IMSA VIR: Corvette’s Taylor and Garcia claim victory over Lexus
Corvette Racing’s Jordan Taylor and Antonio Garcia claimed victory in the IMSA SportsCar championship event at Virginia International Raceway over points leaders Lexus.
The 160-minute race got under way with Jack Hawksworth leading the field from pole position in the #14 Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3 and held the advantage through an early full course yellow caused by David Brule in the #92 Kelly-Moss with Riley Porsche 911 going off into the barriers.
Not long after the #78 Forte Racing Lamborghini Huracan was buried nose-first into the tyre barrier by Misha Goikhberg, forcing the second full-course caution of the race.
On the restart, Bryan Sellers in the Paul Miller Racing BMW was in control of the field, but the Pro leaders would not sit idly behind him.
Ben Barnicoat, now in the #14 Lexus, immediately went on the attack, passing Sellers with the #3 Corvette of Jordan Taylor with him.
Taylor then made a lunge on Barnicoat for the race lead, but couldn’t quite get it done.
#14 Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3: Jack Hawksworth, Ben Barnicoat
Photo by: Richard Dole / Motorsport Images
But the pivotal moment came when Taylor jumped Barnicoat during the final pitstops, as the Lexus driver stalled briefly before leaving the pits, dropping him four seconds back.
Barnicoat struggled to erase the gap to Taylor, crossing the finish line two seconds adrift as Taylor claimed the chequered flag for Corvette Racing. It was a big victory for Taylor and Garcia as they look to claw points away from the Hawksworth/Barnicoat duo.
The #9 Pfaff Motorsports Porsche driven by Patrick Pilet and Klaus Bachler finished third overall.
“It was amazing,” said Taylor post-race. "That’s all down to Corvette Racing calling that strategy and getting us that track position. When they told me the fuel number, I was definitely worried. But the car was so good even in fuel save mode. It actually helped me save the tyres.”
Looking behind the GTD Pro teams, Snow and Sellers in the #1 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 collected its fifth class win of the year, further solidifying their place atop the points standings.
IMSA Virginia race results
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