Turner Motorsport has once again established itself among the leading forces in GT World Challenge America powered by AWS, completing a remarkable three-year championship run by capturing the Pro class title in 2026. After consecutive Pro-Am championships in 2024 and 2025, the team took on a new challenge this season, stepping up into Pro ranks and proving they were more than ready to compete at the highest level.
With a winning history on their side, longtime pairing Justin Rothberg and Robby Foley returned behind the wheel of the No. 29 Turner Motorsport BMW M4 GT3 EVO for a heightened 2026 campaign. Although they came equipped with experience and familiarity, the path to the title was anything but straightforward. Their campaign was filled with setbacks, breakthrough performances and a championship battle that remained unresolved until the final hours of the season.
The team opened the season with a fourth-place finish at Sonoma Raceway before building momentum with a runner-up result at Circuit of The Americas. It was a solid foundation, but the first victory of the season at Sebring International Raceway arrived under circumstances that left the team with mixed emotions.
They secured the Pro class win after a mechanical failure sidelined one of its competitors, delivering a breakthrough result but not quite the on-track triumph the team had been pursuing. For a group accustomed to fighting at the front, there was recognition that the victory came with collecting important points, yet it also reinforced the team's desire to earn its next success through a performance that left no doubt about their abilities.
Road Atlanta presented another opportunity to build on that momentum. Turner Motorsport was competitive throughout the race, but a mechanical failure cut its afternoon short, resulting in another fourth-place finish. The setback was frustrating, but it did little to diminish the team's confidence in the group’s potential.
That belief was rewarded at Road America, where everything finally came together. Rothberg and Foley delivered a commanding performance to claim the overall victory. It was a defining moment in the season, both for the championship campaign and for Rothberg personally.
The Road America victory also carried a deeper meaning. The team added the name of Cedric Sbirrazzuoli to the car in tribute to Rothberg's first driver coach, and highly successful GT racing driver, who had recently passed away following a battle with cancer. As the BMW pulled into victory lane, it was an opportunity to honor someone who had played a significant role in Rothberg's early development and motorsports journey.
The performance offered a glimpse of what Turner Motorsport could achieve when every element aligned. Unfortunately, the team was unable to carry that winning momentum directly into the next round at Barber Motorsports Park, where another fourth-place finish in the penultimate round left the championship picture unsettled heading into the finale.
With the standings still remarkably close, the season would ultimately be decided at the double-points Indianapolis 8 Hour finale, presenting Turner Motorsport with a final opportunity to turn its season around. Seven points separated the team from the lead, and only one point behind second place, therefore the No. 29 crew needed a near-perfect weekend.
Turner Motorsport brought in BMW factory driver Connor De Phillippi to join Rothberg and Foley. De Phillippi brought considerable experience to the effort, including his role in the driver lineup that won the inaugural overall Indianapolis 8 Hour in 2020.
Turner Motorsport immediately made its intentions clear in qualifying. After setting the fastest time in the opening merged qualifying session, the BMW advanced to the Superpole shootout, where Foley delivered the overall pole position for the Indianapolis 8 Hour with a flying lap time of 1:22.805.
The result gave Turner Motorsport the ideal starting point for the final charge. Rothberg took the wheel for the start and led the field to green from the overall pole. As the race developed, the overall lead changed hands as other Pro drivers made their moves. Turner Motorsport did not always occupy the top spot outright, but the BMW remained firmly in contention, holding its position near the front and patiently allowing the race to unfold.
For hours, Foley and AF Corse USA's Frederik Schandorff engaged in a tactical battle that became one of the defining games of cat-and-mouse. Their teams adopted similar yet contrasting pit strategies, with Turner Motorsport opting for the undercut and AF Corse pursuing the overcut. The result was a succession of tightly contested stints, with the two cars repeatedly emerging from their respective pit sequences separated by almost nothing.
When Schandorff rejoined on cold tires, Foley quickly closed the gap. With under an hour and a remaining, the Turner Motorsport driver made his move into Turn 1 as Schandorff ran wide, taking over the Pro class lead, but the final round of pit stops would have them face off yet again.
Foley brought the BMW into pit lane, prompting AF Corse USA to respond one lap later. Schandorff emerged ahead of Foley, briefly putting the advantage back in the hands of the Ferrari squad. However, Foley had already brought his tires up to temperature and was able to capitalize on the difference, wasting little time reclaiming the top spot in the Pro category again.
From there, Foley controlled the closing stages and ensured that Turner Motorsport's championship hopes remained in its own hands. After eight hours of racing, strategic calculations and a season's worth of accumulated pressure, the No. 29 BMW had earned the position it needed. Foley and the team brought the car through to the checkered flag to secure the Indianapolis 8 Hour victory and, with it, the 2026 GT World Challenge America Pro championship. It was a fitting conclusion to a season that demanded resilience every step of the way.
For team owner Will Turner, the achievement was a testament to the collective effort that carried the team through the challenges that arose throughout the season and a pressure-filled finale.
“Coming into this, the odds were a little against us being behind in points, so in a way, the pressure was off,” Turner said. “We all put our heads down and went for it. Winning a third championship in a row is surreal!”
“To cap off the championship with three in a row for us in SRO and our first in the Pro class is incredible,” Foley added. “I can’t thank all the guys and girls at Turner enough. We’ll try to keep the run going. Back-to-back-to-back SRO America champions. Such a privilege to work with this amazing group of people.”
“I’m insanely happy to be coming out of the 2026 season victorious,” Rothberg echoed. “After moving up to the Pro class, I wasn’t really sure what to expect. I was racing against a lot of really good drivers, and I definitely had to up my game, which I’ve slowly been doing. I definitely still have a lot to learn, but to be standing here as 2026 champions is an amazing feeling. It’s even better knowing that this is our third time doing it, which means a ton.”
Yet the championship carried a significance beyond the results and the move into a new class. The loss of Sbirrazzuoli made the season an emotional one for Rothberg, and the team's decision to honor his first driver coach on the car gave the Road America victory and the Indianapolis title an added layer of meaning.
“It also means a little bit more because this past season, I lost my first ever coach, Cedric Sbirrazzuoli, and we put his name on the car, and to get him into victory lane one more time and have him on a championship car one more time just means everything,” Rothberg expressed.
Turner Motorsport's 2026 championship represents so much more than another trophy for what is already such an established team. It marks the successful culmination of a transition from a Pro-Am powerhouse to Pro class champion, proving that the foundations built over the previous two seasons could translate to the highest level of GT World Challenge America competition.
After three years of sustained success, Turner Motorsport has shown that its ambitions remain as strong as ever. And with the No. 29 BMW M4 GT3 EVO carrying the team to victory at the Indianapolis 8 Hour, the organization has closed the 2026 season with another championship, and a new benchmark for what comes next.
