CONCORD, N.C. – Chip Ganassi Racing announced Thursday that Kevin Magnussen and two-time Rolex 24 winner Renger van der Zande will lead the team’s Cadillac DPi lineup during the upcoming IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season.
Magnussen, 28, is currently competing in the Formula One World Championship with the Haas F1 Team. Prior to Formula One, Magnussen competed in the Formula Renault 3.5 Series with DAMS and won the championship in 2016 with five wins and 13 podiums.
The son of former Formula One driver Jan Magnussen, the younger Magnussen came up through the McLaren Formula One team’s Young Driver Program and drove for McLaren in the during the 2014 Formula One season.
“If you are in professional racing anywhere in the world, you know the name Chip Ganassi and what it represents in motorsports,” said Magnussen. “Chip has built one of the best racing organization’s on and off the track, and you can look back in history and see the tremendous record of success, especially as it relates to sports car racing. It’s a great opportunity for myself to team up with CGR, Renger and Cadillac. I can’t wait to get started, meet the team and begin preparations for the 2021 season.”
Van der Zande joins Chip Ganassi Racing after most recently competing in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship for Wayne Taylor Racing. The 34-year-old Dutch racer recently claimed his second straight Rolex 24 victory this year as part of the Wayne Taylor Racing program that also featured Chip Ganassi Racing driver and six-time NTT IndyCar Series champion Scott Dixon.
In 2016, van der Zande won the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship with four wins, eight podiums, one pole and four fastest-laps. Prior to making a professional career in GT and LMP classes with both private and factory teams, van der Zande quickly moved up the ladder in Formula cars with Formula Renault 2.0 Netherlands and Formula Three.
“I’ve been fortunate enough to have raced and won with Scott [Dixon] in sports cars and I think he really embodies what the whole Chip Ganassi Racing organization is all about,” van der Zande said. “It’s a first-class operation and the team knows how to win the big races. One of the things that stood out to me was hearing that as a former driver, Chip always wanted to create and build a team that he would want to drive for. He has certainly done that, and those results speak for themselves across many series around the world. I think Kevin and I are both excited to say the least, and ready to get the 2021 season started at Daytona.”
Chip Ganassi Racing, which is returning to IMSA competition after last competing in 2018, will announce the team’s endurance drivers and livery at a later date.