2024 Michelin GT Challenge at VIR

International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) president John Doonan confirmed the race was part of the 2024 IMSA SportsCar Championship (IMSA SCC) in August 2023.^[1] It was the eleventh consecutive year the IMSA SCC hosted a race at Virginia International Raceway. The 2024 Michelin GT Challenge at VIR was the ninth of eleven scheduled sports car races of 2024 by IMSA.^[2] The race was held at the seventeen-turn 3.270 mi (5.263 km) Virginia International Raceway on August 25, 2024.^[2]

Ahead of the event, IMSA published a bulletin regarding the latest balance of performance (BoP) changes in the GTD Pro and GTD classes.^[3] The Acura was given a 1-liter increase in fuel capacity to accommodate the 11.5 horsepower gained across all power levels. Additionally, the Lamborghini saw an increase in weight of 15 kilograms. This was countered by an increase of 5.3 horsepower across all power levels, and a 2-liter fuel capacity increase. Finally, the Ferrari saw an increase of 10 kilograms in weight, with no adjustments to the power level.^[3]

Preceding the event, Laurin Heinrich led the GTD Pro Drivers' Championship with 2256 points, 76 points ahead of second-placed Ross Gunn. Ben Barnicoat and Jack Hawksworth sat in third place, a further 97 points behind.^[4] The GTD Drivers' Championship was led by Philip Ellis and Russell Ward with 2396 points. They had lead of 268 points over second-placed Robby Foley and Patrick Gallagher. Parker Thompson sat in third, 526 points behind Ellis and Ward.^[4] The Manufacturers' Championships were led by Porsche and Mercedes-AMG, respectively, whilst AO Racing and Winward Racing led the Teams' Championships.^[4]

The entry list was revealed on August 14, 2024, and featured 23 entries: 9 entries in GTD Pro, and 14 entries in GTD.^[5] Klaus Bachler replaced Julien Andlauer in the No. 77 AO Racing Porsche, to race alongside Laurin Heinrich. Furthermore, Kyle Marcelli re-joined Danny Formal in the No. 45 Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Lamborghini, after missing the previous round due to an arm-related injury.^[6] Both the No. 023 Triarsi Competizione and No. 35 Conquest Racing Ferraris did not appear at the start after one-off appearances at Road America.^[7]

No.	Entrant	Car	Driver 1	Driver 2
GTD Pro (GT Daytona Pro) (9 entries)
1	Paul Miller Racing	BMW M4 GT3	Bryan Sellers	Madison Snow
3	Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports	Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R	Antonio García	Alexander Sims
4	Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports	Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R	Nicky Catsburg	Tommy Milner
9	Pfaff Motorsports	McLaren 720S GT3 Evo	Oliver Jarvis	Marvin Kirchhöfer
14	Vasser Sullivan	Lexus RC F GT3	Ben Barnicoat	Jack Hawksworth
23	Heart of Racing Team	Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 Evo	Ross Gunn	Alex Riberas
64	Ford Multimatic Motorsports	Ford Mustang GT3	Mike Rockenfeller	Harry Tincknell
65	Ford Multimatic Motorsports	Ford Mustang GT3	Joey Hand	Dirk Müller
77	AO Racing	Porsche 911 GT3 R (992)	Klaus Bachler	Laurin Heinrich
GTD (GT Daytona) (14 entries)
12	Vasser Sullivan	Lexus RC F GT3	Frankie Montecalvo	Parker Thompson
13	AWA	Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R	Matt Bell	Orey Fidani
27	Heart of Racing Team	Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 Evo	Roman De Angelis	Zacharie Robichon
32	Korthoff/Preston Motorsports	Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo	Mikaël Grenier	Kenton Koch
34	Conquest Racing	Ferrari 296 GT3	Albert Costa	Manny Franco
45	Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti	Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo 2	Danny Formal	Kyle Marcelli
55	Proton Competition	Ford Mustang GT3	Giammarco Levorato	Corey Lewis
57	Winward Racing	Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo	Philip Ellis	Russell Ward
66	Gradient Racing	Acura NSX GT3 Evo22	Stevan McAleer	Sheena Monk
70	Inception Racing	McLaren 720S GT3 Evo	Brendan Iribe	Frederik Schandorff
78	Forte Racing	Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo 2	Misha Goikhberg	Loris Spinelli
86	MDK Motorsports	Porsche 911 GT3 R (992)	Anders Fjordbach	Kerong Li
96	Turner Motorsport	BMW M4 GT3	Robby Foley	Patrick Gallagher
120	Wright Motorsports	Porsche 911 GT3 R (992)	Adam Adelson	Elliott Skeer
Source:[5][6][7]

There were two practice sessions preceding the start of the race on Sunday, one on Friday afternoon and one on Saturday morning. The first session on Friday afternoon lasted 90 minutes while the second session on Saturday morning lasted 105 minutes.^[8]

Saturday's afternoon qualifying session lasted 15 minutes, with one combined session for the GTD Pro and GTD cars. The rules dictated that all teams nominated a driver to qualify their cars.^[8] The competitors' fastest lap times determined the starting order.^[9]

Pole positions in each class are indicated in bold and with ‡.

Pos.	Class	No.	Entry	Driver	Time	Gap	Grid
1	GTD Pro	1	Paul Miller Racing	Madison Snow	1:43.206	—	1‡
2	GTD Pro	3	Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports	Antonio García	1:43.346	+0.140	2
3	GTD Pro	64	Ford Multimatic Motorsports	Harry Tincknell	1:43.630	+0.424	3
4	GTD Pro	65	Ford Multimatic Motorsports	Joey Hand	1:43.729	+0.523	4
5	GTD Pro	4	Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports	Tommy Milner	1:43.745	+0.539	5
6	GTD	55	Proton Competition	Giammarco Levorato	1:43.900	+0.694	6‡
7	GTD	32	Korthoff/Preston Motorsports	Kenton Koch	1:44.106	+0.900	7
8	GTD	120	Wright Motorsports	Elliott Skeer	1:44.118	+0.912	8
9	GTD Pro	14	Vasser Sullivan	Jack Hawksworth	1:44.177	+0.971	9
10	GTD Pro	9	Pfaff Motorsports	Oliver Jarvis	1:44.297	+1.091	10
11	GTD	27	Heart of Racing Team	Zacharie Robichon	1:44.362	+1.156	11
12	GTD	96	Turner Motorsport	Patrick Gallagher	1:44.392	+1.186	12
13	GTD Pro	77	AO Racing	Klaus Bachler	1:44.417	+1.211	13
14	GTD Pro	23	Heart of Racing Team	Alex Riberas	1:44.499	+1.293	14
15	GTD	45	Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti	Kyle Marcelli	1:44.504	+1.298	15
16	GTD	12	Vasser Sullivan	Frankie Montecalvo	1:44.541	+1.335	16
17	GTD	78	Forte Racing	Misha Goikhberg	1:44.793	+1.587	17
18	GTD	57	Winward Racing	Russell Ward	1:44.855	+1.649	18
19	GTD	70	Inception Racing	Brendan Iribe	1:45.020	+1.814	19
20	GTD	66	Gradient Racing	Sheena Monk	1:45.069	+1.863	20
21	GTD	34	Conquest Racing	Manny Franco	1:45.348	+2.142	21
22	GTD	86	MDK Motorsports	Kerong Li	1:46.754	+3.548	22
23	GTD	13	AWA	Orey Fidani	1:47.306	+4.100	23
Sources:[10][11]