As the sun broke through the clouds to illuminate the sky over Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Saturday morning, the Pirelli GT4 America field lit the track up with their first race of the weekend.
It was a thrilling 60-minute endeavor, with changes for the lead and swings in momentum taking place from start to finish. It was a great day for Toyota, as Smooge Racing took the Silver class win, while Precision Racing LA was victorious in Pro-Am. However, another consistent performance from ACI Motorsports saw them clinch the Pro-Am class championship title. In the Am class, Rotek Racing scored another first place finish, propelling them into the lead in the championship standings.
Silver class
Tyler Gonzalez started on the second row, but first in class on board his No. 68 Smooge Racing Toyota Gazoo Racing GR Supra GT4 EVO, and was quickly able to move past a Pro-Am competitor as he began to chase down the overall lead.
Michai Stephens was caught up in some wheel banging on the opening lap, but was able to hold position in his No. 34 JMF Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT4. John Capestro-Dubets held on to third in his No. 28 RS1 Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport, while championship rival Kevin Boehm dropped some overall positions at the start but continued to run fourth in class with the No. 97 Random Vandals Racing BMW M4 GT4 G82.
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As the pit stops and driver changes unfolded at the halfway mark, the running order was mostly unchanged, but RS1’s Eric Filgueiras did not wait long before capitalizing on an opportunity to move up into second in class. Just behind, Jesse Webb and Kenton Koch went side by side throughout multiple corners, with the latter getting the advantage to gain another spot.
With 15 minutes remaining, Koch was all over the back of Filgueiras’ rear bumper, with no room for error between the two. Five minutes later, after hunting him down, Koch found an opportunity to get past into second place, but the fight was not over as Filgueiras came back swinging.
Lewis cruised to victory, earning Smooge Racing’s second win of the season. Meanwhile, with Koch crucially taking second place over Filgueiras, the championship points gap was reduced even further heading into the final round.
“This win goes to the whole team at Smooge Racing, TRD, and Toyota Racing,” said Lewis. “Partnering with Tyler Gonzalez has been a blessing. We share the same mindset, and honestly, I see a lot of myself in him. He’s a phenomenal driver, and since we both like the same kind of race car, it makes the setup process easier for the team.”
Tyler’s start gave us a good buffer, and from there, it was up to me to maintain the gap,” he said. “I’m incredibly thankful for the opportunity to be a part of Smooge Racing again, and I can’t thank Toyota Racing, TRD, and Kevin Conway enough for giving me this lifeline to help the team. Winning at Indy is always special. My first win here was back in 2013, so this one brings back great memories. I’m beyond proud of the team — it’s been an incredible experience.”
“It all started with a strong start,” echoed Gonzalez. “I was able to get up to second, and from there, the top three of us just pulled away from the rest of the field. I can’t thank Toyota, GearWrench, and Smooge Racing enough. The Supra was dialed in perfectly, which made things easier for me. I handed the car off to Corey, who did an amazing job managing the gap and traffic. We teamed up halfway through the season, and I couldn’t be happier with how it’s gone. Congrats to Corey on a great stint.”
Pro-Am class
Matheus Leist started on pole position in the No. 89 RENNtech Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT4, but Kay van Berlo was on the charge as soon as the green flag waved. He muscled his way past on the opening lap, storming to the front of the field in his No. 7 ACI Motorsports Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport.
However, as the halfway mark approached, the battle reignited once more as Leist began fighting back and closing in, with Roman De Angelis waiting in the wings for a chance to strike in his No. 24 Heart of Racing Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4 EVO.
The front-runners pitted one after the other with just over 25 minutes to go, and went nose-to-tail as they returned to the track, with Curt Swearingin and Michael Auriemma taking over from their respective teammates.
It was a heartbreaking twist of events for the Heart of Racing team, as a tire puncture dropped them out of contention after De Angelis handed over the machine to Gray Newell.
In the second half of the race, a late-stage charge through the pack from Ryan Eversley in the No. 07 Precision Racing LA Toyota Gazoo Racing GR Supra GT4 EVO saw him make a move past Auriemma into second place, before setting his sights on Swearingin ahead. With just two laps to go, he went speeding down the main straight and pulled off the overtake heading into Turn 1.
Although Precision Racing LA won the battle, it was ACI Motorsports who ultimately won the war as Curt Swearingin and Kay van Berlo’s second place finish was enough to secure the class championship title.
“Terry did a fantastic job, and I’m so proud of our crew,” said Eversley.
“It was a great race — it’s Indy, and we got the win,” added Borcheller. “Our team did everything right, from the test and preparation to execution this weekend. We hit all of our marks. It’s rare for a plan to come together so perfectly, but it did, and we couldn’t be happier. Congrats to this pro!”
When talking to the newly crowned class championships, Curt Swearingin had high praise for his teammate and his team, saying; “ I had Kay, my engineer, my team, they all made it possible. I can’t say enough about him, he just works me hard every day and I get better because of it. It’s all about progression. I’m just trying to grow as a driver.”
“We started this program two years ago,” said van Berlo. “Not everything was perfect, but we progressed as a team and as drivers as well. I’ve seen Curt grow as a driver, which has been very satisfying, and I’ve seen the team grow in this series, which has been awesome. We were clinching podiums all the way throughout the season, it’s all about collecting points. We got the championship here just by being consistent. Massive credit to the team, the engineers, and all the mechanics. They put in the effort into this program, I think this is what they deserve.”
Am class
Robb Holland dominated the Am class in his No. 099 Rotek Racing Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport in the opening stint. He took the green flag from the class pole position and never looked back, leaving the No. 98 Random Vandals Racing BMW M4 GT4 of Michael Kanisczak and the No. 72 KRUGSPEED Toyota Gazoo Racing GR Supra GT4 EVO of Anthony Gerarci to battle it out for the remaining spots in the top 3. Gerarci was on a mission, and masterfully overtook Kanisczak towards the end of their respective stints.
Holland, who had a comfortable gap on his opponents, handed over his machine to Jaden Lander, who retained the lead as he returned to the track. Kevin Conway, aboard the KRUGSPEED Toyota, gained a position at the beginning of his stint, but had the No. 98 car commanded by Kris Wilson keeping him honest.
The race ended with Rotek Racing claiming the Am class victory, much to the disappointment of Random Vandals Racing, who couldn’t overtake the KRUGSPEED car for second place. This was a critical moment for Random Vandals, as they entered the race with only a 3-point lead in the championship over Rotek. However, with Rotek’s win, they now hold a 7-point advantage over the former in the standings.
“I come to Indy every year with the goal of chasing a championship, and this is the first time we’ve actually taken the lead here,” said Holland. “We had a strong start, built up a gap, and then put Jaden in the car, and he just kept putting in consistent laps. We’re super happy with the result, and we’ll take this momentum into tomorrow.”
The Pirelli GT4 America field will return for Race 2 on Sunday at 10:35am ET.