- Marc Austin and Jason Golan Lead and Finish Second in the Am Division in Their GT World Challenge America Powered by AWS Debut in Sunday’s Three-Hour Race in the No. 11 Mad Joker by Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3
- Dan Knox Scores a Pair of GT America Sixth-Place Finishes in the No. 80 Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3
AUSTIN, Texas (April 28, 2026) – Lone Star Racing’s first major event with a pair of Mercedes-AMG GT3 entries on the team’s “home track” at Circuit of The Americas (COTA) produced a trio of top race finishes and a visit to victory lane in Sunday’s featured three-hour GT World Challenge America powered by AWS this weekend.
“Everybody at Lone Star Racing did a great job all weekend with our first two-car Mercedes-AMG GT3 effort at Circuit of The Americas,” said Lone Star Racing Team Manager and Technical Director AJ Petersen. “The team in total executed very well, both driving and running the two cars with no penalties, and it was great support for our drivers and car owners. We had fans, family and friends from all over Texas supporting us all weekend, and we gave them some good results and put both cars back on the trailers in basically the same condition as when we arrived. It was a great weekend of ‘Lone Star’ racing from start to finish.”
The debuting Austin-based duo of Marc Austin and Jason Golan led their class and battled to the finish in their first GT World Challenge America race in the Am division, which is generally for gentlemen or Bronze rated drivers. They waged a competitive two-car battle with a team that includes former Rolex 24 At Daytona overall winner Oswaldo Negri Jr.
Austin and Golan proved up to the challenge, passing for the lead at mid-race and staying in touch with their friendly rivals for the entire three hours. A late spin when Austin ran over the debris from a competitor that returned to the track after going off course took the No. 11 out of winning contention, but he quickly recovered and kept the pressure on until the finish. Austin crossed the finish line for runner-up honors just 11 seconds behind the winners.
“It was a lot of fun, and we just did our best to be as fast as we could and stay out of trouble,” Austin said. “In that first stint, Jason and our Am competition had a really good battle. It was a good race, we had a good time, and the Mercedes-AMG GT3 came through as always. It was really exciting to see our car lead the race. We’re shooting to try to run more races this year, and hopefully maybe pick up another one of these in GT World Challenge, because this is what we want to run. Our car is in good shape after this race. She’s ready to go!”
Moving up to GT World Challenge America in the Am class in the No. 11 Mad Joker by Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3, Austin and Golan first ran together in SRO America with a competitive run in a Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4 in the Pirelli GT4 America three-hour race on the SRO America COTA weekend in 2025.
“Sometimes racing is about keeping it clean and knowing who you’re racing,” Golan said. “We are competing in a gentlemen class in a series that is more or less intended for that, so we watch out for and take care of each other out there. We all know each other, we’re all friends off the track, so it has to be a legitimate pass for it to count, because at the end of the day we’re out of there having a good time. We are competing with people we generally love seeing, which is probably one of the best things about racing. It starts with your own team, and Dan Knox is incredible, a great owner, and Lone Star Racing is one of my favorite teams to run with. Obviously, Marc is a great driver. I actually met him while we were racing one time, and after the race, he came up to me, and he said, ‘buddy, that was the best racing I’ve ever done. You left me room, and I left your room.’ And that’s how we became friends. He is a great teammate, Lone Star Racing has great coaches, great mechanics, and everybody knows so much about the Mercedes-AMG GT cars. The Mercedes-AMG GT3 and GT4 are some of the best cars out there.”
Lone Star Racing and team owner and winning driver Dan Knox returned to the GT America powered by AWS series for the first time in over a year at COTA and battled in the front half of the field all weekend in the No. 80 Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3. Knox secured sixth place finishes in each of the weekend’s 40-minute sprint races on Saturday and Sunday that had competitive fields of 15 total GT3 “SRO3” entries.
“The competition is really better since the last time we raced here in GT America, which is good to see,” Knox said. “The series has gotten better. It was a great race weekend but unfortunately we just missed the setup. We didn’t have enough time testing with these tires on the car, but it was great for about the first 20 to 30 minutes. Then they started falling off really hard, and we probably would have had better results at the end, but I still enjoyed it. It was good to get back in the Mercedes-AMG GT3 in SRO. I think everybody at Lone Star Racing did really well. The guys worked hard. They got everything going, but we just need that little bit more time with these tires and a setup for my purposes, but the guys did a great job. I am happy with the results with Lone Star Racing having two cars here, and I think SRO has been very happy to see us here back in the paddock again. We will see where it goes for the rest of the season.”
Next up for Lone Star Racing is Round 3 of the 2026 IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup with the No. 80 Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 at Watkins Glen International, June 25 -28.
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 2026 IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup in the GTD class, in addition to other top sports car racing series. 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 @LSRTeam and on the official team web site at www.LoneStarRacingTeam.com.
