Significantly Different Landscape Beckons for 2025 GTP Season
January 21, 2025
By John Oreovicz
IMSA Wire Service
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – It’s often said the more things change, the more they stay the same. That adage could be used to describe the Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) class heading into the 2025 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season.
Twelve GTP entries will line up on the grid January 25 for the 63rd running of the Rolex 24 At Daytona International Speedway, and every one of them is incorporating some element of change in terms of driver lineup and/or team/manufacturer partnership compared to 2024.
The quest for progress and perfection is relentless, as evidenced by the shuffled driver lineups at Porsche Penske Motorsport, the defending GTP class champion team.
“There are a lot of things happening in the background for us at Porsche Penske Motorsport, and I guess for every team on this grid there have been a lot of changes,” said Mathieu Jaminet, winner of two races in 2024 paired with Nick Tandy in PPM’s No. 6 Porsche 963.
A key moment in March 2024 triggered a domino effect of significant changes for 2025. Cadillac announced it was ending its collaboration with Chip Ganassi Racing after four seasons.
In June, Acura confirmed it would turn back to Meyer Shank Racing with Curb Agajanian to lead its 2025 attack, leaving the door open for its 2021-24 partner team Wayne Taylor Racing to re-establish its longtime links to General Motors and Cadillac. BMW M Motorsport underwent a through revamp of its worldwide sports car driver program. And on the driver front, Pipo Derani sent a stir through the paddock by departing Cadillac Whelen Racing.
It all adds up to a 2025 GTP lineup that features a surprising amount of change. Here’s a look at what’s new for 2025, while also noting what has stayed the same:
Porsche Penske Motorsport
Porsche 963
No. 6
2024 Drivers: Mathieu Jaminet, Nick Tandy, Kevin Estre, Laurens Vanthoor, Fred Makowiecki
2025 Drivers: Mathieu Jaminet, Matt Campbell, Kevin Estre
No. 7
2024 Drivers: Felipe Nasr, Dane Cameron, Matt Campbell, Josef Newgarden
2025 Drivers: Felipe Nasr, Nick Tandy, Laurens Vanthoor
A streamlined Porsche Penske Motorsport lineup has the same three drivers set for 2025 after intermittent 2024 IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup changes. Jaminet continues in the No. 6 car and is reunited with Matt Campbell, as they hope to match their 2022 IMSA GTD PRO title achieved with Pfaff Motorsports. Tandy shifts into the No. 7 car to pair with defending GTP co-champion Felipe Nasr.
“It’s a change without a change, to be honest,” Jaminet said. “Nick and I worked well and had a lot of success. We couldn’t put a championship together but had a lot of wins and podiums. It was good to learn from him the last couple years, especially technically. It was really a surprise that we didn’t continue, but now the opportunity came up to be together with Matt again. It just feels natural, not like a change.”
Campbell drove the No. 7 IMSA Porsche in 2023 and spent the 2024 season in one of Porsche Penske Motorsport FIA World Endurance Championship entries. Tandy, now in the No. 7 car, noted a different factor to monitor.
“We’ve been mixed around, but it’s the same core four drivers,” Tandy added. “Probably the most difficult thing will be in the pits and not stopping at the No. 6 sign board.”
The notable departure is Dane Cameron, the 2024 GTP co-champion with Nasr who joins Tom Sneva as a driver who lost his ride shortly after winning a championship with Team Penske. But the four-time IMSA champion has a new ride set in the No. 99 AO Racing ORECA LMP2 07, “Spike,” in the Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) class.
Cadillac Wayne Taylor Racing
2024: Acura ARX-06
2025: Cadillac V-Series.R
No. 10
2024 Drivers: Ricky Taylor, Filipe Albuquerque, Brendon Hartley, Marcus Ericsson
2025 Drivers: Ricky Taylor, Filipe Albuquerque, Brendon Hartley, Will Stevens
No. 40
2024 Drivers: Jordan Taylor, Louis Deletraz, Jenson Button, Colton Herta
2025 Drivers: Jordan Taylor, Louis Deletraz, Alex Lynn, Kamui Kobayashi
Wayne Taylor’s association with General Motors spans more than 30 years, so it was no surprise to see him rekindle a relationship with Cadillac that produced the 2017 IMSA Daytona Prototype (DPi) championship and multiple Rolex 24 At Daytona victories. Wayne Taylor Racing served as a factory Acura team from 2021-24 and in that time, expanded to a full-time, two-car program.
WTR embarks on its new Cadillac era with the least altered driver lineup of any team on the GTP grid. Both teams keep their same full-time core lineups and make minor adjustments among their Michelin Endurance Cup extras, and Ricky Taylor noted his excitement more for a second year with two cars.
“It seems like every year we’ve had something new going on, so I think we’re used to change,” he explained. “But in a lot of ways, it’s nice to keep things consistent.”
BMW M Team RLL
BMW M Hybrid V8
No. 24
2024 Drivers: Augusto Farfus, Jesse Krohn, Dries Vanthoor, Philipp Eng
2025 Drivers: Dries Vanthoor, Philipp Eng, Kevin Magnussen, Raffaelle Marciello
No. 25
2024 Drivers: Nick Yelloly, Connor De Phillippi, Maxime Martin, Rene Rast
2025 Drivers: Marco Wittmann, Sheldon van der Linde, Robin Frijns, Rene Rast
Wholesale changes come to BMW M Team RLL, with an almost completely new full-season IMSA driver lineup and three of four new endurance drivers. Phillipp Eng is the lone full-time driver to return in 2025 in the No. 24 car and will be joined for the full season by Dries Vanthoor, whose only ride with the team last year was in the Rolex 24. Marco Wittmann and Sheldon van der Linde share the No. 25 car. While van der Linde and Vanthoor will race both WEC and IMSA races, they’ll race the IMSA event in Monterey in May on a conflict weekend. BMW’s WEC drivers fill out the IMSA lineup for Michelin Endurance Cup races, including new recruit Kevin Magnussen.
Nick Yelloly heads to Acura Meyer Shank Racing with Curb Agajanian, and Augusto Farfus, Jesse Krohn and Connor De Phillippi found seats in the two Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 EVO entries in Grand Touring Daytona Pro (GTD PRO).
Cadillac Whelen (Action Express Racing)
Cadillac V-Series.R
No. 31
2024 Drivers: Pipo Derani, Jack Aitken, Tom Blomqvist
2025 Drivers: Jack Aitken, Earl Bamber, Frederik Vesti, Felipe Drugovich
Cadillac Whelen adjusted its GTP program in the wake of Pipo Derani’s departure to become part of the new Genesis Magma Racing program coming online in the future. Cadillac veteran and versatile sports car ace Earl Bamber fills his role, while young drivers Frederik Vesti and Felipe Drugovich have a great opportunity as endurance extras. Jack Aitken, meanwhile, looks forward to racing alongside Bamber.
“I think there’s a lot to be said for a fresh pair of eyes,” Aitken said. “Pipo has been a great teammate since I joined Action Express and Cadillac, but Earl also brings a ton of experience and has won at the top level. We’re already getting on very well on testing and it’s been smooth sailing.”
Acura Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb Agajanian
Acura ARX-06
No. 60
2024: Did not compete
2025 Drivers: Tom Blomqvist, Colin Braun, Scott Dixon, Felix Rosenqvist
No. 93
2024: Did not compete
2025 Drivers: Renger van der Zande, Nick Yelloly, Alex Palou, Kakunoshin “Kaku” Ohta
The strengthened overall Acura Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb Agajanian organization returns to IMSA as the flagship team for Honda Racing Corporation USA (HRC US) and the Acura brand. Tom Blomqvist and Colin Braun are back in the No. 60 car after nearly winning the 2023 GTP class championship.
The bigger news, perhaps, is MSR’s expansion to two GTP entries. HRC staff will engineer the No. 93 car, and it will features the strong driver lineup of Renger van der Zande and Nick Yelloly, formerly of Cadillac and BMW, respectively. Shank’s endurance drivers include IndyCar champions Alex Palou and Scott Dixon (part of a new technical alliance between the Shank and Ganassi IndyCar teams), MSR IndyCar driver Felix Rosenqvist, and Honda-affiliated Kaku Ohta.
“At the end of the day, every car has four wheels and a steering wheel, and that makes things easy,” van der Zande said. “Just keep the basics in place and bring that thing around as fast as you can. The Acura is a completely different car than the Cadillac and the hardest thing is learning all the new systems.”
Automobili Lamborghini Squadra Corse
Lamborghini SC63
No. 63
2024 Drivers: Andrea Caldarelli, Matteo Cairoli, Romain Grosjean
2025 Drivers: Mirko Bortolotti, Daniil Kyvat, Romain Grosjean, Edoardo Mortara
Driver Romain Grosjean is about the only common denominator in Lamborghini’s 2024 and 2025 programs. Lamborghini will again contest the IMSA Michelin Endurance Championship, but this is the SC63’s first appearance in the Rolex 24 at Daytona.
Proton Competition
Porsche 963
No. 5
2024 Drivers: Gianmaria Bruni, Bent Viscaal, Alessio Picariello, Neel Jani, Romain Dumas, Julien Andlauer, Mike Rockenfeller
2025 Drivers: Neel Jani, Tristan Vautier, Nico Pino, Julien Andlauer
A rotating lineup cycled through Proton Competition’s No. 5 Porsche 963 in 2024. Neel Jani and Julien Andlauer made selected starts in the car last year while Tristan Vautier and Nico Pino are team newcomers.
JDC-Miller MotorSports
Porsche 963
No. 85
2024 Drivers: Tijmen van der Helm, Richard Westbrook, Phil Hanson, Ben Keating
2025 Drivers: Tijmen van der Helm, Gianmaria Bruni, Pascal Wehrlein, Bryce Aron
Another customer Porsche, the distinctive yellow JDC-Miller MotorSports entry returns with young Dutchman Tijmen van der Helm but swaps in former Porsche factory driver Gianmaria Bruni for the retiring Richard Westbrook. Bryce Aron and Porsche factory driver, Formula E champion Pascal Wehrlein, complete the Rolex 24 lineup.
