The Heart of Racing's all-female lineup of Hannah Grisham and Hannah Greenemeier achieved their first Silver class podium in Pirelli GT4 America at Road America, marking their best results of the season. Demi Chalkias rebounded with a top-five class finish in race two, and Alexandra Hainer faced setbacks including a race-ending crash.
The Heart of Racing all female line up of Hannah Grisham and Hannah Greenemeier collected their first podium in the Silver category of Pirelli GT4 America, after a brilliant weekend at Road America that saw the two drivers claiming their best overall finishes of the season - as well as their first overall top-10s this year.
Also competing in the Silver class, Demi Chalkias (JMF Motorsports) returned to the top five, bounding back from an unlucky first race that saw the #34 Mercedes AMG GT4 retiring after contact, with a superb run in race 2, where the Canadian driver moved up the field to finish in the top ten overall and fourth in class.
On the other hand, there was no luck for Alexandra Hainer, who was forced to sit out both qualifyings for an issue and, after a top-10 in ProAm on Saturday, she was crashed out of race 2 to no fault of her own.
Hannah Grisham and Hannah Greenemeier therefore returned to the podium after the second round of the season at Sebring, where they were third among the AM class entries. With a victory at the season opener and two more class podiums, the Heart of Racing duo underwent re-categorisation and were moved to the ProAm class at COTA. They were subsequently further moved to the Silver category and, at Road America, they showed their best performance to date.
The weekend started with challenging weather conditions, as Friday’s practice session was washed out, making it difficult for all teams to find the right setup. Grisham and Greenemeier ended practice 15th overall.
Returning to the track was also Demi Chalkias, who shares the #34 Mercedes with Jake Cowden. Chalkias had a very strong start of the season in the Silver class, finishing four times in the overall top ten and with a top three conquered by her teammate at VIRginia International Raceway when she was unfortunately deemed unfit to race after a salmonella poisoning. Aiming to build on the team's strong result, the Canadian driver and her teammate were again close to the top-ten in practice.
Having made the transition from the Toyota GR Cup North America to GT4 America just one weekend ago, Alexandra Hainer (Precision Racing LA Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO) aimed to continue the learning process and, together with teammate Ryan Eversley, they were P17 in practice.
Qualifying took place finally under dry conditions, with Demi Chalkias and Hannah Grisham taking on driving duties in Q1. Hainer was supposed to drive the #07 Toyota but was forced to sit out both sessions due to ongoing issues. Grisham and Chalkias both delivered solid performances: Grisham secured P5 overall and P3 in Silver - in a remarkable effort for the Shift Up Now athlete - while Chalkias ended up P8 overall and fifth in class.
In Q2, Jake Cowden took the wheel of the #34 Mercedes, while Hannah Greenemeier stepped in the #26 Aston Martin. Cowden quickly broke into the top ten, while Greenemeier improved her times throughout the session, finishing P18 overall and sixth in Silver.
The first race of the weekend at Road America kicked off with Hannah Grisham starting from P5 overall and third in the Silver class. Demi Chalkias, in the #34 JMF Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT4, lined up in P8 overall and sixth in the Silver category, while Alexandra Hainer, having missed both qualifying sessions, was forced to start from the back of the grid in the #07 Precision Racing LA Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO.
As the green flag waved, the race began with a chaotic opening lap. Tyler Gonzalez made an audacious move around the outside of turn 1 to take the lead from pole-sitter John Capestro-Dubets. However, further back in the pack, a multi-car collision took out several competitors and triggered an early safety car period. Fortunately for Hainer, she managed to navigate through the debris unscathed.
When the race resumed after a lengthy cleanup, Grisham found herself in a tight battle for position: she had dropped one spot overall but maintained a strong pace in fifth place within her class. As the field bunched up for the restart, Grisham was immediately in the thick of the action, battling with the Random Vandals Racing BMW of Kevin Boehm and the sister car of Roman De Angelis. Despite her efforts, overtaking proved challenging, and Grisham had to settle into her rhythm while trying to keep the pressure on those ahead.
Behind her, Demi Chalkias was also having a fierce battle: after making contact with the #23 Nissan driven by Johan Schwartz, Chalkias suffered damage that compromised her race. Despite an effort to continue, the damage ultimately forced her to pit, where the team decided to retire the car.
As the race progressed, the pit window opened with 33 minutes remaining. The Heart of Racing opted to keep Grisham out longer on track, allowing her to push and close the gap to the leaders. She moved into second place overall when the majority of the field pitted, with only her teammate Roman De Angelis ahead.
Grisham made her way into the pits on lap 11 to hand over to Hannah Greenemeier.
Greenemeier rejoined the race in P7 overall, holding fifth in the Silver class. With fresh tyres and a clear track ahead, she immediately tried to close the gap to the cars in front. Despite the fierce competition from the faster Pro-Am entries behind her, Greenemeier held her ground, showing impressive defensive skills.
In the final stages, Greenemeier was locked in a battle with the #23 Nissan of Schwartz, who she had overtaken her earlier. Schwartz found a way past by going off the track, leading to a stewards' decision to restore positions, allowing Greenemeier to reclaim fifth in class.
After a hard-fought race, Grisham and Greenemeier crossed the finish line in P8 overall and P5 in the Silver category, securing their first top-ten finish overall this year and setting the tone for an even stronger performance in race two.
Hainer and Eversley had a positive first race, recovering several positions after the difficult start. The GT4 rookie overtook AM entry Sharinn for overall position, then kept a steady pace until the pit stop, when her teammate took over and continued to climb the order in the #07 Toyota - eventually bringing it home in P17 overall and tenth in Pro-Am.
The second race of the weekend took place on Sunday morning, with slightly cooler temperatures but clear skies. The Heart of Racing duo was keen to build on their momentum from race 1, while Demi Chalkias and her teammate Jake Cowden aimed to recover from their disappointing result.
Cowden lined up fifth in class and ninth overall in the #34 Mercedes-AMG GT4, while Greenemeier started P17 overall and sixth in Silver for the #26 Aston Martin. Alexandra Hainer and Ryan Eversley, meanwhile, had a long road ahead from P25 overall and 12th in Pro-Am.
As the race got underway, the leaders charged into turn 1 with Zach Anderson, Kenton Koch, and Eric Filgueiras setting the pace at the front. Cowden, who had a strong start to the race, found himself boxed in on the run to turn 5, dropping to tenth overall but maintaining fifth in class. Greenemeier, determined to improve on her starting position, was caught in the early jostling for positions and lost a couple of places on the opening lap, slipping to 20th overall but still holding sixth in Silver.
However, Greenemeier soon began to regain ground, setting competitive lap times that allowed her to close in on the mid-pack. Meanwhile, Cowden was in the thick of the midfield battles, but he was tagged into a spin at Canada Corner by Tom Dyer’s Porsche. The contact sent Cowden to the back of the field, and Dyer was handed a drive-through penalty for the incident.
Greenemeier, showing determination, continued to push forward. By the time the pit window opened, she was running in P20 overall, fifth in class. As the race neared its halfway mark, the teams prepared for their pit stops, with both Greenemeier and Cowden making their stops: Hannah Grisham took over the #26 Aston Martin from Greenemeier, while Chalkias jumped into the #34 Mercedes. The timing of the stops proved crucial, as shortly afterward, a full-course caution was triggered by debris on track.
Following the caution, the order was reshuffled, and with just 17 minutes remaining, the race was set for a dramatic conclusion. Grisham found herself in P14 overall and P5 in class, with Chalkias just behind in P15. Up ahead, Hainer had taken over from Eversley and had managed to recover up to P9 overall, but her race would end prematurely when she was tagged and sent into the barriers by James Clay’s BMW. The incident brought out another safety car, but fortunately, Hainer was able to walk away from the crash unscathed.
With just four minutes to go, the race resumed for a final sprint to the finish. Grisham made a lightning restart, jumping up to ninth overall and solidifying her position in the top five of the Silver class. Chalkias also made a brilliant restart, gaining several positions to move into P11 overall.
As the leaders battled up front, Grisham’s consistent pace saw her close in on the Pro-Am entries ahead, while Chalkias was engaged in her own battle for a top-ten finish.
Kevin Boehm, who had been leading on track after the pit stops, was handed a drive-through penalty for speeding in the pitlane, thus promoting Grisham and Greenemeier to sixth overall and third in the Silver class.
The duo celebrated their first podium finish in the Silver category, a significant achievement for the Heart Of Racing, who also enjoyed success in the ProAm class with the sister car.
“Great weekend overall, today (Sunday) we were able to get our first podium in the Silver class,” said Greenemeier after the achievement. “I made a couple of mistakes in the race, but (Hannah) Grisham made up for them. The team did a great job with the strategy call this weekend, switching our driver lineups, it really paid off. I’m super grateful for the opportunity."
"I know Grisham and I are hoping to keep this forward momentum at Barber in a few weeks. Congratulations to Roman and Gray on their win in PRO-AM. Yeah, just a great weekend for the team!”
“I think we just played a smart race, we kept the car clean and optimized on running a little bit of a different strategy", Grisham added. "At the end of today’s (Sunday’s) race, we were able to capitalize on other people’s mistakes. It’s just a really exciting weekend for the team."
"It is our first podium in Silver, and I think it's just beginning. I'm ready for the future and what Hannah (Greenemeier) and I can do together. Next is getting that win in Silver. Thank you to the whole team, for all their work and for this opportunity.”
Demi Chalkias also ended the race on a high note, finishing eighth overall and fourth in Silver, in her best race of the season to date as well as a second top five.
"Leaving this weekend knowing there was more for us but also proud of the comeback our team made", she commented. "In race 1 we were unfortunately taken out of contention after running solid pace with the lead group in the top 10. In race 2 we were spun (coincidentally in Canada corner) and dropped from top 10 to last but with a great strategy call from the team and a hard drive at the end, I was able to pass the finish line in P8 and P4 in class. We were proud of this comeback."
"I feel gutted that we couldn’t bring home more success from this weekend as it was a track we felt really strong at and had high hopes that we’d be in podium contention. Hunting for podiums is starting to feel more achievable every race weekend and I know luck will swing our way soon enough."
The weekend at Road America marked a significant milestone for The Heart of Racing’s all-female lineup, as they not only secured their best results of the season but also proved their competitiveness in the Silver class. With the next round at Barber Motorsports Park just around the corner, the duo will be looking to carry this momentum forward and continue their push for victories as the Pirelli GT4 America season enters its final two rounds.
Commentaires