Kiwi driver Earl Bamber joins Chip Ganassi Racing next year as part of the team’s IMSA prototype expansion project.
Chip Ganassi Racing (CGR) will operate two Daytona Prototype Cadillacs in 2022 and has recruited three new drivers to the fold.
Bamber, 2019 IMSA series champion in the GT Le Mans class, was announced alongside Sebastien Bourdais and Alex Lynn as CGR’s new drivers.
“I don’t know who my direct teammate will be, but the line-up that the team has put together is awesome and world class,” Bamber said.
Bamber was a factory Porsche driver until the end of last year.
This year he has expanded his race team – Earl Bamber Motorsport – into the Porsche Carrera Cup in Australia.
He has also been responsible for mentoring promising junior Kiwi drivers and giving them valuable seat time.
The opportunity with CGR means Bamber returns to full-time racing next season.
“I know Earl very well from our junior series and he’s an LMP1 overall winner,” current CGR driver Renger van der Zande said.
Fellow New Zealander Scott Dixon already races with CGR in the team’s longer endurance races.
It could mean next year we have two Kiwis racing in the same car in iconic events such as the Daytona 24 Hour.
