Indianapolis Wednesday Notebook

***Nearly 60 cars, including those racing in this weekend’s Indianapolis 8 Hour presented by AWS and Pirelli GT4 America, GT America powered by AWS and other SRO/USAC-sanctioned series took to the streets of Indianapolis on Wednesday evening for a pre-event parade. The drivers also headed down to Main Street, Speedway, to take part in an autograph session.

***The No. 20 Huber Motorsport Porsche 911 GT3 R of Antares Au, Laurin Heinrich and Alfred Renauer led the way in Wednesday’s test day at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the fourth running of the Indianapolis 8 Hour. The German squad went quickest in the 90-minute afternoon session with a 1:23.802 lap time after the No. 94 BimmerWorld BMW M4 GT3 topped the morning test, nearly two-tenths slower.

***All cars except the No. 93 Racers Edge Motorsports Acura NSX GT3 Evo22 turned laps on Wednesday. The Jon Mirachi-led team elected to sit out the day, as was the case during the Fanatec GT World Challenge America powered by AWS Road America test day, due to having recent track experience from its IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship campaign.

***Paul Kiebler, who received a two-race suspension from SRO America for his involvement in the accident with George Kurtz at Road America in August, is back in action this weekend after sitting out the Sebring weekend. Kiebler is joined by Jon Branam and the British Matt Bell in the No. 27 TR3 Racing Mercedes in the Pro-Am class.

***For the second consecutive year, Fanatec GT teams will receive double points at the conclusion of the full eight-hour race distance, unlike the first few editions, which only awarded points at the three-hour mark.

***SRO America President and CEO Greg Gill told Sportscar365 that two late withdrawals, the GMG Racing Porsche and SunEnergy1 Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo due to separate race-related back injuries for James Sofronas and Kenny Habul, saw the event drop off its target of having between 24-25 cars this year. This weekend’s grid features 22 GT3 machines.

***Gill told Sportscar365: “The quality of the grid is very good. I’m pleased with it. Three years ago, we were dealing with a situation of putting GT4 cars in and I still think there’s a place for GT4 in endurance racing but being all GT3 here is really good. It’s fun for the fans, it’s great for the teams and I see that as our foreseeable future. I’m not going to be happy until we’re at 30 cars. That’s the long-term goal for us.”

***Defending Indianapolis 8 Hour winner Craft-Bamboo Racing is back for its first Intercontinental GT Challenge powered by Pirelli race since the Bathurst 12 Hour season-opener in February. The Hong Kong-based team missed the Kyalami 9 Hour and CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa as it focused on its title-winning Fanatec GT World Challenge Asia powered by AWS effort with Mercedes-AMG.

***Team director Darryl O’Young told Sportscar365: “Spa was in the middle of our season, and we’ve got to prioritize the cars going around.” O’Young also confirmed that Craft-Bamboo will skip the Gulf 12 Hours IGTC season finale to focus on the FIA GT World Cup in Macau. It will also enter the Asian Le Mans Series and is understood to be plotting a Bathurst 12H entry as well.

***Craft-Bamboo is again utilizing local support from Lone Star Racing, reprising a collaboration that started in 2021. This weekend’s chassis is Lone Star-owned but is not the one that took Craft-Bamboo to its Indianapolis victory last year. It is also different from the customer-owned one that Lone Star ran in the recent IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship race at The Brickyard.

***Sky-Tempesta Racing’s Ferrari 488 GT3 Evo 2020 is the same car that the British team fielded in the 2020 and 2021 Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS seasons. Much of the AF Corse-run crew from that campaign are back running the car this weekend.

***Sky-Tempesta driver Chris Froggatt said his team considered fielding a Ferrari 296 GT3 but elected to stay with a package it knew considering it is making its Indianapolis Motor Speedway debut. “We wanted consistency beyond just the driver lineup,” he told Sportscar365. “We’re familiar with the car but we haven’t driven it for two years. We’re giving it one last hurrah.”

***The Ferrari that Froggatt shares with Eddie Cheever and Jonathan Hui is sporting a retro-inspired number panel and promotional stickers for the new Ferrari motion picture starring Adam Driver as Enzo Ferrari. Its No. 535 panel is a nod to the type of Ferrari that features in the film.

***IGTC Independent Cup points leader Hui is aiming to secure back-to-back GT3 titles after Sky-Tempesta won the Fanatec GT Europe Endurance Bronze Cup at Barcelona last weekend.

***Froggatt confirmed that Sky-Tempesta will round out the IGTC season at the Gulf 12 Hours with a McLaren 720S GT3 Evo driven by Froggatt, Hui, Cheever and Kevin Tse. The team made its debut with McLaren in the same race last year, finishing eighth before embarking on a full-season program with the British manufacturer and technical support from Garage 59.

***The first customer Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R team for Fanatec GT World Challenge America powered by AWS will be announced Thursday afternoon, in what’s understood to be a two-car program for the 2024 season.

***Sportscar365 has learned that longtime Lamborghini North America senior motorsports manager Chris Ward has departed the company. Ward, who was largely responsible for the growth and success of Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America as well as the manufacturer’s GT3 activities on the continent, is now understood to be a free agent.

***Official track action for the Indy 8 Hour opens on Wednesday with a 30-minute Bronze driver test starting at 3:25 p.m. EDT. The full 22-car field will then take part in a 90-minute Free Practice session at 6:45 p.m.

John Dagys contributed to this report