Turner Motorsport’s Justin Rothberg led from almost start to finish in the AWS Race No. 1-powered GT America on Saturday, July 20 at VIRginia International Raceway. However, a war between Rothberg and SKI Autosports’ Johnny O’Connell for the lead ended in Toca and Tour through O’Connell.
From there, Rothberg held on to take the victory on the track. At the time of writing, the incident continues to be investigated by flight attendants. If a penalty is implemented that substitutes for the final results of the race, this article will be updated.
Rothberg’s margin of victory was 4. 299 seconds over Flying Lizard Motorsports’ Jason Bell. O’Connell settled for third place, followed by Ross Chouest of Chouest-Povoledo Racing and Kyle Washington of GMG Racing.
It seemed that the race was going to be held dry. However, 10 minutes before the start, a deluge occurred, dumping heavy rain on the 3. 27-mile circuit.
This resulted in the start of the race with the protection vehicle. The movement was mandatory not only because of the rain but also because of the state of the water. In the end, 60% of the 40-minute distance was spent by the protection vehicle before the race. Box went crazy on the complicated course.
Rothberg took pole on a much drier Saturday morning in his BMW. This gave Rothberg a much-needed clear vision that allowed him to step away.
It wasn’t long before problems arose. CRP Racing’s Jason Daskalos locked up and slid into the tire curtain at the Oak Tree Complex. Elsewhere on the track, Tim Savage also veered off course in his Aston Martin. Dasaklos is fine and can take his Mercedes to the pits. In any case, the twist of fate caused the protection vehicle to spring back into action.
Daskalos having been at peace, the neutralization report. The green returned with just over nine minutes remaining.
Here, Rothberg came under pressure from O’Connell. The rookie driver managed to maintain the presence of the veteran until the last lap.
Upon reaching the white flag, O’Connell ran on Rothberg, but was unable to reach the inside of Rothberg. Another smart run out of Turn 1 allowed O’Connell to catch him. Then he took the outside corner of NASCAR (Turn 3). ) to take the initiative.
At the next turn, Rothberg was able to get back on the inside of O’Connell. The aforementioned touch was made and O’Connell retired. Rothberg regained the lead and held on to win.
In GT4, ACI Motorsports’ Curt Swearing started from pole in his Porsche Cayman. Meanwhile, leader Isaac Sherman started fourth, although he temporarily showed his speed by climbing to third.
After the Daskalos crash, Sherman was able to pass The Heart of Racing’s Gray Newell for second place. From there, he only had a few minutes left to defeat Swearingin.
The two Porsche drivers battled during the final two laps of the race, but Swearingin managed to hold on for his second victory of the year. Swearingin’s margin of victory was 0. 312 seconds over Sherman. Flying Lizard Motorsports’ Damir Hot finished third in his Nissan, moving on. Nick Shanny of Newell and Carrus Callus Raceteam.
Before his spin, O’Connell set the fastest lap of the race at 92. 670 mph. That earned him the pole for Race 2, which will take place at 8:45 a. m. m. ET on Sunday morning. The race will be broadcast on the GT World YouTube channel. and in SpeedSport1.
Phil Allaway has three main roles in Frontstretch. Es the manager of the site’s FREE e-newsletter, which is published Monday through Friday and on weekends. It helps keep TV broadcasters fair with the weekly editions of Couch Potato Tuesday and is the site’s sports car. Race editor.
Outside of Frontstretch, Phil is the press officer for Lebanon Valley Speedway in West Lebanon, New York. It covers all the action on the steeply sloping dirt track, from regular DIRTcar Modified races to occasional, touring series like the Super DIRTcar Series.