Charlie Hayes Racing (CHR) is no stranger to relying on their expert strategies for success, but on Sunday at Circuit of The Americas, a little luck helped see the veteran team take the overall win at the third round of the 2025 Porsche Endurance Challenge North America season—seeing the 992 GT3 Cup Am entry finish ahead of the stacked Pro-Am class.
Starting driver Reinhold Krahn pitted far earlier than all other competitors—a bold move that, combined with strong pace and timely execution, saw the team outpace the entire field.
Just thirty minutes into the race, CHR made a bold move by sending Krahn in for an early pit stop—well ahead of the rest of the field—handing the #233 car over to teammate and team owner Charlie Hayes.
As Hayes rejoined the circuit, an on-track incident triggered the second yellow flag, preventing other teams from making their mandatory pit stops under caution. Once the race went green again, the other teams completed their stops, but Hayes’s strategic timing and a bit of luck gave him a full-lap lead at the front of the field.
It was the duo’s first Endurance Challenge win of 2025, and the remaining class competitors were not within striking distance.
Peter Toombs and co-driver Lonnie Pechnik had their best showing of the season by finishing second, while a dramatic incident at Turn 1 on the opening lap involved Josh Conley colliding with pole-sitter and 992 GT3 Cup Am championship leader Scott Blind, ending both of their races.
As a result, no team was classified in third place in the Am class.
In the 992 GT3 Cup Pro-Am category, John Gilliland and Aaron Jeansonne wrapped up their first victory of the four-event championship. The pair only gained the lead in the final half hour of the enduro, but led a string of 10 cars to do so.Â
CHR racer Damir Hot – leader of the majority of the race – and co-driver Ryan Yardley finished second after the latter made a pass for position with 20 minutes to go.Â
Mike Mim and Zachary Vanier jumped into the final Pro-Am podium spot after a competitor was penalized, making it back-to-back podiums for the pair after winning at Sonoma Raceway in April, seeing the duo leave COTA with the championship lead.
In the 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport Pro-Am class, Robin Liddell and Will Peluchiwski claimed first place for the first time this season with Kellymoss. Peluchiwski worked their Porsche up to second before Liddell took over, and Liddell made the winning pass with half an hour remaining.Â
The pass came on Brandon Chappell, who did not give up without a fight. Chappell inherited the car from co-driver Charles Espenlaub who took a turn in the lead as well before the mandatory pit stop.
The father-daughter Charlie Hayes Racing duo of Greg and Anna Cecchi finished third to tie their best performance of the season. Their podium meant all three CHR entries went home with trophies.
Emanuel and Reginald Tartaglione tag-teamed for the 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport Am class win, gaining the spot with less than an hour in the race after running in the top three.Â
It is the second consecutive Endurance Challenge win for the father and son pair with ProSport Competition, and they did so by more than seven seconds over runner-up Griff Asplundh in a solo entry. Jozsef Petkes finished third in his season debut.
After a quick start to the season, Porsche Endurance Challenge North America will resume in four months for the 2025 season finale. The event is set to take place alongside Porsche Sprint Challenge North America and USA West at Road Atlanta from September 12–14. Race replays throughout the season are available on the Porsche Motorsport North America YouTube Channel.
992 GT3 Cup Podium
Pro-Am
- #280 John Gilliland/Aaron Jeansonne
- #241 Damir Hot/Ryan Yardley
- #255 Mike Mim/Zachary Vanier
Am
- #233 Reinhold Krahn/Charlie Hayes (overall)
- #216 Peter Toombs/Lonnie Pechnik
718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport Podium
Pro-Am
- #62 William Peluchiwski/Robin Liddell
- #78 Brandon Chappell/Charles Espenlaub
- #72 Greg Cecchi/Anna Cecchi
Am
- #59 Emanuel Tartaglione/Reginald Tartaglione
- #86 Griff Asplundh
- #83 Jozsef Petkes
Full results from all sessions can be found here.
All photos can be found here.
