The 2025 GLTC season championship is under, and we dominated the first event at CMP. Before we get into the details, let’s talk about the off-season upgrades that made the car an absolute monster!
Last year, the car was quick and extremely competitive, but the championship run fell apart due to numerous mechanical and electrical gremlins that plagued the second half of the season. To counter this, a significant amount of work was invested in reliability and quality improvements during the off-season. A full suite of critical sensors needed to be replaced and remotely mounted, wire harnesses reworked, and a Haltech 2x4 button pad was added for ECU function controls, such as pit speed limiter, pedal sensitivity, autoblip on/off, and, most importantly, clear/ignore ECU protection/faults. In terms of performance upgrades, one major item was installed in the car: the OEM ITR ABS. A 4-channel, stand-alone ABS system to improve stopping power and prevent lock-up, especially the inside rear tire, which FWD cars are notorious for lifting in the air and flat-spotting. This ABS system required the Tilton pedal box to be locked at a 50:50 split with equal masters (7/10ths in my case) since the ABS modulator is a cross-feed system (LF & RR share the same input) as well as the OEM ITR prop valve. We also adjusted the shock setup to use a softer spring, paired with a larger and softer foam bump stop, for a more progressive rate under compression. Adjusted our power and weight based on the ‘25 rule updates. And last but not least, the engine was also swapped to my spare engine to break it in and get some track miles. Nothing was wrong with the primary engine, just wanted to confirm both engines performed at 100%.
Now, back to CMP. I entered the event feeling very confident, as we had dominated the previous year with three wins and a third-place finish. Unfortunately, that went out the window immediately, as practice one was cut short due to an oil pressure issue with the newly swapped engine. Oil pressure started to drop to the low 30s throughout the lap, and I knew it wasn't the sensor since I just swapped it. It had to be the engine, so I made the quick decision to swap back to last year's engine. I got to work, and a few friends who were at CMP spectating jumped in to help. Brandon Smith, Brian Segrest, and I completed the swap in precisely 3 hours and got the car started 5 minutes before the start of Practice 2. An immense effort and huge achievement in such short time. However, we found the true issue with the low oil pressure. No, it wasn’t the engine, it was the engine harness connector and bad terminals…. All that work for nothing, but we still made it practice and placed P1 overall. It was good practice at the end of the day.
Qualifying came later in the day on Friday and it started to rain 15 minutes before. It was a tough call but with the sun poking through the clouds, I committed to dry tires. Most of qualifying was damp but the track was drying. About halfway through, I was on a flyer with rapid pace, enough to secure pole position. In the last corner, I went as deep as I possibly could, and what happened next was terrifying. My foot slipped off the brake pedal and I struggled to get back on the brake. Off the track, I went in excess of 90 mph heading straight for the wall. I threw the car sideways into the gravel trap and managed to slow it down just enough to lightly tap the tire bundle. A big ole dent on the quarter panel will be a reminder of how lucky I was to not total the car. We still managed a respectable P4 while I pulled off track to deal with my car covered in sand while the rest of the competition continued to lap.
Race 1 was the following day. Everything on the car was double checked and the pedal box assembly was addressed with fresh grip tape to prevent a slip up like that ever again. The start was hectic as always with two passes within three corners and eventually for the lead, passed ‘24 season champion, Matan Rosenburg after a few laps. From there I drove away, ran my fastest lap on the final lap, and took home 1st in race 1.
Race 2, I started on pole and after the first lap, I was gone. The setup changes were phenomenal while the ABS allowed me to brake deeper and harder. The confidence on the brakes was incredible, the ITR ABS was just so good. Comparing data from last season, I was applying on average a peak of 643 psi. This year, 998 psi which results in braking roughly 85 feet deeper and helping me achieve a full second faster lap time! By the end of the race, I dusted the field with one of the most significant gaps in GLTC history, 15 seconds.
Race 3 grid was determined by the qualifying shootout, which, after my pace in Race 1 & 2, was not a surprise, on pole again. I managed to drive away once again without any contention for a third straight win.
Race 4 is the wild card race with a random invert, which was 4. That meant I started 4th and had to work my way up to the front. I made quick work of P3 and P2 and now had Matan in my sights once again, like in Race 1. This time, though, Matan wasn’t going to make it easy. He defended like his life depended on it and held me up in all the corners where my car excelled. Corvettes are wide to begin with, and he made his even wider. I managed to get alongside him multiple times but couldn't complete the pass against that torquey v8. I decided to keep pestering him so he would run off the line to defend and overheat his tires. This would allow me to make my move later in the race, but that plan got ruined once the full-course caution came out. We received the green with only two laps remaining so it was now or never. A few more attempts we had but none of them would stick. Matan would go on to win Race 4 with my right behind him, still, a brilliant result.
97 out of 100 available points in total were achieved at CMP for an overall event victory! Almost a full sweep, but still a brilliant result! That puts us 1st in the GLTC championship by a healthy margin. Thanks to all my sponsors, friends and family who helped get the car on track.
Next up with Road Atlanta with Formula Drift May 9th and 10th! This will be a tough track for my lower HP Hybridracing x EKR Supertouring Civic but I’m confident we can continue the streak of podium finishes!
Link to results
https://www.grid.life/race-results
https://www.youtube.com/@EricKutilRacing
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