Horton AutoSport
Team Principle and Engineer John Horton, a former Indy Car crew chief, has campaigned numerous race cars in different professional series, most recently making his mark in World Challenge, Grand Am and ALMS by running successful programs with great financial efficiency. With over 20 years experience in the automotive world and the prestigious ASE Master Technician title, Horton enjoyed the success of more than 52 top 10 finishes, and 15 podiums.
In 2009 Horton AutoSport pitted a Mazda touring car against the factory efforts of Acura, BMW and Mazda. With just one other crew member and driver Patrick Lindsey, the team consistently out-qualified and out-finished the competition and showed what was possible with minimum investment. In 2010 the team campaigned a Porsche in the GT class and enjoyed qualifying in the top 3 for the majority of the races, finishing in the top 5 for every race completed and finished on the podium twice. In 2011 Horton was recruited to engineer a Ford mustang in World Challenge GTS. Through Horton’s expertise, the team managed to secure 2nd in driver points with 6 podiums, and 2 wins. Simultaneously, Horton was hired by Mazda to develop and engineer a 4 car Grand Am Mazda team, Freedom Autosport. He helped secure the manufacturer’s championship for Mazda and Freedom with numerous podium finishes and wins. In 2012 Horton AutoSport campaigned a 2012 Rolex spec Porsche GT in Grand Am consistently being the fastest Porsche.
Building on consistent success, 2013 is poised to be the team’s best year yet as they race in the Grand Am Rolex GT Series, featuring drivers Patrick Lindsey and factory Porsche’s Patrick Long in a 2012 Porsche. Within the ranks of the World Challenge and Grand Am series, the Horton Autosport team is known for thinking outside the box and ultimately being the most competitive car out of the gate at any given venue.