Ayhancan Güven remained fastest in the second and final test session for the 2026 DESDER Indianapolis 8 Hour, keeping the #32 GMG Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo at the top of the times on Thursday morning.
The Porsche factory driver produced a 1:23.655 during the 90-minute session, improving on the 1:24.333 that had put him quickest in Wednesday’s opening test by 0.678s. Güven finished 0.132s clear of Chris Mies in the #6 Dollahite Racing Ford Mustang GT3 EVO, while RS1 and Tsunami RT placed another two Porsches third and fourth.
Pro-Am machinery again dominated the order, occupying the first eight positions before the newly reclassified #120 Wright Motorsports Porsche became the fastest Pro entry in ninth. Wright’s #31 Pro-Am Porsche completed the top 10 after drivetrain problems had prevented it from setting a representative time on Wednesday.
Güven lowers Indianapolis benchmark
Güven established the new benchmark on lap 17 of the #32 Porsche’s 45-lap programme, recording a 1:23.655 at an average speed of 168.9km/h. The time remained unbeaten through the remainder of the session and gave GMG Racing the fastest time in both tests ahead of the competitive portion of the weekend.
The #32 continues to carry the Buc-ee’s livery introduced at Barber Motorsports Park and features a revised driver line-up for Indianapolis. Kyle Washington shares the Porsche with Güven and Riccardo Pera after regular team-mate Tom Sargent elected to contest the clashing European Le Mans Series finale.
Washington remains at the centre of the GT World Challenge America Pro-Am championship battle despite Sargent’s absence, adding further importance to a strong start for the GMG crew. The car has now led both sessions while steadily lowering its pace as teams prepare for Saturday’s eight-hour race.
Mies takes Dollahite Ford to second
Mies delivered the largest move among the leading contenders by putting the #6 Dollahite Racing Ford second overall. His 1:23.787 came on only the fourth lap of the car’s 42-lap session and left him 0.132s behind Güven.
RS1 followed another 0.013s back with a 1:23.800 from the #28 Porsche, while Tsunami RT continued its consistently strong start to the weekend. The #79 Porsche, which had finished third in Test 1, recorded a 1:23.808 to take fourth and finish only 0.153s away from the outright benchmark.
Just 0.153s therefore covered the leading four cars, while all four came from the Pro-Am category. The tightly packed order continued further down the classification, with less than half a second separating the first eight.
Fleming keeps Archangel inside top five
Thomas Fleming continued Archangel Motorsports’ promising Indianapolis weekend by placing the #69 McLaren 720S GT3 Evo fifth overall with a 1:23.871.
The McLaren GT3 Junior Driver joins Todd Coleman and Aaron Telitz for the season finale and is making his first competitive appearance at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. His time came on lap 23 of the car’s 46-lap programme and left Archangel just 0.216s behind Güven.
The result followed Telitz’s fourth place in Test 1 and means the #69 has featured inside the leading five during both sessions. Archangel arrives at Indianapolis after Coleman and Telitz took their first GTWC America victory together at Barber Motorsports Park, while Fleming adds further endurance experience from his FIA World Endurance Championship and GT World Challenge Europe programmes.
Kellymoss then occupied the next three positions. The #017 Porsche finished sixth on a 1:23.974, only 0.007s ahead of the #88 in seventh. The #13 completed the trio in eighth with a 1:24.070.
Wright Motorsports leads Pro in ninth
Wright Motorsports’ revised #120 Porsche emerged as the quickest Pro entry, with Morris Schuring setting a 1:24.108 to place the car ninth overall.
The entry had originally been scheduled to compete as the #242 Pro-Am Porsche with Therese Lahlouh, Thomas Merrill and Kévin Estre. Lahlouh’s continued recovery prompted Wright to revise its Indianapolis plans, with Schuring joining Merrill and Estre and the car moving into the Pro category as #120.
Wright’s second Porsche completed the overall top 10. The #31 of Dave Musial Jr., Ryan Yardley and Laurin Heinrich recorded a 1:24.157 after enduring a significantly more difficult opening test, when drivetrain problems stopped the car after only one lap and prevented it from returning to the circuit.
Its recovery provided important mileage for a crew fighting for the GTWC America Pro-Am championship, while Heinrich also enters the weekend with an outside opportunity to win the Intercontinental GT Challenge Drivers’ title.
2026 Indianapolis 8 Hour Test 2 full results
The official Test 2 classification featured all 28 entries, with every car recording a time during an uninterrupted session. Güven’s 1:23.655 led the field, while 0.895s covered the first 27 cars before the #11 MAD Joker Racing Mercedes-AMG completed the order.
- #32 GMG Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo — Pro-Am — 1:23.655 — Kyle Washington / Riccardo Pera / Ayhancan Güven
- #6 Dollahite Racing Ford Mustang GT3 EVO — Pro-Am — 1:23.787 — +0.132 — Scott Dollahite / Alex Sedgwick / Chris Mies
- #28 RS1 Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo — Pro-Am — 1:23.800 — +0.145 — Danny Dyszelski / Daan Arrow / Jan Heylen
- #79 Tsunami RT Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo — Pro-Am — 1:23.808 — +0.153 — Johannes Zelger / Fabio Babini / Alex Fontana
- #69 Archangel Motorsports McLaren 720S GT3 EVO — Pro-Am — 1:23.871 — +0.216 — Todd Coleman / Thomas Fleming / Aaron Telitz
- #017 Kellymoss Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo — Pro-Am — 1:23.974 — +0.319 — Michael Clark / Lars Kern / Colin Braun
- #88 Kellymoss Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo — Pro-Am — 1:23.981 — +0.326 — John Gilliland / Aaron Jeansonne / Loek Hartog
- #13 Kellymoss Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo — Pro-Am — 1:24.070 — +0.415 — Todd Parriott / Riley Dickinson / Kay van Berlo
- #120 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo — Pro — 1:24.108 — +0.453 — Thomas Merrill / Morris Schuring / Kévin Estre
- #31 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo — Pro-Am — 1:24.157 — +0.502 — Dave Musial Jr. / Ryan Yardley / Laurin Heinrich
- #12 AF Corse USA Ferrari 296 GT3 EVO — Pro — 1:24.168 — +0.513 — Matías Pérez Companc / Frederik Schandorff / Nicklas Nielsen
- #8 McCann Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo — Pro — 1:24.181 — +0.526 — Michael McCann Jr. / Zachary Vanier / Alessio Picariello
- #999 GetSpeed Team PCX Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO — Pro-Am — 1:24.183 — +0.528 — Patrick Charlaix / Jordan Boisson / Marvin Klein
- #9 TR3 Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO — Pro-Am — 1:24.216 — +0.561 — Brayton Williams / Indy Dontje / Daniel Morad
- #34 Mercedes-AMG Team JMF Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO — Pro — 1:24.218 — +0.563 — Michai Stephens / Mikaël Grenier / Maxime Martin
- #71 Rebel Rock Racing Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 EVO — Pro-Am — 1:24.254 — +0.599 — Frank DePew / Robin Liddell / Andrew Davis
- #50 Chouest Povoledo Racing Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R — SRO3 — 1:24.310 — +0.655 — Ross Chouest / Aaron Povoledo
- #14 Riley Technologies BMW M4 GT3 EVO — Pro-Am — 1:24.327 — +0.672 — Slade Stewart / Andy Lee / Jesse Krohn
- #99 Random Vandals Racing BMW M4 GT3 EVO — Pro-Am — 1:24.373 — +0.718 — Derek DeBoer / Hampus Ericsson / Marcus Ericsson
- #67 Scuderia Corsa Ferrari 296 GT3 EVO — Am — 1:24.380 — +0.725 — Mitchell Green / Conrad Grunewald / Jamie Morrow
- #27 JMF Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO — Pro-Am — 1:24.429 — +0.774 — Jason Daskalos / Wyatt Brichacek / Philip Ellis
- #80 Mercedes-AMG Team Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO — Pro — 1:24.460 — +0.805 — Lin Hodenius / Luca Stolz / Álex Palou
- #29 Turner Motorsport BMW M4 GT3 EVO — Pro — 1:24.466 — +0.811 — Justin Rothberg / Robby Foley / Connor De Phillippi
- #64 Chicago Performance and Tuning Co. Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2 — Pro-Am — 1:24.491 — +0.836 — Nicolai Elghanayan / Mads Siljehaug / Loris Spinelli
- #163 AF Corse USA Ferrari 296 GT3 EVO — Am — 1:24.523 — +0.868 — Jay Schreibman / Oswaldo Negri / Benny Simonsen
- #91 Herberth Motorsport Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo — Pro-Am — 1:24.535 — +0.880 — Ralf Bohn / Alfred Renauer / Robert Renauer
- #86 High Class Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo — Pro-Am — 1:24.550 — +0.895 — Kerong Li / Anders Fjordbach / Hongli Ye
- #11 MAD Joker Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO — Am — 1:25.705 — +2.050 — Marc Austin / Ben Keating / Peter Dempsey
The fastest class laps came from Güven in Pro-Am at 1:23.655, Schuring in Pro at 1:24.108, Aaron Povoledo in SRO3 at 1:24.310 and Mitchell Green in Am at 1:24.380.
Pro-Am entries dominate final test
Thursday’s final test reinforced the strength of the Pro-Am field, with the class occupying the first eight positions and nine of the first 10. Güven led Mies, RS1 and Tsunami RT before Fleming and the three Kellymoss entries completed the Pro-Am sweep at the front.
The #120 Wright Porsche interrupted that run in ninth as the leading Pro car, followed by the #31 in 10th. AF Corse USA’s #12 Ferrari and McCann Racing’s #8 Porsche followed in 11th and 12th as the next Pro entries, while Mercedes-AMG Team JMF Motorsports placed 15th.
The front of the field was also significantly tighter than in Test 1. Güven’s benchmark improved by more than six-tenths, while only 0.563s covered the leading 15 cars and less than nine-tenths separated first from 27th.
Unlike Wednesday, Thursday’s test ran without any reported incidents or red flags, allowing teams to complete substantial programmes before the event moves into its official practice sessions.
Scuderia Corsa leads Am category
Mitchell Green put the #67 Scuderia Corsa Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo at the head of the Am category with a 1:24.380, good enough for 20th overall.
The Ferrari had briefly stopped on track during Wednesday’s opening session but completed 38 laps on Thursday without further trouble. AF Corse USA followed in the Am classification with the #163 Ferrari in 25th, while the #11 MAD Joker Racing Mercedes-AMG completed the 28-car overall order.
The Am field has expanded to three entries for the Indianapolis finale, giving the category its largest grid of the GTWC America season.
Indianapolis running moves into the night
The Indianapolis 8 Hour field will return to action on Thursday evening, beginning with a 30-minute Paid Bronze Test at 6:20 p.m. ET. Free Practice follows immediately afterwards and will provide teams with their first significant opportunity for night-time running during the event.
That session will be particularly important with Saturday’s eight-hour contest extending into the evening. Teams will have an opportunity to assess visibility and track evolution under different conditions before Friday brings Pre-Qualifying, the three Qualifying sessions and the Pole Shootout.
For now, the early benchmark remains with GMG Racing. Güven has topped both Indianapolis tests and lowered his best time to 1:23.655, but the tightly packed field behind the #32 Porsche suggests the order remains far from settled as the competitive sessions begin.
