In the final IMSA iRacing Pro Invitational series race, Ferrari took two top ten finishes, with Augustin Canapino leading the charge in 7th and Jules Gounon in 10th.
Canapino Leads Ferrari Charge. Augustin Canapino once again led the Ferrari charge, qualifying in the 11th spot in the opening qualifying session. At the race start, he did a good job to stay clear of the typical first lap chaos and advance to 9th position as the field settled in for the 90-minute race. As the race progressed, Augustin further advanced to 7th position before taking the necessary pit stop with 47 minutes remaining. As has been typically the case, there was a competition caution just after most drivers completed their pit stops and Augustin was able to close up the gap to his competitors. As the green flag flew once again, he attempted to surge forwards, but the pace of the BMWs was just too much and it was all he could do to defend his 7th position from the car behind, crossing the line just 1 tenth of a second in front.
Gounon fulfills promise. Jules Gounon made good on the strong pace he showed at the previous round at VIR, qualifying in today’s round at Watkins Glen in 12th, immediately alongside Augustin Canapino. From there, he did well to also stay clear of the drama, though he did sustain significant rear-end damage after the opening lap. From there, the first half of the race was a lesson in defensive driving, and he was quite successful, only losing a few positions before pitting with less than 1hr to go in the race. He emerged from the pits in 15th, but advanced as the pit stop cycles continued and closed the gaps with the competition caution. Over the remaining 40 minutes, he advanced to 10th and stayed there through the checkered flag. Elsewhere in the virtual Risi stable, it was a more difficult race. Matt Griffin stopped first of all of the Ferraris, with just under 1hr to go, and only advanced to 28th under the competition yellow. He went on to finish in 42nd. And making his series debut on behalf of Risi Competizione, Andrew Simrell also had a difficult qualifying session, but ultimately finished in 32nd place.
New Drivers. While they do not typically compete in the real-world Ferrari, Mason Filippi and Daniel Dye took their turn at the wheel of the virtual Ferrari 488 GTE machine and acquitted themselves well, finishing in 22nd and 23rd place respectively.
Schedule. While the round at Watkins Glen is the final round of the IMSA iRacing Pro Invitational, drivers are raring to get back for the return of the IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship. The first race back will be the WeatherTech 240, to take place at Daytona International Speedway on July 3-4.