Porsche Challenge Wraps Up Seasons at Road Atlanta
Photo: Porsche
JTR Motorsports Engineering capped off the Porsche Endurance Challenge North America four-hour finale with a statement-making 1-2 finish in the final race of the season at Road Atlanta.
The invitational class entry of Carrera Cup North America standout Ryan Yardley and teammate Dave Musial Jr. delivered the overall victory. New Zealander Yardley’s outright pace — including the fastest lap in class — and Musial’s steady stints gave JTR the top step and an emphatic showcase of the team’s strength.
Right behind them, JTR’s duo of Chris Hutter and team boss Jared Thomas secured second overall and the Pro-Am class victory.
Adding even more drama to the weekend, Scott Blind — the Am category ace — sealed the overall championship title by delivering a stunning class win with co-driver Alan Metni.
Metni was able to cross the line third after a dramatic chase of championship rival, and COTA winner Charlie Hayes (again teamed with Reinhold Krahn). Their dramatic battle came to a head when they made contact entering turn 10a with 17 minutes remaining.
While Metni was able to recover quicker, he was given a drive-through penalty by race officials. Despite the penalty, Hayes was unable to bridge the gap with his now damaged No. 233 entry and eventually crossed the line in fifth place (second in the Am class).
The result gave Blind a perfect three-for-three championship result at Road Atlanta, winning not only the Endurance Challenge 992 GT3 Cup Am title on Sunday, but also securing trophies in both Sprint Challenge North America and USA West, all with Ruckus Racing.
While Blind eased to his Sprint Challenge titles earlier in the weekend, he claimed a narrow victory in the Endurance Challenge, beating the season-long pair of Hayes and Krahn by just seven points.
In the 992 GT3 Cup Pro-Am class, Kellymoss racer John Gilliland solely took home the Endurance Challenge title with a third-place finish on Sunday with Riley Dickinson.
Of the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport Pro-Am cars, William Peluchiwski and Andrew Davis took home the final Endurance Challenge win of the year for Kellymoss. The winning pass by Davis – in his first Endurance Challenge outing – came before the half-hour mark and delivered teammate Peluchiwski’s best finish of the season.
The pair shared the podium with title winners Charles Espenlaub and Brandon Chappell, who captured the award by 64 points.
In the Cayman GT4 Clubsport Masters class, Reginald Tartaglione stamped his class championship with a win at Road Atlanta, pairing with Gary Bufkin for the first time of the season. In the previous three rounds, Tartaglione partnered with his son Emanuel, and their two wins with ProSport Competition set up the former for success on Sunday.
Porsche Endurance Challenge North America Results:
Invitational
1: No. 231 David Musial Jr / Ryan Yardley
992 GT3 Cup Pro-Am
1: No. 281 Chris Hutter/Jared Thomas
2: No. 251 Matt Dusek/Aaron Jeansonne
3: No. 280 John Gilliland/Riley Dickinson
992 GT3 Cup Am
1: No. 245 Alan Metni/Scott Blind
2: No. 233 Charlie Hayes/Reinhold Krahn
3: No. 299 Kayden Kelly/Josh Conley
Cayman GT4 Clubsport Pro-Am
1: No. 62 William Peluchiwski/Andrew Davis
2: No. 19 Roland Krainz/Stevan McAleer
3: No. 73 Charles Espenlaub/Brandon Chappell
Cayman GT4 Clubsport Am
1: No. 59 Reginald Tartaglione/Gary Bufkin
Photo: Porsche
Hoffmann Leads First-Ever All-Female 1-2 at Final Round of Sprint Challenge North America
Kellymoss duo Erika Hoffmann and Loni Unser made history at Road Atlanta by taking the first all-female 1-2 finish in Porsche Sprint Challenge North America by Yokohama.
After Unser’s recent victory at Watkins Glen, her teammate Hoffmann claimed her first-ever series win at the Road Atlanta finale, leading Unser across the line in the opening Cayman Pro-Am race of the weekend.
The result marked not only back-to-back first wins for both drivers but also the first time in series history that two female competitors finished 1-2.
The historic moment was one of many highlights of the final race weekend for Sprint Challenge for the year, where nearly 30 Porsche race cars battled it out in the final championship-deciding fight of the season.
Hoffmann joins list of female winners in Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport
Hoffmann faced incredible pressure in Race 1 from Kellymoss teammate Loni Unser but the pair were battling for second and third place on the podium. Only when leader Jens Hantson stopped with one minute on the clock did Hoffmann’s maneuvers versus her teammate lead her to her first win in the series.
Hoffmann’s first podium of the year came at Sonoma Raceway in April, and she celebrated fourth in the season-long championship behind fellow female racers Unser in second and Anna Cecchi in third.
The trio finished behind Hanston in the championship, who found his way back to first in Race 2. Hantson’s season had been dominant with Speedsport Tuning en route to the title – winning the final race of the season in addition to ten others.
In the Cayman Masters class, Alain Scalzo was crowned the season-long champion following five wins in 2025. Scalzo’s two podiums – third in Race 1 and second in Race 2 – sealed the title.
However, it was Keith Grant in his first event with Sprint Challenge North America this season who captured both Masters class victories at Road Atlanta. Grant also placed on the overall podium in the two races.
Amongst Grant and Scalzo in the finishing order were Bill Fenech, second place in Race 1 and finishing second in the class championship, and Gary Bufkin for his first podium of the year in third during Race 2.
Kleck, Blind Solidify 992 GT3 Cup Titles with Wins at Road Atlanta
Both Cole Kleck and Scott Blind won class races at Road Atlanta en route to stamping their titles in Sprint Challenge North America.
The start of Race 1 was hectic for pole-sitter Alan Metni, Kleck in second and Danny Dyszelski in third, as the latter two tried to maneuver around the leader. In Kleck’s efforts, he tiptoed into the dirt and out of contention, but rebounded the following day by passing Metni within the opening minutes of the race.
It was Kleck’s 11th win of the season with Topp Racing – finishing more than 200 points ahead of the next closest competitor in the championship – while Metni’s victory in Race 1 was his second with Kellymoss.
Also walking away with podium finishes in the Pro-Am class were Dyszelski in both instances and Malito in Race 1 after powering through the field from seventh.
In the 992 GT3 Cup Masters class, Scott Blind capped off a stunning season with seven wins, including podium finishes in all races throughout the season. His Race 1 win and second-place finish in Race 2 came after securing the Sprint Challenge USA West 992 GT3 Cup Masters title earlier in the day.
While Blind cruised to his title in the Ruckus Racing Porsche, Kayden Kelly took attention with his Race 2 win. With six wins of his own in 2025, Kelly battled Blind for the championship throughout the season, but settled for second.
Reinhold Krahn completed the podium in both Masters class races at Road Atlanta.
Porsche Sprint Challenge North America by Yokohama Results:
992 GT3 Cup Race 1 Podium
Pro-Am
1: No. 298 Alan Metni
2: No. 252 Danny Dyszelski
3: No. 203 Tony Malito
Masters
1: No. 245 Scott Blind
2: No. 208 Kayden Kelly
3: No. 233 Reinhold Krahn
992 GT3 Cup Race 2 Podium:
Pro-Am
1: No. 211 Cole Kleck
2: No. 298 Alan Metni
3: No.252 Danny Dyszelski
Masters
1: No. 208 Kayden Kelly
2: No. 245 Scott Blind
3: No, 233 Reinhold Krahn
718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport Race 1 Podium:
Pro-Am
1: No. 4 Erika Hoffmann
2: No. 4 Loni Unser
3: No. 3 Cody Knight
Masters
1: No. 40 Keith Grant
2: No. 15 Bill Fenech
3: No. 26 Alain Scalzo
718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport Race 2 Podium:
Pro-Am
1: No. 12 Jens Hantson
2: No. 4 Erika Hoffmann
3: No. 4 Loni Unser
Masters
1: No. 40 Keith Grant
2: No. 26 Alain Scalzo
3: No. 51 Gary Bufkin
Photo: Porsche
Porsche Sprint Challenge USA West Championships Decided at Road Atlanta
The Porsche Sprint Challenge USA West by Yokohama GT3 Cup Pro-Am championship came down to the wire at Road Atlanta, where Competition Motorsports driver Daniel Hanley secured the title with a dramatic final-race victory, edging out Brannan Hankins by just 0.628 seconds.
Hanley and Brannan Hankins entered the weekend tied on points in the title showdown.
Only by Hanley finishing one position higher than Hankins in both rounds did the former secure the class title. Hanley finished second to Metni on Friday, while winning on Saturday ahead of Hankins by less than one second. Hankins completed the podium in Race 1, while Mark Crigler scored his second podium of the season in Race 2.
In the Masters class, Scott Blind was the unequivocal champion in the series, having won eight of 10 races in the Porsche 992 GT3 Cup Masters class and scoring the most points of any Sprint Challenge USA West driver this season.
Blind closed out the year with two class wins at Road Atlanta, also finishing first overall in Race 2.
Given Blind’s dominance throughout the season, the Ruckus Racing driver was nearly uncontested for the title. However, Kyle Washington and Alessandro Chiocchetti battled hard at Road Atlanta in his wake – with both swapping the remaining podium spots of the weekend.
Winning Race 1 overall in the Porsche 992 GT3 Cup Pro-Am class was Alan Metni with Kellymoss, shining bright in the USA West division as Porsche Sprint Challenge North America and Porsche Endurance Challenge North America also joined the weekend’s action at the popular Georgia circuit.
In his first outing, Chad Knight scored his first Sprint Challenge USA win on Saturday in the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport Masters class. Knight entered a tight field of competition, but only when leader Tim Smith had a dizzying spin did he inherit the lead and eventual win.
Knight was lunging for the Race 2 victory on Saturday, but came second to title winner Tom Rogers and the Tatum Racing team. Greg Herback finished third in both rounds, en route to finishing second in the championship.
Jack Parriott won the Cayman Pro-Am class championship, securing four wins on the season ahead of Emanuel Tartaglione and Anna Cecchi.
Porsche Sprint Challenge USA West by Yokohama Results:
992 GT3 Cup Race 1 Podium:
Pro-Am
1: No. 298 Alan Metni
2: No. 243 Daniel Hanley
3: No. 295 Brannan Hankins
Masters
1: No. 245 Scott Blind
2: No. 232 Kyle Washington
3: No. 249 Alessandro Chiocchetti
718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport Race 1 Podium:
Masters
1: No. 3 Chad Knight
2: No. 44 Tom Rogers
3: No. 49 Greg Herback
992 GT3 Cup Race 2 Podium:
Pro-Am
1: No. 243 Daniel Hanley
2: No. 295 Brannan Hankins
3: No. 204 Mark Crigler
Masters
1: No. 245 Scott Blind
2: No. 249 Alessandro Chiocchetti
3: No. 232 Kyle Washington
718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport Race 2 Podium:
Masters
1: No. 44 Tom Rogers
2: No. 3 Chad Knight
3: No. 49 Greg Herback
Source: Sports Car 365