In a race filled with attrition, strategy, and standout stints, the #158 iRacing Today Motorsports Dallara P217 secured a commanding victory at the 2025 Six Hours of the Glen, Round 8 of the VSCA SportsCar Championship and Round 3 of the Endurance Cup. Drivers Timothy Johnston and Chad Dalton executed a near-flawless race, navigating 11 tricky corners over the 3.40-mile Watkins Glen International circuit and leading 140 laps en route to a 61.543-second win margin.
Johnston and Dalton showed poise through traffic and delivered consistent pace throughout the race, with the pivotal moment coming just after Johnston’s second stint. A perfectly timed full-course yellow allowed the team to retain the lead and stay ahead in strategy cycles. Dalton took over in the latter stages and maintained a relentless rhythm to bring home the team’s second consecutive win. With this result, iRacing Today Motorsports climbs to third in the championship standings, while also moving into third place in the Endurance Cup.
Strategy, Penalties, and the Fight Behind the Winner
While the #158 machine was untouchable out front, the fight for the podium positions saw its fair share of drama. The #3 Tri-State Racing Dallara, piloted by Chris Cadiz, Garret Spenst, and Sam Vaughan, briefly looked like a contender for the win. Tire management and clean execution kept them in the hunt throughout the afternoon, but ultimately they settled for a strong second-place finish.
Completing the podium was the #11 Vision 1 Motorsports Dallara, which gained five positions from its starting spot. Despite a drive-through penalty under full-course yellow and a 30-second post-race penalty for early-race contact with a GT car, the trio of Damien Behnke, Rico Kollmeier, and Jeremy Carter held on for a valuable third-place result. The team remains firmly in the championship fight, now just 38 points behind the series-leading #23 car.
Hard Fought Battles Through the Midfield
The #96 Albrecht Motorsports entry, driven by Marc Scherschel and Phillip Blauth, claimed a solid fourth-place finish despite late-race contact that saw the #3 Tri-State car penalized post-race. Fifth went to the #14 Grow Racing Team, though it came with controversy. Daniel Ferreira and the Grow crew received a 30-second penalty for a misjudged overtaking attempt on the #89 car that ended with both spinning off track.
Further down the order, #23 Twin Turn Simracing, the championship leaders, came home sixth with Scarlett Di Marco and Lucas Moncla behind the wheel. Their result, while off the podium, was enough to maintain their lead in the standings, but their cushion is now shrinking.
The #677 Valkyrie Exype Dallara finished seventh despite receiving a penalty for an unsafe rejoin in the second half of the race. Rookie Esports, making their first appearance since 2023, looked promising early on with Nick Dawson-Lathan taking pole and reclaiming the lead on lap one after losing it at the start. However, several crashes by teammate Darian Vincent, including one into the pit wall, ended their chances. They eventually finished eighth.
Incidents and Officiating Shape the Race
Watkins Glen’s flowing layout and mixed-class traffic were a test for all teams, and Race Control was kept busy throughout the event. In total, eight post-race penalties were issued in the LMP2 field alone, affecting several top contenders.
The only full-course yellow of the race came just before the halfway point and lasted 27 minutes, bunching up the field and reshuffling pit strategies. The restart lap saw the GTP class #46 Rising Panda Racing car penalized for an overly aggressive move in the bus stop chicane, which caused contact with the #11 Vision 1 Motorsports Dallara LMP2. Other incidents involving the #677 Valkyrie Exype and #3 Tri-State Racing cars further complicated the race order as the hours wore on.
Post-Race Reactions
Chad Dalton, #158 iRacing Today Motorsports Dallara: "To be honest, this feels better than Detroit because we had such an amazing day today. Sometimes you’re just in a rhythm out there and you can really appreciate days like this because they don’t come around that often. I’ll certainly cherish this win. I also can’t thank Tim enough for going to battle with me these last couple races. He’s always fast and consistent and a great teammate to have."
"It was just awesome to lead a lot of laps. I personally hadn’t led laps in a few months. Even though we won Detroit, Tim did all the leading in that race. It felt really good to have that feeling of being the leader again. But honestly it was the same mindset as Detroit. Get a top five today and continue to build some momentum for the team. Our car was so good in race trim though. It makes my job as a driver easier when the car is that good and has that speed in it. It’s a lot of fun to drive!"
"That very first pit stop was big. We came in a few seconds behind the lead in fourth and came out leading by a few seconds. We missed a few moments some GT cars had. Spins that happened right in front of us. Sometimes your vision is just locked in on those moments and you see them in time to make the right moves. The timing of that FCY couldn’t have been more perfect for us. That was the big moment that helped shape our race into what it became."
"I also want to shout out our GT3 team who scored 3rd in GT Pro. Sam and Eric drove a great race and it was great to have both cars on the podium at the Glen!"
Timothy Johnston, #158 iRacing Today Motorsports Dallara: "I have to agree with Chad - this win at the Glen feels even more special to me than Belle Isle. To win one race in this league is a huge accomplishment, but to go back-to-back against the caliber of drivers that are here at VSCA is just an unreal feeling."
"We went into this race the same way we did at Belle Isle, which was wanting a top 5 finish. Through the official practice sessions, we knew that we had a car capable of accomplishing that so long as we kept our nose clean when navigating through the traffic that the Glen was going to produce on top of the hot track temps that we were going to face. Once the field spreads out here, the chances of being able to run a traffic-free lap are few and far between, so we made sure to focus on minimizing our risks even if it meant taking a slower lap time."
"The biggest key moment for our team came at the end of my second stint. About five seconds after I jumped out of the car, the caution flag flew. That enabled us to retain the lead with everyone pretty much back on the same pit strategy. From there, our goal was to make sure that we met the drive time requirements while also working with the fuel mileage numbers. Once Chad had finished his final stint, we knew that we were going to have to take a full load of fuel while others wouldn't, so the goal was to drive as hard as we could to make sure that we kept enough distance on the rest of the field for our extended final stop."
"I can't thank everyone at iRacing Today Motorsports enough for the opportunity to drive these rocket ships. Another week of outstanding driving by Chad and great strategy calls on the pit box. Another huge thank you to everyone at VSCA who works so hard to put all of this together for us. I hope that everyone has a great summer, and I will see you at Indy!"
Sam Vaughan, #3 Tri-State Racing Dallara: "I'm really proud of this one. We put in a lot of preparation into this, knowing tire wear would be huge in these conditions. Once we dialed in the setup after FP2, the car felt great over long runs, and we kept it clean all day. We thought we had the win for a moment, but P2 is still a big result for us."
"We’re definitely getting closer to where we want to be, even if the points don’t fully show it yet. The break gives us a clean reset to build on everything we’ve learned. We’ll be ready to take the fight forward at Indy and beyond."
Damien Behnke, #11 Vision 1 Motorsports Dallara: "These strong results are keeping us in the battle for the championship. So nothing but smiles for the team."
"To see that we have a chance is very motivating! We’re just going to keep doing what we are doing. That’s how we got here in the first place."
Rico Kollmeier, #11 Vision 1 Motorsports Dallara: "I feel for Kyle and the #33 Corvette team. That was my fault, and I wish I could have a redo of that moment."
Championship Picture and What Comes Next
With their victory, iRacing Today Motorsports is now just 104 points off the championship lead. Meanwhile, Twin Turn Simracing continues to lead the LMP2 standings, though their margin over Vision 1 Motorsports has narrowed.
In the Endurance Cup standings, Keystone Simsport retains the top spot despite finishing ninth on the day. Vision 1 and iRacing Today Motorsports are now deadlocked in a tight battle just behind them, promising a thrilling conclusion to the endurance mini-series.
The VSCA SportsCar Championship now heads into a summer break before resuming action at the iconic Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the Six Hours at the Brickyard on August 30. With only three rounds remaining, the fight for both titles is entering its most intense phase yet.
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