The No. 25 BMW M Hybrid V8 Wins IMSA Michelin Sustainability in Racing Award at WeatherTech Raceway
By Tony DiZinno
Monterey IMSA Michelin Sustainability in Racing Award Results
MONTEREY, Calif. – The new-for-2026 IMSA Michelin Sustainability in Racing Award had its first test in a standard-length two-hour, 40-minute IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship race at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.
BMW M Team WRT proved that you don’t need to win the race to prove your success in other key elements of the race.
BMW and WRT’s Monterey Sustainability Success
The No. 25 BMW M Hybrid V8 was the first Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) winner of the IMSA Michelin Sustainability in Racing Award that did not also win the race outright.
This No. 25 BMW had the lowest race score in Monterey, having emerged ahead versus several other competitors in a race that had several peaks and valleys in these standings.
Philipp Eng and Marco Wittmann finished third for their first podium of the year, having been equal with the winning No. 5 JDC-Miller MotorSports Porsche 963 on the ultimate winning strategy.
BMW M Team WRT was smart with its strategy throughout the race. The team ran both its cars longest in the first stint, well over an hour into the race, pitted again during the race’s only full-course caution, and then brought the No. 25 car in with 37 minutes remaining for its third and final stop in the race. The sister No. 24 car finished ninth.
“We struggled with the car’s balance all weekend, but in the race we did a perfect job,” Eng explained. “Marco drove fantastically, and I was able to save a lot of energy in my first stint, which helped us in the end.”
Vincent Vosse, Team Principal of BMW M Team WRT, expanded on the race:
“First podium of the season for Philipp and Marco – it was a good, strong race for them both,” Vosse said. “Congratulations to the entire crew! We brought the number 24 car into the lead with a shorter first pit stop, but the yellow flag that followed shortly afterward meant our strategy didn’t work out. That’s very unfortunate, but it’s something we have to take away as a lesson from this weekend.”
Tire strategy was pivotal in a race where double stinting either some or all four of Michelin’s new-for-2026 Pilot Sport Endurance tires, made with 50 percent sustainable materials, got extended run on a track notorious for high degradation, even after a recent repave.
The Sustainability Award Standings Battle So Far
The IMSA Michelin Sustainability in Racing Award covers three in-race metrics: Tire Use Rank, Energy Use Rank and Current Running Order/Finish Position, all ranked equally by tracking real-time data. The lowest score achieved in GTP wins for that race.
To expand further on what each means:
- Tire use is simply the number of tires used throughout the race, a key strategy decision as teams often double stint tires to gain positions on the track, especially during the five IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup rounds.
- Energy use covers both the use of 80-percent renewable biofuel, and in the case of LMDh cars, regenerative electric power.
- Running position / Finish position is self-explanatory, covering where each car stands during the race and ultimately finishes.
Through the first three races in Daytona, Sebring and Long Beach, the No. 7 Porsche Penske Motorsport Porsche 963 led these standings with a total score of 6.30, ahead of the No. 31 Cadillac Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R (9.98) and No. 93 Acura Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb Agajanian Acura ARX-06 (10.31).
Once all sustainability scores are factored in from Monterey, the updated standings will come later this week. As the No. 25 BMW entered the weekend ninth in points, they’ll move up.
There are four of nine GTP races now complete in 2026 across four different race lengths, featuring four different strategic options.
Now that a team has won this award without winning the race to prove the importance of efficiency, it’ll be fascinating to see if anyone else can achieve the feat in the remaining five GTP rounds.