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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. The Canada GT Challenge Cup made its second of three visits to Shannonville Motorsport Park on July 8 as part of the Motorsport Club of Ottawa Canaska Cup weekend.
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Twenty-one Canada GT Challenge Cup competitors head into corner one at Shannonville Motorsport Park for round six. With the advantage is the pole-winning No. 32 Scadapack sponsored Chevrolet Corvette of James Holtom. Next to Holtom is the points leader and second fastest qualifier, Klaus Bytzek, in the No. 00 BMS Race Team Porsche 911 GT1 EVO. They are followed by Charlie Webster and John Brenner. |
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James Holtom and the Georgian Bay Motorsports team used the Friday test session to make a number of the changes to the No. 32 Chevrolet Corvette and it paid off. Holtom dominated the qualifying session and captured the pole. In the race, he was chased by the Stealth B6 of Brent Gates. When Gates encountered problems, Holtom cruised to the victory and won by a margin of 14.916-seconds. |
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The Canada GT Challenge Cup championship points leader, Klaus Bytzek, started on the outside of the front row – over two seconds slower than the pole-sitter James Holtom. Bytzek lost second place to Brent Gates during the race. Electrical issues with the Stealth B6 and the heat forced Gates to slow down. Bytzek would cross the finish line in the runner-up spot and be the only other driver on the lead lap. |
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After a series of disappointments, John Brenner captured his first podium of the year. Before the MCO Canaska Cup event, Brenner was unable to start two races, failed to finish one but earned a fifth-place result in round four. The new Noble Ultima Spyder performed well at Shannonville and he benefited from problems encountered by Charlie Webster and Brent Gates to capture the final position of the rostrum. |
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Trans Am driver, Charles Webster, was the four fastest in the qualifying session at Shannonville Motorsport Park. Webster and No. 95 CJ Webster Chevrolet Camaro was no match for James Holtom, Klaus Bytzek and Brent Gates. But when Gates Stealth B6 encountered issues, he moved into podium territory. Unfortunately, Webster suffered a flat tire and surrendered third-place to John Brenner. |
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Problems for the TMI Racing team led to the withdrawal of the No. 05 Noble Ultima GTR and a trip back to their shop to resolve an issue with the No. 06 Stealth B6. Brent Gates was unable to participate in qualifying. He started the one-hour contest at the rear of the field – his third time this season. However, he wasted no time moving into the runner-up position, but an electrical problem resulted in a fifth-place finish. |
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| FINISH | START | DRIVER | CAR / ENTRANT | LAPS | RETIREMENTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | James Holtom | Chevrolet Corvette / Georgian Bay Motorsports | 52 | - |
| 2 | 2 | Klaus Bytzek | Porsche 911 GT1 Evo / BMS Race Team | 52 | - |
| 3 | 5 | John Brenner | Noble Ultima Spyder / Hoosier Tire | 51 | - |
| 4 | 3 | Charlie Webster | Chevrolet Camaro/C.J. Webster | 51 | - |
| 5 | 21 | Brent Gates | Stealth B6 / TMI Racing | 49 | - |
| 6 | 10 | Jay Fieger | Chevrolet Monte Carlo / Marathon Graphics Supply | 49 | - |
| 7 | 7 | Fernand Leblanc | Porsche 911 Turbo / MCL | 49 | - |
| 8 | 14 | Vito Scavone | Porsche 968 RS | 49 | - |
| 9 | 9 | Jim Harrison | Porsche 911 Turbo / Longhill Energy | 49 | - |
| 10 | 15 | Dave Diedrick | Toyota Corolla | 48 | - |
| 11 | 16 | Jeff Pacey | Mazda RX-7 / Kitchenimics | 48 | - |
| 12 | 12 | Ken McRae | Renault Laguna / Polywheels Manufacturing | 47 | - |
| 13 | 18 | Allan DeWolfe | BMW 325i / Eurotec | 47 | - |
| 14 | 8 | Gord Vipond | Chevrolet Camaro | 47 | - |
| 15 | 17 | Gunter Schmidt | Volkswagen Beetle/Greenbelt Motors Volkswagen | 47 | - |
| 16 | 19 | Mike Palladino | Chevrolet Corvette / Four Way Auto Collision | 46 | - |
| 17 | 20 | Steve Hummel | Chevrolet Corvette / Tomsoft Racing Compounds | 45 | - |
| 18 | 22 | Trevor Goddard | Ford Mustang | 44 | - |
| 19 | 13 | Matt Coveart / Martin Gray | Mazda RX-7 | 43 | - |
| 20 | 11 | Paulo Pires | Chevrolet Corvette / C.P. Auto Collision | 22 | Did Not Finish |
| 21 | 6 | Bentley Hammer | Chevrolet Camaro / Strudwick Motorsports | 1 | Did Not Finish |
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