BMW teams Random Vandals Racing and Turner Motorsport had very successful weekends in May 2025 at Sebring International Raceway, with both teams competing in the pair of GT World Challenge America races, and Turner also competing in GT America.
In race one, the #99 Random Vandals Racing BMW M4 GT3 EVO of Connor De Phillippi and Kenton Koch (shown in top photo) started from the Pro class pole and Koch held the lead before passing the car off to De Phillippi, who then held on for the win despite some pressure from Porsche driver Jan Heylen. “We just had to be really precise with how we managed that stint,” said De Phillippi. “ I knew if I pushed too hard early, I’d be suffering by the end, so I focused on being consistent right from the start. I expected that middle phase of the stint to be tough, that’s when Jan (Heylen) was coming, and I was just hoping his tires would be gone by the time he caught me. I made a couple of mistakes that let him close the gap a bit, but it was great racing, and I’m excited for what’s next.”
Connor De Phillippi celebrates victory.
The Random Vandals #51 car of Bill Auberlen and Varun Choksey also had a strong race, finishing on the Pro class podium in third. Auberlen put in a strong opening stint to move up several positions and then passed off to Choksey, who did a great job holding off Mercedes factory driver Mikhail Grenier for the final podium spot. In the Pro-Am class, the Turner Motorsport duo of Justin Rothberg and Robby Foley started third and finished on the podium in third behind the winning #11 DXDT Racing Corvette and the second place #91 Regulator Racing Mercedes-AMG.
Bill Auberlen and Varun Choksey finished third in the Pro class in race one.
The #99 car of Koch and De Phillippi had another great race in race two, starting from the Pro class pole and third overall before moving into the overall lead and taking another win. Auberlen and Choksey finished fourth in Pro and overall.
Robby Foley was on pole for race two at Sebring.
Some of the best racing action of the weekend took place in the Pro-Am class in race two. Robby Foley started from the overall pole and held the lead for his entire stint before handing off to Rothberg. Rothberg then faced considerable pressure from Blake McDonald in the #11 Corvette, with the two running side-by-side and rubbing fenders while battling for position. Rothberg held on to the lead, then held off strong pressure from Mercedes-AMG factory driver Philipp Ellis on the final lap to get the win. “Robby told me, ‘run the lap of your life and don’t look in the mirrors.’” said Rothberg. “So that’s exactly what I tried to do. It was a great race, and I’m really happy with the result. Robby did an amazing job putting it on pole and managing his stint. He handed me the car in a great position, and we pulled through. All in all, it’s been an incredible teammate pairing this year.”
Robby Foley and Justin Rothberg won the Pro-Am class in race two for Turner Motorsport.
In GT America, which is a sprint race series for single drivers with no pit stops, Justin Rothberg scored a pair of podium finishes for Turner Motorsport, finishing second in race one behind former Indy Car driver Memo Gidley in and Audi, and third in race two behind Porsche driver Kyle Washington and Gidley. Rothberg was given a balance of performance adjustment of 26kg on his M4 GT3 EVO before the Sebring races.
The GT World Challenge America and GT America races have a break for drivers to compete in the 24 Hours of Spa and will return to action at Virginia International Raceway on July 18th-20th.
—David Haueter
[Photos courtesy SRO]
