The driver roster is set for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing’s new multi-year collaborative effort with McLaren Automotive for the 2026 season in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
The joint venture that sees the team recognized as RLL Team McLaren, has named Max Esterson and Nikita Johnson as its full-season drivers for the upcoming campaign, competing in the Grand Touring Daytona (GTD) Pro class behind the wheel of the No. 59 McLaren GT3 EVO. Additionally, Dean MacDonald and Jüri Vips will join the duo for the Rolex 24 at Daytona. Esterson, MacDonald and Vips joined the team during an IMSA test at Daytona International Speedway back in November.
Vips, a former Red Bull reserve driver who has made three combined IndyCar starts with RLL (2023-24), expressed his enthusiasm as he prepares to make his Rolex 24 debut.
“I’m excited to get my first taste of endurance racing, especially at such an iconic event like the Rolex 24 at Daytona,” said Vips, 25. “The test went well; there were no big hiccups, and we got a lot of mileage. I had a lot of things to get used to. Driving a GT3 car is very different to anything I’ve done before but I’ve got a much better idea now. I feel good and prepared; McLaren has been really helpful as well with everything to get me up to speed with all the systems and things they have in the car. I’m looking forward to it.”
The upcoming 64th running of the endurance classic, set for Jan. 21-25, marks McLaren Automotive’s return to the GTD Pro category, lining up alongside the likes of Aston Martin, BMW, Chevrolet, Ferrari, Ford, Lamborghini, Lexus Mercedes-AMG, and Porsche.
Esterson, who spent last year competing in Formula 2 with Trident, made one start in IMSA at the tail end of 2025 with JDC-Miller Motorsports at Petit Le Mans.
“After racing in single seaters my whole career up to this point, making the switch to IMSA in the GTD PRO class is a very big and exciting new chapter for me,” said Esterson, 25. “It’s great to be joining such a strong and established team like RLL and I’m excited to see what we can do together with McLaren this season starting at Daytona.”
Johnson, 17, who will also compete in Indy NXT this upcoming season with Andretti Cape, added, “I am very happy and honored to help build the new McLaren era with RLL and I am excited to run the full-year with Max. As a Florida native, I am especially excited to start it all off in Daytona with a great four-driver lineup. Thank you to all of RLL for this opportunity.”
This year also marks a new beginning for RLL, who were associated with BMW Motorsport in IMSA from 2009-25.
Like Vips, the 25-year-old MacDonald will also be making his debut in IMSA’s crown jewel event. The team will get a chance to get back up to speed later this week with the Roar Before the Rolex 24, set for Jan. 16-18.
“I’m very happy to be doing my first Daytona 24 hour race and to be doing it with RLL in the McLaren makes it even more exciting,” MacDonald said.
“I got my first taste of Daytona and working with the team not too long ago and I believe we can go into the race challenging for a win in the GTD PRO class so I can’t wait to finally get going again at the ROAR!”
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