IMPC: Samantha Tan moves forward, recovers eight positions at VIR
- RACERS
- 20 hours ago
- 5 min read
Samantha Tan continued her steady progression through her rookie IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge campaign at Virginia International Raceway, recovering eight positions during a challenging two-hour race to finish 14th in class alongside Bill Auberlen.
Samantha Tan continued her steady progression through her rookie IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge GS campaign at Virginia International Raceway, recovering eight positions during a challenging two-hour race to finish 14th in class alongside Bill Auberlen.
The ST Racing by Random Vandals pairing executed a clean race with good strategy to work their way forward, although the result ultimately fell short of Tan’s expectations as she continues to target the front of the highly competitive GS field.
After a season of encouraging performances around the top ten despite several misfortunes, Tan arrived at VIR looking to take another step forward in the #38 ST Racing by Random Vandals BMW M4 GT4. The Canadian had already demonstrated progress since moving into the GS class for 2026 after winning the 2025 IMSA VP Racing SportsCar Challenge GSX Bronze title, with back-to-back top-ten finishes at Laguna Seca and Mid-Ohio when circumstances allowed them to complete a clean race.
More recent outings at Watkins Glen, Canadian Tire Motorsport Park and Road America had again shown potential, although mechanical problems, penalties and other setbacks had repeatedly prevented the duo from translating their pace into the results they were targeting.
VIR therefore represented another opportunity to convert that progress into a stronger finish, although the weekend immediately presented an additional challenge when rain affected Friday's opening practice session. The wet conditions significantly limited the usefulness of the first session as a preparation run for the race, leaving the team with less representative data.
With the conditions making it challenging to establish a clear baseline for dry-weather running, the #38 BMW had to make the most of the second practice session, where Auberlen set the team's best time of the weekend to that point with a 1:55.820.
Samantha Tan took over the BMW M4 GT4 for the GS qualifying session and the Canadian recorded a 1:55.867 on her first representative run, initially placing the #38 machine seventeenth in class. As the session developed and the field continued to improve, Tan ultimately ended the session in P21.
Tan therefore took the start of Saturday afternoon's two-hour race from P22. The opening laps were relatively clean across both the GS and TCR fields, and Tan immediately began working her way forward, initially gaining one position before settling into a close battle around 20th to 22nd. She spent much of the opening phase defending well from the #57 Winward Racing Mercedes, maintaining her position despite the pressure while looking for opportunities ahead.
The race remained green through the opening 20 minutes; the #4 McLaren of Uretsky ran into the grass, while the #53 Kingpin Racing Toyota was forced to pit with damage following contact, allowing Tan to move forward to P20. Both cars were eventually able to limp back to the pits, and the race stayed green.
The first neutralization came on lap ten, when Ammann made contact and initially continued with rear suspension damage, only to spin again at speed several corners later. Ted Giovanis and Maddie Aust were caught up in the resulting incident while attempting to avoid, bringing out the Full Course Yellow.
Tan held 20th position during the caution and prepared for the restart with one hour and thirty minutes remaining.
Once racing resumed, she continued to maintain a solid rhythm, keeping the BMW out of trouble while the field gradually began approaching the first round of scheduled pit stops. The ST Racing by Random Vandals crew opted to bring Tan into the pits on lap 18, around 40 minutes into the race, to hand the car over to Bill Auberlen.
The strategy began to pay dividends: Auberlen initially rejoined around 20th position, but as cars ahead completed their own pit stops, the BMW climbed rapidly through the order. By lap 32, the #38 had risen to P13, putting the team in the mix for a much stronger result than its starting position had suggested.
With most cars still needing a second fuel stop, the team eventually brought him back into the pits for a second stop and the #38 BMW rejoined in P20, with several competitors choosing to remain on track and gamble on their fuel strategy, but the order continued to evolve as those cars eventually began making their own stops.
With 30 minutes remaining, Auberlen had recovered to 19th. The race then entered another tense phase as the field approached the closing stages.
With 11 minutes remaining, Plumb lost the rear bumper from his car, scattering debris around the circuit and prompting another Full Course Yellow. The incident also resulted in a mechanical black flag for Plumb, who was forced into the pits for repairs, while Auberlen moved up to 18th under caution.
The restart came with only five and a half minutes remaining, leaving very little time for the field to settle before another intense final sprint to the finish. Auberlen survived the renewed chaos and managed to gain several more positions during the closing laps, bringing the #38 BMW M4 GT4 across the finish line in 15th place in GS. A post-race adjustment subsequently promoted the ST Racing by Random Vandals entry to 14th, completing a recovery of 8 positions from its starting place.
"Another +8 positions through the field, but I’d be lying if I said I was satisfied", Tan commented. "This one is a little difficult to put into words. There are positives to take away from the weekend, especially after losing our first practice to the rain, and we continued our trend of moving forward during the race. but I know what we’re capable of, and I want more."
"Maybe that’s the hardest part about raising your own expectations", Samantha continued. "A result that I might have once been proud of can now leave me wondering what we’re missing and how we get ourselves into the fight at the front."
The result leaves Tan and Auberlen 16th in the championship standings with 1,320 points, with two rounds of the season remaining.
The next IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge round will take place at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on September 18-20, but Tan will return behind the wheel sooner than that: the Canadian is in fact set to contest the Zolder 24 Hours with Koopman Racing aboard a BMW M4 GT4 next weekend, giving her an opportunity to add another endurance racing experience to her 2026 season.
