Tuesday, April 4, 2017 – Fresno, CA – European Le Mans Series LMP2 driver Will Owen will join the PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports team alongside co-driver Tom Kimber-Smith for the BUBBA Burger Sports Car Grand Prix at Long Beach. Owen, who has worked and tested with PR1 before, is excited to join the team for the third round of the IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship on the infamous Southern California street circuit.
“The opportunity to run my first IMSA race came very quickly, but I am so glad we have made it work with PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports,” explained Owen.
“Right away I have to thank Sanger Family Wines and Solairus Aviation for making it possible. This is the same car that I have been driving in Europe, so it will be an easy transition back to the US for one weekend, especially because I have worked with PR1 before.”
“This event is going to give me valuable racing experience since it’s my first race in the LMP2 this season, but I also believe we have a real chance to finish at the top. My teammate Tom Kimber-Smith and I are going to be pushing for a win and nothing else. I’m looking forward to running on the Long Beach circuit. I’ve watched it so many times on TV and can’t believe I’m about to take part in it,” said Owen.
“It’s been a rush putting everything together for this race, but because of the help I have had from Speed Group and many others, it has been made possible, and I am so grateful for that.”
The PR1 crew has been working tirelessly over the last three weeks to prep for Long Beach and rid the car of the mechanical gremlins that caused problems for them earlier in the season.
“I’m really proud of the crew and all of the hard work they have put in to getting the car ready for Long Beach. Everyone has been working so hard over the past couple weeks so that we can go racing this weekend,” said team principle Bobby Oergel.
“The support we have received from Onroak and Hewland has been top-notch. We’re happy to have Will [Owen] onboard for the weekend and looking forward to competing for an overall win at Long Beach.”
Kimber-Smith is eager to get back behind the wheel of the Ligier JS P217 at Long Beach. 2016 marked his first appearance running on the 1.968-mile street circuit, and he is looking forward to competing in the top class in Southern California.
“I’m very excited to be going back to Long Beach. It’s a fun track to drive with plenty of action throughout the circuit,” said Kimber-Smith.
“The team has been working extremely hard since Sebring to fix this issues that plagued us this year, but we’re coming into the weekend with the same confidence and goal that we always do.”
“This weekend I will be joined by Will Owen. I met Will last year for the first time when he tested the LMPC car, and we have kept in contact since then. I’m very excited and happy to have him join our team, and I’m looking forward to a great race.”
The BUBBA Burger Sports Car Grand Prix will be held on Saturday, April 8. You can watch the race broadcast on Saturday LIVE starting at 1:00 PM PT on FOX network or the FOX Sports GO App. Don’t forget to follow us on Facebook and Twitter for all of the team and driver updates throughout the weekend.