Fan-favourite Turner Motorsport has named its drivers for the upcoming IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship GTD class campaign, in anticipation of a milestone year for the New Hampshire-based crew.
Turner will scale back to a single-car entry after entering two BMWs in 2023. Patrick Gallagher and Robby Foley, who drove the #96 Turner BMW M4 GT3 full-time last season, will return for their second season together.
Gallagher and Foley had a strong first season together, finishing fourth in the GTD Championship with three second-place podium finishes at Sebring, VIR, and Road Atlanta.
They’ll be joined for the five-race Michelin Endurance Cup by 17-year-old Jake Walker, a graduate of the Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America series, and at the Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona by longtime BMW and Turner Motorsport driver Jens Klingmann.
“The 2024 season will see a renewed emphasis on the IMSA GTD championship with a focus on one BMW M4 GT3. Whether two, three or four drivers behind the wheel of the #96 machine we are looking to be even more competitive than we were last year,” said team founder, owner, and namesake Will Turner.
By the middle of the 2024 season, Turner Motorsport should set the record for most starts by a BMW racing team across all categories of professional racing. Their 535 starts are second only to the legendary Schnitzer Motorsport.
“I am extremely proud that by the end of the 2024 season, Turner Motorsport will have run the most races in the world for BMW. We have built a very strong programme in the last 25 years, and we all look forward to the next 25,” remarked the man who took the wheel for his team’s first race in 1998.
Turner also commented on the addition of Walker for the MEC rounds, following an impressive GT3 debut at the Indianapolis 8 Hour race with ST Racing. “I’ve had my eye on Jake for about a year now. At the Indy SRO race he got into a BMW M4 GT3 for the first time and was immediately competitive,” Turner said. “We need this 17-year-old in our car. He’s got a bright future.”
Walker effectively takes the place of Michael Dinan, who was on the provisional Rolex 24 Hours entry list released in November – but has now stepped up to a Michelin Endurance Cup campaign in LMP2 with Tower Motorsport.
This will be Klingmann’s eighth Daytona 24 Hours start with Turner Motorsport. The BMW works driver from Germany raced full-time in IMSA from 2016-17 before turning his attention to European and pan-Asian racing.
Feature image © IMSA
