IMSA Drivers Among Selected for Duqueine Academy Shootout

Photo: Brandon Badraoui/IMSA

Three drivers who took part in IMSA VP Racing SportCar Challenge competition have been selected for next month’s Duqueine Academy by Debard Automobiles shootout.

The 2025 VP Challenge LMP3 champion Valentino Catalano, along with 2024 runner-up Jagger Jones, as well as inaugural academy winner Jules Caranta were chosen out of six drivers total for the two-day event at Pôle Mécanique d’Alès in southern France, where the winner will be awarded €150,000 ($167,000 USD) to support their program in an ACO-labeled championship at the wheel of a Duqueine D09 Toyota.

Additionally, 20-year-old Enzo Peugeot, who won this year’s Michelin Le Mans Cup LMP3 title, Matis Pluschkell, who also took part in the ACO-badged Le Mans Cup, and European Le Mans Series competitor Pierre-Alexandre Provost were also selected for the shootout that will take place on Nov. 22-24.

Candidates all had to be 25 years old or younger and must have competed in a full season in a Duqueine LMP3 in either Prototype Cup Europe, Le Mans Cup, ELMS, Asian Le Mans Series or VP Racing Challenge.

The on-track evaluation will be based on several criteria including performance, consistency, technical debriefing and understanding of the car.

Caranta was the program’s first winner for this past season, where he took part in a full season of Le Mans Cup with Nielsen Racing while making a mid-season entry into VP Racing Challenge with Forbush Performance, with plans to contest the entire IMSA-sanctioned series, which moves fully to endurance races, next year

John Dagys

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John