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Autosport
Autosport
Sport
Gary Watkins

Di Resta adds United Autosports IMSA drive to 2024 programme

Di Resta will continue a relationship with the Anglo-American team dating back to 2018 when he races one of its pair of ORECA-Gibson 07 LMP2s alongside Dan Goldburg in the North American series in 2024. 

They will be joined in the five endurance rounds by ex-Formula 2 driver Marino Sato in what will be United’s first full season of IMSA competition

Goldburg, 45, is stepping up to P2 from the LMP3 ranks, having made his debut in the higher class at this month’s Indianapolis round of the 2023 series with the Tower Motorsports squad. 

He will be the mandatory bronze-rated driver in the line-up

Silver-ranked Sato is moving over to North America from United’s European Le Mans Series squad, with which he is a race winner this year alongside Olivier Jarvis and Phil Hanson.  

Di Resta, whose previous IMSA experience came in 2018 when he contested the three races undertaken by United, said: “We mean business - we’re going there to tackle the championship and I want to be part of it.

“It’s going to be a good move for Dan, stepping up to LMP2, and Marino has integrated with the team this year in the ELMS paddock, so I think it should make for a good line-up."

#22 United Autosports Oreca LMP2 07: James McGuire, Guy Smith, Duncan Tappy (Photo by: Jake Galstad / Motorsport Images)

Di Resta, who thanked Peugeot for giving him freedom to compete in IMSA next year, will have to miss one of the seven LMP2 IMSA rounds because the race at the former Mosport circuit, now the Canadian Tire Motorsports Park, conflicts with the WEC’s return to Interlagos in Brazil. 

No replacement has so far been named for the Canadian event.

Di Resta's credits with United include winning P2 at the 2020 Le Mans 24 Hours and helping co-drivers Filipe Albuquerque and Phil Hanson to the class title in the 2019/20 WEC; di Resta ended up second in the points because he was forced to miss a race as a result of a clashing DTM event.

This year he has raced with the team in the ELMS alongside his Peugeot WEC committments.

United team boss Richard Dean said: “For our team’s first full season in IMSA, we find ourselves in a pretty strong place with our driver signings.

“Dan, Marino and Paul will be super competitive from the outset and are all here to challenge for wins.”

United has already announced that two-time Le Mans GTE Am class winner Ben Keating is joining the team for next season in its second Oreca

The American will be partnered in the long-distance rounds that make up the Michelin-sponsored Endurance Cup with Alex Quinn, who has switched from single-seaters to sportscars this year in IMSA. 

A regular team-mate for Keating has yet to be named. 

United is undertaking a full IMSA campaign for the first time after the end of the LMP2 class in the WEC. 

Its WEC operation is effectively switching over to IMSA and will be based out of premises in Charlotte, North Carolina.

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