BMW Ends IMSA Season with Triumph and Transition at Petit Le Mans

BMW closed out the 2025 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship with a mixture of celebration and sentiment at Highway Atlanta. For Paul Miller Racing it was an enormous evening, claiming a commanding GTD PRO class victory and the 2025 IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup title. Nevertheless for BMW M Crew RLL, the evening was bittersweet.

The race marked an emotional finale for BMW M Crew RLL, which wrapped up its 17-year partnership with BMW M Motorsport. The #24 BMW M Hybrid V8 was on target for a powerful top-four end till a late puncture dropped it to ninth. The sister #25 automobile, hampered by two drive-through penalties, completed eleventh. Regardless of the outcomes, each vehicles confirmed real tempo, underscoring the competitiveness of the M Hybrid V8 in its ultimate outing with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing.

After almost 20 years collectively, the collaboration between BMW and RLL has yielded 25 victories, greater than 100 podiums, and a deep legacy of success throughout GT and prototype eras. Beginning in 2026, the manufacturing facility GTP program transitions to BMW M Crew WRT, signaling a brand new section in BMW’s top-level endurance racing technique.

In distinction to the heartbreak in GTP, Paul Miller Racing’s day was near flawless. Harper, who secured pole place for the second consecutive race, led the cost because the #48 BMW M4 GT3 EVO dominated from begin to end. With a clear race and faultless execution from the group, the trio’s win got here by a snug margin—an exclamation level on a debut IMSA season that noticed the younger pairing of Harper and Hesse arrive within the American endurance scene with speedy affect.

“Petit Le Mans is among the hardest races to win,” stated Hesse. “The truth that we did it on our first try, and took the Endurance Cup title too, is unbelievable.” Harper echoed the sentiment, including, “It was an ideal race. The automobile doesn’t have a scratch on it—extraordinary for a ten-hour run at Highway Atlanta.”

BMW M Motorsport boss Andreas Roos praised the group’s efficiency whereas reflecting on RLL’s ultimate outing. “Congratulations to Paul Miller Racing, Dan Harper, Max Hesse, and Connor De Phillippi on a incredible victory and title win. Sadly, issues didn’t go as we hoped within the GTP class. For 9 hours and fifty minutes we have been on target for second within the standings, however luck wasn’t on our aspect. Nonetheless, I need to sincerely thank BMW M Crew RLL for his or her dedication and loyalty over so a few years.”

Turner Motorsport rounded out the BMW effort within the GTD class, with Robby Foley, Patrick Gallagher, and Jake Walker taking eighth at school after a clear if uneventful run.

Petit Le Mans usually delivers each glory and heartbreak, and this 12 months was no exception. For BMW, it was an evening that celebrated the subsequent technology of endurance expertise whereas closing the guide on one in all its longest and most profitable partnerships in trendy racing.

2026 will usher in a brand new period with BMW M Crew WRT main the GTP program—armed with the teachings, spirit, and momentum constructed over almost 20 years with RLL. And for Harper, Hesse, and Paul Miller Racing, their story is simply simply getting began.