Van der Linde brothers win 2025 Bathurst 12 Hour
By winning the 2025 Bathurst 12 Hour, South Africans Kelvin and Sheldon Van der Linde are the first brothers to do so in three decades …
BMW has scored maximum Intercontinental GT Challenge (IGTC) points in this weekend’s 2025 Bathurst 12 Hour. The season opener saw the Van der Linde brothers and Brazilian Augusto Farfus best BMW teammates Raffaele Marciello, Valentino Rossi and Charles Weerts to the chequered flag.
Just 10-seconds separated the no. 32 and no. 46 BMW M4 GT3s at the finish of the 2025 Bathurst 12 Hour. Kenny Habul, Jules Gounon and Luca Stolz extended their collective podium streak at Mount Panorama to four races by finishing 1-second back in third. BMW was the brand to beat at the 2025 Bathurst 12 Hour, despite never winning in the GT3 era (but twice claiming pole).
Meanwhile, Kelvin and Sheldon Van der Linde are the first siblings to share a winning car since David and Geoff Brabham won the Bathurst 1000. Incidentally, also in a BMW, back in 1997. Craft-Bamboo’s Mercedes-AMG led away from pole but was overhauled before the end of the opening stint by a flying Chaz Mostert. The Supercars ace then established a 9-second advantage before several Safety Car periods.
2025 BATHURST 12 HOUR
Instead, it was WRT’s BMWs that became the regular frontrunners. While the 911’s speed appeared to tail off, the M4s maintained their metronomic pace out front as first no. 46 and then no. 32 ascended to the leading spot of the 2025 Bathurst 12 Hour. Moreover, further caution periods kept their advantage in check. And by mid-afternoon it was clear the Van der Lindes and Farfus were in the box seat.
Second place went to WRT’s other BMW M4. But only after Marciello passed Gounon around the outside of the kink in the final 10 minutes. The no. 75 Express Mercedes-AMG was always a contender in the 2025 Bathurst 12 Hour. And once Habul completed his drive time before half distance he crucially remained on the lead lap. This gave Stolz and Gounon a chance of closing down the leaders.
Their cause was helped by Arise Ferrari having to stop late for fuel. Daniel Serra and Broc Feeney were as fast as always, but it was Mostert who caught everyone’s attention. In the final hour he briefly relieved Kelvin van der Linde of the lead. However, WRT would have been unconcerned given the Ferrari’s need for a final late fuel stop.
CARNAGE AT MOUNT PANORAMA
Notable retirees included GruppeM’s Mercedes-AMG, which went hard into the wall exiting The Chase. And Jamec/MPC’s Audi that qualified second but ended its race deep in the gravel trap. IGTC now moves on to the ADAC Ravenol 24h Nurburgring on 19-22 June 2025. Before hopping across the German/Belgian border one-week later for the CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa.
DID YOU WATCH THE SOUTH AFRICANS BROTHERS WIN THE 12-HOUR RACE?
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