The IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship returns to Road America. This year’s race at the four-mile circuit will look different than the past. IMSA moved their second six-hour race from Indianapolis to the National Park of Speed. The move has been greatly received by fans and the drivers already enjoy driving this circuit. What can go wrong? Let’s preview the fourth round of the Michelin Endurance Cup. Here is what to look for in the Motul Sportscar Endurance Grand Prix.
GTP: Perfect Mix?
The top class returns after a month away. And they are coming back to a track that is favorable amongst drivers and fans. So, what do the drivers like about it? “It’s a flowy track, high speed, low speed,” says BMW driver Dries Vanthoor. “The racing is pretty good. It has a little bit of everything.”
Conversely, points leader Jack Aitken enjoys Road America for its challenge. “It’s one of those tracks that can scare you a bit. (Road America) is definitely a thrill because it’s very high consequence and you are never far away from having a big accident.”
Vanthoor and Aitken are two guys who are most looking forward to getting on track this weekend. Vanthoor is the defending champion of this race – albeit at half the distance. The Belgian will also have a different co-driver. After co-driving with Phillip Eng in 2025, Vanthoor is sharing driving duties in No. 24 with South African Sheldon van der Linde. The Vanthoor/van der Linde combo have been quick this season and are the higher BMW team in the points. Team WRT have made strides in their maiden IMSA season and many have to feel a win is on the cards. However, the No. 24 is looking for their first podium since January’s Rolex 24.
It is the complete opposite for Aitken and Action Express. Their fourth-place finish here last year was the last time the Cadillac factory team was OFF the podium. Fresh off back-to-back wins at Detroit and Watkins Glen, the team looks to maintain their highly consistent season. Consistency is also in the driver lineup of Aitken, Earl Bamber and Frederik Vesti. The consistency has led to podiums in the last five MEC races. With this team having a championship in their sights, consistency will continue to be the name of the game for them.
Nice and Snug
When getting a GTP ready to race around Road America, you want it fast but you also desire balance sharing the car with multiple drivers. “It’s important for all to be at the same level of comfortable with the car,” said Vanthoor. “That’s something you have to try and get the best compromise between both (or all three).” That compromise seems pretty seamless over at Action Express. “I’m lucky I have teammates that are quite flexible,” states Aitken. “We generally don’t need to argue about the direction we are going and that makes life very easy.”
On the subject of making the cars go fast, it’s all about who is behind the wheel. “It’s all driver preference related,” Dries noted. “For (Road America)…as long as I have a good front, I’m happy.” Jack brought a different insight, “(Road America) requires a car that works well aerodynamically. You’re really trying to optimize the platform, working with a car that’s quite stable.”
Even in a six-hour race, setup is everything for these IMSA teams as they look to find the fastest way around Road America. We know the fastest car doesn’t always win in IMSA, but being as close to the front as possible helps matters.
Knocking Down The Door?
Since we are speaking on consistency, there is a constant from the three races at Road America in the GTP era. Acura has been on the podium each year. An Acura has finished third each year, only bettered by second from Meyer Shank Racing in 2023. Coincidentally, MSR is coming off a runner-up finish at Watkins Glen. Unlike Watkins Glen, regular drivers Nick Yelloly and Renger van der Zande will run this race without an extra hand. Kaku Ohta, who helped them to their second, is unavailable for Road America due to commitments in Japan.
That should not be much of an issue this time around. Yelloly won the pole here a year ago before the No. 93 finished third behind the BMWs. You get the feeling Acura is due a win at this track. They have always ran well here and find themselves in contention for victory at the end. While the race is twice as long as before, the expectation for both ARX-06s out of the MSR stable is clear – keep it up front and be there at the end.
Need To Deliver
Usually, I have said something about Porsche by this point in my GTP preview pieces. But not this time. Porsche Penske Motorsport is throwing back to some classic liveries in hopes of rekindling past success. And frankly, they are in desperate need of some success right now. The factory team has just been quietly running in the mid-pack the last few rounds. Not at the back, but not quite pushing the envelope to contend for wins either. For a partnership like Porsche and Penske, this is far from their caliber and expectation. Julien Andlauer and Felipe Nasr come to Road America fourth in points seeking their first podium since their Florida sweep.
For Kevin Estre and Laurens Vanthoor, a breakthrough win at Road America would do wonders. Since the “controversy” at the end of Sebring, they also have been quiet. Apart from their Long Beach podium, they also have been in the mid-pack and behind their teammates. The No. 6 crew enter Road America a distant sixth in points. A much-needed win will go a long way for performance and confidence.
Home Boost?
As for the customer team, this weekend means a little bit more. JDC-Miller Motorsports is based in Savage, Minnesota. With Road America being a five-and-a-half-hour drive, this is essentially a home race for John Church and his crew. And this might be the best season for some home cooking. The team is having their best season in the GTP era.
A podium last time out at Watkins Glen along with their win at Laguna Seca shows this team can battle with the best of them. A lot of the credit for their success this season has to be credited to the “wunderkid” Laurin Heinrich. Heinrich, who only has two races left with the team, has raised his stock with the team through his raw speed and overall performance. This weekend, as at Watkins Glen, Kaylen Frederick will join as a third driver alongside Heinrich and Tijmen van der Helm.
JDC-Miller enters Road America fifth in the team standings behind the factory Penske entries. Both cars are within striking distance with three races remaining. If they can continue their giant-slaying performances, they could be the top Porsche at season’s end. Another strong performance on a big weekend for JDC-Miller would go a long way.
Balance of Performance
Weight
The 2026-spec Porsche 963 (-6kg) will be the only car that will see a weight break for Road America. Contrarily, the Cadillacs will carry 21kg of additional weight. The 2025-spec Porsche 963 (+4kg) will also see a weight increase.
Power
In general, cars will see power increases in both stages 1 and 2. However, there are some noticeable outliers. The 2026-spec Porsche 963 will see a 0.8% drop in stage 2 while the 2025-spec 963 will incur a 2.3% drop in stage 1.
Energy
At Road America, the Porsche 963 will take a small hit in energy. Both the 2025-spec (-3 MJ) and the 2026-spec (-6 MJ) will see decreases in max stint energy available. Inversely, BMW and Cadillac will both see increases of +5 MJ for the race this weekend.
LMP2: New Surroundings
Alex Quinn is in his first full-season of IMSA WeatherTech competition. Part-time since his debut in 2023, Quinn has slowly but surely starting to make his presence felt. While the results have not fully reflected, Quinn is a driver with pace that is also finding stability. Quinn is in his third year with Algarve Pro Racing, first running the European Le Mans Series with the team in 2024. Last season, Quinn joined the Portuguese outfit on a couple of IMSA outings to compliment his ELMS campaign.
For 2026, Quinn is taking on a full IMSA season with APR, who runs Crowdstrike Racing’s entry in the championship. The season could not have gotten off to a better start. Quinn put in a heroic final stint to score class victory in the Rolex 24, his first IMSA win. Through four races, Quinn and his Bronze co-driver George Kurtz have scored three podiums and lead the LMP2 class standings going into Road America. “It’s an amazing championship and honestly just feel quite lucky to be in the position I am at the minute,” Quinn says. “We just need to keep it going. We can’t relax. Consistency is probably key now, and that’s been our strength so far this year, so we need to keep that going.”
Speaking of Road America, Quinn will be taking on the four-mile circuit for the first time in anger this weekend. After testing, Quinn says he looks forward to the challenge. “It’s a flowing track…lot of different corners,” Alex remarks. “Extremely high-speed…some heavy braking zones…curbs are quite different from most tracks. (The track) is just a different feeling…really enjoyable just to drive in general.”
Dialed In
Quinn and Crowdstrike by APR will have used testing to get on top of the set-up to best get around Road America. Quinn speaks to how close the LMP2 class is and the importance of getting things right. “The little differences make a big difference. I like a lot of front, and here as soon as we’re in a lot of the corners, you have to kind of get off the brake and roll the speed with the flowing nature.”
With three-driver lineups and a Bronze driver both mandatory for LMP2 in MEC races, taking other drivers into consideration is key. Quinn says that Bronze drivers are more up to the task than we think. “The Bronze driver, you might think, okay, we need a bit of a safer car. Actually, a lot of the Bronzes nowadays are so, so good and run at such a high level. We’re lucky that George can handle the car that me and Toby, the other pro, likes.”
That says a lot with a 12-car field in the class. With everyone running Oreca 07s, driver and mechanical skill truly shine in this class more than anywhere else in the WeatherTech championship. I know it has been said before, but with only seven races – five of them enduros – on the schedule, every race and result counts. That puts more emphasis on every decision.
Returning Entries and a New Face
For Road America, JDC-Miller Motorsports returns to LMP2 for the first time this season since Sebring. As mentioned in the GTP preview, this is a de facto home race for JDC-Miller so for the occasion they are doubling the workload. Gerry Kraut, Sennan Fielding and Josh Burdon reunite to pilot the team’s No. 79 entry.
Elsewhere, Intersport returns after missing the last round in Canada. As they return to the IMSA fold this weekend, they will do so with a new driver. Dutchman Max van der Snel will make his IMSA debut as the team’s Silver-rated driver. This will also be van der Snel’s first LMP2 start. The 22-year old has competed primarily in LMP3 this season via both the ELMS and the Michelin Le Mans Cup. Prior to LMP3, he has extensive experience in Radical Cup and Prototype Cup Germany.
This concludes our Prototype preview for the Motul Sportscar Endurance Grand Prix. Join us Thursday for the GTD preview.
Headline Photo: IMSA Racing at Road America Photo Courtesy: IMSA/Facebook
