Team Seattle-AJR Returns for 2015

Team Seattle-The Heart of Racing and Alex Job are set for the full 2015 TUDOR United SportsCar Championship that will take the green flag at Daytona International Raceway for the 53rd running of the Rolex 24 Hour At Daytona.

Ian James (Phoenix, Ariz) and Mario Farnbacher (Ansbach, Germany) will return as season long drivers behind the wheel of the GT Daytona Class No. 23 Team Seattle-The Heart of Racing Porsche 911 GT America. The team is capping their inaugural sports car season under the direction of Don Kitch Jr. with support from Gabe Newell.

With a season-high finish of second at the Detroit Grand Prix in June the first year team currently sits ninth in driver points. With sights firmly set on the GT Daytona championship in 2015 the team is committed to getting off to a fast start to 2015 at Daytona in January.

“I have really enjoyed our first year in the TUDOR Series,” Newell said. “Alex Job and his team have provided a very competitive car and we are looking forward to building upon what we started for the 2015 season.”

“Ian and Mario have brought a nice mix of veteran leadership and youthful exuberance to the 23 Team Seattle-Heart of Racing Porsche and our underlying effort to support the Seattle Children’s Hospital,” Kitch Jr. said. “We had a great finish in Detroit and we were very close to the podium a number of other times. At COTA we led more than half of the event until we had a fluke brake issue. We have the team to compete for the championship in 2015.”

“I am honored to have the Team Seattle-Heart of Racing program continuing into 2015,” Job said. “We have a lot of momentum under the leadership of Gabe and Don that is difficult to find in this sport. Ian and Mario work well together and our finishes this year did not really reflect how well we ran. I am looking forward to a very competitive 2015 TUDOR season.”

“I am very excited to have our whole group back together for another year in the TUDOR Championship,” James said. “I have enjoyed having Mario as a teammate. The management team led by Gabe and Don together with Alex is one of the most potent combinations in the paddock. We didn’t have as much success as we deserved in 2014, but getting this big head-start on 2015 is a huge boost toward great things to come for next season. I am super excited.”

“I am proud of the program and the way the team has come together,” Farnbacher said. “This has been a learning year for me, many of the tracks were new. I am also proud of the work we have done for children’s pediatric care. For next year it is simple – to win the championship.”

In 2015 Team Seattle will celebrate its 19th year of combining racing with the passion of raising money to help the Seattle Children’s Hospital and pediatric cardiac health care nationally. Through the team’s racing efforts they have raised over $6 million dollars to help children with pediatric health issues. Donations and pledges are accepted at teamseattle.com.”