Endurance Weekly: 3rd - 9th July
- DIVEBOMB Endurance Team
- 3 days ago
- 4 min read
Written by the DIVEBOMB Endurance Team, Edited by Morgan Holiday
This week on Endurance Weekly, the DIVEBOMB endurance team look towards the IMSA round at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (CTMP) and the WEC in Interlagos, as well as looking back at the latest ELMS round in Imola, we will also report on all of the breaking news stories you may have missed.
ELMS Review
The third round of the European Le Mans Series in Imola began with the No.25 CLX Motorsport LMP2 leading the field away at the start, and there was an immediate yellow flag due to an incident involving the No.68 M Racing LMP3 and the No.88 Inter Europol.
The No.59 Racing Spirit of Léman led early on in LMGT3, with the pole-sitting No.63 Mercedes falling all the way down to eighth after a difficult start.
There were multiple incidents early in the race, including the No.50 Ferrari and No.85 Iron Dames. The latter was spun around but soon continued again. The No.4 DKR Engineering had a mechanical issue and entered the garage.
As the race progressed, the No.43 Inter Europol moved to the front of the pack after a full-course yellow was thrown. Teams switched to wet tyres as rain began to fall. A significant pileup occurred involving multiple LMGT3 cars, leading to a red flag to clear the track.
After a lengthy pause, the race resumed with the No. 48 VDS Panis leading. As rain continued the competition intensified, with various cars benefiting from tough situations. The race also saw conflicts that led to drive-through penalties for some teams.
As the race neared its conclusion, additional full-course yellows were deployed due to crashes.
The No.48 VDS Panis car managed to hold on and take the overall win, while the No. 99 AO by TF secured victory in LMP2 Pro/Am. The No. 17 CLX Motorsport claimed another win in LMP3, and the No. 82 TF Sport took the win in LMGT3.
IMSA CTMP Preview
The IMSA Weathertech Sportscar Championship arrives in the ‘Great White North’ this weekend for the Chevrolet Grand Prix. The race takes place at CTMP, colloquially known as “Mosport,” in Bowmanville, Ontario. Qualifying takes place on Saturday at 4:00 pm EST. The race will begin at 11:05 pm EST on Sunday.
There will be no GTPs racing this weekend, as was the case last year. There are 35 entries total this weekend. 12 cars in LMP2, 10 in GTD Pro, and 13 in GTD.
As it will be the only Canadian race on the grid, fans should watch out for the home teams and drivers. The Canadian Daytona-winning AWA Racing team will be sporting their special red-and-white livery that they ran at Le Mans in June as a tribute to their home crowd. Canadian driver John Farano and his Tower Motorsport will also be home favourites this weekend.
Balance of Performance changes have rolled out for the GTD and GTD Pro classes. The Corvettes receive a 1.9% uptick in V1 Maximum Declared Power compared to the Detroit GP. Ford received a 5.1% decrease in V2 power, and Lamborghini took a 3.2% increase in V1 from Detroit. The Lamborghinis also have had their Minimum Mass allowance lowered by 20kg since the Detroit GP.
With these BoP changes, the Canadian No.9 Pfaff Motorsports Lamborghini may be the one to watch this weekend.
The top three in the GTD Pro class are separated by 8 points, while the GTD class leaders are in a three-way tie for first. The No.21 AF Corse, the No.70 Inception Racing, and the No.27 Heart of Racing cars are in a dog-fight for the lead as it stands before CTMP. There is also a tie for the top of the standings in LMP2 between the No.22 United Autosport and the No.43 Inter Europol cars.
With the reduced traffic due to the lack of the GTP class and the blisteringly fast nature of Mosport, this race will be an all-out battle throughout the field.
WEC Interlagos Preview
The World Endurance Championship (WEC) will return to Brazil for the second time in the Hypercar era this weekend, for the 2025 6 Hours of São Paulo.
The 4.3 km (2.6 mile) Autódromo José Carlos Pace, better known as Interlagos, is the shortest track on the 2025 calendar. The length will present an increased challenge of traffic for the drivers, as the prototype drivers will encounter LMGT3 traffic much more often than normal.
In the BoP release, Ferrari have been hit the hardest. The 499P will be the heaviest and least powerful car on the Hypercar grid. BMW and Alpine also have increased weight, but both get a slight increase in power too.
Also seeing an increase in power are Cadillac, Porsche and Toyota. The Peugeot 9X8 will remain the same, with the Aston Martin Valkyrie losing some weight.
Free Practice 1 and 2 will take place on Friday, both 90 minute sessions. There will be a final 60 minutes of practice on Saturday morning before the teams get into qualifying mode on that afternoon. The race will get underway at 11:30pm local time, and will last for six hours.
You can read the full preview on our website on Wednesday.
Breaking News
GTWC
Tim Miles suffers fatal cycling injury
58 year-old New Zealander, Tim Miles has sadly passed away this past week, in a tragic cycling accident. Miles was a regular in the GT World Challenge (GTWC) Australia and the Ford Mustang Challenge at Le Mans.
The motorsport community mourns the loss of the entrepreneur, banker and passionate racer.
WEC
Antonio Giovinazzi extends Ferrari contract
The Italian driver has signed a ‘multi-year’ contract renewal to keep him at the wheel of Ferrari’s factory efforts in the World Endurance Championship. The contract also extends to his role as reserve driver of the Italian marque’s Formula One team.
The news comes after a more than successful start for the team in Hypercar, with Giovinazzi leading the drivers championship alongside teammates James Calado and Alessandro Pier Guidi.
