The 2023 Mobileye Intercontinental GT Challenge Esports series has been a huge success for the Williams Esports squad.
Thanks to three wins out of five races – shared between the Dennis Schöniger, Daire McCormack and Dominik Blajer Mercedes-AMG GT3 car and the Audi R8 LMS Evo II entry of Tinko Van Der Velde, Igor De Oliveira Rodrigues, Vojtech Fiala and Charlie Crossland – the team has jointly enjoyed a tremendous season in the Intercontinental GT Challenge’s Pro class.
However, it was the Mercedes crew who looked more consistent and held a convincing gap at the top of the standings heading into the Indianapolis 8 Hours final round, with the second-place Mercedes-AMG Esports Team Unicorns of Love car realistically the only other championship contender.
In Silver, the #85 Team Racing Point AMR Vantage held a relatively narrow lead over the RennWelten eSports Red Ferrari, with the similar entry of Yas Heat requiring snookers to take top honours.
Qualifying
Qualifying was another success for Williams, as its Audi entry pipped the Silver class car of BMW Romania Team West Competition Racing to pole position.
The team’s Mercedes-powered car also out-qualified its championship rivals by one spot in the Pro class, which became two once the grid was combined.
Team Racing Point looked to be in the pound seats in Silver, however, as the car driven by David Pertile, Amedeo Castorino, Lukáš Matěja and Mattia Zampedri qualified second in class compared to RennWelten down in eighth.
Race
The tight entry to Turn 1 on Indianapolis’ Road Course is often a wrecker of races, and it was no different here, as the Yas Heat Ferrari was tipped into a spin, seemingly ending the team’s faint hopes of the Silver championship.
The Williams Audi of Tinko Van Der Velde led from the get-go but was under pressure from Jordan Sherratt’s Ferrari 296 GT3. A 10s penalty was coming Sherratt’s way, however, after he needlessly tagged the Audi into a spin.
The incident allowed the Williams-Mercedes of Blajer into the lead, with their championship rival – the UoL entry of Tobias Pfeffer – also held up in the melee after being tagged by the out-of-control Williams Audi. Things got even worse for Williams as the Audi was hit by a 10s penalty for failing to hold its brakes after the collision.
The early stages had seemingly nullified the championship battle in Pro, with the Team Racing Point crew also gradually tightening their grip on the Silver class title.
As the race wore on, however, the Scuderia Ferrari Esports car of Sherratt, Chris Harteveld, Andrea Capoccia and Jonathan Riley emerged as the main rivals to Williams in P1, harrying the back of the Mercedes-AMG until the chequered flag, finishing less than a second behind at the race’s conclusion.
The UoL car of Pfeffer, Bastian Richter, Tobias Gronewald and Michael Tauscher recovered well to third with the Williams Audi finishing fourth.
Team Racing Point capped off an impressive year with a dominant win in Silver, with the Yas Heat Ferrari of Valentin Barrier, Jaroslav Honzik, Edgars Marhilevics and Aidan Walsingham pulling off the drive of the day to finish runner-up after its lap one issues.
2023 Intercontinental GT Challenge Esports Indianapolis 8 Hours, PRO class results
- Dennis Schöniger – Daire McCormack – Dominik Blajer Mercedes-AMG GT3 2020 Mercedes-AMG Team Williams Esports 8:01:32.238
- Jordan Sherratt – Chris Harteveld – Andrea Capoccia – Jonathan Riley Ferrari 296 GT3 Scuderia Ferrari Esports Team +0.295
- Bastian Richter – Tobias Pfeffer – Tobias Gronewald – Michael Tauscher Mercedes-AMG GT3 2020 Mercedes-AMG Esports Team Unicorns of Love +21.518
- Tinko Van Der Velde – Igor De Oliveira Rodrigues – Vojtech Fiala – Charlie Crossland Audi R8 LMS Evo II Williams Esports +46.263
- Nils Naujoks – Gregor Schill – Arthur Kammerer – Philippa Boquida BMW M4 GT3 BMW M Team BS+COMPETITION +49.642
2023 Intercontinental GT Challenge Esports Indianapolis 8 Hours, Silver class results
- David Pertile – Amedeo Castorino – Lukáš Matěja – Mattia Zampedri Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 Team Racing Point +30.216
- Valentin Barrier – Jaroslav Honzik – Edgars Marhilevics – Aidan Walsingham Ferrari 296 GT3 YAS Heat Esports +1:04.933
- Geert Fischer – Tadas Juknevicius – Zaahir Essa – Marc Tol Ferrari 296 GT3 West Competition Racing +1:13.047
- Sebastian Apostol – Marco Jonkers – Victor Nicolae – Andrei Miclea BMW M4 GT3 BMW Romania Team West Competition Racing +1 Lap
- Samir Ibraimi – Leon Berndt – Tim Pietschmann – Joris Apel Ferrari 296 GT3 RennWelten eSports Red +1 Lap
2023 Intercontinental GT Challenge Esports final Pro classification
- Dennis Schöniger – Daire McCormack – Dominik Blajer Mercedes-AMG GT3 2020 Mercedes-AMG Team Williams Esports, 164 points
- Bastian Richter – Tobias Pfeffer – Tobias Gronewald – Michael Tauscher Mercedes-AMG GT3 2020 Mercedes-AMG Esports Team Unicorns of Love, 136 points
- Jordan Sherratt – Chris Harteveld – Andrea Capoccia – Jonathan Riley Ferrari 296 GT3 Scuderia Ferrari Esports Team, 129 points
- Tinko Van Der Velde – Igor De Oliveira Rodrigues – Vojtech Fiala – Charlie Crossland Audi R8 LMS Evo II Williams Esports, 110 points
- Niklas Houben – Leon Otocki – Lars Kisser – Nils Klinkmüller Mercedes-AMG GT3 2020 Mercedes-AMG Esports Team HRT by UOL, 102 points
2023 Intercontinental GT Challenge Esports final Silver classification
- David Pertile – Amedeo Castorino – Lukáš Matěja – Mattia Zampedri Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 Team Racing Point, 158 points
- Samir Ibraimi – Leon Berndt – Tim Pietschmann – Joris Apel Ferrari 296 GT3 RennWelten eSports Red, 129 points
- Valentin Barrier – Jaroslav Honzik – Edgars Marhilevics – Aidan Walsingham Ferrari 296 GT3 YAS Heat Esports, 124 points
- Sebastian Apostol – Marco Jonkers – Victor Nicolae – Andrei Miclea BMW M4 GT3 BMW Romania Team West Competition Racing, 114 points
- Geert Fischer – Tadas Juknevicius – Zaahir Essa – Marc Tol Ferrari 296 GT3 West Competition Racing, 92 points
Featured Image: Williams Esports
