A strong showing at the Rolex 24 at Daytona has not altered short-term expectations within BMW M Motorsport for Team WRT’s GTP programme ahead of this weekend’s Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring.
The Belgian team’s revamped #24 BMW M Hybrid V8 claimed third overall in the season opener, marking an impressive start to the squad’s first full-time campaign in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. Even so, both the team and BMW have remained cautious, mindful of WRT’s established success and experience running the car in the FIA World Endurance Championship.
That stance has not shifted in the wake of the podium finish, according to Andreas Roos, the head of BMW M Motorsport. The focus remains on closing the gap to the more established GTP front-running cars from Porsche, Acura and Cadillac.
“In the end, we are there to win races,” said Roos to DSC, “and we still have a step to go to also win on the GTP side.
“But it was a good first race in the 2026 season with, let’s say, our Evo car, with WRT taking over all the duties in the US.”
The Daytona result followed a rapid build-up over the winter, with WRT establishing its North American operation in just a matter of months.
“Because of the timing, when we took the decision to move everything to WRT and to ramp everything up, we knew it would be challenging,” Roos admitted. “In the end, we love challenges – and we managed to end up on the podium.
“But also, we have to be realistic. We are running in a super-competitive championship, and there are a lot of very good competitors in terms of brands, teams, drivers. We said we did everything we can do, and ended up on the podium. We are happy. And if not, then we have to look at what we have to do better for the next one.”
“You have to also keep your feet on the ground and be realistic with what you can do,” he adds. “We go to every race having in mind, we want to win the race.”
Attention now turns to the Sebring 12 Hours tomorrow, where Dries Vanthoor, Sheldon van der Linde and Robin Frijns will aim to secure back-to-back GTP podiums in the #24 BMW.
On the other side of the garage, Philipp Eng, Marco Wittmann and Kevin Magnussen will be targeting a stronger result after finishing eighth with the #25 entry at Daytona.
The German brand has skin in the GT game too, lest we forget. BMW’s success on the Daytona high banks back in January extended beyond the GTP class, with Paul Miller Racing claiming victory in GTD Pro, while Turner Motorsport showed strong pace in GTD before being caught up in late-race incidents.
“I mean, if you would have asked me before Daytona that we would win GTD Pro and be on the podium in GTP, I would have immediately signed – clear!” Roos said in reflection.
“It’s one of the biggest 24-hour races, and to win there with our M4 GT3 EVO and being with the Hypercar on the podium was really good for sure.”
