DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports officials have announced the team’s driver lineup for the Rolex 24 at Daytona Int’l Speedway on Jan. 25-26.
Ben Keating, Mikkel Jensen, Scott Huffaker and Nicolas Lapierre will share driving duties of the No. 52 ORECA 07 entry in the LMP2 class. The car will feature sponsorship support from Wynn’s, Rain-X, 4 Horsemen, Max Connect and Client Command.
Keating, 48, is one of the most experienced and successful bronze drivers in the sport. He has won five national championships racing with Viper, ran in the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series in 2011, the American Le Mans Series in 2013 and won his first two national-level sports car races in 2013.
By 2015, he was driving at Le Mans, and by 2017 he was there as a driver and team owner. He has competed in five 24 Hours of Le Mans with a best finish of third, and has won the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup three times.
Jensen, 25, will join the line-up and make his Rolex 24 debut following a victory in the 2020 Petit Le Mans. The young Dane is the 2019 European Le Mans Series LMP3 champion, and finished third in the LMP2 championship in 2020 with G-Drive Racing.
Huffaker, 20, has a long-standing relationship with PR1/Mathiasen spanning several years. Beginning in 2016, the 20-year-old American raced in Pacific F2000 and climbed the open wheel ranks to win the Formula Pro USA F4 championship two years later. In 2019 he won the Team USA Scholarship while piloting the PR1/Mathiasen LMP3 to a second-place finish in the IMSA Prototype Challenge series. In 2020 he made his LMP2 debut with the team in route to a team championship.
Frenchman Lapierre, 36, is a world-class endurance driver with various wins and championships, including four victories in LMP2 at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and two FIA World Endurance Championships. He is also no stranger to IMSA, scoring two overall victories at the 12 Hours of Sebring.
“As we all learn more about the different programs and teams coming to this year’s 24, I can’t help but feeling like it will be off the charts in terms of depth in the P2 category,” said Team Principal Bobby Oergel. “Adding to that I feel so fortunate to have Ben, Mikkel, Scott and Nicolas all together in our No. 52 PR1/Mathiasen car this year. These guys are all amazing in the cockpit.
“Last year at this event, Ben was so very strong for our team and I am sure that will be the same once again this year. Scott was with us for the endurance events later in last year’s program, where he did a superb job in all aspects and continues to prove he is a true young gun for sure. We only know Mikkel and Nicolas from having to compete against them in years past and for sure I am relieved to have them in house for this year’s 24, as both of them are really tough to compete against.
“From my perspective the program feels great from the start and we haven’t even made seats yet. The 2020 season was amazingly tough for everyone, and I can’t say how proud I am of our whole PR1/Mathiasen crew for the efforts everyone made in such a tough environment. Now it’s all about adding another the Rolex 24 win to the mantle.
“I’d really like to personally thank Wynn’s, Rain-X, 4 Horsemen, Max Connect and Client Command for helping us put this program in place for the 2021 Daytona 24 hours.”