PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports is proud to announce today that it has signed two of the hottest young stars in the sportscars world to fight for the 2019 IMSA Weathertech Sportscar Championship. Matt McMurry and Gabriel Aubry will pilot the #52 Oreca 07 LMP2 during the 2019 season and will hit the track for the first time as new teammates at the Roar before the 24, in preparation for the Rolex 24 at Daytona where they will be joined by two additional drivers who will be announced in the near future.
For PR1, this marks another step in their revamped effort to capture the championship in the newly formed LMP2 class, after securing a brand new Oreca 07 chassis towards the end of the 2018 season and immediately showing promising speed.
American driver McMurry brings a wealth of sportscars experience to the team. The 21 year-old competed both in IMSA and the European Le Mans Series in 2018, and this coming season he will be taking part in his seventh 24 hour race. He was also the youngest ever driver to compete at the 24 Hours of Le Mans when he made his debut at 16 years of age in 2014. Mcmurry has plenty of IMSA experience and has competed in the DPi, LMP2, and GTD classes throughout his career.
Young Frenchman Aubry will make his IMSA debut in 2019, but he is no stranger to sportscars as he currently leads the LMP2 class in the World Endurance Championship where he’s achieved three victories in the first five races of their Super Season. The 20-year-old also competed in the European Le Mans Series, the GP3 Championship, and finished sixth at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2018.
Matt McMurry Driver #52 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports Oreca 07 LMP2
“I’m excited for the opportunity to continue to prove myself in the prototype ranks and really appreciate the call up from Bobby and the team’s supporters. Daytona is always a great way to start the season. The drivers present are so strong and I can’t wait to take on the challenge.”
Gabriel Aubry Driver #52 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports Oreca 07 LMP2
“I am delighted to start a new adventure in the US, and to join a great team as PR1. I am looking forward to race and compete in this new environment. The championship will take us to legendary tracks to which I will have to quickly adapt. I am also pleased to do this program on the LMP2 ORECA 07, the same car I am used to racing in WEC. I’ve been training hard since my last race in Shanghai and I can’t wait to be back in a car in Daytona.”
Bobby Oergel Team Principal #52 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports Oreca 07 LMP2
“We are very happy to be able to announce that these two young guns will be racing with us this season. They are no doubt two of the top up and coming guys out there and we have no doubt that with them we can go fight for the Rolex 24 win, and the championship. I really want to thank all of our team sponsors for helping us make this happen so late in the game, and we can’t wait to finalize our lineup and go win Daytona!”
Ray Mathiasen Team Principal #52 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports Oreca 07 LMP2
“I am very excited to hear that we have been able to complete our full season driver line-up and want to welcome our very talented new drivers to our team’s quest for the 2019 LMP2 championship. I’m very supportive of the decision to split into a separate class to compete for the championship since the pro-am structure is a much better fit for our racing business plan. I hope to hear soon about additional LMP2s joining the series; the more the better. But we’re in for the full season regardless of the final car count. I can’t wait for Daytona.”
Source. PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports
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