Jagger Jones won more IMSA races than any other driver throughout the organization’s many championships last season.
Racing the No. 87 Duqueine D08 LMP3 for FastMD Racing with Remstar in the VP Racing Challenge series, the son of IndyCar and IMSA champion PJ Jones and grandson of Parnelli Jones used his turn from open-wheel racing to IMSA’s developmental categories to establish his name in endurance competition.
The invitation to race for FastMD came after the season-opening doubleheader at Daytona, and despite starting with a massive deficit in the championship, Jones went on to claim seven poles and eight wins from 10 races and secure second in the standings.
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Now, the 22-year-old is on the hunt for his next opportunity, with the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship holding the most interest for the open-wheel, oval, and off-road racer.
“I really enjoyed my first year in the IMSA paddock and in the sports car world,” Jones told RACER. “I’d done a lot of the open-wheel stuff the past couple years, but what makes the most sense is LMP2 for next year. I’ve talked to a few teams, but not too far along the road yet. But that’s where I think would be really good for me.
“About two weeks before the second weekend for the VP Challenge series in March, I had no racing plans. Nothing lined up for the entire year, and the FastMD team called me. They had a driver fall through that they planned on doing the year with, and they called me two weeks before the race. I knew I had to go out and win, and I did, won both races at St Pete, and it led to do the next two races at Mid-Ohio. Won both of those races, and they invited me to come do the full season, and I was able to bring them a Teams’ championship.”
Jumping into an LMP3 car for the first time at his first VP Challenge event was made easier due to the wide array of racing experience Jones accrued in recent years. Like his father, who went from junior open-wheel racing to IMSA where he set GTP track records and won numerous races as part of the All American Racers Eagle Mk III-Toyota program, Jagger has grown comfortable racing whatever’s put in from of him.
“I think coming from the open-wheel background helped me a lot, but I’ve also driven a variety of different cars, from stock cars to off-road stuff; a bit of everything, and I think I’ve been able to adapt well to new vehicles” he said.
“The prototype fits my driving style really well. And the LMP3 car has been really quick all year, and I knew as long as I didn’t make mistakes, we’d have a really good chance to win every single race.”
Jones hopes to put all he learned in the VP Challenge series to use if he can land an opportunity in IMSA’s top category.
“What I learned the most this year is how to control races, how to push when you need to, maybe conserve a bit when you have a lead, and how to take the checkered flags,” he said. I learned how to win a race by three seconds instead of by 20 seconds, and that you don’t have to take the risk when it’s not needed.
“I learned a ton with the traffic, and I think that was the biggest difference from beginning to the end of the year, and where I would make up the most time in the races, picking through traffic, timing the runs. I think that’s what separated me from the field.”