Mars to Join Stacy in Second KohR Mustang GT4

Photo: Luca Mars Instagram

Mazda MX-5 competitor Luca Mars will step up to IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge competition, having been confirmed in KohR Motorsports’ second Ford Mustang GT4 for the remainder of the season.

The American teenager is set to share the team’s No. 60 Mustang GT4 alongside former GS class champion Nate Stacy beginning with next week’s Alan Jay Automotive 120 at Sebring International Raceway.

It comes in addition to the team’s No. 59 entry of Billy Johnson and Bob Michaelian, which ran January’s season-opening BMW M Endurance Challenge at Daytona International Speedway.

Mars — who has also been selected for the third season of the HPD Drivers’ Academy — completed a test with the Dean Martin-owned squad at Daytona in late December prior to taking a class win in last weekend’s Trans Am season-opener at Sebring in KohR’s Mustang GT4.

“I’ve followed Luca’s progress in racing from karting through MX5 Cup this past year,” Martin said. “He’s shown great progress each year.

“To be honest, I was a little surprised at Luca’s pace in the Mustang right out of the box.

“He was at a competitive race pace from the 2021 Daytona Race lap times. The fact that he got even quicker during the weekend was that much more impressive.

“The Trans Am event was a great opportunity for Luca to work with the team in a race environment and it also gave us a chance to see how Luca handled himself in competition conditions.

“The weekend couldn’t have possibly gone any better and we are all even more excited to get back to Sebring soon to test our progress against the IMSA field.”

Mars added: “It’s great to know you are working with one of the best teams in motorsports and having an IMPC Champion as your teammate.

“It was also cool getting to work with Dean and the whole team because my dad used to race Mustangs with Dean so it’s amazing for him to be able to watch me do what he used to do.”

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