Samantha Tan & Pippa Mann spirited comeback ends with runner up finish at 24H of Barcelona

Samantha Tan Racing delivered a heroic performance at the 24H of Barcelona, overcoming early technical setbacks to mount an incredible comeback to recover five laps and reclaiming the lead - ultimately finishing a heartbreaking P2 by just a handful of seconds after 24 hours of intense competition.

Samantha Tan Racing, Samantha Tan, Pippa Mann, BMW M4 GT4, 24 Hours of Barcelona 2024 — Photo credits: CREVENTIC

The 25th edition of the 24H of Barcelona had all the drama of a Hollywood movie script: the GT4 leaders, after an early dominant performance, were halted by a technical issue, forcing them into an incredible recovery drive against all odds. After 17 hours, they came back from several laps down to retake the top spot, only for another plot twist to turn everything around in the closing minutes, resulting in a finale that came down to the wire.

After 24 hours of intense racing, the GT4 class was decided by just a handful of seconds, with the Canadian team Samantha Tan Racing taking home a hard-earned yet bittersweet runner-up spot. The team’s five drivers—driver-owner Samantha Tan, BMW factory driver Neil Verhagen, Jon Miller, and first-time team additions Pippa Mann and bronze-rated Fabian Duffieux—delivered flawless performances, stint after stint.

Tan, currently leading the GT World Challenge America ProAm standings with Verhagen, returned to the Creventic-promoted 24 Hours of Barcelona after winning both the overall title in the 24H Series and the race in 2021; once again in the GT4 class, but this time with the new M4 GT4, Tan now teamed up with a fresh driver lineup, which also included IndyCar veteran Pippa Mann.

Mann, a race winner in IndyLights with seven Indianapolis 500 starts to her name, has in recent years competed in sportscars, mainly in the U.S. She has also made four appearances in the ADAC 24 Hours Nürburgring, securing one class win and three podiums. Familiar with the BMW M4 GT4 platform, Mann made her first race start with the Canadian outfit in a lineup that instantly looked like the one to beat in a strong GT4 category.

The team showed great pace in GT4 during practice, moving closer to the top of the class and leading the official practice on Friday morning. Samantha Tan took the car out first in Q1 and immediately set strong laps, going second with a 1:52.2, and then shaving off two-tenths, just short of P1. ST Racing chose to save tyres and pit Samantha after her impressive qualifying effort.

Next up in Q2 was Fabian Duffieux: the Belgian bronze-rated driver put in a strong first lap of 1:52.439, again second fastest. He had an even quicker lap, but it was deleted for track limits. Nevertheless, ST Racing entered Q3 still in second place after great runs from both drivers.

Pippa Mann took the final stint of qualifying. The British racer initially clocked a 1:54.117, but a red flag came out just as she was getting up to speed. After the session resumed, Mann improved to a 1:53.3, and on her final lap, she found another three-tenths of a second, finishing with a 1:53.054. This cemented ST Racing’s second-place start on the grid for the GT4 class.

In night practice, the team continued its strong performance, with the #428 BMW M4 GT4 once again topping the timesheets. All four drivers put in competitive times under the lights, adding to the team's growing confidence heading into the race.

From second on the grid in GT4, Neil Verhagen took the start in the #428 ST Racing BMW. The American had a cautious start, dropping to sixth in class, however, all the cars were closely bunched, with Verhagen engaged in thrilling three-wide battles. He passed Kvedaras in the #405 GRS Ginetta, then the Apex MP Racing KTM of Pavlovic, and soon overtook the #421 Mercedes, setting his sights on the class-leading Lionspeed GP Porsche.

As the Lionspeed Porsche and the Apex MP Racing KTM battled closely for second and third in class, Verhagen pulled away. By the first hour, he enjoyed a 15-second lead over the rest of the field. He then pitted from the class lead on lap 38, completing a flawless stint and handing the car over to Samantha Tan after an excellent stop by the crew.

Samantha rejoined in third place, with the leading GT4 duo running longer, but she was significantly faster. Logging consistently strong laps, Tan reclaimed the class lead once the #421 and #414 cars pitted for the first time. By the end of the second hour, Tan was the fastest driver in GT4, extending her lead to over 1 minute 30 seconds.

After a refuel on lap 79 following her strong run, Fabian Duffieux got into the car. Meanwhile, the #714 Razoon More Than Racing KTM came to a halt after a collision with the #91 Herberth Motorsport Porsche, triggering the first Code 60 of the race. The ST Racing BMW gained a few more seconds due to the neutralization while in pit lane and rejoined in second place, with the leading KTM off sequence.

Duffieux started his stint with solid laps and settled in as one of the best bronze-rated drivers in class. The #428 BMW continued to run flawlessly in the lead, retaining nearly a one-minute gap when Pippa Mann took over after the 4-hour mark.

Mann began her stint running 1:54 laps, with the lead continuing to grow. A Code 60 with 19 hours and 30 minutes left, triggered by multiple incidents, temporarily slowed her run, but she was soon back to lapping in the 1:53 range, with a really strong showing. By the time Mann pitted on lap 159 from the lead, the ST Racing BMW had lapped the closest GT4 competitor, the #421 Venture Engineering Mercedes.

Samantha Tan returned for her second stint, with ST Racing now holding a 2-lap advantage over the #424 Porsche. After a caution period, Tan once again proved faster than the second- and third-placed cars, further strengthening her lead. As the sun began to set over Circuit de Catalunya, she handed over to Fabian Duffieux.

Duffieux’s gap had grown to 3 laps, as Milos Pavlovic’s KTM X-Bow GT4 and Daniel Miller’s Mercedes battled for second. Unfortunately, with 16 hours to go, Duffieux began experiencing power loss. The team pitted to assess the issue and discovered that a rock had punctured the intercooler. The #428 BMW spent 20 minutes in the garage, losing its advantage and dropping to fifth place before Pippa Mann rejoined the race, now five laps off the lead.

"We started from the front row, and after just six hours, we had built a 4 lap lead", Tan summarized. "Shortly after, a stone pierced our intercooler, forcing us into the garage. Our crew was incredible, fixing the issue in just 20 minutes. However, by the time we were back on track, we were 5 laps down from the leader. still, we refused to give up."

Mann however was relentless, running consistent 1:53 laps; she quickly gained ground on the cars ahead, slashing the gap to the #421 Mercedes down to 3 laps and eventually handed the car over to Jon Miller after another strong stint.

Miller ran laps in the 1:52 range, reducing the gap to the fourth-placed NM Racing Mercedes to under 2 minutes. Neil Verhagen took over next, delivering another stellar run, catching and passing the #415 Mercedes to reclaim fourth. By lap 341, Verhagen was in third, having reduced the gap to the second-placed #421 Mercedes to less than 2 minutes.

Jon Miller followed with another night shift, cutting the gap to under a minute before pitting under a Code 60. After refueling, Miller rejoined the race in second, steadily gaining on the class leaders. By the time he handed the car back to Verhagen, ST Racing was just 2 minutes behind the leading Lionspeed GP Porsche.

With 6 hours and 40 minutes to go, Duffieux cycled back to third, briefly taking the lead as the #421 Mercedes and #424 Porsche pitted. After a superb 1 hour 50-minute run, Duffieux handed the car over to Neil Verhagen. The BMW factory driver built almost a 2-minute gap to Owen Hizzey in the #421 Mercedes before Samantha Tan returned for her second stint of the race.

Tan rejoined in second, as the #424 Porsche encountered trouble after a collision with the #4 Optimum McLaren. Samantha soon retook the lead when the #421 Mercedes pitted, running strong with a 1 minute 30-second lead as the final hours approached.

Pippa Mann took over with 2 hours 30 minutes to go, extending the gap to 6 minutes.

After losing a four-lap lead early on in the race, ST Racing had been the protagonist of an unbelieveble charge from 5 laps down, and was entering the final hour with a solid margin to the closest competitor.

"Neil and Jon put in monster stints overnight, and by dawn we were back in the hunt", Mann said. "Fabian had the honor of re-taking our lead. Samantha drove her tail off to maintain the gap. I took over the car in P1, and with another driver in our opposition car, I was able to extend our lead to just over a lap, and Sam got back in for the final stint of the race."

However, drama was just around the corner: a fuel pump issue during the final pit stop slowed the team down, and Tan rejoined the race just 48 seconds ahead of the second-placed Mercedes. Despite having to stop and go through a power cycle, Tan fought heroically to hold onto the lead while nursing the technical issue for the final 45 minutes.

A late Code 60 helped freeze the gap, but more issues struck as soon as the race went green again: the #428 car dramatically slowed, losing the lead with just 30 minutes to go. Samantha kept her cool and managed to restart after another power cycle on the main straight, then chased Matthew George in the #421 Mercedes, delivering one of the best stints of her career.

Though she put heavy pressure on George, the race ended with the ST Racing BMW finishing just 1 second behind after 24 hours of racing.

Despite a 5-second penalty, the incredible run by Samantha Tan Racing was both heartbreaking and impressive, showcasing their relentless determination.

"I’m incredibly proud, but l’m also heartbroken", Samantha said. "What a recovery drive, what a race we had."

"A technical issue caused the car to repeatedly lose power and enter limp mode. I had to stop and reset the car on track three times. every second felt like a lifetime, and in the chaos, the class leader passed me."

"I battled with the class leader until the end, crossing the line just one second behind - one second after 24 hours. P2 doesn’t feel like enough; it doesn’t even begin to reflect the relentless drive that went into this race."

"But through it all, I couldn’t be prouder — of myself, my teammates, and our incredible crew", she concluded. "We fought with everything we had. thank you all for your tireless work and support — let this be motivation for the next one."

"But what a race to be part of," - Pippa echoed. "What a team to be part of. What a driver line up to be part of. Thank you again from the bottom of my heart to everyone involved."