Indianapolis. Kelvin van der Linde (RSA) was crowned Drivers’ Champion of the Intercontinental GT Challenge at the season finale. The South African took victory in a chaotic Indianapolis 8 Hour (USA) alongside Charles Weerts (BEL) and Valentino Rossi (ITA) in the #46 BMW M4 GT3 EVO fielded by Team WRT. Their teammates Raffaele Marciello (ITA), Augusto Farfus (BRA) and Al Faisal Al Zubair (OMA) completed the double podium by finishing third in the #777 BMW M4 GT3 EVO. With that, BMW clinched its first-ever Manufacturers’ Championship title in the IGTC. The “Battle on the Bricks” was initially halted for a long time due to a thunderstorm with heavy rain and eventually finished behind the safety car.
From the start of the weekend, the BMW M4 GT3 EVO showed strong pace on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. All five BMW cars made it into the Pole Shootout. Philipp Eng (AUT) set the fastest time there in the #51 Random Vandals Racing entry – but the team was stripped of pole position after the car was found to be slightly under the minimum weight. This promoted the #777 BMW M4 GT3 EVO of Team WRT to start from second place, directly ahead of its sister car, the #46.
In the race, the strong performance from qualifying continued as all BMW M4 GT3 EVOs impressed from the start. After three and a half hours, the four Pro entries occupied positions two through five when the title contenders took over driving duties for the first time: Marciello in the #777 BMW M4 GT3 EVO in second place, directly ahead of van der Linde in third. With two spectacular overtakes, the WRT duo soon took over the lead and established a 1–2 formation – before a thunderstorm moved over the circuit and brought out a red flag for more than two hours.
Around 90 minutes before the end of the clock, the Indianapolis 8 Hour resumed behind the safety car in heavy rain. Pit stops shuffled the order, putting van der Linde in the lead in the #46 BMW M4 GT3 EVO, while the #777 BMW M4 GT3 EVO with Marciello at the wheel lost two positions due to a later stop. The race was briefly restarted but soon ended again behind the safety car – with the #46 BMW M4 GT3 EVO leading the field to the finish. Thus, Team WRT celebrated its third consecutive victory at the Indianapolis 8 Hour, following wins in 2023 and 2024.
With its fourth win in five races this season, BMW also claimed the IGTC Manufacturers’ Championship for the first time, while van der Linde secured the Drivers’ Title. Earlier in the season, BMW M Motorsport and van der Linde had already triumphed at the Bathurst 12 Hour, the Nürburgring 24 Hours, and the Suzuka 1000KM. Just the previous Sunday, the South African and Weerts had also won the overall title in the GT World Challenge Europe.
Meanwhile, bad luck struck the #51 BMW M4 GT3 EVO of Eng, Bill Auberlen, and Varun Choksey (both USA). After a brilliant opening stint from tenth on the grid, the Random Vandals Racing car even led the race at one stage. However, a technical issue with the engine cost the team significant time in the pits, and they eventually retired after the red flag. Their teammates Connor De Phillippi, Conor Daly, and Kenton Koch (all USA) delivered a strong performance in the #99 BMW M4 GT3 EVO, finishing fourth overall. That result also secured De Phillippi and Koch the Drivers’ Title in the GT World Challenge America.
Turner Motorsport celebrated third place in the Pro-Am category with the #29 BMW M4 GT3 EVO driven by BMW M works driver Robby Foley alongside Patrick Gallagher and Justin Rothberg (USA). With that result, Foley and Rothberg also claimed the overall Pro-Am Championship title.
Quotes after the race:
Andreas Roos (Head of BMW M Motorsport): “What an impressive season in the Intercontinental GT Challenge! Four wins out of five races underline the remarkable consistency of our teams and drivers. Congratulations to Team WRT for their third consecutive victory at the Indianapolis 8 Hour. I am absolutely delighted that we were able to secure the Manufacturers’ title in the series for the first time. Congratulations also to Kelvin van der Linde on the Drivers’ Championship – even though Raffaele Marciello would have deserved it just as much. My compliments also go to Turner Motorsport and Robby Foley for their Pro-Am title, as well as to Random Vandals Racing, Connor De Phillippi, and Kenton Koch for their GTWC America crown. Many thanks to everyone at BMW M Motorsport and to all the teams who contributed to these outstanding achievements.”
Vincent Vosse (Team Principal, WRT): “It’s a great way to finish the Intercontinental GT Championship with a win in Indianapolis – our third in a row. Unfortunately, we made a mistake with the #777 by not calling them in at the right time. I feel very sorry for Lello, but that’s racing. Still, I’m very happy that we were able to bring this trophy home to BMW, and of course I’m very happy for Kelvin. The team did a fantastic job – having two BMW M4 GT3 EVOs on the podium is a great result. Thanks to the SRO for this championship; they did an excellent job this year.”
Kelvin van der Linde (#46 BMW M4 GT3 EVO, Team WRT, Drivers’ Champion): “The #777 deserved the win – they were stronger the whole weekend. But sometimes you just have bad luck in racing. Unfortunately, the weather decided the race today. Apart from that, four wins in five races make this an extraordinary year for BMW M Motorsport and Team WRT. We need to enjoy and celebrate that – it doesn’t happen every year. I’m very proud to have contributed a small piece of history in my first year with BMW M Motorsport.”
Charles Weerts (#46 BMW M4 GT3 EVO, Team WRT, Winner): “I’m obviously very happy for BMW M Motorsport to secure the championship in Indianapolis. It was a bizarre race with the thunderstorm and the rain, which unfortunately prevented us from really racing for most of the event. The #777 was very strong the whole weekend and was ahead of us at the time of the red flag – they definitely deserved the win today. But the most important thing is that BMW won.”
Valentino Rossi (#46 BMW M4 GT3 EVO, Team WRT, Winner): “I’m really happy – it was a great weekend. These kinds of races are the ones I really enjoy, and I also learn a lot from them. I think I did a good job in the first two hours. The #777 had great pace but was very unlucky. Overall, I’m very happy with the weekend and my performance because I really enjoyed it.”
Raffaele Marciello (#777 BMW M4 GT3 EVO, Team WRT, 3rd place): “We had a lot of fun together as teammates. There’s just a great atmosphere within BMW. The race itself hurts a bit. The main goal was to secure the championship for BMW – and we did that, which makes me very happy. We won many races this season, and I’m very happy for Kelvin; he deserves it. But of course it hurts, and we’ll try again next year.”
Philipp Eng (#51 BMW M4 GT3 EVO, Random Vandals Racing, DNF): “It was great to race with Random Vandals Racing. The team is fantastic, and the car was perfectly prepared. We were competitive from the very start of the weekend. The Superpole went perfectly – the car was great, and I managed a strong lap. The first stint was a lot of fun; fighting my way through the field from tenth after the penalty was great. Unfortunately, we had to retire because we lost too many laps due to a technical issue. But for me, it was a great experience racing with this team, and I’d love to come back.”
Robby Foley (#32 BMW M4 GT3 EVO, Turner Motorsport, 3rd place Pro-Am): “It was a crazy race with the weather, but we had the clear goal of winning the title. Our competitors dropped out early, so we had to be smart, sensible, and mistake-free – and in the end, we came home third. It was a great season with Justin; he’s improved so much in just one year. To be back-to-back Pro-Am Champions is something very special. A huge thank you to Turner Motorsport and BMW M Motorsport for all the support.”
Connor De Phillippi (#99 BMW M4 GT3 EVO, Random Vandals Racing, 4th place): “I’m very happy about the GT World Challenge America title. It’s my first championship since joining BMW M Motorsport. Kenton and the team did a fantastic job. It would have been nice to fight for the win here, but we had to secure our championship points. Still, it was a good day, a great year, and I’m already looking forward to 2026.”