The Michelin Pilot Challenge series competed at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on the weekend of September 19-20, 2025, for the penultimate round of the 2025 season. It was a challenging race for the M4 GT4 EVO entries, with just one BMW in the top five and three in the top ten.
Jake Walker, who usually competes in the VP SportsCar Challenge series in a Turner Motorsport M4 GT3 EVO, drove in his first Michelin Challenge race for the team in the #96 M4 GT4 EVO that he shared with Patrick Gallagher. Walker was the fastest BMW in qualifying in fourth, just four-tenths off the pole time of the #28 Porsche. Turner driver Dillon Machavern also made it into the top ten in qualifying in ninth, in the #95 M4 GT4 EVO that he shares with Francis Selldorff.
Francis Selldorff and Dillon Machavern finished tenth.
Sean McAlister, who is usually the fastest BMW in qualifying in the #39 Carbahn by Peregrine Racing (shown in top photo), started in thirteenth but moved up several positions in the opening laps. Within a few laps, he passed Jake Walker for sixth place after Walker had dropped back. The #39 looked set to the most successful BMW as the race progressed, with Jeff Westphal taking over after McAlister’s stint and driving up into fifth late in the race, which is where they finished.
Auto Technic Racing finished sixth with Stephan McAleer and Austin Krainz.
The #27 Auto Technic Racing M4 GT4 EVO of Stephan McAleer and Austin Krainz also had a solid race, with the duo moving up to sixth by the end of the race after starting in fourteenth. The Turner Motorsport #95 BMW of Machavern and Selldorff finished in tenth, while the #96 car of Walker and Gallagher fell back after Gallagher was penalized for hitting another car. They finished in fourteenth. The race was won by the #44 McLaren Artura GT4.
Patrick Gallagher and Jake Walker finished fourteenth after starting in fourth.
Going into the finale at Road Atlanta on the weekend of October 8th-11th, McAlister and Westphal are in second in the championship, 100 points behind leaders Jan Heylen and Luca Mars, who drive a Porsche for RS1 and finished in nineteenth at Indianapolis after suffering brake problems and later getting hit by another car that resulted in a flat tire. The manufacturer championship is very tight heading into the finale, with Porsche, BMW and Ford all separated by just fifty points.
—David Haueter
[Photos courtesy LAT Images]
