The Race at the Historic New York Road Course Also Serves as the Third Round of the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup

By:
On:
In: Racing News
By Mark Robinson
IMSA Wire Service
 
Entry List (Click here)
 
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The largest field for the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen since 2014 is set to take to the Watkins Glen International road course next week for the next stop of the 2022 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
 
Forty-nine cars are entered for the six-hour race on June 26 that serves as the seventh event of the 2022 WeatherTech Championship season and third round of the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup. All five classes will be in competition together for the first time since the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Presented by Advance Auto Parts in March.
 
Here’s what you need to know heading into the pivotal race weekend at the historic natural terrain circuit:
 
Watkins Glen International – Watkins Glen, New York
June 23-26, 2022
 
Fast Facts
Race Day/Time: Sunday, June 26 – 10:40 a.m. ET
USA Network Coverage: LIVE – 2-5 p.m.
Streaming Coverage: LIVE – Flag-to-flag beginning at 10:40 a.m. on Peacock (in the U.S.) and IMSA.com/TVLive (outside the U.S.)
IMSA.com/TVLive Live Qualifying Stream: Saturday, June 25 – 1:15 p.m.
IMSA Radio: All sessions live on IMSA.com and RadioLeMans.com; SiriusXM live race coverage begins Sunday, June 26 at 10:30 a.m. (XM 207, SiriusXM Web/App 992)
Circuit Type: 3.4-mile, 11-turn road course
Classes Competing: Daytona Prototype international (DPi), Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2), Le Mans Prototype 3 (LMP3), Grand Touring Daytona Pro (GTD PRO), Grand Touring Daytona (GTD)
Race Length: 6 hours
Track Social Media: 
Event Hashtags: #IMSA, #Sahlens6HRS
 
WeatherTech Championship Track Records
Qualifying:
DPi: Oliver Jarvis, Mazda DPi, 1:29.639 / 136.547 mph, June 2019
LMP2: Gabriel Aubry, ORECA LMP2 07, 1:31.735 / 133.427 mph, June 2019
LMP3: Austin McCusker, Ligier JS P320, 1:40.404 / 121.907 mph, June 2021
GTD PRO: new class in 2022
GTD: Jack Hawksworth, Lexus RC F GT3, 1:44.499 / 117.130 mph, July 2018
 
2021 Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen Winners
DPi: Jonathan Bomarito/Harry Tincknell/Oliver Jarvis, No. 55 Mazda Motorsports Mazda DPi
LMP2: Steven Thomas/Tristan Nunez/Thomas Merrill, No. 11 WIN Autosport ORECA LMP2 07
LMP3: Gar Robinson/Felipe Fraga/Scott Andrews, No. 74 Riley Motorsports Ligier JS P320
GTD PRO: new class in 2022
GTD: Bill Auberlen/Robby Foley/Aidan Read, No. 96 Turner Motorsport BMW M6 GT3
 
Storylines
  • Band’s Back Together: The five classes of the WeatherTech Championship – DPi, LMP2, LMP3, GTD PRO and GTD – will race together for the first time in more than three months. With the largest car count at Watkins Glen in eight years, it will make for exciting racing and traffic management throughout the field.
  • Tight Points Battles Throughout: All five classes feature close competition at the top of their respective standings. The largest margin for any leader is just 50 points (the difference between a first- and third-place race finish) and the narrowest margin is but nine points. It means that all the class championships remain wide open and puts a premium on qualifying and finishing well at The Glen and succeeding races.
  • Michelin Endurance Cup Resumes: The Sahlen’s Six Hours marks the third of four events making up the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup, where drivers and teams rack up points at designated junctures of each endurance race separate from the season championship. Points at Watkins Glen (five for being in first place in class, four points for second place, three points for third and two points for all others) will be awarded at the halfway mark and conclusion of the six-hour race. The competition in the Michelin Endurance Cup is extremely close in all classes, with no team or driver leading by more than four points.
  • Return of the Prancing Horse: Ferrari is back on the grid as the famed Italian marque continues its Michelin Endurance Cup quest in both the GTD PRO and GTD classes. The No. 62 Risi Competizione Ferrari 488 GT3 that finished second in the Rolex 24 At Daytona to open the season in January returns in GTD PRO, while the No. 47 Cetilar Racing Ferrari that won the GTD class at Sebring in March is back as well.
 
Who’s Hot?
  • No. 60 Meyer Shank Racing Acura: While they haven’t won a race since the season-opening Rolex 24, Oliver Jarvis, Tom Blomqvist and the No. 60 Meyer Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian Acura ARX-05 have been the most consistent of late, with second-place finishes in the last three races. It’s allowed them to retake the DPi season points lead, 10 better than Filipe Albuquerque, Ricky Taylor and the No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura.
  • Ben Keating: The versatile Texan is fresh off winning at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the GTE Am class on June 12. Keating also won the last WeatherTech Championship race he was in, at Sebring in March. He and co-drivers Mikkel Jensen and Scott Huffaker are piloting the No. 52 PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports ORECA LMP2 07 in just the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup races this season and are a threat to come out on top again at The Glen.
 
Who’s Good Here?
  • Auberlen, Barbosa and Lally: Three veteran drivers – Bill Auberlen, Joao Barbosa and Andy Lally – have each won the Sahlen’s Six Hours four times. Auberlen’s first win at The Glen came two decades ago and he won in GTD last year. Barbosa’s four wins have all come in the past decade in the top prototype class; he’ll be driving the No. 33 Sean Creech Motorsport LMP3 this year. The most recent of Lally’s four victories came five years ago in the same GTD class in which he’ll drive this year.
  • Bomarito Aims for Threepeat: Jonathan Bomarito is riding a two-race win streak in the six-hour race heading into the 2022 edition. He was a member of the Mazda DPi team that won in 2019 and ’21, and he will go for a third straight triumph this year in the No. 11 PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports LMP2.
 
Previous Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen Winners in 2022 Field (25)
Bill Auberlen (4): GT – 2002, 2004; GTLM – 2017; GTD – 2021
Joao Barbosa (4): DP – 2012, 2013; P – 2016, 2017
Andy Lally (4): SGS – 2004; GT – 2007, 2010; GTD – 2017
Richard Westbrook (3): P – 2014, 2015; GTLM – 2016
Jonathan Bomarito (2): DPi – 2019, 2021
John Edwards (2): GT – 2012, 2013
Antonio Garcia (2): GTLM – 2014, 2021
Spencer Pumpelly (2): GT – 2007, 2010
Renger van der Zande (2): PC – 2015, 2016
Filipe Albuquerque (1): P – 2017
Jonathan Bennett (1): PC – 2014
Colin Braun (1): PC – 2014
Mario Farnbacher (1): GTD – 2019
Robby Foley (1): GTD – 2021
Felipe Fraga (1): LMP3 – 2021
Oliver Jarvis (1): DPi – 2021
Katherine Legge (1): GTD – 2017
Dirk Mueller (1): GTLM – 2018
Olivier Pla (1): DPi – 2019
Gar Robinson (1): LMP3 – 2021
Bryan Sellers (1): GTLM – 2015
Jordan Taylor (1): GTLM – 2021
Ricky Taylor (1): DP – 2011
Steven Thomas (1): LMP2 – 2021
Don Yount (1): GTD – 2018
 
Previous Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen Pole Winners in 2022 Field (16)
Bill Auberlen (3): GTS-3 – 1997; GT3 – 1998; GT – 2004
Colin Braun (2): PC – 2014; P – 2018
Antonio Garcia (2): GTLM – 2019, 2021
Andy Lally (2): GT – 2005; GTD – 2017
Jordan Taylor (2): GT – 2011, 2012
Ricky Taylor (2): DP – 2011; DPi – 2021
Richard Westbrook (2): GTLM – 2016, 2018
Joao Barbosa (1): GT – 2002
Pipo Derani (1): P – 2017
Mario Farnbacher (1): GTD – 2016
Jack Hawksworth (1): GTD – 2018
Trent Hindman (1): GTD – 2019
Oliver Jarvis (1): DPi – 2019
Kyle Kirkwood (1): GTD – 2021
Steven Thomas (1): LMP2 – 2021
Renger van der Zande (1): PC – 2016
 
Previous Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen Winning Teams in 2022 Field (12)
Chip Ganassi Racing (6): DP – 2004, 2008, 2009, 2010; GTLM – 2016, 2018
Action Express Racing (4): DP – 2012, 2013; P – 2016, 2017
Turner Motorsport (3): GTD – 2014, 2018, 2021
Corvette Racing (2): GTLM – 2014, 2021
Meyer Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian (2): GTD – 2017, 2019
Riley Motorsports (2): GTD – 2015; LMP3 – 2021
BMW Team RLL (1): GTLM – 2017
CORE autosport (1): PC – 2014
JDC Miller MotorSports (1): P – 2018
Performance Tech Motorsports (1): PC – 2017
PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports (1): LMP2 – 2019
Wayne Taylor Racing (1): DP – 2011
 
Previous Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen Winning Manufacturers in 2022 Field (7)
Porsche – 53
Chevrolet – 18
BMW – 9
Ferrari – 8
Lexus – 3
Acura – 2
Cadillac – 1
Adam Sinclair
Latest posts by Adam Sinclair (see all)
Post Views: 112