Hunter-Reay In For Tincknell At Mid-Ohio

Mazda Team Joest has added Ryan Hunter-Reay to its driver line-up for the IMSA WeatherTech round at Mid-Ohio next weekend.

Hunter-Reay will be partnering with Jonathon Bomarito in the #55 Mazda RT-24P. The Indy 500 and IndyCar Series champion will be filling in for Harry Tincknell who has a conflict with his Ford programme in the WEC, racing in the penultimate round of the 2018/19 ‘Super Season’ at Spa-Francorchamps.

Hunter-Reay has experience in sportscar racing as recently as 2017 when he drove with Wayne Taylor Racing at Petit Le Mans, and also piloted Meyer-Shank Racing’s Acura NSX GT3 to a fifth-place finish at the Rolex 24.

“Mazda has really put a lot into their program, and Mazda Team Joest have taken a big step up this season. The car is obviously very fast and I’m excited to race it at Mid-Ohio. Jonathan is a good friend and we’ve been teammates in the past, so it will be great to share the #55 Mazda RT24-P with him and fight for a win.” said Hunter-Reay.

“I’ve driven race winning Daytona Prototypes in IMSA for a long time, the Prototype field is as strong and deep as it has ever been, and I’m thrilled to be a part of it again this season.”

John Donnan, the Director of Mazda Motorsports also stated that the team is pleased to have Hunter-Reay as part of the team next week.

“This will be the first time a former Indy 500 Champion has been aboard a Mazda at the top level and based on his experience at Mid-Ohio, ” he said. “His experience working with Multimatic previously, and the opportunity he and Jonathan had to drive together a few years back made him a natural fit.”

Tincknell and Bomarito are ninth in the DPi driver’s championship following Long Beach, just two points ahead of their teammates, Oliver Jarvis and Tristan Nunez in the sister #77 Mazda DPi.

Image courtesy of IndyCar