Therese Lahlouh will share driving duties with Thomas Merrill in the 2026 season of GT World Challenge America Powered by AWS, selecting her coach to partner her in the Porsche 911 GT3 R for her first full GT3 campaign.
The pairing completes Lahlouh’s Pro-Am lineup as she steps into top-tier GT3 competition with Wright Motorsports.
Merrill transitions from coaching Lahlouh during her recent progression through Porsche one-make competition into a shared cockpit role for a full-season SRO America effort.
“I’ve been looking forward to this for a long time,” Merrill said.
“Therese has put in a lot of really hard work the last couple of years with Porsche Sprint Challenge, and it’s been cool to watch her grow. It’s going to be really cool to watch that continued growth alongside her in this SRO program.
“She’s done everything she needs to do to prepare for this next step, and I’m looking forward to working together in the GT3 car.”
Merrill brings significant GT3 and endurance experience to the program. His background includes multiple IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GT3 appearances across different manufacturers, a GT class title in the Asian Le Mans Series in 2023, a GT podium at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and prior SRO GT3 endurance competition.
“I’ve done a fair bit of GT3 racing — a number of one-offs in IMSA in a couple different manufacturers, and I won the Asian Le Mans Championship in a BMW in 2023,” Merrill said.
“I also did one SRO GT3 event, the eight-hour at Indy, a couple of years back in a Mercedes. This will be my first proper full-season effort in GT World Challenge.
“The competition should be pretty steep. I haven’t seen an entry list yet, and to be honest, I try to avoid that. I want to focus on ourselves. But from what I understand, there’s going to be a wide range of other drivers and Pro-Am combinations to measure ourselves against, which is exactly what we want given Therese’s goals.
“For our part, we’re not going to have any excuses with the car we’ve chosen and the team we’re with at Wright Motorsports. It’ll be up to us to get it done behind the wheel.”
The coach-to-co-driver dynamic is central to the program. Merrill said modern data systems enable a more structured, informed approach to development.
“Having data and video has transformed what coaching can be in motorsport,” he said.
“I’m old enough to remember when we didn’t have that. Now, especially in the co-driver role where we’re both driving the same car, I have all the information I need to give Therese everything she needs.
“Normally, early on, the challenge is trusting the machinery and understanding what it’s going to give you when you ask certain questions. There won’t be any guesswork.
“We’ll have all the answers laid out in front of us. In the past, you had to figure it out on the fly. With this dynamic, we’re able to be way more prepared.”
Merrill also emphasized the importance of Wright Motorsports’ experience within Porsche GT programs.
“I’ve admired Wright Motorsports from a distance for quite a while,” he said.
“I’ve known Adam and watched his growth through the early Porsche ranks. Seeing the team from the inside confirms everything I saw from the outside. They’ve got good leadership, they’re very organized, and they have that ‘been there, done that’ attitude — in a good way.
“It’s a relaxed atmosphere, but they have a strong sense of process. Bobby Viglione’s leadership really cements the calm, professional way they execute everything. We’re going to have everything we need.”
The 2026 season opens at Sonoma Raceway, a venue Merrill considers a home circuit.
“Sonoma is basically my second home,” he said.
“I live a couple of hours south down the road, and frankly, I run at Sonoma more than I run at Laguna just because there’s more testing that happens there. It’s a great place to start the year.
“And the same goes for Therese. She knows Sonoma really well from her early club racing days, so we really couldn’t ask for a better place to kick things off.”
The 2026 GT World Challenge America powered by AWS season consists of seven rounds at premier North American road courses. The championship opens at Sonoma Raceway March 27-29, followed by rounds at Circuit of the Americas April 24-26 and Sebring International Raceway May 8-10. Mid-season events include a return to Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta June 12-14 and competition at Road America August 28-30. The penultimate round takes place at Barber Motorsports Park September 25-27, with the season concluding at Indianapolis Motor Speedway October 8-11.
For 2026, the series will adopt a longer race format with single three-hour races at each venue, emphasizing strategy and co-driver collaboration across the season.