Knox Leads Every Race Lap from the Pole in His No. 10 Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT2 for Another Victory at a Major North American Motorsports Venue
LONG BEACH, California (April 20, 2024) – Dan Knox and his Lone Star Racing team continued their recent run of winning success on the grandest stages in motorsports with a flag-to-flag victory from the pole Saturday in the first of two GT America powered by AWS sprint races at the 49th running of the legendary Grand Prix of Long Beach.
Knox took control of the race from the green flag in the No. 10 Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT2 and led all 30 race laps run in the 40-minute timed sprint for the GT2-class victory. Knox crossed the finish line with a 2.260 second margin-of-victory and also set the fastest GT2 race lap.
The victory came in Knox’s first race start of the 2024 season after winning the opening round of last year’s season-ending GT America race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in the major debut race of the Mercedes-AMG GT2 in North America. Saturday’s triumph in the nation’s premier street race also came 10 years after Knox and Lone Star Racing won a similar GTA sprint race on the temporary Detroit Grand Prix circuit at Belle Isle.
“Street races seem to be my specialty,” Knox said. “I’ve always done well at them and always wanted to win Long Beach. It was a great opportunity, a great chance to race here this weekend and we’re so excited. The crew and everybody on the team worked so hard for this.”
Lone Star Racing Team Manager and Technical Director AJ Petersen has been with Knox for more than a decade and leads the day-to-day and trackside operation of the team and manages its various motorsports programs.
“It’s really satisfying,” Petersen said. “Long Beach is one of those really famous, iconic venues like Indianapolis, and for the last few races we’ve got some pretty big wins at some big events on legendary tracks, and we are really proud of that. We’ve got a pretty good package put together with the Mercedes-AMG GT2, and I’m really proud of Dan and happy we’re still together after 10 years. I’m loving it all, it’s the whole package, the crew included, we’ve got a great group of guys right now, we’re firing on all cylinders, and we want to keep it up.”
A fast and flat-out sprint with no race-slowing cautions, the race pace and heat of the day made the closing stages of Saturday’s race a bit challenging for Knox and the competition.
“The last 10 laps, the tire pressures came up on the back set and the rear of the car started to get very, very loose,” Knox said. “I had to kind of manage the car and keep the lead going and we did it. We held on and it was great. I did see the competition coming and that’s when I picked it up a little more. The tire pressures came down a little in time to get some grip and get us going to the finish.”
Lone Star Racing competes in the 2024 season with the support of ACS Manufacturing, Sonangol and Visit Angola.
Next up for Lone Star Racing is the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship 12 Hours of Sebring, March 14 – 16 at Sebring International Raceway.
About Lone Star Racing: Based at Motorsport Ranch within the greater Dallas-Fort Worth area in Cresson, Texas, Lone Star Racing is competing in the No. 80 Lone Star Racing/ACS Manufacturing Mercedes-AMG GT3 in the 2024 IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup in the GTD class. Lone Star Racing and its team members have won races across North America spanning sprint and endurance racing formats. The crew has worked together on many different teams and various types of cars, developing a strong bond and proven capability that gives them a competitive and winning advantage. Lone Star Racing competes with the support of primary partner ACS Manufacturing, Inc. (www.ACSManufacturing.com). Look for Lone Star Racing and team owner/driver Dan Knox on Facebook and follow the team on YouTube at Lone Star Racing, on Twitter and Instagram at @LSRTeam and on the official team web site at www.LoneStarRacingTeam.com.
