Briscoe Joins van der Zande, No. 10 Cadillac DPi Squad; Dixon Names Endurance Teammate (Nov. 15)
The day after longtime team driver Jordan Taylor was confirmed at Corvette Racing, his father’s Wayne Taylor Racing squad revealed that Ryan Briscoe would be joining the No. 10 Konica Minolta Cadillac DPi-V.R team to co-drive with Renger van der Zande for the full 2020 WeatherTech Championship.
“I’m really excited to be joining WTR,” said Briscoe. “I’ve always had so much respect for the organization. They’ve been so successful and are one of the most committed teams in the IMSA WeatherTech Championship. It’s an honor to join them as one of their full-time drivers.”
Briscoe is joining the team after four years with Ford Chip Ganassi Racing’s Ford GT program, which concluded in 2019. Another longtime Ganassi racer – five-time IndyCar champion and 2008 Indy 500 winner Scott Dixon – was confirmed to join the lineup for endurance races at Daytona, Sebring and Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta. Kamui Kobayashi, who won the 2019 Rolex 24 alongside van der Zande, Jordan Taylor and Fernando Alonso, also is returning to defend the team’s Daytona victory.
DragonSpeed Commits to Full LMP2 Season with Hedman, Hanley (Nov. 19)
DragonSpeed became the first team to formalize its plans to compete in the full six-race WeatherTech Championship LMP2 season with the announcement that Henrik Hedman and Ben Hanley will drive the team’s Gibson-powered ORECA. The team also will defend its 2019 Rolex 24 At Daytona class victory – which does not count toward the overall 2020 WeatherTech Championship for the class – with as-yet-unnamed third and fourth drivers.
“IMSA’s changes to the LMP2 class rules and schedule have put it on a par with the (European Le Mans Series) in terms of gentleman driver appeal,” said Team Principal Elton Julian. “We are responding enthusiastically to that.”
Legge, Nielsen Names Co-Drivers of New GEAR Racing Lamborghini for 2020 (Nov. 19)
Katherine Legge and Christina Nielsen – who co-drove a Meyer Shank Racing Acura for several 2019 WeatherTech Championship events – were named as full-season co-drivers of the new No. 19 GEAR Racing Lamborghini Huracán GT3. The team is being run in conjunction with Grasser Racing, which won the Rolex 24 At Daytona in both 2018 and 2019, as well as the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring in 2019.
“GEAR stands for Girl Empowerment Around Racing, and it is our mission to inspire all girls to be strong, smart and bold in racing and in life,” said Kara Kenney, GEAR’s global brand director. “We’re thrilled to have Katherine and Christina on the team, and we couldn’t have found a better racing partner than Grasser.”
Parker Chase Joins Hawksworth, Lexus and AIM Vasser Sullivan for 2020 Season (Nov. 21)
Eighteen-year-old Parker Chase, who made his WeatherTech Championship debut in the 2019 season with Starworks Motorsport in the GTD class, is joining the driver lineup for an AIM Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3 in 2020. Chase – who drove in his first race with the team at Motul Petit Le Mans – will co-drive the team’s No. 14 entry alongside longtime Lexus racer Jack Hawksworth.
“I’m honored and excited to be joining AIM Vasser Sullivan for the 2020 IMSA GTD season,” Chase said. “I want to thank [team co-owners] ‘Sulli’ (James ‘Sulli’ Sullivan), Jimmy (Vasser) and Andrew (Bordin) for this opportunity. The team had a lot of success in their first year in IMSA racing the Lexus RC F GT3 and I’m looking forward to helping them continue and improve on that success.”
Mustang Sampling And JDC-Miller Motorsports to Field No. 5 Cadillac DPi for Barbosa, Bourdais, Duval (Nov. 22)
They’ve co-driven to Daytona, Sebring and Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta victories in the past, and now, Joao Barbosa and Sebastien Bourdais will chase the WeatherTech Championship DPi title in 2020. They will be sharing the No. 5 Mustang Sampling Racing Cadillac DPi-V.R, which will be fielded by Minnesota-based JDC-Miller Motorsports in 2020, for the full season, with past 24 Hours of Le Mans winner Loic Duval joining the team for IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup rounds.
“I’m incredibly excited to join JDC-Miller Motorsports and to continue my relationship with Mustang Sampling Racing,” said two-time WeatherTech Championship titlist Barbosa. “(Mustang Sampling President) Ken and (wife) Brenda (Thompson) have been incredible supporters. The passion they bring to the races is key to the success of Mustang Sampling.”
“I am thrilled to get the opportunity to race a prototype again and be reunited with Joao, Ken and Brenda,” Bourdais added. “2020 can’t come soon enough and I can’t wait to get behind the wheel of our Cadillac DPi-V.R.”