Last lap drama determines finish of IMSA sportscar championship at Laguna Seca.

For two hours and thirty minutes, the no. 31 Whelen Cadillac first chased the lead closely and then held the advantage decisively. But the StubHub Monterey SportsCar Championship at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca ended at two hours and forty minutes.

“With about 10 laps to go the 5 just appeared out of nowhere,” says Earl Bamber, who finished the race in the Cadillac V-Series.R started by co-driver Jack Aitken.

The no. 5 JDC-Miller Motorsports Porsche 963 piloted by Tijmen van der Helm and Laurin Heinrich started the race as an afterthought, last of the GTP prototypes on the grid. But the privateer team amongst factory-backed cars that had languished in its four years had a secret weapon. In Heinrich’s two previous appearances at Laguna Seca, he had never finished anywhere but first, claiming victories in a GTD class Porsche 911 GT3 R prepared by AO Racing in 2024 and ’25.

The team also entered the final stint with a tire advantage. With time running down in Sunday’s race, the Whelen Cadillac team opted for track position–a quick pit stop without a tire change. But the no. 5 Porsche had driven a steady race and was on new rubber.

“Our strength was tires,” Heinrich says. “We were pushing flat out.”

The no. 5 had gained on the field through the second half of the race. With just under 15 minutes to go, Heinrich was in third, hunting down the no. 25 BMW M Team WRT M Hybrid V8. Moments later, he grabbed second, ripping by the BMW in Turn 10.

But the no. 31 was still in front, on fading tires but with a talented veteran behind the wheel. Bamber used slower traffic to pin Heinrich and hold the lead.

“I could see his experience,” Heinrich says, crediting his rival. “It was hard, but fair. I really enjoyed this type of racing.”

The two cars remained locked together as time ran down. On the final lap, Heinrich forced his machine alongside the no. 31 in Turn 3 and completed the pass heading into Turn 5.

“I got a couple of good runs through traffic on the last–second-to-last–lap,” Bamber observes. “But he just had much more grip than us at the end.”

For JDC-Miller Motorsports owner John Church, the win is a mark of vindication, the team’s first since 2021–and the first in the modern GTP prototype era.

“It hasn’t sunk in 100 percent yet,” Church notes. “We started here four years ago and didn’t have any idea what we were doing with this car.”

Almost forgotten in the victory was that the no. 5 Porsche had started at the back of the GTP field.

“That happens one out of 100,” van der Helm says.

GTD Pro

It was a day in which strategy calls determined outcomes, and nowhere was this more evident than in the GTD Pro class.

For much of the race, the no. 77 AO Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R battled with the no. 3 Corvette Racing/Pratt Miller Motorsports Z06 GT3.R machine, as well as the no. 14 Vasser Sullivan Racing Lexus RC F GT3 and no 1 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 Evo at the front. 

But with those teams focused on the fight, the no. 65 Ford Racing Mustang GT3 bided its time.

“We knew they were hoping for yellow,” reports Frederic Vervisch, co-driver of the Mustang with Christopher Mies. “I think about 70 minutes before the end of the race, we knew they’d have to pit for fuel. But they were still driving. We had to wait to see if they’d go into pit lane.”

When the four leaders finally succumbed to the inevitable, Vervisch adds, “It was a nice feeling.”

Still, there was a threat from the Corvette in the hands of Nicky Catsburg in the chase. And the Mustang’s crew had decided to double-stint the tires.

“I thought the Corvette would pass me,” Vervisch says. He and Mies claimed the GTD Pro crown.

GTD

There was no such drama for the no. 45 Wayne Taylor Racing Lamborghini Huracan GT3 Evo2 in the GTD class. Danny Formal and Trent Hindman finished a lap ahead of class competition.

“There was mutual trust to execute the strategy,” Hindman points out. “It was no fluke. It goes to show as a team and organization you can execute well.”