The Miami Sunrise 6 Hour, Round 9 of the 2024 VSCA SportsCar Championship, took place under the lights of Homestead-Miami Speedway. The night event kicked off at 2:30 a.m. local time, with racers battling through the early hours before a spectacular sunrise greeted the field. The 2.3-mile circuit with 10 technical turns provided the backdrop for a race defined by strategy, endurance, and some intense wheel-to-wheel battles.
Pole position was claimed by Ryan Koprowski in the #93 Digital Chicane Ferrari 296 GT3, setting a blistering lap time of 1:15.804. Koprowski and his co-driver, Ethan Swan, had their sights set on a third victory of the season, following wins at COTA and Watkins Glen. They led the most laps in the race, clocking 137 in front of the field.
The race saw two full-course yellow periods. The first came just 51 minutes in, following a multi-car incident triggered by a GT PRO car. The second yellow flag emerged three hours and 28 minutes into the race. Despite these interruptions, the #93 Ferrari was a commanding presence throughout, holding off the hard-charging competition.
Drama and Resilience for #93 Digital Chicane Ferrari
Koprowski’s pace was unrelenting, keeping his Ferrari ahead of the pack in the GT AM class, often running times comparable to the faster GT PRO cars. However, the race wasn’t without drama. Shortly after the second full-course yellow, the #93 Ferrari found itself in a controversial incident with the #151 World Of SimRacing Team BMW in Turn 2. The cars made contact while running side by side, causing the BMW to spin.
This wasn’t the first issue the #93 Ferrari faced. Shortly after the first yellow period, the GT PRO #12 Delta Racing BMW rear-ended Koprowski’s Ferrari, leading to a chain-reaction crash that involved five other cars. Despite these challenges, the Digital Chicane team remained calm and resilient, eventually pulling away to finish 35.816 seconds clear of second place.
Post-race, Koprowski expressed his satisfaction with the result: "This was a true team effort. We had the pace, but you can never be sure in endurance racing. The incidents were unfortunate, but we kept our focus, and the car was just phenomenal all race long."
Vulture Motorsports Impresses with Double Podium
While the Ferrari team dominated, the #017 Vulture Motorsports Ford Mustang GT3 had an equally impressive race. Starting from P11 on the grid, the car, driven by Erol Ureksoy and Jeff Carollo, worked its way up through the field to finish second. This marked the second consecutive podium finish for the Tampa-based team, continuing their strong form after switching to Ford earlier in the season.
The sister car, the #016 Vulture Motorsports Ford Mustang GT3, also delivered a standout performance, finishing third. Drivers Steven Martinez and Justin DeLano celebrated their best finish of the season. For Vulture Motorsports, securing two cars on the podium was a significant achievement, signaling the team’s growing competitiveness in the VSCA SportsCar Championship.
In the post-race interview, Ureksoy said, "We’ve been building momentum for a while, and today, it all came together. It’s a great day for Vulture Motorsports. The car felt great, and the team gave us everything we needed to fight for this result."
Mixed Fortunes for the Field
While the podium finishers celebrated, other teams had a more difficult day. The #83 Off in the Esses Racing Ferrari finished fourth, bouncing back from heartbreak at VIR, where they lost the win in the final corners after a collision. This result marked their fourth top-five of the season, a testament to their consistency, though the win remained elusive.
The #16 Dangler Performance Mercedes AMG GT3 Evo, driven by Jim McGill, Paul Romaninsky, and Theo Taylor, came in fifth. Taylor, known for his clean driving style, continues to lead the 2024 Clean Driver Award standings, a reflection of his disciplined approach.
The biggest disappointment came for the #34 Mayer Simspeed Performance Mercedes, piloted by Aaron Beaver and Tamer Elbaga. After starting from second place, their race spiraled out of control, ending in an 11th-place finish and a disqualification for exceeding the incident limit. Real Pixel Motorsport faced similar struggles, also being disqualified for the same reason.
No. 93 Ferrari clinches Endurance Cup
With their victory in Miami, the #93 Digital Chicane Ferrari also clinched the 2024 VSCA Endurance Cup, moving to the top of the standings with 49 points. The team overtook the #5 Screeching Moose Motorsports Mercedes AMG GT3 Evo which departed the series after VIR. The champion's sister car #80 Digital Chicane Ferrari, despite finishing ninth in Miami, held onto third place in the Endurance Cup standings, 18 points behind their teammates.
With a minimum of six Endurance Cup points up for grabs in the season finale next month, the #93 Ferrari's Endurance Cup points lead is insurmountable and means Digital Chicane earns its second championship of the season, after already clinching the Sprint Cup after VIR in August.
Koprowski: "Winning the Endurance Cup isn't necessarily about winning races, it's about being in the right place at the right time. Time and time again we have shown [in the #93] that we can not only cross the finish line first, but we can also lead a large portion of these races."
"I have to say that the team of endurance drivers has far exceeded my expectations to win the Endurance Cup with one round to go."
Season Finale, Petit Le Mans up next
The ten-month long 2024 SportsCar Championship season will come to its conclusion with Petit Le Mans. The tenth and final championship round will take place at Michelin Raceway at Road Atlanta on October 19, 2024 and will be broadcast live on GreenFlag TV.
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