Former Porsche Juniors Matt Campbell from Australia and Mathieu Jaminet clinched drivers’ honours, while Porsche Penske Motorsport claimed the team championship for the second year running. Porsche also retained the manufacturers’ title in the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup, which includes the five major endurance races. In this special classification, Brazil’s Felipe Nasr and Britain’s Nick Tandy took home the drivers’ crown, with Porsche Penske Motorsport again topping the team rankings.
Race day at the picturesque Road Atlanta began on a challenging note for Porsche, when factory driver Julien Andlauer was forced to withdraw from the Petit Le Mans for medical reasons. The Frenchman had been scheduled to join Matt Campbell and Mathieu Jaminet in the No. 6 car. Laurens Vanthoor stepped in to take on a double role, driving stints in both of the factory team’s Porsche 963 cars as the third driver.
Under partly cloudy skies and temperatures of 25 degrees Celsius, the Porsche Penske Motorsport teams and the factory drivers in the two Weissach-built hybrid prototypes were unfazed by the last-minute change to the driver line-up. Shortly after the start, Felipe Nasr in the No. 7 car advanced into the leading three, while the No. 6 sister car later spent a long stint at the front. After ten hours of racing at Petit Le Mans on Road Atlanta, victory eluded them: the two ca. 500 kW (680 PS) Porsche 963 took the flag in third and tenth place – still enough to secure all championship crowns.
‟I struggle to find the words – sweeping the title pool two years running is simply incredible,” states Thomas Laudenbach, Vice President Porsche Motorsport. ‟I want to pay a huge compliment to everyone involved. I’m immensely proud. Achievements like this don’t come around often, and I’ll need some time to fully appreciate the scale of these successes.”
‟This championship is a testament to the entire Porsche Penske Motorsport team and the hard work and dedication they invest into this program every day,” says Roger Penske, Founder and Chairman of the Penske Corporation. ‟The season started with four consecutive victories, including back-to-back 24 Hours of Daytona wins, and has continued into 10 total podiums. That type of success isn’t accomplished without great drivers, leaders and a resilient crew. The commitment to winning together has been unwavering and defending the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship title is reflection of those efforts from all the men and women across both Mooresville and Germany.”
‟Our car continues to be the most successful LMDh vehicle since the regulations were introduced,” explains Urs Kuratle, Director Factory Motorsport LMDh. ‟Today’s race was extremely challenging, but once again we made the most of it.”
The JDC-Miller MotorSports customer outfit set a strong pace in the first half of the race, with the No. 85 Porsche 963 running as high as fourth at times, before a series of setbacks dropped them down the order. In the end, the team crossed the finish line in twelfth place.
GT Classes: ‟Skeleton Rexy” experiences Halloween horror at Road Atlanta
AO Racing fought hard but ultimately came up short with their Porsche 911 GT3 R. Decked out in a Halloween-themed livery at Road Atlanta, the customer team’s fan-favourite ‟Rexy” at times led the GTD Pro class. However, a collision with an LMP2 prototype seven hours into the race dashed all hopes of victory. Repairs to the rear of the car relegated Klaus Bachler from Austria, Laurin Heinrich from Germany, and Danish driver Michael Christensen to eighth place. In the GTD class, the Porsche 911 campaigned by Wright Motorsports finished the season finale in sixth place.
Driver comments after the race
Matt Campbell (Porsche 963 #6): ‟What a relief! We can now call ourselves champions of the 2025 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship – simply amazing! We’ve had a fantastic year. Many thanks to the team, to my friend and teammate Mathieu Jaminet, and to everyone working behind the scenes. It’s a perfect day for our entire crew.”
Mathieu Jaminet (Porsche 963 #6): ‟I’ve been chasing a success like this for over two years. In 2023 and 2024, I gave everything I had, but it just wasn’t enough for a championship title, which was frustrating. That makes winning it now feel even more special. Doing it alongside my mate Matt Campbell makes it even more memorable. Huge thanks to everyone who played a part in this achievement.”
Laurens Vanthoor (Porsche 963 #7): ‟It was exciting and stressful having to drive both cars in the race. I’d never driven the No. 6 before – and then I had to take over the Porsche while it was leading. My two teammates in the car were fighting for the crown, so I couldn’t afford to make any mistakes. Everything worked out perfectly: we secured all the titles, so it doesn’t get any better than this.”
Klaus Bachler (Porsche 911 GT3 R #77): ‟That was brutal for us. Just as we were entering the final third, an LMP2 car hit the side of our Porsche 911 GT3 R. Running across the grass caused significant damage to the rear of our car. The team managed to repair it, but our fight for the class win was over. We could have claimed a podium at least. We wanted to defend the title, but unfortunately it wasn’t possible, even though we gave it everything.”
Race results
GTP class:
1. Aitken/Bamber/Vesti (GBR/NZL/DNK), Cadillac #31, 436 laps
2. Gunn/de Angelis/Riberas (GBR/CDN/ESP), Aston Martin #23, + 5.182 seconds
3. Campbell/Jaminet/L. Vanthoor (AUS/FRA/BEL), Porsche 963 #6, + 12.745 seconds
10. Nasr/Tandy/L. Vanthoor (BRA/GBR/BEL), Porsche 963 #7, - 1 lap
12. Van der Helm/Jani/Esterson (NLD/CHE/USA), Porsche 963 #85, - 3 laps
GTD-Pro class:
1. Hesse/Harper/de Phillippi (DEU/GBR/USA), BMW #48, 406 laps
2. Milner/Catsburg/Varrone (USA/NLD/ARG), Corvette #4, - 1 lap
3. Garcia/Sims/Juncadella (ESP/GBR/ESP), Corvette #3, - 1 lap
8. Bachler/Heinrich/Christensen (AUT/DEU/DNK), Porsche 911 GT3 R #77, - 2 laps
GTD class:
1. Mann/Wadoux/Pier Guidi (USA/FRA/ITA), Ferrari #21, 405 laps
2. Triarsi/Koch/Calado (USA/USA/GBR), Ferrari #021, + 4.158 seconds
3. Hawksworth/Thompson/Montecalvo (GBR/CDN/USA), Lexus #12, + 31.682 seconds
6. Adelson/Skeer/Sargent (USA/USA/AUS), Porsche 911 GT3 R #120, - 1 lap
Full results and championship standings https://results.imsa.com.
