United Autosports will kick off their 2018 season this weekend with the ROAR before the 24 – the official test for the Rolex 24 at Daytona.
 
The Anglo-American squad will be fielding two Ligier JS P217s in the 56^th running of the 24-hour race in Florida, USA. Their driver line-up features some of the most famous names in motorsport as Fernando Alonso teams up with Lando Norris and Phil Hanson in the #23 car, while Bruno Senna and Paul Di Resta join United’s regular LMP2 racers, Will Owen and Hugo de Sadeleer in the #32 Ligier.
 
Six of United Autosports’ seven drivers have tested with the team prior to the ROAR, Alonso getting to grips with the Ligier at Aragon in November, while Norris and Di Resta tested at Paul Ricard. Will Owen and Hugo de Sadeleer completed a full season in the European Le Mans Series with the team in 2017, finishing second in the championship. Phil Hanson also has experience of the Ligier JS P217, having raced in the ELMS and selected rounds of the World Endurance Championship in 2017. He has also completed an extensive testing programme with United Autosports since joining the team in October. Bruno Senna is the only driver not to have completed any laps in the United-run Ligier, although he is no stranger to LMP2 and prototype racing, having won the 2017 WEC LMP2 Championship.
 
On track action begins on Friday 5^th January with two test sessions. Further test sessions will be held on Saturday 6^th and Sunday 7^th with a 15-minute qualifying shootout being held on Sunday afternoon. This shootout will determine the garage layout for the Rolex race week.

Phil Hanson, driver car #23, United Autosports:
“I’m really looking forward to getting my first laps in 2018 under my belt. The last time I was in the US racing was in Las Vegas for the kart Super Nationals. It should be cool to go from what was the toughest US kart race to without doubt the toughest and biggest US car race.”
 
Lando Norris, driver car #23, United Autosports:
“I’m really looking forward to the ROAR and to go and meet all my team mates properly. I’m looking forward to being back in a car after a bit of a break, which is one of the many things I’m excited about. I’m heading out to America for the first time ever, which will be a new experience for me. It will be good to prepare properly with United and my team mates for the 24-hour race and really get to grips with the car and the track. We can start putting everything together as one team so we can try and maximise the test days we have going into Daytona.”
 
Fernando Alonso, driver car #23, United Autosports:
“It’s a true pleasure to go back racing in the States, in front of the US fans. In less than a year I will have competed in two legendary races, which makes me very proud. I have always wanted to challenge myself in other categories of motorsport, as this is what you need to become a better driver. Going out of my comfort zone by taking part in such an iconic race as the Daytona 24 Hours is just amazing. I am looking forward to racing for United Autosports, the reigning European LMP3 Champions. At the test we had in Spain in November, everyone made me feel extremely welcome and part of the family and I’m happy to be spending more time with the team and my team-mates in a few days, at the ROAR. I just cannot wait to jump in the car again and drive on the famous oval. In the last couple of months I have been spending time watching several Daytona 24 Hours, which made me even keener to go out there and try myself. It’s going to be fun!”
 
Will Owen, driver car #32, United Autosports:
“I have had a nice little break for the past month or two, but it is time to get back down to business. I am really excited to get together with the whole United crew, Hugo and all the new drivers! Since practice is always limited and we have four drivers, we will have to be as efficient as possible during the test to try all of the car setups that we want. As everyone knows, this year is going to be wildly competitive, so the ROAR will be a good place to get a feeling for the competition. I am also excited to show my United friends some fat, southern American food and culture in Daytona, returning the favour for all the nice, healthy restaurants they showed me in Europe. We are all feeling great about the Ligier package this year, and it is an honour to be able to represent United Autosports and Ligier at this fantastic event.”
 
Paul Di Resta, driver car #32, United Autosports:
“I’m really looking forward to starting the 2018 season so early on. I have never done this before in my career and it's something new to me – endurance racing, in the US, at Daytona. I had a small taste of the LMP2 car in early November and really liked how it was, now the real business will begin. I have to start working hard with the team and my teammates to make the best of this race with United Autosports. I liked what I saw in the team and I hope it only works better when the pressure is on.”
 
Hugo de Sadeleer, driver car #32, United Autosports:
“I'm really excited to be racing at Daytona, It's first time racing in the United States and I'll need to learn a new style of racing. United Autosports is the only team in the world that can deliver the most amazing drivers in the world. It will be such a privilege to be able to learn from Bruno Senna, Paul di Resta and Fernando Alonso and I'm hopeful that Ligier's development throughout winter, will give us a very competitive car.”
 
Bruno Senna, driver car #32, United Autosports:
"Not long now, before the all-important ROAR. There's a lot to learn with the United Autosports Ligier-Gibson for me and the integration with the team, as well as getting to see how strong the competition is looking ahead of Daytona! Can't wait for the New Year's!"
 
Zak Brown, Team Owner and Chairman, United Autosports:
“I think we have two really strong driver line ups for our Rolex 24 at Daytona campaign. We have a great mix of talent, that includes experienced drivers and quick racers. I can’t wait to get out there and see how we get on.”
 
Richard Dean, Team Owner and Managing Director, United Autosports:
“I’m excited for the ROAR. It will be the first time our full Daytona 24 Hours crew and drivers will be together and I’m looking forward to it. We have two very strong line ups, but we are also under no illusion that we have some very tough competition throughout the Prototype field. Some of our drivers have never driven at Daytona so it will be a good chance for them to get to grips with the circuit before the big event later this month.”

JDC-Miller Motorsports and GAINSCO Auto Insurance announced today the return of the No. 99 Red Dragon to the 2018 IMSA SportsCar Championship. 

GAINSCO Auto Insurance will be the primary sponsor of the No. 99 ORECA/Gibson, driven by Misha Goikhberg, Stephen Simpson and Chris Miller.

Bob Stallings, Executive Chairman of GAINSCO, as well as the founder of the GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Race team, recently decided not to run his own race team, but is committed to continuing the legacy of the Red Dragon by partnering with JDC-Miller Motorsports. 

“We had many opportunities to continue our quest for championships and JDC-Miller Motorsports was an easy pick,” Stallings said. “John Church and John Miller have established themselves as a team to be reckoned with, even against the formidable competition in IMSA.”

The last time IMSA fans saw the No. 99 Red Dragon on a track was the 2014 Rolex 24 At Daytona. Stalling’s GAINSCO team won the pole for that race but their dreams of a victory ended just three hours into the race when Memo Gidley was involved in a horrific crash that left him in the hospital for a week. About a month later, Stallings announced he was suspending the team’s operation for the remainder of the year.   

The Minnesota-based team made an impressive debut in the 2017 IMSA Prototype Championship, finishing fourth overall. They led four events and were the only LMP2 team to complete every race in 2017.

“After getting to know them both and seeing the success they have had in a short period of time and especially after watching their performance in the Mosport race last season, I knew we had found the right match” Stallings added.

“JDC-Miller has the resources, drivers, engineering experience and desire to win that I was looking for. JDC-Miller Motorsports reminds me a lot of the early days of GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing, and I am looking forward to rallying the support of our combined fan-base behind JDC-Miller Motorsports and The No. 99 Red Dragon.”

Led by team principal John Church, JDC MotorSports has mastered the open wheel and sports car ‘Ladder System’ earning 18 motorsports championships since its inception in 2011. 

Goikhberg and Simpson will enter their third full season driving together with the JDC squad. The pair recorded victories in 2016 at the Rolex 24 At Daytona and at Long Beach in the Prototype Challenge class before successfully transitioning to the top-tier LMP2 class in 2017. 

Second place finishes at Watkins Glen and Canadian Tire Motorsports Park highlighted the season, which featured six top-five finishes, and made JDC-Miller MotorSports the most successful non-manufacturer LMP2 team in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.

“We are honored to gain the support of GAINSCO Auto Insurance and to carry on the livery of the No. 99 Red Dragon,” Church said. “The GAINSCO folks are as committed as we are, and this is a tremendous opportunity for JDC-Miller Motorsports as we look forward to the season ahead.

JDC-Miller Motorsports ran the popular yellow No. 85 LMP2 ORECA last year that was a hit with fans as it became known as the “Banana Boat.” Rest assured that car will also be back in 2018 according to Church.

“Our second car will stay the yellow No. 85,” he said. “We were always going to keep the yellow scheme on the other car.”

The livery for the No. 99 Red Dragon will be unveiled in the days leading up to The Roar Before The 24 which will be held Jan. 5-7 at Daytona International Speedway.

Long-time open-wheel racing competitors AFS Racing have joined forces with IMSA SportsCar Championship veterans PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports, and the combined effort – known as AFS/PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports – makes its WeatherTech Championship debut in January’s Rolex 24 At Daytona.

The team will field the No. 52 Ligier LM P2 machine in the Prototype class for a pair of Colombian co-drivers, Gustavo Yacaman and Sebastian Saavedra, for the full 2018 WeatherTech Championship season.

“As a former owner and driver in open-wheel racing, I’m excited to be joining a great team by partnering with owner Bobby Oergel’s PR1 team to field a Ligier JS P217 in the 2018 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship,” Team Principal Gary Peterson announced. “Along with Bobby, I hope to continue on building the team along with (Ligier constructor) Onroak (Automotive) for technical support.

“With both our involvement, we have been able to put together a very good selection of drivers to run the races starting within weeks. We selected the drivers in order to aggressively compete, run the entire schedule and contend for a championship.”

Long-time sports car racer Yacaman – who has competed in the WeatherTech Championship, FIA World Endurance Championship and European Le Mans Series – is returning to full-time WeatherTech Championship competition in 2018. Yacaman owns one series victory, which came at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in 2014.

“I am delighted to be a part of this new adventure, and even better to have Sebastian as my teammate,” Yacaman said. “It’s the first time two Colombian drivers work together for one common goal. We will be an example for many generations to come. Seb comes from IndyCar, where you need to drive at the very limit and push very hard every lap, so I am looking forward to learning something from him on that side.”

Saavedra has been an IndyCar competitor for the past several years, competing for teams such as Chip Ganassi Racing, Andretti Autosport, Bryan Herta Autosport and KV Racing. He’s made 65 career IndyCar starts, with a pole position at the 2014 IndyCar Grand Prix at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He also has three career sports car starts, including the Rolex 24 At Daytona and Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring in 2014 and the 2012 GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series race at Indianapolis.

“I’m very excited with this new chapter in my career and very honored and humbled to be a part of building this new organization together with Gary Peterson and Bobby Oergel,” Saavedra said. “It’s something that has been in the works for two years now, and making it a reality is definitely one of the highlights of my career.

“I’m looking forward to the whole concept of Team Colombia and building a very strong alliance and performance team in what will be a very competitive season in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.”

The new venture for PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports is the next chapter for the successful team, which won the Prototype Challenge (PC) class Tequila Patrón North American Endurance Cup in both 2015 and 2016. The team owns one Rolex 24 At Daytona victory, as well as three victories each at Sebring and the Motul Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta.

“Every one of the team members were so happy to learn about this opportunity that we’ve been able to assemble,” said Oergel. “AFS and Gary Peterson’s passion for motorsports fits right in with how strong we believe the team can be.

“It’s obviously a bit tough at the moment with how late this has come together, but the big picture is what this partnership is all about. I am looking forward to a long and prosperous future for all of us together.”

Williams Racing F1 driver Lance Stroll has completed an all-star line-up in a Jackie Chan DCR JOTA LMP2 car for the Rolex 24 at Daytona in January.

In addition to Stroll, the line-up will include some of the world’s most talented young racers in one of the two Jackie Chan DCR JOTA run Oreca-Gibson cars.

Felix Rosenqvist, Robin Frijns and Daniel Juncadella will join Stroll aboard the car in what is sure to be one of the most talented quartets on the grid.

The 2018 Rolex 24 at Daytona will be the first time the Jackie Chan DCR JOTA team has raced at one of the racing industry’s most famous venues and it will do so with a brace of Oreca-Gibson LMP2 entries.

Stroll has had an impressive rookie season in Formula One accruing multiple points’ finishes and a podium position at Baku in June with the Williams Martini Racing team.

The Canadian has a glittering CV which includes titles in every category he as raced in. His accomplishments this season include the two records of being the youngest ever front-row starter of an F1 race and the youngest to ever stand on a podium.

26 year-old Rosenqvist is currently rated as one of the best young racers currently outside of Formula One and will take part in his second Rolex 24 at Daytona.

The Swede is a former FIA Formula Three, F3 Masters and Macau Grand Prix champion and has recently won races in both the Indy Lights and FIA Formula E Championships, as well as multiple podium positions in the ultra-competitive Super Formula series in Japan this year.

Dutchman Robin Frijns is a factory supported Audi driver, who like Rosenqvist, has cultivated a glittering reputation on the International racing scene.

Frijns is a former World Series 3.5 series champion and has most recently raced in the FIA Formula E Championship and aboard a GT3 car for the Belgian Audi Club WRT squad in the Blancpain Series’.

Daniel Juncadella comes to Daytona with Jackie Chan DCR JOTA as a factory Mercedes driver who has competed predominantly in DTM and GT3 over the past few seasons. Like Rosenqvist, the Spaniard is also a former FIA F3, F3 Masters and Macau Grand Prix champion.

Most of the drivers are well known to each other, having either competed in the same series or in the case of Stroll and Rosenqvist within the same team. The pair were teammates in the 2015 FIA European Formula Three championship at Prema Powerteam where Rosenqvist took the title, a feat which Stroll duplicated a year later.

All of the Jackie Chan DCR JOTA drivers have endurance racing experience but Stroll and Rosenqvist are the only ones with race knowledge of the world famous Daytona International Speedway.

The team has made a major impact on global endurance racing since its inception early this year.

A headline grabbing second and third overall at the Le Mans 24 Hours last June also saw the Chinese entered team, known as Jackie DC Racing x JOTA in the FIA World Endurance Championship, lead the race overall for several hours.

Wins at Silverstone and the Nürburgring ensured a runners-up position was confirmed in their rookie season in the WEC.

JOTA Sport, the operational experts behind the Jackie Chan DCR JOTA squad, has achieved success in all spheres of top class international sportscar competition since they were formed in 2000 including the 2014 Le Mans LMP2 crown and the 2016 European Le Mans Series title.

The 2018 Rolex 24 at Daytona will have its most competitive grid in recent years. The Jackie Chan DCR JOTA cars will go up against multiple manufacturer entries including entries from Mazda Team Joest and Acura Team Penske, as well as former winners Tequila Patron ESM and Wayne Taylor Racing.  

The race will take place over the weekend of 27-28 January. The traditional ‘Roar Before the 24’ test at the Florida venue will be held over 5-7 January.

The line-up for the teams’ second car will be announced shortly.

Quotes:

Lance Stroll, Driver for Jackie Chan DCR JOTA

“We are going to Daytona to enjoy, compete and of course try and win. I always want to be best and most competitive I can be.

“I’ll be out there with some of my buddies in the same car and it is going to be a pleasure to do this race again as I just love to race. We are the four young guns so it will be great fun I’m sure because we go way back together. A big part of Daytona is who you share the car with so I’m really looking forward to it.

“There won’t be any fuel or tyre management to worry about, and it will be racing hard and racing  in traffic which I will enjoy. I’ve heard a lot of great things about the Jackie Chan DCR JOTA team so I can’t wait to be a part of it.

“I am really grateful to Williams Martini Racing for realising I want to keep my racing sharpness through the winter and letting me race at Daytona.”

David Clark, Director of JOTA Group

“The collection of talent that we have been able to secure for the Rolex 24 at Daytona is very exciting. As a team this shows the trust in quality that the Jackie Chan DCR JOTA team can bring to the best endurance races in the world.

“Lance, Felix, Daniel and Robin are a collection of some of the finest young talents to emerge in recent years. To have them all in the same car for such an important race like the Rolex 24 at Daytona is an important milestone in Jota’s history.

 “What Lance has achieved in his short career has been super impressive and he is clearly a quality racer and has a great future ahead of him. It will be fantastic to have him in the team.” 

David Cheng, Driver and co-founder of Jackie Cheng DC Racing

“I’m delighted to welcome Lance, Felix, Robin and Daniel into our team. Their speed and calibre is well known, as well as their past experiences with sports car and endurance racing.

“With this year’s Rolex 24 at Daytona being the most competitive I’ve seen in decades, the addition of this fantastic line up will help us ensure the best odds to pursue the top step of another famous 24 hour podium.”