Category: IMSA

No. 8 Oreca to race full season in IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship

Toronto, Ontario. (January 7, 2022) – The 2022 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season begins this month at Daytona International Speedway and Tower Motorsport will return to the series for another full season with the No. 8 Oreca in the LMP2 class. Team principal John Farano and 2021 European Le Mans Series (ELMS) Champion Louis Delétraz will run the seven-race championship and be joined by 2021 ELMS Champion Rui Andrade for the four endurance races. Ferdinand Habsburg, 2021 24 Hours of Le Mans winner, will act as the team’s fourth driver for the Rolex 24 At Daytona.

Tower Motorsports concluded the 2021 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship on the top step of the podium, claiming victory at Petit Le Mans, defending the team’s win at the same event in 2020. The team finished third in the LMP2 championship standings, placing in the top three for six of the seven races.

The 2022 season will mark Tower Motorsport’s third year in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. Sponsored primarily by Tower Events and Tower Scaffold Services, the No. 8 Oreca will again sport its signature orange and white colors, with a black base to replace the previous year’s purple livery. With three reigning champions, Tower Motorsport’s stout lineup will prove to be a strong entry in the packed Rolex 24 field.

“I am very excited to be racing alongside Louis for the full 2022 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and thrilled to have Rui join us for the full Michelin Endurance Cup Championship, and having Ferdinand anchoring the team for the 24,” said Farano. “I have already had the pleasure of testing at Daytona with these amazing drivers who immediately put their speed and talents on display. I am very much looking forward to another great season with Rick Capone (Capone Motorsports) leading our technical crew (Erwan, Richie, Martin, Damien, Daniel, Alain, JJ, Jan, and John) and our amazing engineering group led by Matthieu Leroy and supported by Viktor and Townsend whom I am sure will continue to field one of the best performing cars on the grid.”

Having raced primarily in single-seaters, 24-year-old Louis Delétraz earned a name for himself, climbing up to compete in Formula 2 and spending two years as a Formula 1 Reserve Driver with Haas F1 Team. In 2015, he became the Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup champion, and in 2021, he earned top honors again with Team WRT in the European Le Mans Series.

“I’m delighted to join Tower Motorsport for the full 2022 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship,” said Delétraz. Together with John, Rui and Ferdinand I think we have a super competitive lineup. The 2022 preparation has already started with some testing at Daytona, we all have the same goals and motivation of having a successful 2022 season. The off-season preparation has already started to be ready for Rolex 24 At Daytona at the end of January where we aim to start strong!”

Joining the full-season duo for the Michelin Endurance Cup, the four-race championship within the seven-race full season championship will be Rui Andrade. The 2021 European Le Mans Series LMP2 Pro-AM champion began his racing career karting at age 12 and made his single-seater debut in 2018. The 2021 season marked his first-time racing in LMP2, claiming top honors in ELMS and third place in the Asian Le Mans Series championship.

“I’m extremely happy with the opportunity to join John, Louis, and Ferdinand in the Rolex 24 At Daytona,” said Andrade. “It’s one of the world’s most prestigious motor races and having spent most of my childhood in America, I feel very privileged to be able to return to do what I love the most. I know Tower is an incredible team and have already had the chance to test with them and get to meet everyone has only made me more excited with what’s to come.”

Rounding out the Tower Motorsport lineup for 2022, 24-year-old Ferdinand Habsburg will complete the team, racing as the fourth driver in the Rolex 24 At Daytona. Also with a background in single-seaters in Europe, Habsburg has had great success in sports car racing, winning the FIA World Endurance Championship LMP2 title, Rolex 24 Hours of Le Mans, and the Asian Le Mans Series title, all in 2021.

“Racing in America is something else,” said Habsburg. “I have raced all around the world, but nothing comes close to the atmosphere in Daytona on race day. It just drags you in and makes you want to go back again and again. I am really looking forward to sharing a car with my fellow Bullet Rui, REMUS Ambassador Louis, and Tower Motorsport stalwart John Farano. My goal is quite clear: I missed out on the watch in Le Mans so I will give my all to grab one in Daytona.”

The 2022 schedule will see the LMP2 class returning to the same courses as the previous season, starting with the Roar Before the 24 at Daytona International Speedway, January 21-23. Acting as the first official series-wide test of the new season, the Roar also hosts the qualifying session for the first race of the year, the Rolex 24 at Daytona. Dubbed a “qualifying race,” the Motul Pole Award will be a one-hour, forty-minute race that will be held on January 23 at 2:00 pm Eastern and will set the grid for the Rolex 24 the following week, beginning on January 29th at 1:40 pm eastern. For ticket information and TV and stream listings, visit imsa.com.

Two familiar veterans will join two outstanding young stars for 2022 LMP3 season opener at the Rolex 24 at Daytona

Jupiter, Fla. (6 January 2022) — Sean Creech Motorsport (SCM) returns to IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship action in 2022 for a full-season campaign in the quickly-growing LMP3 class. The team will field the No. 33 Sean Creech Motorsport Exelixis Ligier JS P320 and will open the 2022 season with an outing in the 60th running of the Rolex 24 At Daytona January 29-30.

Four-time Rolex 24 winner João Barbosa and Dr. Lance Willsey will make up the full-season lineup, while 18-year-old Malthe Jakobsen and 21-year-old Sebastian Priaulx are set to make their Rolex 24 debuts.

Barbosa and Willsey raced with SCM in 2021, finishing second at the Rolex 24 and contesting four races in the debut season for LMP3 in WeatherTech competition. Both drivers have lengthy histories with SCM: Barbosa first drove with the team over 20 years ago, while Willsey raced several seasons with the team’s IMSA Prototype Challenge effort and has also partnered with the team in vintage competition as well.

“The team did such a good job last year, so I think there’s huge potential for this year,” said Barbosa, a resident of nearby Ormond Beach who is set for his 20th Rolex 24 start. “We finished second last year and we want to do as good or better. With Malthe and Sebastian, it’s a young and strong team to face the challenge of the LMP3 class. Malthe knows the car and his experience in Europe really helps. I coached Sebastian in a few races last year and have followed his progress, he did a stellar job last year. He has huge potential as well and this will give him great experience. We’ll get them as many laps as we can at the Roar, but we know they’ll have plenty of time to get ready.”

“I am very pleased to be back with the team and ready to take on the Rolex 24,” said Willsey, who will make his 13th Rolex 24 start this year. “This is such a special race and requires the highest level of commitment from team and drivers. We have a great driver lineup this year, with João, who of course has won this race four times, and Malthe and Sebastian, who are fast and eager for the challenge. I’m looking forward to it!”

Newcomers Priaulx, from Guernsey, UK and Jakobsen, from Denmark, share very similar background stories. Both come from racing families, both have enjoyed successful karting careers before moving to junior formula car racing, both have made impressive starts in sports car racing – and both will contest their first 24-hour race at the Rolex 24.

The son of three-time FIA World Touring Car Champion Andy Priaulx, Sebastian Priaulx parlayed a successful karting career into a two-year stint in the Ginetta Junior Championship, where he finished second in the 2017 title chase. He contested the 2018 British F4 Championship but shifted his focus back to sports cars and finished second in the 2019 British GT Championship. Priaulx made the move to the U.S. in 2019, winning in his IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge debut at Road Atlanta. Priaulx returned to IMPC in 2020 with Multimatic and most recently raced to the 2021 Porsche Carrera Cup North America title.

“It’s a dream, to do this race,” said Priaulx. “I’m very excited, it’s my first 24-hour race, and I’m over the moon to be working with these guys. João was my driver coach last year so it will be great working with him at Daytona. Sean has such a great history and it’s a good group of guys, so I’m ready to get going! I’ve watched a lot of 24-hour races and I know how draining it is, mentally and physically, so I’m doing a lot of training to get my endurance levels up, and a lot of sim work. It’s a very different kind of racing compared to a 45-minute sprint race, or the four-hour race I did at Daytona two years ago. It’s one of those tracks that can be easily underestimated, as it looks like a couple of corners and an oval. But it’s actually quite technical, and finding that last bit of speed is difficult, but I’m excited for the effort.”

Jakobsen grew up at the racetrack alongside dad Lasse, who raced formula cars in Germany. He drove his first kart at age three and won several Danish karting titles before turning to cars in 2018. He won the Danish F4 Championship in 2019 before turning to sports car racing and competing in the European Le Mans Series. Jakobsen competed in the Asian Le Mans Series, ELMS, two Michelin Le Mans Cup events in 2021, and at Petit Le Mans.

He tested in the SCM Ligier in early December at Daytona, and his immediate pace caught everyone’s attention.

“We’d been talking to Sean for some time, and I tested with the team last month at Daytona,” said Jakobsen. “It’s a really great team and I’m glad we were able to put something together. I’m looking forward to working with the engineers and mechanics, and with João, Lance and Sebastian. They know the car and the setup so well. It helps that I’ve raced the Ligier in ELMS, but racing with the speed of the DPi cars, and all the traffic, will be different. This is a real endurance race, so I am doing sim work and physical training, so I’ll be ready for it!”

The SCM team, including team principal Sean Creech, brought a successful 30-year racing history to the series, with a racing resume that spans the decades and includes Group C, IMSA GTP, WSC, Grand-Am, SRO World Challenge, and IMSA competition. Creech’s Jupiter, Florida-based team includes a roster of crew and consultants that have worked with him for years and are ready to return to IMSA action.

“I’m glad we could put this effort together for 2022, especially with this outstanding driver lineup,” said Creech. “It’s a great combination – two veterans, including a four-time winner, and two young drivers who are already proven winners. Between myself, the crew, Lance and João, we have literally thousands of miles at Daytona under our belts – we’ll get Sebastian and Malthe up to speed quickly at the Roar and be ready to take on the 24. We’d like to return to the podium but obviously, one step higher!”

The Rolex 24 at Daytona event gets underway January 21-23 with the traditional Roar Before the 24 at Daytona International Speedway.

Technology, speed and innovation at the forefront in new multi year program for MSR IMSA and INDYCAR campaigns

Pataskala, Ohio (22 December 2021) – As the Ohio-based organization prepares for its largest competition campaign in team history, Meyer Shank Racing (MSR) is pleased to announce a new multiyear partnership with Arctic Wolf, a leader in security operations.

Arctic Wolf is one of the fastest-growing cybersecurity companies globally on a mission to end cyber risk. The company’s marquee solution, the Arctic Wolf Security Operations platform, enables customers of all sizes to easily and effectively manage their security operations with a click of a button, seamlessly unifying their existing security tools into one experience ensuring protection against all cyber attacks.

By combining the power, speed, and scale of the Arctic Wolf Platform and the company’s pioneering Concierge Delivery model, Arctic Wolf empowers its customers to effectively strengthen their security postures in an increasingly consequential cyber threat landscape.

Arctic Wolf will begin its partnership with MSR on both of the team’s NTT INDYCAR SERIES and IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship entries starting in 2022. The partnership will make its public debut in the 2022 Rolex 24 At Daytona as the team returns to Daytona International Speedway looking to return to the winner circle once again.

Arctic Wolf will have a presence on the No. 06 IndyCar driven by four-time Indianapolis 500 winner, Helio Castroneves and the No. 60 MSR IndyCar driven by Simon Pagenaud. Arctic Wolf will also be on the No. 60 MSR Acura ARX-05 DPi driven by Oliver Jarvis and Tom Blomqvist. Castroneves will also join the MSR IMSA effort for the season opening Rolex 24 At Daytona.

“We’re very excited to have another multiyear partnership in place as we continue to build and grow our organization,” said MSR co-owner Mike Shank. “Arctic Wolf has a lot of very talented and highly competitive people who are focused on solving problems for their clients so there is a natural fit there. This program should unlock more opportunities for MSR as well as Arctic Wolf and we’re excited to have them on both of our IMSA and Indy Cars.”

“Professional racing and cybersecurity share a commonality in speed and precision—where literal seconds can make or break any outcome,” said Dan Larson, chief marketing officer, Arctic Wolf. “As we continue our explosive business growth and expand our brand globally, we are proud to support the Meyer Shank Racing team with this partnership.”

Meyer Shank Racing will return to action in January for the annual Roar Before the 24 followed by the Rolex 24 At Daytona on January 29th.

About Arctic Wolf:

Arctic Wolf® is the global leader in security operations, delivering the first cloud-native security operations platform to end cyber risk. Powered by threat telemetry spanning endpoint, network, and cloud sources, the Arctic Wolf® Security Operations Cloud ingests and analyzes more than 1.6 trillion security events a week across the globe, enabling critical outcomes for most security use cases and optimizing customers’ disparate security solutions. Now deployed to more than 2,300 customers worldwide, the Arctic Wolf® Platform delivers automated threat detection and response at scale, and empowers organizations of any size to establish world-class security operations with the push of a button.

For more information about Arctic Wolf, visit arcticwolf.com or follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, or Facebook.

© 2021 Arctic Wolf Networks, Inc., All Rights Reserved. Arctic Wolf, Arctic Wolf Platform, Arctic Wolf Managed Detection and Response, Arctic Wolf Managed Risk, Arctic Wolf Managed Cloud Monitoring, Arctic Wolf Managed Security Awareness, and Arctic Wolf Concierge Security Team are either trademarks or registered trademarks of Arctic Wolf Networks, Inc. or Arctic Wolf Networks Canada, Inc. and any subsidiaries in Canada, the United States, and/or other countries.

Wayne Taylor Racing Announces Full-Time Drivers, Michelin Endurance Cup and Rolex 24 Driver Lineup for the 2022 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar DPi Championship Season

Brownsburg, Ind. (November 15, 2021) — 2021 Michelin Endurance Cup Champions and 2021 IMSA WeatherTech DPi Vice Champions Ricky Taylor and Filipe Albuquerque will return as full-time co-pilots of the No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-05 in 2022 with hopes of back-to-back wins at the 2022 Rolex 24 at Daytona. 2021 Michelin Endurance Cup Champion for WTR and standout INDYCAR pilot Alexander Rossi will once again assist the team as it looks to make history during this iconic 24-hour endurance battle of wits, stamina and strategy. Veteran driver from England and Rossi’s former Formula 1 teammate, Will Stevens, will join WTR as the team’s endurance co-driver at the Rolex 24 at DAYTONA, the Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring, and Motul Petit Le Mans for the 2022 season.

“I’m excited to finally announce our 2022 driver lineup for the full season, the Michelin Endurance Cup and for the Rolex 24 at DAYTONA,” expressed team owner Wayne Taylor. “Each year, we speak with many drivers as we develop our driver lineup, and I feel very good to officially announce everyone. Ricky and Filipe will be back as full-time co-drivers. Continuity is always a good thing and both of them work really well together. We have Alexander Rossi joining us again. He did a great job with us last year helping us win the Rolex 24. Will Stevens will be running all Michelin Endurance Cup races for us. He’s been someone that we’ve been watching over the last year or two and gathering info on. Alex and he were teammates in Formula 1 years ago, so the drivers meshed very well at the recent two day test in Daytona where Will came up to speed very quickly. The most important thing is having everybody with the same goal which is to win. Thank you to Acura, HPD, Konica Minolta, Harrison Contracting and CIT who have all helped to make this happen and I can’t wait to get back to Daytona.”

Established in 2007, Wayne Taylor Racing has asserted itself as a perennial leading force in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. The 2021 Michelin Endurance Cup Champions have won three IMSA Driver Championships and nine IMSA Manufacturer Titles since their formation. In the team’s 15 seasons, they have seized four of the last five Rolex 24 at DAYTONA titles, two 12 Hours of Sebring victories and three Petit Le Mans wins. The No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-05 team will look to make history by winning four Rolex 24 at DAYTONA events in a row with their exceptional driver line-up for 2022.

Ricky Taylor returns to Wayne Taylor Racing for the second consecutive year and his fifteenth season in topflight sports car racing. The IMSA veteran won the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in 2017 and 2020 and brought his team within one corner of the overall title on their way to an Endurance Cup victory in 2021. Statistically one of the greatest drivers in IMSA history, Taylor boasts a record of 27 victories, 23 pole positions, and 64 podium finishes including wins at all the series’ marquee endurance events—the Rolex 24 at DAYTONA, the 12 Hours of Sebring, the Six Hours of the Glen and Petit Le Mans.

“2022 is going to be a fantastic season,” commented Ricky Taylor, the two-time IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Champion. “WTR, Konica Minolta, Harrison Contracting and CIT came out of the gates so strongly with the ARX-05 in their first season running it, already fighting for a championship. Along with Filipe and Alex rejoining the team, we should have some really strong continuity moving into next season to keep building on our success with HPD and Acura. It’s also great having Will on board with us. He is a world class sportscar driver and we are lucky to have him join the team. He has already contributed greatly to the team, and I think our Rolex 24 lineup is as strong as ever. The competition will be tough with the addition of a second Ganassi Cadillac, but we will welcome it and look forward to fighting for another championship.”

Full-time pilot Filipe Albuquerque continues his tenure with the No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-05 team for the 2022 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. The 2021 FIA World Endurance Championship multiple race winner, 2020 European Le Mans Champion and LMP2 WEC Champion carries a resume as diverse as it is impressive. His 2021 run with WTR produced a trio of wins, including the Rolex 24 at DAYTONA, en route to the Endurance Cup title.

“The IMSA offseason break is not so long, especially this year, given that the last race was a bit later than normal,” said Filipe Albuquerque. “For someone that enjoys racing, as I do, that is great. I am looking forward to 2022 with my great teammate Ricky. Now that we have more experience with the No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-05, maybe we can grab that one extra point that made us miss the DPi title in 2021. We came off a fantastic test with the whole team a few weeks ago with Alex and our new team member Will Stevens, I am happy to have Will onboard. He has a lot of experience; we had many fights in the past in ELMS and WEC, so I know how good he is. I hope we can achieve many victories together.”

Seven-time INDYCAR race winner and 2016 Indianapolis 500 champion Alexander Rossi rejoins Wayne Taylor Racing after a productive run across all the four endurance races with the No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-05 team. Having captured a Rolex 24 victory, Baja 1000 win and the Michelin Endurance Cup title last season, he’ll look to build on 2021’s successes in 2022.

“I am thrilled to be returning to Daytona with Wayne Taylor Racing and Acura,” said Alexander Rossi. “It was such a privilege to be able to continue driving with Ricky for what was our third year together and the addition of Filipe couldn’t have gone any better as shown by the result that we were able to achieve last year. It is great to work again with Will Stevens as we were actually teammates back in our F1 days and we were able to get straight back to business after not seeing each other for six years. I can’t wait to get back to the track and hopefully deliver Wayne his 5th 24-hour win in 6 years.”

Will Stevens is currently a Formula 1 Test & Development Driver for McLaren and a standout in the World Endurance Championship and European Le Mans Series. Will has held roles with various F1 teams dating back to 2008 and made his Grand Prix debut in 2014 before earning a full-time seat with Manor Marussia F1 Team for 2015. His recent career highlights include class wins in the World Endurance Championship and a runner-up campaign in the Blancpain GT Series.

“I’m super excited to join the Wayne Taylor Racing family and the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship for Daytona, Sebring and Petit Le Mans,” said Stevens. “This team is very respected and one that I’ve always wanted to be part of. IMSA Is a huge market in motorsport that is growing massively and it’s a relationship that I want to build on for the future. I have known Ricky, Filipe and Alexander a little bit over the past few years, so it’s nice to have that relationship already with the guys. It’s an honor to be part of this exceptional No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-05 team and to help with the success for this year.”

In 2022, Konica Minolta and Wayne Taylor Racing continue their storied history together. Michael Mathe, President, International Operation, Konica Minolta Business Solutions USA, Inc. has been a driving force in the strong relationship between WTR and Konica Minolta.

“We are very excited to start another season supporting WTR!” exclaimed Michael Mathe.” We are really thrilled with the driver line-up this year and look forward to many wins and to challenge for the IMSA WeatherTech DPi Championship.”

After a historic 2021, HPD looks forward to another year of victories with the No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-05 team.

“Winning both the Rolex 24 and the Michelin Endurance Cup last year were important milestones for Acura’s IMSA racing program,” said David Salters, President and Technical Director of Honda Performance Development, the North American racing arm for Acura Motorsports. “In just the first year of our association, Wayne Taylor Racing has proven to be an important partner in our IMSA effort, and the WTR driver lineup for 2022 is extraordinarily strong. It’s a great racing team, Wayne leads from the front and all our engineers just work well together and want to go racing. We look forward to seeing these very talented drivers in Victory Circle next year for Acura.”

Harrison Contracting enters their third year as an important partner with Wayne Taylor Racing, who also fields standout Ashton Harrison and the No. 25 Harrison Contracting Huracan in the North America Lamborghini Super Trofeo Series for the Painting and Contracting Services company.

“I’m really glad that Harrison Contracting Company (HCC) is once again partnering with WTR and Konica Minolta because of the professionalism and winning spirit they possess,” said Bill Harrison, President and Co-Founder. “Our outlook at HCC is the same as WTR when it comes to quality and the desire to be the best we can be. The efforts on both sides are endless when striving to be number one. At HCC, we provide it through the painting and maintenance services, while WTR does it through racing—and we both do it by building lasting relationships. In our world of business, image is everything, and Wayne and Travis Houge (Vice President and General Manager of WTR) see things in the same fashion that we do here at HCC. The level of what they are providing, and the level of driver development we’ve experienced with Ashton Harrison, is a major part of our desire to reunite again this year with WTR and Konica Minolta. Likewise, working with Acura and Honda is another reason why we wanted to come back this year and rejoin the team. Working alongside their proven success worldwide, and their passion for supporting all levels in racing, helps us know that this is where we want to be on the manufacturer’s side.”

The 2022 season officially begins on January 21 at Daytona International Speedway for the annual Roar Before the 24 with the momentous Rolex 24 at DAYTONA immediately following. Practice begins on Thursday, January 27 with the race running January 29-30. The No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-05 will work to win a historic four 24-hour events in a row.

ABOUT KONICA MINOLTA

Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A., Inc. is reshaping and revolutionizing the Workplace of the Future. The company guides and supports its clients’ digital transformation through its expansive office technology portfolio, including IT Services (All Covered), intelligent information management, managed print services and industrial and commercial print solutions. Konica Minolta has been included on CRN’s MSP 500 list nine times and The World Technology Awards recently named the company a finalist in the IT Software category. Konica Minolta has been recognized as the #1 Brand for Customer Loyalty in the MFP Office Copier Market by Brand Keys for fourteen consecutive years, and received Keypoint Intelligence’s BLI 2021 A3 Line of The Year Award and BLI 2021-2023 Most Color Consistent A3 Brand Award for its bizhub i-Series. Konica Minolta, Inc. has been named to the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index for nine consecutive years and has spent four years on the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World list. Konica Minolta partners with its clients to give shape to ideas and works to bring value to our society. For more information, please visit us online and follow Konica Minolta on Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn and Twitter. Wayne Taylor Racing’s existing lineup of partners that also features Harrison Contracting, Acura Motorsports, Hammer Nutrition and CIT.

Alegra Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT3 Team Leads Race Laps and Secures Season-Best Fourth-Place Finish in 10-Hour Motul Petit Le Mans IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Finale

BRASELTON, Georgia – Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing teams combined for a string of success across two racing series in IMSA’s 2021 finale this past weekend at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta. The competitive showing included the best finish of the season for the No. 28 Alegra Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT3 team in Saturday’s featured Motul Petit Le Mans, the first Mercedes-AMG GT4 pole of the season and a combined 59 race laps led over 12 hours of competition in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge season-ending races.

Alegra Motorsports and No. 28 Mercedes-AMG GT3 of co-driver Michael de Quesada, Daniel Morad and Daniel Juncadella stepped up for the team’s best race of the season with a fourth-place finish in Saturday’s 10-hour Motul Petit Le Mans.

Despite losing valuable track time for repairs after an incident early in the event, Alegra and its trio of drivers were competitive from the drop of the green flag in Saturday’s endurance race.

Starting driver Morad rolled off ninth in the GT Daytona (GTD) class field but quickly moved into the top five in the race’s opening hour. From there, Alegra and its trio of drivers rarely ran out of the top five for the remainder of the race, frequently battling in the top three.

Morad led the No. 28 team’s first laps during his second driving shift Saturday afternoon when he paced the GTD field for 20 laps. Juncadella, in his Road Atlanta debut, later led four laps in the No. 28.

Alegra’s No. 28 was one of three Mercedes-AMG GT3 entries in the Petit Le Mans finale but ended up carrying the Mercedes-AMG Motorsports flag solo after a bizarre multi-car accident in the race’s fourth hour.

Both the No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3, of team drivers Russell Ward, Philip Ellis and Maro Engel, and the No. 32 Gilbert Korthoff Motorsports Mercedes-AMG, co-driven by Guy Cosmo, Mike Skeen and Stevan McAleer, were eliminated in a seven-car pileup as the field accelerated up to speed on a race restart. Ward, who started fifth and was running fourth at the time of the incident, and debuting Mercedes-AMG GT3 driver McAleer were both uninjured in the incident.

Morad returned to the wheel of the Alegra No. 28 for the final driving shift of the race Saturday night. He was closing on the third-place finisher when the checkered flag flew, crossing the finish line fourth and less than five seconds behind the final podium finisher.

The fourth-place finish ended Alegra’s challenging season on a high note and topped a pair of fifth place showings in the mid-season summer stretch of back-to-back races at Watkins Glen International in late June and early July.

In Friday’s two-hour Michelin Pilot Challenge finale, Kenny Murillo teamed with Eric Foss as a substitute driver for Jeff Mosing for the second straight race.
The son of team owner and former champion driver Ken Murillo, the younger Murillo stepped in the No. 56 for the year’s final two races after Mosing broke his foot in a non-racing incident in September.

Making the most of the opportunity, Murillo won the pole in Michelin Pilot Challenging qualifying, his first in IMSA competition and the first top qualifying effort of the season for the Mercedes-AMG GT4.

Leading the field to the start, Murillo led the first 23 race laps and Foss later put the No. 56 Mercedes-AMG GT4 at the front of the field for 12 laps. The combined 35 laps led were a race-high for the Murillo Racing drivers.

Murillo and Foss were the only teammates to each lead the two-hour Pilot Challenge finale, but the No. 56 was knocked out of the lead with less than 30 minutes to go.

Foss was leading the race when the same competitor that hit the No. 56 in last year’s race at Road Atlanta again made contact again in the same set of corners. Foss was able to drive the damaged car back to the pits, but lengthy repairs dropped the No. 56 to a 17th place finish at the checkered flag.

While the No. 56 team was disappointed for the second-consecutive year at Road Atlanta, two other Mercedes-AMG GT4 teams rallied for top-10 finishes.

Co-drivers Mark Kwamme and Trenton Estep finished seventh in their Road Atlanta debut in the No. 18 CB Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT4. The top-10 showing in just the fourth race for the CB teammates in in Michelin Pilot Grand Sport (GS) class competition was a strong follow up to the team’s first top-five finish one race ago at VIRginia International Raceway (VIR).

Foss and Murillo ran all season alongside the sister, No. 65 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4 of Brent Mosing and Tim Probert, who secured their third top-10 finish of the year in the Road Atlanta finale.

Daniel Morad, Driver – No. 28 Alegra Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT3: “Coming into the race, we had no expectations because we had no track time. I had three laps of practice before qualifying, so to be only six tenths off of pole in qualifying was promising for us and gave us a direction to work on the car. It came down to literally the warm-up session before the race, where we were still fine tuning the car and making some changes to get it dialed in. We had a few changes in the race, but right from the beginning we set the tone. We jumped from P9 up to P5, saved some fuel, got up to P3 and from there hovered around the top three, top five all day. The boys did an awesome job on the pit stops. Every single stop was perfect, and it allowed us to lead the race at some points.”

Michael de Quesada, Driver – No. 28 Alegra Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT3: “It’s hard not to think about what could have been this season, but I have to say Saturday was an absolute win for us. Going into the morning warm-up, we were nowhere, and somehow the guys pulled a rabbit out of a hat. I got in the car for the first stint, and we were just on it. At the end of the day, when all is said and done, it was hard to compete with so little track time, but we absolutely did our best. I have to thank Alegra Motorsports, Mercedes-AMG and our sponsors. It was a real team effort to get us here to this point in the season and I’m happy to end up on a good note.”

Daniel Juncadella, Driver – No. 28 Alegra Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT3: “It was great. We missed a lot of practice due to a small incident, so race day was my first experience on track, and I really loved it. It was great to experience it in such a hectic and chaotic race, but we escaped all of the dangers, and in the end, we managed to finish fourth. It was bittersweet, of course, we were so close to a podium, but fourth isn’t too bad, and I’m happy with my first experience here.”

BRASELTON, Ga., (November 14, 2021) – The 2021 race season ended for sports car racing team Flying Lizard Motorsports last weekend at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta. After finishing the year for multiple customer racing efforts in the Yokohama Drivers Cup, GT World Challenge America, and GT America, the team traveled to Braselton, Georgia for the season finale of the Porsche Carrera Cup North America with driver Chris Bellomo.

“Road Atlanta is an amazing track and we have so much history here,” said Team Owner Darren Law. “I am proud of both the Flying Lizard team and Chris Bellomo. We have had another successful season and Chis is progressing well as a driver. We fulfilled all our objectives for 2021 which were to gain race experience for Chris, lock up the drivers’ Championship in Yokohama Porsche Drivers Cup, and have good finishes in Porsche Carrera Cup. We look forward to building on this for 2022.”

In addition to racing in the Yokohama Drivers Cup, where he earned eight wins and the Platinum Championship, Bellomo expanded his racing efforts to include select events in the IMSA Porsche Carrera Cup North America Presented by the Cayman Islands, a single-make Porsche racing series that runs in support of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.

Bellomo made his series debut at Road America early in the summer, finding his feet amongst his competition in the new series. The season finale weekend kicked off to a good start for Bellomo, who qualified third in the ProAm 991 class. He had a clean and competitive run for the first of three 45-minute races, finishing second, capturing his first podium in the new series. In race two, he started fourth and was enjoying a good run until contact caused a mechanical issue on the car, ending his race prematurely. The team repaired the car Thursday evening and had the No. 68 Porsche ready to race by Friday morning, where Bellomo earned a second-place finish after starting in fourth, putting in a strong drive to close the season out with a positive result.

“I’m super happy with the way the season ended,” said Bellomo. “Race two wasn’t what we all hoped for, but it was nice to finish in second place in Carrera Cup. Combined with the Yokohama Drivers Cup championship title, we accomplished our goals for the season. Big thanks to Darren and Johannes for their support, and to Flying Lizard for giving me such a great crew. Dieter’s work on the car has been great all season. I’m really looking forward to next year, improving as a driver, growing, and hoping to have some more success next year.”

The Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta triple-header officially brings the 2021 race season to a close for Flying Lizard Motorsports. In anticipation of the 2022 race season, the Lizards are hard at work building the race programs for another season, to be announced after the New Year. For the latest information, visit lizardms.com and sign up for team updates.

About Flying Lizard Motorsports
Based out of Sonoma, California, Flying Lizard Motorsports is one of the most iconic sports car teams in motorsports, having celebrated ten driver and team championships, as well as competed internationally at the 24 Hours of Le Mans eight times.

The Lizards burst on the American Le Mans Series scene in 2004, competing in the GT class until 2012. In 2013, the team moved to the GTC class, still competing in legendary events such as the 12 Hours of Sebring and 24 Hours of Daytona. In 2014, the team expanded its program to include running two Audi R8 LMS in the TUDOR Championship, and in 2015, again expanded the program to include two Porsches in Porsche Club racing. Flying Lizard closed out the season with a dominating win at the 25 Hours of Thunderhill with Toyo Tires, a win they repeated in 2016, 2017, and 2018. The 2020 season proved the team’s most successful to date, earning four titles in the GT4 America championship. Flying Lizard Motorsports has proven to be a championship contender no matter the race series or race car. For more information, visit lizardms.com.