IMSA: ANSA Motorsports announces LMP3 entry

Miami Gardens, Fla-based ANSA Motorsports has announced plans to field an ADESS-03 LMP3 car in next year's IMSA Prototype Challenge presented by Mazda. Matt Dicken will drive the prototype. ANSA Motorsports and German manufacturer ADESS AG are still looking to test additional drivers for the 2017 season, and ADESS AG is looking to sell more prototypes to new teams/drivers.

"My partner, Patrick Otto Madsen, and I are delighted to welcome our new driver, Matt Dicken," said ANSA Motorsports' co-team owner, Alain Nadal. "ANSA Motorsports has a solid winning background in the IMSA series, and we are really excited to return and race with ADESS AG in the new, revamped series."

This year, ANSA Motorsports won the Pirelli World Challenge GTS championship with driver Brett Sandberg.

Having competed in his first club race in 2013, Dicken has quickly compiled a successful racing resume. For the 2014 season, Dicken was the Stuttgart Cup Pro-Am Champion. In addition to his championship season, Dicken also has multiple class wins and podiums in various club racing programs, such as PCA, HSR and SVRA.

"Words cannot describe how excited I am to be joining ANSA Motorsports for the inaugural 2017 IMSA Prototype Challenge series in an ADESS-03 LMP3 racecar," Dicken said. "Both ANSA and ADESS are proven champions so our expectations are high for a successful season. Although the ADESS-03 LM P3 is a new racecar and there are a lot of unknowns coming into a new series, when you take a look at what ANSA Motorsports did last year in winning the PWC GTS Driver's Championship with the new KTM X-Bow, race podiums and maybe even race wins should be anticipated!"

In 2015, Dicken made his debut in the IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge series, where he co-drove a Porsche Cayman with Corey Lewis. The season was highlighted by the team's leading their first laps at Lime Rock, followed by series of top-10 finishes. In 2016, he continued to compete with Strategic Wealth Racing in the ST class of the IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge series. Dicken and Lewis finished 10th in the Driver standings.

Since 1997, Dicken has worked as a financial advisor, having founded Strategic Wealth Designers in 2002. To date, Strategic Wealth Designers has helped more than 1,800 retirees and pre-retirees with their retirement goals. Dicken is also a best-selling author and the host of "Strategic Wealth", a TV show, covering all things financial, that airs weekly on WHAS11, the ABC affiliate in Louisville, Ky.

IMSA Prototype Challenge will be divided into two classes in 2017, blending new and existing IMSA machinery. The LMP3 class will feature chassis from as many as six different constructors, powered by identical V8 engines. The MPC class will use the existing Élan DP02 chassis powered by Mazda engines that previously made up the Lites 1 class of the series. Most event weekends will include a pair of 45-minute sprint races.

ANSA Motorsports took its ADESS-03 LM P3 prototype to the track several times last month and will continue its 2017 pre-season testing program with Dicken this weekend at Sebring.

The 2017 IMSA Prototype Challenge presented by Mazda season opens with a double-header March 17-18, at Sebring.