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Morad, Ward claim maiden MPC victory on streets of Detroit

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Morad, Ward claim maiden MPC victory on streets of Detroit


The GM Renaissance Center serves as one backdrop of the Detroit Street Course, while the Canadian flag serves as another thanks to nearby Windsor, Ontario.

It was the latter backdrop that held true in Saturday’s Chevrolet Detroit Sports Car Classic, as Canadian Daniel Morad won in the shadow of his home country in the fourth round of the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge season.

Morad and Bryce Ward shared the No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT GT4, using a bit of strategy, Morad’s relentless attack on a restart and eventual overtake to secure the victory in the Grand Sport (GS) class-only, 100-minute race. It is both drivers’ first victory in Michelin Pilot Challenge competition.

Ward started 11th and pitted shortly after the 33-minute mark, three minutes after the minimum drive time window of 30 minutes opened. The Winward Racing team swapped in Morad, took rear Michelin tires and resumed on course shortly behind the No. 95 Turner Motorsport BMW M4 GT4 and No. 28 RS1 Porsche Cayman 718 GT4 RS CS, which had been the dominant cars in the opening stanza of the race.

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The No. 28 car, started by Eric Filgueiras, went for a fuel-only stop and swapped the car to Stevan McAleer. Meanwhile, the No. 95 car, started on pole by Cameron Lawrence, matched the strategy and flipped over to Robert Megennis after leading the opening 28 laps.

It was there the complexion – and visuals – of the race changed.

Megennis sought to lap Rory van der Steur in the No. 19 van der Steur Aston Martin Vantage GT4 heading into the primary passing opportunity on the bumpy, 1.645-mile, nine-turn new downtown street course.

It all went awry when Megennis drove into van der Steur, with the momentum carrying his BMW up and over the Aston Martin in a spectacular incident. Megennis’ car hit the top of the tire barriers before he continued onto the pit lane, while van der Steur’s car was significantly impacted on the driver’s side and roof of the car. Both drivers made it back to pit lane.

The resulting full-course caution shuffled the order as a handful of cars, including the points-leading No. 72 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT GT4 of Kenny Murillo and Christian Szymczak, had not yet pitted and subsequently lost track position when it did stop.

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The race resumed with McAleer cycled to the front ahead of Marc Miller in the debuting No. 78 Thaze Competition by MC Squared Mercedes-AMG GT GT4 and Morad third in the No. 57 Winward Mercedes.

Morad took off behind the leaders, as McAleer had a gap of a couple lapped cars between himself and Miller. After charging past two lapped cars on the first restart lap (40), Morad had the gap down to just a second behind McAleer by lap 43.

Morad made the winning move on lap 46, sizing up McAleer into Turn 1 and going past him on the inside on the run to Turn 2.

“I knew the best opportunity would be right at the beginning when track was unknown with oil and coolants,” Morad said.

“I had a good idea of where the grip was and went full attack and didn’t hesitate. The moment you hesitate on a street circuit, you run into trouble, so I went for it, full send.”

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While Morad began to stretch his gap in front, McAleer put on a defensive driving clinic behind him to keep a bevy of cars in his rearview mirror, in the form of Miller, Jeff Westphal (No. 39 CarBahn by Peregrine Racing Porsche Cayman 718 GT4 RS Clubsport), Elliott Skeer (No. 47 NOLASPORT Porsche Cayman 718 GT4) and the recovering Szymczak.

Despite multiple attempts, Miller was never able to get past McAleer. The two were former teammates with another program and know each other’s racing styles well, so a healthy level of respect was present.

McAleer and Filgueiras finished second with Miller and Michael Di Meo completing a dream debut for Birmingham, Michigan-based Thaze Competition, finishing on the podium in both the team’s and Miller’s home race.

Westphal and Sean McAlister were fourth, ahead of Jeff Mosing and Eric Foss in the No. 56 Murillo Racing Mercedes. Mosing and Foss capped off an eventful weekend where Mosing needed to reverse down the backstraight in a Friday session after a spin. For Foss, the opportunity to race in Detroit was special as he caught the racing bug going to the Formula 1 race with his dad here in the 1980s. Points leaders Murillo and Szymczak finished seventh, behind Skeer and Adam Adelson in sixth.

For Morad and Ward the win was sweet, particularly for Ward whose Winward team has been a Michelin Pilot Challenge stalwart for several years.

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“It’s awesome,” Morad said. “Driving with Bryce is such a good opportunity for me this year. He’s been the best team owner and teammate. There’s no pressure except for what I put on myself. And I want to win. Winning is fun!”

Ward added, “It’s an amazing day, and I can’t say enough for the team. The pit stop was perfect. The call from engineering was perfect. It was key to be clean and get it over to Daniel!”

The Michelin Pilot Challenge resumes with both the GS and Touring Car (TCR) classes back in action at Watkins Glen International on Saturday, June 24.

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Detroit, MI

Video recap: Detroit Lions with bounce-back drubbing of Chicago Bears

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Video recap: Detroit Lions with bounce-back drubbing of Chicago Bears


CHICAGO, Ill. — The Detroit Lions smashed the Chicago Bears with a business-like mentality, with a hint of flare on a beautifully designed trick play, in their 34-17 win.

This victory gives the Lions 13 wins on the season, the most in franchise history. They also set a new single-season record for points scored, eclipsing the mark set by the 2011 team led by Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson. Not too shabby with two games left on the schedule.

They are undefeated on the road this season, not to mention 5-0 in the division.

Inside the locker room: Lions explain process behind ‘Stumble Bum’ trick play

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Dan Campbell leads Lions to team record 13th win, still ‘not time’ to celebrate

Detroit’s offense was lethal, with a breakout showing in running back Jahmyr Gibbs’ first game in the standalone lead role without David Montgomery. Jared Goff threw for another 336 yards and three scores. And the Lions quarterback got hit clicking with receivers Jameson Williams and Amon-Ra St. Brown.

Williams hit a career-long 82-yard touchdown catch and finished with a career-high 143 receiving yards. St. Brown caught six of eight targets sent his way for 70 yards and one touchdown.

The Lions and their banged-up defense were hit for a lot of passing yards. But they managed to come up with two takeaways, leading to 10 points, and held the Bears to converting only two third-down tries on 10 attempts in the win.

See below for MLive’s video breakdowns from after this game:

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  • BETTING: Check out our guide to the best Michigan sportsbooks, where our team of sports betting experts has reviewed the experience, payout speed, parlay options and quality of odds for multiple sportsbooks.



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Detroit, MI

The Glancy Train set continues to attract thousands at Detroit Historical Museum this holiday season

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The Glancy Train set continues to attract thousands at Detroit Historical Museum this holiday season


MIDTOWN (WXYZ) — At Detroit Historical Museum, 74-year-old Peter Dudley really knows how to keep things on track.

WXYZ

“Yes, I’ve been a volunteer since 1997, which was the year we built the current exhibit,” says Dudley.

The Glancy Trains exhibit has been a crowd favorite for years. 13 trains moving along 12 electric-powered tracks, all thanks to a team of 3 volunteers.

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“The main thing the volunteers do is to keep the trains running,” said Dudley.

From keeping the tracks clean to repairing the trains, Dudley is always busy in his workshop over the weekends.

They go from zero to 35 mph in a split second, which is another reason we have to make sure they don’t derail, said Dudley.

The collection, which dates back to the mid-1900s, belonged to Alfred Glancy Jr., a real estate financier and former owner of the Empire State Building in New York City. Detroit Historical Society’s Rebecca Salminen-Witt says Glancy enjoyed hosting “train parties” for friends and family each holiday season at his home in Grosse Pointe Shores. After his death in 1973, the Glancy family donated the set.

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“Every kid who comes here wants to see these trains, Mr. Glancy was obviously a train guy himself. His children actually are still involved with the museum. They still love these trains, visit them and support them,” said Salminen-Witt.

Salminen-Witt says that as the exhibit grows, thanks to donations from various sources, it truly highlights Detroit’s rich history.

“Most people are really excited about the renaissance that they are seeing at Michigan Central Station. They were developing that train station right at the cusp between train travel, railroad travel and the beginning of the automotive, well as we know the cars took over,” said Salminen-Witt.

And it turns out a lot of Detroit’s history is baked into the exhibit.

“We’ve got that big tire, people are familiar with on your way to the airport, you pass on I94, on the other end of the exhibit, we have the big stove. So, Detroit was the stove manufacturing capital of the country. And, of course, trains hauled those stoves everywhere,” said Salminen-Witt.

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“I often come out from behind, from the workshop, and I talk to people about local Detroit railroad history,” said Dudley.

“Does this remind you of your childhood?” asked Faraz Javed, 7 News Detroit reporter.

“I received my first train as a christmas present from my grandparents. That particular December we traveled on the Baltimore and Ohio railroad leaving from Michigan Central Station,” said Dudley.

Now, the Glancy Train exhibit runs year-round at the Detroit Historical Museum. And Dudley says they are always in need of volunteers. To find out how you can become one, just head to this website.





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Detroit Mercy visits Wisconsin after Winter’s 20-point outing

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Detroit Mercy visits Wisconsin after Winter’s 20-point outing


Associated Press

Detroit Mercy Titans (5-8, 1-2 Horizon League) at Wisconsin Badgers (9-3, 0-2 Big Ten)

Madison, Wisconsin; Sunday, 2 p.m. EST

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BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Badgers -29; over/under is 148.5

BOTTOM LINE: Wisconsin plays Detroit Mercy after Nolan Winter scored 20 points in Wisconsin’s 83-74 victory against the Butler Bulldogs.

The Badgers are 6-1 on their home court. Wisconsin scores 81.9 points and has outscored opponents by 9.5 points per game.

The Titans have gone 2-4 away from home. Detroit Mercy ranks fourth in the Horizon League with 10.7 offensive rebounds per game led by Stephen Okoro averaging 2.0.

Wisconsin’s average of 8.9 made 3-pointers per game this season is only 0.5 fewer made shots on average than the 9.4 per game Detroit Mercy gives up. Detroit Mercy averages 6.5 made 3-pointers per game this season, 1.0 fewer made shot on average than the 7.5 per game Wisconsin gives up.

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TOP PERFORMERS: John Tonje is shooting 46.0% and averaging 20.0 points for the Badgers.

Orlando Lovejoy is shooting 41.5% and averaging 13.7 points for the Titans.

LAST 10 GAMES: Badgers: 7-3, averaging 81.9 points, 31.9 rebounds, 15.2 assists, 5.4 steals and 1.9 blocks per game while shooting 44.9% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 74.1 points per game.

Titans: 3-7, averaging 67.3 points, 33.0 rebounds, 10.8 assists, 6.7 steals and 2.4 blocks per game while shooting 41.4% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 75.8 points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.




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