 AO Racing | |
| Founded: | 2022 |
| Base: | St. Charles, Illinois, United States |
| Principal: | |
| Chassis: | Oreca 07 (IMSA, WEC) |
| Current Series: | IMSA SportsCar Championship European Le Mans Series FIA World Endurance Championship |
| Current Drivers: | IMSA SportsCar Championship: 77.  Julien Andlauer Klaus Bachler Michael Christensen Laurin Heinrich  Sebastian Priaulx 99.  Matthew Brabham Paul-Loup Chatin P. J. Hyett Alex QuinnEuropean Le Mans Series:  Louis Delétraz Jonny Edgar  Robert Kubica |
| Driver Titles: | IMSA SportsCar Championship |
| Founders: | P. J. Hyett (owner) Gunnar Jeannette |
| Website: | https://aoracing.com/ |
| Drivers: | Gunnar Jeannette |
| Team Titles: | IMSA SportsCar Championship
|
Autumn Oaks Racing, doing business as AO Racing, is an American sports car racing team that currently competes in the LMP2 and the GTD Pro classes of the IMSA SportsCar Championship and in LMP2 in the European Le Mans Series.[1] [2] [3] The team was founded in 2022 by P. J. Hyett and Gunnar Jeannette.[4] The team won the 2024 IMSA SportsCar Championship in the GTD Pro class with driver Laurin Heinrich.
AO Racing was founded in 2022 by GitHub co-founder and technology entrepreneur P. J. Hyett, and American race car driver Gunnar Jeannette. Hyett and Jeannette met through vintage racing and became friends. In September of 2022, they made the decision to form an auto racing team to compete in the IMSA SportsCar Championship.[5] The name AO stands for Autumn Oaks, which is the name of Hyett's car collection that helped start the race team.[6]
At the second round of the 2023 IMSA SportsCar Championship held at Sebring International Raceway, the team debuted an all new Tyrannosaurus Rex themed livery dubbed "Rexy" by driver and team co-founder Gunnar Jeannette.[7] T. J. Harley is the livery designer. The livery was culminated by team co-founder P. J. Hyett after his two children inspired him to sport a T-Rex and a Unicorn on his race helmet. "Rexy" quickly became a fan favorite, and it has become one of the most recognizable sportscar liveries.
The team announced that they would field a second car competing in the LMP2 class in the 2024 IMSA SportsCar Championship.[8] The announcement revealed that the Oreca 07 would feature a purple and orange dragon themed livery dubbed "Spike". The team signed Matthew Brabham and Paul-Loup Chatin to partner P. J. Hyett for the full season in the LMP2 entry, with Alex Quinn joining the team for the Michelin Endurance Cup.[9] The GTD Pro entry would see Michael Christensen, Laurin Heinrich, and Sebastian Priaulx drive the team's Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) for the full season.
At the third round of the season at Laguna Seca, the team scored their first win as an organization in the GTD Pro class with Heinrich and Priaulx behind the wheel of "Rexy."[10] After two further wins at Detroit and Indianapolis, the team became GTD Pro champions by four points at the last race at Road Atlanta.[11]
On November 29, 2023, the team announced that they would field an LMP2 entry in the 2024 European Le Mans Series season in partnership with TF Sport. The team signed Louis Delétraz, Jonny Edgar, and former Formula One driver Robert Kubica to drive the car full-time.[12] Polish oil company Orlen would sponsor the car for the full season and the team would compete as Orlen Team AO by TF.
| Year | Entrant | No. | Car | Drivers | Class | Laps | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 |  Project 1 – AO | 56 | Porsche 911 RSR-19 |  Matteo Cairoli P. J. Hyett Gunnar Jeannette | LMGTE Am | 309 | 35th | 7th | |
| 2024 | AO by TF | 14 | Oreca 07-Gibson | Louis Delétraz P. J. Hyett Alex Quinn | LMP2 (Pro-Am) | 295 | 20th | 2nd |
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | Class | No | Chassis | Engine | Drivers | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | AO Racing Team | GTD | 80 | Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) | Porsche M97/80 4.2 L Flat-6 | P. J. Hyett Gunnar Jeannette Sebastian Priaulx Harry Tincknell | DAY | SEB | LBH | LGA | WGL | MOS | LIM | ELK | VIR | IMS | ATL | 13th | 2245 |
| 2024 | AO Racing | GTD Pro | 77 | Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) | Porsche M97/80 4.2 L Flat-6 | Julien Andlauer Klaus Bachler Michael Christensen Laurin Heinrich Sebastian Priaulx | DAY | SEB | LGA | DET | WGL | MOS | ELK | VIR | IMS | ATL | 1st | 3122 | |
| LMP2 | 99 | Oreca 07 | Gibson GK-428 4.2 L V8 | Matthew Brabham Paul-Loup Chatin P. J. Hyett Alex Quinn | DAY | SEB | WGL | MOS | ELK | IMS | ATL | 6th | 1942 |
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)
* Season still in progress.