IMSA triumph! BMW M Team RLL celebrates 1-2 finish at Road America with the BMW M Hybrid V8.

IMSA triumph! BMW M Team RLL celebrates 1-2 finish at Road America with the BMW M Hybrid V8.

Road America. The breakthrough has been achieved. BMW M Team RLL has secured the first victory of the season for the BMW M Hybrid V8 – and what a victory it was! In the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship (IMSA series) race at Road America (USA), Philipp Eng (AUT) and Dries Vanthoor (BEL) triumphed in the #24 car. Their teammates in the #25 car, Sheldon van der Linde (RSA) and Marco Wittmann (GER), completed the one-two finish by securing second place. After four pole positions and two podium finishes earlier in the season, the joy over the first win was immense. There was also great celebration at Paul Miller Racing as Neil Verhagen and Madison Snow (both USA) claimed victory in the #1 BMW M4 GT3 EVO in the GTD PRO class.

The two BMW M Hybrid V8s of BMW M Team RLL started the race from second and third on the grid after strong lap times in qualifying. Over the course of the 2:40-hour race, both crews experienced a rollercoaster of emotions. Initially, both cars dropped to the back of the GTP field due to an incident during a pit stop. An RLL mechanic was lightly injured after being struck by another prototype which extended the pit stop times. However, with an hour remaining, the team decided to bring both cars in early for their final refuelling stop, aiming to gain a strategic advantage during one of the race’s many yellow flag periods. This strategy paid off, and after the final race neutralisation, closing drivers Eng and Wittmann led the race. They maintained this one-two lead even amidst heavy traffic with lapped cars. Following four pole positions at the start of the season and podium finishes at Long Beach and Laguna Seca (both USA), the first victory of the season for the BMW M Hybrid V8 marked a significant breakthrough.

Comments after the race:

Andreas Roos, Head of BMW M Motorsport: “What a fantastic IMSA race at Road America! Congratulations to BMW M Team RLL, Philipp Eng, and Dries Vanthoor on their first victory of the season with our BMW M Hybrid V8. Both have delivered outstanding performances, especially at the start of the season, but were unable to convert them into a win until now. Finally, it has worked out, and the hard work of everyone involved has paid off. I am equally thrilled for Sheldon van der Linde and Marco Wittmann, who made it onto the podium for the first time this season. We are clearly moving in the right direction with our Hypercar project, and it’s great to see this reflected in the results. Another heartfelt congratulations to Paul Miller Racing for their second win of the season with the BMW M4 GT3 EVO. This triumph not only underscores the strength of our GT3 car worldwide but also makes an already incredible race day even better. Thank you to everyone!”

Philipp Eng (#24 BMW M Hybrid V8, BMW M Team RLL, 1st place): “A fantastic day for the entire team. A flawless job. Thankfully, nothing more serious happened during the pit lane incident, and I’m very glad our mechanic is okay. Beyond that, it was simply a strategic masterpiece by the entire team, and the car’s balance was extremely strong. We were strong in clean air, strong in traffic, and positioned ourselves very well. In the end, it was all about making no mistakes and controlling the race. Thankfully, we managed to do that. It was an incredibly strong team effort. Every single person on the team can be extremely proud of themselves.”

Dries Vanthoor (#24 BMW M Hybrid V8, BMW M Team RLL, 1st place): “This is a fantastic result for BMW M Motorsport with the one-two finish in the GTP class and the victory in the GTD PRO class. Our weekend started well, and this time we finally managed to turn it into a win after struggling earlier in the season to fully capitalise on our speed. The team was amazing, and the strategy call was perfect. In the end, we had enough speed to bring home first place. Philipp did an excellent job. Now we’ll keep pushing and hopefully finish the season with more strong results.”

Marco Wittmann (#25 BMW M Hybrid V8, BMW M Team RLL, 2nd place): “A great result for us as BMW M Motorsport and BMW M Team RLL. It’s a bit of a relief after the last few races, where we were strong in qualifying but couldn’t deliver in the race. This time, everything worked out well. Ultimately, a good strategy brought us forward, but we also showed strong pace during the race. The team success with the one-two finish is, of course, fantastic. We’re super happy. I think it’s a relief for everyone on the team. Now we can head into the final two races with momentum and hope to finish the season on a high note.”