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GP in the D: Motown brands dominate the Detroit Grand Prix weekend
Posted by Talbot Payne on May 31, 2024
Detroit — The Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear returns to city streets this weekend, and it will be a showcase for Motown automakers.
Joining the NTT IndyCar series and IndyNXT open-wheel series will be the Weathertech IMSA Sportscar series and a who’s who of Motown brands going wheel-to-wheel for glory. For the first time in Detroit, Chevy Corvette and Ford Mustang sportscar icons will lock horns in the highly competitive GT3 class. At the head of the field, Bloomfield Hills-based Team Penske will do battle in a pair of Porsche 963s against IMSA prototype competitor Cadillac.
In the IndyCar engine wars, Chevrolet is coming off a dominating performance against Honda at the Indy brickyard and will try to win again in its own backyard. There will be plenty of other (non-Detroit) brands in action, including McLaren, BMW, Porsche, Lexus, Acura and Ferrari.
“Racing has always revolved around Detroit automakers, who use it as a technology transfer from the track to the street,” said Detroit GP President Michael Montri in the Detroit GP’s dual pit lane ahead of this year’s race. “What better place to do that than a street track in downtown Detroit?”
Chevrolet sponsors a race that is run on a 1.7-mile course that circles General Motors Co.’s world headquarters, the Renaissance Center. With Ford Motor Co. and Penske Corp. also headquartered just a few miles away, the race takes on added significance for automakers and their suppliers. With so many employees, executives and technology located here, winning the home race is a point of pride.
“It’s an iconic city for our sport,” said veteran North America sportscar racer Bryan Sellers, who grew up in Dayton, Ohio. “Detroit is the birthplace of the American automobile. There’s just something special about being a part of a race here. Even when the race was on Belle Isle, I loved coming into the city.”
Sellers now races a BMW M4 for Paul Miller Racing and will try to play spoiler to Motor City favorites Mustang and Corvette as they race for their home crown.
The Ford Mustang GT3 will be taking on its Chevy rival, the Corvette, at this weekend’s Detroit Grand Prix. Ford, Ford
Of the 11 entries in the GT class, two will be Ford Mustang GT3 cars.
The ‘Stang brings its familiar V-8 sound to the city streets, but the car is much more sinister looking than its production-based GT. A huge rear wing and front spoiler help suck the carbon fiber-skinned beast to the ground as its hits speeds in excess of 180 mph down the main Jefferson Avenue straight.
“I’m really looking forward to racing in downtown Detroit for the first time,” said Mustang driver Harry Tincknell, who shares driver duties with Mike Rockenfeller. “Street tracks are always special because of the atmosphere the fans create, and then there’s the naughty child in me who really enjoys driving really fast, breaking the speed limit as we go through traffic lights and stop signs on normal roads.”
Also breaking the speed limit will be the Corvette Z06 GT3.R, prepared for the factory by Wixom-based Pratt Miller Motorsports.
A pair of yellow ‘Vettes will take the green flag for Saturday’s IMSA race with Tommy Milner and Nicky Catsburg in the #4 car and Antonio Garcia and Alexander Sims in the #3 car.
The #4 Corvette undergoes a pit stop during the at Rolex 24 Daytona. It will be on the streets of downtown Detroit on Saturday. Michael L. Levitt, LAT Images
“I’ve driven (the track) in person in a rental car and (done) some simulator work also,” said Milner. “It’s exciting to be in the downtown part of Detroit. Racing in the shadow of the RenCen is very cool.”
Team Penske is on a roll in sportscar racing and IndyCar. Chairman Roger “The Captain” Penske celebrated his 20th Indy 500 win last weekend — just a few months after recording his first Daytona 24 Hour sportscar win since 1969 in Porsche’s latest hybrid 963 prototype GTP car.
At the wheel for both wins was Josef Newgarden, a two-time IndyCar champ who also enjoys competing in sportscars. Porsche Penske Managing Director John Diuguid was also part of the Daytona/Indy twofer as Newgarden’s Indy 500 race manager.
Detroit will be a much shorter race — 100 minutes — than the 24 hour epics at Daytona and next month’s Le Mans race in France.
“Detroit might be a new circuit for the Porsche 963, but it’s not for many of the team personnel,” said Diuguid. “Porsche Penske Motorsport (leads) the drivers’ and teams’ championships. This combined with the fact that Detroit is also the home of Roger Penske, our team aims to bring home another victory.”
Two Porsche Penske prototypes from three rival manufacturers: Acura, BMW and Cadillac.
The latter is the defending series champion and winner of four of the five IMSA races on Belle Isle since the prototype class was formed in 2017. This year, two Caddy V-Series.R racers are entered.
“It is always great to race at GM’s home and feel the extra energy that it brings,” said Brazilian ace Pipo Derani, who will pilot the #31 Whelan Engineering Caddy. “We will be hoping to continue our strong form into this very important weekend as we seek to defend our championship.”
While the IMSA prototype field features a number of V-8 engines, the Caddy’s thundering, 670-horsepower, 5.5-liter V-8 stands out as the only non-turbocharged hammer.
Cadillac brings two GTP entries to Daytona, including the pole-sitting #31 car. Richard Prince Richard@rprincephoto.com 516-459-2894, Richard Prince/Chevrolet
“Cadillac has a history of developing incredible performance V-8s, beginning with the Cadillac OHV in 1949, which powered our first Le Mans entries,” said GM sportscar racing manager Laura Wontrop Klauser. “We made the decision to continue with the V-8 (in IMSA) as we feel it is the best solution for this application. The sound is also unmistakably a Cadillac, which is hard not to love.”
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or Twitter @HenryEPayne