As one of the fastest road courses in the world, the Canadian Tire Motorsports park, located in Bowmanville, Ontario, has been known for decades as demanding both passion and commitment in order to succeed. The same can be said for its fans, some of the most dedicated and knowledgeable in the sport.
The 2.459-mile road course is cut out of the Canadian countryside north of Toronto and has always been about speed. While safety and amenity changes have kept the track current in the years since its founding, it continues to be a legacy of previous great eras of road racing. While not near the overall track length of Road America or the Circuit of the Americas at which the Tudor Championship will compete on later in the year, its fast corners and elevation changes generate some of the highest average speeds that the GT Le Mans (GTLM) cars, like Sellers’ Porsche 911 RSR, will compete on. Each corner demands full commitment, there are no “take a breath and relax” turns among the 10 that make-up the layout of CTMP.
For Bryan Sellers, the July 13 Mobil 1 SportsCar Grand Prix at CTMP is a non-stop, high-energy blur in and out of the No. 17 Team Falken Tire Porsche 911 RSR he shares with Wolf Henzler (Germany).
“This is a racetrack that takes quite a bit of time to get back up to speed,” added Sellers. “The difficulty of the circuit is high along with the level of commitment needed to be fast. You have to mentally prepare yourself for the speed and risk level of the circuit by running through all your past experiences. I think everything eventually matches mentally and physically, you just have to not be in a rush to get there.”
The Sunday afternoon race is among the favorite stops on the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship circuit and seldom fails to provide the unexpected.
“It is rare to get a high-speed track that is also technical,” stated Sellers. “However, CTMP is one of those tracks. You have to be fast and you also have to have good car placement. It is one of a kind! I am looking forward to get the Team Falken Tire Porsche onto the track and face the challenge.”
Despite the danger that comes with the speed, or perhaps because of it, the track draws passion from the drivers and teams that compete here. It is considered among the most challenging tracks but that creates a desire to “beat” the circuit, one corner, one lap and one race at a time. Nothing is taken for granted.
“Turn two is probably the most famous corner, and for good reason,” Sellers continued. “It is a corner like no other. It takes full commitment and demands all of your attention. It is extremely fast and line sensitive making it so difficult. You have to take a deep breath before turn two every time you approach it.”
That level of commitment and passion carries over to the fan base as well. The two-hour, 45-minute multi-class race draws spectator support not only from all over Canada but it is a destination event for motorsport fans the world-over. The opportunity to witness, firsthand, drivers in the fastest GT machines in the world, battle the track is hard to turndown. The fans that come to the track recognize the skill and the commitment of the drivers and they pay that back with unequalled appreciation and knowledge of the sport. Saturday afternoon’s autograph session and Sunday’s fan grid walk will be among the most crowded of the season.
“The fans here have such a rich history in motorsports,” Sellers concluded. “This is our only stop in Canada and they make sure they come out in full force to support the Tudor Championship. The fans are so great that I wish we could come more than once a year with the Falken Tire Porsche. They are educated on our sport and love coming to the race. As a driver, it’s exciting to race in front of these Canadian fans and to try and impress them with a great race. That isn’t easy. They have seen a lot of great racing over the years here.”
The Mobil 1 SportsCar Grand Prix can be seen live on FOX Sports 1 at 2:00 p.m. Eastern Time, July 13. The Motor Racing Network (MRN) will carry the race live on its network of stations. Sunday’s race will also have live timing and scoring available at IMSA.com. Live streaming of the qualifying show is available on the IMSA web site beginning at 5:20 p.m. ET on Saturday, July 12.
About Me: Adam has been a race fan since the first time he went through the tunnel under the Daytona International Speedway almost 30 years ago. He has had the privilege of travelling to races all across the state of Florida (as well as one race in Ohio), watching nearly everything with a motor compete for fame and glory, as well as participating in various racing schools to get the feel of what racecar drivers go through every week. Adam has spent the last three years covering motorsports for Examiner.com., where he had the opportunity to see the racing world from behind the scenes as well as the grandstands. He invites everyone to follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and Google Plus, and looks forward to sharing his enthusiasm for all things racing with the readers of SpeedwayDigest.com.Be sure to tune in for his weekly sports talk program, Thursday Night Thunder, where he discusses the latest in motorsports news with drivers, crew members, and fans. The show takes place every Thursday at 8:00 pm EST on the Speedway Digest Radio Network.
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