The 2025 VSCA SportsCar Championship returned from the summer break with a race as unpredictable as it was unforgettable. Round 9, the “6 Hours at The Brickyard” at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, doubled as the fourth round of the Endurance Cup, and lived up to its billing with 18 lead changes in GT AM class, late-race drama, and a surprise winner. When the checkered flag waved, it was the #74 SRN Motorsports Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R that stood atop the GT AM class — not by crossing the line first, but by inheriting victory after post-race penalties.
The team of Tim Mcleish, Daniel Graulty, and Laurence Dobrot emerged as unlikely winners in what was their maiden points-paying victory in VSCA competition. Their consistent pace, combined with a hard-fought final stint from Graulty and a bit of fortune, delivered the breakthrough they had been chasing all season.
Early Leaders and Opening Chaos
Kyle Birnie kicked off the race with intent, claiming pole for the #34 Wastegate Racing Corvette with a 1:24.223 lap and retaining the lead at the start. But it didn’t take long for trouble to strike elsewhere: on lap 4, Thomas E Fisher’s #64 Vulture Motorsports Ford was hit in Turn 1 by the GT PRO class #12 BMW M4 GT3 from Delta Racing, plummeting from third to last.
Soon after, the pole-sitting #34 Corvette was also a victim. Rookie Esports #100 Dallara LMP2 driver Josh Howard, who made his series debut, made contact with Birnie in Turn 1, handing the class lead to John T Jones in the #29 Team Vortex Acura. Yet the race had barely settled into rhythm before the first round of pit stops began. Birnie reclaimed the lead on lap 40 with a move into Turn 1 before pitting two laps later and handing over to Tamer Elbaga.
The early pit cycle saw brief stints at the front for several competitors. The #74 Corvette with Graulty and later Dobrot took a turn at the front, while debutants Kurtis and Kris Tryber in the #57 Double Stint McLaren impressed by leading laps in the race. But as the dust settled, the #34 Corvette returned to the top spot—only for technical gremlins to strike.
Setback for #34 Corvette, #64 Mustang times first FCY perfectly
Lap 81 proved pivotal as electrical issues struck the #34 Wastegate Corvette, dropping the early favorites to P11. Their sister car, the #33, picked up the slack and took over the lead. A full-course yellow just after the two-hour mark compressed the field and gave several teams a chance to reshuffle their strategy.
Fisher in the #64 Mustang, having pitted just before the caution, stayed out under yellow and found himself in the lead and held off the #33 on the restart. However, by lap 106, pit strategy again reshuffled the order, with Ryan Steinhoff returning the lead to the #33 car.
The second full-course yellow at hour five bunched the field once more, setting the stage for a thrilling conclusion. Tamer Elbaga, back in the #34 Corvette, began carving through the field and clawed back to the lead on lap 205 with a daring move on the #57 McLaren in Turn 7. But the celebrations were short-lived.
Drama in final stages, involving #34 Corvette and #57 McLaren
With just over 30 minutes to go, Elbaga was startled to find the leading LMP2 car spinning ahead of him through Turn 4. Although he avoided contact, the near-miss allowed Kris Tryber in the #57 to pounce. The two cars ran side-by-side through Turns 1 and 2 before making contact, prompting drive-through penalties for both.
That handed the lead back to the #33 Wastegate Corvette, which crossed the line first. But any celebration was cut short post-race when the team was disqualified for fielding Ryan Steinhoff, who was listed as an ineligible driver. The penalty elevated the #74 SRN Motorsports Corvette to a stunning victory by 9.496 seconds.
Podium Finishers and Notable Performances
Second place went to the #29 Team Vortex Acura of John T Jones and Paul Romaninsky. While Jones rued a self-inflicted spin during the final restart, the team still walked away with a strong result and championship momentum. Romaninsky, in only his second outing with the team, praised their focus and consistency.
Third place went to the #532 Pandemonium eSports x Sim-Lab McLaren 720S GT3 EVO, which quietly surged up six positions from ninth on the grid. The combo of Josh Toothman and Henry Handy delivered a smart, clean drive to round out the podium.
Elsewhere, the #34 Wastegate Corvette of Birnie and Elbaga finished fourth after a valiant comeback, while the #94 SWF Motorsports Porsche completed the top five in another consistent outing. Sixth went to the #13 KTD Competición McLaren, followed by the recovering #64 Vulture Motorsports Ford in seventh.
Germany’s #515 Wolf Motorsport Simracing Porsche finished eighth, ahead of the #83 Off in the Esses McLaren in ninth, which battled setup issues and an incident-plagued day. Rounding out the top ten was the #555 PULSAR eSports Team McLaren.
Post-Race Reactions
Kyle Birnie, #34 Wastegate Racing Chevrolet: "This race was an emotional roller coaster. Qualifying pole and leading early extending our lead to over 10 seconds before the FCY, we knew we were contenders."
"But then we had the disconnect at the start and ultimately dropped to last place about 1/2 of a lap down after the restart. But fought our way back to P3, and then P2 after the second FCY."
"While fighting for P1 we unfortunately had contact from both drivers ultimately fighting too hard that took us out of contention for the win. It was the high and the lows but feels like it’s just how our season has been. Unable to put together a clean race and that’s what we’ve struggled with all season for all 3 WGR cars."
"We had the pace in both our GT cars. It was amazing seeing both cars in the top 3 with less than an hour to go. We are closer than we have ever been as a team to getting that breakthrough first win, just a few last things we need to focus on and we will be there."
"It’s not a matter of if, but when. But I’m a super happy with everyone. Tamer and myself had amazing pace, Aaron and Ryan also had amazing pace and seeing them thrive at this race when 2 years ago at this track it was one of their worst races in VSCA, and Niclas and Selena showed amazing pace while they were fighting hybrid deployment issues all race."
"Overall, our team is showing amazing grit and fight but this race gave us some good momentum to carry into the final two races of the season."
John T Jones, #29 Team Vortex Acura: "We are happy that we got a good finish, however I also feel like I let a potential win slip away when I spun on the last restart, very frustrated with myself about that one especially with the amount of testing and practice that was put in during the summer break."
"We would love to see ourselves at the top of the podium by season end and believe we can achieve that. We are working constantly to make that a reality. The competition in VSCA is fierce, you can't really count out anyone in the GTAM class."
"We just have to keep putting together good races. We went into this race knowing we had good pace and we just had to stay out of trouble with the faster traffic, we were pleasantly surprised that the faster classes were being as patient as they were when they could, we did have a couple of moments where we felt there was a bit of a late lunge but we also realized there was a close battle for position going on there and expected it."
"I would say our biggest challenge was when we got late in a run, our tires just seemed to give up more than most of the competition. Not sure why yet but I am working to figure that out."
"I saw a lot of give and take within the AM class throughout the race. I had one of the best battles I have ever had in VSCA at the end of the race with the #94 SWF Motorsports Porsche being piloted by Jason RR Smith, good clean hard racing, actually had a grin ear to ear trying to get past him. He made that car 5 feet wider than it actually was and placed it in the perfect position for several laps forcing me to stay behind him."
"Once I did get past him I made a mistake and let him back through. I did not know if I would or could get past him again but a lap or two later he made a mistake and I was able to go by."
"I think the changes to the FCY procedure allowing for class sorting throughout the field was a big plus and made a huge difference in the quality of racing so a huge shout out to VSCA for listening to the teams and implementing that at such a late stage of the season when it would have been easier to shelve the idea for next season."
Michael Garrone, #83 Off in the Esses Racing McLaren: "We got the setup philosophy wrong, which made the car pretty tough to drive, and was hard to match pace with everyone."
"Despite that we were putting together a decent race strategy wise and working our way up, contact with an LMP2 into T1 gave us a drive through. That was ultimately the beginning of the end for us as our race kind of snowballed, with a pretty big incident with the #13 after the last restart giving us pretty big damage."
"We were quite surprised to actually see we didn’t lose as much as we initially expected, so fortunate on that front. As far as turning things around, we have already put that last race behind us, so for us it’s just getting back to doing what we know we’re capable of."
"We’ve had really strong pace in our class all year, so we feel like as long as we put in the preparation, we’ll be right back up there fighting for the win."
Patrick Boilard, #83 Off in the Esses Racing McLaren: "A disappointing day for us at Indy. We went in the wrong direction with the setup and it ultimately cost us."
"A few unlucky incidents and now we're in damage control. Not a great spot going into the last two. Vulture is on our tail and multiple teams on the grid can steal points that are crucial. We need to be dialed in and keep it clean."
Tamer Elbaga, #34 Wastegate Racing Chevrolet: "It was both exciting to be running P1 with 15 min to go with the issues we had and gutting the way it ended. My teammate and I seemed to have the pace needed to take a victory at Indy."
"Despite being hit by an out of class car and a technical disconnect that cost us 3 min, we were still right there. Even the battle with P2 in the last hour of the race was incredible until the contact that put us over the incident limit."
"Honestly, it was fantastic to see we had the pace to win the race. I really don't think there's a whole lot different we can do. We just need a bit of luck on our side to get one of these wins!"
Daniel Graulty, #74 SRN Motorsports Chevrolet: "As a team, our first win is a big deal. It backs up what we knew, that we can be competitive for podiums and wins. We are excited to get the win."
"We knew we had podium pace all weekend but had setbacks in the race. So coming out with the win was amazing. We made a mistake getting entered for Sebring which also cost us a chance to run at the next race. For the remainder of the season, we just want to compete for podiums to get us ready for 2026."
"As a team, we lost out on our pit stop time. We'll have to figure out why that was happening. As a driver, getting set back by an incident drive through was tough to see. But after the last restart, I drove the stint of my life to get us from around 10th up to the front."
"It was maybe the stint of my career so far. My teammate, Laurence Dobrot, called it, 'a PhD class in race craft.'"
Paul Romaninsky, #29 Team Vortex Acura: "I'm super excited about our team's finish! We stuck to our strategy and it paid off in the end."
"A huge thank you goes out to John and the Vortex team for signing me and allowing me to compete! Being newer to the team, I've enjoyed learning about their current season and what's left on schedule."
"The amount of focus and practice that they put into each race should favor us moving forward and keep the trending going in the right direction."
"Endurance racing is generally a battle of attrition, especially at Indy's road course. Keeping the car as clean and safe at every moment of the race was our main focus and we did a pretty good job of it."
Championship Picture Tightens Ahead of Road America
With just two rounds remaining, the championship battles remain finely poised. In the GT AM overall standings, the #83 Off in the Esses McLaren retains the top spot with 2,624 points, 38 clear of the #64 Vulture Mustang. The #94 SWF Porsche sits in third, 190 points back.
The Endurance Cup is just as tense. The #83 team also leads that battle, with the #64 just 8 points behind and the #515 Wolf Porsche only one point further back.
Round 10, the JRT Road America 160, is next up on September 27. With a high-speed layout and championship implications mounting, the stage is set for another dramatic chapter in this turbulent GT AM season.
Related Links