Vanthoor “Tried Everything” In Pursuit of Penske Porsches

Photo: Perry Nelson/IMSA

Dries Vanthoor says he “tried everything” hunting down the pair of Penske Porsche 963s in the closing stages of Sunday’s Monterey SportsCar Championship at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.

The BMW factory pilot, who started the race on pole and led in the early stages, ran third in his final stint once reinstalled in the No. 24 BMW M Hybrid V8. He closed down a near 15-second gap to Nick Tandy, who sat just behind the eventual race-winning No. 6 Porsche of Mathieu Jaminet.

The Belgian attempted a pass for second on the final lap into Turn 11 amidst GT traffic, resulting in contact with Tandy’s No. 7 machine and sending the No. 24 BMW GTP car off track at the final corner.

Vanthoor eventually got the car back on track and crossed the finish line under his own power to secure his and co-driver Philipp Eng’s second-consecutive podium finish, after the pair finished behind both Porsche Penske cars on the streets of Long Beach.

“Just to finish the race P3 fortunately, I think, was almost the maximum we could achieve at the end of the day,” Vanthoor said post-race. “The Porsches were just strong. They also did not have a flawless race, but at the end of the day, I think we tried everything we had.

“The Porsches were just very strong. Fair play to them. They were fast. You have to give credit. We did everything we could. I tried everything I could. There was nothing more in the car. I’m completely exhausted.”

Vanthoor labeled the late-race contact with Tandy as “more of a racing incident,” a sentiment echoed by IMSA race control, which determined that no action would be taken after the incident was reviewed.

“In the end, there was traffic in the second-to-last corner,” said Vanthoor. “He went on the left. I went on the inside. I was fully past him, my left rear wheel was at his front, and then he just turned right and pushed me.

“I think it’s very sad how it happened. But at the end of the day, it was more of a racing incident than something else, even though I feel like there could probably be a bit more from the Porsche side to let go, but it is what it is and we [will] go to the next one.”

Tandy also weighed in on the incident, saying that the contact with Vanthoor and its result was, “just a racing thing.”

“If I was in his position, I would have done exactly the same thing,” said the British driver. “It was the last corner of the last lap. We were three wide, and I think the car inside came across and Dries was coming the other way.

“It was going to end in contact when there were three cars going for one thing.”

Vanthoor has thus far been undefeated in WeatherTech Championship GTP qualifying in 2025, with his pole position for Sunday’s race being his fourth in succession.

However, the team has yet to convert their starting position into a win over Porsche Penske’s unbeaten pair of 963s.

“We still have some work to do following cars and on our own systems,” Vanthoor said. “I think we can still improve.

“So we still have work to do, but I think in the end, [being] two times on a podium now in two races is a very nice achievement. We just want more after the qualifying achievements we can get. We for sure want to win the race.”