Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti (WTRAndretti) will take on the streets of Long Beach returning to the iconic Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. The sprint race will mark the third event in the No. 45 DEX Imaging Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2’s inaugural GTD campaign after the two lengthiest endurance events to open the season. The black and red team will be piloted by full-season drivers Kyle Marcelli and Danny Formal as they endeavor the 100-minute race. For Marcelli, this will mark his return to the 1.968-mile, 11-turn street circuit while the 2024 event will be Formal’s debut at Long Beach.

On- track action for the No. 45 DEX Imaging Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2 team will begin Friday, April 19 at 12 p.m. EST (9 a.m. PST) for practice with the 15-minute qualifying following later that day at 8 p.m. EST (5 p.m. PST). The green flag will fly for the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach on Saturday, April 20 at 4:35 p.m. EST (1:35 p.m. PST) for the 100-minute sprint race with full coverage on USA Network and Peacock.

Wayne Taylor, Team Principal, WTRAndretti: “This going to be an eye opener for us to see exactly how competitive we are going to be in GTD. I know the guys are working hard prepping the car and I think having Kyle and Danny together is probably the strongest lineup. Really looking forward to see where we are. Obviously, this is different to endurance races, so let’s wait and see. I know we have a good team, two great drivers and good strategists, so I think we can have a lot of success at Long Beach.”


No. 45 DEX Imaging Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2 Drivers
Kyle Marcelli: “I’m excited and optimistic entering Long Beach. WTRAndretti has built an incredible team of talented people top to bottom and we’ve got all the resources we need. Our speed on-track has ebbed and flowed through the first two endurance races of the season, and we still need to find the missing ingredient that will keep us on top of the timing charts and out front. We set reasonable expectations for ourselves for Daytona and Sebring. Given this was an entirely new program, our first priorities were to understand the basics on the race car and sort our team processes and procedures. I’d say we’ve nearly accomplished both of those and are now entering a time when we need to start focusing on our on-track performance and results. For this reason, I think the whole team is thrilled for Long Beach, a flat-out 100-minute sprint race, all about speed and execution. I’m looking forward to sharing the cockpit with long-time co-pilot Danny Formal. We know exactly what each other needs and wants in the race car, and I’m looking forward to seeing what we can do together in the ultra-competitive and thriving IMSA GTD category.”

Danny Formal: “Well, what can I say Long Beach - a dream come true. My first street race ever in a race car; my first time in a sprint race in IMSA GTD WeatherTech Championship. I’m super excited to be joining Kyle Marcelli in the No. 45 DEX Imaging Huracán EVO2 with WTRAndretti. Just ecstatic to get there to get going on our first sprint race. Kyle and I have a lot of experience in a sprint race type after we've raced many seasons together in Super Trofeo, so I'm super excited. I know the WTRAndretti team has been working overtime to make the car even better than it was at Sebring. Super excited to get to Long Beach and get the results that the team truly deserves. I’m glad to be racing this dream of a race in Long Beach.”


ABOUT WTRANDRETTI
Andretti Global and Wayne Taylor Racing announced a new, long-term partnership in 2023 that combines the resources of the two championship-caliber teams to compete in IMSA’s top classes. In 2024, Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti (WTRAndretti) has expanded to a two-car GTP program as well as competes in the GTD class. Coming off its 2023 championship winning effort, WTRAndretti continues its Driver Development Program competing in the Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America series with a full stable.

WTRAndretti’s global motorsports enterprise boasts two IMSA driver championships (2013 and 2017), and back-to-back IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup Championships (2020, 2021) which contributed to nine IMSA manufacturer championships for Acura, Pontiac, Corvette and Cadillac. In its brief 17-year history, WTRAndretti has accumulated multiple victories in sportscar racing’s most iconic events: Rolex 24 At Daytona, Twelve Hours of Sebring, Petit Le Mans, Mid-Ohio, Road America and the Six Hours of The Glen. With its back-to-back PRO Class Championship wins (2022, 2023), WTR also has ten North America Lamborghini Super Trofeo Championship titles and a Lamborghini World Finals title.

Andretti Global, a Championship-winning motorsports organization, competes in additional racing categories worldwide, including the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, Extreme E, Australian Supercars and the Mexico SuperCopa Championship. Additionally, the racing enterprise commits to driver development through competition in INDY NXT by Firestone and through support of Sebastian and Oliver Wheldon’s racing careers.

WTRAndretti’s long term partnerships include Lamborghini Squadra Corse, DEX Imaging, Harrison Contracting Company and Gainbridge.