Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport
2nd place podium finish in the Daytona 24 Hours race
At the Daytona 24 Hours, which kicked off the 2025 season, the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport, entered by Team RS1, took a close second place on the podium.
The Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport took second place in the opening round of the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge, held as a companion race to the 2025 Daytona 24 Hours. Amid a fierce battle, Belgian driver Jan Heylen and American Luca Maas, both of Team RS1, missed out on victory by just 0.364 seconds after the four-hour race.
After a disappointing start to the 2025 season, Porsche customer teams won the Pro-Am, Silver and Amateur classes in the Pirelli GT4 America Series in 2024, as well as the GT4 class championship in the GT America Powered by AWS Series.
Volker Holzmeyer, President and CEO of Porsche Motorsport North America (PMNA), commented on the success of the 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport:
“Motorsport is at the core of Porsche’s brand identity and will continue to be so. The success of the 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport is proof of this. From club races to big events like the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge, the 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport has proven itself highly competitive.”
“This demonstrates Porsche’s strong commitment to the familiar GT4 category. The 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport has maintained its design and engineering versatility since its debut. And as Porsche, we are pleased to support our customers in one-make races such as the Porsche Sprint Challenge North America and the Porsche Endurance Challenge North America.”
From grassroots to global racing
The 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport is driven by many drivers not only in popular series such as the ADAC GT4 German Series, but also in one-make races and circuit events.
The 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport has now become a core part of Porsche’s customer racing program, alongside the 911 (Type 992)-based competition model. Since its debut in the 2022 season, it has consistently achieved strong results in sprint and endurance races around the world.
In addition to the US, the team has also won national GT4 series titles in Germany, France, Italy, Australia, and Thailand. In Germany, W&S Motorsport won every title in the 2024 ADAC GT4 German Series with the 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport.
The ADAC GT4 German Series is held as a joint championship with the German Touring Car Masters (DTM) and, along with the GT4 European Series, is one of the most competitive GT4 categories. Many drivers in Germany have experience in this series as a stepping stone to GT3.
Michael Dreiser, Sales Director at Porsche Motorsport, explains the current situation:
“The GT4 segment has become an important area for Porsche Motorsport. With the 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport, we have succeeded in delivering an extremely capable racing car that our customers have been able to compete in numerous series and championships around the world with great success. It is also very popular with drivers in one-make series and track day events.”
The Cayman GT4 has evolved over three generations
Porsche’s GT4 racing car has evolved over three generations since the first Cayman GT4 Clubsport was introduced in 2016. The latest generation, the 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport, is also the first production racing car to feature body components made from natural fiber composites (NFC).
In 2016, Porsche announced the Cayman GT4 Clubsport, based on the Type 981, as a racing car for the then-new GT4 series. Between 2016 and 2018, 421 Cayman GT4 Clubsports were produced and delivered to customers around the world.
The successor model based on the Type 982 debuted in 2019, with total production reaching 510 units. High demand was partly due to the reasonable cost of racing, achieved by combining durable production-based technology with motorsport-specific components.
The 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport, which will begin production in 2022 and inherits the tradition of two generations, is equipped with a 4.0-liter horizontally opposed six-cylinder engine that delivers a maximum output of 500 PS, carried over from the current 911 GT3 Cup. This represents an 18% increase in power compared to the previous 3.8-liter engine.
By optimizing the air intake shape, maximum power is now delivered at 8,300 rpm, 800 rpm higher than before, and the maximum rotation speed is now 9,000 rpm. Maximum torque has also been significantly increased from 425 Nm in the previous model to 465 Nm. These updates have expanded the power band, realizing drivability that is easy to use even for amateur drivers.
The 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport is also the first production racing car to feature body components made from natural fiber composites (NFC). The 2025 spec model sees even greater use of NFC in the bonnet, front fenders, front aerodynamic elements, doors, rear wing and steering wheel.
