Era Motorsports withdraws from 2020 IMSA season to focus on ’21

Dwight Merriman and team owner Kyle Tilley currently lie second in the LMP2 standings but the team has now issued a statement that it will not compete at Petit Le Mans, Laguna Seca nor the 12 Hours of Sebring.

“Following a challenging rookie season in professional sports car racing, Era Motorsports will withdraw from the 2020 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in order to focus on building a successful 2021 program,” it read.

“While the COVID-19 pandemic brought its own set of challenges to the team’s sportscar racing program, the team encountered a new setback following a crash in practice at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, where gentleman driver Dwight Merriman sustained injuries.

“While Merriman is on the road to recovery, the team has elected to sit out the remaining race rounds in the IMSA LMP2 championship to ensure Merriman’s safety, while also focusing all efforts on next season.”

Tilley said: “While we’re disappointed to not finish out our first season in sports car racing, this was the right call. This has been a chaotic year to say the least, and it has taken a lot of work for any race team to keep running during this time. We managed to do that, but following the Le Mans crash, it’s time for us to regroup, let Dwight finish recovering, and start building our program for next year.”

Tilley noted: “This isn’t one of those ‘We’ll be back’ announcements where the team doesn’t return. We have the necessary players and pieces, and now we are going to put our heads down and build for next year.”