Dan Knox, Scott Andrews and Eric Filgueiras Team for Five Race IMSA IMEC GTD Campaign in the No. 80 Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3
Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Driver Ralf Aron Joins the No. 80 Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Team for the Rolex 24 At Daytona Opener
CRESSON, Texas (January 8, 2024) – Lone Star Racing confirmed today its driver lineup for this month’s season-opening IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Rolex 24 At Daytona and its trio of contenders that will contest the full 2025 IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup GT Daytona (GTD) campaign in the No. 80 Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3. Both the Rolex 24 At Daytona return and the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup (IMEC) efforts follow Lone Star’s 2024 debuts in both the nation’s premier 24-hour race and the five-event IMEC that awards the top performers in the year’s five long-distance IMSA WeatherTech races.
Competing in the full IMEC championship will be Lone Star Racing team owner and driver Dan Knox, returning and longtime team driver Scott Andrews and multiple GT3 and GT4 driver champion Eric Filgueiras. Knox, Andrews and Filgueiras will be joined in the 63rd running of the Rolex 24 by Mercedes-AMG Motorsport driver Ralf Aron.
Knox makes his first GTD starts since the 2017 season but more recently he has been one of the top GT2 drivers in North America in a Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT2. Knox won three-straight GT2 races last year, including a doubleheader sweep at Grand Prix of Long Beach in April and a repeat win at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in October. Knox also won at IMS in GT2 in 2023 for an unmatched record of four GT2 race wins in a span of five races the last two seasons for the Texas-based driver
Professional driver Andrews has been a fixture at Lone Star Racing in both GT3 and GT4 competition in recent IMSA seasons. The Australian was the final driver to lead the GTD class in last year’s Rolex 24 before giving way to the eventual class winner just 23 laps from the finish. Andrews pitted at the same time a class-competitor came to a stop after an engine compartment fire and blocked the pit exit. The unfortunate timing set off a series of events that took Lone Star out of contention for a top-five and possibly even GTD podium finish, but the No. 80 team and drivers finished their first Rolex 24 At Daytona with a respectable eighth-place showing. Andrews also won his and Lone Star’s first IMSA pole position in the No. 80 in the season-ending Motul Petit Le Mans at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.
Florida-native Filgueiras co-drove with Steven McAleer to the 2023 GT World Challenge GT3 Pro Championship and now makes his IMSA WeatherTech debut at the “World Center of Racing” with Lone Star. No stranger to debut success at Daytona, Filgueiras won in his first professional and IMSA race start on the 3.56-mile DIS road course in the highly competitive Michelin Pilot Challenge Grand Sport (GS) class in 2022. He also has a pair of GT4 championships to his credit and steps into the cockpit of the No. 80 Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 after serving as a spotter for the team in 2024.
Estonian Ralf Aron joins Knox and Filgueiras in making his Rolex 24 debut. He has been part of the Mercedes-AMG junior roster since 2023 after beginning his career in European single-seater competition. He made his first major marks in a Mercedes-AMG GT3 in 2023 in ADAC GT Masters and GT World Challenge, taking runner-up honors in the driver championship in the ADAC series to play a major part in the Haupt Racing Team securing the team championship. This was followed by his first successes on the Nürburgring Nordschleife in 2024, taking class victories at the 24h Nürburgring Qualifiers as well as in the Nürburgring Endurance Series.
Dan Knox, Owner/Driver – No. 80 Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: “I am excited to be back racing with IMSA and for the Michelin Endurance Cup. I feel the time is right with the team’s experience and successes over the last few years, and my schedule this year will allow me to focus on my racing. We have a great driver lineup with Scott, Ralf, Eric and myself and should have a great race and pace to be competitive and win some races this year. I am very excited to be back racing the GT3 platform again. The GT3 requires a lot more focus driving it to the limits than the GT2. It takes some time in the car again to be fast, but I am getting closer to the other drivers time around the track and more comfortable in the car with every lap. When I finally got a chance to drive the car in the day light for the first time at Daytona in December I really enjoyed driving the track and kept getting better lap times with each session. I am looking forward to actually driving in the race instead of being a spectator. This is such an iconic race, and one that I have always wanted to participate in, but I have never had the time to make it happen. This year is going to be a great year for the LSR team.”
AJ Petersen, Team Manager and Technical Director – No. 80 Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: “I am excited to be returning to the Rolex 24 At Daytona event and the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup. It is great to have the continued program this year from 2024. We have a different driver lineup but we have the same car manufacturer with Mercedes-AMG and all of the key team personnel. Personally, I am looking forward to having Dan back in the car as a driver. He has been supporting us as an owner and driving in the occasional race event since 2018. I look forward to him being able to enjoy the Lone Star of 2025 and the development that we have done as a team with him in the driver’s seat. it will be great to build on the lessons learned in 2024. We have a new challenge with the energy based BoP and strategies. It is an interesting new challenge for all of the teams within GTD and GTD Pro. Our test in December was a successful introduction to it for our team. We are looking forward to the Roar test and continuing this development before the 24 Hour race.”
Scott Andrews, Driver – No. 80 Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: “The IMSA WeatherTech series is one of the most competitive sports car racing championships in the world. It was a steep curve for the Lone Star Racing team and all of us last year, but we were able to learn a lot, and certainly by the end of 2024 we kind of understood a little bit more where some of our strengths and weaknesses were and where we could work on moving forward. The car showed great speed all year. Every time we hit the track, we were always one of the fastest Mercedes-AMGs. With a bit more experience heading into 2025, we can really hit the track running. I am really excited about our driver lineup. It is great to have Dan in the car. As the owner of Lone Star, he hasn’t done a whole lot of professional racing in the last five to 10 years, but he has had some good success recently, and he has the right motivation and mindset. I met Ralf for the first time at our December test in Daytona and he is very professional, we got along well and had similar feedback about the car, which is super important. I have also known Eric for many years, and this is a good opportunity for him to showcase his talent. I am really excited, and it is just great to be a part of this team. I really enjoy driving for Dan and AJ, and we are hoping to get some really nice results this year.”
Eric Filgueiras, Driver – No. 80 Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: “The relationship with Lone Star Racing started with me spotting for the team last year at the Rolex 24, and that was because we were trying to negotiate a seat for me in the 2024 race. It ultimately didn’t work out, but we kept the door open and I have kept in close touch with AJ after Scott brought me to the team initially. Through them both I have been able to get to know Dan a little bit more and understand his background in the sport, how he initially got involved and how he and Lone Star Racing as an organization have evolved in motorsports. It’s just incredible to be given the chance to earn this opportunity, and it has been what I have been searching for. I am very grateful to both Dan Knox and AJ Petersen to have their belief and their backing to have me in the car and to feel that I am the right fit for the job. I am ready for it.”
Ralf Aron, Driver – No. 80 Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: “First time for everything! This is my first time driving with Lone Star Racing and my first time driving at Daytona, and my first laps were in the dark at the December Daytona test. It was a lot of fun, and the track had a lot more grip than I expected. It was really cool, it felt quick, and the team looked like they were in a really good place. The car felt good too, so we just need to learn step by step. We have a good program of what we want to do and what we want to learn before the race, so we just need to chip away and see where we are at. I am really surprised how steep the banking was! I have been to the track before but never came close to the banking. The Mercedes-AMG GT3 is just a great platform. It holds up with the tire, the balance is good and you don’t have to fiddle around too much with the setup. You come to a race with this car and you know you will be competitive.”
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 Mercedes-AMG GT3 in the 2025 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.
