Barnicoat joins Lexus line-up for 2022 IMSA GTD Pro class
Vasser Sullivan has signed Ben Barnicoat to race its Lexus RC F in the new GTD Pro class of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship next year.

Team owners Jimmy Vasser and James ‘Sulli’ Sullivan revealed in September that for 2022 they would continue to campaign two of the curvaceous RC F coupes but would move one of them up to the GTD Pro class, which next year replaces GT Le Mans in IMSA.
Jack Hawksworth, who has spent the last five years racing an RC F – the first two with 3GT Racing – has racked up six wins in the GTD class in three seasons, and will be the cornerstone of the Vasser Sullivan Lexus GTD Pro entry.
The 30-year-old’s full-time partner will be British compatriot Barnicoat, who has spent the last four seasons as a factory driver for McLaren.
He has earned two pole positions in GT World Challenge Europe, finished seventh in the 24 Hours of Spa, made his 24 Hours of Le Mans debut and in 2020 finished second in the 2020 Bathurst 12 Hours.
This pair will be joined for the four Michelin Endurance Cup rounds by Indy Lights champion Kyle Kirkwood, whose full-time job will be competing for AJ Foyt Racing in IndyCar.
Barnicoat said: “I’m absolutely thrilled to be joining Lexus Racing USA. Hearing the future plans and ambitions that the Lexus brand has, to really write themselves into the history books of motorsport, is truly inspiring, and really excites me about this program and my future with Lexus…
“After meeting Jimmy and Sulli for the first time and seeing the team in action at Petit Le Mans last month, it’s clear to me that they are the team to be with in IMSA right now. The level of professionalism, along with the dedication and hunger to win races and championships was incredible, and I can’t ask for any more than that as a driver.
“I have a lot to learn with it being my first full season of IMSA, but I have an incredible car in the Lexus RC F GT3 and the best team of people around me to learn from and achieve our goals. We will be a force to be reckoned with.”
Andrew Gilleland, group VP and general manager, Lexus Division, commented: “Together with Vasser Sullivan and TRD, we’re continuously finding ways to be competitive in North American sportscar racing and drive the Lexus performance message to new levels. Racing in IMSA has helped strengthen awareness and consideration of Lexus performance models amongst our dealers, owners, and competitors alike.
“Our momentum is rapidly growing and everyone at Lexus is excited to race for an IMSA championship.
“Jack (Hawksworth) has been integral in the development and success of the RC F GT3 program from day one, and we are thrilled to have a driver of Ben’s caliber join the Lexus family. Paired with Kirkwood for the endurance rounds, our GTD Pro entry aligns perfectly with the Vasser Sullivan and Lexus Racing program.
"They are young, quick and poised to fight for the top step of the podium all season long. We know we’ve got something special here and we’re excited to get out and earn our first GT championship together beginning with the Rolex 24 next month.”
Vasser and Sullivan issued a joint statement, commenting: “We are taking Vasser Sullivan Lexus to the next level, and building this bench of exceedingly competitive drivers is the next step to producing the kind of results we expect. Jack and Kyle have done an outstanding job for us capturing poles, consistently finishing on the podium and winning races.
“Ben’s ability and competitiveness in the world of sports cars has proven he belongs with us, we are energized to announce him today and have him join Vasser Sullivan Lexus.”
Hawksworth described the new line-up as “young and hungry … but with plenty of experience” while Kirkwood remarked that “2022 should be our year. We have the car, the crew and the drivers to make it happen.”

Racing Team Nederland joins IMSA for endurance rounds
Acura confirms Oreca collaboration for LMDh effort

Latest news
Rolex 24, Hour 1: MSR Acura leads, BMW in trouble early
Tom Blomqvist led the opening hour of the Rolex 24 at Daytona aboard the Meyer Shank Racing Acura, as BMW became the first of the GTP manufacturers to hit trouble.
Diriyah E-Prix: Wehrlein defeats Dennis to complete double win
Pascal Wehrlein completed a Diriyah E-Prix clean sweep, sharing a 1-2 with Jake Dennis once again to take the Formula E championship lead.
Johnson on Button running NASCAR Cup races: "I think I can talk him into it"
2009 Formula 1 World Champion Jenson Button will get his first taste of NASCAR with the Garage 56 entry at Le Mans, but it may not be his last.
Jenson Button joins NASCAR Garage 56 Le Mans 24 driver lineup
Jenson Button has been revealed as part of the driver lineup for the Garage 56 entry that brings NASCAR back to the Le Mans 24 Hours for its centenary race in June.
Inside BMW's long-awaited prototype racing return
Much like German OEM rival Porsche, BMW's absence from sportscar racing’s top flight will be ended this weekend when a pair of M Hybrid V8 prototypes make their debut in the Rolex 24 at Daytona. A programme focused on IMSA for now will expand to the WEC and Le Mans next year, in a sign of both its ambition and pragmatism.
How Porsche and Penske are gearing up for sportscar racing's bold new era
Porsche and Penske have teamed up to tackle the world's biggest sportscar races in 2023 with the new 963 LMDh car. Autosport was on hand at the recent Daytona test to hear from key players in the partnership as it prepares for dual campaigns across the IMSA SportsCar Championship and World Endurance Championship...
The plug in and play stand-ins who got their timing just right
Nyck de Vries’s Italian GP exploits weren’t the first post-eleventh-hour call-up in motorsport history, and won’t be the last either. Here are some offbeat tales from the past
The long road to convergence for sportscar racing's new golden age
The organisers of the World Endurance Championship and IMSA SportsCar Championship worked together to devise the popular new LMDh rule set. But to turn it from an idea into reality, some serious compromises were involved - both from the prospective LMDh entrants and those with existing Le Mans Hypercar projects...
How Porsche's Le Mans legend changed the game
The 956 set the bar at the dawn of Group C 40 years ago, and that mark only rose higher through the 1980s, both in the world championship and in the US. It and its successor, the longer-wheelbase 962, are arguably the greatest sportscars of all time.
Why BMW shouldn't be overlooked on its return to prototypes
OPINION: While the focus has been on the exciting prospect of Ferrari vs Porsche at the Le Mans 24 Hours next year, BMW’s factory return to endurance racing should not be ignored. It won't be at the French classic next year as it focuses efforts on the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, but could be a dark horse in 2024 when it returns to La Sarthe with the crack WRT squad.
The British pair at the heart of Lexus's sportscar push
Have you heard the one about two British guys driving for a Japanese manufacturer in America’s top sportscar series? Time to sit down and talk with Jack Hawksworth and Ben Barnicoat about racing across the pond… and your accent being mistaken for Australian!
Why Peugeot couldn't afford to take a Le Mans gamble in 2022
Ahead of the much-anticipated arrival of its new 9X8 Hypercar, Peugeot revealed that it would not be entering this year's Le Mans 24 Hours with its incoming machinery. Although development restrictions for homologated cars are partially responsible, the French marque can draw on its own lessons from its history in sportscars
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.