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2001 was the fifth season for the highly successful Canada GT Challenge Cup series.
Sanctioned by ASN Canada, the championship draws a wide array of high powered Grand Touring cars and the attention of fans.
Helping the series attract competitors is a healthy prize fund. The winner of each contest receives a cheque for $6,000, the runner-up earns $5,000 and third-place collects $4,000. The remainder of the payout is on a sliding scale, with the last-place finisher receiving $1,000. There is also an end of season championship fund. The driver collecting the most points is paid $30,000. Second place in the title chase earns $20,000 and third-place in the final standings is worth $10,000. Vehicles eligible to compete in the series included FIA GT, Professional Sportscar GTS & GT, Sports Car Club of America Improved Touring, GT1, GT2 & Trans Am, plus ASA Stock Cars. Sports Racers, ground effect cars and Showroom Stock vehicles are not permitted to compete in the Canada GT Challenge Cup series. The most significant change for the 2001 season was the elimination of the GT2 category. Any debate about fast cars ‘sand-bagging’ so that they could collect GT2 points and win the class title ended. All races are one-hour in length and require a mandatory one-minute pit-stop. For teams that use two drivers, one-minute is sufficient time to make the change. Competitors driving solo can remain in the car during the stop. Re-fueling is not allowed. The events are contested during CASC Ontario Region weeks or in conjunction with major events at Mosport International Raceway. The Canada GT Challenge Cup season kicks off on April 26 at Mosport International Raceway during the BARC Grand Prix of Ontario. This is followed by two more events at Mosport – the BEMC Spring Trophy Races and the Victoria Day Trans-Am Weekend. Round four is the series’ first of three visits to Shannonville Motorsport Park. On June 24, the championship returns to Mosport for the CASCAR 250 Weekend. The next two events are held at Shannonville. The BARC Canadian Touring Trophy at Mosport event hosts round eight for the series. On August 18th, the championship competes at Mosport as a support series for the American Le Mans Series. The final three rounds will be conducted at Mosport, with the finale taking place on October 2. Round nine of the 2001 Canada GT Challenge Cup was conducted at Mosport International Raceway as part of the American Le Mans Series weekend. The prestigious event attracted a large number of entries for the one-hour contest around the ten-turn 2.459-mile road course.
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Round nine was an opportunity for James Holtom to redeem himself. The driver of the No. 32 Scadapack Chevrolet Corvette had a miserable outing in race eight of the series when mechanical issues resulted in a fourteenth place finish. This weekend he qualified third but started second after Klaus Bytzek was stuck in the pit-lane. Despite receiving two penalties, Holtom moved into the lead on lap-19 and won the race. |
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Brent Gates was ‘on a roll’ with the No. 06 TMI Racing prepared Stealth B6. He was victorious in round seven at Shannonville Motorsport Park and won the previous weekend during the BARC Canadian Touring Trophy event. In race nine, Gates qualified on the pole – this was the fifth time this season. Early in the contest, he fought with James Holtom but was no match for the Corvette and finished in the runner-up spot. |
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To date, Keith Carter had entered four of the 2001 Canada GT Challenge Cup events but had not finished any. Carter was the twelfth fastest during the qualifying session for round nine at Mosport International Raceway. The wet race proved to be a great equalizer for him as he moved to the front and joined the leaders. On the last lap, Carter was able to pass the Renault Laguna of Ken McRae for the final position of the podium. |
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Ken McRae acquired the former Jason Plato BTCC Renault Laguna. In the two rounds that McRae entered, the four-cylinder 2.0-liter engine in the Renault was no match for the larger displacement cars. In round nine at Mosport, McRae started thirty-first, but the wet conditions worked to his advantage and he was third-place on the final lap. Unfortunately, he was slowed by a lapped car and lost the position. |
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The points leader, Klaus Bytzek, was scheduled to start on the outside of the front row. Unfortunately, he did not make the starting grid. It began raining just before the race and the team was delayed changing from dry to wet tires. The No. 00 BMS Race Team Porsche 911 GT1 EVO started from the pit-line. Bytzek moved through the field quickly but spun the car and damaged the bodywork. He would finish thirteenth. |
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The second TMI Racing entry was the No. 05 Noble Ultima GTR driven by Mark Swain. The series rookie had already recorded a victory in round four at Shannonville Motorsport Park. The American Le Mans Series weekend would be one of his less memorable events of the season. Swain qualified fourth fastest and was running in third place when he crashed the car in turn six. After two laps, he retired from the event. |
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| FINISH | START | DRIVER | CAR / ENTRANT | LAPS | RETIREMENTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | James Holtom | Chevrolet Corvette / Georgian Bay Motorsports | 30 | - |
| 2 | 1 | Brent Gates | Stealth B6 / TMI Racing | 30 | - |
| 3 | 12 | Keith Carter | Chevrolet Camaro / Strudwick Motorsports | 29 | - |
| 4 | 31 | Ken McRae | Renault Laguna / Polywheels | 29 | - |
| 5 | 26 | Dave Diedrick | Toyota Corolla | 29 | - |
| 6 | 10 | Aaron Pettipas | Chevrolet Camaro / Dairy Queen | 29 | - |
| 7 | 28 | Tom Konvalina | Porsche 968 Turbo / TK Griffin | 29 | - |
| 8 | 18 | Brad Flowers | Porsche 911 Super Cup / Info Vision | 28 | - |
| 9 | 15 | Jay Fieger | Chevrolet Monte Carlo / Marathon Graphics | 28 | - |
| 10 | 19 | Allan DeWolfe | BMW 325i / Eurotec | 28 | - |
| 11 | 7 | John Brenner | Noble Ultima Spyder / Hoosier Tire | 28 | - |
| 12 | 32 | Gunter Schmidt | Volkswagen Beetle/Greenbelt Motors | 28 | - |
| 13 | 2 | Klaus Bytzek | Porsche 911 GT1 Evo / BMS Race Team | 28 | - |
| 14 | 13 | Steve Hummel | Chevrolet Corvette / Tomsoft Racing | 28 | - |
| 15 | 33 | Matt Coveart / Martin Gray | Mazda RX-7 | 27 | - |
| 16 | 34 | Marcus Glarner | BMW 3.0 CSL | 27 | - |
| 17 | 29 | Ulrich Furtmair | Porsche 911 Turbo | 27 | - |
| 18 | 11 | Bentley Hammer | Chevrolet Camaro / Strudwick Motorsports | 27 | - |
| 19 | 30 | Vito Scavone | Porsche 968 RS | 27 | - |
| 20 | 8 | Ahmad Kodkar | Datsun 240Z / Quest-Tech | 26 | - |
| 21 | 6 | Blaise Csida | Chevrolet Camaro / New York Fries | 25 | - |
| 22 | 5 | Charlie Webster | Chevrolet Camaro / C.J. Webster | 25 | - |
| 23 | 23 | Ian Hain | Chevrolet Corvette / Strudwick Motorsports | 24 | - |
| 24 | 24 | Jeff Pacey | Mazda RX-7 / Kitchenimics | 24 | - |
| 25 | 14 | Fernand Leblanc | Porsche 911 Turbo / MCL | 24 | - |
| 26 | 21 | Michael Boekdrukker | BMW M3 | 22 | Did Not Finish |
| 27 | 16 | Larry Barcza | Chevrolet Camaro | 16 | Did Not Finish |
| 28 | 27 | Mike Palladino | Chevrolet Corvette / Four Way Auto | 6 | Did Not Finish |
| 29 | 17 | Steve & Dino Colivaris | Chevrolet Corvette / Credit Direct | 5 | Did Not Finish |
| 30 | 4 | Mark Swain | Noble Ultima GTR / TMI Racing | 2 | Did Not Finish |
| 31 | 9 | Gord Vipond | Chevrolet Camaro | 2 | Did Not Finish |
| 32 | 25 | Jacques Villeneuve | Porsche 911 Turbo/APF Villeneuve.com | 1 | Did Not Finish |
| - | 22 | Peter Botsinis | BMW M3 / PJC Autoworks Ltd | - | Did Not Start |
| - | 37 | Jim Harrison | Porsche 911 Turbo / Longhill Energy | - | Did Not Start |
| - | 36 | Mackenzie / Von Engelbrechten | Noble Ultima Mk3 / Roger@Home | - | Did Not Start |
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