Nine Are in the Running for Benefits Worth over $250,000 to Race in IMSA DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (May 20, 2024) – The field has been narrowed to nine finalists for the 2025-26 IMSA Diverse Driver Development Scholarship. The recipient, to be named later this year, will receive benefits worth more than $250,000 to assist them in competing in an IMSA owned and operated series starting next season.The IMSA Diverse Driver Development Scholarship promotes and empowers drivers from a variety of backgrounds and experiences to participate in an IMSA series. The scholarship includes substantial financial assistance from IMSA and several of its corporate partners, as well as other industry resources, to elevate drivers from diverse backgrounds. The recipient uses this assistance to compete in a full season of competition in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge or the IMSA VP Racing SportsCar Challenge, with additional benefits extending to a second year of racing for that selected recipient.Support for the scholarship also comes from IMSA partners Michelin, VP Racing Fuels, OMP, Bell, Recaro, Skip Barber Racing School, LAT Images and the newest partner, RAFA Racing Club.Over the next several months, finalists will participate in a series of learning modules, led by industry leaders, to bolster their off-track skills. Modules include social media best practices, interviewing skills, working with a driver agent, approaching teams and partners and a business plan workshop. The recipient of the 2025-26 scholarship will be announced later this year.The nine finalists for the fourth annual IMSA Diverse Driver Development Scholarship were selected from a pool of candidates who submitted their applications starting in February. The list of finalists consists of six men and three women, five of whom were finalists in past years. Listed in alphabetical order with hometown, here are the 2025-26 finalists (*-designates a finalist in a previous year). ANDRE CASTRO,* 25New York, New YorkCastro most recently competed in a pair of NASCAR Xfinity Series races in 2023, on the streets of Chicago and at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. After winning the Skip Barber “Karts to Cars” scholarship in 2015, he raced in F2000 in 2016 and USF2000 in 2017 before moving to the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series in 2019-20. He earned the Team USA Scholarship to compete in the prestigious Formula Ford Festival in England in 2021. SABRE COOK,* 29Carmel, Indiana Entering her second season driving in the Porsche Carrera Cup North America sanctioned by IMSA, Cook has been a Porsche female development driver for Porsche Motorsport North America since 2023. She also has vast experience in the W Series, Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup Presented by Michelin, Indy Pro 2000, USF2000, F4 U.S. Championship and more. On top of that, she holds a mechanical engineering degree. ERNIE FRANCIS JR., 26Southwest Ranches, Florida Francis made his debut in the IMSA-sanctioned Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America at Sebring International Raceway in March, winning one race and finishing second in the other in the Pro class. He boasts a variety of racing experience, including full seasons in Indy NXT in 2022 and ’23, and the SRX Series in 2021 and ’22. Over the course of seven seasons in the Trans Am Series, he won 47 races across different classes and 16 wins over four seasons in World Challenge. NICKY HAYS, 22Huntington Beach, CaliforniaHays started karting at age 4, continuing to climb the ranks until making his race car debut in 2018 in the F1600 Championship. His experience has primarily come in junior open-wheel series, including a 2019 win in the F4 France series. He competed in a full season of USF2000 in 2022 before jumping to the sports car scene for a pair of Porsche Carrera Cup North America races last season at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. CHRISTINA LAM,* 35Vienna, Virginia Lam has been competing professionally since 2017, first in the NASA Northeast Touring Series and more recently in SCCA National Championship Runoffs. She won her class in a six-hour endurance race last year driving an Acura NSX GT3 and competed in BMW Car Club of America races, while also growing her driver coach client base by 70 percent. KYLE LOH,* 25San Jose, CaliforniaLoh is a 2022 graduate of the Honda Performance Development GT3 Academy who won three races last year in the SRO TC America Championship driving a Honda Civic TCX. He also has racing experience in the F4 U.S. Western Championship, finishing third in 2019 with three wins. He won the 2021 Formula Pro USA West Coast Formula 3 title with five victories. He serves as an instructor for the Allen Berg Racing Schools and coach for World Speed Motorsports. SALLY McNULTY, 39Glendale, Arizona A late starter to racing, McNulty began her career in 2019 in TC America competition. Last year in the TC America powered by Skip Barber Racing School series, she reached the podium on two occasions. She also drove in the final four races of the 2023 IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge season, with a best finish of eighth at VIRginia International Raceway. A service advisor at a car dealership, McNulty was featured in a 2022 Wall Street Journal story about her rebuild of a 2000 Honda Civic. CELSO NETO, 19Orlando, FloridaOriginally from Salvador, Brazil, Neto has split his time racing in the United States and his native country since 2020. The last two years, he has competed in the TC America series where he’s compiled one victory and 11 podium finishes. He also finished seventh in a NASCAR Brazil race in September 2023. He captured the championship in the 2021 Brazil Mid West Touring Car Cup, collecting four pole positions and seven race wins. WESTIN WORKMAN,* 19Charlotte, North Carolina The teen is already making a big splash as a rookie in the Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup presented by Michelin. He sits second in points in the IMSA-sanctioned single-make series, just 10 points from the lead, following a thrilling win by 0.004 seconds last month at Sebring International Raceway. He’s also competing in Toyota GR Cup North America this year, with a pair of podium finishes in his first two races. Workman was chosen as one of two recipients for a Mazda Motorsports scholarship to compete in the 2022 Spec MX-5 Challenge Series season. He also finished third in the 2022 Lucas Oil Formula Car Race Series, with three wins and eight podium results. |
