Two-time ALMS LMP1 champion Klaus Graf has been busy with business commitments since the Muscle Milk Pickett Racing team shut its P2 program (pictured) down after Sebring, but as he tells Marshall Pruett, returning to contest the Tequila Patron North American Endurance Championship rounds is high on his priority list.
“I’ve been busier than ever with Muscle Milk’s expansion in Europe, so that’s mostly what I’ve been doing since Greg [Pickett] stopped the racing program earlier this year,” said Graf, who led Pickett’s Porsche RS Spyder, HPD ARX-03a, and ORECA-Nissan prototype efforts. “And I’ve been doing some driving too, mostly GT stuff over here, but I really want to get back and do the big TUSCC races next year like Daytona, Sebring, Petit Le Mans, and Watkins Glen because they are so fun and so important.”
Graf has remained active this season with endurance racing engagements in the VLN series, and was in Finland doing some ice racing when we spoke. He’s also working with AMG on its 2016 GT3 Mercedes platform (based on the new AMG GT road car), which could appear in IMSA when the GT Daytona class converts to full GT3 regulations the same year. For now, Graf says finding a team in need of a championship-winning pro for the NAEC rounds is his priority.
“Sometimes doing a full season is hard for some of the pros, so it doesn’t leave you a lot of time if you’re in the TUSCC series for the whole year, all the testing, and everything else that takes up your year, so with everything I’m doing outside of the car, being able to put the classic races on my schedule with a team would fit nicely and I know I could help quite a lot,” he added.
“It was good to do Daytona and Sebring this year, and I definitely miss the racing there. And I continue to have the support of my personal sponsor Biedermann, so hopefully we can put something good together with the right team who wants a pro in the car. That would make me quite happy, honestly.”
