Dane Cameron took overall pole for Acura at Elkhart Lake, where a 35-car IMSA field ran the ninth round of the 2019 championship.
Held on 4 August 2019 at Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, this IMSA sports car race was round nine of the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and the fifth of seven WeatherTech Sprint Cup rounds, with 35 cars entered across four classes. It was the sixth consecutive year the event had been on the WeatherTech calendar.
Round nine of the 2019 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship ran at Road America on 4 August 2019, and the weekend also counted toward the WeatherTech Sprint Cup. The field of 35 cars competed across four classes on the fourteen-turn circuit at Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin.
Why was Road America on the 2019 calendar?
The IMSA sanctioned event was confirmed for the 2019 season in August 2018, and it was the sixth consecutive year the race had been part of the WeatherTech calendar. It was one of twelve sports car races IMSA ran that year, and the Sprint Cup round made it the fifth of seven in that series.
The circuit is a fourteen-turn layout measuring 4.048 miles (6.515 km). Three rounds remained in the season after Road America, so the weekend carried weight in the points race.
The weekend also hosted IMSA's State of the Series press conference, at which the organisation confirms and announces its plans for the series. That makes the race weekend a moment for the sport's wider direction as well as for the cars on track.
Acura and Porsche led the manufacturers' titles, with three rounds to run after Elkhart Lake.
What balance of performance changes were made before the race?
IMSA released a technical bulletin on 24 July 2019 setting out the balance of performance for the event. GT Le Mans constraints stayed as they were at the previous round at Lime Rock Park, while the DPi and GT Daytona cars received changes to weight, power, fuel capacity and turbo boost.
In DPi, the Mazda RT24-P lost two litres of fuel capacity, 17 horsepower and some high-revs boost, and it gained 20 kilograms. The Cadillac DPi-V.R gained 20 kilograms as well, but its restrictor grew by 0.6 millimetres and it gained 11 horsepower and a litre of fuel capacity. The Acura ARX-05 gained 10 kilograms of weight.
In GT Daytona the McLaren 720S GT3 saw a 30 kilogram weight reduction, eight extra horsepower and a boost increase, while the Ferrari 488 GT3 received smaller gains and a litre more fuel. The Acura NSX GT3 gained 20 kilograms, having won the 6 Hours of the Glen.
Who led the championships going into Road America?
Cameron and Montoya topped the DPi table on 207 points, with Pipo Derani and Felipe Nasr second. Earl Bamber and Laurens Vanthoor led GT Le Mans on 218 points, and Mario Farnbacher and Trent Hindman led GT Daytona on 183 points.
Helio Castroneves and Ricky Taylor were third in DPi on 198 points. In LMP2, Matt McMurry led with 165 points, two clear of Cameron Cassels and Kyle Masson, while Bill Auberlen and Robby Foley were second in GTD and Patrick Long third on 151 points.
Acura and Porsche held the manufacturers lead, while Meyer Shank Racing, Porsche GT Team, PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports and Acura Team Penske each topped one team table.
How big was the entry for the race?
The entry list released with the balance of performance bulletin featured 35 cars: 10 in DPi, two in LMP2, eight in GTLM and 15 in GTD. Juncos Racing, a Cadillac DPi customer team, sat out after crashing heavily at the Mobil 1 SportsCar Grand Prix, and it had not built a new chassis in time.
Tommy Milner returned to the Corvette team in place of Marcel Fassler, who had stood in for him in the previous two races. Starworks Motorsport returned with Ryan Dalziel and Parker Chase, having skipped the previous two rounds.
Matt Campbell and Dennis Olsen, both Porsche juniors, also appeared, with Campbell for Pfaff Motorsports and Olsen for Wright Motorsports after their Lime Rock Park swap.
What happened in practice at Road America?
Practice took place across three sessions, two on Friday and one on Saturday morning. Dane Cameron set the fastest time of the first session at 1:50.007 for Acura Team Penske, and Juan Pablo Montoya was quickest in the second at 1:50.256.
The Friday morning session lasted 75 minutes and the Friday afternoon session one hour. Colin Braun was second in the No. 54 Nissan in the first session, and Ricky Taylor was second in the sister No. 7 Acura in the second.
In GT Le Mans, Nick Tandy set the first-session pace at 2:02.147 in the No. 911 Porsche, while Jeroen Bleekemolen led GT Daytona at 2:06.060 in a Mercedes-AMG. By the second session Laurens Vanthoor led GTLM at 2:02.489, and Jack Hawksworth topped GTD at 2:05.162.
The third session on Saturday morning lasted one hour. Cameron fastest again at 1:49.590, with Castroneves second, Oliver Jarvis third in the Mazda No. 77 and Vanthoor quickest in GTLM at 2:01.644. Ben Keating set the GTD best at 2:05.485.
Who took pole position at Road America?
Dane Cameron took overall pole in the No. 6 Acura Team Penske, 0.016 seconds ahead of teammate Helio Castroneves in the sister No. 7. Ben Keating took the GT Daytona pole in the No. 33 Mercedes-AMG, and The No. 4 Corvette of Oliver Gavin moved up to the GT Le Mans pole.
Saturday's qualifying was split into three 15-minute sessions, beginning with GT Daytona. Keating was ahead of Corey Lewis in the No. 48 Lamborghini by over four-tenths of a second, and Matt Plumb's No. 76 McLaren was third. Zacharie Robichon in the No. 9 Porsche took fourth, and Trent Hindman's No. 86 Acura finished fifth.
The GT Daytona session ended early because of lightning in the area. The GTLM session produced a fastest time from Tom Blomqvist in the No. 25 BMW, but both BMW Team RLL cars were moved to the rear after failing post-qualifying inspection for ride height. Gavin's Corvette then took pole, with Richard Westbrook's No. 67 Ford GT second and Dirk Muller's No. 66 Ford GT third.
The DPi and LMP2 session closed the qualifying day. Cameron's pole was followed by Castroneves, while the two Mazdas took third and fourth. Simon Trummer took fifth in the No. 84 Cadillac. In LMP2, James French set the fastest time for Performance Tech Motorsports, but McMurry spun at turn three, forfeited two quick laps after triggering a red flag and was stopped in the gravel.
Both LMP2 entries changed their starting drivers, and the PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports car ended up starting from pole. Penalties also moved several cars: the No. 10 Konica Minolta Cadillac was placed last in DPi, having changed tyres after qualifying, and the No. 38 Performance Tech entry dropped to the back of LMP2 for starting with a different driver.
What did the points standings look like after the race?
Cameron and Montoya finished second, totalling 239 points, and extended their DPi lead to seven points over Derani and Nasr. Bomarito advanced from seventh to third in DPi, and the championship picture was tight at the front of the class.
McMurry's LMP2 victory pushed his championship total to 200 points and his advantage over Cassels to five points. In GTLM, Bamber and Vanthoor now sit 14 points clear of Tandy and Pilet, while Briscoe and Westbrook climbed from fourth to third.
In GT Daytona, Farnbacher and Hindman remained at the top of the drivers' table, and Robichon moved from seventh to third. Acura and Porsche kept their manufacturer leads, and each team table leader from before the race still held its place.
