Title Battles Tight in GS, TCR Heading to Road Atlanta Finale

Respective three-way title tilts in both classes headline what should be another frantic finale to the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge season, the Fox Factory 120 at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.

Just 120 points cover the top three contenders in GS, while only 70 points do so in TCR.

In GS, Jan Heylen and Luca Mars have paced the field most of the season in their No. 28 Porsche 718 GT4 RS Clubsport with a season-high three wins.

But three finishes of ninth or worse in the last four races has seen a once unassailable looking lead shrink, rapidly.

They’re 100 points clear of Jeff Westphal and Sean McAlister in the No. 39 CarBahn by Peregrine racing BMW M4 GT4 EVO, and 120 points ahead of Jenson Altzman in the No. 13 McCumbee McAleer Racing Ford Mustang GT4.

A top-five finish would assure Heylen and Mars the title. But if they stumble, the door is wide open. Both Heylen (2021 GS) and Westphal (2019 GS) are past Pilot Challenge champions and seek their second series championships.

In TCR, the battle is much closer. Karl Wittmer and LP Montour took the points lead for the first time in their No. 93 MMG Honda Civic FL5 TCR, literally doing so on the final lap of the last race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway when Wittmer made a pass to get onto the podium.

They’re ten points clear of Harry Gottsacker in the lead No. 98 Bryan Herta Autosport Hyundai Elantra N TCR, a car he shares with Mason Filippi. The second BHA title contender,  the No. 76 of Preston Brown and Denis Dupont, sits third, 70 points back.

In nearly any case, whichever of the No. 93 Honda or No. 98 Hyundai finishes ahead on the road will win the title. The No. 76 Hyundai would need to finish multiple spots ahead of both cars to make up the difference.

In the not-unlikely scenario of a tie, the tiebreaker would go to the No. 93 Honda, and even that takes some work to get there.

Entering Road Atlanta, the No. 93 Honda, No. 98 Hyundai and No. 76 Hyundai all have two wins and one runner-up finish this season. The No. 93 Honda leads with three third-place finishes to the No. 98’s one and No. 76’s zero.

The 43 cars on the entry list are split 27 GS and 16 TCR to tie the season-high entry achieved at the season-opening BMW M Endurance Challenge At Daytona.

Of note, the Virginia International Raceway TCR class-winning No. 31 RVA Graphics Motorsports by Speed Syndicate Audi RS 3 LMS TCR resumes competition after skipping Indianapolis.

Pilot Challenge teams practice for one hour on Wednesday, one hour Thursday, qualify late Thursday afternoon before racing on Friday at 12:40 p.m. ET. The race streams on Peacock and live, globally on IMSA YouTube ad-free courtesy of Michelin.