South Africa’s Van der Linde brothers victorious at Bathurst 12 Hour

BMW claimed full Intercontinental GT Challenge (IGTC) points in the 2025 season opener at the Bathurst 12 Hour.

Augusto Farfus, Kelvin van der Linde and Sheldon van der Linde won the race, finishing 10 seconds ahead of teammates Raffaele Marciello, Valentino Rossi and Charles Weerts.

Kenny Habul, Jules Gounon and Luca Stolz extended their podium streak at Mount Panorama to four races, finishing one second behind in third place for 75 Express.

This marks BMW’s first GT3-era victory at Bathurst, despite previous pole positions.

WRT also ended a winless streak at the event dating back to 2018, while South Africa’s Van der Linde brothers became the first siblings to share a winning car at Bathurst since David and Geoff Brabham in 1997.

Craft-Bamboo’s Mercedes-AMG led from pole before Arise Racing’s Ferrari, driven by Chaz Mostert, took control early on. The race saw multiple Safety Car periods, with Absolute Racing’s Porsche and WRT’s BMWs emerging as front-runners. As the final quarter approached, the BMWs solidified their lead while challengers, including Craft-Bamboo’s Mercedes-AMG, Arise’s Ferrari and Absolute’s Porsche, remained within reach.

Late fuel stops affected several teams, with Arise falling back and Craft-Bamboo dropping out of podium contention. Marciello secured second place for WRT’s #46 BMW after passing Gounon in the final minutes.

Habul completed his drive time before handing over to Stolz and Gounon, keeping 75 Express in contention. Mostert briefly led in the final hour before making a late fuel stop, finishing fourth.

Craft-Bamboo’s Mercedes-AMG and Absolute’s Porsche completed the top six. Heart of Racing by SPS won the Bronze class in seventh overall. Arise Racing’s second Ferrari placed eighth on IGTC points, while The Bend Motorsport Park’s Porsche finished 10th overall.

GruppeM’s Mercedes-AMG and Jamec/MPC’s Audi were among the notable retirements.

The IGTC season continues with the ADAC Ravenol 24h Nürburgring on June 19-22, followed by the CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa one week later.