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2002 was the sixth season for the 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 prize fund that was reduced for 2002. Last season, the winner of each contest received a cheque for $6,000; this year, first place was awarded $3,000. The runner-up earns $2,000 and third-place collects $1,000. All other finishers receive $500. The end of season championship fund is $10,000 as opposed to $30,000 in 2001. Second place in the title chase earns $7,500 and third-place in the final standings is worth $5,000. Vehicles eligible to compete in the series include 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. 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 weekends or in conjunction with major events at Mosport International Raceway. The Canada GT Challenge Cup season kicks off on April 28 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 16, the championship returns to Mosport for the CASCAR Weekend. The next two events are held at Shannonville. On August 18th, the championship competes at Mosport as a support race for the American Le Mans Series. The final round will be conducted at Mosport during the CASC Celebration event at the end of September. ‘All good things must come to an end,’ and that was true for the Canada GT Challenge Cup series. The last event for the championship would be held at Mosport International Raceway in conjunction with the final CASC regional of the 2002 season.
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For the second event in a row, the reigning Canada GT Challenge Cup champion, Klaus Bytzek, started at the rear of the grid – in the twenty-second position. In the race, Bytzek was no time carving his way through the field and passed the race leader, Charlie Webster. Once out front, it was an easy win for the driver of the No. 00 Porsche 911 GT1 EVO and it seemed fitting that he should capture the final race. |
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Aaron Pettipas travelled from Nova Scotia to compete in is only Canada GT Challenge Cup event of the season. During the qualifying session, Pettipas recorded the third-fastest time in the No. 16 Pettipas Racing Team prepared Chevrolet Camaro. He was no match for the Porsche of Klaus Bytzek and surrendered a position. The retirements of Charlie Webster and Blaise Csida allowed Pettipas to finish second. |
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Greg Clifton campaigned the No. 96 Phil Strudwick Motorsport Chevrolet Camaro. In the previous round, the car failed to finish. The finale was an opportunity for the crew to redeem themselves. Clifton started tenth in the race and passed the eighth-fastest qualifier, Micheal Boekdrukker. Retirements during the contest allowed him to move into third place and capture the final spot on the podium. |
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The final event was needed to determine the 2002 Canada GT Challenge Cup champion. The title contenders were Jim Harrison and Malcolm Strachan. Strachan qualified sixth-fastest in the No. 22 Konica Canada Chevrolet Corvette. Unfortunately, his race only lasted two laps. Harrison, who started twentieth, driving the No. 49 Porsche 911 Turbo, finished in the twelfth position, which was enough to clinch the title. |
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Ontario regional racer Michael Boekdrukker made his Canada GT Challenge Cup debut in round nine last season, where he finished twenty-sixth. In 2002, the driver of the No. 67 Samsung Electronics sponsored BMW M3 was having a better season. Boekdrukker claimed a runner-up finish in race seven at Shannonville. In the finale, he started in the eighth position and was in fourth place at the checkered flag. |
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Trans Am driver Charlie Webster had three Canada GT Challenge Cup victories in his five-years of competing in the series – his most recent was in 2002. Webster and the No. 95 C.J. Webster Chevrolet Corvette started on the pole for the finale. In the race, he lost the top spot to the Porsche of Klaus Bytzek. On lap-13, Webster would head to the pits with a mechanical issue and retire in fifteenth place. |
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| FINISH | START | DRIVER | CAR / ENTRANT | LAPS | RETIREMENTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 22 | Klaus Bytzek | Porsche 911 GT1 Evo / BMS Race Team | 43 | - |
| 2 | 3 | Aaron Pettipas | Chevrolet Camaro / Dairy Queen | 42 | - |
| 3 | 10 | Greg Clifton | Chevrolet Camaro / Strudwick Motorsport | 41 | - |
| 4 | 8 | Michael Boekdrukker | BMW M3 / Samsung | 40 | - |
| 5 | 16 | Kirk Spencer | Porsche 993 / Zoom Motorsports | 40 | - |
| 6 | 13 | Bob Munro | BMW M3 GTR / Canaska | 40 | - |
| 7 | 12 | Vito Scavone | Porsche 968 | 40 | - |
| 8 | 14 | Allan DeWolfe | BMW 325i / Eurotec | 39 | - |
| 9 | 18 | Marcus Glarner | BMW CSL / Glarner Motors | 39 | - |
| 10 | 17 | Ken McRae | Renault Laguna / Polywheels | 38 | - |
| 11 | 19 | Blair Killoran | Porsche 911 | 37 | - |
| 12 | 20 | Jim Harrison | Chevrolet Corvette / C.J. Webster | 36 | - |
| 13 | 4 | Tor Krueger | Chevrolet Monte Carlo / Hoosier | 36 | - |
| 14 | 9 | Brian Lovell | Chevrolet Corvette / Strudwick Motorsports | 31 | - |
| 15 | 1 | Charlie Webster | Chevrolet Corvette / C.J. Webster | 31 | - |
| 16 | 11 | Joel Reiser | Porsche 911 RSR / Reiser-Callas | 30 | Did Not Finish |
| 17 | 15 | Peter Carpenko | VW Corrado / Cedarbrae VW | 20 | Did Not Finish |
| 18 | 5 | Ian Phillips | Mazda RX-7 | 12 | Did Not Finish |
| 19 | 7 | Ulrich Furtmair | Porsche 911 Turbo / Furtmair Auto | 9 | Did Not Finish |
| 20 | 2 | Blaise Csida | Chevrolet Camaro / New York Fries | 5 | Did Not Finish |
| 21 | 6 | Malcolm Strachan | Chevrolet Corvette / Konica Canada | 2 | Did Not Finish |
| - | 21 | Mike Palladino | Chevrolet Corvette / Four Way Auto | - | Did Not Start |
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