Sunday Morning, rain was falling at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park for the title decider of
~ by Daniel Demaras
Sunday Morning, rain was falling at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park for the title decider of the 2026 Enduro Elite championship.
The #822 Driveteq BMW needed a top 2 finish to take the championship, and would have to brave rough conditions to do so.
I got to start the race, 4th on track behind the leading Toyota, followed by the #821 Driveteq BMW and championship leading #78 Porsche.
The first lap was careful, feeling out the slippery circuit, but on lap 2, I made my way into second through the sweeping turns 2 and 3, and outdragged the Toyota to take the lead.
With clean air and no spray, I put on a pace to build a gap. 5 laps in, our rival Porsche got stuck in the gravel at turn 5, which put them multiple laps down, but not out of contention.
By the midpoint, only the two Driveteq cars were on the lead lap, but as I made inroads to put my teammate down a lap, I found the limit.
Coming through turn 2, I had a snap of the rear end mid-corner, which I tried to catch but could not, sending me spinning into the paved runoff, coming to a halt. I started the stalled car back up and carried on with a new trepidation.
The rest of the stint went by without drama, through fluctuating weather. The track gradually dried, before a new burst of rain arrived, providing a challenge in the stint’s closing laps. I handed off the car with a substantial lead, in position for the Enduro Elite Championship.
Over the following hours, we maintained a lead, but the Porsche began making up ground. The #821 BMW holding strong in 2nd was important, as it provided a buffer.
But at the beginning of the final stint, mechanical issues took them out of the race, sending the Porsche to 2nd. That result would leave us tied for first in the championship, too close to call. On top of that, the wear and tear of the weekend began to set in on the #822, with noises coming from a wheel bearing causing concern.
In the closing minutes of the race, the Porsche came past the pit straight with an awful noise, and pulled over shortly after with mechanical issues. The #822 pushed through mechanical issues to cross the finish line first, and 2026 GT1 champions.
Over the course of an 8 hour endurance race, there are many things that can go wrong. Over an entire season of endurances races, consistency and reliability is absolutely paramount.
The #822 Driveteq BMW ran without error all season long, taking four GT1 victories. For myself, it was my 6th racing championship win, my second in car, and my first in closed wheel racing. After a season of long, tough races and thrilling battles, the end result could not have been better.
Congrats on the Championship!
Hope the wheel bearing wasn’t a Timken Bearing. I worked their for 38.5 years, all but 3 of those in the shop. We made bearings from 3/4″ diameter to 84″.