IMSA WeatherTech Champions Crowned

Earl Bamber, Jack Aitken and Fredrik Vesti celebrate 2026 GTP championship for the No. 31 Cadillac Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.

Photo: Jake Galstad/Lumen Digital Agency/IMSA

By Dennis Krause

In the end, all driver Jack Aitken had to do to claim his first IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) title was take the green flag to start the recent Motul Petit Le Mans race at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.

But even that supposedly simple act brought its own anxiety according to the driver of the No. 31 Cadillac Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R.

“I mean, the start of the day was a little bit more stressful than usual. Recalled lap was very steady. I usually have unwavering faith in the EV launch on the Cadillac V-Series.R. I was really praying that it didn't let me down this one time, and it didn't. Got off the grid.

“Yeah, a bit of a weird feeling winning a championship rolling to the green. It's been a fantastic year, the incredible consistency we've had as a brand, as a team. 10 podiums in a row for Cadillac. We've been up there for quite a few of them.

“I could not have done it without my teammates,” Aitken continued. “It does feel a little bit bittersweet that Earl (Bamber) couldn’t be with me because, honestly, he should be. Missing that one race, it doesn't really mean anything to me. He should be right up here. That's a shame.

“It's been a fun year because we've been flawless, the crew has been flawless. The one-team approach has really helped us. The car has come on leaps and bounds in the last four years since we won in 2023. It's a special win for me.”

Photo: Jake Galstad/Lumen Digital Agency/IMSA

Because Bamber was forced to miss a race due to a World Endurance Championship (WEC) conflict, he was not involved in the driver’s championship. But the 36-year-old Kiwi was massively proud to be a part of the Action Express team’s success over the last year, or so.

“Just really proud to be part of the whole thing. Joining the team last year, it was really a building year. We did a lot of work. Then all of a sudden the floodgates opened at Indy, we went on this amazing podium streak.

“It was all the hard work in the background, from the team guys at the workshop, the drivers, then the effort that Cadillac has put in,” Bamber noted. “Everyone sees the teams execute the races, but no one sees the massive amount of hard work and effort that everyone from the tech center, General Motors, a new aero kit this year, so much work going on here and for the WEC. I think you can see across all the programs we're just slowly raising the bar every single week.”

Aitken noted this year’s championship run actually began at the end of the 2025 season.

“In a way, this time last year when we surprised ourselves by finishing second with such a strong end to the year with our back-to-back wins in Indy and Road Atlanta.

“I think it sort of showed us we were ready as a team to go on a streak like we have done. The pieces have been in place for a long time, but we needed a little bit of luck and things to fall in place to really get going with results on paper. That's how it is in racing always.

“I don't think we expected it to go quite as long as it did. Yeah, as we went through the first races of the year, had a few near misses in terms of winning, but we were always there, always on the podium, fighting with the top guys, whoever they were. It became clear pretty quick that we were on to something pretty special this year.”

Who would win the championship in Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) wasn’t quite as obvious as in GTP. Despite being involved in an early race incident at Petit Le Mans, the No. 04 CrowdStrike Racing with APR ORECA LMP2 07 not only claimed the season championship, but won the race as well.

Driver Alex Quinn said that made it all the more meaningful.

“Yeah, probably does mean more. Said to a few people, we're so happy, relieved in some ways to win the championship. Forgot we won the race totally. When you realize you do it, it does make it extra special.

“Such a unique race, intense race, especially this one, the way it all panned out. An amazing day. Rounds off an amazing year.”

For team owner and bronze-rated driver, George Kurtz, it was a championship that had been elusive.

“This is incredibly special because it was really a team effort,” Kurtz stated. “My co-drivers were phenomenal. Team gave us a great car. There was so much adversity we had to overcome for the entire season, but obviously this race. It was up and down, up and down. It really was a shootout with the No. 43.

“From my perspective, this is probably one of the best seasons I've ever had with all the wins up and down the board, to crown it with the championship.

“We've come so close. In '23 we lost by a point in the championship. We were close at Daytona in '23. This year we won Daytona, won this. For me it's a year of redemption.”

Despite a murky future, Paul Miller Racing took the championship in the Grand Touring Daytona PRO (GTD PRO) class.

“It sounds surreal,” said driver Neil Verhagen. “My first season was endurance only. Was able to win the Endurance Cup in my first season, which was special. Last year moving to a two-car team. The car did a 1-2 in the Endurance Cup. We knew where we were struggling was a little bit on the sprint races. We knew the endurances was a strong point for us.

“To go this year and win Daytona, win the Endurance Cup and then the championship is just incredibly special. Second full year of IMSA for myself. First year sharing the car fully with Connor. I grew up in the junior team at BMW and was able to win Daytona with them at the beginning of year.

“Really cool points for me. Going to be a season which I never forget. My most successful season in motorsport ever. I think there's no words other than to say it was an absolutely amazing season. Thank you to BMW Motorsports, Paul Miller Racing, and Max Hesse for all the work this year.”

For Connor De Phillippi, who shared the No. 1 BMW M4 GT3 EVO with Verhagen all season long, it championship was still sinking in immediately following Petit Le Mans.

“I haven't been able to wrap my head around it. A lot of character-building years in IMSA. Been part of multiple programs with BMW now. Some easier than others.

“When I had the chance to join Paul Miller Racing for the full season, I knew it was a huge opportunity to try to win the championship.

“When we won Daytona, we started off strong. At Daytona, there's always the most amount of entries there. Starting off with a strong Daytona is huge for the overall title.

“We went race by race, maximized what we had each given weekend. Made the least amount of mistakes between everyone in the field. Team-wise we made the least amount of mistakes. More often than not we didn't have the fastest car on a given weekend, but a car we could be competitive with. If we played our cards right, we could play for a podium.

“When there was more to grab, we took it,” De Phillippi said. “So proud of everyone at Paul Miller Racing. Neil did a hell of a job all year. Coming into the season we all agreed to have our own jobs, and we all would focus really hard on those jobs well.

“Neil was great all season in qualifying. The team put a huge emphasis in that. When you see the championship come down to a handful of points across multiple scenarios, all those start to add up.

“I think everyone kind of caught up to that a little bit too late. Maybe next year we don't have that advantage.”

About that murky future the team has had to deal with the last couple months of the season?

“Yeah, I mean, I think regardless of what the rumors are, they're just rumors,” Verhagen said. “It meant more than anything to the boys this year. As I said before, we were able to win the Endurance Cup two years ago. Last year we were able to do 1-2 in the Endurance Cup.

“This year the goal was clear: It was to go and bring home the team a Rolex in the 24 Hours, to go and win the championship.”

In Grand Touring Daytona (GTD), it was a familiar team hoisting the championship for the 3rd consecutive time at Road Atlanta. At one point in the season, the No. 57 Winward Mercedes-AMG GT3 trailed by 300 points in the championship standings. That’s when the team dug deep and set the tone for the rest of the season.

“Hats off to the dedicated group of people,” said driver, team vice president and team principal Russell Ward. “When we got taken out at Watkins Glen, involved in the incident between the No. 70 car and the No. 13, I mean, us three drivers were pretty sorry in the paddock, looking at the car, watching the mechanics just jump all over it.

“From our standpoint we thought the race was done, let's pack this thing up, move on to the next. Those guys were like: Hell, no. We need to get out there and capitalize on points.

“They really set the tone for the second half of the season. We can't quit, keep pushing as hard as we can. We went on a five-race streak with podiums, four wins and a second in Indianapolis, which very well could have been a win as well. Could have been five wins in a row. That really just set us up.

“Also, it's a testament to the reliability of the Mercedes-AMG GT3. It's been a solid platform for over a decade and continues to outperform the competition, all these newer cars. That thing is rock solid. Hopefully the new machine carries the same reliability.”

Road Atlanta had previously been a puzzle the team hadn’t quite solved in previous tries. But this year, Winward served notice by winning the pole and the race on the way to another championship.

“Well, obviously we had a good car couple times here, never could really get a good result. This one was definitely our best finish ever here at the race,” said co-drivr Philip Ellis.

“Doing that in such a tough season as well, having so many tight competitors running for the championship so late into the season, was just amazing.

“To top off such a tough and up-and-down season like we had this year with a win here at Petit Le Mans, ups and downs in the race, was just amazing. I'm glad we could get that result for the team. I think everybody, all the boys and girls on the team, deserve that result today. To celebrate the championship with a win on the last race is something special.”

Testing for the 2027 Rolex 24 at Daytona is scheduled for December 10-11.

Dennis Krause has spent decades covering all forms of motorsports, including over 40 Indianapolis 500s, with stints at WIBA Radio, PIT PASS - Radio’s Premier Motorsports Magazine and Motorsports Minute.

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