Jake Walker Racks Up VP Challenge Wins at COTA

Turner Motorsport driver Jake Walker had a perfect weekend at the VP Racing SportsCar Challenge event at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Texas. In his #6 M4 GT3, Walker won the GTDX class in both races.

The wins at COTA were redemption for Walker, who didn’t even compete in the series opening round at Daytona in January and finished last in race two after only running four laps due to car issues. Walker was quick right out of the box at COTA, setting the fastest lap in both practice sessions and putting his #6 M4 GT3 on the pole for the first race. In race one, Walker had a great battle with Porsche driver (and GTDX class points leader) Adam Adelson, who traded the lead in the opening laps in close, bumper-to-bumper racing. Walker took the lead for good when Adelson spun his Porsche on his own while trying to hold off pressure from Walker (shown in the top photo), allowing him to cruise to the victory.

Samantha Tan had a successful race, finishing fifth overall in GTDX in her #38 ST Racing M4 GT3 but first in the category for Bronze-rated drivers, of which there were five in the GTDX class. Turner Motorsport driver Vin Barletta finished eighth overall in GTDX in race one.

Jake Walker (center) won both GTDX races at COTA.

Walker carried his form from race one over into race two. He started from pole by setting the fastest GTDX class lap in race one and had a clean start to control the race from the opening lap. Adelson, who had started in second in race two, had pressure from the Ferrari of AJ Muss on the opening lap and fell back to third, then had contact with an LMP3 car that led to a cut tire. Walker took a commanding win, followed by the Ferraris in second and third. “It’s definitely great redemption [from Daytona],” he said. “Thanks to Turner Motorsport and BMW for putting the car together and giving us another fast car. The car was on the rails this weekend. We made a few adjustments in practice, and from there on out, it was perfect, so I couldn’t ask for more.”

Samantha Tan also repeated her performance from race one, finishing fourth overall in the GTDX class and first in the Bronze category. Vin Barletta had a better result in race two than in race one, finishing seventh overall in GTDX and third in the Bronze category.

: Vin Barletta finished third in the GTDX Bronze category in race two.

: Samantha Tan won the Bronze category in both GTDX class races.

In the GSX class for GT4-spec cars, Toyota is having a dominant season with the GR Supra GT4 EVO, which is a BMW chassis underneath the body. A Toyota won both races at Daytona, and they swept the podium in race one at COTA. The M4 GT4 entries didn’t have the pace to compete with them, with Patrick Wilmot putting in the best performance by a BMW in race one with fourth place in his #12 Swish Motorsports M4 GT4. Chris Walsh was running in third place with his Carrus Callus Raceteam M4 GT4 EVO when he was hit by a Ferrari and crashed into the wall. Meanwhile, Roland Krainz experienced a technical issue with his Auto Technic Racing M4 GT4 EVO and did not complete a single lap.

Patrick Wilmot finished fourth in the GSX class in both races in his Swish Motorsports M4 GT4.

The Toyotas looked like they would be dominant again in race two. Walsh and Wilmot both started strong in their BMWs but soon fell behind the fastest Toyotas, which were running in formation. However, in the closing laps, the leading Toyota experienced a technical issue and came to a stop on the track. Additionally, the Toyota that was in third place received a penalty for violating track limits. As a result, Chris Walsh moved up to secure a second-place finish in his M4 GT4 EVO, while Wilmot finished in fourth. Roland Krainz also had a solid race, finishing fifth overall in his class and taking third in the Bronze driver category.

Chris Walsh finished second in the GSX class in race two in his Carrus Callas Raceteam M4 GT4 EVO.

The next two VP Racing SportsCar Challenge series races are at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in mid-June. There will be a great battle for the championship this year between Jake Walker and Adam Adelson in the GTDX class, as the points gap between them has narrowed considerably after the COTA races.