McLaren GT3 Junior Driver Thomas Fleming will join Todd Coleman and Aaron Telitz in Archangel Motorsports’ #69 McLaren 720S GT3 EVO for this weekend’s DESDER Indianapolis 8 Hour.
The trio will compete in the Pro-Am category at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, combining Coleman and Telitz’s established GT World Challenge America powered by AWS partnership with Fleming’s experience across the FIA World Endurance Championship and GT World Challenge Europe.
Archangel heads into the season finale with momentum after Coleman and Telitz secured their first GTWC America victory together at Barber Motorsports Park. Their breakthrough followed a podium at Road Atlanta and continued a strong second half of the campaign as the team established itself among the leading Pro-Am contenders.
Fleming set for Indianapolis debut
The Indianapolis 8 Hour will mark Fleming’s first race at the Brickyard and adds another major endurance event to his rapidly expanding GT3 résumé.
The 24-year-old currently races with Garage 59 in both WEC and GTWC Europe, where he has enjoyed a successful 2026 campaign. Fleming claimed his first WEC victory when the #10 Garage 59 McLaren came through from 15th on the grid to win LMGT3 during the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, sharing the car with Antares Au and Marvin Kirchhöfer.
He has also starred in GTWC Europe alongside Louis Prette. The pair delivered Garage 59 its first overall victory of the season at Zandvoort, where Fleming took the lead on the opening lap before Prette completed the job following the mandatory pit stop. Their result formed part of a strong campaign in which the McLaren crew has regularly challenged at the front of the Gold Cup.
Fleming believes joining Archangel gives him another opportunity to build on that momentum while experiencing one of North America’s most recognisable venues for the first time.
“I’m extremely excited to be taking part in the Indy 8 hour with Archangel Motorsport,” Fleming said. “It will be my first time at the yard of bricks, and in a very competitive line up with Todd and Aaron.”
He added: “I’m really looking forward to getting things underway and working with the team. It’s going to be awesome!”
Archangel arrives after Barber breakthrough
Coleman and Telitz enter Indianapolis following their strongest GTWC America result of the year. After showing competitive pace throughout the campaign, the pair finally converted that potential into victory during the penultimate round at Barber.
Coleman kept the #69 McLaren within contention during the opening phase before handing the car to Telitz, who moved into the Pro-Am lead and controlled the remainder of the race. The Barber victory lifted Archangel to fifth in the Pro-Am Teams’ Championship and moved Coleman and Telitz onto 46 points in the Drivers’ standings.
That result followed a podium earlier in the season at Road Atlanta and underlined the progress made by the combination during their first full campaign together.
Indianapolis now provides a different challenge. Rather than the regular GTWC America race format, Coleman and Telitz will need to manage an eight-hour contest alongside Fleming, placing greater emphasis on traffic management, consistency and adapting the car across changing track conditions.
Fleming adds international endurance experience
Fleming’s arrival gives Archangel another driver familiar with long-distance GT racing. His WEC campaign has exposed him to six-hour races throughout the season, while his GTWC Europe programme has included the CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa and the championship’s three-hour Endurance Cup events.
That experience should complement Coleman and Telitz, who have built their partnership across the GTWC America campaign and already understand the behaviour of the #69 McLaren over longer stints.
Fleming also brings extensive experience with the 720S GT3 EVO after racing the car across both championships with Garage 59. That familiarity should reduce the adjustment required when he joins Archangel for the first time.
Before moving into GT3 competition, Fleming established himself through Ferrari Challenge and claimed the 2023 Ferrari Challenge World Championship. His subsequent progression into international GT racing has included success across multiple series, with 2026 delivering victories at both WEC and GTWC level.
Indianapolis offers chance to end season strongly
For Coleman and Telitz, Indianapolis provides an opportunity to build directly on their Barber success and close their 2026 GTWC America campaign with another major result.
Their late-season form has moved Archangel firmly into the leading Pro-Am group. The pair climbed to seventh in the class Drivers’ standings after Barber, while the team made the largest positional gain in the Teams’ Championship following its first victory of the year.
The eight-hour finale nevertheless presents a considerably larger challenge, with a record field combining GTWC America competitors and Intercontinental GT Challenge entries. Archangel will face Pro-Am opposition from several established Porsche, BMW, Mercedes-AMG, Ford and Chevrolet crews across the race.
Fleming’s addition strengthens the McLaren line-up at an important moment, while also giving the British driver another opportunity to broaden his international experience during a season that has already included significant milestones.
Archangel joins record Indianapolis field
The #69 McLaren forms part of the record 28-car Indianapolis 8 Hour field, with the event deciding both the Intercontinental GT Challenge season and the final GTWC America championship positions.
The race will also mark the final Indianapolis round of the current IGTC era before the championship’s North American event moves to Circuit of The Americas in 2027.
For Archangel, the focus remains on converting its recent upward trajectory into another strong result. Coleman and Telitz have already turned consistent pace into a first victory, while Fleming arrives after proving himself as a race winner with McLaren machinery in Europe.
The DESDER Indianapolis 8 Hour begins on Saturday, 10 October at 12:30 p.m. ET and runs until 8:30 p.m. ET. With Fleming joining Coleman and Telitz for his first appearance at the circuit, Archangel Motorsports will head into the finale with one of its strongest line-ups of the season.
