Jeremy Clarke and Tom Dillmann delivered Inter Europol Competition a long-awaited victory in the Chevrolet Grand Prix at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, mastering a late-race fuel strategy to win the 2-hour, 40-minute sprint by 9.796 seconds. Starting from pole in the No. 43 Oreca LMP2 07, the duo secured redemption on the 10-turn, 2.459-mile natural-terrain road course after a heartbreaking effort in the 2024 edition.
The win carried significant emotional weight for Dillmann, who suffered a fractured vertebra in a heavy accident at this event last year requiring surgery. Closing out the stint to take the checkered flag, the Frenchman dismissed the narrative of redemption. “Coming into this weekend, it didn’t change me. I want to win every race,” said Dillmann, who also won at Mosport in 2023. “The fact that I had the problem I did last year didn’t change the fact that I wanted to win, but yeah, it’s a cool story. Having a back injury, coming back to win it again, I think without that crash we could have made it three wins in a row here.”
CrowdStrike Racing by APR’s George Kurtz and Alex Quinn finished second, while AO Racing’s P.J. Hyett and Dane Cameron completed the LMP2 podium.
In GTD Pro, Vasser Sullivan continued its dominant form as Ben Barnicoat and Jack Hawksworth converted pole into a second consecutive class victory following their win at Watkins Glen International. Winward Racing’s Russell Ward and Philip Ellis claimed top honors in the GTD division.
Race Report
Clarke led the LMP2 field cleanly to the green flag, while GTD Pro polesitter Neil Verhagen (Paul Miller Racing) also enjoyed a strong launch. An early flashpoint occurred in GTD when Lorenzo Patrese (Conquest Racing) and Benjamin Pedersen (Vasser Sullivan) made contact at Turn 10 battling for second; both continued, though Patrese dropped to fourth.
Within the opening ten minutes, Verhagen faced pressure from Max Esterson (RLL Team McLaren) in GTD Pro, with Alexander Sims (Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports) close behind in third. Clarke held a two-second advantage in LMP2, while Dudu Barrichello (Heart of Racing) led GTD by a slender 0.44 seconds.
The first caution flew shortly after when John Farano (Tower Motorsports) went off course at Turn 3, sustaining terminal right-front damage to the No. 8 Oreca. Clarke controlled the restart with two hours and twenty minutes remaining, gapping Misha Goikhberg (Bryan Herta Autosport with PR1/Mathiasen).
The pit window opened thirteen minutes later. AO Racing’s Hyett was the first LMP2 entry to service without a driver change. Barrichello pitted from the GTD lead but suffered a slow stop, handing the class lead to Pedersen.
With just under two hours remaining, Toby Lutke (TDS Racing) impacted the Turn 8 tire barriers, triggering the second full-course yellow. The subsequent pit cycle shuffled the order significantly: George Kurtz (CrowdStrike Racing by APR) vaulted from seventh to the LMP2 lead; Jack Hawksworth (Vasser Sullivan) emerged ahead in GTD Pro; and Trent Hindman (Wayne Taylor Racing) took the GTD point.
Robert Wickens (DXDT Racing) remained on pit lane during the restart with a throttle spring issue, rejoining two laps down. Through the next sequence of stops and LMP2 driver changes, Dillmann relieved Clarke, Quinn replaced Kurtz, and Cameron took over from Hyett. Goikhberg, having not yet stopped, cycled to the overall lead temporarily.
In GTD Pro, Barnicoat assumed the No. 14 Lexus RC F GT3 from Hawksworth and retained the class lead. Hindman continued to lead GTD, holding a 0.4-second margin over Philip Ellis (Winward Racing).
Approaching the halfway mark, Ellis executed a decisive pass on Hindman exiting Turn 5 to seize the GTD lead, quickly building a two-second buffer. At the halfway point, Barnicoat held a 5.2-second advantage over Nikita Johnson (RLL Team McLaren), while Goikhberg’s stop handed the LMP2 lead to Quinn.
Shortly after, Mikkel Jensen (United Autosports USA) stuffed his car into the Turn 8 barriers but managed to reverse out and limp to the pits without prompting another caution. Simultaneously, Quinn was delayed in traffic, allowing Dillmann to claim the overall lead.
With one hour remaining, a round of GT-class pit stops saw Barnicoat hold a comfortable 6-second gap over Nick Tandy (AO Racing) in GTD Pro. Ellis led GTD by 0.6 seconds over Aaron Telitz (Vasser Sullivan), while Dillmann maintained a 1.2-second edge over Quinn in LMP2.
Quinn pitted from second with 52 minutes left; Dillmann and Cameron followed a lap later. GTP regular Ricky Taylor, subbing in the No. 52 PR1/Mathiasen entry, briefly inherited the lead before his own stop with 43 minutes remaining restored Dillmann to the top spot.
The final half-hour settled into a fuel-saving rhythm. Dillmann led Quinn by 3.1 seconds, Barnicoat’s GTD Pro margin expanded to 8.2 seconds over Tandy, and the closest fight on track saw Telitz hunting down Ellis in GTD, separated by just 1.2 seconds.
With 22 minutes remaining, Cameron pitted from third and emerged with no fuel concerns and clear air. Quinn dove in for a splash-and-go eleven minutes later, retaining second over Cameron. Dillmann pitted the following lap and, thanks to a rapid fuel stop, rejoined with the lead intact.
Barnicoat and Ellis held firm in their respective GT classes to the checkered flag, completing a clean sweep of class victories for Vasser Sullivan and Winward Racing alongside Inter Europol’s LMP2 triumph.