Blackdog Switches to Nissan Z GT4 With Gaples, Cooper

Image: Blackdog Racing

Blackdog Racing will make the switch to Nissan Z GT4 machinery as part of a move to Pirelli GT4 America competition for the championship-winning SRO America squad.

The Chicagoland-based team, which ran a Chevrolet Camaro GT4.R in GT America powered by AWS for team owner/driver Tony Gaples last year, will return to a multi-driver championship for the first time since 2018, with Gaples rejoined by Michael Cooper in the No. 9 Nissan.

The Pro-Am class entry will debut at the season-opening round at Sonoma Raceway in April.

“After winning last year at Sebring [in GT America], we’re ready for a new challenge,” said Gaples. “We’ll find it in GT4 America, which is pretty entertaining racing to watch.

“I’m glad to take this new step with our long-time teammate and friend Michael. It’s hard to believe it’s been almost ten years since he started racing for us in GTS.

“His experience in a number of different cars will help us get up to speed with our new Nissan Z NISMO GT4. I can’t think of a better teammate than Michael or a better team than what we have at Blackdog Racing. We’ll be ready for Sonoma.”

Blackdog enters GT4 America with an impressive record of 42 GT4/GTS wins — the most in series history — along with five drivers championships and four team and manufacturers titles, largely in GM machinery.

Of Cooper’s 34 wins in World Challenge/SRO America competition, 19 of them have come in Blackdog machinery.

“Getting the band back together at Blackdog Racing is very exciting,” he said. “Just as exciting is the team’s debut with the Nissan Z NISMO GT4. This team and I have been through several different programs since my first days with them, all of which had great success.

“I’m very confident in the capabilities of everyone at Blackdog Racing as well as Nissan to field a front-running car.

“Sharing a GT4 car with Tony in this two-driver format is something with which we have past experience. Any head start we can get on the competition in this series is important. We all know each well enough to hit the ground running.”

Blackdog is the second team to announce plans to run the Z GT4 in GT4 America competition this year, following Flying Lizard Motorsports’ program with the car for drivers Damir Hot and Stefan Rzadzinski.

“Moving to Pirelli GT4 America is a significant step up given the number of experienced drivers, teams and manufacturers,” said team manager Ray Sorenson.

“We have a lot of learning to do about the strategy of the series and also the Nissan Z NISMO GT4. We’ve had a chance to take a close look at the car once we got it to the shop to understand its operation and how best to prep it.

“Bringing Michael back is a huge boost for all of us. He enjoys being part of this team and obviously the feeling is mutual. We’re confident that with our crew and team, we can make an impact this season.”

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