Figueiredo, Estep Complete Sebring Hardpoint EBM Lineups

Bia Figueiredo and Trenton Estep will join Team Hardpoint EBM for the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring.

Figueiredo will team with Katherine Legge and Christina Nielsen in the No. 88 Richard Mille Porsche 911 GT3 R to complete the all-female line-up, while Estep joins Earl Bamber and Rob Ferriol in the No. 99 GridRival Porsche 911 GT3 R for the second round of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GT Daytona season.

Sebring will mark Team Hardpoint EBM’s first as a two-car program, as the team’s four regular drivers combined for a 10th place class finish at the season-opening Rolex 24 at Daytona.

Figueiredo reunites with Legge and Nielsen after sharing a Meyer Shank Racing-entered Acura NSX GT3 Evo in the Michelin Endurance Cup races in 2019.

The Brazilian has most recently been racing stock cars in her native Brazil after previously making 29 IndyCar starts and winning twice in Indy Lights in her open-wheel career.

“I can’t express how excited I am to be back to race in IMSA with Katherine and Christina driving for Team Hardpoint EBM,” said Figueiredo.

“My birthday is March 18, so being back in IMSA is the best gift for me. My 2019 experience in the series were one of the best of my career. I really enjoyed it.

“Sebring is a challenging track with the bumps but is really fun to drive. I can’t wait to drive the Richard Mille Porsche 911 GT3 R on this track.”

Estep comes to the program at home in a Porsche. The 21-year-old won the 2018 IMSA Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge USA championship with four wins, including the season-opener at Sebring.

He opened the IMSA season driving at Daytona in the LMP3 class.

“I have known Rob and Earl for a while now and have seen how they run things,” said Estep. “It is definitely one of the best run programs in the paddock.

“This is definitely a defining moment in my career. It’s not every day you get an opportunity to run this caliber of racing, much less with a team of this standard. Hopefully their faith in me doesn’t go to waste and we can have a good showing in Sebring.”