Mirko Bortolotti, Philipp Eng On Top in IMSA iRacing Pro Invitational Series Action at Laguna Seca

Mirko Bortolotti dominated the LMP2 class by leading 42 of 48 laps, and Philipp Eng went back-to-back in GTE action, as the IMSA iRacing Pro Invitational Series presented by SimCraft held its second of three rounds in 2021 at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca on Thursday night. With more than two dozen drivers on hand from the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge, and more, the series’ visit to the beloved California road course produced plenty of exciting moments, just like its real-world counterpart.

Bortolotti’s hard-fought victory in the Dallara P217 came despite immense pressure from polesitter Daniel Morad, who had to settle for second place overall for the second time in as many events. Morad nonetheless managed to lead six laps and kept the margin of victory down to just 2.448 seconds. The duo had a further 22-second advantage on James French, the final podium finisher, while fourth place finisher James Vance was the only other LMP2 driver on the lead lap.

Eng, meanwhile, led yet another BMW-dominated GTE performance, as the M8 once again secured four of the top five spots in the class. This time, it was the Ferrari of Rodrigo Pflucker that broke up the BMW domination, slotting in third behind Eng and BMW Team RLL teammate Connor De Phillippi.

Full results from the IMSA iRacing Pro Invitational Series presented by SimCraft race at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca were as follows:

Fin.

St.

No.

Team

Car

Class

Laps

Interval

Led

Best

12888Mirko BortolottiDallara P217LMP248421:13.620
2170Daniel MoradDallara P217LMP248-2.44861:13.655
3338James C FrenchDallara P217LMP248-24.87401:13.607
4483James VanceDallara P217LMP248-1:01.08701:14.045
5640James PesekDallara P217LMP247-1 L01:14.442
679Michael JohnsonDallara P217LMP247-1 L01:14.636
750Nicholas BoulleDallara P217LMP247-1 L01:14.835
81089Philipp EngBMW M8 GTEGTE45-3 L01:19.307
91425Connor De PhillippiBMW M8 GTEGTE45-3 L01:19.376
10947Rodrigo PfluckerFerrari 488 GTEGTE45-3 L01:19.302
111286Agustin CanapinoBMW M8 GTEGTE45-3 L01:19.538
121168Julian SanteroBMW M8 GTEGTE45-3 L01:19.546
131324John M EdwardsBMW M8 GTEGTE45-3 L01:19.606
141553Riley DickinsonPorsche 911 RSRGTE45-3 L01:19.642
15852Matthew McmurryDallara P217LMP245-3 L01:15.992
161839Tyler McQuarrieBMW M8 GTEGTE44-4 L01:20.254
171719Gregory LiefoogheBMW M8 GTEGTE44-4 L01:20.143
18168Augusto FarfusBMW M8 GTEGTE44-4 L01:19.852
192016Marc A MillerBMW M8 GTEGTE44-4 L01:20.522
201977Parker KligermanBMW M8 GTEGTE44-4 L01:20.381
212291Dylan MurryPorsche 911 RSRGTE43-5 L01:20.733
222399Trevor AndruskoBMW M8 GTEGTE43-5 L01:21.381
23253Randy SellariFerrari 488 GTEGTE41-7 L01:23.298
242144Spencer PumpellyBMW M8 GTEGTE40-8 L01:21.367
252414Mikel MillerFerrari 488 GTEGTE5-43 L01:22.965

 

The final round of the three-race IMSA iRacing Pro Invitational Series presented by SimCraft will be held at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta on Thursday, May 6 at 6:30PM ET, and will once again stream on iRacing social media channels. For more information on iRacing and for special offers, visit www.iracing.com.

Images via VCO