Green Flag, GTP, #31: Cadillac Whelen, Cadillac V-Series.R, GTP: Jack Aitken, Earl Bamber, Frederik Vesti, #40: Cadillac Wayne Taylor Racing, Cadillac V-Series.R, GTP: Jordan Taylor, Louis Deletraz, #93: Acura Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb Agajanian, Acura ARX-06, GTP: Renger van der Zande, Nick Yelloly, Kaku Ohta

Entry List Notebook – TireRack.com Battle On The Bricks

September 9, 2026

Final IMSA Sprint Race of 2026 Features All Four Classes in Indianapolis

By Tony DiZinno

Entry List (Click Here)

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The lone sprint race for all four IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship classes shifts to Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2026, with the two-hour, 40-minute event set to amplify the drama in the penultimate round of the campaign.

All four gaps between first and second in the championship are within 118 points. The 23-point Grand Touring Daytona Pro (GTD PRO) margin is closest, followed by 36 in both Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) and Grand Touring Daytona (GTD), and 118 in Grand Touring Prototype (GTP).

There are 44 cars in all four classes (11 GTP, 10 LMP2, 10 GTD PRO, 13 GTD) entered, with one interesting tweak.

In pursuit of the GTP championship, second-placed driver Laurin Heinrich moves back to Porsche Penske Motorsport one race early. He’ll race alongside Kevin Estre in the team’s No. 6 Porsche 963 at Indianapolis. In his stead at JDC-Miller MotorSports, Nico Mueller returns for a second year at Indianapolis alongside Tijmen van der Helm in the No. 5 car.

Additionally, past LMP2 champion, Jim Trueman Award winner and two-time Indianapolis polesitter Nick Boulle is set for his first start of the year with Era Motorsport in LMP2. Car Blanche remains in GTD PRO for a second straight race.

Here’s what else you need to know for the Indianapolis round of the season:

Fast Facts
TireRack.com Battle on the Bricks
Indianapolis Motor Speedway – Indianapolis, Indiana
Sept. 18-20, 2026

Race Day/Time: Sunday, Sept. 20, 3:10 p.m. ET
NBC Coverage: LIVE – Flag-to-flag 3-6 p.m.
Peacock Streaming Coverage: LIVE – Flag-to-flag beginning at 3 p.m. (available outside the U.S. on IMSA.tv and IMSA Official YouTube channel)
Live Qualifying Stream: Saturday, Sept. 19 – 5 p.m. on Peacock (in the U.S.) and IMSA.tv and IMSA’s Official YouTube channel (globally)
IMSA Radio: Selected sessions live on IMSA.com and RadioLeMans.com; XM live race coverage on XM 252, Web/App 996
Circuit Type: 2.439-mile, 14-turn road course
Classes Competing: Grand Touring Prototype (GTP), Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2), Grand Touring Daytona Pro (GTD PRO), Grand Touring Daytona (GTD)
Race Length: 2 hours, 40 minutes

Track Social Media: 

Event Hashtags: #IMSA, #BattleOnTheBricks

WeatherTech Championship Track Records

  • GTP: Matt Campbell, Porsche 963, 1:13.672 / 119.182 mph, September 2023 (qualifying)
  • LMP2: Mikkel Jensen, ORECA LMP2 07, 1:16.619 / 114.597, September 2023 (race)
  • GTD PRO: Klaus Bachler, Porsche 911 GT3 R (992), 1:23.140 / 105.609 mph, September 2023 (qualifying)
  • GTD: Madison Snow, BMW M4 GT3, 1:23.075 / 105.692 mph, September 2023 (qualifying)

2025 TireRack.com Battle on the Bricks Winners

  • GTP: Jack Aitken/Earl Bamber/Frederik Vesti, No. 31 Cadillac Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R
  • LMP2: Steven Thomas/Mikkel Jensen/Hunter McElrea, No. 11 TDS Racing ORECA LMP2 07
  • GTD PRO: Seb Priaulx/Mike Rockenfeller, No. 64 Ford Multimatic Motorsports Ford Mustang GT3
  • GTD: Brendan Iribe/Frederik Schandorff/Ollie Millroy, No. 70 Inception Racing Ferrari 296 GT3

2025 TireRack.com Battle on the Bricks Motul Pole Award Winners

  • GTP: Jack Aitken, No. 31 Cadillac Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R
  • LMP2: Nick Boulle, No. 2 United Autosports USA ORECA LMP2 07
  • GTD PRO: Dan Harper, No. 48 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 EVO
  • GTD: Casper Stevenson, No. 27 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo

Storylines

  • Aitken vs. Heinrich in GTP: The dramatic end to Road America condensed the GTP title fight with Jack Aitken in the No. 31 Cadillac Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R to only 118 points ahead of Laurin Heinrich in the No. 5 JDC-Miller MotorSports Porsche 963. Heinrich, now in the No. 6 Porsche Penske Motorsport Porsche 963 this race, will race in pursuit to try to close the gap.
  • CrowdStrike and Inter Europol vs. AO and United in LMP2: What is looking like a two-car race in LMP2 between the No. 04 CrowdStrike Racing by APR and No. 43 Inter Europol Competition ORECA LMP2 07s may expand if either or both have issues at Indianapolis. These two cars have a combined three wins in five races and seven of the 15 possible podiums. But if they stumble, defending LMP2 champions AO Racing and perennial contenders United Autosports USA are lurking.
  • 67 is the Magic Number in GTD PRO Among Five Cars: Just 67 points cover the top five in GTD PRO. The No. 1 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 EVO leads the No. 4 Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports Corvette Z06 GT3.R by 23 points. Pfaff Motorsports’ No. 9 Lamborghini Temerario GT3 is third, 56 back, with both the No. 65 Ford Racing Ford Mustang GT3 and No. 77 AO Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) tied for fourth at 67 back. AO (2024) and Ford (2025) have the last two GTD PRO wins at Indy, and a win for either team this year would help their championship charge.
  • The Winward Triple Threat: Winward Racing’s No. 57 Mercedes-AMG GT3 likes the number three. Russell Ward and Philip Ellis started third at VIR and progressed to win their third straight GTD race, which moves them back to the GTD points lead in pursuit of a third straight title.
  • Bob Akin Award Battle: Brendan Iribe regained this lead over Orey Fidani by 20 points as Iribe and Frederik Schandorff were third at VIR in the No. 70 Inception Racing Ferrari 296 GT3 EVO. Iribe, Schandorff and Ollie Millroy won at Indianapolis last year.
  • Manufacturer Title Battles: With two races to go, it’s also worth taking stock of the manufacturer championship battles. Cadillac leads Porsche by 112 points in GTP, Chevrolet leads BMW by 87 in GTD PRO and Mercedes-AMG leads Ferrari by 20 in GTD.
  • A Brickyard Sprint: After two years as an endurance race, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway round is back to two-hours, 40-minutes – a race length on par with the iconic Indianapolis 500 on the track’s oval.

Who’s Good Here?

  • Mikkel Jensen: Jensen is a perfect 3-for-3 in LMP2 at the Brickyard with TDS Racing, all three with Steven Thomas and the last two with Hunter McElrea. Now with United Autosports USA and Phil Fayer, Jensen goes for his fourth Brickyard win aboard the No. 2 ORECA LMP2 07.
  • Cadillac Whelen: The team added its second Indianapolis win in 2025 to its first in 2014.
  • Porsche: The manufacturer’s four Indianapolis wins are split one GTP (2023) and three in various GT classes from AO Racing, Wright Motorsports and Magnus Racing.

Who’s Hot?

  • No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: With three straight wins in GTD, Winward Racing has resumed its spot atop the charts. No WeatherTech Championship team has won four straight races in any class since Riley in the former LMP3 class in 2023 (Sebring, Watkins Glen, Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, Road America).
  • No. 43 Inter Europol Competition ORECA LMP2 07: Back-to-back LMP2 wins have Jeremy Clarke and Tom Dillmann within striking range of the LMP2 points lead.
  • No. 9 Pfaff Motorsports Lamborghini Temerario GT3: Back-to-back GTD PRO wins have lifted Andrea Caldarelli, Sandy Mitchell and Pfaff’s new Temerario into championship contention.
  • No. 5 JDC-Miller MotorSports Porsche 963: In GTP, the No. 5 Porsche 963 is the only car riding back-to-back podium finishes, achieved with the trio of van der Helm, Heinrich and Kaylen Frederick.