McLaren Trophy America will welcome back three of its inaugural champions as Alexandra Hainer, Jesse Lazare and Casey Dennis return to the grid, adding another layer of intrigue to the closing stages of the 2026 season.
Hainer and Lazare established themselves as one of the strongest combinations in the 2025 Pro-Am category, building momentum with victories at Circuit of the Americas before carrying their title challenge through to the season finale at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Their consistency and speed ultimately delivered the championship in dramatic fashion, with the Pro-Am crown decided during the final weekend of the year. Hainer’s performances were also significant in their own right, with her 2025 success making her the first female race winner in a McLaren since Mia Flewitt’s British GT victory at Oulton Park in 2020.
After making an appearance at the Formula One support race in Miami earlier this year, Hainer and Lazare are set to return to McLaren Trophy America for the final five races. Their presence adds further experience to a field built around the McLaren Artura Trophy Evo, a 620 PS, twin-turbo V6 race car designed to deliver performance approaching GT3 levels.
Also returning is 2025 Pro class champion Casey Dennis. Dennis shared the title-winning campaign with James Li last season, with the pair making an immediate impact through victories at Sonoma Raceway and Circuit of the Americas before sealing the championship at Indianapolis.
As team boss of Racewerks, Dennis has been a consistent figure in the McLaren Trophy America paddock, but Road America will mark his return to the driving seat as he partners with Edmond Barseghian. Barseghian has already competed in McLaren Trophy America during the 2026 season, giving the new pairing an existing foundation to build on as Dennis steps back into the championship.
The combination brings together a reigning Pro champion and a driver with current-season mileage, giving Racewerks an experienced line-up as the campaign enters its decisive phase. Dennis’ familiarity with the Artura Trophy Evo, together with the racecraft that helped deliver last year’s title, should make the pairing one to watch from the outset.
For fans of the championship, their return creates fresh combinations and renewed rivalries as the battle for honours intensifies ahead of rounds seven and eight at Road America in Wisconsin from August 28-30.