Speedway Motors has announced its sponsorship of Loni Unser for the 2024 race season. She will compete in a variety of series throughout the year beginning with Pikes Peak. This was Unser’s third run on the mountain and first time behind the wheel of a Porsche 911.
“Loni hails from one of the most storied families in automotive and racing history,” said Carson Smith of Speedway Motors family ownership team and director of the Museum of American Speed. “Dozens of members of the Unser family have raced on Pikes Peak dating back to their first run in 1926, followed by their first win in 1934. We’ve had racing partnerships with members of the Unser family for over 38 years and are excited to sponsor Loni for her 2024 race season.”
Unser’s first career win was in 2018 at the WRL seven-and-eight-hour endurance race followed by wins in 2020 in the Eastern Championship at World Racing League. In 2021 she became the first female to finish in the top 10 in back-to-back races at St. Petersburg in the Mazda MX-5 Cup. In 2022, Unser secured the National Championship in the World Racing League.
Unser ran at The Broadmoor Pikes Peak International Hill Climb (PPIHC), brought to you by Gran Turismo on Sunday, June 23. Loni drove a 2015 GT3 Turbo Cup car that made around 900 horsepower, built and run by BBI Autosport and owned by a fellow female driver Lisa Taylor with Flying L Racing. Due to a mechanical issue in the top section of the course she was forced to end her run. At the time of the failure, she was on pace to become the fastest woman ever to run Pikes Peak.
Throughout 2024 Unser will also participate in the Porsche Sprint Challenge, The California 300 and Baja 1000 among other races.
Speedway Motors has a history of partnering with the Unser family and racing history at Pikes Peak. Carson Smith designed the “Winged Wonder,” which Robby Unser piloted in the PPIHC winning in 1992 and 1994. Next, Smith designed a Chevrolet Motorsports-backed S-10 pickup, which won the PPIHC truck class in 1995 and 1996.
“It’s a bucket list destination for automotive and racing enthusiasts,” said Tim Matthews, Museum of American Speed Curator. “The Museum of American Speed is currently home to the Johnny Lightning Special, Viceroy VPJ Special driven by Al Unser, the 1971 Gurney Eagle and the yellow #6 Novi driven by Bobby Unser for Andy Granatelli, along with many other significant vehicles and engines significant to Unser racing history including Al Unser’s Pikes Peak Open Wheeler and decades of Indy winning pace cars.”
The Museum of American Speed participated in the PPIHC carrying on the tradition of presenting the Unser Legacy King of the Mountain Ring at the PPIHC awards ceremony on Monday, June 24. The one-of-a-kind diamond championship ring was presented to the 2024 King of the Mountain, Romain Dumas, pilot of the electric Ford Lightning.
“As the new home for the Unser Collection, the Museum of American Speed is eager to present the impressive history of one of the first families in auto racing,” Matthews added. “Sponsoring this incredible wearable trophy is a fitting way to honor the family’s legacy on Pikes Peak.”
