2022 Pro-Am champions Mario Farnbacher and Ashton Harrison are set to reunite with Racers Edge Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing (now WTRAndretti) to pilot the No. 93 Harrison Contracting Acura NSX GT3 Evo22 in Fanatec GT World Challenge America powered by AWS for the 2023 season. The duo, who earned the Pro-Am title last year with 4 wins on the season, will step up to the Pro class for the seven events on the race calendar. Harrison Contracting Company will once again sponsor the team, with the company’s trademark Rely on Red livery carrying the #93 in homage to Acura Motorsports and HPD.
““The Harrison Contracting Company team and I are excited about another year together with the SRO series,” enthused Bill Harrison, President, Harrison Contracting Company. ”Ashton, Mario, and the entire Racers Edge Motorsports with WTRAndretti team set the bar at a very high level last year. But that was yesterday and now we need to focus on the 2023 season with two simple words, ‘Go, win’!”
In a partnership with Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Autosport, Racers Edge Motorsports, who also operates the Honda Performance Development (HPD) Driver Academy, returns to GT World Challenge America, where the team has captured a GT3 title in three of the last four years, also earning the Driver Championship in 2019, 2020, and 2022.
With her move to the Pro class this year, Ashton Harrison has steadily progressed through the ranks of GT3 sportscar racing. Almost immediately following her graduation from the HPD Academy in 2021, she became the first woman to win overall in SRO GT World Challenge America in her debut at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Having developed a unique relationship from their Academy connection, Harrison and Farnbacher earned a podium in their first GT World Challenge America weekend together at Sonoma Raceway, following up with a podium and a win at NOLA Motorsports Park. The duo earned a series-high four wins on the season, with four additional podiums, enroute to claiming the Pro-Am Driver and Team Championships. Harrison became the first female to win an SRO GT World Challenge title worldwide, in any class of the series and was also named Rookie of The Year in 2022.
Mario Farnbacher has compiled an extensive resume as an elite sportscar driver, including winning back-to-back IMSA GTD Championships during his five years behind the wheel of the Acura NSX GT3 in addition to his 2022 SRO title. As a Honda Racing/HPD factory driver, Farnbacher contributed to Acura Motorsports’ success in 2022, including a podium the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach and victory at Motul Petit Le Mans.
The 2023 Fanatec GT World Challenge America powered by AWS begins March 31-April 2, at Sonoma Raceway. Each of the seven weekend events consists of two-90 minute races, with two drivers sharing designated time in the car. The season will culminate at Indianapolis Motor Speedway as part of the IGTC Indy 8Hr race.
Ashton Harrison:
“I’m super excited to get started with Racers Edge in SRO for 2023. It’s a big step for me to take on the challenge of racing in the Pro class this season. I’m thrilled to have Harrison Contracting back on board with us another year. I hope we can bring them success again on the podium. My strategy is to continue to learn and get better every weekend and I think I’m in a good position with the team and teammate I have on board. I’m grateful to have WTRAndretti along for the ride as well, and to represent Honda/HPD Racing and Acura Motorsports in the Acura NSX GT3 Evo. I’m prepared to fight with Mario on podium again through our champagne madness- even knowing he will probably always win. I can’t wait to get started at Sonoma.”
Mario Farnbacher:
“I’m really looking forward to running with Ashton again, and I have some podium celebrations already planned. We became very good friends over the last year and spent a lot of time together off track, too. Those times really helped develop our relationship and it’s always nice to share a car with a friend. I’m also excited to go back to Racers Edge Motorsports, with Harrison Contracting and WTRAndretti supporting us. It’s pretty cool to come back with the whole team together. I think this year the Pro class will be challenging. Ashton made a big step forward from last year to this year, and even through the season, she was constantly growing and getting better. We have already seen she has done a great job this year with her pace. We’ve been to all of these tracks before now, too, so we’re familiar with them and don’t have that learning curve. I’m pretty confident we will have a good season- we know the team and the car, and each other as teammates.”
About Harrison Contracting Harrison Contracting Company, Inc. (HCC) is a commercial painting and facility maintenance contracting company headquartered in Villa Rica, GA with divisional offices in Florida and Texas. HCC provides repainting/reimaging and facility maintenance services nationwide, and new construction painting across the southeastern US. At HCC, red is more than the company color, its culture. RED stands for Reliable, Experienced, and Diligent, and is the cornerstone for all we do. We are more than just your painter; we are your partner.
About the HPD Driver Academy Program
The Honda Performance Development (HPD) Driver Academy Program was developed to enable qualified racers to accelerate their racing career via ‘on-track’ and ‘off-track’ training from experienced Acura/Honda professional drivers, HPD-supported teams, and HPD personnel. The program includes sessions in the championship winning Acura NSX GT3 Evo or Honda Civic Type R TCR teaching the special knowledge and various skills required for professional sports car racing. The program is available by application-only and is limited to eight students per year.
About Honda Performance Development
Honda Performance Development, Inc., (HPD) has a rich heritage creating, manufacturing, and supporting Honda Racing and Acura Motorsports customers since 1993 from pinnacle racing in INDYCAR and IMSA to commercial racing programs. HPD is a wholly owned subsidiary of American Honda Motor Co., Inc. and leads all of Honda and Acura’s high-performance racing programs in North America, specializing in the design and development of race engines, chassis and performance parts, as well as technical and race support.