WATKINS GLEN, New York – Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing teams in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge series bring the momentum of recent race wins, podium finishes, and across-the-board GT Daytona (GTD) championship leads to Watkins Glen International this weekend for the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen, June 20 – 22. Three Mercedes-AMG GT3 entries from Winward Racing, Korthoff Competition Motors and Lone Star Racing compete in Sunday’s featured Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen WeatherTech Championship race while the No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4 carries the Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing flag in Saturday’s two-hour Pilot Challenge race.
This weekend’s races bring both the WeatherTech and Pilot Challenge series to the midpoints of their respective seasons in addition to the Sahlen’s Six Hours serving as the third of five rounds in this year’s IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup (IMEC). The Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen starts this Sunday, June 22, at 12:10 p.m. EDT with live coverage beginning at Noon on the flagship NBC Network and streaming flag-to-flag on NBC’s Peacock. The race airs internationally on IMSA’s YouTube channel and IMSA.TV.
Leading the Mercedes-AMG Motorsport charge to Watkins Glen is reigning IMSA GTD WeatherTech and Michelin Endurance Cup Champions Winward Racing and team co-drivers Russell Ward, Philip Ellis and Indy Dontje.
The No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 team has won a GTD class-leading two of the year’s first four races, with repeat victories in March’s 12 Hours of Sebring and one race ago last month at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, to return to The Glen leading all WeatherTech GTD championships for the second-straight year.
Winward brings season-high 124-point GTD team and driver championship leads to The Glen, 1,372 – 1,248, over the nearest challengers.
Adding to the momentum, Ward, Ellis, Dontje and the No. 57 team are also the defending Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen GTD division race leaders.
Winward’s early-season success has also helped Mercedes-AMG move off to a strong defense of its 2024 GTD Manufacturer Championship title, but the No. 57 isn’t the only Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer team contributing to the points lead.
The No. 32 Korthoff Competition Motors Mercedes-AMG GT3 team used a reverse driver qualifying and race strategy at Laguna Seca that produced the team’s first pole and highest race finish of year in the Pro-Am-structured GTD class. The 35 points earned for the pole moved Mercedes-AMG into the GTD Manufacturer Championship points lead.
Pro driver Kenton Koch delivered the pole-winning performance and twice led the GTD field in a double driving stint in the No. 32 to open the race. Co-driver Seth Lucas took over with an hour to go and battled for a top-three finish throughout his stint before taking the checkered for the season-best fourth-place finish.
This weekend, Koch and the No. 32 team welcome back Mercedes-AMG driver Daniel Morad as the team’s Michelin Endurance Cup addition after he filled a similar role as the fourth driver on the team at the season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona.
Morad is a one-race fill-in for Korthoff’s regular Endurance Cup specialist Maximilian Götz, who competes this weekend in Europe, while 2024 IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge TCR Champion Mikey Taylor takes over for Lucas in the No. 32.
The third round of the Endurance Cup also brings the No. 80 Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 team back to GTD competition at Watkins Glen. The Texas-based team is running in the five-event, long-distance Michelin championship this year.
Lone Star turned in a pair of on-pace and in-contention runs in the opening rounds at the Rolex 24 At Daytona in January and Sebring in March, but late issues in both races derailed a result on par with the team’s performance.
The team is set for its second Sahlen’s Six Hours with Lone Star regulars drivers Dan Knox and Scott Andrews who will be joined by team newcomer Wyatt Brichacek. The 25-year-old Brichacek brings European sports car racing experience and a background in U.S. single-seat, open-wheel racing to Lone Star.
On the Michelin Pilot Challenge front, Winward’s Mercedes-AMG GT4 program turned around two weeks ago in the most recent race at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Leaving a largely frustrating season to date in the rearview mirror, No. 57 Mercedes-AMG GT4 drivers Bryce Ward and Morad secured a season-best second place finish in the top-tier Grand Sport (GS) class.
After a single Sahlen’s Six Hour practice session today, a final practice Saturday morning sets the stage for GTD qualifying later that day at 2:20 p.m. EDT. The Sahlen’s Six Hours starts Sunday at 12:10 p.m. EDT.
The two-hour IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge race starts at 11:45 a.m. EDT on Saturday with live coverage on NBC’s Peacock.
Philip Ellis, Driver – No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: “It feels good of course coming into The Glen as the championship leaders again, but it is not a huge margin we have. It’s a bit closer than it was last year, but I think the competition overall is a lot closer. There’s a lot more cars in the run for the championship and we are barely halfway. We will just keep digging, doing our thing and doing what we do best, which is executing well on strategy. It will be interesting to see what our pace is like. Last year we struggled a bit, but we were quite lucky with how all the weather chaos played out. We are looking forward to the race, this is typically one of our good ones, and we will see what we can do with the strategy. It’s a big month for Mercedes-AMG Motorsport, and I am happy to be holding up the flag high with the Winward boys.”
Wyatt Brichacek, Driver – No. 80 Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: “I am very excited to be racing with Lone Star Racing and Mercedes-AMG at Watkins Glen. As an American who has primarily raced in Europe the last couple of seasons, I’m glad to be back at home competing at the top level! I am very thankful to Dan, AJ, Scott and the whole LSR team for putting their trust in me. The GTD class in IMSA is one of the most competitive out there, and I’m looking forward to the challenge ahead. The Mercedes-AMG GT3 has been a standout car in the GT3 category, especially with the success it has seen over the last couple of years. You can always count on the AMG to be at the front of the field fighting for wins. It is a wonderful car to drive, and I’m looking forward to learning more about what the platform has to offer.”