The 22nd Petit Le Mans closed the IMSA season with a race-record distance, a late brake failure on a sister car and several final appearances.
The 2019 Petit Le Mans was the final race of the IMSA season, held on 12 October at Road Atlanta. The No. 31 Cadillac won it, and the race covered a record distance after a late brake failure on a sister car.
The 2019 Petit Le Mans was the 22nd running of the event and the final race of the 2019 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. A Cadillac took the win at Road Atlanta, and the distance covered set a race record.
When and where was the 2019 Petit Le Mans held?
The race was held on 12 October 2019 at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia. The circuit has 12 turns and is 2.540 miles (4.088 km) long. The event was officially called the MOTUL Petit Le Mans for sponsorship reasons, and it was the last of twelve sports car races run by IMSA that year.
It was the sixth consecutive year that the event had been part of the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. It was also the last of four rounds in the Michelin Endurance Cup, which made it the final event of both championships for 2019.
The final race of IMSA's 50th anniversary season, won by a Cadillac after its sister car's brakes failed late on.
Why was the 2019 race a season finale?
The race concluded IMSA's 50th anniversary season. International Motor Sports Association president Scott Atherton had confirmed the event's place on the calendar in August 2018, and he retired from his post after the race. He served as grand marshal for his final event, and John Doonan took over as president from 2020.
The Petit Le Mans therefore closed out a season in which several manufacturers and drivers were making their last appearances in the category.
Which manufacturers and cars were making their final appearances?
This was the final race for the Ford GT, because Ford was ending its factory involvement after the 2019 season. The Nissan Onroak DPi also made its final appearance, as Jon Bennett retired from full-time driving.
The Chevrolet Corvette C7.R and the Porsche 911 RSR also entered their final IMSA events. Both manufacturers were switching to new-generation GTE machinery in 2020, with Chevrolet moving to the Corvette C8.R and Porsche introducing the 911 RSR-19.
Who entered the 2019 Petit Le Mans?
A total of 34 cars took part, split across four classes. There were 11 cars in DPi, two in LMP2, nine in GTLM and 12 in GTD. Juncos Racing was back after an absence that began at the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park round, while Risi Competizione was in the field for the first time since the season-opening round at Daytona.
Several changes were made to the lineups. Rossi's seat in the No. 7 Acura Team Penske entry went to Graham Rahal, because Rossi was racing in the Bathurst 1000. Marco Seefried was added to the Paul Miller Racing line-up alongside Bryan Sellers and Corey Lewis, and Parker Chase was placed in the No. 14 AIM Vasser-Sullivan car with Jack Hawksworth and Richard Heistand. Park Place Motorsports was absent because it had no spare chassis, and Compass Racing skipped the event.
What was at stake in the championships?
Dane Cameron and Juan Pablo Montoya led the DPi drivers' standings with 274 points, a 12-point advantage over Pipo Derani and Felipe Nasr. Matt McMurry led the LMP2 standings on 235 points, ahead of Cameron Cassels.
In GTLM, Earl Bamber and Laurens Vanthoor led with 304 points, 12 clear of Patrick Pilet and Nick Tandy. In GTD, Mario Farnbacher and Trent Hindman led on 264 points, 32 ahead of Zacharie Robichon. Acura, Porsche and Lamborghini were leading their respective manufacturer championships going into the final race.
How did practice go?
There were four practice sessions, three on Thursday and one on Friday. The first two Thursday sessions lasted 60 and 75 minutes, the third was held in the evening and lasted 90 minutes, and the fourth ran for an hour on Friday morning.
Felipe Nasr set the fastest time in the first session in the No. 31 Cadillac at 1 minute and 09.093 seconds, 0.642 seconds faster than Ricky Taylor's No. 7 Acura. Dane Cameron led the second session at 1 minute and 09.095 seconds, and Derani was fastest in the night session at 1 minute and 09.455 seconds. Nasr returned to the top in the final session at 1 minute and 08.419 seconds.
Two red flags interrupted the first session. Jack Hawksworth stopped on track with a puncture early on, and Marco Seefried crashed the No. 48 Lamborghini into the tyre barrier at turn three.
In the second session Cameron was fastest at 1 minute and 09.095 seconds, ahead of Tristan Vautier's No. 85 Cadillac and Albuquerque's No. 5 entry. Van der Zande placed the No. 10 Konica Minolta Cadillac fourth, and Taylor's No. 7 Acura completed the top five. Chris Miller spun his No. 84 JDC-Miller Cadillac at turn 10a and beached it in the gravel, which caused the session's first stoppage.
The night session belonged to Pipo Derani in the No. 31 Cadillac, who set the fastest time overall at 1 minute and 09.455 seconds. Albuquerque was less than two-tenths of a second behind, and Taylor was third. Rene Binder brought out a red flag when he beached the No. 50 Juncos Racing car at turn 10a halfway through the session.
In GTLM, Daniel Serra's No. 62 Ferrari led one session with a lap of 1 minute and 16.708 seconds, and Antonio Garcia's Corvette was second. Robby Foley in the No. 96 Turner Motorsport BMW M6 was the fastest GTD driver in the final session. Misha Goikhberg spun the No. 85 JDC-Miller Cadillac into the gravel at turn 10 with 17 minutes left, and the session was red-flagged.
Who took pole for the 2019 Petit Le Mans?
Qualifying took place on Friday afternoon in three 15-minute sessions. Felipe Nasr took pole in the No. 31 Cadillac, posting 1 minute and 08.457 seconds, a new track record. Ricky Taylor's No. 7 Acura was 0.141 seconds slower on the front row, with Filipe Albuquerque third in the No. 5 Cadillac.
Dane Cameron qualified fourth in the No. 6 Acura, behind Albuquerque's Cadillac.
In GTLM, James Calado took pole in the No. 62 Ferrari with a time of 1 minute and 15.639 seconds, a new category track record. Garcia's No. 3 Corvette was second fastest, but it failed the post-qualifying inspection because its ride height did not comply, so it dropped to the back. Philipp Eng moved up to second, with Vanthoor third.
In GTD, Corey Lewis took his second straight pole with a lap of 1 minute and 19.530 seconds. Ben Keating was second on the front row, and Jeff Westphal took third in the Scuderia Corsa Ferrari. Two GTD entries lost their lap times because their crews had touched the cars during qualifying.
Qualifying ran in three 15-minute sessions. GTD cars went out first, and the GTLM and DPi/LMP2 cars had two separate, identically timed sessions. Every car had to be driven by one participant, and IMSA arranged the grid so that the DPi, LMP2 and GTLM cars started ahead of the GTD field.
Masson was quickest in LMP2 for the Performance Tech Motorsports team, 0.131 seconds ahead of McMurry in the PR1/Mathiasen Oreca. Trummer's No. 84 Cadillac took sixth overall, van der Zande's No. 10 Cadillac was seventh, and Pigot's No. 50 Juncos Racing Cadillac took eighth in DPi.
How did the race finish?
The No. 31 Whelen Engineering Racing Cadillac DPi-V.R won the race. The sister car lost its brakes with under half an hour to run. The distance covered by the race set a new record for the event.
Pipo Derani and Felipe Nasr, who ran the No. 31 car in practice and qualifying, finished five points behind Cameron and Montoya in the final DPi standings.
Who won the 2019 IMSA championships?
Dane Cameron and Juan Pablo Montoya took the DPi drivers' championship with 302 points, five clear of Derani and Nasr. Matt McMurry won the LMP2 title on 270 points, 11 ahead of Cassels.
The GTLM championship went to Bamber and Vanthoor on 330 points, 17 ahead of Pilet and Tandy. The GTD title was taken by Farnbacher and Hindman on 283 points, 21 ahead of Bill Auberlen and Robby Foley. Garcia and Magnussen were third in GTLM with 317 points, and Robichon finished third in GTD with 262 points.
| Class | Champions | Points | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| DPi | Dane Cameron and Juan Pablo Montoya | 302 | Five ahead of Derani and Nasr |
| LMP2 | Matt McMurry | 270 | 11 ahead of Cameron Cassels |
| GTLM | Earl Bamber and Laurens Vanthoor | 330 | 17 ahead of Patrick Pilet and Nick Tandy |
| GTD | Mario Farnbacher and Trent Hindman | 283 | 21 ahead of Bill Auberlen and Robby Foley |
What were the results for the manufacturers and teams?
Acura, Porsche and Lamborghini won their respective manufacturer championships. The team titles went to Acura Team Penske, PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports, Porsche GT Team and Meyer Shank Racing.
The 2019 season ended with the Petit Le Mans, and the combination of record distance, a late brake failure and multiple class title decisions made the race a notable finale for IMSA.
