2022 GT World Challenge America explained
The 2022 Fanatec GT World Challenge America Powered by AWS was the sixteenth season of the United States Auto Club's GT World Challenge America, and the fifth under ownership of SRO Motorsports Group.The season began at Sonoma Raceway on April 15, and ended at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on October 8.
K-PAX Racing and Andrea Caldarelli won the Pro category Teams' and Drivers' Championships for the second consecutive year, as Lamborghini won the Manufacturers' Championship. Racers Edge Motorsports, Mario Farnbacher, and Ashton Harrison won the Pro/Am Championships, as Harrison became the first woman to win a series championship in any category of GT World Challenge America. Triarsi Competizione, Onofrio Triarsi, and Charlie Scardina won the Am Championships as the only team in the category to participate in every round.
Calendar
The preliminary calendar was released on September 4, 2021, without disclosing the location of round two.[1] On October 10, 2021, the SRO announced that Ozarks International Raceway would fill the vacancy in the schedule, pending FIA circuit homologation. The round at Virginia International Raceway was also postponed one week to avoid a clash with the 2022 24 Hours of Le Mans.[2]
On April 27, 2022, the SRO announced that the second round at Ozarks was relocated to NOLA Motorsports Park, due to the challenges related with infrastructure and supply chain.[3]
The Indianapolis 8 Hours once again served as the final round of the GT World Challenge America season. However, unlike the 2021 race where points were paid after three hours of racing to eligible teams, championship points would be paid at the end of the eight-hour distance.
Round | Circuit | Date |
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1 | Sonoma Raceway, Sonoma, California | April 15–17 |
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2 | NOLA Motorsports Park, Avondale, Louisiana | May 20–22 |
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3 | Virginia International Raceway, Alton, Virginia | June 17–19 |
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4 | Watkins Glen International, Watkins Glen, New York | July 22–24 |
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5 | Road America, Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin | August 19–21 |
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6 | Sebring International Raceway, Sebring, Florida | September 23–25 |
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7 | Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Indianapolis, Indiana | October 7–9 | |
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Entry list
| Icon | Class |
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P | Pro Cup | PA | Pro/Am Cup | Am | Am Cup | |
| |
Mid-season changes
- On May 10, the Pro category requirements were updated to require one Silver graded driver on every eligible team, beginning from the second race meeting at NOLA Motorsports Park. This forced the following changes within the line-ups at Lamborghini Squadra Corse teams:
- The 2021 Pro Championship winning lineup of Andrea Caldarelli and Jordan Pepper were separated, with Pepper moving to the #3 K-PAX Racing entry to join Misha Goikhberg.
- Giacomo Altoè moved from the #3 K-PAX Racing team to Pro/Am team TR3 Racing, alongside Ziad Ghandour for the NOLA and VIR rounds.
- Michele Beretta moved from TR3 Racing into the #1 K-PAX Racing entry to join Caldarelli.
- K-PAX Racing's #3 car and Turner Motorsport were moved from Pro/Am to Pro prior to the start of the first race at Sonoma Raceway, following a review of Misha Goikhberg and Michael Dinan's driver rating derogations.
- Jean-Claude Saada, Conrad Grunewald, and the #61 AF Corse entry did not race after an accident in the first race at VIR. Grunewald would later join Triarsi Competizione for the Indianapolis 8 Hours, driving their #13 Ferrari 488 GT3.
- Jeff Burton and Corey Lewis joined TR3 Racing from Zelus Motorsports at Road America, replacing Ghandour and Altoè in their Lamborghini Huracán GT3.
- Team Hardpoint entered Watkins Glen as a one-off entry with drivers PJ Hyett and Gunnar Jeannette driving a Porsche 911 GT3-R. An incident for Hyett in GT America race two forced them to withdraw from that afternoon's GT World Challenge America race.
- GMG Racing entered Road America with a Porsche 911 GT3-R for James Sofronas and Kyle Washington.
- Zelus Motorsports did not enter Road America and Sebring. Madison Snow did not rejoin the team when they returned for the Indianapolis 8 Hours.
- Conquest Racing joined the series from Sebring. They were moved from Pro/Am to Pro prior to the start of the first race, following a review of Manny Franco's driver rating derogation.
- Andretti Autosport x Vital Speed and Cameron Racing joined the series at the Indianapolis 8 Hours.
- For the Indianapolis 8 Hours, DXDT Racing moved both of their cars out of Pro/Am, and entered their #63 Mercedes-AMG GT3 into the Pro category, and their #08 car into the Am category. Triarsi Competizione's #23 Ferrari was moved from Am to Pro/Am. GMG Racing's #32 Porsche also moved from Am to Pro/Am, while Zelus Motorsports moved their #88 Lamborghini from Pro/Am to Am. ST Racing moved their #38 BMW from Pro/Am to be the only Silver Cup entry in the race.
Race results
Bold indicates overall winner.
Championship standings
- Scoring systemChampionship points are awarded for the first ten positions in each race. Entries are required to complete 75% of the winning car's race distance in order to be classified and earn points. Individual drivers are required to participate for a minimum of 40 minutes in order to earn championship points in any race. Race-by-race entries which only participated in either of the final two races of the season are not eligible for points.
- Standard Points
Position | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | 8th | 9th | 10th |
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Points | 25 | 18 | 15 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 | |
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- Indianapolis Points
Position | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | 8th | 9th | 10th |
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Points | 50 | 36 | 30 | 24 | 20 | 16 | 12 | 8 | 4 | 2 | |
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Drivers' championship
| Bold – Pole Italics – Fastest Lap | |
- Notes
- – Drivers did not finish the race but were classified, as they completed more than 75% of the race distance.
Teams' championship
See also
Notes and References
- News: European and American series among first set of 2022 calendars confirmed by SRO Motorsports Group. September 4, 2021. gt-world-challenge-europe.com. SRO Motorsports Group. September 4, 2021.
- News: Ozarks Round Confirmed in Updated 2022 Schedule. October 10, 2021. Lloyd. Daniel. sportscar365.com. John Dagys Media. October 11, 2021.
- News: SRO America Schedule Update. April 27, 2022. SRO Motorsports Group. April 27, 2022.
- News: GT World Challenge America Watkins Glen rewind. July 25, 2022. racer.com. James. Richard S.. July 26, 2022.
- News: CrowdStrike Racing Switch To Riley Motorsports For 2022 SRO America Campaign. December 4, 2021. dailysportscar.com. Goodwin. Graham. December 4, 2021.
- News: Defending Indy 8H Winner Audi Absent from 25-Car Entry. September 29, 2022. sportscar365.com. Dagys. John. John Dagys Media. September 29, 2022.
- News: DXDT Racing Enters a Pair of Mercedes-AMG GT3s For GTWC America. February 15, 2022. dailysportscar.com. Goodwin. Graham. February 15, 2022.
- News: K-PAX Enters 24H Spa With Factory-Supported Lamborghini. February 10, 2022. sportscar365.com. Dagys. John. John Dagys Media. February 10, 2022.
- News: New Orleans Hosts GT Racing After Strong Season Opener in Sonoma. May 13, 2022. gt-world-challenge-america.com. SRO Motorsports Group America. May 16, 2022.
- Web site: September 30, 2022. K-PAX Racing Names 2022 Indy Line-Up: Team welcomes back Mapelli; Perera makes team debu . October 1, 2022. Fanatec GT World Challenge America Powered by AW . en-US.
- News: Aghakhani & Spinelli For Full Season AMG Effort. December 19, 2021. dailysportscar.com. Goodwin. Graham. December 19, 2021.
- Web site: Wine Country Hosts Fanatec GT World Challenge America powered by AWS Season Opener at Sonoma Raceway. April 8, 2022. gt-world-challenge-europe.com. SRO Motorsports Group. April 8, 2022.
- Web site: 20 Cars Entered For GT World Challenge Road America Weekend. August 12, 2022. R.J.. O'Connell. dailysportscar.com. August 20, 2022.
- News: Triarsi Competition Confirm Two-Car GT World Challenge America Ferrari Entry. December 1, 2021. dailysportscar.com. Goodwin. Graham. December 1, 2021.
- News: Conquest Racing GT3 Debut In Sebring, Preparations Underway For Full-Time 2023 Effort. September 22, 2022. dailysportscar.com. O'Connell. R.J.. September 25, 2022.
- News: ST Racing Confirms BMW M4 GT3 For GT World Challenge America. December 21, 2021. dailysportscar.com. Goodwin. Graham. December 21, 2021.
- News: Cagnazzi, Cosmo, Lewis Team Up in Mercedes-AMG for Indy 8H. September 28, 2022. sportscar365.com. Dagys. John. John Dagys Media. September 28, 2022.
- News: RealTime Racing Returns to GT World Challenge America. February 11, 2022. dailysportscar.com. O'Connell. RJ. February 11, 2022.
- News: RealTime Racing Completes Indy Lineup With Taylor Hagler. October 4, 2022. dailysportscar.com. Goodwin. Graham. October 4, 2022.
- News: Wright Motorsports Return To Defend GT World Challenge America Titles. March 30, 2022. dailysportscar.com. Goodwin. Graham. March 30, 2022.
- News: Wright Motorsports Add Erhart To Indy 8 Hour Line-up. October 4, 2022. dailysportscar.com. Goodwin. Graham. October 4, 2022.
- News: Zelus expands in SRO America for 2022. February 22, 2022. racer.com. James. Richard S.. February 22, 2022.
- News: Racers Edge Acura For Ashton Harrison & Mario Farnbacher In GT World Challenge America. January 4, 2022. dailysportscar.com. Goodwin. Graham. January 4, 2022.
- News: GT World Challenge America: BimmerWorld Racing präsentiert Programm für 2022. GT World Challenge America: BimmerWorld Racing presents program for 2022. German. February 17, 2022. gt-place.com. Phillipps. Robin. February 17, 2022.
- Web site: Turner Motorsport Begins GT World Challenge Season at Sonoma. March 30, 2022. dailysportscar.com. O'Connell. R.J.. March 30, 2022.
- News: Vital Speed, Andretti Autosport Team Up for Indy 8H Entry. August 26, 2022. sportscar365.com. Dagys. John. John Dagys Media. August 26, 2022.
- News: K-PAX Perfect in GT World Challenge America Race 1 At Sonoma. April 16, 2022. dailysportscar.com. O'Connell. R.J.. April 16, 2022.
- News: K-PAX Racing, Caldarelli and Pepper Seal Supreme Sweep in Sonoma. April 17, 2022. dailysportscar.com. O'Connell. R.J.. April 17, 2022.
- News: Caldarelli, Beretta Go Wire-to-Wire in NOLA; K-PAX 1-2 in Race 1. May 21, 2022. dailysportscar.com. O'Connell. R.J.. May 21, 2022.
- News: K-PAX Number 1 Remains Undefeated After NOLA Race 2 Win. May 22, 2022. dailysportscar.com. O'Connell. R.J.. May 25, 2022.
- News: Beretta, Caldarelli Take K-PAX's Fifth In A Row In 2022 At VIR. June 18, 2022. dailysportscar.com. O'Connell. R.J.. June 30, 2022.
- News: K-PAX Number 1 Sweeps VIR, Remains Perfect Halfway Through 2022. June 19, 2022. dailysportscar.com. O'Connell. R.J.. June 30, 2022.
- News: Wright Motorsports Wins Chaotic Race 1 In Watkins Glen. July 23, 2022. dailysportscar.com. O'Connell. R.J.. July 26, 2022.
- News: CrowdStrike with Riley Motorsports Snatches Outright Race 2 Win At Watkins Glen. July 24, 2022. dailysportscar.com. O'Connell. R.J.. July 26, 2022.
- News: Winward Racing Wins Road America Race 1. August 20, 2022. dailysportscar.com. O'Connell. R.J.. August 21, 2022.
- News: Winward Racing Sweeps the Road America Weekend. August 21, 2022. dailysportscar.com. O'Connell. R.J.. August 21, 2022.
- News: K-PAX's Caldarelli and Beretta Return To Winning Form In Sebring. September 24, 2022. dailysportscar.com. O'Connell. R.J.. September 25, 2022.
- News: Caldarelli Clinches Consecutive Pro Championships as K-PAX Sweeps Sebring. September 25, 2022. dailysportscar.com. O'Connell. R.J.. September 26, 2022.
- News: Craft-Bamboo Wins Indy 8H; Mercedes Clinches IGTC Title. October 8, 2022. sportscar365.com. Dagys. John. John Dagys Media. October 8, 2022.
- News: Indianapolis 8H 2022. gt-world-challenge-america.com. SRO Motorsports Group.
- Web site: October 9, 2022 . Championship Points - GTWCA . October 11, 2022 . Timing Solutions Ltd..