| Honda, MMG Wins Its Second Straight in TCR July 12, 2025By John Oreovicz and Tony DiZinnoIMSA Wire Service |
| Race Results BOWMANVILLE, Ont. – Jeff Westphal was in one of those situations where he and CarBahn with Peregrine racing didn’t know whether the leading No. 39 BMW M4 GT4 EVO could make it to the finish of the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge’s Canadian Tire Motorsport Park 120 without stopping for a splash of fuel. Sean McAlister had put Westphal and the CarBahn car in that enviable position by driving a strong 58-minute first stint and stretching his fuel a lap longer than the Motul Pole Award-winning No. 13 McCumbee McAleer Racing with Aerosport Ford Mustang GT4 of Nate Cicero that led from the start. The fuel question was rendered moot when a multi-car accident on Canadian Tire Motorsport Park’s Andretti Straight caused a 22-minute caution. Then Westphal’s two closest challengers took themselves out of contention when they tangled with a lapped car. Westphal was in control over the final 20 minutes of the two-hour race and crossed the line for the overall and Grand Sport (GS) class win with a 5.603-second margin over the No. 27 Auto Technic Racing BMW M4 GT4 EVO shared by Stevan McAleer and Austin Krainz. Gregory Liefooghe and Sean Quinlan took third place in the No. 19 Ford Mustang GT4 fielded by Stephen Cameron Racing. Westphal’s sixth career victory in Michelin Pilot Challenge competition (and second of 2025) didn’t come without drama. The four-car wreck triggered by a pair of Touring Car (TCR) class competitors unfolded right as he was preparing to put the group of cars a lap down. “In the moment, I couldn’t pick a clear way through it,” said the 2019 GS champion. “They threw a bunch of dirt on the road, and it was wall to wall – there was no visibility. I slowed down and was able to pick my way through, so in that regard we got lucky. But it was a strategic effort to get lucky. Sean’s fuel save was absolutely essential, and he did a great job. “It wasn’t without trials – I was on full fuel save from lap one as well,” he added. “But we knew going into the race that the one-stop strategy could do it here if you stretch. You both have to save and frankly, we were really, really, tight without the yellow. That made it very doable.” McAlister’s first Michelin Pilot Challenge victory came earlier this year with Westphal in the No. 39 BMW at the Alan Jay Automotive Network 120 at Sebring in March. He admitted the planned attempt at one-stopping the race caused him stress as he watched the second half of the race from the pit wall. “I didn’t do as much fuel saving as I could have done, and before that yellow, we were just short of a lap shy on fuel,” McAlister said. “We didn’t know if we were going to finish or not, but Jeff did a great job of keeping the car clean and fuel saving.” The second-place finish was a bonus for veteran sports car campaigner McAleer. The No. 27 BMW gained two places in the closing stages when race officials assessed incident responsibility to the No. 57 car for contact that delayed Liefooghe in the No. 19 Ford. It was the first podium finish this season in Michelin Pilot Challenge competition for both McAleer’s teammate Krainz and Stephen Cameron Racing. “This is an important result and it’s awesome,” McAleer said. “I heard Austin and his dad were crying on the pit stand. First podium, it’s a massive day. I don’t like finishing second, but we’ve been finishing fourth or fifth all season. We’ll take a third or a second. We’ve been building momentum all year and were just on the cusp of getting one of these podiums. “We had good pace all day and I was a little bummed to see the big accident because I knew there were some cars in front of us that couldn’t make it on fuel,” he continued. “I would have liked a green-white-checkered finish with Westphal at the end to see if I could have gotten him. Vincent Barletta and Robby Foley charged from 15th place to fourth in the No. 96 Turner Motorsport BMW M4 GT4 EVO, making it a 1-2-4 finish for the German marque, while Motul Pole Award winner Cicero and teammate Jenson Altzman rounded out the top-five in the No. 13 Ford. GS class points leaders Jan Heylen and Luca Mars finished ninth in the No. 28 RS1 Porsche 718 RS CS GT4 and unofficially still hold a comfortable 260-point lead in the standings. Westphal and McAlister’s win moved them past Altzman into second place. TCR: Happy Honda Homecoming for MMG at CTMP |
| The Montreal Motorsports Group roll continued into both its team and both drivers’ home country of Canada. Karl Wittmer (of Saint-Lazare, Canada) and LP Montour (of Blainville) won their second straight Touring Car (TCR) class race in the No. 93 MMG Honda Civic FL5 TCR in a battle among their countrymen. It’s Wittmer’s fifth and Montour’s second career series wins. Montour got to the lead on Lap 5 past the polesitting No. 33 Bryan Herta Autosport w/Curb Agajanian Hyundai Elantra N TCR of Bryson Morris, although that lead was short-lived when Sam Baker got past Montour for the top spot four laps later in his No. 52 Baker Racing Audi RS3 LMS TCR. The Honda pitted earlier than the Audi and it appeared as though that would play to the Audi’s advantage once the first scheduled stop was complete. However, a drive-through penalty for a pit lane speeding violation briefly delayed the No. 52 Baker entry once James Vance took the wheel and began to catch up to the leaders. The class’ race complexion changed with 40 minutes remaining as contact occurred between Vance in the No. 52 Audi and Mark Wilkins in the No. 33 Hyundai on the backstraight at Turn 7. The resulting contact also eliminated two Grand Sport (GS) class cars, the No. 95 and 71 entries, and produced a caution flag period of more than 20 minutes. With two of the top challengers to the MMG Honda now out of play, Wittmer was able to bring his car home to the win by 2.149 seconds. Montour succinctly summarized the hometown happy Honda day. “Happy to have won the race with Karl,” said Montour. “It’s a whole Canadian team here on Canadian soil. It means a lot for the whole team to be able to secure back-to-back wins; it’s very good for the points in the championship. Can’t be happier than that for my friends and family; Honda and MMG did everything right and it pays off.” Tyler Gonzalez and Eric Powell finished second in their No. 99 Victor Gonzalez Racing Team Hyundai Elantra N TCR, their second podium finish in a row. Returning to the podium for the first time since the season-opening BMW M Endurance Challenge at Daytona International Speedway was Ryan Eversley and Celso Neto, the 2025-26 IMSA 3D Scholarship recipient, in their No. 7 Audi RS3 LMS TCR. Baker Racing salvaged a top-five finish with their second car of Dean Baker and Bruno Junqueira in the No. 56 Audi, while the top-finishing BHA Hyundai was Denis Dupont and Preston Brown in their No. 76 Elantra in fifth. Dupont and Brown entered the weekend 30 points behind teammate Harry Gottsacker in the No. 98 Elantra, but late-race issues for Gottsacker’s co-driver Mason Filippi dropped their car down to eighth in class, unofficially creating a tie atop the TCR championship points standings. Michelin Pilot Challenge competitors resume with the Road America 120 on Saturday, August 2, for Round 7. |
