Russell Ward (born March 8, 1992) is an American racing driver who currently competes in the IMSA SportsCar Championship for Winward Racing. Ward also serves as Winward Racing's team principal.
Ward is a two-time class winner at the 24 Hours of Daytona and 12 Hours of Sebring. Alongside Philip Ellis, Ward was the 2024 IMSA SportsCar Championship GTD class champion.
Career Ward began his racing career in 2016 following several years competing in various track days alongside the ChampCar Endurance Series and 24 Hours of Lemons. For 2016, he embarked on a full season campaign in the Pirelli GT3 Cup Trophy USA with Kelly-Moss Road and Race, taking a podium finish in the final round at Circuit of the Americas. For 2017, Ward made his debut in the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge, pairing with Damien Faulkner in a GS-class Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport fielded by CJ Wilson Racing. In the duo's opening race at Daytona, they finished third in the Grand Sport class; Ward's first podium in IMSA-sanctioned competition. Through ten races that season, Ward and Faulkner captured just the one podium, finishing eighth in the Grand Sport classification.
2018 saw Ward take part in a variety of series, with a particular focus on the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge. Near the end of 2017, Winward joined forces with HTP Motorsport, paving the way for the team's transition to Mercedes-AMG machinery for 2018. Driving alongside Faulkner once again, the team claimed one podium through eight races, finishing 20th in the GS class standings. Ward also made one-off appearances in the Blancpain GT Series Asia, claiming a class victory and a podium finish, as well as the Pirelli World Challenge, International GT Open, DMV Gran Turismo Touring Car Cup, and 24H Series. In 2019, Ward scored his first victory in the renamed Michelin Pilot Challenge, pairing with Mercedes-AMG factory driver Dominik Baumann in the penultimate round of the season at Laguna Seca. Ward had missed the round at Road America following a crash in practice, relegating him to 16th in the overall standings. Two races in the 24H Series and a select few races in the International GT Open accompanied Ward's primary commitment in IMSA for 2019.
With Winward Racing's merger with HTP Motorsport at the end of 2019, Ward was set for a wide variety of racing opportunities in 2020. Launching another full-season campaign in the Michelin Pilot Challenge, Ward collected a pair of podiums, alongside his first pole position in the series at VIR, en route to his best ever points finish in the championship. Ward also took part in a part-time campaign in the GT World Challenge America, starting in the Pro/Am class with his father, Bryce, before jumping into the Silver Cup class for the rounds at Road America and Circuit of the Americas. Despite making just four starts in the Silver Cup, the lack of entries meant Ward was scored second in the season-long class championship. Ward also made his debut at the 24 Hours of Spa in October, taking second in the Silver Cup class alongside co-drivers Indy Dontje and Philip Ellis.
Ward began 2021 with his debut in the IMSA SportsCar Championship, joining Maro Engel, Indy Dontje, and Philip Ellis in the team's Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo. In the team's first ever race in the championship, the 2021 24 Hours of Daytona, the quartet claimed class victory, taking Mercedes-AMG's first ever GTD class victory at the 24 Hours of Daytona. Ward also took part in a full-season effort for the 2021 GT World Challenge America, alongside a rotating driver lineup of Ellis and Mikaël Grenier. Grenier and Ward claimed the entry's sole race victory of the season, taking overall honors in the second race at VIR. Eight podium finishes was only enough to see Ward finish fourth in the Pro class championship, six points adrift of the Turner Motorsport duo of Robby Foley and Michael Dinan in third. A full-season effort in the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup also featured in Ward's driving lineup, in which he claimed one podium through five races in the Silver Cup. As a result of his extensive exploits in Mercedes-AMG machinery during the 2021 calendar year, he was deemed the winner of the Pro-Driver GT3 category of the marque's brand-internal customer racing championship.
In October 2021, Ward announced Winward's plans to conduct a full-season campaign in the IMSA SportsCar Championship for 2022. After a slow start to the season, which included finishes outside of the top ten at Sebring, Long Beach, and Laguna Seca, the team initially believed that they'd claimed victory at Watkins Glen in June. However, the team ran afoul of IMSA's drive time restrictions and were demoted to 11th in class. The team suffered another near miss at Lime Rock, suffering a fuel pump failure on the final lap while leading. However, following three podiums in four races, two of which were back-to-back victories at Road America and Virginia International Raceway, the team entered the final round with an outside chance at scoring the GTD class championship. However, after an 11th-place finish at Petit Le Mans, Ward and season-long co-driver Philip Ellis settled for fifth in the points classification.
Ward complemented his IMSA endeavors with a part-time drive in the GT World Challenge America. After claiming a class victory at Watkins Glen, Ward and Ellis swept the weekend at Road America, marking three race victories in a row. At the end of 2022, Ward won Mercedes-AMG's Pro-Driver GT3 award, given to the most successful FIA-Platinum, Gold, or Silver rated driver in Mercedes-AMG's GT3 machinery over the course of the calendar year.
2023 saw Ward return full-time to the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup, joining Ellis and Dontje in one of the team's two Gold Cup entries. The team claimed a sole Gold Cup podium at Barcelona, finishing seventh in the class championship. In IMSA competition, Ward claimed a GTD class victory at Indianapolis and an additional podium at VIR, finishing tenth in the championship.
Ward downsized his 2024 driving program, focusing solely on his full-time seat in the IMSA SportsCar Championship, where he again teamed up with Ellis. The duo, joined by Dontje and Daniel Morad, scored their second career class victories at Daytona to kick off the season, before following it up with another victory at Sebring in March. After two races, Ward and Ellis sat 180 points clear of their next-closest full-time competitors. Two races later, Ward returned to victory lane at Laguna Seca, before following it up with his fourth victory of the season in the ensuing race at Watkins Glen. With a runner-up finish in the next race at Mosport, Ward and Ellis entered the final four races with a 340-point lead over the second-place team in GTD. Though they would only stand on the podium once in the final four races, the duo clinched the championship following an eighth-place finish at Petit Le Mans, the first of Ward's career. At the end of the year, Ward was honored at Mercedes-AMG's Customer Racing ceremony, where he was awarded the marque's Overall Pro Driver and Pro Driver GT3 awards for 2024.
In 2025, Ward returned to defend his GTD title in the IMSA SportsCar Championship, paired again with Ellis for the full season. A challenging Rolex 24 kicked off the year, with the team rebounded from a seven lap deficit early in the race to finish fourth in class. A late charge from Ellis saw the team take their second consecutive class victory at the 12 Hours of Sebring, and two races later the team claimed their second straight GTD victory at Laguna Seca. Later that year, Ward also returned to the 24 Hours of Spa after a year's absence, driving alongside Ellis and Dontje.
Racing record Career summary Season Series Team Races Wins Poles F/Laps Podiums Points Position 2016 Pirelli GT3 Cup Trophy USA Kelly-Moss Road and Race ? ? ? ? ? ? ? 2017 Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge - GS CJ Wilson Racing 10 0 0 0 1 231 8th 24H Series - SP2 Mercedes-AMG Testteam Winward Racing/HTP Motorsport 1 0 0 0 0 ? ? 2018 Blancpain GT Series Asia - GT4 GruppeM Racing Team 2 1 1 2 2 40 12th Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge - GS Winward Racing/HTP Motorsport 8 0 0 0 1 151 20th International GT Open 2 0 0 0 0 0 NC† Pirelli World Challenge SprintX - GTS Pro-Am Winward Racing 2 0 0 0 0 14 44th DMV Gran Turismo Touring Car Cup - Class 1 HTP Motorsport 4 0 0 0 3 ? ? 24H GT Series - GT4 Team RACE SCOUT by Winward/HTP Motorsport 2 0 0 0 0 ? ? 2019 International GT Open Winward Racing 6 0 0 0 0 14 22nd 24H GT Series - GT4 1 0 0 0 0 ? ? Michelin Pilot Challenge - GS Winward Racing/HTP Motorsport 8 1 0 0 1 147 16th 24H GT Series - A6-Am 1 0 0 0 0 ? ? 2020 GT World Challenge America - Silver Winward Racing 4 0 1 1 4 72 2nd GT World Challenge America - Pro-Am 3 0 1 0 0 28 10th Michelin Pilot Challenge - GS Winward Racing/HTP Motorsport 10 0 1 0 2 224 7th GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup - Silver HTP Motorsport 1 0 0 1 1 27 15th Intercontinental GT Challenge 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC 24H GT Series - GT3-Pro HTP Winward Motorsport 1 0 0 0 0 ? ? 2021 GT World Challenge America - Pro Winward Racing 13 1 2 3 8 151 4th Michelin Pilot Challenge - GS 8 0 0 1 2 1890 12th Intercontinental GT Challenge 2 0 0 0 0 0 NC GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup - Silver Winward Motorsport 5 0 0 0 1 32 15th IMSA SportsCar Championship - GTD HTP Winward Motorsport 3 1 0 0 1 598 36th 2022 IMSA SportsCar Championship - GTD Winward Racing 12 2 3 2 3 2714 5th GT World Challenge America - Pro732261546th GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup100000NC Intercontinental GT Challenge201011515th 2023 IMSA SportsCar Championship - GTD Winward Racing111012256210th GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup500000NC GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup - Gold Cup0101497th Le Mans Cup - GT3200010NC† Intercontinental GT Challenge10000130th2024 IMSA SportsCar Championship - GTD Winward Racing1040063266 1st2025GT World Challenge Europe Endurance CupWinward Racing100000NC IMSA SportsCar Championship - GTD10300431031st2026IMSA SportsCar Championship - GTDWinward Racing1051063078 1st † Guest driver ineligible to score points. * Season still in progress.
Complete GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup results Year Team Car Class 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Pos. Points 2020 HTP Motorsport Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo Silver IMO NÜR SPA6H SPA12H SPA24H LEC 15th 27 2021 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo Silver MNZ LEC SPA6H SPA12H SPA24H NÜR CAT 15th 32 2022 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo Gold IMO LEC SPA6H SPA12H SPA24H HOC CAT 21st 12 2023 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo Gold MNZ LEC SPA6H SPA12H SPA24H NÜR CAT 7th 492025 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 EvoGold LEC MNZ SPA6H SPA12H SPA24H NÜR CAT 18th 5
Complete IMSA SportsCar Championship results (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) Year Team Class Make Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Rank Points 2021 HTP Winward Motorsport GTD Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8 DAYSEB MDO DET WGL WGL LIM ELK LGA LBH VIR PET 36th 598 2022 Winward Racing GTD Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8 DAY SEB LBH LGA MDO DET WGL MOS LIM ELK VIR PET 5th 2714 2023 Winward Racing GTD Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8 DAY SEB LBH MON WGL MOS LIM ELK VIR IMS PET 10th 25622024Winward RacingGTDMercedes-AMG GT3 EvoMercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8 DAY SEB LBH LGA WGL MOS ELK VIR IMS PET 1st 32662025Winward RacingGTDMercedes-AMG GT3 EvoMercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8 DAY SEB LBH LGA WGL MOS ELK VIR IMS PET 1st 3103 2026 Winward Racing GTD Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8 DAY SEB LBH LGA WGL MOS ELK VIR IMS PET 1st 3078
References
External links Russell Ward at Speedsport Magazine