Corvettes prevail in GT2 and T2 classes in 2017 Runoffs at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road circuit
GT2 Class
Andrew Aquilante from Chester Springs PA, pro caliber driver who started as a teenager working for his dad at Phoenix Racing Performance, won the GT2 class hands-down in his # 33 C6 Corvette. Starting from pole he clocked a second faster than his closest pursuer.
Professional preparation pays off. Phoenix client Preston Calvert from Potomac MD, a medical doctor also with pro experience qualified 3rd in his # 77 C6 Corvette and moved up to 2nd by the end of the 19-lap race.
Another top ten was Bob Kahn from Cypress CA in his # 35 C6 Corvette who finished 9th.
The 36 car GT2 field was one of the biggest. Seven (7) Corvettes raced against 12 other marques including Acura NSX, BMW M3, Camaro, Corvette, Dodge Viper ACR-X, Maserati GT4, Mazda RX-7, Mustang, Nissan 350Z, Porsche 996 & 997, Sunbeam Tiger and Toyota Celica.
Regulars # 22 C5 Oli Thordarson from Tribuco Canyon CA, # 196 Jerry Onks C6 from Murfreesboro TN and # 59 C6 Mike McGinley from Overland Park KS were 16th, 18th and 19th.
T2 Class
John M. Buttermore from S. Lyon MI # 97 C5 2003 was the class T2 winner in a 26-car field.
Dave Sanders from Malvern PA finished 5th in his # 73 C5 2003, in a car built 14 years ago by Phoenix Performance for the legendary John Heinricy who won the T1 championship. Dave keeps the legacy going with help from his dad Ron Sanders who we thank for the photos.
Big Chief Joe Aquilante from Chester Springs PA started 18th and finished 9th, winning the hard charger award in # 32 C5 1998. This even older car is among the first batch of T1 Corvettes to incorporate Joe’s tuning principles that have made Phoenix a leader going on 2 decades.
GT1 Class
SCCA Club Racing GT1 cars, built on tube frame chassis with silhouette bodies, are virtually the same spec for SCCA Pro Racing Trans Am. What’s a Caddy doing here? David Pintaric from Canfield OH GT1 winner first sported a Corvette C7 body when it was built by Tony Ave Racing. Midway through the 2016 Trans Am season David opted for a sleek Cadillac shell created by Kerry Hitt’s company Advanced Composite Performance. The C7 Corvette body now sits on # 23 Amy Ruman, fellow Ohioan and 2-time Trans Am champ.
# 44 A.J. Henricksen from Elgin IL and # 07 Ryan McManus from Westfield Center OH were 5th and 6th in a 17-car field.
T1 Class
John M. Buttermore from S. Lyon MI # 52 2005 C6, Michael Pettiford from Louisville CO # 041 2006 C6 and # 96 Adrian Wlotowski from Maspeth NY 2010 C6 were 6th, 8th and 9th in the T1 race again won by Andrew Aquilante only this time driving a 2014 Mustang!
Corvette results compiled by Jan Hyde
For complete results, all races, all classes, google search results 2017 SCCA Runoffs
See you next year at Sonoma!