Francis Selldorff drove an M4 GT4 for Turner Motorsport from 2023 through 2025, first in the IMSA VP SportsCar Challenge series in 2023 and then the Michelin Pilot Challenge series in 2024-2025. He’s moving up the ladder for 2026, joining Robby Foley and Patrick Gallagher in the M4 GT3 EVO for the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup races. Francis’s dad Frank Selldorff drove for Turner Motorsport a couple of decades ago, making him a second-generation racer. We caught up with Francis after the Rolex 24 at Daytona to talk about his first experience in a GT3 car in IMSA competition.
BimmerLife: What made you decide to get more involved in racing when you did? Was your dad a big influence?
Francis Selldorff: My Dad was definitely the main influence. I did some karting as a kid, and during COVID I really got the itch to go back to the track. I raced a Mini Cooper S in B-Spec and then an E46 M3 in T3 competition (in SCCA) before getting into VP Challenge in the M4 GT4 in 2023.
BL: Was the Apex 1 race at Sebring your first race in a GT3 car? And was that done to prepare for Daytona? (Francis drove an M4 GT3 in the Apex One 10H of Sebring in November 2025 and won with co-drivers Kevin Madsen and Adrian Kunzle).
Selldorff: Yes, Sebring was my first race. It wasn’t planned out to be preparation for Daytona, but it ended up working that way. I wasn’t really expecting to be doing Daytona at all, but the opportunity opened up. I really wanted to get into GT3 racing this year and didn’t really know what that would look like. Doing the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup races was by far the best opportunity I could get.
Selldorff (left) with Daytona co-drivers Robby Foley, Jens Klingmann and Patrick Gallagher. [Photo courtesy Turner Motorsport]
Selldorff: The M4 GT3 EVO is a pretty easy car to drive, but there’s so much more performance than in the M4 GT4 EVO. The GT4 car is a lot more like the M4 street car with more street car components and the M4 GT3 EVO is more of a pure race car. There is a lot more to wrap my head around with the GT3 and the increased performance is something I’ll have to get used to.
BL: Was the added downforce a big thing to get used to on the GT3 car?
Selldorff: Yeah, it was. For example, when I drove the car at Sebring in the Apex One race, I wasn’t flat in Bishop’s Bend in my first laps even though it should be easy to take flat in that car. I wasn’t used to the feeling of the car with the aero it has, so that took some getting used to. I’ve also learned about aero wash (when you’re behind another car and don’t get enough air going over your car, which compromises the downforce).
[Photo courtesy LAT Images]
Selldorff: The Roar test at Daytona (held a week before the race) was a lot easier than I expected because everyone is more relaxed. I did get a little nervous about it in my first stint in the race, which was mostly because I knew my task was just to keep the car clean for all the hours we had left in the race. I learned a lot in my first stint and got into more of a rhythm in my second stint in the car. The spotters are also super helpful for letting you know about faster traffic coming up, especially at night.
BL: Did you do longer stints in the car at Daytona than you did in the Sebring race back in the fall?
Selldorff: I think they were similar times. There were a lot fewer cars in the Sebring race, which made it more relaxed. Daytona is an easier track to drive, but there was a lot more going on with all the traffic and the faster cars.
[Photo by Jon van Woerden]
Selldorff: Yeah, too much. It was cool to race at night, but the fog got so thick right before the yellow that you couldn’t really see the first curb for the bus stop until you were right on top of it. I had just done a stint and was about to pit when it went yellow. At the time, I was thinking they were just going to red flag it (to temporarily stop the race), because they were saying the fog wouldn’t clear up until like 9:00am on Sunday morning. I was driving around a little under caution, and they never red-flagged it. I had done an hour stint and then did three hours under caution, so was in the car for around four hours, from midnight to 4:00am. I was trying not to fall asleep. Patrick (Gallagher) went in after me, and I think it might have been worse for him. I was thinking they might still go to a red flag and stop the race for around the first two hours I was in the car and maybe it wouldn’t be that long, but then Patrick had to get in the car knowing he was going to be driving under caution for three hours.
BL: You must be looking forward to the 12 Hours of Sebring in March since you already drove the M4 GT3 on that track and are more familiar with it in that car.
Selldorff: Yeah, and I think having gotten my first experience in a WeatherTech race with traffic that I’ll be more confident at Sebring and know more of what to expect, even though it’s a different situation.
—David Haueter
[Photos courtesy LAT Images, Turner Motorsport, Jon van Woerden]
