Pierson the youngest ever FIA WEC race starter

Young American racer Josh Pierson will set a new record tomorrow at Sebring International Raceway when he becomes the youngest ever race starter in the FIA WEC at 16 years and 32 days old.

The United Autosports USA driver is contesting the entire WEC season in 2022, coupled with an LMP2 assault with PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.

In tomorrow’s eight-hour 1000 miles of Sebring, Pierson is teamed with the experienced duo - Paul di Resta and Oliver Jarvis.

This weekend is the second race weekend for Pierson with United Autosports. The American youngster starred on debut in the Asian Le Mans Series in Abu Dhabi in February - winning both the third and four rounds alongside di Resta.

“I didn’t come here to break the record, that wasn’t the original goal, but I ended up getting a contract in both the FIA WEC and IMSA for this year,” Pierson said.

“We’re here to win. I have a great team with me. Oliver and Paul have been fast all week, and I’m really looking forward to the race.

“We have a good car under us, and my teammates have been helping me a lot. I can’t wait to kick off the season.”

Tomorrow’s eight-hour FIA WEC battle will be Pierson’s fourth-ever sportscar race after contesting the US F2000 championship in 2021. While a clutch issue curtailed his Rolex 24 at Daytona assault, the Oregon-born youngster shone brightly during his two Asian Le Mans Series victories.

“We did a lot of testing over the winter, and the Asian Le Mans Series races were a great preparation for us for the season ahead. It was nice to get pole at Abu Dhabi, and I did the majority of both races – three hours of the four-hour journey,” said Pierson.

“There was a lot to deal with, full course yellows, red flags, and stuff, but it really helped me prepare for this weekend. 

“I had a lot to learn going from team to team with different systems and how we do driver changes at United compared to the IMSA car with PR1. I now feel very prepared coming into the season.”

Pierson completed 105 laps of testing during last weekend’s FIA WEC Prologue here at Sebring. Today, his teammate Di Resta qualified the No.23 Oreca LMP2 entry third with a time of 1 minute 49.510 seconds around the 6.02 km (3.74 m) course.

Youngest Drivers in WEC History