GT World Challenge Wins For Random Vandals, Turner Motorsport At COTA

The SRO GT World Challenge America and GT America series competed at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) this past weekend of April 25-26, 2025, in the third and fourth rounds of the season. BMW teams were very successful in some of the races but faced setbacks in others.

GT World Challenge America
In the first GT World Challenge America (GTWCA) race on Saturday, it looked like the Random Vandals Racing team was picking right up where they left off at Sonoma. Kenton Koch qualified third overall and second in the Pro class in the #99 M4 GT3 EVO, but it was later found that the car had a ride height infraction and had to start from the back. Bill Auberlen qualified the #51 Random Vandals M4 GT3 EVO in fourth overall and third in Pro, while Justin Rothberg qualified eighth overall and fourth in Pro-Am in the #29 Turner Motorsport M4 GT3 EVO.

Koch didn’t waste any time in moving up through the field in the first race after starting last. He gained nine positions on the opening lap and was quickly up into fifth place overall. It wasn’t long before he had caught up to Bill Auberlen in the #51 Random Vandals car, who followed team orders to let Koch by. Connor De Phillippi took over in the #99 after pit stops and was running in second behind Mercedes-AMG factory driver Mikael Grenier. However, the Mercedes-AMG was allotted a 1.74 second time penalty after the race for not meeting the minimum time in the pits, so all De Phillippi had to do was finish within less than 1.74 seconds of the Mercedes-AMG to get the win.

Connor De Phillippi (left) and Kenton Koch celebrate their race one win.

The last several laps were a nail biter to watch, as Grenier would stretch out the gap in some sections of the track while De Phillippi would close the gap in other segments. It came down to the last corner on the last lap before burying the throttle to the finish line, where the BMW finished 1.5 seconds behind the Mercedes to get the win. “It’s been interesting watching the ebb and flow of the last twenty minutes, because essentially you’re racing for this gap,” said Koch after the race. “We were stronger in the first two sectors, and in the third sector the Mercedes was quite good. Connor made a small mistake in the middle sector and I didn’t know if it was going to be enough, but he pulled it out on the final sector. The guys executed a very good race.” The #51 Random Vandals BMW had some bad luck. Auberlen and Varun Choksey were running in fourth overall most of the race but had an intake boost hose come off toward the end which resulted in a retirement.

Bill Auberlen and Varun Choksey had bad luck in both races.

In the Pro-Am class, the Turner Motorsport #29 M4 GT3 EVO of Robby Foley and Justin Rothberg had another strong race, finishing second behind the winning #11 Corvette. The #8 Flying Lizard Motorsport M4 GT3 EVO of Elias Sabo and Andy Lee was on pace to have a strong race in Pro-Am but had an electrical issue that led to their retirement.

Turner Motorsport finished second in Pro-Am in race one.

Race two went worse for the Turner Motorsport team and much worse for Random Vandals Racing than race one. Robby Foley started the #29 Turner car from the overall pole and held the lead for his entire stint before bringing the car in for a pit stop under caution. Unfortunately, the team had a tire gun issue while changing tires which set them back, with Justin Rothberg recovering to finish fifth in the Pro-Am class. The #8 Flying Lizard BMW didn’t compete in race two due to a business commitment for Elias Sabo.

Flying Lizard Motorsports had good pace with their M4 GT3 EVO, but had some electrical issues.

In race two in the Pro class, the #99 Random Vandals Racing BMW once again had to start from the back due to the penalty after qualifying. Connor De Phillippi started the race and was quickly moving up through the field, before he pushed too hard to get past an Aston Martin and subsequently ran into his teammate Varun Choksey in the #51 BMW. This resulted in damage to both cars as well as a penalty for De Phillippi, but both were able to get back out and finish 50% of the race, which is required for scoring any points. With only four cars in the Pro class, the #51 of Auberlen and Choksey was classified in third, with the #99 of De Phillippi and Koch in fourth.

GT America
In GT America, which is a sprint race series with single drivers and no required pit stops, Elias Sabo had a great start in the #8 Flying Lizard Motorsport BMW, as he qualified second and was running in second before being given a penalty for changing lanes too quickly at the start of the race. Justin Rothberg qualified fourth in the #29 Turner Motorsport BMW and moved up to second by the end, finishing behind Porsche driver Kyle Washington.

Justin Rothberg and Kyle Washington had a great battle in race two.

The second GT America race had the best action of the entire weekend, with a race-long battle between Rothberg and Washington. Rothberg started from the pole but was under pressure from Washington right away. Washington managed to get by Rothberg with around seventeen minutes left in the race, but Rothberg made a bold move a few minutes later to get by Washington and hold on for the win. “That was one of the most fun races I’ve had in a while,” said Rothberg. “Kyle was in my mirrors the entire time putting great pressure on me, and then he got by me with a nice move, and we traded back. That’s what you want in racing. It’s not ideal to get passed, but when it’s really fun racing like that, you can learn from it.”

Justin Rothberg celebrates his win in race two.

Fast Track Racing also competed in both GT America races, with an M4 GT4 EVO driven by Denny Stripling. He finished third in the GT4 class in both races, though there were only four cars in the class. The GTWCA and GT America series will next race at Sebring International Raceway in Florida on the weekend of May 16th-18th.