Samantha Tan shows front-running pace on GT3 return despite technical setbacks, just misses out on podium in Hockenheim
Samantha Tan made an immediate impression on her return to GT3 machinery at Hockenheim, producing two highly competitive opening stints with the #138 Koopman Motorsport BMW M4 GT3 to secure fourth on Saturday before technical issues denied her a likely podium opportunity in the second race.
Samantha Tan made an immediate impression on her return to GT3 machinery at Hockenheim, producing two highly competitive opening stints with the #138 Koopman Motorsport BMW M4 GT3 to secure fourth on Saturday before technical issues denied her a likely podium opportunity in the second race.
Tan arrived at Hockenheim with extensive experience at the highest levels of GT racing, with a résumé that includes class victories in both GT World Challenge America and Europe, championship titles in the 24H Series and strong performances in major endurance events such as the Road to Le Mans and Nürburgring 24 Hours. The Canadian entered 2026 off the back of a particularly successful 2025 campaign, during which she secured the IMSA VP Racing SportsCar Challenge Bronze class title with her ST Racing BMW M4 GT3, although her primary programme this season has focused on GT4 machinery in the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge.
She had nevertheless already made a return to GT3 competitions earlier in the year for a one-off appearance in the China GT Championship at Shanghai, where she teamed up with Jiang Jiawei in the #38 Team KRC BMW M4 GT3 and immediately converted the opportunity into a GT3 AM class victory.
Tan subsequently returned to European racing earlier this month for the 24 Hours of Zolder, joining Koopman Motorsport in a BMW M4 GT4 Evo and securing a podium finish in her first 24-hour race of the year. That outing opened the door to another opportunity with the team, this time stepping back into GT3 machinery as Koopman Motorsport entered the #138 BMW M4 GT3 for Tan and Hein Koopman at Hockenheim in the Supercar Challenge round supporting International GT Open.
The weekend began in the most challenging way, however, as a rotor failure prevented the #138 BMW from completing any representative running during either of Friday's practice sessions. The lack of track time was particularly costly because Hockenheim was a new circuit for Tan, leaving her without the opportunity to build a baseline before qualifying. The Koopman Motorsport mechanics worked throughout Friday to repair the car and give Tan the opportunity to run in Saturday's qualifying session.
Despite the missed mileage, Tan immediately demonstrated the speed she had retained from her GT3 experience. She posted a 1:48.274 to initially place seventh overall before eventually slipping to 10th overall and ninth in the GT class. A red flag brought the session to an early conclusion, leaving Tan unable to further improve.
Race 1 provided an immediate demonstration of what she can do: Tan made an exceptional launch from the rolling start, charging all the way up to fifth overall before Turn 1. She kept the BMW clean through the opening complex and immediately settled into the fight with Dekker's #106 Porsche.
Tan quickly began applying pressure, showing more pace than the Porsche ahead. She attempted to make her first move around the long Parabolika approach to the hairpin, but Dekker was able to switch back and retain the position. Tan remained patient, however, and completed the overtake one lap later through Turn 4, subsequently defending effectively through the Parabolika to ensure that Dekker could not immediately respond.
With the position secured, Tan was able to concentrate on building her pace. She initially circulated in the 1:45s before dropping to a 1:44.4, gaining more than a second per lap on the cars behind her. The challenge ahead was more significant, with around 10 seconds separating her from Ambiel's Duqueine, but Tan continued to close the gap.
Her pace eventually dropped below the 1:44 mark, and when Barton brought the #118 BMW M4 GT3 into the pits, Tan was promoted to third overall. With 44 minutes remaining, the Hyundai Elantra N TCR of Dennis De Borst went into the gravel, although the race initially remained green before the Safety Car was deployed on lap 10.
By then Tan was only around seven seconds behind the leading duo. Racing resumed with 36 minutes remaining on lap 12, and Tan immediately continued her progress when Ambiel came into the pits with an issue, promoting the #138 BMW to second overall behind Birdsall.
The Canadian then began closing rapidly on the leader. The gap fell to just 1.4 seconds as Tan recorded a 1:44.3 on lap 15, quicker than Birdsall, and she subsequently dipped below 1:44 with a 1:43.8. With the pit window approaching, Tan was now within striking distance of the overall lead, having recovered from ninth in class to second overall.
Both leaders remained out for as long as possible before pitting on lap 17, with Tan handing the BMW over to Hein Koopman less than a second from the lead. Koopman rejoined in third overall, but initially struggled to match Birdsall and found Dekker closing to within around a second.
He quickly regained some margin, recording a 1:46.0 and then extending the gap to Dekker to more than four seconds before increasing it beyond nine seconds by lap 28. However, Ambiel's Duqueine was recovering strongly and was lapping almost three seconds per lap faster than Koopman.
The recovering car closed rapidly during the final stages and eventually passed Koopman with only one lap remaining, dropping the #138 BMW to fourth overall. Koopman brought the car home in fourth, narrowly missing out on the podium, but the result could not disguise the quality of Tan's opening stint.
Sunday's second 60-minute race presented another challenge, with earlier rain leaving the circuit very damp and therefore the #138 BMW started on wet tyres from ninth overall. Tan once again produced a superb getaway, immediately gaining four positions to move into fifth overall.
She negotiated the hairpin intelligently and cautiously in the difficult conditions, but a crash further down the field at Turn 6 brought out the Safety Car only a few corners later. Tan therefore circulated fifth under caution before the race resumed with 52 minutes remaining.
Once racing restarted, she immediately went back on the attack, completing an excellent move on van Vilet into Turn 1. Tan then established a four-second advantage over the cars behind with a 1:53.222 before beginning to close on the leading trio.
Her pace continued to improve rapidly as the circuit developed. She set a purple first sector before recording a 1:49.745, and by lap five she had opened a seven-second margin over Dekker while maintaining contact with the leading group. One lap later she produced a remarkable 1:48.497, with the first two sectors both purple, and closed to within a second of Birdsall.
Tan continued to lower her lap times, eventually recording a 1:46.2 and joining Barton and Birdsall in a three-way fight for the podium. The pace continued to tumble, with Tan reaching 1:44.225 as she remained in contention with the two BMW M6 GT3s ahead.
Once again, however, the promising run was interrupted by a technical problem. On lap 10 Tan's car came to a halt, with the BMW clearly suffering from an issue. Tan initially attempted to return to the pits before eventually stopping.
The retirement ended another highly competitive stint, but the DNF did little to reflect her performance. In both races she had made spectacular starts, completed decisive overtaking moves and progressively improved her lap times, while in Race 1 she had come within a single second of the overall lead before handing the car over.
For Tan, the Hockenheim weekend therefore represented another demonstration of her ability to be competitive in GT3 machinery. Despite the difficult damp conditions on Sunday, a podium finish appeared within reach, making the technical failures particularly frustrating, but the weekend nevertheless provided further evidence of her speed in the BMW M4 GT3.
Tan will now return her attention to her primary 2026 programme in the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge, with the championship heading to Indianapolis from September 18-20.
