Kenton Koch knows a thing or two about driving a GT3 or GT4 BMW race car. He won two championships in 2025, taking the SRO GT4 America Silver class title with co-driver Kevin Boehm in a Random Vandals Racing M4 GT4 EVO, and winning the Pro class of the SRO GT World Challenge America championship with Connor De Phillippi in a Random Vandals M4 GT3 EVO. Koch and Boehm were dominant in GT4 America, winning seven times and scoring an addition three podium finishes in the #97 M4 GT4 EVO.
I sat down with Kenton after the October Indianapolis SRO finale and he had some very insightful comments about GT4 racing and the M4 GT4 EVO, including how it compares to the GT3 EVO. We expect to see Koch back in BMWs in both GT4 and GT3 classes in 2026, though his BMW programs have yet to be announced.
Koch on what makes GT4 racing so close:
The racing is really good in GT4. Some of that just comes from the spec that the cars are built to, with a lack of aero and relatively small tires in comparison to the car. The formula for GT4 is kind of like big Mazda MX-5’s. The M4 GT4 EVO has enough power and enough downforce to make it fun to drive, but the aero is not something the cars are heavily relying on to stay on the track like in GT3. In GT4, you can follow other cars really closely, which allows you as a driver to take more advantage of opportunities, and that’s why the racing is so close.
On the competitiveness of SRO GT4 America
You can go down the list in GT4 America and there’s a lot of good drivers. When you put in that GT4 formula the racing can get really interesting. I’ve always loved GT4. If I had to spend the rest of my life in one category, it would be GT4, just because it’s so much fun and the racing is always super strong. If we had twice the amount of GT3 cars (in GT World Challenge America), you might have similar situations, just because of the amount of traffic that may create more opportunities. With the number of cars we have there now, we get kind of stretched out and it’s not quite as entertaining.
M4 GT4 EVO compared to M4 GT3 EVO
They’re very different. The only thing that’s the same is the steering wheel, and even there the buttons have different functions. The M4 GT4 EVO actually feels nicer to drive than the M4 GT3 EVO. The front end always feels really good in the GT4 car versus the GT3 car. In the M4 GT3 EVO, you’re constantly battling trying to have enough front grip without making the rear feel too loose. It’s really hard to get the setup on the GT3 car in the right window where the front and the rear work in unison together, so you’re always compromised on the setup to manage one axle or the other. In the M4 GT4 EVO, the window is wider, so it’s easier to get the setup right. Going from GT4 qualifying to GT3 qualifying is always the trickiest part of an SRO weekend I would say.
[Photos by David Haueter]
