69 Suspension
Chevrolet 6.2 L V8
31

DNF

GTLM 100 United States BMW Team RLL United States John Edwards
Germany Lucas Luhr
BMW M6 GTLM M 4 Crash
BMW 4.4 L Turbo V8
Sources:[15][16]
Tyre manufacturers
Key
Symbol Tyre manufacturer
C Continental
M Michelin

Championship standings after the race

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  • Note: Only the top five positions are included for all sets of standings.
  • Note: Only the top five positions are included for all sets of standings.
  • Note: Only the top five positions are included for all sets of standings.

References

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  1. ^ a b Pruett, Marshall (August 8, 2015). "IMSA: 2016 schedule revealed". Racer. Archived from the original on January 1, 2020. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  2. ^ a b "IMSA announces new title sponsor, 2016 schedule". motorsport.com. August 9, 2015. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  3. ^ Dagys, John (August 8, 2015). "2016 WeatherTech SportsCar Schedule Released". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  4. ^ Dagys, John (15 July 2016). "IMSA Makes Further BoP Changes to GTLM". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s "2016 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship – Championship Point Standings" (PDF). International Motor Sports Association. October 12, 2016. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 26, 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2024.
  6. ^ a b c "GTLM Makes Return to Lime Rock; Entry List Released". sportscar365.com. 13 July 2016. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  7. ^ a b Dagys, John (21 July 2016). "Continental Tire Keys to the Race: Lime Rock Park". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  8. ^ a b Myrehn, Ryan (22 July 2016). "Van der Zande Quickest in Opening Practice at Lime Rock". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  9. ^ a b Pruett, Marshall (22 July 2016). "IMSA: Starworks leads FP1 at Lime Rock". Racer. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  10. ^ a b c Pruett, Marshall (22 July 2016). "IMSA: CORE autosport, BMW, Porsche lead Lime Rock FP2". Racer. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  11. ^ Myrehn, Ryan (22 July 2016). "Braun Paces Practice 2 at Lime Rock". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  12. ^ a b c d "2016 IMSA Sporting Regulations & Series Supplementary Regulations of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship" (PDF). International Motor Sports Association. May 25, 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 5, 2016. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  13. ^ "03_Results.PDF" (PDF). results.imsa.com. 22 July 2016. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  14. ^ "01_Starting Grid.PDF" (PDF). results.imsa.com. 23 July 2016. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  15. ^ "03_Results.PDF" (PDF). results.imsa.com. 23 July 2016. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  16. ^ "2016 NORTHEAST GRAND PRIX". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved 24 May 2024.


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