Westphal, McAlister Win Eventful Race at IMS

Jeff Westphal and Steven McAlister got to kiss the bricks after their victory in the Indianapolis Motor Speedway 120 for the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge on Saturday.

Westphal slipped past Matt Plumb’s No. 46 TGM Aston Martin Vantage GT4 in the No. 39 CarBAhn BMW M4 GT4 and in the lead of the two-hour race just past the halfway mark.

A late charge from Winward Racing’s Philip Ellis earned the No. 57 Mercedes-AMG GT4 a second place finish, with Ellis having put fresh rubber on his Mercedes-AMG significantly later than most of the other GS class competitors, passing Plumb for second in the final stages and taking the checkered flag 3.658 seconds off the lead.

McAlister started the race from sixth, but steadily climbed through the order, emerging as a contender for the race win around the halfway point through quick pit stops and strong green flag pace in the second hour.

Robert Megennis made a last-lap pass on the No. 46 TGM to finish fourth in the No. 95 Turner Motorsport BMW he shares with Dillon Machavern, with Plumb having to settle for fifth.

RS1 controlled the early stages of the race in GS, but ultimately lost time in the pits after the car was brought down from its air jacks without the rear right tire fully tightened. Steven McAleer and Trent Hindman finished ninth after starting the race from pole position.

Multiple first-half yellows meant that a variety of GS drivers spent time at the head of the field. Luca Mars’ brief lead in the No. 59 KohR Motorsports Ford Mustang GT4 was erased after his pit crew completed more than emergency service under a closed pit lane during one of the early race yellows.

Bryan Herta Autosport Wins Chaotic TCR Race

Mason Filippi and Mark Wilkins took the No. 98 Bryan Herta Autosport Hyundai Elentra N TCR to victory lane by steering clear of trouble in and opening half of the race that saw no fewer than three full course cautions.

Wilkins, who started the race from 11th on the grid, inherited the lead of the race after the then-leading No. 99 Victor Gonzales Racing Team Elentra was taken out in a collision with Frank De Pew’s No. 71 Rebel Rock Racing Aston Martin.

The BHA driver was able to make up ground after significant attrition in the first half of the race.

BHA stablemates Robert Wickens and Harry Gottsacker collected second place hardware, 4.427 seconds down the road from Filippi and Wilkins after an uneventful and clean race from the No. 33 duo.

The No. 17 Unitronic/JDC-Miller MotorSports Audi RS3 LMS TCR recovered to a podium finish after an early race drive-through penalty for significantly jumping the start.

The start of the race saw 3 yellows in quick succession for multiple incidents at the front of the TCR field, first sparked by Daniel Wu’s No. 73 Racer’s Edge Honda Civic FK7 TCR car grinding to a halt at Turn 2 just after the split class start.

Meanwhile, the No. 64 Team TGM Aston Martin of Ted Giovanis dropped back into the TCR field on the first restart, tangling with the No. 55 Gou Racing Audi, who pulled behind the wall with terminal damage.

A second yellow was quickly shown again when the No. 61 Road Shagger Racing Audi of Gavin Ernstone collected Preston Brown’s No. 76 Bryan Herta Autosport Hyundai, taking both cars out of the race.

The final yellow was shown for the contact between De Pew and Burkhard, which left debris strewn across the apex of Turn 1.

The pole-sitting No. 93 Montreal Motorsports Group Honda Civic FL5 TCR lost significant ground on the initial restart with an apparent loss of power by the time the second yellow came out. The Japanese drive took to the pits, losing three laps under yellow while a turbo hose was reconnected.

The car spent time behind the wall before redoing the race multiple laps down.

RESULTS: Indianapolis Motor Speedway 120