IMSA: BMW M Team WRT continues podium streak – second place for Philipp Eng and Marco Wittmann in Detroit.

Detroit. BMW M Team WRT remains on a successful path with the BMW M Hybrid V8. In the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship (IMSA Series) race on the streets of Detroit (USA), Philipp Eng (AUT) and Marco Wittmann (GER) drove the #25 car to a second-place podium finish. It was the duo’s second consecutive podium after taking third place in Laguna Seca (USA). For the team, following the celebrated 1-2 finish at the FIA World Endurance Championship (FIA WEC) race in Spa-Francorchamps (BEL), this marked its third success within just a few weeks – right before the major season highlight in June, the 24 Hours of Le Mans (FRA).

Wittmann and Eng initially lost several positions from fourth on the grid in Detroit, but regained them thanks to the strategy of a late and, therefore, shorter pit stop. From that point on, closing driver Eng held second place and confidently defended it to the finish. In the #24 sister car Sheldon van der Linde (RSA) and Dries Vanthoor (BEL) also showed strong pace, but a forced early pit stop, due to low tyre pressure and two drive-through penalties following collisions on the tight street circuit, cost them a possible podium. In the end they finished ninth. In the GTD PRO class, Connor De Phillippi and Neil Verhagen (both USA) drove the Paul Miller Racing #1 BMW M4 GT3 EVO to fourth place, narrowly missing out on a podium in a turbulent final phase.

Comments after the race:

Vincent Vosse (Team Principal, BMW M Team WRT): “Congratulations to the #25 crew on a perfectly executed race with a very good strategy and strong pace. The podium is a well-deserved reward! Unfortunately, with car #24 we had to pit earlier than planned and got stuck in traffic. That’s a problem, especially on a tight street circuit like Detroit. As a result, there were some contacts and subsequent penalties.”

Philipp Eng (#25 BMW M Hybrid V8, BMW M Team WRT, 2nd place GTP): “Many thanks to the entire team. That was a strategic masterpiece! Marco drove a strong first stint and, after our pit stop brought us up to second place, I just had to bring the result home. That’s easier said than done on a tight circuit like Detroit, but in the end it worked out. I’m very happy for the whole crew.”

Marco Wittmann (#25 BMW M Hybrid V8, BMW M Team WRT, 2nd place GTP): “The second consecutive podium feels really good. I had a difficult start to the race and lost a few positions. At that moment it was clear that we could only move forward if we tried something different with the strategy. So I saved as much energy as possible to attempt an overcut. That worked perfectly, and the team managed to get us past the others during our pit stop and up to second place. Philipp did a great job afterwards. Many thanks to everyone!”

Sheldon van der Linde (#24 BMW M Hybrid V8, BMW M Team WRT, 9th place GTP): “We had the potential to fight at the front, but didn’t make the most of our pace. In qualifying we were unlucky with a red flag just before our fastest lap, so we had to start further back than hoped. Still, things went well at first and we were already up to third place when everything started to go wrong. First the early pit stop, due to tyre pressure, then contacts and penalties that set us back a long way. Ultimately, it was a race to forget. We urgently need to improve the flawless execution of our races.”

Connor De Phillippi (#1 BMW M4 GT3 EVO, Paul Miller Racing, 4th place GTD PRO): “Fourth place is pretty much the best we could achieve with the race pace our car had this weekend. These are important points for the championship. Still, we need to take a close look at why we couldn’t fight for the podium on our own here. Because at the next race in Watkins Glen we want to be right at the front again.”