IMSA: BMW M4 GT3 EVO celebrates its first win of the season at the Six Hours of the Glen. – AutoMart Canada

Watkins Glen. On the same day that the BMW M4 GT3 EVO claimed
victory at the 24 Hours of Nürburgring (GER), the car also
celebrated its first win in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar
Championship. BMW M works drivers Dan Harper (GBR) and Max Hesse
(GER) triumphed in the #48 BMW M4 GT3 EVO from Paul Miller Racing in
the GTD PRO class at the Six Hours of the Glen. For the duo, it was
their first victory in North America. Meanwhile, BMW M Team RLL
faced a challenging race with the BMW M Hybrid V8 at Watkins Glen (USA).

From the start of the race weekend, it was clear that the BMW M
Hybrid V8 would struggle compared to some competitors. The pace
conditions were not ideal. Additionally, neither car crew drove a
flawless race from starting positions six and seven. The #25 BMW M
Hybrid V8, driven by Sheldon van der Linde (RSA) and Marco Wittmann
(GER), retired after an accident involving Wittmann. The #24 car,
piloted by Philipp Eng (AUT) and Dries Vanthoor (BEL), managed to stay
with the leading group in a race with numerous yellow flags but could
not finish higher than eighth in a strategic poker at the end.

In contrast, there was immense celebration for Harper, Hesse, and
Paul Miller Racing. The team and drivers started from second in their
class and made a remarkable comeback after an early setback. Harper
incurred a 60-second stop-and-go penalty for crossing the red pit-exit
light after a pit stop, dropping the duo to last place. However,
numerous yellow flags and a perfect strategy returned the #48 BMW M4
GT3 EVO to the front. Paul Miller Racing was even on course for a
one-two finish, but a late-race technical penalty for low tyre
pressure dropped the #1 car, driven by Madison Snow, Neil Verhagen,
and Connor De Phillippi (all USA), from second to eighth. In the GTD
class, Turner Motorsport’s #96 BMW M4 GT3 EVO, driven by Robby Foley,
Patrick Gallagher, and Jake Walker (all USA), was also on course for a
podium finish but fell to eighth due to incidents in the final stage
of the race.

Comments after the race:

Andreas Roos, Head of BMW M Motorsport: “This
was a race with mixed emotions for us at BMW M Motorsport. I am
absolutely thrilled about the first victory of our BMW M4 GT3 EVO in
the IMSA series! Paul Miller Racing has shown strong performances
throughout the season and was often close to victory. Now it finally
happened! Congratulations to Dan Harper and Max Hesse on their first
win in North America! It’s unfortunate that the sister car and the #96
BMW M4 GT3 EVO from Turner Motorsport couldn’t make it to the podium
despite also having strong races. Overall, our GT3 programme in the
U.S. is in excellent shape. Our BMW M Hybrid V8 had to fight with
blunt weapons at Watkins Glen. BMW M Team RLL and our drivers gave it
their all, but unfortunately, we didn’t have the flawless race we
needed to make the most of the circumstances. Now we are determined to
return to our former strength at the next GTP class race in Road America.”

Philipp Eng (#24 BMW M Hybrid V8, BMW M Team RLL, 8th place):
“Unfortunately, it was a frustrating race. From the
start of the weekend, we knew we were going into the race with
difficult conditions compared to some competitors. We simply didn’t
have the necessary pace. On top of that, we didn’t have a perfect
race. Especially in the final stint, there might have been some
opportunities through strategy, but we didn’t make the optimal decisions.”

Dan Harper (#48 BMW M4 GT3 EVO, Paul Miller Racing, 1st place
GTD PRO): “We kept a cool head in a hot race.
Unfortunately, I made a mistake at the pit exit early on, which earned
us the penalty. I’m very glad we were able to make up for it during
the race. Max did the hard work in the middle of the race to bring us
back to the front. The team had a perfect strategy and fantastic pit
stops. I asked the team to let me drive the final stint to make up for
my earlier mistake. Luckily, we managed to do that together, and we
were able to celebrate our first win of the season. We’ve had good
pace in almost every race so far, and now we’ve finally been rewarded
with the right result. Hopefully, this is the start of a strong second
half of the season.”

Max Hesse (#48 BMW M4 GT3 EVO, Paul Miller Racing, 1st place
GTD PRO): “It was an incredibly good weekend for us at
Watkins Glen. The team told us beforehand that they’ve often been
strong here in the past, so we were really looking forward to it, but
the race was anything but easy. With second place in qualifying by Dan
and a good start, things initially went great, but then the rain came,
and we got the 60-second penalty, which dropped us to last place. We
were frustrated because we thought we had thrown away a top result but
there were many yellow flags, and our car was very strong on restarts.
I gradually worked my way back to first place, and Dan did an amazing
job in the final stint. I’m very proud and happy for the team.
Unfortunately, the #1 car had the penalty at the end. The team
deserved a one-two finish. After five races, we are now third in the
championship and have two podiums. Things are going well for us here
in North America.”