In a thrilling finale at the 73rd Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring, Penske Motorsport, with its Porsche 963, clinched a one-two finish to achieve a sweeping victory in Florida. Not even two months after their triumphant win at the Rolex 24 At Daytona, the dynamic trio of Nick Tandy, Felipe Nasr, and Laurens Vanthoor returned to the racetrack to secure another impressive victory.
The decisive moment came when Tandy made a race-winning overtaking maneuver, outpacing the No. 31 Cadillac Whelen V-Series.R with just over two hours remaining. This set up Nasr to shepherd the No. 7 Porsche to victory, closely followed by the No. 6 Penske Porsche helmed by Mathieu Jaminet, Matt Campbell, and Kevin Estre.
This victory cements Tandy’s status as the tenth driver to accomplish the celebrated Triple Crown of Endurance, an esteemed achievement that includes winning at Sebring, Daytona, and Le Mans. The last driver to join this exclusive club was Timo Bernhard in 2010. This win also marked the first for both Porsche and Team Penske at Sebring since 2008.
The podium was completed by the No. 93 Meyer Shank Racing Acura ARX-06, driven by Renger van der Zande, Nick Yelloly, and Alex Palou. The No. 31 Whelen Cadillac, with Earl Bamber, Jack Aitken, and Frederik Vesti at the wheel, ended in fourth place, while the No. 25 Team RLL BMW M Hybrid V8 rounded out the top five.
In the LMP2 category, Tom Dillmann, Bijoy Garg, and Jeremy Clarke led Inter Europol Competition to an unexpected victory. Their No. 43 ORECA 07 managed to take the lead with just 12 minutes left on the clock, thanks to Dillmann’s skillful maneuver around race leader Malthe Jakobsen at Sunset Bend.
Porsche 911 GT3 R’s AO Racing and Laurin Heinrich stole the limelight in the GTD PRO class. Heinrich, Klaus Bachler, and Alessio Picariello emerged victorious after Heinrich overtook Paul Miller Racing’s Max Hesse with just over an hour left in the race.
In the GTD category, a nail-biting finish saw Philip Ellis secure a win for Winward Racing in the No. 57 Mercedes-AMG GT3. Ellis, Russell Ward, and Indy Dontje continued their winning streak from 2024, edging out Vasser Sullivan’s No. 12 Lexus RC F GT3 and the No. 27 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage GT3.
Two late incidents added to the drama in the final quarter of the race. Matias Perez Companc walked away unharmed from a crash at Sunset Bend in the No. 88 AF Corse ORECA LMP2. Meanwhile, a tire puncture for the No. 80 Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG resulted in a Full Course Yellow in the last hour, leading up to a 31-minute sprint to the finish line.
