Heart of Racing is set to enter the FIA World Endurance Championship in 2024 with a single-car LMGT3 effort. The team will be driving a 2024-spec Aston Martin Vantage, and the crew will consist of Ian James, Daniel Mancinelli, and Alex Riberas.
The team will compete in the WEC under the No. 27, while also maintaining their existing commitments in the IMSA GTD Pro and GTD categories. Additionally, they will focus on testing and developing the Aston Martin Valkyrie LMH Hypercar later this year, as they prepare to race it in both WEC and IMSA competitions starting from the 2025 season.
This upcoming full 2024 WEC season follows a partial season in 2023, during which the team took over the Northwest AMR GTE Am entry. This opportunity arose after long-time racer Paul Dalla Lana decided to withdraw from competition.
Ian James, who serves as both driver and team principal, will participate in all eight WEC events in 2024, in addition to his role in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship endurance events.
“We’re going to build on the progress we made last season,” said James. “Alex, Dani, and I make a strong team, and we learned a great deal in the WEC last year. We’re excited to continue our journey this season and see what we can achieve with the introduction of the GT3 class.”
Alex Riberas will balance his commitments in the IMSA GTD Pro with the WEC program. However, the World Championship will take priority in 2024.
For the clashes between IMSA’s Laguna Seca and CTMP rounds with the Spa and Interlagos races, Mario Farnbacher will step in as a substitute for Riberas. Farnbacher will join Ross Gunn in the team’s GTD PRO entry for these conflicting events and will also serve as the third driver during the IMSA endurance races.
