welcome race fans to krazyaboutracing.com the leader in motorsports coverage on the world wide web we are now in our 24th year

WE MAY NOT HAVE ALL THE WHISTLES & BELLS OF OTHER SITES , hOWEVER  have THE most complete MOTORSPORTS COVERAGE on the web !

(HOME)  (CONTACT US)  ( THE PIT )  (LOCAL RACING)   (PREVIOUS NEWS)  (PREVIOUS RACING)   (SITE NEWS)  (MEET THE STAFF)   (HALL OF FAME)  (MULTIMEDIA)   (SPECIAL EVENTS) (ANNUAL AWARDS)

 (DRIVER & TEAM RELEASES) (LOCAL TRACK NEWS) (MISC RELEASES)

 

   

   

 for more coverage on the series click on the series lOgo

International Motor Sports Association    Lamborghini Super Trofeo series

International Motor Sports Association 

super trofeo series

 

www.imsa.com

 

About the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA)

International Motor Sports Association, LLC (IMSA) was originally founded in 1969 and owns a long and rich history in sports car racing. Today, IMSA is the sanctioning body of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, the premier sports car racing series in North America. IMSA also sanctions the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge and IMSA VP Racing SportsCar Challenge, as well as four one-make series: Ferrari Challenge North America, Idemitsu Mazda MX-5 Cup presented by BFGoodrich Tires, Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America and Porsche Carrera Cup North America. IMSA – a company within the NASCAR family – is the exclusive strategic partner in North America with the Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO) which operates the 24 Hours of Le Mans as a part of the FIA World Endurance Championship. The partnership enables selected IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship competitors to earn automatic entries into the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Persing Perseveres and Powers to Lamborghini Super Trofeo Monterey Saturday Win

WTR Wins Pro and ProAm; XONINE Goes 1-2 in Am; TB Autosports Claims LB Cup Triumph


 

May 2, 2026

By Tony DiZinno

IMSA Wire Service

Race 1 Unofficial Results

Race 2 Qualifying Results

 

MONTEREY, Calif. – A key driver shift in the Pro class headlined the pre-race notes for the Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America’s cross-country trip from Sebring to Monterey. But the race’s defending winner who stayed put recaptured the flag in the first 50-minute race of the weekend at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.


 

Nick Persing, who shared the No. 1 Wayne Taylor Racing, Lamborghini Palm Beach, Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo Evo2 with Hampus Ericsson, scored his third straight Monterey Pro and overall win in style.


 

A year after the Morgan Hill, California resident won in a photo finish by just 0.006 of a second over his teammate, Persing needed the opposite approach to bank a margin and build enough of a gap to offset a penalty.


 

Initially, it appeared as though the race would come down to the No. 29 TR3 Racing and No. 33 XONINE Racing entries, which featured revised lineups in Monterey. TR3 welcomed Dennis Lind alongside Elias De La Torre while Will Bamber shifted to the XONINE entry alongside Darius Trinka. For good measure, the pair of cars started alongside each other from the front row. 


 

From pole, Lind withstood Bamber’s initial challenge, then restarted from the lead after an early full-course caution, which positioned him well heading into the mandatory pit stop window. The Dane held a consistent one-second gap before the stop and pitted with 26 minutes remaining to hand off to De La Torre.


 

Bamber attempted an overcut in his No. 33 XONINE car, running a lap longer before pitting himself and handing off to Trinka. The battle was for naught as the No. 33 car slowed on course on its out lap leaving the pits and parked past Turn 3.


 

That promoted Persing’s No. 1 WTR Huracán into second, less than a second behind De La Torre. And then it got interesting.  


 

With roughly 10 minutes left in the race, Persing made a passing attempt for the lead on De La Torre at the Corkscrew, but inadvertently pitched the No. 29 car into a spin. The No. 1 car was assessed a 10-second post-race time penalty, which meant Persing had to set sail to secure the win.


 

Over the course of the final six laps, Persing pulled out anywhere from 1.5 to 2 seconds per lap to win by 11.274 seconds over De La Torre. With the 10-second penalty added, he still had a 1.274-second final margin of victory.


 

“There was a lot of lapped traffic and I didn’t mean to get into him at all,” Persing said. “I thought it was a racing incident. I’ll find him and apologize. But once the team told me I had a penalty, I put my head down and drove as fast as I could. I was going to drive as hard as I could. I have to thank the team for an amazing car to be able to push this hard.


 

“I think it’s just the home crowd,” he added of his Monterey form. “There’s something about family and friends being here. It’s about linking corners together.” 


 

Ericsson added simply about watching the drive, “I’m speechless.” 


 

ANSA Motorsports’ Tommi Gore and Nico Jamin, the latter deputizing for Colin Queen this weekend, completed the Pro podium in their No. 4 Huracán.


 

The joy for Wayne Taylor Racing extended to ProAm as well, as one of two classes featuring a team sweeping the top two spots. 


 

Danny Formal got ahead of Joel Miller for the ProAm lead shortly after the initial start, a key move in the class before he handed off his No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing, Lamborghini Palm Beach, Huracán to Graham Doyle. 


 

That move proved pivotal to the duo’s third win in as many races to start the season. Doyle took the flag by 15.259 seconds over teammates Marc Miller and Paul Nemschoff in the No. 41 WTR Huracán. TR3’s Mateo Siderman and Martin Fuentes scored their first 2026 podium in their No. 63 Huracán.


 

“The car had way more than a P5; I told Graham I’d make it up for him, and for him, he was a machine out there,” Formal said. “It was so impressive to watch. Seeing his growth is impressive, particularly with his traffic management.” 


 

Am saw the XONINE Racing team emerge victorious for the second time in as many weekends, although with its first 1-2 result. Anthony Bullock, in his No. 12 XONINE Racing, Lamborghini Chicago, Huracán broke through to end an elusive run awaiting a victory, his first since Race 2 at Watkins Glen in Am in 2024.


 

“It’s amazing to be back,” Bullock said. “It’s been a rough road back since Road America last year; it didn’t end well. To come back and still struggle at Sebring but then come out to see how much XONINE and Lamborghini came through for us.” 


 

Nick Groat was second in the similar No. 57 XONINE entry with David Staab third in the No. 48 Precision Performance Motorsports entry. Staab and Groat both won Race 1 at Monterey last year, and Groat won the 2026 season opener in Am at Sebring.


 

In LB Cup, Philippe Touchette made a pass of Rocky T. Bolduc to secure his first win in the No. 11 TB Autosports, Lamborghini Montreal, Huracán. Bolduc, the Sebring Race 2 winner, scored his second straight podium in the No. 99 Topp Racing entry with Chris Tasca bouncing back from a tough Sebring and tough Friday in Monterey battling gearbox issues to podium in his No. 95 Forty7 Motorsports entry.


 

“I guess I got pretty lucky,” Touchette explained. “I think there was a pro behind us. Rocky maybe slowed a bit too much, and I took the opportunity to make the move.” 


 

The second Lamborghini Super Trofeo race of the weekend is Sunday at 10:35 a.m. PT, 1:35 p.m. ET, streaming on Peacock, IMSA’s Official YouTube and Lamborghini’s YouTube channels. 

 

 

Deletraz Continues Cadillac's Strong Weekend with Pole at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca

Cadillac Whelen and Jack Aitken Complete Sweep of Front Row for StubHub Monterey SportsCar Championship

 

May 2, 2026

By John Oreovicz

IMSA Wire Service

Qualifying Results

 

MONTEREY, Calif. – Cadillac paced the Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) field throughout practice for the feature race of the StubHub Monterey SportsCar Championship weekend, and Louis Deletraz and Cadillac Wayne Taylor Racing maintained that advantage Saturday in qualifying.


 

Deletraz secured the Motul Pole Award at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca for Round 4 of the 2026 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season by lapping the classic California road course in 1 minute, 13.221 seconds (110.033 miles per hour) in Cadillac Wayne Taylor Racing’s No. 40 Cadillac V-Series.R.


 

Jack Aitken completed a front row sweep for Cadillac by running second in Cadillac Whelen’s similar No. 31 V-Series.R, lapping in 1:13.501 (109.614 mph).


 

The Cadillacs were conspicuously strong in three hours of practice spread over two days, and Deletraz was able to show similar speed in qualifying in the car he shares with Jordan Taylor. It was the Swiss driver’s third WeatherTech Championship pole and first in nearly two years (Watkins Glen International, 2024).


 

The top seven qualifiers were within 0.855 seconds and four manufacturers (Cadillac, Acura, BMW, and Aston Martin) were represented in the top six.


 

Nick Yelloly was third fastest in the No. 93 Acura Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb Agajanian Acura ARX-06 at 1:13.696 (109.324 mph), followed by Dries Vanthoor in the No. 24 BMW M Team WRT BMW M Hybrid V8 with a time of 1:13.735. Their respective co-drivers are Renger van der Zande and Sheldon van der Linde.


 

Deletraz is a former race winner at WeatherTech Raceway, triumphing in 2022 in the Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) class for Tower Motorsports.


 

“Obviously it’s awesome to get the Motul Pole Award, especially at a track like this where overtaking is really hard,” Deletraz commented. “A big thank you to Cadillac Wayne Taylor Racing, because I feel we have really improved a lot in the last six months. The car has been consistently strong, and I think today was a good reward for everyone, putting it on pole. I’m really excited for the race tomorrow.”


 

Laguna Seca is notorious for high tire degradation, but Deletraz remained confident that the Cadillacs can maintain their single-lap superiority over full stints throughout the two-hour, 40-minute race.


 

“We started really strong in free practice and had really strong one-lap pace, but there’s always some pressure for qualifying because you don’t know what others are hiding,” he said. “The race pace is also strong, I think – not much stronger than everyone else, but we’re up there in the top three, I’d say. I’m pretty sure we can stay up there and fight for the win. We just have to execute tomorrow and do a good race with no mistakes. Hopefully we can be up on the top step of the podium at the end.”


 

It's been a fairly lengthy dry spell for Wayne Taylor Racing, which has not visited the top step at victory lane since resuming its manufacturer partnership with Cadillac in 2025. WTR’s last WeatherTech Championship race win in GTP came at Detroit in June 2024 when it was working with Acura.


 

“Everyone saw last year that we had to learn,” Deletraz said. “The Cadillac was a new car for us and we definitely struggled. Since the start of this year we’ve been a bit unlucky, but I think if you ask all four drivers at Wayne Taylor Racing (Ricky Taylor and Filipe Albuquerque share the No. 10 Cadillac V-Series.R, which qualified seventh for Sunday’s race), we’re all enjoying a lot more the driving. We’re very happy with the car, so this is a great reward, where we are now. We all want to be first, so to be here means we’ve done something right.”


 

The feature WeatherTech Championship race at the StubHub Monterey SportsCar Championship flags off at 4 p.m. ET on Sunday, May 3. Flag-to-flag coverage will be streamed on Peacock to U.S. viewers, and via IMSA.TV and the official IMSA YouTube channel internationally.

 

 

Hawksworth Flies to Poignant Pole for Vasser Sullivan Lexus in Monterey

Patrese Conquers the Corkscrew for Conquest GTD Pole

 

May 2, 2026

By Tony DiZinno

IMSA Wire Service

Qualifying Results

 

MONTEREY, Calif. – Through three weekends of IMSA competition in 2026, neither GT class – Grand Touring Daytona Pro (GTD PRO) or Grand Touring Daytona (GTD) – has seen a polesitter win the race. Jack Hawksworth and Lorenzo Patrese will look to change that in Sunday’s StubHub Monterey SportsCar Championship, Round 4 of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship for GTD and Round 3 for GTD PRO.

 

In GTD PRO, the oldest car in the field beat the oldest retro livery featured in the class as part of IMSA and WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca’s “Throwback Weekend.”

 

Hawksworth, driving the No. 14 Vasser Sullivan Racing Lexus RC F GT3, set the GTD PRO pace with a best time of 1 minute, 21.228 seconds (99.187 mph) on his ninth lap around the 2.238-mile, 11-turn WeatherTech Raceway circuit.

 

It’s his second straight Motul Pole Award after also scoring the top spot at the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring and 16th in his WeatherTech Championship career. The latter stat ties him with Ben Keating for most all-time in the series dating to 2014, the first featuring a unified top-level sports car championship.

 

It’s a critical pole for Hawksworth, too, as he and Ben Barnicoat – and the Vasser Sullivan Lexus team – have traditionally struggled at this track with the venerable chassis that debuted in 2017.

 

“This is a super special one,” Hawksworth said. “We’ve kind of struggled here. To roll off this weekend and be competitive, the guys have been positive. I’m super pumped for all of it. We got the tires in at exactly the right point. Delighted with it.”

 

The poignancy of the pole also factored in as news broke Saturday morning in Monterey of the passing of Alex Zanardi, longtime teammate to Vasser Sullivan Racing co-owner Jimmy Vasser.

 

On the Vasser/Zanardi element, Hawksworth reflected: “Obviously, for the world of motorsport in general, it’s extremely sad. He’s an absolute legend. I’ve seen the video of him passing Bryan (Herta, to win a 1996 IndyCar race at Laguna Seca). Jimmy was obviously his teammate and very good friend. It’s very special to be starting on the pole. I know Jimmy’s emotional, as you’d expect.”

 

Neil Verhagen, driving the No. 1 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 EVO, gave the car featuring a 1975 BMW CSL throwback a ride that nearly ended with the top spot. The American was 0.257 off the pace at 1:21.485. Verhagen and Connor De Phillippi lead the GTD PRO points heading into Sunday’s race.

 

After the leading Lexus and BMW, five other manufacturers – Ford, Porsche, Chevrolet, Lamborghini and McLaren – made it seven different brands in the top seven positions.

 

GTD: Conquest Conquers Qualifying as Patrese Powers to Pole

The GTD battle for pole mostly featured a pair of second-generation stars in Patrese and Eduardo “Dudu” Barrichello, as the sons of retired Formula 1 race winners Riccardo Patrese and Rubens Barrichello settled the score on track to see which was faster.

 

Patrese, stepping into the No. 34 Conquest Racing Ferrari 296 GT3 EVO for his first WeatherTech Championship sprint race, was first in the 1:21 bracket at 1:21.940 on his fifth tour of the track.

 

He bettered that by a half second on his sixth lap at 1 minute, 21.441 (98.927 mph), which stood as the benchmark.

 

It’s Patrese’s second IMSA pole, having achieved his first at last year’s Motul Petit Le Mans in the last time he qualified a car. It’s also Conquest Racing’s first pole in IMSA since 2012 by Martin Plowman, achieved in the American Le Mans Series P2 class at VIRginia International Raceway.

 

“I would say the first objective is to focus on GTD and we’ll see what comes with the rest,” Patrese reflected, since his pole time was mixed in among some GTD PRO cars.

 

Reflecting on Zanardi’s accomplishments, as his dad raced against Zanardi in Formula 1, Patrese added: “My dad was very close with Alex. It’s not the easiest of days. Happy to start on pole on such a day. It’s very nice in the world of motorsport remembering him, and what IMSA is doing.”

 

Danny Formal, competing in a double duty weekend across Wayne Taylor Racing’s GTD and Lamborghini Super Trofeo Lamborghini Huracán variants, nearly grabbed the top spot when he got within 0.022 of a second in the No. 45 Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo2 at 1:21.463.

 

Barrichello fell to third, 0.266 of a second behind at 1:21.707 in the No. 27 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo. The GTD points leader sought to secure the No. 27 car’s third pole of the season, after he scored pole in Sebring and teammate Zacharie Robichon won the pole at Daytona.

 

The Rolex 24-winning No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 and Long Beach-winning No. 12 Vasser Sullivan Racing Lexus RC F GT3 completed the top five.

 

The GTD field is down by one to 13 cars this weekend with the No. 36 DXDT Racing Corvette Z06 GT3.R out of action this weekend due to a transporter fire. That denied Robert Wickens a chance to complete a California “double-double” of poles after moving into the Long Beach pole last time out.

 

Sunday’s StubHub Monterey SportsCar Championship goes green at 4:10 p.m. ET. Live flag-to-flag coverage airs on NBCSN starting at 4 p.m. ET with streaming via Peacock, IMSA.TV and IMSA’s Official YouTube Channel. 

 

 

 

Turner Tastes Sweet Success of a Monterey Win for First Time Since 2009

Herta Hyundais Go 1-2 in TCR with Team Achieving Fifth Win at Track


 

May 2, 2026

By John Oreovicz

IMSA Wire Service

Race Results


 

MONTEREY, Calif. – It took just three races for the new-for-2026 driver pairing of Dillon Machavern and Luca Mars, two past IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge champions, to taste victory for Turner Motorsport and BMW as a collective unit.


 

Machavern and Mars topped the Grand Sport (GS) class of the WeatherTech Laguna Seca Raceway 120 on Saturday at the famous California circuit of the same name. They drove the No. 95 BMW M4 GT4 EVO to a 4.083-second triumph over the No. 2 CSM Porsche 718 GT4 RS CS shared by Gordon Scully and Morgan Burkhard, with Motul Pole Award winner Nate Cicero and co-driver Robert Noaker taking third in the No. 13 McCumbee McAleer Racing Ford Mustang GT4.


 

Machavern qualified eighth fastest but had moved up to third place behind the No. 13 Ford and the No. 12 RAFA Racing Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO2 when almost the entire GS field pitted under caution 56 minutes into the two-hour race. Mars exited the pits as the effective race leader, pursued by Noaker and Michael Cooper in the No. 44 Ibiza Farm Motorsport McLaren Artura GT4 that he took over from Moisey Uretsky.


 

The three cars circulated in close proximity for most of the final hour as the race ran caution-free to the finish. In the closing stages, Mars was able to slightly progress away, and the pressure eased when Noaker eased his pace to save fuel and Cooper was forced to make a splash-and-go stop. Burkhard then passed a slowing Noaker for second place on the last lap.


 

Mars was also conserving fuel, but it was not an issue in the end as he, Machavern, and Turner Motorsport scored BMW’s 50th race win in GS class competition and 92nd overall in the Michelin Pilot Challenge. The victory was the eighth in IMPC for Machavern and the fourth for Mars.


 

“It’s a big day for the Turner yellow and blue and we couldn’t be happier,” said owner Will Turner after his team earned its first win at Laguna Seca since 2009, 31st in GS and 34th overall as the winningest team in series history. “I think back on all the years of trying here. This is obviously very special.”


 

Machavern said fuel management allowed the No. 95 car to have a slightly faster pit stop at the crucial juncture.


 

“We knew there was the possibility of a one-stop race, so that’s what got the process going,” said Machavern. “We were saving fuel from the start, which ended up paying off in a huge way on pit lane. That little bit of conserving from the start allowed us to jump a couple cars, and of course, we have the best crew in the business.”


 

“After I got through those first couple laps with the Mustang on me, I was able to maintain that one-second gap for a while,” Mars added. “I was just saving fuel and saving those rear tires for the end of the race. I was able to slowly build and build that gap, and in the end, stretched it to where I didn’t have to worry about the guys behind me.


 

“I kind of knew it was going to be a fuel race and we were all going to be scrambling, but I was still able to turn fast laps, so huge thanks to the Turner Motorsport crew for a great car and an unbelievable pit stop.”


 

TCR: Herta Hyundais Rule

Bryan Herta’s memories from WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca can tend to be bittersweet. The Valencia native won a pair of Indy car races back-to-back at what is essentially his California home track (in 1998 and 1999), but also famously came out on the wrong side of “The Pass” in 1996 when Alex Zanardi slid through the dirt at the Corkscrew to steal victory on the last lap.


 

Now a team owner in Michelin Pilot Challenge, Herta got to take home another Laguna Seca memory on the positive side of the ledger as Mason Filippi and Bryson Morris co-drove the No. 33 Hyundai Elantra N TCR to win the Touring Car (TCR) class of the WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca 120.


 

In fact, it was a 1-2 finish for BHA, as Preston Brown and Denis Dupont rebounded from an early spin and a puncture to claim second place in the No. 76 Hyundai, a full lap behind their teammates.


 

The Herta team now has five wins at three different tracks, the first team in history to do so. At WeatherTech Raceway, the 2026 win joins its four previous triumphs in 2020, 2021, 2023 and 2025.


 

The victory – which was the 10th in Michelin Pilot Challenge competition for 2025 TCR champion Filippi and the second for Morris – was nowhere as easy as the result would indicate despite the fact that the No. 33 basically led from the start to the checkered flag. Filippi took the Motul Pole Award and held the top spot through his first stint before handing off to Morris just prior to the halfway point of the 120-minute race.


 

The biggest challenge to Morris came from the No. 99 Victor Gonzalez Racing Cupra Leon VZ TCR, but Tyler Gonzalez (who shared the car with Franco Girolami) sustained a punctured left rear tire with 37 minutes remaining while running within a second of the lead and fell to seventh. Celso Neto and Rafael Reis then looked set to take second place in the No. 77 Stallion Motorsports w/GOU Cupra Leon VZ TCR, only for the car to stop on course with just two minutes to go.


 

That left Dupont and Brown to collect the runner-up laurels, followed in third place by Karl Wittmer and LP Montour in the No. 93 MMG Honda Civic FL5 TCR.


 

“This track has always been really good for our Elantra N TCR cars, but this is awesome,” said Filippi, a Northern California native who now lives in Nashville. “It’s fun to win at Laguna Seca – definitely special. Bryson crushed it and we extended our points lead.


 

“It’s always a challenging battle out there, so it was about keeping focus through the restarts. And working with the other traffic class traffic is huge here. Managing that is really big, so it wasn’t as easy as it looked.”


 

“I knew it was a really heavy tire deg (degradation) race, so I was just praying at the end because I know we were running for a long time,” Morris added. “But the Michelin tires held on.”


 

The IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge serves as the headliner for its next event – the O’Reilly Auto Parts 4 Hours of Mid-Ohio, June 5-7 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

 

 

Qualifying Results | WeatherTech Championship

StubHub Monterey SportsCar Championship

WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca - Saturday, May 2, 2026

Qualifying Results


 

Practice 2 Results

Practice 1 Results


 

Additional results are available at results.imsa.com.

 

 

Practice Results | WeatherTech Championship

StubHub Monterey SportsCar Championship

WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca - Saturday, May 2, 2026

Practice 2 Results

Practice 1 Results


 

Additional results are available at results.imsa.com.

 

 

Cadillac, Corvette Pace Practice at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca

Throwback Liveries Abound at StubHub Monterey SportsCar Championship

 

May 1, 2026

By John Oreovicz

IMSA Wire Service

Practice Results


 

MONTEREY, Calif. – The most modern and technically advanced cars racing in North America rolled out in evocative throwback liveries as IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship practice began for the StubHub Monterey SportsCar Championship weekend at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.


 

Porsche Penske Motorsport’s 1980-inspired Apple Computer livery dominated the headlines in the lead-up to the weekend, but Cadillac swept the top three places overall and in the Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) class Friday afternoon in the opening 90-minute session.


 

The pair of Cadillac Wayne Taylor Racing entries led the way ahead of the Cadillac Whelen entry, after a flurry of late activity. Louis Deletraz took the No. 40 Cadillac V-Series.R to the top ahead of Filipe Albuquerque in the No. 10 car and Jack Aitken in the No. 31 car. 


 

Aitken set the early pace in the No. 31 Cadillac only to be eclipsed in the final 15 minutes by both of Cadillac Wayne Taylor Racing’s entries. Aitken’s fifth tour around the 2.238-mile, 11-turn course in 1 minute, 15.026 seconds (107.386 miles per hour) set the early benchmark that stood for more than an hour before Albuquerque slipped under the 1:15 mark with a lap of 1:14.893 (107.577 mph) with 12 minutes to go in WTR’s No. 10 machine.


 

Five minutes later, Deletraz uncorked a 1:14.333 (108.387 mph) flyer in the No. 40 Cadillac that was a full 0.560 seconds quicker than the other Wayne Taylor Racing team car and 0.697 seconds under the fastest non-Cadillac – the fourth-placed No. 6 Porsche Penske Motorsport Porsche 963 at 1:15.030 (107.380 mph) driven by Kevin Estre.


 

“It was a great session,” reported Deletraz. “The car feels good and it was a great start – we are P1. Even though we are just starting the weekend, it’s very good.


 

“We’re going to analyze the data and make sure we are even faster tomorrow,” he added. “But we are very happy with the car. The Cadillac did a great job, and we are excited for the weekend.”


 

A couple years after a full repave, the WeatherTech Raceway circuit is losing grip, and while several drivers experienced dusty off-course moments, the session ran uninterrupted by a red flag.


 

Julien Andlauer in the championship-leading No. 7 Porsche Penske Motorsport Porsche ran wide at the Andretti Hairpin, as did Marco Wittmann in the No. 25 BMW M Team WRT BMW M Hybrid V8. Meanwhile, Tijmen van der Helm in JDC-Miller MotorSports’ No. 5 Porsche 963 experimented with the “Alex Zanardi line” while exiting the track’s famous Corkscrew sequence of turns.


 

Corvette 1-2 in GTD PRO, Ferrari 1-2 in GTD

Like Aitken, Alexander Sims was on the gas from the very start of the 90-minute practice to pace the Grand Touring Daytona Pro (GTD PRO) class with a 1 minute, 22.113-second (98.118 miles per hour) lap in the No. 3 Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports Corvette Z06 GT3.R. 


 

That outpaced GTD class leader Frederik Schandorff in Inception Racing’s No. 70 Ferrari 296 GT3 EVO by just 0.043 seconds. Schandorff also posted his 1:22.156 (98.066 mph) effort in the first 15 minutes of action.


 

“One of our engineers was saying he thought the surface was starting to get into a higher tire degradation characteristic here again, and honestly, the laps I did today sort of backed that up,” Sims remarked, crediting extensive work in Corvette Racing’s simulator for his early speed. “The car felt pretty nice straight out of the box.”


 

Nicky Catsburg ran second in GTD PRO in the No. 4 Pratt Miller car at 1:22.255 (97.948 mph) to secure a Corvette 1-2, while Ferrari ran first and second in GTD courtesy of Albert Costa’s 1:22.165 (98.056 mph) lap in the No. 34 Conquest Racing Ferrari. 


 

The Pratt Miller Corvettes are wrapped this weekend in a white and yellow livery reminiscent of Corvette Racing’s early 2000 paint scheme that adorned the C5-R chassis.


 

“This is a shorter track, so track position is important,” Catsburg said. “I would say qualifying is important, but it’s not the end of the world if we’re not on the front row.”


 

The StubHub Monterey SportsCar Championship features the first 2-hour, 40-minute sprint race on the 2026 WeatherTech Championship schedule.  


 

Sunday’s race will air on NBCSN and be streamed live flag-to-flag Sunday on Peacock in the U.S., with international viewers able to access via IMSA.TV or the official IMSA YouTube Channel. Coverage begins at 4 p.m. ET.

Practice Results | WeatherTech Championship

StubHub Monterey SportsCar Championship

WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca - Friday, May 1, 2026

Practice 1 Results


 

Additional results are available at results.imsa.com.
 
 

Zanardi's Loss Felt in IMSA Paddock

Many Within Paddock Competed Against or Raced With the Italian Legend

 

May 2, 2026

By John Oreovicz

IMSA Wire Service

MONTEREY, Calif. – Alex Zanardi competed in only one IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship race, but the charismatic Italian left an impression on nearly everyone in the IMSA paddock. 


 

Zanardi, who died at the age of 59 Friday, May 1, earned his notoriety by winning 15 races and two CART-sanctioned IndyCar championships in a three-year period from 1996-98. He dominated the ’97 and ’98 seasons in swashbuckling style and created the memorable tradition of celebrating race wins by spinning smoky donuts in the iconic Target-sponsored Reynard/Hondas fielded by Chip Ganassi Racing. 


 

Zanardi lost his legs in a CART race at EuroSpeedway Lausitz in 2001 just four days after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Twenty months later in May 2003, he made an emotional return to the Lausitzring and drove 13 laps at speed in a Reynard Indy car fitted with hand controls to “finish the race.” The experience inspired Zanardi to return to auto racing full-time, where driving for BMW, he scored four sports car wins in the World Touring Car Championship between 2005-09.


 

He then took on the new challenge of hand cycling and won his division in the 2011 New York Marathon before earning four gold and two silver medals in the 2012 and 2016 Paralympic Games. His final car race came at IMSA’s 2019 Rolex 24 At Daytona, where he shared a BMW M8 GTE with Jesse Krohn, John Edwards, and Chaz Mostert at the Daytona International Speedway.


 

Alex’s resilience was put to the ultimate test when he suffered a devastating hand bike crash in Italy in June 2020 that put him in an induced coma and led to his withdrawal from public life. He passed away peacefully at home the evening of May 1, in the company of his wife Daniella and son Niccolo. 


 

Zanardi’s legend was sparked by ‘The Pass’ at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca on September 8, 1996, when he made an audacious last lap move on Bryan Herta in the famous Corkscrew. He overcooked the entry, slid through the dirt, yet somehow maintained control and emerged ahead for the win. 


 

Herta and Zanardi’s Ganassi Racing teammate Jimmy Vasser are both at Laguna Seca this weekend, as owners of teams that compete in the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge and the WeatherTech Championship. 


 

Herta, who fields four Hyundai Elantra N TCR cars including the polesitting entry for today’s WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca 120, wrote on social media: “Respect and love Alex. For millions you were an inspiration and a doer of the impossible. My last and best memory is of us at Daytona Rolex, I appreciate your kindness for Colton (Herta) and everything you accomplished. Godspeed!”


 

Herta’s son Colton was a teammate to Zanardi with BMW M Team RLL in the 2019 Rolex 24; Colton was part of the winning GT Le Mans class entry with current BMW WeatherTech Championship drivers Connor De Phillippi, Philipp Eng and veteran Augusto Farfus. 

Vasser, meanwhile, was a key part of Ganassi’s first era of open-wheel brilliance with Zanardi and is celebrating 30 years since his own Long Beach race win and the 1996 championship, achieved here in Monterey at WeatherTech Raceway. The No. 12 Vasser Sullivan Racing Lexus RC F GT3 won the most recent WeatherTech Championship Grand Touring Daytona (GTD) race at Long Beach. 


 

“In 1998, we went 1-2 in the championship, and that for me, is the greatest year in my racing career as a driver, for sure,” Vasser said. “And Alex and I, over the course of the three years that we raced together, developed one of the best friendships of a lifetime. We had the most fun. It was competitive, but truly, I was happy for him when he did well and won, and I felt the same from him to me when I did well. He was truly happy for me. 


 

“He was one of one.”


 

IMSA President John Doonan also paid tribute to Zanardi.


 

“He will forever be known for his accomplishments, not just on the racetrack, but as a one-of-a-kind and genuine personality,” Doonan stated. “From unforgettable moments on racetracks all over the world – including his last-lap pass for victory in The Corkscrew right here at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca where we are racing this weekend – to his remarkable achievements as a Paralympic gold-medal winner and IRONMAN record holder, Alex was an inspiration and exemplified the epitome of perseverance to anyone who had the good fortune to encounter him or learn his story. 


 

“Having him join us for the 2019 Rolex 24 At Daytona as a competitor remains a cherished memory for our IMSA community and everybody who attended or viewed that event,” Doonan added. “Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family, his teammates, and his many friends all over the world.”


 

Lead Photo by Richard Dole; Vasser and Zanardi Photo by IMSA Archives

Statement from IMSA President John Doonan on Passing of Alex Zanardi

MONTEREY, Calif. (May 2, 2026) - “IMSA joins our global motorsports family in mourning the loss of Alex Zanardi," said IMSA President John Doonan.


 

"He will forever be known for his accomplishments, not just on the racetrack, but as a one-of-a-kind and genuine personality. From unforgettable moments on racetracks all over the world – including his last-lap pass for victory in The Corkscrew right here at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca where we are racing this weekend – to his remarkable achievements as a Paralympic gold-medal winner and IRONMAN record holder, Alex was an inspiration and exemplified the epitome of perseverance to anyone who had the good fortune to encounter him or learn his story.


 

"Having him join us for the 2019 Rolex 24 At Daytona as a competitor remains a cherished memory for our IMSA community and everybody who attended or viewed that event. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family, his teammates, and his many friends all over the world.”


 

Photo by Richard Dole
 

 

 

 

Lamborghini Super Trofeo Heads West to WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca

Pro Class Sees Several Changes for Rounds 3 and 4 of 2026 Season


 

April 28, 2026

By Tony DiZinno

IMSA Wire Service

Entry List (Click Here)

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Year-to-year continuity won out over slightly revised lineups when it came to the overall and Pro class wins to start the 2026 Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America season at Sebring International Raceway in March. But two key changes have emerged in the Pro lineups since Sebring ahead of the cross-country trip West to WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in picturesque Monterey, California for Rounds 3 and 4. 


 

The trip to WeatherTech Raceway also marks the last new North American venue for the new Hankook L63H tire, which debuted mid-year through 2025 at Watkins Glen International and has provided additional grip and durability to competitors. The WeatherTech Raceway track was repaved a couple years ago but is still an abrasive surface as sand and gravel often blows onto the track. 


 

Pro


 

TR3 Racing started with a perfect Sebring weekend, as Will Bamber and Elias De La Torre IV in their No. 29 TR3 Racing, Lamborghini Miami, Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo Evo2 secured two poles and two race wins for a maximum 32 points. 


 

In the interim, Bamber has shifted to XONINE Racing’s No. 33 Lamborghini Chicago, Huracán alongside Darius Trinka while TR3 welcomes back Dennis Lind to share the No. 29 Huracán with De La Torre from Monterey onwards. The No. 33 XONINE entry finished fifth both races at Sebring.


 

That leaves the points leaders set to diverge on two different paths in Monterey and creates an opportunity for Wayne Taylor Racing’s entries – and the rest of the field – to close the gap or overtake. 


 

Hampus Ericsson and Nick Persing in the No. 1 Wayne Taylor Racing, Lamborghini Palm Beach, Huracán banked a pair of runner-up finishes at Sebring and enter eight points back. Persing has been the driver to beat at WeatherTech Raceway the last two years at his closest venue to home. The Morgan Hill, California resident and Boise State University student swept both Pro races in 2025, including in a photo finish over Ericsson and Danny Formal’s entry in Race 2. He also won in ProAm in 2024. 


 

ANSA Motorsports may be poised to reach the top step this weekend for the first time in Pro since 2024, too. They’ll enter with a new lineup. In 2025, two Lamborghini Young Driver Program Shootout winners Enzo Geraci and Colin Queen shared a podium. Nico Jamin will fill in for Queen this weekend at Monterey alongside Tommi Gore, into his second weekend, aboard ANSA’s No. 4, Lamborghini Broward, Huracán. 


 

Precision Performance Motorsports’ Brandon Gdovic, running a striking orange livery highlighting the Giraffe Conservation Foundation, had a quietly strong start in Sebring with fourth both races in his No. 46 PPM, Lamborghini Palm Beach, Huracán. 


 

ProAm


 

Danny Formal shifted into ProAm to start 2026 alongside Graham Doyle, but the change of class didn’t produce a change in result for the three-time Pro champion. Formal and Doyle swept the weekend at Sebring in their No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing, Lamborghini Palm Beach, Huracán. It’s rare to find a track on the schedule where Formal hasn’t won recently, and it’s been a “relative” dry spell going back to 2023 to find the last time Formal won in Monterey – he swept Pro that weekend with Kyle Marcelli. 


 

Behind them, both Kaizen Autosport and Forty7 Motorsports started strong in Sebring. Both Seth Henry and Wyatt Foster (Kaizen) and Lindsay Brewer and Keawn Tandon (Forty7) got a second and third place apiece. 


 

TR3’s Mateo Siderman and Martin Fuentes rebounded from last-place grid spots to fourth in both Sebring races, while TB Autosports’ Marcelli and Mathieu Boucher and Alliance’s Jack William Miller and Angelo Dinkov also scored top-fives in Sebring. 


 

Am


 

The Am battle at Sebring was eventful throughout the weekend with Nick Groat (No. 57 XONINE Racing, Lamborghini Chicago, Huracán) and Dean Neuls (No. 70 TR3 Racing, Lamborghini Miami, Huracán) splitting the wins and David Staab (PPM) and Johan Schwartz (89x Motorsports) scoring two podiums apiece. Groat, Staab and Schwartz are in a three-way tie for the lead with Neuls only two points behind. Both Staab and Groat won Monterey Race 1 last year, Staab in Am and Groat in LB Cup. 


 

LB Cup 


 

Just as Am was exciting to watch at Sebring, so too was LB Cup. Ray Shahi (No. 65 Taurino Racing, Lamborghini Newport Beach, Huracán) and Rocky T. Bolduc (No. 99 Topp Racing, Lamborghini Greenwich, Huracán) split the wins with Philippe Touchette (TB) and Clay Wilson (TR3) also scoring podiums. 


 

Lamborghini Super Trofeo practices on Friday with qualifying Saturday morning and the two 50-minute races Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET (4:30 p.m. PT) and Sunday at 1:35 p.m. ET (10:35 a.m. ET). Races stream via Peacock, IMSA’s YouTube channel and Lamborghini’s YouTube channel.


 

2025 Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America Monterey Race 1 Winners:

  • Pro: Nick Persing, No. 8 Wayne Taylor Racing
  • ProAm: Andy Lee/Slade Stewart, No. 14 Flying Lizard Motorsports
  • Am: David Staab, No. 48 Precision Performance Motorsports
  • LB Cup: Nick Groat, No. 57 ONE Motorsports


 

2025 Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America Monterey Race 2 Winners:

  • Pro: Nick Persing, No. 8 Wayne Taylor Racing
  • ProAm: Anthony McIntosh/Brendon Leitch, No. 69 Wayne Taylor Racing
  • Am: Graham Doyle/Glenn McGee, No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing
  • LB Cup: Adrian Kunzle, No. 42 MLT Motorsports
 

California Ties Mean More for IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge Competitors Racing at Monterey

Baker’s Dozen: 13 Californian Drivers in GS at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca


 

April 27, 2026

By Tony DiZinno

IMSA Wire Service

Entry List (Click Here)


 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – For IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge competitors, particularly those with California ties, this year’s trip to Monterey at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca will mean more.


 

The series schedule will shift slightly in 2027, as a return to Lime Rock Park in September means WeatherTech Raceway – for now – will drop off the Michelin Pilot Challenge calendar after this season. That adds extra incentive for those California drivers and teams to make this year’s race in Monterey memorable.


 

There are 13 Californian drivers, all in GS, and three California-based teams among the 45 cars (split 31 in GS, 14 in TCR) on the Monterey entry list. 


 

One entry off to a strong start in 2026 is the lone GS entry featuring two California residents on a California-based team, which features primarily California crewmembers. Sonoma, Calif.-based Stephen Cameron Racing’s No. 19 Ford Mustang GT4 of Palo Alto’s Sean Quinlan and San Francisco’s Gregory Liefooghe is keen to improve on some strong early-season results.


 

The No. 19 orange and purple Mustang survived the chaotic start to the last race at Sebring and banked its second top-10 finish in as many races to start the year. With finishes of eighth and seventh, Quinlan and Liefooghe enter Monterey sixth in points. 


 

Two other teams that have won at Monterey are based in California, as well. Rohnert Park, Calif.’s Murillo Racing features Santa Rosa’s Kenny Murillo driving alongside wife Aurora Straus in the team’s No. 24 Mercedes-AMG GT GT4. Murillo won there in 2023 in GS. 


 

San Francisco-based CarBahn by Peregrine Racing has multiple Californians in its two BMW M4 GT4 EVOs with Steve Wetterau (No. 37) from Newport Beach and Sean McAlister (No. 39) from Beverly Hills. CarBahn won at Monterey in 2020 with Jeff Westphal and Tyler McQuarrie. 


 

There’s a bevy of other Californians in GS, too. Thomas Merrill (Salinas) is one of WeatherTech Raceway’s most experienced drivers and looks to add another podium to his Daytona opener in the No. 14 Circle H Racing Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4 Evo he shares with David Hampton. Jaxon Bell (son of past IMSA champion, Lexus veteran and NBC Sports commentator Townsend) of Pacific Palisades races here in his No. 23 Koch-Copeland Motorsports Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO2 with Ford Koch. 


 

Heart of Racing Team’s Hannah Grisham (No. 26 Aston Martin) hails from Glendora, LAP Motorsports’ Clayton Williams (No. 30 Ford) is from Oakley, Bob Michaelian is from Seal Beach in his No. 59 KohR Motorsports Ford, Allen Patten is from San Jose in his No. 66 van der Steur Racing Aston Martin, Lucas Weisenberg is from Orange in his No. 67 BSI Racing Toyota, and 2026-27 IMSA 3D Scholarship recipient Nicky Hays hails from Huntington Beach in his No. 92 Random Vandals Racing BMW.


 

It’s not a Californian leading the GS points after two races – it’s actually Texan Bryce Ward and Dutchman Daan Arrow – in the team’s No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT GT4 with two podiums in two starts. Winward is a past Monterey GS winner too, in 2019 with Russell Ward and Dominik Baumann. 


 

The elder Ward and Arrow lead Turner Motorsport’s Dillon Machavern and Luca Mars by 40 points, AutoTechnic Racing’s Austin Krainz and Stevan McAleer by 100, Sebring winners Moisey Uretsky and Michael Cooper of Ibiza Farm Motorsport and McCumbee McAleer Racing’s Robert Noaker and Nate Cicero by 140, and the aforementioned Quinlan and Liefooghe by 150.


 

TCR sees Bryson Morris and Mason Filippi out front in their No. 33 Bryan Herta Autosport with Curb Agajanian Hyundai Elantra N TCR by 40 points over three different pairings: Sebring winners Franco Girolami and Tyler Gonzalez (Victor Gonzalez Racing), Lance Bergstein and defending TCR champion Harry Gottsacker (BHA) and Madison Aust and past TCR champion Mark Wilkins (BHA).


 

Michelin Pilot Challenge teams will have a busy Friday with two practice sessions before qualifying. The WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca 120 will go green on Saturday at 3:45 p.m. ET (12:45 p.m. PT) with live streaming flag-to-flag on Peacock and on IMSA’s Official YouTube channel, commercial free courtesy of Michelin.

Fast Facts

WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca 120

WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca – Monterey, Calif. 

May 1-2, 2026


 

Race Day/Time: Saturday, May 2, 3:45 p.m. ET

Peacock Streaming Coverage: LIVE – Flag-to-flag beginning at 3:40 p.m. ET (globally, ad-free, courtesy of Michelin via IMSA's Official YouTube channel)

Circuit Type: 2.238-mile, 11-turn road course

Classes Competing: Grand Sport (GS), Touring Car (TCR)

Race Length: Two hours

 

Michelin Pilot Challenge Track Records

  • GS: Michael de Quesada, McLaren Artura GT4, 1:27.455 / 92.455 mph, May 2024 (Qualifying)
  • TCR: Bryan Ortiz, Honda Civic FL5 TCR, 1:29.175 / 90.347 mph, May 2024 (Qualifying) 


 

2025 WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca 120 Winners

  • GS: Jan Heylen/Luca Mars, No. 28 RS1 Porsche 718 GT4 RS CS
  • TCR: Preston Brown/Denis Dupont, No. 76 Bryan Herta Autosport with Curb Agajanian Hyundai Elantra N TCR

 

Storylines

  • California Ties: Thomas Merrill (Salinas), Sean Quinlan (Palo Alto), Greg Liefooghe (San Francisco), Jaxon Bell (Pacific Palisades), Kenny Murillo (Santa Rosa), Hannah Grisham (Glendora), Clayton Williams (Oakley), Steve Wetterau (Newport Beach), Sean McAlister (Beverly Hills), Bob Michaelian (Seal Beach), Allen Patten (San Jose), Lucas Weisenberg (Orange) and Nicky Hays (Huntington Beach) are from California and get to race in their home state. 
  • IMPC Hits the Pacific Coast: WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca marks the Michelin Pilot Challenge series’ lone trip out west to the Pacific Coast for 2026. 


 

Who’s Hot?

  • Winward Racing: Back-to-back podium finishes have positioned Winward first in the GS championship standings.  
  • Victor Gonzalez Racing: With three wins in the past four TCR races dating to the end of 2025, the No. 99 VGR Cupra Leon VZ TCR has been one to watch. 


 

Who’s Good Here?

  • Mark Wilkins and Harry Gottsacker: Wilkins (No. 98) is the lone active two-time TCR winner in Monterey and Gottsacker (No. 18) the lone active two-time TCR pole winner.

 

Previous WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca 120 Winners in 2026 Field (15)

  • Mark Wilkins (2): TCR – 2021, 2023 
  • Preston Brown (1): TCR – 2025 
  • Gabby Chaves (1): TCR – 2020 
  • Denis Dupont (1): TCR – 2025 
  • Mason Filippi (1): TCR – 2023 
  • Harry Gottsacker (1): TCR – 2021 
  • Billy Johnson (1): ST – 2007 
  • Tim Lewis (1): TCR – 2022
  • Luca Mars (1): GS – 2025 
  • Stevan McAleer (1): ST – 2016 
  • Chris Miller (1): TCR – 2024 
  • Kenny Murillo (1): GS – 2023 
  • Mikey Taylor (1): TCR – 2024
  • Owen Trinkler (1): GS – 2018 
  • Jeff Westphal (1): GS – 2020

 

Previous WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca 120 Pole Winners in 2026 Field (3)

  • Harry Gottsacker (2): TCR – 2020, 2022
  • Sean McAlister (1): GS – 2025 
  • Mark Wilkins (1): TCR – 2025 


 

Previous WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca 120 Winning Teams in 2026 Field (8)

  • Bryan Herta Autosport (4): TCR – 2020, 2021, 2023, 2025
  • CarBahn (1): GS – 2020 
  • JDC-Miller MotorSports (1): TCR – 2024 
  • KMW Motorsports with TMR Engineering (1): TCR – 2022
  • Murillo Racing (1): GS – 2023 
  • Team TGM (1): GS – 2018 
  • Turner Motorsport (1): ST – 2009
  • Winward Racing (1): GS – 2019 


 

Previous WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca 120 Winning Manufacturers in 2026 Field (8)

  • Porsche – 6
  • Audi – 5
  • Hyundai – 4
  • BMW – 3
  • Mercedes-AMG – 3 
  • Aston Martin – 2
  • Ford – 2
  • McLaren – 1 

 

IMSA and ASE Announce Multi-Faceted Partnership to Strengthen the Technician Pipeline and Elevate Consumer Confidence

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (April 28, 2026) – The International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) and the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) today announced a multi-faceted partnership that will aim to combat some of the challenges within the industry for each of IMSA’s 18 participating manufacturers — while raising the standard of service the motoring public receives at every dealership service center those manufacturers stand behind.


 

Each manufacturer that races within IMSA operates its own dealer network, and most of those dealers feature service centers that care for millions of vehicle owners every year. However, there is a critical, persistent and ongoing staffing shortage of skilled technicians to support each dealer and service center — a gap the motoring public feels directly whenever a vehicle needs maintenance or repair. With IMSA and ASE working together, this partnership will provide an aligned and integrated pipeline of ASE Certified technicians prepared to work on the same sophisticated manufacturer vehicles customers drive every day.


 

The collaboration brings together two industry leaders who share a commitment to continuous learning, verified expertise, and sustained success. The layered approach will work with a three-pronged effort:


 

  • Expand awareness of ASE Certification as the trusted benchmark for service professionals
  • Identify career pathways in the transportation industry
  • Position ASE as a major driver in meeting manufacturer needs


 

“ASE is excited to partner with IMSA to highlight the critical role of ASE Certified technicians — the men and women who meet the highest independently verified standards in the industry, on and off the track,” said Dave Johnson, president and CEO of ASE. “Every time a driver hands over their keys at a dealership service center, they deserve the confidence of knowing an ASE Certified technician is working on their vehicle. IMSA’s commitment to innovation and STEM education aligns perfectly with ASE’s mission, and together we are elevating the visibility of technician careers and showing how advanced training is vital to the safe service and repair of today’s technically advanced vehicles.”


 

For the motoring public, ASE Certification is the clearest, most trusted signal that a technician has demonstrated the knowledge, training and hands-on skill to service today’s increasingly complex vehicles. Every ASE Certified technician has passed rigorous, independently developed exams and verified hands-on experience — giving vehicle owners peace of mind that their car, truck or SUV is in qualified hands. Because the 18 manufacturers competing in IMSA depend on their dealer service networks to deliver that same quality and trust long after the sale, the alignment between IMSA’s OEMs and ASE Certified service staff translates directly to safer vehicles, more reliable repairs, and confidence for vehicle owners nationwide.


 

The program also aligns ASE and IMSA STEM initiatives. IMSA STEM powered by Gainbridge and Konica Minolta is now in its second year operating at both IMSA race events and digitally. The aim is to shift the focus from simply advanced degrees to greater advanced training. Essentially, this will outline what a training/career technical education path will look like compared to a standard four-plus year college degree.


 

“Building the next generation of technicians to service the cars on the road is as important as developing the next generation of talented drivers, crew members and workers within the IMSA paddock as a whole,” said IMSA President John Doonan. “We’ve seen remarkable participation in our IMSA STEM events already, and with this new partnership between IMSA and ASE, we’re confident that the ASE Certified technicians emerging from this pipeline will be the trusted hands the motoring public relies on at our manufacturer partners’ service centers nationwide as they work toward their certifications.”


 

Beyond the career development opportunity, there will be promotional elements of the partnership. ASE’s alignment with IMSA provides a window to the 18 manufacturers as well as IMSA’s 10-plus million sports car enthusiast fans — reinforcing the message that when the motoring public brings a vehicle in for service, an ASE Certified technician is the standard they should expect and the assurance they deserve.


 

About the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE):

Established by the automotive industry in 1972 as a non-profit organization, the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) is a driving force in the transportation industry. As an independent third party, ASE upholds and promotes high standards of service and repair through the assessment, certification and credentialing of current and future industry professionals, and the prestigious ASE Blue Seal logo identifies professionals who possess the essential knowledge and skills to perform with excellence. Today, there are ASE Certified professionals at work in dealerships, independent shops, collision repair shops, auto parts stores, fleets, schools and colleges throughout the country. For more information about ASE, visit www.ase.com. 


 

About the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA):

The International Motor Sports Association, LLC (IMSA) was originally founded in 1969 and owns a long and rich history in sports car racing. Today, IMSA is the sanctioning body of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, the premier sports car racing series in North America. IMSA also sanctions the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge, IMSA VP Racing SportsCar Challenge and Historic Sportscar Racing (HSR), as well as five one-make series: Ferrari Challenge North America, Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America, Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup presented by Michelin, Mustang Challenge and Porsche Carrera Cup North America. IMSA – a company within the NASCAR family – is the exclusive strategic partner in North America with the Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO), which operates the 24 Hours of Le Mans as part of the FIA World Endurance Championship. This partnership enables selected IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship competitors to earn automatic entries into the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans. For more information, please visit IMSA.com, and follow IMSA on X, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.

 

International Motor Sports Association    Lamborghini Super Trofeo series  

 Copyright 2002- 2026 Motorsportsgarage productions

no part of site site can be copied or duplicated without written permission from Motorsportsgarage productions

all logos and images are copyrighted to the racing series and used for editorial purposes only

   

         

 

  

follow up on

This site is dedicated to my father " hoot " who introduced me to the Great sport of auto racing when I was a very young child

Thru the years I have befriended several people Thru Racing that have passed on and I honor them here

Larrt Criss. Charlie Patterson. Carrol Horton, Todd shaffer, gary lee and Judy Morris