Third Straight GTD Title An ‘Incredible Accolade’ for Winward

Photo: Mercedes-AMG

Russell Ward has hailed Winward Racing’s third consecutive IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GTD title as an “incredible accolade.”

The Texas-based operation became the first team in the modern IMSA era to have won three championships in a row with the same full-season driver lineup, with Ward joined by Mercedes-AMG factory driver Philip Ellis for the three-peat.

It came in a season that saw the No. 57 Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo score five class wins, including its third victory in the Rolex 24 at Daytona, as well as Saturday’s season-ending Motul Petit Le Mans with Ward and Ellis having been joined by Indy Dontje.

“I think it means as much to the Ward family as it does to every single member of this team,” said team owner/driver Ward.

“We really got an amazing core group of people that give us the machinery and the ability to come out and perform and put on a good show.

“For us it’s an incredible accolade. If you asked me when we started in IMSA racing back in 2017 that we’d be here less than ten years later, I wouldn’t believe you.

“You really have to have the never-quit mentality. That’s how you get it done.”

Ward and Ellis overcame a 300-point deficit following the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen in June, which marked the second largest comeback since the introduction of the latest points structure in 2021.

“When we got taken out at Watkins Glen, involved in the incident between the 70 car and the 13, us three drivers were pretty sorry in the paddock, looking at the car, watching the mechanics just jump all over it,” said Ward.

“From our standpoint we thought the race was done, let’s pack this thing up, move on to the next. Those guys were like. ‘Hell, no. We need to get out there and capitalize on points.’

“They really set the tone for the second half of the season. We can’t quit, keep pushing as hard as we can.

“We went on a five-race streak with podiums, four wins and a second in Indianapolis, which very well could have been a win as well. It could have been five wins in a row. That really just set us up.”

While having entered Saturday’s ten-hour season finale with a mere six-point lead over Turner Motorsport’s Robby Foley and Patrick Gallagher, the BMW M4 GT3 EVO retired in the opening hour due to overheating issues.

Their next-closest competitor, the No. 27 Heart of Racing Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo of Eduardo Barrichello, meanwhile, battled electrical issues after an overnight engine change and only completed 37 laps after starting the race in the second hour.

“It’s quite a bit of a shame to come into the championship and not get to race against the 96, the 12 and the 27,” said Ward. “But I think that just gives a testament to the reliability of the Mercedes-AMG GT3.

“It’s been a solid platform for over a decade and continues to outperform the competition, all these newer cars. That thing is rock solid. Hopefully the new machine carries the same reliability.”

Winward Was “Super Tight” on Fuel to the Finish

Ellis, who took the No. 57 Mercedes-AMG to its elusive first Petit Le Mans class victory, revealed post-race they were extremely close on fuel and would have run out had the race gone an additional lap.

“I think I might have yelled at my engineer trying to get more information out of him,” he said.

“It was super tight. Obviously the yellow saved a lot of the cars that were on the same strategy. Until the yellow came out, we knew we had no chance of making it.

“With the yellow, there was a very slim chance of making it. We had to have the prototypes lap us.

“I had to save fuel on the last five or six laps after the restart, and that despite having the 9, 12 up behind us, having a bit more energy than us, so they could push a bit more, gamble on that extra lap, whereas we couldn’t.

“I was on the radio telling my engineer I’m just going to stay out and hope that either we have a yellow or it’s going to be enough until the end.

“I was a little bit lucky at some points with the prototypes coming through where I could save a bit more fuel, and it to the end. I’m glad it worked out that way.”

John Dagys

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John