BRASELTON, Georgia (October 4, 2026) – Paul Miller Racing is the 2026 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GTD PRO Team Champion, securing the first GTD PRO season title in team history and its third WeatherTech Championship class crown overall.
Neil Verhagen and Connor De Phillippi claimed the GTD PRO Drivers’ Championship after the No. 1 BMW M4 GT3 EVO finished third in Saturday’s Motul Petit Le Mans, with Dan Harper joining the full season pairing for the ten hour finale.
The result adds the GTD PRO title to Paul Miller Racing’s GTD championships from 2018 and 2023 and also delivers a third consecutive GTD PRO Michelin Endurance Cup championship.
And after an entire season, it came down to just 0.266 seconds.
Verhagen crossed the line third with Andrea Caldarelli in the No. 9 Pfaff Motorsports Lamborghini directly behind. By that stage of the race, keeping the No. 9 behind had become the final requirement for Paul Miller Racing to secure the championship.
The result completed a season that had started with the No. 1 coming from the back of the GTD PRO field to win the Rolex 24 At Daytona.
Verhagen and De Phillippi shared that victory with Harper and Max Hesse, bringing together four drivers who would all contribute to Paul Miller Racing’s 2026 endurance campaign. Hesse returned for Sebring, where the No. 1 finished fifth and added important Michelin Endurance Cup points.
From there, the championship was built less around one dominant stretch than around repeatedly making the most of what was available.
A second place at Watkins Glen moved Verhagen and De Phillippi into the GTD PRO championship lead. Pole and a podium followed at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, and the No. 1 remained at the top of the standings through VIR.
Even when the final part of the season became more difficult, including setbacks at Road America and Indianapolis, Paul Miller Racing arrived at the finale still with a chance to win both championships.
That consistency is something De Phillippi pointed to after the finish.
“We just went race by race. We maximized what we had on each given weekend,” said De Phillippi. “I think driver wise, Neil and I made arguably the least amount of mistakes between everyone in the field. Team wise, we made the least amount of mistakes.
“More often than not we didn’t have the fastest car on a given weekend, but we always had a car that we knew we could be competitive with. If we played our cards right, we could fight for a podium. That was always our mindset, and when there was more to grab, we took it.”
Qualifying became another important part of that approach. Verhagen consistently put the No. 1 near the front throughout the year, culminating in pole for Petit Le Mans on Friday.
With championships decided by small margins, the points collected before race day became part of the bigger picture.
“Coming into the season, we agreed to all have our own jobs and focus really hard on doing those jobs well,” De Phillippi added.
“Neil was great all season in qualifying and the team put a huge emphasis on that. When you see the championship come down to a handful of points across multiple scenarios, all those start to add up. I’m just so proud of how everyone executed all season.”
Saturday itself demanded another recovery.
The No. 1 started from pole on a wet but drying track before the race developed through changing weather, repeated Full Course Yellows, a red flag for nearby lightning and constantly shifting strategies. During Harper’s stint, contact with the No. 59 McLaren sent the BMW off course and into the wall, dropping the No. 1 down the order. The No. 1 was subsequently assessed a drive through penalty for the incident.
Rather than ending the championship challenge, those setbacks became another recovery. Harper worked the No. 1 back through the field during the second half of the race, while the crew continued to position the car through a series of caution periods and strategy calls.
With less than 90 minutes remaining, the championship picture changed again. The No. 1 moved into a position that put Paul Miller Racing provisionally on top of the standings, before the No. 4 Corvette lost a lap after being sent into the Turn 10 gravel trap. From then on, the job was clear: stay ahead of the No. 9 Lamborghini.
The final restart came with ten minutes remaining. Verhagen brought the BMW to the finish in third, with Caldarelli less than three tenths of a second behind.
For Verhagen, the championship closes what he described as the most successful season of his career.
“I grew up in the BMW Junior Team with Dan and Max, and to win Daytona with them at the beginning of the year and now finish the season like this is something I’ll never forget,” said Verhagen. “I think it’s the most successful season I’ve ever had in motorsport.
“There are really no words other than to say it’s been an absolutely amazing season. Thank you to BMW M Motorsport, Paul Miller Racing, Connor, Dan and Max Hesse for all the work this year.”
The championship also marks another major milestone for Paul Miller Racing. After GTD titles in 2018 and 2023, the team has now won season championships in both GTD and GTD PRO. Its Michelin Endurance Cup success has continued alongside that progression, with the 2026 crown following GTD PRO titles in 2024 and 2025.
For Team Principal Mitchell Simmons and the Paul Miller Racing crew, the achievement came with a single full season GTD PRO entry and little room for mistakes. Across sprint races, endurance rounds, damaged cars, changing strategies and a championship that remained undecided until the final seconds of the year, the No. 1 stayed in the fight.
“Championships are won long before the checkered flag falls. They’re won in the hours nobody sees—the late nights, the early mornings, the countless details, and the moments when the crew refuses to accept anything less than their best,” said Simmons.
“What this team accomplished in 2026 is something I’ll be proud of for a very long time. Every person on this crew gave everything they had, every weekend, and this championship belongs to every one of them. I couldn’t be more proud of this team.”
Harper, who helped open the season with the Daytona win before returning for the finale, summed up what the result meant for the group.
“I’m very proud of these guys. They deserve it more than anyone,” said Harper. “The whole team has done a fantastic job all year, so well done to them.”
Neil Verhagen
“I grew up in the BMW Junior Team with Dan and Max, and to win Daytona with them at the beginning of the year and now finish the season like this is something I’ll never forget. I think it’s the most successful season I’ve ever had in motorsport. There are really no words other than to say it’s been an absolutely amazing season. Thank you to BMW M Motorsport, Paul Miller Racing, Connor, Dan and Max Hesse for all the work this year.”
Connor De Phillippi
“I haven’t really been able to wrap my head around it, to be honest. It’s been a lot of character building years in IMSA, and when I had the chance to join Paul Miller Racing for the full season, I knew this was a huge opportunity to finally try to win that championship. We won Daytona and started off strong, and from there we just went race by race. We maximized what we had on each given weekend. Driver wise, Neil and I made arguably the least amount of mistakes in the field, and team wise we made the least amount of mistakes. More often than not we didn’t have the fastest car, but we always had a car we knew we could be competitive with. When there was more to grab, we took it. I’m just so proud of everybody at Paul Miller Racing, BMW and Neil. He did a hell of a job all year, especially in qualifying. When you see the championship come down to a handful of points across multiple scenarios, all those points start to add up. I’m just so proud of how everyone executed all season.”
Dan Harper
“Very special. Starting the year off with the win at Daytona was already nearly the icing on the cake for 2026, and I’ve been looking forward to joining these guys again ever since. To be fair, I did my best to mess it up early in my first stint, so I’ll apologize to these boys for probably giving them a heart attack. But I’m very proud of these guys. They deserve it more than anyone. The whole team has done a fantastic job all year, so well done to them.”
