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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. After a stop at Shannonville Motorsport Park, the series returned to Mosport International Raceway for round five of the 2001 Canada GT Challenge Cup. Drivers would compete in a one-hour contest around the ten-turn 2.459-mile road course.
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Leading the field into Mosport International Raceway’s corner one for the start of round five for the Canada GT Challenge Cup is the pole-winning TMI Racing Stealth B6 of Brent Gates. Behind Gates is the second fast qualifier, James Holtom, driving the No. 32 Georgian Bay Motorsports prepared Chevrolet Corvette. Chasing Holtom is the second-row starters, Klaus Bytzek in the Porsche and the Camaro of Charles Webster. |
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Since the beginning of the season, TMI Racing has been forced to make changes to their new Stealth B6 to comply with Canada GT Challenge Cup regulations. The driver, Brent Gates and the team are now eligible to score championship points. He was the class of the field in qualifying but was challenged by the Scadapack Corvette of James Holtom during the race. A pass late in the contest gave Gates his first victory of the year. |
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James Holtom won the first two rounds of the 2001 Canada GT Challenge Cup, but he was having problems finishing events since then. Holtom was back on form in race five at Mosport International Raceway. He started on the outside of the front row and chased the pole-sitter, Brent Gates, for much of the contest. He was leading late in the event, but a pass by Gates and a full-course yellow resulted in a runner-up result. |
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Trans Am veteran, Charlie Webster, qualified fourth fastest in the No. 95 CJ Webster Chevrolet Corvette. Despite a power steering leak during the race, Webster moved past the Porsche of the reigning series champion, Klaus Bytzek, for third place. He was no match for the leaders but a late-race caution period bunched the field. On the restart, there was contact which included Webster; even with damage, he finished third. |
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Four-time Canada GT Cup Challenge champion, Klaus Bytzek, led the standings as the result of one victory and consistently finishing in the top-five. He was gridded in the third position for the start of round five at Mosport International Raceway. Bytzek and the No. 00 BMS Race Team prepared Porsche 911 GT1 EVO delivered another solid performance and crossed the finish line in the fourth position. |
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BMS Race Team entered a second Porsche 911 GT1 EVO in round five of the Canada GT Challenge Cup at Mosport International Raceway for Klaus Bytzek’s brother Harry. Harry competed in the No. 08 Porsche. He brought a wealth of experience, having driven in the Can-Am series, IMSA and SCCA World Challenge. Harry also competed in the first two seasons of the championship. In round five, he finished in sixth place. |
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| FINISH | START | DRIVER | CAR / ENTRANT | LAPS | RETIREMENTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Brent Gates | Stealth B6 / TMI Racing | 30 | - |
| 2 | 2 | James Holtom | Chevrolet Corvette / Georgian Bay Motorsports | 30 | - |
| 3 | 4 | Charlie Webster | Chevrolet Camaro / C.J. Webster | 30 | - |
| 4 | 3 | Klaus Bytzek | Porsche 911 GT1 Evo / BMS Race Team | 30 | - |
| 5 | 5 | Mark Swain | Noble Ultima GTR / TMI Racing | 30 | - |
| 6 | 9 | Harry Bytzek | Porsche 911 GT1 Evo / BMS Race Team | 29 | - |
| 7 | 15 | Steve Hummel | Chevrolet Corvette / Tomsoft Racing | 29 | - |
| 8 | 10 | Larry Barcza | Chevrolet Camaro | 29 | - |
| 9 | 13 | Ahmad Kodkar | Datsun 240Z / Quest-Tech | 29 | - |
| 10 | 23 | Gunter Schmidt | Volkswagen Beetle/Greenbelt Motors | 27 | - |
| 11 | 20 | Mike Palladino | Chevrolet Corvette / Four Way Auto | 27 | - |
| 12 | 21 | Jeff Pacey | Mazda RX-7 / Kitchenimics | 27 | - |
| 13 | 22 | Jacques Villeneuve | Porsche 911 Turbo/APF Villeneuve.com | 27 | - |
| 14 | 24 | Vito Scavone | Porsche 968 RS | 27 | - |
| 15 | 26 | Markus Glarner | BMW 2002 CSL | 27 | - |
| 16 | 17 | Peter Botsinis | BMW M3 / PJC Autoworks Ltd | 24 | Did Not Finish |
| 17 | 14 | Jim Harrison | Porsche 911 Turbo / Longhill Energy | 23 | Did Not Finish |
| 18 | 16 | Brad Flowers | Porsche 911 Super Cup / Info Vision | 22 | Did Not Finish |
| 19 | 32 | Bentley Hammer | Chevrolet Camaro / Strudwick Motorsports | 22 | Did Not Finish |
| 20 | 25 | Gord Vipond | Chevrolet Camaro | 21 | Did Not Finish |
| 21 | 2 | B. Coons / J. Beaton | Chevrolet Corvette / Century Mechanical | 19 | Did Not Finish |
| 22 | 21 | Jay Fieger | Chevrolet Monte Carlo / Marathon Graphics | 11 | Did Not Finish |
| 23 | 19 | Fernand Leblanc | Porsche 911 Turbo / MCL | 8 | Did Not Finish |
| 24 | 26 | Matt Coveart / Martin Gray | Mazda RX-7 | 6 | Did Not Finish |
| 25 | 4 | Mackenzie / Von Engelbrechten | Noble Ultima Mk3 / Roger@Home | 4 | Did Not Finish |
| 26 | 11 | Allan DeWolfe | BMW 325i / Eurotec | 3 | Did Not Finish |
| 27 | 11 | John Brenner | Noble Ultima Spyder / Hoosier Tire | 1 | Did Not Finish |
| - | 7 | Keith Carter | Chevrolet Camaro / Strudwick Motorsports | - | Did Not Start |
| - | 29 | Reiner Griese | Chevrolet Corvette / Peek A Boo | - | Did Not Start |
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