DOMINANT WIN FOR TEAM WRT AND BMW AT THE SUZUKA 1000KM

DOMINANT WIN FOR TEAM WRT AND BMW AT THE SUZUKA 1000KM

17/09/2025

Team WRT, together with Kelvin van der Linde, Raffaele Marciello, and Charles Weerts, delivered a commanding performance this weekend at the legendary Suzuka 1000 KM, claiming overall victory with the #32 BMW M4 GT3 EVO. The win marks a successful return for both Team WRT, winner of the last edition, and the event itself, which made its comeback on the international stage after a six-year hiatus. The result further strengthens BMW’s lead in the Intercontinental GT Challenge manufacturers’ standings and puts three BMW drivers, Kelvin van der Linde, Raffaele Marciello, and Augusto Farfus, in contention for the drivers’ title heading into the season finale.

RACE HIGHLIGHTS

• The #32 car, with Kelvin van der Linde taking the start and the final stint, crossed the line after 170 laps to secure the win, 13.647 seconds ahead of the second-place Porsche. The trio of Van der Linde, Marciello and Weerts were dominant throughout the weekend, taking pole in qualifying and consistently leading during the race, despite multiple safety car interventions.
• The #31 car, shared by Augusto Farfus, Dan Harper and Max Hesse, delivered a clean and consistent performance. Starting eighth on the grid, the crew steadily moved up to finish fifth overall at the chequered flag. However, a post-race 12-second penalty for contact with another car dropped them to P6 in the final classification.

LOOKING AHEAD

With this historic win in Suzuka, Team WRT maintains its stronghold in the Intercontinental GT Challenge, heading into the final round with both the constructors’ and drivers’ titles within reach. The finale will take place at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on October 18th, where BMW and Team WRT will look to secure both crowns and close the 2025 IGTC season in style.

Before that, the team will turn its attention to the GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup finale at Valencia next weekend (September 20–21). There, WRT will defend its leadership in both the Sprint Team and Driver standings’, aiming to cap off a successful sprint season on a high note.

Vincent VOSSE, Team Principal Team WRT: “What a great feeling winning this important IGTC race! The last time we were here we won the race also! We had a strong car from the start until the end. But you never know what can happen! We’ve been a little bit under pressure at some point as I think the Porsche made a better strategy than us. Luckily we could come back and win the race. This win is super important for us, for BMW and for the championship. Onto the next one!”

Dan HARPER, driver #31: "Very warm and humid race! Super great that the sister car got the victory. They’ve been flying all weekend long. It’s fully deserved: pole and leading the whole race. It’s great for BMW for the Manufacturers championship which was the main aim this weekend. A shame for us on the #31 but we did not have the pace that the #32 had. We were fighting hard to stay in the Top 5. We took the chequered flag on fifth place before getting a penalty for an incident earlier in the race and we finished P6. Still good points. It was super nice to be back with Team WRT and great to join the celebrations with the sister car”.

Raffaele MARCIELLO, driver #32: “I’m super happy. It’s a very nice race to win! I won it in 2018, then on the podium with Kelvin in 2019 and now back together on the top spot. It was an amazing race, the car was amazing and my teammates did an amazing job! It was a nice reward for our work. Thanks to Team WRT and to BMW!”

Kelvin VAN DER LINDE, driver #32: “Great to make it back to back wins here with Team WRT. The team has been amazing all week. The car was flawless and we did no mistakes so we managed to bring the win home! I’m super proud of everyone!”

Charles WEERTS, driver #32: “I’m extremely happy! It was my first time and first race in Japan! To be able to score the pole position and the win is a perfect race. It’s a dream! Huge thanks to my teammates for the great job, to WRT and to BMW for giving us such a competitive car! On to many more!”