Justin Wilson Confirmed at Shank for Sebring

Michael Shank Racing with Curb/Agajanian will bring a set of familiar and fast faces when the team makes its debut competition appearance at Sebring International Raceway next month, as Justin Wilson will return to race with the squad alongside full season pilots John Pew and Ozz Negri in the Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring on March 15.

The trio will share the driving duties on the 3.74-mile circuit in the No. 60 Michael Shank Racing with Curb/Agajanian Ford Ecoboost Riley for round two of the 2014 IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar Championship.

Wilson has regularly raced with the team in endurance events ever since making a podium appearance in the 2006 Rolex 24 At Daytona when he first joined Michael Shank Racing with Curb/Agajanian.

The IndyCar pilot grew his Daytona Prototype program in 2013 as he joined the team for the sprint events in the second half of the season, finishing the year on the podium with a run to second place at Lime Rock Park.

Michael Shank Racing with Curb/Agajanian has an enviable record of success when debuting at new tracks, having won at Miller Motorsports Park and New Jersey Motorsports Park in the team’s first visits to those tracks. The group will have the opportunity to learn the new track as well as the evolved specification for the Daytona Prototypes in an IMSA hosted test next week.

“We are fortunate that the schedule worked out for us to have Justin join us not only for the race, but also for the test next week,” said team owner Mike Shank. “Having the Sebring 12 Hour on the schedule is fantastic and we are very excited about it.

“We also know how incredibly challenging the race can be, so to have a driver line up like this is going to be key for us. We have a race finish for the Ecoboost under our belt at Daytona, and now our goal is to just keep improving on our package, every time out.”

The team rebounded from a gearbox issue in the season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona to take the checkered flag with a 12th place class finish and will look to improve on that result as the series returns to Florida for the second leg of the Tequila Patron North American Endurance Cup.

Wilson has two previous starts at Sebring (2002, 2004) and is looking to make the most of the 2014 running of the classic event.

“It’s exciting to get the call and come back to race for Mike (Shank) once again,” said Wilson, who will be plenty familiar with the Sebring area as he is set to open his 2014 IndyCar season with testing at Sebring next week.

“The 12 Hour (Sebring) is a huge event, and I’m really looking forward to it. I had a lot of fun racing the short events last year in the Daytona Prototype. It always feels natural anytime I get to race for this team, the Shank guys do a really good job and it is just a great fit.

“We have a little bit of unfinished business after Daytona and I’m looking forward to getting down to Sebring and getting after it.”