Level 5 Motorsports was an American

auto racing Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. In North America, the term is commonly used to describe all forms of automobile sport including non ...

team founded in 2006 with illegally procured funds by racing driver, money lender and later convicted racketeer Scott Tucker, currently serving a sentence of 16 years and 8 months in federal prison. Level 5 Motorsports competed in the

United SportsCar Championship The IMSA SportsCar Championship, currently known as the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship under sponsorship, is a sports car racing series based in the United States and Canada and organized by the International Motor Sports Association ( ...

and Ferrari Challenge, having won multiple

American Le Mans Series The American Le Mans Series (ALMS) was a sports car racing series based in the United States and Canada. It consisted of a series of Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance and sprint races, and was created in the spirit of the 24 Hours of Le M ...

championships and endurance races including the

24 Hours of Daytona The 24 Hours of Daytona, also known as the Rolex 24 At Daytona for sponsorship reasons, is a 24-hour sports car racing, sports car Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance race held annually at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Flo ...

12 Hours of Sebring The 12 Hours of Sebring is an annual motorsport Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance race for Sports car racing, sports cars held at Sebring International Raceway, on the site of the former Hendricks Army Airfield World War II air base in S ...

and

Petit Le Mans Petit Le Mans (French language, French for ''Little Le Mans'') is a sports car racing, sports car Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance race held annually at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia, United States. The race has been held for a durat ...

. Level 5 Motorsports began with Tucker competing in the

Sports Car Club of America The Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) is a non-profit American automobile club and sanctioning body supporting Autocross, Rallycross, HPDE, Time Trial, Road Racing, RoadRally, and Hill Climbs in the United States. Formed in 1944, it runs ...

and Ferrari Challenge Series. In 2007, while continuing with SCCA and Ferrari Challenge, Tucker entered several events in the

Rolex Sports Car Series The Rolex Sports Car Series was the premier series run by the Grand American Road Racing Association. It was a North American-based sports car series founded in 2000 under the name Grand American Road Racing Championship to replace the failed ...

and Koni Challenge Series with co-driver Ed Zabinski. Tucker also competed in the IMSA GT3 Cup Challenge.

Grand-Am

In 2008, the team made four starts in the Rolex Series including the

Rolex 24 At Daytona The 24 Hours of Daytona, also known as the Rolex 24 At Daytona for sponsorship reasons, is a 24-hour sports car endurance race held annually at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is run on the Sports Car Course layout, ...

. In 2009, Level 5 Motorsports became a regular in the

. The team finished 9th in class at the

driving a BMW Powered

Daytona Prototype A Daytona Prototype was a type of sports prototype racing car developed specifically for the Grand-Am Road Racing, Grand American Road Racing Association's Rolex Sports Car Series as their top class of car, which replaced their main prototype rac ...

. Christophe Bouchut finished 23rd and

Scott Tucker (racing driver) Scott Tucker (born May 5, 1962) is an American convicted Racket (crime), racketeer, loan shark, Mail and wire fraud, fraudster and Money laundering, money launderer who used his illegal funds to financeand drive forhis own sports car racing, sp ...

finished 31st in the Drivers Championship. Tucker also had a record-setting season in the

Ferrari Challenge The Ferrari Challenge is a One-Design, single-marque Auto racing, motorsport championship that was created in 1993, initially catering to owners of the 348 Challenge who wanted to race their cars. The first European season took place in 1993, ...

, winning 10 races. That year, Tucker also earned his first national title, winning the SCCA Touring 1 Class National Championship. In 2010, Level 5 Motorsports entered the

Rolex 24 at Daytona The 24 Hours of Daytona, also known as the Rolex 24 At Daytona for sponsorship reasons, is a 24-hour sports car endurance race held annually at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is run on the Sports Car Course layout, ...

. The team of Scott Tucker, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Lucas Luhr and Richard Westbrook took a third-place overall finish. Scott Tucker and Christophe Bouchut entered one more Rolex Series race, finishing 11th overall in Miami. In 2011, the team started the year at the

where they competed with two BMW powered Riley Daytona Prototype. The #55 car finished 8th and the #95 car finished 11th.

American Le Mans Series

Level 5 Motorsports also competed in the full 2010 season of the

. Starting with a class win at the

12 hours of Sebring The 12 Hours of Sebring is an annual motorsport Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance race for Sports car racing, sports cars held at Sebring International Raceway, on the site of the former Hendricks Army Airfield World War II air base in S ...

, Level 5 Motorsports won 5 of 9 races. The team won the LMPC Championship and team owner, Scott Tucker, won the Drivers Championship. For 2011, Level 5 Motorsports only competed in select rounds of the

season. The team used an HPD powered Lola B08/80 and a Lola B11/40 to gain victories at the Sebring,

Long Beach Long Beach is a coastal city in southeastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is the list of United States cities by population, 44th-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 451,307 as of 2022. A charter ci ...

and

Road America Road America is a motorsport Road racing, road course located near Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin on Wisconsin Highway 67. It has hosted races since the 1950s and currently hosts races in the IndyCar Series, IMSA SportsCar Championship, Sports Car Club ...

. The team used two HPD ARX-01gs to gain victories in the final two races of the season at

and

Laguna Seca Laguna Seca Raceway (branded as WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, and previously Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca for sponsorship reasons) is a paved Racing track#Motorsport, road racing track in central California used for both auto racing and Motorcyc ...

. Having won every race they entered, Level 5 Motorsports won the LMP2 team championship and drivers Scott Tucker and Christophe Bouchut won the LMP2 Drivers Championship. The 2012 season saw Level 5 Motorsports campaign two brand new HPD ARX-03b's for the full season. The #055 car, driven by Scott Tucker,

João Barbosa João Ricardo da Silva Coelho Barbosa (born 11 March 1975 in Porto, Portugal) is a Portuguese auto racing driver. He currently competes in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship for Sean Creech Motorsport in the LMP2 class. He was runner ...

, Christophe Bouchut, took first in class at the

Mobil 1 Mobil 1 is a brand of synthetic motor oil and other automotive lubrication products. Originally developed by the Mobil oil company, it is now globally marketed and sold by ExxonMobil. Mobil 1 engine oil was introduced in 1973. The brand range no ...

. The team went on to win 7 of the next 9 races, losing only at Mosport and

to their main rivals, Conquest Endurance. The Level 5 Motorsports crew was able to secure the LMP2 Team Championship. Scott Tucker and Christophe Bouchut also claimed the LMP2 Drivers championship. American Le Mans Series LMP2 No

In 2013, Level 5 Motorsports earned nine class wins out of 10 races with its two HPD ARX-03b's. The team was able to secure its fourth consecutive

team championship and third straight in the P2 class. Scott Tucker won his fourth

drivers' 'title.

United SportsCar Championship

Level 5 Motorsports won the 2014 24 Hours of Daytona in the GT Daytona class with its No. 555 Ferrari 458 Italia GT3 of Scott Tucker,

Townsend Bell Townsend Lorenz Bell (born April 19, 1975) is an American professional motor racing driver competing in the International Motor Sports Association, IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, and also as a motorsports commentator for FOX Sports’ I ...

, Bill Sweedler, Jeff Segal and Alessandro Pier Guidi, despite the car having initially been handed a penalty for late-race avoidable contact. IMSA reversed the call more than four hours after the race, declaring the No. 555 car the winners in GTD. The win marked Ferrari's 10th in the Rolex 24 at Daytona and the first since the Italian manufacturer's overall victory in 1998 with a Ferrari 333SP fielded by Doran-Moretti Racing. On February 26, Level 5 announced that it will withdraw from the series.

24 Hours of Le Mans

In 2011, the Level 5 Motorsports team also competed in 5 of the 7 rounds of the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup including the

24 Hours of Le Mans The 24 Hours of Le Mans () is an endurance-focused Sports car racing, sports car race held annually near the city of Le Mans, France. It is widely considered to be one of the world's most prestigious races, and is one of the races—along with ...

. The team qualified their #33 Microsoft Office 2010-sponsored Lola 11th in class. Drivers Scott Tucker, Christophe Bouchut and

completed 319 laps, finishing 3rd in LMP2 in their first attempt at the famed race. The team also competed in 2012 24 Hours of Le Mans. The team qualified the #33 car 14th in class. Scott Tucker, Christophe Bouchut and Luis Díaz completed 240 laps but did not finish the race. This was the team's second appearance at Le Mans. In 2013, the #33 Level 5 Motorsports HPD ARX-03b of Scott Tucker, Ryan Briscoe and Marino Franchitti completed 242 laps after battling engine-related issues. The car was not classified in the final results due to not reaching the minimum 70 percent distance requirement.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Level 5 Motorsports
American Le Mans Series teams American auto racing teams WeatherTech SportsCar Championship teams 24 Hours of Le Mans teams Auto racing teams established in 2006 Auto racing teams disestablished in 2014