STATESVILLE, N.C. — DXDT Racing has announced its Pro/Am class lineup for the upcoming Fanatec GT World Challenge America powered by AWS season, entering two Mercedes AMG GT3 cars. David Askew and Dirk Müller will race in the No. 63 USALCO Mercedes AMG GT3, joined by Scott Smithson and Bryan Sellers in the No. 08 Qelo Capital Mercedes AMG GT3.
The series will return to its familiar format of 12 races spread over seven-race weekeneds where two drivers will split the driving duties of each 90-minute race. The GT World Challenge America series will have three different classes based on driver skill rating: Pro/Pro, Pro/Am, and Am. Both DXDT entries will again compete in the Pro/Am class, comprised of one professional and one amateur driver. The team has competed in this class from its early days in the series, making great success as one of the top entries in an always competitive field.
In 2021, the team had a strong season with its three-car lineup in the headlining series, earning 18 top-five finishes, nine podiums, and three wins. For team owner and driver, David Askew, the season will mark his sixth consecutive year competing in the SRO America-sanctioned series after starting his racing career in 2015 club racing with NASA at Utah Motorsport Campus. From there, he joined the Lamborghini Blancpain Super Trofeo series, where DXDT fielded several entries over a two-year tenure.
“I’m really looking forward to this season. It seems a long time since we last raced at the Indy 8 Hour, but we’ve been busy ever since,” said Askew. “DXDT continues to grow and evolve, and I spend more and more of my time working on the team. People are any team’s greatest asset, and I really enjoy the team-building part. It’s been extremely challenging for me being new and coming into the sport without a big Rolodex, but I keep chipping away at it. Slowly but surely, we are building a great team!”
Askew will be joined this year by contracted Multimatic driver Dirk Müller. The former Ford factory driver holds a coveted win at the iconic 24 Hours of Le Mans, winning in 2016 on the 50th anniversary of Ford’s first overall win. Müller is also known to many North American fans for his involvement in the Rahal Letterman Racing GTLM team in the American Le Mans Series as a factory driver in the 2000s. Most recently, he raced the WeatherTech Racing Mercedes AMG GT3 at the Rolex 24 At Daytona in January and finished fifth.
After a year hiatus from SRO America to compete in the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge, Smithson will return to DXDT Racing. He last raced with the team in 2020, competing in TC America’s TCR class. He had a successful season, earning six podiums and three wins. He finished third in what was a highly competitive season, showing the strength of his skill on track. His return to the team will see him move up full time to the GT3 category, racing alongside young sports car racing veteran Bryan Sellers. The 2018 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GTD class champion and 2020 Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona race winner has been working with Smithson over recent seasons, lending his race craft expertise. Sellers will join Smithson behind the wheel of the No. 08 Qelo Capital Mercedes AMG GT3.
The season will kick off on Easter Weekend — April 15-17 at California’s Sonoma Raceway.