Two BMWs Finished the Bathurst 12 Hour in the Top Five

The Bathurst 12 Hour was the opening round of the 2026 Intercontinental GT Challenge (IGTC) championship and took place this past weekend on the fantastic Mount Panorama circuit in Bathurst, Australia. BMW came in as defending race winners. While they fell short of the win this year, they had two cars finish in the top five in the dramatic race.

There were 35 cars on the entry for this year’s race, which was the highest number since 2020. BMW had three, including the #32 M4 GT3 EVO of Kelvin van der Linde, Charles Weerts and Jordan Pepper and the #46 car of Valentino Rossi, Raffaele Marciello and Augusto Farfus. A third BMW was entered by Team KRC, with Max Hesse, Maxime Oosten and Cunfan Ruan piloting the #89 M4 GT3 EVO. There were nine manufacturers with GT3 cars entered in the race, with Mercedes-AMG leading the way with nine entries. The #32 BMW was sporting a special tribute livery by artist Ken Done (who was at the Bathurst race) that commemorated the 1989 E30 M3 Art Car that he painted. Dones’ E30 M3 was the eighth Art Car that was completed, and the tribute was done as part of the 50th Anniversary celebration of the Art Car program, which started in 1975.

There was only one BMW that made it into the top 10 in qualifying, with Raffaele Marciello driving the #46 BMW to seventh on the grid, which was just four-tenths of a second behind the pole-sitting Mercedes-AMG. The top ten cars were all within a half-second of each other. Max Hesse qualified the #89 car in 1th, followed by Kelvin van der Linde in the #32 car in 12th.

Valentino Rossi (left) hands the #46 BMW over to Raffaele Marciello. (Photo courtesy Gruppe C Photography)

There’s always drama on the fast and dangerous Mount Panorama circuit, and the action started early in the race this year, thanks to a kangaroo. In the opening laps of the race while it was still dark out, a Ford Mustang GT3 hit a kangaroo at 150mph, which obliterated the kangaroo and the Mustang (the driver was okay). It also led to front end damage on the #32 BMW, which apparently hit part of the kangaroo that was left after the Mustang hit it. The #32 car was able to drive on but was eventually given a mechanical black flag that forced Team WRT to bring the car in for repairs.

The #32 BMW was leading late in the race but finished twelfth. (Photo courtesy Gruppe C Photography)

BMW came into the race at a disadvantage in fuel economy, as they were given an eight-liter reduction in fuel capacity before the race, but the many caution periods (including a one-hour red flag stoppage), allowed Team WRT to use good strategy calls to stay competitive. The #46 BMW stayed in the top five for most of the race and even led at times, while the #32 car fought back from the earlier accident to get into the top ten toward the end. In the closing hour, Team WRT elected to leave the #32 out on the track instead of pitting during a caution, which put it at the front with 40 minutes left, though Kelvin van der Linde was driving on well used tires.

The #89 Team KRC BMW finished fifth overall and second in the Bronze class. (Photo by Gruppe C Photography)

At the restart, van der Linde and Mercedes-AMG driver Jules Gounon made contact at turn one, which dropped the #32 down the order. The #46 was in the hunt as well but didn’t have the pace to fight for the win, finishing third behind the winning #888 Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO and the #86 Porsche 911 GT3R. “It was definitely a tough race,” said Marciello. “We were never the fastest car, but we tried our best. We were close to the lead several times but never really had the win in sight. We had to push all the time, and in the end, we secured third place. On one hand, it’s a bit frustrating because I’ve been on the Bathurst podium many times but never won. On the other hand, it’s a great podium with important points for the championship so we have reason to be happy.”

Raffaele Marciello (left), Valentino Rossi (middle) and Augusto Farfus celebrate third place. (Photo by Gruppe C Photography)

The #89 Team WRC BMW finished fifth overall and second among the Bronze class entries (which required a Bronze-rated driver), despite some front end damage that set them back. “Ruan and Maxime did a great job in the first two stints,” said Max Hesse. “Everything was going according to plan. In the third stint, we made a small driving error. We had significant damage to the car, no performance, and had to wait three hours for a yellow flag period. At that point, we thought the race had slipped away from us but the team did a top job, changed the front end – and for the last three hours, it was full attack. Of course, we would have liked to win, but as a Bronze car, to finish fifth overall and second in the category on our debut, we can be proud of that.” The #32 Team WRT BMW finished 12th.

The next two races on the five-race IGTC calendar are the two biggest and most important GT3 races anywhere in the world – the Nürburgring 24 Hour in mid-May, followed by the Spa 24 Hour race in late June. Both races are expected to have a strong BMW presence. For more information, visit the IGTC website.

—David Haueter
[Photos courtesy Gruppe C Photography]