Ultra 94 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada by Yokohama wraps up 2017 season; Hargrove captures Platinum Cup
Hargrove Platinum Cup champion for second time, De Angelis Gold Cup champion;
Cirone secures Platinum Masters victory once more
BOWMANVILLE, ON, Sept. 5, 2017 /CNW/ - This past weekend the Ultra 94 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada by Yokohama returned to the same track where it all started this season: Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (CTMP) in Bowmanville, ON, for the season finale races. Although the Gold Cup had already been clinched by the young Roman De Angelis in the No. 78 entry for Mark Motors, the Platinum Cup and Platinum Masters Championships were still up for grabs and put the redeveloped GT3 Cup car to the test and challenging the field.
"The seventh season of the Ultra 94 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada by Yokohama has come to a close and did not disappoint," said Alexander Pollich, President & CEO, Porsche Cars Canada, Ltd. "After a season full of wheel-to-wheel action, we couldn't be more proud of the talent that our series hosts each and every year, and to officially award the victors of each class. The newly redeveloped GT3 Cup car fueled the increased competitive spirit all season long and ultimately it was great to see a previous series champion stand on the top step again - big congratulations to Scott Hargrove and the Pfaff Motorsports / Castrol team!"
September 1, 2017
This past weekend hosted three races, as there was a makeup race from Round 5 at Watkins Glen International. Using the starting grid that was previously set for the race that was cancelled, with the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge USA entries extracted, it was Zach Robichon of Ottawa, Ontario, that had the advantage in his No. 98 Platinum entry for Mark Motors Racing, leading the pack to the Green Flag for the first of three 45-minute races of the weekend.
However, that advantage dwindled as the race progressed, as second-place starter Scott Hargrove in the No. 9 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup entry for Pfaff Motorsports/Castrol immediately put the pressure on Robichon and continued to turn it up as the laps ticked off, checking for opportunities and dancing in Robichon's mirrors.
Despite Robichon's clean lines and strong pace, Hargrove was able to outmaneuver him on Lap 12, taking the lead with a brilliant pass, and never looked back, logging his ninth victory thus far this season and putting him ever closer to a set of keys for a lease on new 2017 911 courtesy of Porsche Cars Canada, Ltd.
Michael De Quesada in the No. 31 Alegra Motorsports entry started in fourth, but moved up into third on the first lap when the No. 69 of Remo Ruscitti for OpenRoad Racing left a hole open and de Quesada, along with Patrick Dussault and Marco Cirone, took advantage and moved up.
As Robichon and de Quesada navigated the 10-turn road course in lock-step, it became clear that while de Quesada was quick around the 3.96-km (2.459-mile) track, he didn't have enough to overtake Robichon and the two finished in second and third respectively on the Platinum Podium.
Dussault, of Montreal, Quebec, defended his fifth-place position, but Vancouver native Ruscitti was all over his bumper as the clock counted down, popping out at every opportunity to overtake.
With only minutes remaining, Ruscitti finally found his opening on the inside of Turn 10, snaking around Dussault to gain the advantage. From there, his eyes were firmly on the back of Marco Cirone's No. 88, dialing up the speed to engage in a last-lap dogfight with the Platinum Masters contender. Despite Cirone's best efforts, Ruscitti made his final pass on the very last lap of the race, taking fourth-place overall.
Undaunted, Cirone captured his seventh Platinum Masters victory and finished in the top five overall.
Tim Sanderson in his No. 07 DFC Motorsport / Speedstar Motorsports entry finished in seventh overall and took the second step on the Platinum Masters Podium.
Roman De Angelis had already secured the Gold Cup Championship at the last round in Trois-Rivieres, but like Hargrove, he accrued his ninth class victory and showed no signs of resting on his laurels.
September 2, 2017
While the results look exceedingly similar to the race from the prior day, and the No. 9 of Scott Hargrove in the Pfaff Motorsports/Castrol entry sailed across the finish line to take his 10th season victory, more importantly, he also clinched the Platinum Cup Series Championship for 2017.
This is Hargrove's second Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada series championship, having won his first title in 2015.
Zach Robichon, who has driven a superb season in the No. 98 entry for Mark Motors Racing continued to challenge Hargrove, as he has all season long. A fierce competitor and a true sportsman, the Ottawa native drove a strong, clean race, but was unable to bring the battle to Hargrove, and settled for second place in the race and the series championship.
Alegra Motorsport's Michael de Quesada followed the same pattern as Friday's race as well. The 17-year-old started in third place and demonstrated a pace that was nearly enough to catch Robichon throughout the race, but as the checkered flag dropped he just didn't have enough throttle to make a move and finished on the third step of the podium, and in the series championship.
Marco Cirone in the No. 88 entry for Mark Motors Racing had a commanding victory in Friday's race, but started in eighth on the grid Saturday, behind rival Tim Sanderson in the No. 07 DFC Motorsport/Speedstar Motorsport entry for Harry Rosen/Downtown Porsche.
Sanderson locked in behind Gold Cup driver, Roman De Angelis in the No. 78 entry for Mark Motors / Bestline Auto Tech, and kept the throttle down, enjoying a heated battle with the No. 77 of Patrick Dussault for Lauzon Autosport/GT Racing and Porsche Rive-Sud and the No. 69 of OpenRoad Racing's Remo Ruscitti.
Sanderson and Ruscitti swapped positions several times in the last few minutes of the race, but Sanderson was ultimately able to outfox the younger driver and take the victory for the Platinum Masters class, relegating Cirone to second place.
Cirone was far from disappointed in his finish however, as his second-place run clinched his fifth Platinum Masters Championship in a row, making him the winningest championship driver in series history.
Pieter Baljet enjoyed a spirited drive in his No. 15 entry for Porsche Centre Victoria, mixing it up with fellow Platinum Masters entry Neal Walker in the No. 71 car of Tullman Walker Racing and the No. 13 Gold Cup entry of Orey Fidani for Pfaff Motorsports/Orlando Corporation. He didn't have quite the power to catch Cirone, but was pleased to finish the 45-minute sprint in third place in class.
De Angelis, who normally is a focal point of Sanderson's rear view mirror, enjoyed his cruise though Platinum traffic, as he held off Sanderson and fellow Gold competitor Fidani to take his ninth victory of the season. Fidani's drive earned him a second place in the Gold Class championship.
September 3, 2017
It seemed as though the final race of the Ultra 94 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada by Yokohama would have an anticlimactic finish Sunday at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. The morning saw chilly temperatures and a steady drizzle and mist that created poor visibility and treacherous racing conditions leading to believe the drive would be an exercise in preservation.
However, at the drop of the green flag, Zach Robichon in the No. 98 for Mark Motors, decidedly disagreed with that course of action and set the tone for the race early, after making a gutsy move on series champion Scott Hargrove in the No. 9 for Pfaff Motorsports/Castrol, firmly announcing that the dogfight for the lead had begun.
The pair swapped positions throughout the first lap, but the rainfall increased and a full-course caution was issued on Lap 2 due to three cars spinning out independently of one another and making contact with the tire barriers. As the yellow flag came out, it was Robichon who had captured the lead and drove his Mark Motors entry all the way to Victory Lane and the overall and Platinum Cup victory for his second race win of the season.
Second to cross the finish line was another familiar lime green car, but not whom you might normally expect. As the green flag dropped, the No. 78 of Roman De Angelis in Gold Cup driving a 2014 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car made a bold move in the rain from his eighth-place starting position, pushing through traffic like a man on a mission to steal third place, just behind Hargrove.
As the race progressed, De Angelis brought the battle to Hargrove. The two slid around the course engaged in a contest of wills and tire traction. As the track went back to green after the first caution period, De Angelis caught Hargrove and moved up to second. Despite already clinching the championship Saturday, Hargrove pushed hard to find any advantage through the dismal conditions.
On Lap 19, Hargrove was able to gain his position back with a bold move, but De Angelis didn't back down and the 16-year-old took it back just one lap later to take the checkered flag, second-place overall and the victory in Gold Cup. Hargrove ultimately finished third overall and second in Platinum Cup.
The No. 69 of Remo Ruscitti, who drove three fiercely competitive races this weekend, remained extremely consistent Sunday in his Platinum entry for OpenRoad Racing. The Vancouver, British Columbia, driver maintained his fourth-place position from the start, and his great view of the De Angelis/Hargrove battle to finish as he started, and claim the third step on the Platinum podium.
The No. 07 of Tim Sanderson for DFC Motorsport/Speedstar Motorsport for Downtown Porsche and Harry Rosen was one of the victims of the weather and spun out with light contact to the wall, causing the first caution. He was joined by the No. 77 of Patrick Dussault for Lauzon Autosport / GT Racing for Porsche Rive-Sud / Lauzon who had a similar issue, and the No. 31 of Michael de Quesada of Alegra Motorsports. All three had independent incidents and Sanderson and Dussault were forced to retire from competition.
The incident paved the way for Platinum Masters Champion Marco Cirone in the No. 88 for Mark Motors Racing to jump up to fifth position as the caution period ended. For the remainder of the race he enjoyed spirited competition from de Quesada, who fought to regain the ground he lost during the yellow and the No. 83 of Max Tullman for Tullman Walker Racing. While the five-time Platinum Masters Champion conceded ground and finished seventh overall, he captured his ninth victory of the season.
Tullman's teammate Neal Walker in the No. 71 entry locked in behind Cirone to take his second podium of the season in Masters competition with his second-place finish.
Pieter Baljet in the No. 15 for Porsche Centre Victoria started in 12th position on the grid, and was able to move up three positions to win the Platinum Yokohama Hard Charger Award as well as third in class.
The competitors ended their season with a celebration Sunday afternoon in nearby Oshawa, Ontario, collecting their Championship honours and celebrating with friends, family, teams, partners, officials and other series constituents.
Porsche Cars Canada, Ltd. was thrilled to be able to present the Spirit of Speed monument, a ¼-scale version of a Porsche GT3 Cup car made entirely out of Yokohama tires by Canadian artist, Brian Leitch (a.k.a. "KWEST"). Traditionally the Spirt of Speed award was presented to an individual or group that best represents the true racing spirit of Porsche. That continues with this new monument as the prestigious acknowledgement for this year was bestowed upon Speedstar Motorsport. All previous winners' names have also been added to the monument, with future winners to follow suit.
The combined Rounds 11 and 12 will be aired on TSN Saturday, Sept. 30 at 1 p.m. (EST). They will run on RDS2 Sunday, Oct. 15 at 1 p.m. and Motorsports.com Saturday, Oct. 14, at 9 p.m.
For more information on the Ultra 94 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada by Yokohama, visit www.imsa.com and follow @IMSA on Twitter with the hashtag #GT3CAN.
SOURCE Porsche Cars Canada
