Indianapolis Motor Speedway is a place that every driver dreams of competing at, and for Canadian racer Zacharie Robichon, that dream recently became reality this season. Now, just a few short weeks later, he’s preparing to return to the historic circuit for the Indy 8 Hour, where he’ll join the Heart of Racing Team in the No. 24 Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 EVO alongside Gray Newell and Darren Turner.
“I recently had my first-ever experience racing at Indianapolis Motor Speedway,” Zacharie Robichon shared. “It’s kind of crazy to think that I’ve somehow never been here before, especially since I’ve been racing across so many different series. To finally be able to cut my teeth here is obviously a special thing. The track has such a history and it's a unique circuit in its own right.”
For the Indy 8 Hour, Robichon will slot in as the team’s third driver, bringing with him an extensive international resume that includes victories at the Bathurst 12 Hour and the 24 Hours of Spa earlier this year alone. He’s looking forward to collaborating with Newell and Turner, a duo that has carried the Heart of Racing banner throughout the 2025 GT World Challenge America powered by AWS season in the Pro-Am class.
“It'll be my first time working with Darren,” said Robichon. “He’s an Aston Martin legend and has been around for a long time, so there is tons I can learn from him. I had the pleasure of working with Gray this year at the Dubai 24 Hour, so it'll be nice to be back with him again. I know they've been working super hard all year. It's Gray's first year in a GT3 and I'll be looking to help the team out with the experience that I bring to the table. It’s their championship campaign, so I'm kind of the plug-in guy, but it should be good!”
He also believes the team’s Aston Martin package is well suited for the IMS road course layout: “One of the things that the Aston is great at is stability at high speeds. Obviously here it's a little bit of a slower speed track, but the car is also very strong on the brakes, especially for a front-engine car. Sometimes the mid and rear-engine cars have a little bit of advantage in that scenario, but the Aston for a front engine is very strong there, so I think it actually helps us. It also likes flowing corners. The first section there in Turns 2 and 3, the car is quite happy through there and same thing through Turns 7, 8, and 9.”
Robichon is no stranger to SRO competition, having competed in marquee GT World Challenge and Intercontinental GT Challenge events across the globe this year. “I think SRO is a unique championship and series. It does everything a little bit differently, but it helps massively to have done other global events. This year I did the CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa, the Bathurst 12 Hour, and I did the Suzuka 1000km just recently. I kind of have an idea of the quirks and rules that go along with different championships. It hasn’t been the easiest task for me this year to remember all the little details and various rules, especially being part of three different championships, but luckily the team will do a good job at reminding me what I can and can't do.”
With the Indy 8 Hour serving as the finale for both the GT World Challenge America and IGTC seasons, Robichon is eager to have the opportunity to measure himself against world-class opposition once again. “What's cool with the Indy 8 Hour this year is that there's a lot of big drivers and big teams that are coming in, and I’ve been seeing and racing against them all year long around the world. It'll be great to finish off these championships competing against the guys that we've been racing against all year at all these different venues.”
Having already collected multiple illustrious wins in 2025 across Europe and Australia, Robichon hopes to end the year on a similar high in America. “This year, I've had some pretty good success with these one-off events. We won Bathurst in our class. I won Spa in my class. It would be really cool to cap off this year with another victory in an SRO race. The Indy 8 Hour is obviously a special race—to be honest any race here at Indianapolis is special—and Gray and Darren have had a few podiums this year. If we could finish off the year on a high note like a victory, there would be nothing better and it would be good to add to the team's resume.”
With Robichon joining forces with Newell and Turner, the Heart of Racing Team will be one to watch when the green flag drops for the final event of the season. To watch them in action from October 16th to 18th, buy your Indy 8 Hour tickets now!