The Flying Lizard Motorsports group is a
motorsport
Motorsport, motorsports or motor sport is a global term used to encompass the group of competitive sporting events which primarily involve the use of motorized vehicles. The terminology can also be used to describe forms of competition of two ...
team from
Sonoma, California
Sonoma is a city in Sonoma County, California, United States, located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. Sonoma is one of the principal cities of California's Wine Country and the center of the Sonoma Valley AVA. Sonoma's p ...
, formed by
Seth Neiman
Seth Neiman (born June 27, 1954) is an American computer industry businessperson and venture capitalist in California, and a professional racing driver.
He is the team principal of Flying Lizard Motorsports, which participates in the United Spo ...
in early 2003. The team competed in the full
American Le Mans Series
The American Le Mans Series (ALMS) was a sports car racing series based in the United States and Canada. It consisted of a series of endurance and sprint races, and was created in the spirit of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
The American Le Mans' hea ...
season, as well as the
24 Hours of Daytona
The 24 Hours of Daytona, also known as the Rolex 24 At Daytona for sponsorship reasons, is a 24-hour sports car endurance race held annually at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is run on the Sports Car Course layou ...
, and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The team went on to win six driver and team championships in the American Le Mans Series, becoming a Porsche factory team and Porsche Motorsport North America's development partner from 2007 to 2012. The team helped develop the first- and second-generation 997 GT3 RSR as well as bring it to victory several times in its six-year run in the series. The team solely raced Porsche cars from 2004 to 2019, becoming a staple in the Porsche racing community.
After ten years of ownership, Seth Neiman sold the team during the 2014 offseason to longtime Crew Chief Tommy Sadler, Chief Strategist Thomas Blam, and former Lizard driver Darren Law. Sadler stepped up to become Technical Director, Blam became Team Manager and Law Program Manager. No longer factory-backed or privately funded, the team became a customer racing effort, expanding to a variety of series and manufacturers.
To date, the team holds ten professional team and driver championship titles as Flying Lizard Motorsport, and four additional team and two driver titles with
K-PAX Racing
K-PAX Racing is an automobile racing team in the SCCA's Pirelli World Challenge racing series. Founded in 2006, team owner Jim Haughey partnered with Bob Raub, bringing a team of Porsche 911 GT3s to the track. However, from 2009 to 2013, it has ca ...
in
GT World Challenge America
The GT World Challenge America is a North American auto racing series launched in 1990 by the Sports Car Club of America. It has been managed by the Stephane Ratel Organisation since 2018, and has been sanctioned by the United States Auto Club s ...
.
Racing History
Beginnings (2004-06)
The
2004 American Le Mans Series season saw Flying Lizard Motorsports and drivers
Darren Law
Darren Law (born April 4, 1968) is a Canadian-born American racing driver.
At age 14 Law was the International Kart Federation national champion, and shortly thereafter began racing cars in various amateur classes on the west coast of the United ...
and
Johannes van Overbeek
Johannes is a Medieval Latin form of the personal name that usually appears as "John" in English language contexts. It is a variant of the Greek and Classical Latin variants (Ιωάννης, '' Ioannes''), itself derived from the Hebrew name '' Ye ...
finish 2nd in the GT2 team and drivers championship.
In 2005, the team finished 3rd in the ALMS GT2 Team Championship with drivers
Johannes van Overbeek
Johannes is a Medieval Latin form of the personal name that usually appears as "John" in English language contexts. It is a variant of the Greek and Classical Latin variants (Ιωάννης, '' Ioannes''), itself derived from the Hebrew name '' Ye ...
and
Jon Fogarty
Jon Fogarty (born May 23, 1975 in Palo Alto, California) is an American racing driver, who competes in the United SportsCar Championship for GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing. He won the 2007 and 2009 GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series Daytona Proto ...
finishing 5th in the GT2 drivers championship.
In 2006, the team finished 3rd in the GT2 team championship and driver
Johannes van Overbeek
Johannes is a Medieval Latin form of the personal name that usually appears as "John" in English language contexts. It is a variant of the Greek and Classical Latin variants (Ιωάννης, '' Ioannes''), itself derived from the Hebrew name '' Ye ...
finished 2nd in the drivers championship while his teammate,
Wolf Henzler
Wolfgang Henzler (born 5 April 1975) is a former German Porsche factory racing driver. He began racing in 1991 with a win in the German Junior Kart championship.
Born in Nürtingen, Baden-Württemberg, he won one time the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2 ...
finished 4th.
ALMS Porsche Factory Support (2007-12)
For the 2007 season, the team took delivery of two brand new 997 Porsche 911 GT3 RSRs. Team also became Porsche Motorsport North America's development partner and received factory support from Porsche. Drivers
Johannes van Overbeek
Johannes is a Medieval Latin form of the personal name that usually appears as "John" in English language contexts. It is a variant of the Greek and Classical Latin variants (Ιωάννης, '' Ioannes''), itself derived from the Hebrew name '' Ye ...
and
Jörg Bergmeister
Jörg Bergmeister (born 13 February 1976, in Leverkusen) is a former racing driver from Germany and an ambassador of Porsche.
His late father, Willi Bergmeister, owned a workshop and dealership where Michael Schumacher learned his trade as a ...
and the new addition of
Marc Lieb
Marc Lieb (born 4 July 1980) is a former German Porsche factory motor-racing driver. He won the FIA GT Championship in 2003 and 2005, and the European Le Mans Series in 2005, 2006, 2009 and 2010. He won the 24 Hours Nürburgring four times, one t ...
shared duties of driving the #45 car, while
Darren Law
Darren Law (born April 4, 1968) is a Canadian-born American racing driver.
At age 14 Law was the International Kart Federation national champion, and shortly thereafter began racing cars in various amateur classes on the west coast of the United ...
,
Seth Neiman
Seth Neiman (born June 27, 1954) is an American computer industry businessperson and venture capitalist in California, and a professional racing driver.
He is the team principal of Flying Lizard Motorsports, which participates in the United Spo ...
, and Lonnie Pechnik shared the #44 car. After the #45 car won three times in 2007, including the prestigious
Petit Le Mans
The Petit Le Mans ( French for ''little Le Mans'') is a sports car endurance race held annually at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia, USA. It uses the rules established for the 24 Hours of Le Mans by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO), which a ...
, the team would finish second in the team standings to the
Risi Competizione
Risi Competizione is an Italo-American auto racing Ferrari factory-backed team formed by Giuseppe Risi in 1997. Initially, the team had a partnership with Doyle Racing using the name Doyle-Risi Racing, but soon Giuseppe Risi took full control of t ...
team. Drivers Jörg Bermeister and Johannes van Overbeek would also finish second in the series driver standings.
For the 2008 season, the Flying Lizard team continued on in its fifth consecutive season in the GT2 class of the American Le Mans series. For this season, the team expanded into a three car operation with three Porsche 2008 911 GT3 RSRs. In the #45 car, previous season driver Jorg Bergmeister was joined by Wolf Henzler for the full season of competition with third driver Marc Lieb. Johannes van Overbeek and the new addition of Patrick Pilet piloted the team's #46 entry full-time with guest driver Richard Lietz. In the #44 entry,
Darren Law
Darren Law (born April 4, 1968) is a Canadian-born American racing driver.
At age 14 Law was the International Kart Federation national champion, and shortly thereafter began racing cars in various amateur classes on the west coast of the United ...
and Seth Neiman with guest driver Alex Davison piloted the car. The #45 car of Bergmeister and Henzler was in tight contention with the Tafel Racing squad of
Dominik Farnbacher
Dominik Farnbacher (born 26 September 1984 in Ansbach) is a German sports car racing driver, and currently an SRT factory driver, driving an SRT Viper GTS-R in the Tudor United SportsCar Championship.
Career
After beginning his career in kartin ...
and Dirk Müller, and at the end of the season emerged the overall points winners, giving Flying Lizard Motorsports their first-ever GT2 class championship.
For 2009, Flying Lizard Motorsports back moved to a two-car squad with the returning GT2 class champion #45 car being piloted by
Jörg Bergmeister
Jörg Bergmeister (born 13 February 1976, in Leverkusen) is a former racing driver from Germany and an ambassador of Porsche.
His late father, Willi Bergmeister, owned a workshop and dealership where Michael Schumacher learned his trade as a ...
and
Patrick Long
__NOTOC__
Patrick Long (born July 28, 1981) is a professional racing driver, one of 18 Porsche factory racing drivers, and the only American to hold that distinction.
Racing career Sports car racing
Following a successful career in karts and th ...
for the majority of the races with
Marc Lieb
Marc Lieb (born 4 July 1980) is a former German Porsche factory motor-racing driver. He won the FIA GT Championship in 2003 and 2005, and the European Le Mans Series in 2005, 2006, 2009 and 2010. He won the 24 Hours Nürburgring four times, one t ...
as the reserve third driver for longer races. The #44 car will be piloted by
Seth Neiman
Seth Neiman (born June 27, 1954) is an American computer industry businessperson and venture capitalist in California, and a professional racing driver.
He is the team principal of Flying Lizard Motorsports, which participates in the United Spo ...
and
Darren Law
Darren Law (born April 4, 1968) is a Canadian-born American racing driver.
At age 14 Law was the International Kart Federation national champion, and shortly thereafter began racing cars in various amateur classes on the west coast of the United ...
for the majority of the races with
Johannes van Overbeek
Johannes is a Medieval Latin form of the personal name that usually appears as "John" in English language contexts. It is a variant of the Greek and Classical Latin variants (Ιωάννης, '' Ioannes''), itself derived from the Hebrew name '' Ye ...
as the reserve driver. After coming in 4th at the season opener at Sebring with a heavily damaged car, the #45 team took the class win in the following 5 races. At the following two races at Road America and Mosport they faced much tougher competition with a greatly improved
Rahal Letterman Racing
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing is an auto racing team that has participated in the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and the IndyCar Series. Headquartered in Brownsburg, Indiana and Hilliard, Ohio, it is co-owned by 1986 Indianapolis 500 winn ...
BMW team and a new Corvette Racing team. The #45 managed 3rd at Mosport and 4th at Road America but came back to claim first place in GT2 at the season finale in Monterey, California. Winning 6 out of 10 races, the #45 car won the GT2 team championship giving the team its second consecutive championship win.
Jörg Bergmeister
Jörg Bergmeister (born 13 February 1976, in Leverkusen) is a former racing driver from Germany and an ambassador of Porsche.
His late father, Willi Bergmeister, owned a workshop and dealership where Michael Schumacher learned his trade as a ...
and
Patrick Long
__NOTOC__
Patrick Long (born July 28, 1981) is a professional racing driver, one of 18 Porsche factory racing drivers, and the only American to hold that distinction.
Racing career Sports car racing
Following a successful career in karts and th ...
also won the GT2 drivers championship.
For 2010, Flying Lizard Motorsports continued running two cars. The two-time GT2 championship-winning #45 car, driven by
Jörg Bergmeister
Jörg Bergmeister (born 13 February 1976, in Leverkusen) is a former racing driver from Germany and an ambassador of Porsche.
His late father, Willi Bergmeister, owned a workshop and dealership where Michael Schumacher learned his trade as a ...
and
Patrick Long
__NOTOC__
Patrick Long (born July 28, 1981) is a professional racing driver, one of 18 Porsche factory racing drivers, and the only American to hold that distinction.
Racing career Sports car racing
Following a successful career in karts and th ...
with
Marc Lieb
Marc Lieb (born 4 July 1980) is a former German Porsche factory motor-racing driver. He won the FIA GT Championship in 2003 and 2005, and the European Le Mans Series in 2005, 2006, 2009 and 2010. He won the 24 Hours Nürburgring four times, one t ...
as the reserve third driver, competed alongside its sister car, the #44, driven by
Seth Neiman
Seth Neiman (born June 27, 1954) is an American computer industry businessperson and venture capitalist in California, and a professional racing driver.
He is the team principal of Flying Lizard Motorsports, which participates in the United Spo ...
and
Darren Law
Darren Law (born April 4, 1968) is a Canadian-born American racing driver.
At age 14 Law was the International Kart Federation national champion, and shortly thereafter began racing cars in various amateur classes on the west coast of the United ...
with
Richard Lietz
Richard Lietz (born 17 December 1983 in Waidhofen an der Ybbs) is an Austrian professional racing driver and a Porsche Factory driver. He has competed in such series as American Le Mans Series, Formula 3 Euro Series and the Rolex Sports Car Seri ...
as the reserve third driver. The Lizards faced fierce competition from
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing is an auto racing team that has participated in the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and the IndyCar Series. Headquartered in Brownsburg, Indiana and Hilliard, Ohio, it is co-owned by 1986 Indianapolis 500 win ...
and
Risi Competizione
Risi Competizione is an Italo-American auto racing Ferrari factory-backed team formed by Giuseppe Risi in 1997. Initially, the team had a partnership with Doyle Racing using the name Doyle-Risi Racing, but soon Giuseppe Risi took full control of t ...
. After finishing 4th at the
12 hours of Sebring
The 12 Hours of Sebring is an annual motorsport endurance race for sports cars held at Sebring International Raceway, on the site of the former Hendricks Army Airfield World War II air base in Sebring, Florida, US. The event is the second round ...
, the #45 car went on to take first place in its class at Long Beach, Laguna Seca, Lime Rock Park and Mosport. The Lizards placed second in the Team Championship and first in the Drivers Championship thanks to
Jörg Bergmeister
Jörg Bergmeister (born 13 February 1976, in Leverkusen) is a former racing driver from Germany and an ambassador of Porsche.
His late father, Willi Bergmeister, owned a workshop and dealership where Michael Schumacher learned his trade as a ...
and
Patrick Long
__NOTOC__
Patrick Long (born July 28, 1981) is a professional racing driver, one of 18 Porsche factory racing drivers, and the only American to hold that distinction.
Racing career Sports car racing
Following a successful career in karts and th ...
. This gave Flying Lizard Motorsports and Bergmeister three consecutive Driver Championship titles.
For the 2011 season the team utilized the brand new second-generation 997 GT3 RSR. Both the #44 and #45 car were piloted by the same team as the year before, with the exception of
Marco Holzer
Marco Holzer (born 30 July 1988) is a German professional racing driver. He has competed in sports car competitions such as the 24 Hours of Le Mans, 24 Hours of Daytona, American Le Mans Series and Le Mans Series as a Porsche works driver.
Care ...
replacing
Richard Lietz
Richard Lietz (born 17 December 1983 in Waidhofen an der Ybbs) is an Austrian professional racing driver and a Porsche Factory driver. He has competed in such series as American Le Mans Series, Formula 3 Euro Series and the Rolex Sports Car Seri ...
as reserve third driver in the #45 car. After finishing second in GT2 Championship the year before,
Rahal Letterman Racing
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing is an auto racing team that has participated in the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and the IndyCar Series. Headquartered in Brownsburg, Indiana and Hilliard, Ohio, it is co-owned by 1986 Indianapolis 500 winn ...
came back to fight even harder against the Flying Lizard Motorsports group. The #45 car managed a 2nd in class at Lime Rock, 1st in class at Laguna Seca and a 2nd in class finish at
Petit Le Mans
The Petit Le Mans ( French for ''little Le Mans'') is a sports car endurance race held annually at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia, USA. It uses the rules established for the 24 Hours of Le Mans by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO), which a ...
. The team managed a 3rd-place finish in the GT Season Championship while
Jörg Bergmeister
Jörg Bergmeister (born 13 February 1976, in Leverkusen) is a former racing driver from Germany and an ambassador of Porsche.
His late father, Willi Bergmeister, owned a workshop and dealership where Michael Schumacher learned his trade as a ...
and
Patrick Long
__NOTOC__
Patrick Long (born July 28, 1981) is a professional racing driver, one of 18 Porsche factory racing drivers, and the only American to hold that distinction.
Racing career Sports car racing
Following a successful career in karts and th ...
finished 4th in the GT Drivers' Championship.
In 2012 the team took delivery of two brand new second-generation GT3 RSRs. This year's car has a front and rear track that has been widened by 1.9 inches allowing for much wider tires giving more grip. The Flying Lizard Motorsports team struggled to find speed and consistency with the new car. The #45 car managed a win at
Lime Rock Park
Lime Rock Park is a natural-terrain motorsport road racing venue located in Lakeville, Connecticut, United States, a hamlet in the town of Salisbury, in the state's northwest corner. Built in 1956, it is the nation's third oldest continuously ope ...
after a fierce battle with
Corvette Racing
Corvette Racing is an American auto racing team established in 1999 by General Motors and Pratt & Miller for the purposes of competing in sports car racing internationally. Corvette Racing is an official racing program for General Motors and th ...
and
Extreme Speed Motorsports
Extreme Speed Motorsports was an American auto racing team based out of Riviera Beach, Florida. Founded by Scott Sharp and Patrón CEO Ed Brown, the team competed in the FIA World Endurance Championship, Tudor United SportsCar Championship, an ...
. The team also managed a win at
Mosport
Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (formerly Mosport Park and Mosport International Raceway) is a multi-track motorsport venue located north of Bowmanville, in Ontario, Canada, east of Toronto. The facility features a , 10-turn road course; a adva ...
but was disqualified after failing a stall test at the end of the race. The team finished 4th in the GT championship with
Jörg Bergmeister
Jörg Bergmeister (born 13 February 1976, in Leverkusen) is a former racing driver from Germany and an ambassador of Porsche.
His late father, Willi Bergmeister, owned a workshop and dealership where Michael Schumacher learned his trade as a ...
and
Patrick Long
__NOTOC__
Patrick Long (born July 28, 1981) is a professional racing driver, one of 18 Porsche factory racing drivers, and the only American to hold that distinction.
Racing career Sports car racing
Following a successful career in karts and th ...
finishing 5th in the Drivers Championship points.
2013 (ALMS Porsche GTC)
With the development of the 997 GT3 RSR ending, the team's relationship with Porsche Motorsport North America was discontinued. On November 15, 2012, Flying Lizard Motorsports announced that they would transition to competing in the GT Challenge category. The team fielded a two-car team for what would be the final season of the
American Le Mans Series
The American Le Mans Series (ALMS) was a sports car racing series based in the United States and Canada. It consisted of a series of endurance and sprint races, and was created in the spirit of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
The American Le Mans' hea ...
before it merged with the
Rolex Sports Car Series
The Rolex Sports Car Series was the premier series run by the Grand American Road Racing Association. It was a North American-based sports car series founded in 2000 under the name Grand American Road Racing Championship to replace the failed ...
to form the
Tudor United SportsCar Championship
The IMSA SportsCar Championship, currently known as the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship under sponsorship, is a sports car racing series based in the United States and Canada and organized by the International Motor Sports Association (IMS ...
in 2014. With the team winning four races of the ten-round season, including a victory at the season finale,
Petit Le Mans
The Petit Le Mans ( French for ''little Le Mans'') is a sports car endurance race held annually at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia, USA. It uses the rules established for the 24 Hours of Le Mans by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO), which a ...
, drivers of the #45 car,
Spencer Pumpelly
Spencer Pumpelly (born December 28, 1974) is an American professional racing driver who competes part-time in IMSA, driving the No. 44 Acura NSX GT3 for Magnus Racing with Archangel Motorsports. A veteran sports car racing driver, he has compete ...
and Nelson Canache Jr, would finish second in the GTC drivers' championship behind the
Alex Job Racing
Alex Job Racing is a former professional sports car racing team based in the United States. The team, which is noted for its long-time association with Porsche, has competed in the American Le Mans Series, the IMSA GT3 Cup Challenge series, and th ...
's
Jeroen Bleekemolen
Jeroen Bleekemolen (born 23 October 1981 in Heemstede) is a Dutch professional racing driver. In the Chrysler Viper GTS-R he drove in the FIA GT Championship, with great success. He competed in the very competitive German Formula Three Champion ...
and
Cooper MacNeil
Cooper MacNeil (born September 7, 1992 in Hinsdale, Illinois) is an American born racecar driver. He currently competes in the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship driving the No. 79 Weathertech Racing Porsche 911 RSR GTLM with co-drivers Matt Ca ...
and the team would claim its third ALMS Teams' Championship and their first in the GTC class.
IMSA Customer Program (2014-2015)
After competing with
Porsche
Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, usually shortened to Porsche (; see #Pronunciation, below), is a German automobile manufacturer specializing in high-performance sports cars, SUVs and sedans, headquartered in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany ...
s since its inception, the Flying Lizard team announced on November 11, 2013 that it would partner with
Audi
Audi AG () is a German automotive manufacturer of luxury vehicles headquartered in Ingolstadt, Bavaria, Germany. As a subsidiary of its parent company, the Volkswagen Group, Audi produces vehicles in nine production facilities worldwide.
Th ...
Sport Customer Racing to campaign a two car
Audi R8 LMS
The Audi R8 is a mid-engine, 2-seater sports car, which uses Audi's trademark quattro permanent all-wheel drive system. It was introduced by the German car manufacturer Audi AG in 2006.
The car is exclusively designed, developed, and manufactu ...
effort in the newly formed
Tudor United SportsCar Championship
The IMSA SportsCar Championship, currently known as the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship under sponsorship, is a sports car racing series based in the United States and Canada and organized by the International Motor Sports Association (IMS ...
GT Daytona Class.
Seth Neiman
Seth Neiman (born June 27, 1954) is an American computer industry businessperson and venture capitalist in California, and a professional racing driver.
He is the team principal of Flying Lizard Motorsports, which participates in the United Spo ...
and
Dion von Moltke
Dion von Moltke (born July 27, 1990 in The Woodlands, Texas) is an American-born race car driver who has participated under a South African racing license for the majority of his career. Von Moltke currently competes in the IMSA WeatherTech Ch ...
would team in the #35 car Nelson Canache Jr. and
Spencer Pumpelly
Spencer Pumpelly (born December 28, 1974) is an American professional racing driver who competes part-time in IMSA, driving the No. 44 Acura NSX GT3 for Magnus Racing with Archangel Motorsports. A veteran sports car racing driver, he has compete ...
sharing the #45 car. The season began with a last lap battle at the
24 Hours of Daytona
The 24 Hours of Daytona, also known as the Rolex 24 At Daytona for sponsorship reasons, is a 24-hour sports car endurance race held annually at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is run on the Sports Car Course layou ...
, resulting in the first-place finishing car to receive a penalty for intent for avoidable contact, awarding Flying Lizard as the winners. Five hours later, the penalty was revoked, moving the Lizard squad to second place. The team finished out the season with four top-five finishes.
For 2015, the team announced they would run a partial season in United SportsCar, in addition to running a full season in
Pirelli World Challenge
The GT World Challenge America is a North American auto racing series launched in 1990 by the Sports Car Club of America. It has been managed by the Stephane Ratel Organisation since 2018, and has been sanctioned by the United States Auto Club s ...
and Porsche Cup of America. The team ran five races with the Audi R8 LMS throughout the season: the 24 Hours of Daytona, the 12 Hours of Sebring, the Monterey Grand Prix, Lone Star Le Mans and Petit Le Mans. The 2015 drivers included:
Tomonobu Fujii
is a Japanese racing driver.
Racing Kart / Formula race
Tomonobu Fujii entered the second-hand Racing Kart in 1994 and made his debut in local races when he was 13 years old. He won the championship right away and continued to display his ta ...
, Satoshi Hoshino, Robert Thorne, German
Markus Winkelhock
Markus Winkelhock (born 13 June 1980) is a German professional racing driver. He is the son of Manfred Winkelhock and nephew of Joachim Winkelhock, both of whom were Formula One drivers in the 1980s. During his brief Formula One career he led the ...
,
Colin Thompson,
Marco Holzer
Marco Holzer (born 30 July 1988) is a German professional racing driver. He has competed in sports car competitions such as the 24 Hours of Le Mans, 24 Hours of Daytona, American Le Mans Series and Le Mans Series as a Porsche works driver.
Care ...
,
Guy Cosmo
Guy Cosmo (born 12 March 1977 in Port Jefferson, NY) is an American racing driver who competes in the United SportsCar Championship. He is a former American Le Mans Series Rookie-of-the-Year winner who claimed four wins and multiple podium finishe ...
, Patrick Byrne, Mike Vess and Jason Hart. The team's highlight of the season included a top-5 finish at Petit Le Mans, which was canceled with only 7 hours and 51 minutes of the 10-hour race completed.
Pirelli World Challenge (2015-Present)
GT: K-PAX Racing (2015-Present)
![K-PAX Racing with Flying Lizard Motorsports McLaren](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/60/K-PAX_Racing_with_Flying_Lizard_Motorsports_McLaren.jpg)
Flying Lizard partnered with championship winning team K-PAX Racing in 2015 to enter two McLaren 650S GT3s for a full season in the Pirelli World Challenge GT championship. With McLaren GT factory driver Kevin Estre and K-PAX veteran Robert Thorne, the unified effort had a successful first season, earning four wins and 8 podiums. Estre proved to be a front runner, winning Round 2 at Circuit of the Americas by over 30 seconds in torrential downpour, establishing himself early as a championship contender.
Flying Lizard returned to manage the K-PAX program, solely under the K-PAX Racing banner, in 2016 with Alvaro Parente, Austin Cindric, and Colin Thompson, racing three McLarens. Parente clinched the driver championship, while young Austin Cindric earned three podiums and three pole positions. In all, the full-season program clinched the team, driver (Alvaro Parente), and manufacturer (McLaren GT) championships, with 16 top five finishes, 12 podiums, seven pole positions, and six wins. The team closed out the season with a return to endurance racing, a first for K-PAX Racing, running the 12 Hours of Sepang with Shane van Gisbergen, Côme Ledogar, and Álvaro Parente. The #9 650S GT3 finished tenth overall, seventh in class.
The championship-winning duo returned again in 2017 under the K-PAX Racing banner, with returning champion Alvaro Parente being joined by full-season entry Bryan Sellers and partial season entrant Mike Hedlund. The GT championship also introduced a new SprintX format, where two drivers would share a car for an allotment of races. Ben Barnicoat joined Parente in the No. 9 McLaren, and Jonny Kane raced with Sellers for the first few races. Michael Lewis joined Mike Hedlund, but then switched to the car of Sellers after Hedlund pulled out of the championship. The team finished runner up in the Sprint championship, earning a total of five wins and ten podiums.
For 2018, the operation switched manufacturers, dropping McLaren for Bentley. The Pirelli World Challenge championship was comprised 10 events, five of which two-driver SprintX races. Parente returned for a third year, joined by Flying Lizard alumni Rodrigo Baptista. The pair were joined by Bentley works team drivers Andy Soucek and Maxime Soulet for the SprintX Races. The team celebrated ten victories, rebounding from heavy crashes at St. Petersburg and VIRginia International Raceway early in the season.
The partnership continued in 2019, as the series changed from the Pirelli World Challenge to the SRO America-led Blancpain GT World Challenge America. The series format changed to two 90-minute races each weekend, with two drivers per car. Alvaro Parente and Any Soucek returned as co-drivers, and Rodrigo Baptista raced alongside Maxime Soulet. Together, the Bentley squad earned six wins and 23 podiums, clinching the team championship and finishing in second and third in the driver standings.
In 2020, the team only completed one race in the GT World Challenge America championship, entering Patrick Byrne and Guy Cosmo in a one-off at the Circuit of the Americas doubleheader. The team also expanded their footprint to race overseas in the GT World Challenge Europe championship, entering two Bentleys into the competition with drivers Alvaro Parente, Andy Soucek, Jordan Pepper, Rodrigo Baptista, Maxime Soulet, Jules Gounon, and Alex Buncombe. The best finish of the season was a sixth in class.
The program switched up for 2021, coming back to the United States to race a pair of Lamborghini Huracan GT3 cars with Andrea Caldarelli, Jordan Pepper, Corey Lewis, and Giovanni Venturini. With only one DNF, the program swept the championships, finishing first and second in the driver categories, and taking the 2021 pro team title before the season finale.
GTS/GT4/GT America: Flying Lizard Motorsports (2016-Present)
In 2016, the Lizard group began its own customer racing program in World Challenge, fielding entries at Road America, Sonoma Raceway, and Laguna Seca with Andy Wilzoch and Mike Hedlund. Helund earned two third-place finishes in both of his Sonoma Raceway races, and Wilzoch also earned a double podium at Road America. Program Manager Darren Law joined Wilzoch at Laguna Seca for the first SprintX double header, and the pair finished ninth and fourth.
![The 2017 Flying Lizard Motorsports Porsches](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/31/The_2017_Flying_Lizard_Motorsports_Porsches.jpg)
The following season, the program expanded, fielding a pair of Flying Lizard
Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport MR for Brazilian Rodrigo Baptista and Nate Stacy. Baptista proved to be one of the breakout rookies of the season, earning four wins, including a sweep at Lime Rock Park, a track the Lizard program always showed success at. Together, the pair earned ten podiums and 17 top-five finishes.
World Challenge introduced the SprintX Championship to the GTS class in 2018, allowing AM drivers to have a co-driver for each doubleheader race weekend. Mike Hedlund returned to Flying Lizard to race his Audi R8 LMS GT4 solo, while Adam Merzon and Ryan Eversley shared the driving duties for the No. 23 Audi R8 LMS. Hedlund earned six podiums during the season and one win at the Watkins Glen season finale. Merzon and Eversley clinched their first pole position as a pair at Lime Rock Park.
New racer Michael Dinan joined Flying Lizard Motorsports for the 2019 season in the series, rebranded as GT4 America under the SRO Motorsports banner. Racing the new Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport, Dinan signed up for both the Sprint and SprintX championships for a total of 31 races, bringing IMSA racer
Robby Foley
Robby Foley (born July 20, 1996) is an American racing driver who currently competes in the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
Career
Raised in Randolph, New Jersey, Foley's motorsports career was kickstarted in 2010 by a severe injury sustai ...
as his co-driver for the SX events. The new series got off to a rough start for the American racer, who was sidelined for three events following an incident at VIRginia International Raceway. Things turned around in the second half of the season, and Dinan with Foley earned seven top-five finishes and a podium finish before year's end.
![2021 Flying Lizard Aston Martin](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e4/2021_Flying_Lizard_Aston_Martin.jpg)
Flying Lizard remained in the GT4 America Sprint and SprintX championship for 2022, running a pair of Aston Martin Vantage GT4 cars with returning drivers Dinan and Foley, with Erin Vogel and
Michael Cooper
Michael Jerome Cooper (born April 15, 1956) is an American basketball coach and former player who is the boys varsity coach at Culver City High School. He played for the Los Angeles Lakers in the National Basketball Association (NBA), winning ...
running a McLaren 570S GT4 in the SprintX series. The COVID-19 pandemic arrived as the series began the season at Circuit of the Americas in March, and the previously-announced schedule changed as all events were postponed until July. Each series then moved from a standard double-header format to triple headers for four of the five remaining events. While the McLaren failed to be a competitive machine for the majority of the season, Dinan's Sprint and his SprintX effort with Robby Foley showed strong success from the previous season, earning 21 podiums and 17 victories. Flying Lizard also celebrated their 100th podium at the season opener, following three podiums earned in the weekend.
With the newly formed GT America series in the SRO America offerings, Flying Lizard entered two cars into partial seasons in 2021. Longtime customer Andy Wilzoch raced a Porsche 911 GT3 R, earning four wins and eight podiums in twelve races in the Masters class. Partnering with TKO Motorsports with their Bentley Continental GT3, the team ran a second effort with
Memo Gidley
José Guillermo "Memo" Gidley is a Mexican-born racing driver, of German and Canadian ancestry, born in La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico on September 29, 1970. He holds dual citizenship - American and Mexican.
In his early years, he sold his a ...
in the SRO3 class, earning two wins and an additional three podiums.
Development Programs
Toyo Tires (2015-Present)
![The 2015 25 Hours of Thunderhill race winning Flying Lizard Motorsports Audi R8](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b7/The_2015_25_Hours_of_Thunderhill_race_winning_Flying_Lizard_Motorsports_Audi_R8.jpg)
Flying Lizard Motorsports and
Toyo Tires
, commonly known as Toyo Tires, is a tire and rubber products company based in Itami, Japan.
History
The company started in 1945. In 1966, the company expanded to the United States as ''Toyo Tire USA Corporation''. In 1999, ''Nitto Tire Nort ...
began their partnership in 2015 as a tire development program, with the tire manufacturer utilizing the sports car champions for private testing. In 2015, the duo put their development to the test, entering the Auri R8 LMS that had previously raced in the IMSA series. The #45 Audi R8 LMS won in the ES class and overall, with the all-professional driver lineup of Program Manager Darren Law, Tomonobu Fuji,
Guy Cosmo
Guy Cosmo (born 12 March 1977 in Port Jefferson, NY) is an American racing driver who competes in the United SportsCar Championship. He is a former American Le Mans Series Rookie-of-the-Year winner who claimed four wins and multiple podium finishe ...
and
Johannes van Overbeek
Johannes is a Medieval Latin form of the personal name that usually appears as "John" in English language contexts. It is a variant of the Greek and Classical Latin variants (Ιωάννης, '' Ioannes''), itself derived from the Hebrew name '' Ye ...
.
The #45 Audi returned to defend its win the following year, with drivers Darren Law, Mike Hedlund, Johannes van Overbeek and
Dion von Moltke
Dion von Moltke (born July 27, 1990 in The Woodlands, Texas) is an American-born race car driver who has participated under a South African racing license for the majority of his career. Von Moltke currently competes in the IMSA WeatherTech Ch ...
. The Audi again finished first in the ES class and first overall. A second entry, a #74 Porsche 911 GT3 RSR joined the effort, finishing second in the ES class and third overall with drivers Charlie Hayes, Andy Wilzoch,
Will Owen, and Tommy Sadler.
In 2017, Flying Lizard and Toyo Tires achieved a three-peat, with the No. 45 Audi R8 LMS again taking the ES class and overall win from pole position. Darren Law, Tom Haacker, Nate Stacy and Charlie Hayes drove the car to victory, completing over 2,100 miles. The #74 Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport of Johannes van Overbeek, Craig Watkins, Mike Hedlund, and Ross Thompson also clinched its own class win. The team also beat the all-time record of 761 laps completed during the race by completing 780 laps.
![The 2018 Winning car and lineup of the 2018 25 Hours of Thunderhill](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a9/The_2018_Winning_car_and_lineup_of_the_2018_25_Hours_of_Thunderhill.jpg)
The team returned with a two car effort in 2018, winning overall for the fourth consecutive year, with the #74 Porsche 911 GT3 RSR of Johannes van Overbeek,
Justin Marks
Justin Marks (born March 25, 1981) is an American racing driver, entrepreneur, and current owner of Trackhouse Racing Team in the NASCAR Cup Series. He last competed in the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, driving the No. 93 for Meyer Shank R ...
, Andy Wilzoch, Charlie Hayes, and
Wolf Henzler
Wolfgang Henzler (born 5 April 1975) is a former German Porsche factory racing driver. He began racing in 1991 with a win in the German Junior Kart championship.
Born in Nürtingen, Baden-Württemberg, he won one time the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2 ...
. van Overbeek started from fifth and brought the car up to second in the opening lap, but within minutes, the Porsche was back in the garage for 14 laps, needing repairs on a broken axle. By Henzler's stint, the car had made it back into the top three, but again suffered a broken axle. In lap 596, van Overbeek brought the car back to the lead, and after 25 hours again finished first overall, officially becoming the team to hold the most wins at the endurance event. The second of two all-female entries on the grid, the #45 Jester & Babbitt Racing by Flying Lizard Motorsports Toyo Tires Audi R8 LMS GT4 was raced by the first-ever female drivers of the team:
Christina Nielsen
Christina Nielsen (born 10 January 1992 in Hørsholm, Denmark) is a Danish racing driver who is the first female driver to win a WeatherTech SportsCar Championship series title. She is the daughter of racing driver Lars-Erik Nielsen, who raced in ...
,
Aurora Straus
Aurora Straus is a -year-old professional racecar driver in the USA, a student, and a musician. She currently competes in the IMSA Continental Tire Sportscar Challenge, and previously raced in the Battery Tender Mazda MX-5 Cup. She lives in Cold ...
, Ashton Harrison, Laura Ely, and Erin Vogel. The all-female car clinched its Toyo Tires GT4 Challenge class win, finishing fourth overall after running a near-flawless race and suffering no mechanical issues.
In 2018, the duo of Toyo Tires and Flying Lizard Motorsports took on a new challenge: the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb. The team enlisted Clint Vahsholtz, a driver with the most class victories in the history of the race, to run the No. 45 Flying Lizard / Toyo Tires McLaren 12C GT3. Of 77 entries, the team finished eighth overall and second in class on their debut of the 12.42-mile, 156 turn course, with over 9,000 feet in elevation changes from start to finish.
Lamborghini Super Trofeo (2019-Present)
In spring of 2019, Flying Lizard Motorsports and Lamborghini Squadra Corse announced a new partnership, in which the Lizards took ownership of a Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo Evo, opening a new test program at their home track of Sonoma Raceway.
Based on the customer interest in the new car, the program was built around research and development of the car and allowing prospective racers in the IMSA Super Trofeo series to get seat time in the machinery.
Results
American Le Mans Series
United SportsCar Championship
The IMSA SportsCar Championship, currently known as the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship under sponsorship, is a sports car racing series based in the United States and Canada and organized by the International Motor Sports Association (IMS ...
SRO America (Formally Pirelli World Challenge)
GT with K-PAX Racing
GTA/GTCup/GTS/GTSA
GT4 America
GT America
25 Hours of Thunderhill Results
24 Hours of Le Mans Results
24 Hours of Daytona Results
References
External links
Official Flying Lizard Motorsports Team websiteFlyinglizardstore.com: About the Flying Lizard Racing TeamAmerican Le Mans Series website{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120724132013/http://www.alms.com/ , date=2012-07-24
Flying Lizard Motorsports: TUDOR United Sportscar Championship Racing Team
American auto racing teams
American Le Mans Series teams
24 Hours of Le Mans teams
WeatherTech SportsCar Championship
Companies based in Sonoma County, California
WeatherTech SportsCar Championship teams
Auto racing teams established in 2003
2003 establishments in California