IMSA Preview: Canadian Tire Motorsports Park

Written by Natalie Johnston, Edited by Aaron Carroll

The No.13 Corvette driving past Canadian fans at the track I Credit: Jake Galstad

The IMSA Weathertech Sportscar Championship arrives in Bowmanville, Ontario for the Chevrolet Grand Prix at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park this weekend. Qualifying takes place on Saturday at 4:00 pm EST. The 160-minute Chevrolet Grand Prix sprint begins at 11:05 am EST on Sunday.

The GTPs will not be racing this weekend, same as last season. The grid will be composed of LMP2, GTD Pro and GTD. 12 cars will compete in LMP2, 10 in GTD Pro, and 13 in GTD for a total of 35 entries.

With no GTP class, the LMP2 class will have a bigger spotlight this weekend. This race will be the first showing of the LMP2’s outside of the Michelin Endurance Cup.

This presents a new challenge, as the entire LMP2 field is made up of Pro/Am driver lineups. As the mandated qualifying drivers, the Amateur (Bronze) drivers have a lot more pressure on them in IMSA’s sprint races. Qualifying is vitally important to teams’ results at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park (CTMP).

CTMP, colloquially “Mosport,” poses a particular challenge when it comes to passing. The 2.5 mile circuit is on the shorter side of tracks on the IMSA calendar. Mosport is mostly made up of high-speed corners, with no clearly defined passing zones. This combination makes for action-packed racing in front of the Canadian crowds.

As the only Canadian race on the IMSA calendar, this weekend will be extra special for Canadian teams and drivers. In GTD, the Daytona-winning No.13 AWA Racing Corvette, with Canadian Orey Fidani at the wheel, will be a team to watch this weekend. They will be sporting their special maple-leafed tribute livery that they ran at Le Mans in June.

In GTD Pro, the home-favourite No.9 Pfaff Motorsports Lamborghini is also running a special Motomaster livery in combination with their signature red plaid at CTMP.

In LMP2, the Canadian No.8 Tower Motorsport car will be looking to improve from their P6 result last year in the LMP2 classes first showing at Mosport. Toronto-born John Farano has some experience racing at this track through the years. Paired with Renger van der Zande, Pro driver, and former winner at CTMP in 2022, Tower’s driver lineup will be a fast combination.

Balance of Performance (BoP) changes in GTD see the Corvettes and the Lamborghinis receiving a 1.9% and 3.2% increase in V1 Maximum Declared Power respectively, compared to the Detroit GP. The Fords V1 Maximum Declared Power has been reduced by 5.1%, surely a big impact for the Ford Multimatic No.64 and 65 cars.

There will be no BoP for the LMP2 class, as all of the teams run the same Oreca 07 car.

Without the added traffic of the GTPs, the LMP2s, GTD Pros, and GTDs will get some extra breathing room around CTMP. With close standings battles in all three classes, CTMP will be one to watch this weekend.