Each Manufacturer Has Won in the Past Four Races, More Close Competition Ahead at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca
By Bryce Kelly
WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca 120 Entry List
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Want a good idea of how close the competition is in the Touring Car (TCR) class of the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge? The average margin of victory in the last four races is a mere 1.17 seconds.
What’s more, each of those four races has been won by a different manufacturer, so it’s anyone’s guess who will come out on top at the WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca 120 on Saturday, the third event of the 2023 Michelin Pilot Challenge season. Thirty-six cars are entered, 23 in the Grand Sport (GS) class and 13 in TCR.
The parity in TCR has been ongoing but exemplified by the four most recent races – going back to the final pair of 2022. At VIRginia International Raceway last August, Taylor Hagler and Michael Lewis won the class in the No. 1 Bryan Herta Autosport with Curb-Agajanian Hyundai Elantra N. Although the two-time defending TCR season champions haven’t won yet in 2023, Hagler is confident it will happen again soon.
“We haven’t done anything differently this year,” Hagler said. “The car is obviously really good and it’s been proven over the last four years. We have some of the top drivers in there that have also been proven over the last four years. We just keep doing what we do and hope for the best.”
Hagler is curious to see how some of the competition’s new cars look at WeatherTech Raceway. Audi debuted a new generation of its RS3 in March at Sebring. Honda is pulling the cover off a new Civic this week.
“The Audi is really quick,” Hagler said. “At Laguna, we’re going to see how fast the new Honda is, and the Alfa (Romeo) has been super quick. I think everyone has stepped up their game this year and I definitely think it’s going to be a tough one.”
Honda won the last race of the 2022 season at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta. Team owner Victor Gonzalez and co-driver Karl Wittmer were victorious in the No. 99 Honda Civic FK7 TCR that they will share again this week. The new Civic, the FL5 TCR, will be driven by Mat Pombo and Ryan Eversley in the No. 37 LA Honda World Racing entry.
Gonzalez is impressed with the quality of the TCR field and the parity among manufacturers. When the green flag is dropped, he said, anyone can win.
“As we have learned, IMSA is a really competitive series,” Gonzalez said. “As a team, we have learned to be more analytic on everything. It’s not about just going out there and trying to go fast.”
Audi won the 2023 TCR season opener at Daytona International Speedway behind Gavin Ernstone and Jon Morley in the No. 61 Road Shagger Racing RS3 LMS SEQ. Due to damage their car sustained at Sebring, they won’t be participating at WeatherTech Raceway, but Mikey Taylor, Chris Miller and the No. 17 Unitronic JDC-Miller MotorSports team are just one of the Audi teams looking to continue the manufacturer’s success and notch JDC-Miller’s first win since Lime Rock Park last July.
Taylor enjoys the front-wheel drive racing in TCR, as well as how the class and product have improved over the years under IMSA’s guidance.
“It’s just so better managed and controlled than other series,” Taylor said. “That’s what we really like. We could spend our dollars elsewhere, but you know with IMSA they are putting 100 percent of the resources that are needed to make sure everything is even and everything is legal.”
The most recent TCR race, in March at Sebring International Raceway, was won by Roy Block and Tim Lewis in the No. 5 KMW Motorsports with TMR Engineering Alfa Romeo Giulietta Veloce TCR. According to Block, it was a special win since Sebring is where the team did much of its testing.
“IMSA has done a really good job of ensuring the strengths of each manufacturer come through in a way that results in similar lap times,” Block said. He added that while one manufacturer may have an aerodynamic advantage and another might have better top speed, IMSA does a good job of making sure the two offset each other.
“What I’ve learned is the field gets better and better each year,” Block said, “and although we’re not afraid of anybody, we’re not going to be overconfident.”
Heading to WeatherTech Raceway, Mike LaMarra and William Tally (No. 73 LA Honda World Racing Honda Civic FK7 TCR) are tied with Mark Wilkins and Mason Filippi (No. 98 Bryan Herta Autosport with Curb-Agajanian Hyundai Elantra N) atop the point standings, though neither pairing has won this season. The top five teams are clustered within 70 points.
In GS, Robby Foley and Vin Barletta (No. 96 Turner Motorsport BMW M4 GT4), winners at Sebring, hold a 10-point lead over Eric Foss and Jeff Mosing (No. 56 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT GT4).
The Michelin Pilot Challenge schedules sees two practices on Friday, ahead of qualifying Saturday morning. The two-hour race streams live on Peacock starting at 7:30 p.m. ET Saturday.