BMW M Motorsport celebrates wins and podiums across IMSA, SRO America, and Asia
BMW M Motorsport's customer teams won or reached the podium in four racing series over two weeks, while works driver Robby Foley discussed his season and the M Racing Academy in an interview.
- 36 points
- 4 points
- 30–35 weeks
- 3
What Happened
BMW M Motorsport's latest news roundup covers a successful two weeks of racing across the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, SRO America, GT World Challenge Asia, and SUPER GT. Headline results include a commanding victory for Turner Motorsport at Road America, three class wins for Team KRC at Okayama, and a GT300 win for Pacific Racing Team at Suzuka. The release also features an interview with works driver Robby Foley about his season and his role in the BMW M Racing Academy.
“The past two weeks have been a great success story on both sides of the world. Turner Motorsport has shone in both the IMSA Series and the GT World Challenge America. Congratulations to the team and drivers! I myself was a guest in Okayama last weekend and was able to celebrate the fantastic class victories of Team KRC in the GT World Challenge Asia – as well as the first podium of the year for Team PLUS with BMW M Team Studie. Also in Asia, the previous week saw the sensational victory for the Pacific Racing Team in SUPER GT. Added to this were the great successes of Team WRT in the GT World Challenge Europe. Wherever you look, the BMW M Motorsport family is racing from one success to the next. That makes me very happy!”
At Virginia International Raceway on 23 August, Turner Motorsport's Robby Foley and Patrick Gallagher finished second in the GTD class in their #96 BMW M4 GT3 EVO, putting them second in the championship, 36 points behind with two races left. Paul Miller Racing's Connor De Phillippi and Neil Verhagen finished fifth in GTD-PRO and kept their class lead. Turner also took third in the Michelin Pilot Challenge with Luca Mars and Dillon Machavern in the BMW M4 GT4 EVO. The following weekend at Road America, Foley and Justin Rothberg won the three-hour GT World Challenge America race, their second Pro-class victory of the season, and sit second in the standings, four points behind. In SRO America, Random Vandals Racing, Auto Technic Racing, and Colorado Motorsport with Flying Lizard all reached the podium in GT4 America, with BMW M Racing Academy driver Josh Green and Bruno Colombo third on Saturday and fourth on Sunday; Craig Lumsden won twice in the GT4 class of GT America.
Pacific Racing Team wins the GT300 class at Suzuka (JPN) in SUPER GT with the #9 BMW M4 GT3 EVO, driven by Yusuke Tomibayashi and Yuta Fujiwara.
At Virginia International Raceway, Foley and Gallagher finish second in GTD in car #96; De Phillippi and Verhagen fifth in GTD-PRO; Mars and Machavern third in the Michelin Pilot Challenge.
At Okayama (JPN), Team KRC scores three class wins with its two BMW M4 GT3 EVOs; Oosten and Lee win the Silver-Am class twice (third overall in race two); Verhagen and Cunfan win Pro-Am in race one; PLUS with BMW M Team Studie takes its first podium of the season in the BLEACH design.
Robby Foley, a BMW M works driver who started as a customer racer in 2018, says his IMSA season is a huge improvement over 2025, with three podiums so far and the top four crews close together. He races for Turner Motorsport in both GT3 and GT4 cars across IMSA and GT World Challenge America. With two races left and double points at the Indianapolis 8 Hour, the title fight remains open. Competing in three series, he travels 30 to 35 weeks a year. As a mentor in the BMW M Racing Academy, he works with Josh Green in the current Class of 2026, and the programme will soon begin selecting its Class of 2027.
“I can really identify with the programme's approach of supporting private drivers, because that's exactly where I come from. I was a privateer myself when I first raced a BMW M Motorsport car in 2018. I can really relate to the young talents we work with. In a way, I'm the example of how you can make it from customer racing to works driver. In the current 'Class of 2026,' I work closely with Josh Green, who races in GT4 America. I'm really looking forward to meeting the new class soon.”
Why this matters
For racing fans, this roundup shows how BMW M's customer racing program is performing globally in a single news cycle. The results span North America and Asia, with privateer teams like Turner Motorsport leading the way. It also highlights the BMW M Racing Academy as a route for young drivers to move from customer racing to a works driver contract.
Terms in This Story
- IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship
- A North American sports car racing series organized by IMSA, featuring multiple classes of GT and prototype cars.
- GTD class
- A class in IMSA racing for GT3-spec cars, with driver ratings and performance balancing.
- GT World Challenge America
- A North American sprint racing series for GT3 and GT4 cars, run by SRO America.
- BMW M Racing Academy
- A support programme for young customer racers, offering mentoring and a pathway to becoming a BMW M works driver.
Summarised from the linked release; details can be imperfect — always verify against the original source.