Over the weekend, the Pirelli World Challenge race series->ke447 saw the running of the latest round of touring car action at the Barber Motorsports Park, ending with a good deal of success for the two GT-Rs->ke1592 fielded by the Always Evolving-AIM Autosport Nissan team. It was Nissan’s->ke62 first overall victory and class victory in the PWC after only six and seven starts, respectively, for the two drivers.

James Davison took pole on Saturday at the helm of the #33 GT-R Nismo GT3 and did battle with the Lamborghini Gallardo->ke375 of Nick Catsburg. Despite three full-course cautions and their subsequent restarts, Davison maintained his position, thus earning his first PWC win.

Saturday was less successful for Bryan Heitkotter, who drove his #05 GT-R GTA to a 14th place start going into Sunday’s race. However, Heitkotter managed to pass his way to 12th early on, eventually breaking clear of the GTA leader, Frank Montecalvo in a Mercedes SLS,->ke2504 taking eighth overall and victory in the GTA category.

"It’s nice to get that win – it’s been a long time coming," said Heitkotter. "What a track this is! The GT-R is really good in the high-speed stuff, the fourth and fifth gear corners, so I had a blast out there today. It was a great day for Nissan and Always Evolving, with the two top tens."

You can catch the race on CBS May 3rd at 2 PM eastern. The next round of the PWC will be held May 15th through the 17th at the Canadian Motorsports Park in Mosport, Ontario, Canada.

Why it matters

In years past, the GT-R has been absolutely dominant in GT racing. Its super-powered driveline and high-tech AWD system have made it the vehicle to beat, often ending in a string of first place finishes and subsequent rule changes.

Now, it’s good to see Nissan’s world eater back in the action. These first victories are incredibly important for the Always Evolving team, especially so early in the cars’ development.

"It was a good weekend for our team, and I’m very pleased with the progress our program has made in a short period of time," said team owner Erik Davis in a press release. "The team has worked tirelessly, and we are starting to see the results of those efforts. Bryan and James had great drives, and I’m thrilled to be bringing positive results to Nissan and NISMO here in the U.S. in this incredibly competitive series. We still have a lot of work to do, however, in order to get the outcome we expect."

Nissan GT-R GT3 Nismo

Scorching race tracks the world over, the GT-R GT3 Nismo comes with a lot of letters and huge performance potential. It’s a race-only->ke148 version of Nissan’s flagship, and boasts a wider body, substantial aerodynamic upgrades, more power, race-bred suspension, transmission updates, and even more grip. It’s basically Godzilla on steroids, if you can imagine such a frightening thought.

Read our full review here.