Ricky Taylor has been confirmed as the fourth driver for Team Penske’s new Acura DPi program in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship for 2018, completing its full-season line-up.
In an announcement made on Wednesday, Penske confirmed that recently-crowned DPi champion Taylor will make the switch from Wayne Taylor Racing to pick up a ride in the Acura ARX-05 DPi for 2018.
Taylor joins Helio Castroneves, Dane Cameron and Juan Pablo Montoya in the full-season roster, while Penske also confirmed that IndyCar drivers Graham Rahal and Simon Pagenaud will feature in the endurance events at Daytona and Sebring.
“Adding a champion sports car driver in Ricky will help our team grow and develop,” Roger Penske said.
“Ricky had a phenomenal season in 2017. He brings a great deal of sports car experience and his knowledge of the cars, the race tracks and the series overall will be a big benefit to our team.
“Having that experience, along with the winning pedigree of Helio, Juan and Dane, provides a great platform as we launch the Acura Team Penske program next season.
“When you add Simon and Graham for the endurances races, I feel like we have a strong lineup for Daytona and Sebring.”
“It was a great experience getting a chance to test an Indy car with Team Penske, but to get a call from Roger Penske offering the opportunity to drive one of his race cars full time – well, that’s a life-changing opportunity,” said Taylor.
“We have had a lot of success in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship the last few seasons with my dad’s team, including winning both the Rolex 24 at Daytona and the Championship this year.
“I’m definitely ready for the next challenge in my career and I couldn’t be more excited to join Team Penske and work with Helio, Juan and Dane to launch the new factory Acura effort and start winning with the ARX-05 in 2018.”