Jaxon Bell earned his first career Continental Tire Pole Award on Saturday when drivers were faced with mixed weather conditions throughout the qualifying session. As the rain continued to fall at the beginning of the race, Bell and Spike Kohlbecker led the 33-car field into Turn 1 as they fanned out three-and-four wide behind them. Kohlbecker took over the lead with 32 minutes remaining on the clock as 3.27-mile, 17-turn road course began to dry out throughout the race.
The leaders continued to race nose to tail, but a five-way battle for eighth ensued behind them with Tyler Wettengel, Christian Weir, Max Hewitt, Mia Lovell, and Jade Avedisian separated by just a second-and-a-half. The safety car was deployed for a full course yellow just seconds later as the No.14 of Alex Garcia came to a halt on the track with 11 minutes remaining.
The safety car brought the field back together until the five-and-a-half-minute mark when the green flag came back out for a dash to the finish. Wagner was able to get to the bumper of Kohlbecker during the remaining time but was unable to complete the pass as Kohlbecker drove to his first GR Cup Series win of the season at VIRginia International Raceway.
Podium
Kohlbecker tallied his third career win and 10th trip to the podium in the GR Cup Series. Wagner continues his strong run in 2024 and earned his seventh podium finish in seven races this season. Bell’s third place finish marks his fifth consecutive podium finish
Race Awards
Along with picking up the win, Kohlbecker clocked the fastest lap of the race in wet conditions on lap 17 with a time of 2:12.971. BSI Racing’s Steven Clemons earned the Hard Charger Award as he gained 14 positions to bring home a sixth-place finish.
What’s Next
The fourth weekend of the GR Cup Series season will wrap up on Sunday at VIR with a morning qualifying session to get the day started. The green flag will drop on Race 2 at 12:15 PM ET with live coverage on grcup.com and the GT World Challenge YouTube channel.
Fans will have the opportunity to meet all GR Cup drivers on Sunday during a 30-minute autograph session hosted in The Pavilion, located right outside of the GR Cup paddock. The autograph session will take place from 10:30 AM – 11 AM ET with event weekend posters available to sign.
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