Last December, a little over three months after being let go by the Williams Formula 1 team, Logan Sargeant joined Genesis Magma Racing’s Trajectory programme. The idea was to compete in the European Le Mans Series and the Le Mans 24 Hours at the wheel of an ORECA 07, before eventually moving into the Korean manufacturer’s Hypercar programme.
But in February, the American decided to turn his back on this dream opportunity offered by Genesis Magma Racing, quite literally disappearing for several months.
“I took that break, but it was a much needed one,” he said a few weeks ago.
It was finally in August that he resurfaced. First by joining Oliver Gavin Motorsport Management, then by signing with PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports for the last two rounds of the IMSA SportsCar Championship, at Indianapolis (September 21) and Petit Le Mans (October 11).
On Sunday, Sargeant returned to competition after 13 months away from the racetrack. In The Battle on The Bricks at Indianapolis, he shared the wheel of the #52 ORECA 07 with former IndyCar driver Benjamin Pedersen and Naveen Rao.
After he placed sixth and third respectively in the two free practice sessions, we unfortunately did not see him in qualifying, since in the LMP2 class the job falls to the FIA Bronze-rated driver, in this case Rao.
In the race, the #52 ORECA 07 managed to climb up to second place in LMP2. A podium was within reach, but that would have required a perfect performance. Rao was involved in several incidents, and there were two drive-through penalties for pitstop infringements.
But Sargeant undoubtedly made an impression. The 24-year-old American completed 108 laps, or 45% of his car’s mileage, which was to be expected as he is the professional driver of the line-up. But he can also claim to have set the second-fastest lap of the LMP2 class, a 1m17.744s, just 0.016s off the benchmark set by Sébastien Bourdais.
More revealing still, he ranked fourth in the 50% best laps average, only 0.121s from the top reference.
Of course, such statistics should always be treated with caution, especially in a six-hour race, since they depend heavily on when you take the wheel and the track conditions at that moment. But in this case, they are nonetheless telling.
One could argue that Sargeant already knew the ORECA 07, since he contested two ELMS races, at the Red Bull Ring (where he took pole position) and Monza. But those outings date back to 2021 - his last racing appearance before this weekend was on August 25, 2024, in F1's Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort.
His team PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports summed it up on social media: “Logan impressed in his IMSA debut." It's impossible to disagree.
Beyond his outright pace, he pulled off some crafty overtakes worthy of an endurance veteran, and showed remarkable ease in traffic.
What’s next?
Sargeant insisted that, before heading to Indianapolis, he had no particular longer-term plan in mind.
“It’s just racing at a high level again,” he explained. “Truthfully, I’m very nearsighted right now. I just want to, for one, get back in a car, you know, really, really find my rhythm again. Which I feel like already was coming very naturally in the test.
“I don’t go into Indy feeling underprepared, I go into Indy feeling great. And I’m just ready to deliver for the team, and hopefully produce good results, and that in turn will result in doors opening for next year or so. That’s how I’m looking at it.”
Judging by this first outing, there’s every chance this adventure won’t be a one-off.
On September 4, PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports announced a partnership with Bryan Herta Autosport to compete in the LMP2 category of the 2026 IMSA SportsCar Championship.
“Our entry into the IMSA SportsCar Championship is vital for building our foundation for the future,” said Bryan Herta. “The LMP2 platform gives us the opportunity to develop our personnel and systems in a way that prepares us to compete at the highest level. It’s the next logical step for our organization, and one that we’ve been planning for some time.”
By highest level, the former IndyCar driver obviously means GTP, IMSA’s top class. A category Genesis, Hyundai Group’s premium brand, will enter in 2027.
As a reminder, BHA officially represents Genesis’ interests in the US, notably in IMSA Pilot Challenge, where it has multiple titles to its name. Not to mention that Bryan Herta Autosport is also the US sales agent and parts support representative for Hyundai TCR and TCA customer race cars.
Will Sargeant be part of the Bryan Herta Autosport with PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports adventure? Nothing guarantees it today, but there's certainly a logic to it.
