Camaro GT4.R Wins Championships

Blackdog Speed Shop Camaro claims driver, manufacturer titles in Pirelli World Challenge.

The Chevrolet Camaro GT4.R donned a feather-adorned cap at the Pirelli World Challenge, wrapping up championships for both its driver and the Bowtie brand.

With his victory in the final round, Blackdog Speed Shop driver Lawson Aschenbach sewed the final threads in another World Challenge GTS class driver’s title PWC. His string of successes also added up to a Manufacturer’s Title for Chevy in the GTS category.

Aschenbach put an exclamation mark on his season with the win at Sonoma Raceway. That was the season’s 18th round of the year, during which Aschenbach finished every single race. He also finished outside the Top 5 only three times, all in the season’s second half.

That consistency from the Camaro — based on the ZL1 1LE — pushed Aschenbach to the title almost without overall wins. The Blackdog driver scored nine podiums in the opening 10 rounds but only picked up the Camaro GT4.R’s first overall win in Round 11 at Mid-Ohio. His win at Sonoma made only two victories.

However, consistency wins championships. Aschenbach is no stranger to that concept; this marks three titles for the American driver with Blackdog Camaros. He won the GTS class in 2013 and 2014 with a Camaro Z28.

Aschenbach and Blackdog owner Tony Gaples combined to outscore Porsche by a wide margin in the Manufacturer’s Championship. With the unexpected folding of Stevenson Motorsports in IMSA competition, it also makes Blackdog the only active Camaro GT4.R team. And they had a whale of a season.

Unfortunately, Gaples didn’t get to finish the season under power. His Camaro GT4.R clouted a concrete barrier in the high-speed esses after contact with Derek Deboer’s Aston Martin. It tore up the car badly, but Gaples escaped without injury.

Pirelli World Challenge hosts one final non-championship round at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca on October 13 to 15. That eight-hour race runs as part of the Intercontinental GT Challenge.

[Photo: Pirelli World Challenge]