Andy Lally has been appointed as the new President of the Trans Am Series and will retire from full-time sports car racing after the 63rd annual Rolex 24 at Daytona in January.
Lally was named as the new Trans Am President today, bringing more than 30 years of driving experience to his new role reporting to Parella Motorsports Holdings (PMH) Chief Operating Officer Michael Printup, who has been at the helm of the SCCA-sanctioned championship since April 2024.
“This is both my retirement from professional driving and a simultaneous transition to President of the Trans Am Series,” said Lally. “It’s a lot of emotion, both looking back and realizing how fortunate I’ve been, while at the same time looking forward to this next journey. I’ll be using 32 years of auto racing experience in a huge variety of cars and sharing what I’ve learned along the way to contribute to the growth of Trans Am and the continued development of future stars.”
Lally is set to drive for Magnus Racing in the upcoming Rolex 24 at Daytona. His 23rd consecutive Daytona appearance – and the 24th of his career in total – will be his last before he retires from full-time driving ahead of Trans Am’s first race of the 2025 season, at Sebring International Raceway in February.
This coincides with Magnus Racing itself taking a sabbatical from motorsport after the 2025 Daytona 24 Hours, as Team Owner John Potter devotes his full attention to the real estate market.
Recognised as a three-time IMSA champion, Lally is the most successful active driver at the Daytona 24 Hours, winning his class five times (2001, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2016). He also leads all active drivers with four class wins at the Six Hours of Watkins Glen (2004, 2007, 2010, 2017); and also won his class at the 2010 Petit Le Mans and 2014 Sebring 12 Hours.
Lally has also raced in NASCAR’s three national touring championships and won NASCAR Cup Series Rookie of the Year honours in 2011.
The native of Northport, New York made his Trans Am Series debut in 2017, and this year, he and Toyota-backed stock car racing prospect Brent Crews – the 2023 TA2 Series Champion – won the Trans Am All-Star Race at Lime Rock Park.
“The timing seems right and the opportunity is fantastic,” continued Lally, who praised the continued growth of the TA2 Series, Trans Am’s most popular category.
“Anyone that knows me knows I’ve been very vocal for years about not only how incredible Trans Am cars are to race, but also how the TA2 Series is the best platform on this planet for driver development. To know that going forward I will be able to play a part in helping our leadership push this series forward while helping both our teams and drivers grow under the Trans Am banner is a dream come true.
“I know this is going to be a whole new challenge and I will have a steep learning curve ahead, but I’m very much looking forward to it. I have a well-seasoned and talented group of Trans Am officials that I will be leaning on heavily for help along the way. I will also have [PMH owner] Tony Parella and my longtime friend Michael Printup available for advice in what will inevitably be many new situations and choices.”
“Andy and I go back to my inaugural year working at Watkins Glen International, and we’ve become great friends; he is always the proverbial gentleman and a great racer on top of that,” said Printup. “He was always such a great ambassador to the track, helping to promote our races, and I have no doubt he will do the same for Trans Am. His accomplishments, in my eyes, are just stupendous. He is a true racing champion, and I look forward to teaming up with him.”
In an exclusive interview with Marshall Pruett at RACER.com, Lally did not rule out returning to driving on a part-time basis in the future if his schedule allows him to.
Feature image © Trans Am Racing
