Michelin Pilot Challenge News Notebook
Random Vandals Racing Expands IMSA Program for 2024 Season
Random Vandals Racing (RVR) returns to the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge series for the full season in 2024 with Kenton Koch and Paul Sparta piloting the #92 Vbrick Systems BMW Motorsport M4 GT4 in the GS Class.
Additionally, Team ACP – Tangerine, a longtime international BMW sportscar team, will partner with RVR for select races in both IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge (#94 GS Class) and VP Racing
SportsCar Challenge (#9 GSX Class) as “Team ACP by Random Vandals”.
All three cars will make their 2024 debut at the Daytona Roar Before the Rolex 24 on January 19.
The 10-race Michelin Pilot Challenge schedule kicks off on Jan. 26 with the BMW M Endurance Challenge, a four-hour race at Daytona International Speedway.
The #94 Team ACP by Random Vandals GS Class M4 will have Ken Goldberg, Catesby Jones, and veteran Terry Borcheller behind the wheel for the 4-hour BMW M Endurance Challenge at Daytona, sponsored by All County Paving.
Nathan Martin makes his professional racing debut in the #9 Team ACP by Random Vandals M4 in GSX Class of the VP Racing SportsCar Challenge.
“2024 marks a major expansion for Random Vandals and a huge raccoon family welcome to Team ACP,” said RVR Team Principal, Paul Sparta. “In 2023, we invested across the organization to create a
cohesive team with top driving, engineering, and technical talent. We proved we can run consistently at the top of the field in multiple series. This year, we intend to compete for a championship and multiple race wins. We couldn’t do it without the tremendous partnership of BMW Motorsport. The farther we go, the harder it gets, but this team loves the challenge and the process.”
“Last year’s foray in the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge left us with some great experience to build on! We grew so much as a team and Paul was able to take another leap as a driver,” said Kenton Koch, co-driver of the #92 Vbrick Systems BMW M4 GT4. “I’m super excited to partner with him again and make a run at the full season championship with Random Vandals after some success last year. I have a good feeling about 2024 and can’t wait for Daytona to get here.”
“Team ACP is extremely happy to partner with Random Vandals for our IMSA effort,” said Catesby Jones, CEO of Team ACP-Tangerine. “We are both dedicated BMW teams, and we’ll be stronger together as we take this step into IMSA. We can’t wait to get to Daytona!”
New Team Czabok-Simpson Motorsport Confirm Full-Season Porsche
Czabok-Simpson Motorsport are pleased to announce that Sebastian Carazo, Nikita Lastochkin and Gordon Scully will join the team’s 2024 IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge program. The trio builds the lineup for the new team’s full-season entry in the #67 Czabok-Simpson Motorsport Porsche Cayman RS GT4 Clubsport in the Grand Sport (GS) class.
Sebastian Carazo from Puerto Rico was the 2019 Gold class champion in the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge USA and 2022 ProAm class champion (with co-driver Bryan Ortiz) in the Lamborghini Super Trofeo Grand Finals, finished an impressive second in the 2023 VP Racing SportsCar Challenge Championship GSX class, featuring two race wins and five more podiums which kept him in contention for the GSX championship all the way to the final race at Road Atlanta.
“I can’t wait to get the season started,” Carazo said. “I am looking forward to being able to work alongside Stephen, Matthias and the entire team at CSM for their first season in the Michelin Pilot Challenge. I am confident in what we can accomplish this year”.
Nikita Lastochkin, 33, moved to the United States at the age of 16 and now calls Los Angeles home. With a background mainly in U.S. open-wheel racing, 2024 will be his transition into IMSA sports car racing. He began racing in 2013 with the Skip Barber Racing School, placing second in the Winter Championship followed by the 2014 Summer Racing Series, where he placed third in the championship. In 2014, Nikita went on to compete in the Pacific Region F1600 Championship Series, claiming two wins. He made the move into the Road to Indy in 2015, competing in the U.S. F2000 Championship, Pro Mazda Championship, Indy Pro 2000 Championship and finally in 2021, in Indy Lights (now called Indy NXT).
“I am thrilled to join CSM and begin a new chapter in my career. I am looking forward to building on my experience and learning from the team,” Lastochkin said.
“Having Stephen as one of the team owners is an amazing opportunity. Being an accomplished racer himself, he can help with my transition from open-wheel world to GT style racing. I look forward to learning all the new things and challenges that come with racing sports cars.
“The team will be running the Porsche GT4 RS Clubsport, which is a brand I have a lot of history with. Although I have yet to race in a Porsche, I have been working as a driver coach at the Porsche Experience Center Los Angeles for over five years. Having plenty of seat time in every model the brand makes, I always appreciated how nimble and confidence-inspiring the mid-engine 718 platform is. I can’t wait to see what the car is capable of in a proper race trim.”
Gordon Scully, 24, from Chicago, is also making his transition into sports car racing in 2024 from single-seater, U.S. open-wheel racing. A graduate of the Lucas Oil School of Racing and the Formula Race Promotions F1600 programs, he recently competed in the 2023 USF2000 Championship, finishing 15th in the highly competitive 34-car field, but sees his future now in the IMSA series.
“I believe this to be the best next move for my future and success in racing,” Scully said. “Czabok-Simpson Motorsport will provide the best opportunity to fight for the championship in 2024 and I am supremely confident in the team’s ability to succeed in the coming year. My recent partnership with the Les Turner ALS Foundation (lesturnerals.org) will make this exciting season fulfilling off the track as we raise money and awareness to find a cure for ALS. I am excited to step into a new car, help Czabok-Simpson Motorsport to win in their first year of competition and fight to find a cure for ALS”.
Stephen Simpson, Czabok-Simpson Motorsport team co-owner, said, “Very excited to have Sebastian, Nikita and Gordon join us in our debut 2024 IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge campaign, and without question this lineup represents some good experience and offers plenty of potential for our maiden season in the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge championship.”
Czabok-Simpson Motorsport team co-owner and managing partner Matthias Czabok confirmed that the team has taken delivery of a second car last week. It is being prepped for the start of the season at the CSM shop in Brownsburg, Indiana.
“We also have further plans to enter a second Porsche Cayman RS GT4 Clubsport at selected events of the 2024 IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge, which will be announced at a later date,” Czabok said.
Rockwell Autosport Returning for Daytona Redemption
Rockwell Autosport Development has confirmed an entry to the first round of the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge season at Daytona International Speedway.
The team’s single entry to the BMW M Endurance Challenge at Daytona will be driven by team principal Eric Rockwell, long-time crew chief Doug Oakley and former TCR race winner Tom O’Gorman. The trio will pilot a Gen 1 Audi RS3 LMS TCR SEQ.
Rockwell Autosport campaigned a two-car effort in the 2023 Michelin Pilot Challenge season, both finishing in the top 10 of the Touring Car (TCR) class standings. However, the Daytona round last season was one to forget, with the #15 finishing off the lead lap and the #10 collected in an incident and forced to retire. The team hopes to turn their luck around for this year’s race.
Team principal Rockwell drove eight rounds in the 2023 season in addition to handling team manager responsibilities. He returns to the driver lineup for the Daytona race on Jan. 26.
“After consecutive sixth-place finishes in Daytona in 2022 and 2023, I’m looking for more,” Rockwell said. “The Audi has historically been a quick car at Daytona and looking to see if we can capitalize on that. I can’t think of two guys that deserve this opportunity more than Doug and Tom, and I’m excited to be able to drive with them.”
O’Gorman will return to the TCR grid and Rockwell Autosport with this entry. A four-time race winner in the series, he joined the team for the 2023 Daytona round but the car was retired before O’Gorman’s scheduled stint in the race.
“I’m over the moon to be back in IMSA with Rockwell,” said O’Gorman. “Last year felt like a homecoming of sorts having been away from the IMSA paddock since 2019 – simply the opportunity to be back was amazing. But, with our race ending before I got in the car, I’m feeling hungry this year. We definitely have unfinished business and I’m fired up to get back behind the wheel.”
Oakley has been a crew chief, strategist and more since the team joined the IMSA grid in 2021. Also a long-time friend of the family and team, he has been competing in grassroots endurance racing with Rockwell for many years and will be stepping into the driver role for the first time in IMSA competition.
“I’m beyond excited to be making the move from behind the wall to behind the wheel,” shared Oakley. “Driving has always been my passion but you need to work your way up for opportunities like this. After the last three years of watching and learning, I’m ready to take the next step, and nowhere better to take that step than Daytona.”
