GT World Challenge America Race 2 Summary: Barber Motorsports Park
Barber Motorsports Park, AL — Michai Stephens and Mikaël Grenier captured a commanding victory in Race 2 of the GT World Challenge America on Sunday, driving the #34 JMF Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO. The duo maintained a lead that was only briefly relinquished during the mid-race pit cycle.
Grenier set an early pace that saw him fend off pressure from Connor De Phillippi in the #99 Random Vandals Racing BMW M4 GT3 EVO for the first 20 minutes. However, unscheduled pit stops for both Random Vandals BMW entries, attributed to fuel pickup issues, forced them to relinquish any aspirations of challenging for the win.
Ultimately, Stephens and Grenier took the checkered flag, finishing 28.6 seconds ahead of the #18 RS1 Porsche 911 GT3 R driven by Alex Sedgwick and Jan Heylen. This victory marks their third overall and fourth Pro class win of the season.
Kenton Koch salvaged a third-place finish in the #99 BMW despite the extra pit stop, preserving the team’s lead in the Pro class championship standings, though they now lead by only 15 points over Stephens and Grenier going into the impending Indianapolis 8 Hour.
Blake McDonald and Matthew Bell achieved fourth place in the #11 DXDT Racing Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R, along with their fourth Pro-Am class victory of the year. McDonald executed a series of overtakes in the closing laps to secure the class lead.
Bill Auberlen and Varun Choksey claimed fifth in the #51 Random Vandals BMW, closely followed by Kyle Washington and Tom Sargent in sixth. A noteworthy battle unfolded between Jason Daskalos of CRP Racing and Regulator Racing’s Philip Ellis in the closing minutes, resulting in Daskalos spinning after contact on the last lap, yet he managed to keep Ellison’s challenge at bay for several laps.
The race concluded with several incidents under review, including the aforementioned contact between Daskalos and Ellis and an incident that affected the #88 McLaren, dropping it to 12th.
Race Results
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34 JMF Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO – Michai Stephens/Mikaël Grenier
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18 RS1 Porsche 911 GT3 R – Alex Sedgwick/Jan Heylen
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99 Random Vandals BMW M4 GT3 EVO – Kenton Koch/Connor De Phillippi
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11 DXDT Racing Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R – Blake McDonald/Matthew Bell
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51 Random Vandals BMW M4 GT3 EVO – Bill Auberlen/Varun Choksey
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32 GMG Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R – Kyle Washington/Tom Sargent
Scott Dollahite and Eric Powell also celebrated success, clinching the Am class victory in their #6 Dollahite Racing Ford Mustang GT3, leading their championship heading into the next event.
As the series moves toward the championship finale, the pressure mounts for competitors, underscoring the stakes at play in the Indianapolis 8 Hour on October 17.
