Yahoo Autos Jr III revises line-up for Petit Le Mans
Jr III Racing will close out the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship year, and its LMP3 career, with a revised driver lineup in the season-finale Motul Petit Le Mans at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta. The No. 30 Ligier will have full season driver Garett Grist, Jr III Racing’s endurance driver Dakota Dickerson, and rounding out the lineup will be the VP Racing Sports Car Challenge LMP3 championship point standings leader Bijoy Garg.
“This weekend will be bittersweet,” said Billy Glavin, owner of Jr III Racing. “We have come so far as a team. We started out as an IMSA Prototype Challenge team and worked our way to compete for wins at IMSA’s top level in the WeatherTech Championship. The team has worked so hard to get us to this point and though we are excited for the next chapter of Jr III Racing, we are hopeful for a solid finish at Petit.”
Glavin will become general manager of United Autosports as it launches its full-season, two-car LMP2 effort in the WeatherTech Championship in IMSA competition. United will make its home in the Jr III shop in Mooresville, N.C.
Along for the ride for almost the full duration of Jr III’s participation in the WeatherTech Championship, usually with Ari Balogh, Grist will be making his third start at Petit Le Mans under the Jr III Racing banner.
“We had a really good test at Road Atlanta last week,” said Grist. “We were able to try a couple different setups to see what we like and I think it will really benefit us for the race. I think we have a great lineup for Petit, though I will miss Ari. Him and I have driven together for the last two seasons together so it will be odd to not finish the season together. I love Road Atlanta, I love Petit, but it is bittersweet with it being the last LMP3 race in IMSA this year. We hope we can finish the year out with a strong finish.”
After competing with Jr III Racing at the Twelve Hours of Sebring and Six Hours at Watkins Glen, Dickerson will be making his Petit Le Mans debut. The promising young American talent has shone well in the big races for Jr III Racing.
“I’m very excited to be back with Jr III Racing for Petit Le Mans,” said Dickerson. “I’m going to miss having Ari with us for the race, but it is going to be a killer having Bijoy with us for the final round. We have an incredibly strong line up and we’re going to be pushing hard to get a win in the last race of the season. The team has been fighting for wins all year and I’m confident we will be doing the same again at Petit!”
Garg will be making his third IMSA WeatherTech start after having raced at Road America and Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where he earned the Motul Pole Award. The California native will also pull double duty as he will also be competing for the VP Racing SportsCar Challenge LMP3 championship prior to Saturday’s race. Garg has won six VPRC races in the 2023 season as well as scoring a further three podium results.
The Motul Petit Le Mans 10-hour race takes place Saturday, Oct. 14.
