Thompson Takes Podium in Canada with Hawksworth and Vasser Sullivan Lexus
BOWMANVILLE, ON — Parker Thompson and Jack Hawksworth delivered another strong championship result for the No. 12 Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3, securing a third-place finish in the GTD class of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (CTMP).
The weekend started with dominant pace for the No. 12 team. Hawksworth and Thompson topped the charts in Practice 1, Practice 2, and then Hawksworth put the car on pole position in Saturday’s qualifying session.
Hawksworth started Sunday’s 2-hour 40-minute sprint race from the front of the GTD field, controlling the opening 36 laps. But the race took a tough turn for the team during their mid-race pit stop. A caution period brought much of the field in together, and congestion on pit lane cost valuable time. Hawksworth handed the car over to Thompson, who rejoined in 10th.
Thompson wasted no time attacking on the restart, immediately gaining positions and fighting back toward the front. As strategies cycled through, he briefly regained the lead before a final fuel stop dropped the No. 12 back to fourth. Despite several late-race cautions limiting green-flag running, Thompson worked his way back to third place before the race ended under yellow.
It was the No. 12’s fourth podium of the 2025 season, and the result lifted the Vasser Sullivan Lexus squad back to second in the GTD championship standings with key rounds remaining.
Parker Thompson:
“Unfortunate end, but with a big-picture mindset, this is a day we needed. You’re not going to lose the championship on a day your rival finishes second and you finish third. You’ll lose it when you make a big mistake, and they capitalize. All-in-all, the No. 12 Vasser Sullivan Lexus team are doing what we need to do to keep this championship alive for us. Now, we head to Road America with hopes and dreams intact, ready to go compete even harder.”
Jack Hawksworth:
“Hard-fought third-place finish today. The No. 12 Vasser Sullivan Lexus team did a great job all weekend, giving us a really good RC F GT3. We qualified up front and controlled the race early on until that pit stop in the middle of the race. Lost track position there, and then Parker did a really good job at the end to get his elbows out. The guys made some good calls to get us positions back as well, so that was a positive way to end the race. Obviously, would’ve liked to have done a little bit better, but we’ll move onto Road America and try again.”
The third-place result is Vasser Sullivan’s best-ever GTD finish at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park and marks another strong weekend in an intensely competitive season.
Up next: The IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship heads to Road America, where the No. 12 team will continue their push for the GTD title.