The founder of the O’Gara Coach Company – the industry leader in the high-line and exotic car segment including Lamborghini, Bugatti, Rolls-Royce, Maserati, Aston Martin and Ducatti – O’Gara has become a championship-winning driver and team owner in only a handful of seasons.

O’Gara Motorsport recently concluded its second season in professional racing by capturing the team and driver championships of the Lamborghini Blancpain Super Trofeo North America series. The California-based team won by 21 points over Change Racing, 150-129, while driver Richard Antinucci won the Huracán Pro drivers title with 147 points. O’Gara also finished first and fourth in the Huracán Amateur drivers’ standing, where Ryan Ockey edging Dr. Jim and Josh Norman by three points, 139-136, followed by his brother Damon Ockey with 123.

Now, O’Gara is ready to take the next big step, entering the No. 69 Lamborghini Huracán GT3 in the GT Daytona (GTD) class of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.

“The objective is to build a professional race team, just like we built a successful sales, service, marketing and finance organization,” O’Gara said. “We’re number one in all the brands that we represent, if not in the world, in the Western Hemisphere. The race team is an example of that. The drivers get a lot of the attention, but everyone on the team plays a critical part in making it happen – just as in our dealership operations.”

Only a few years ago, O’Gara was at a Lamborghini demonstration in a parking lot at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where he took advantage of an opportunity to get behind the wheel of a race car. Thrilled by the experience, he decided to take the next step.

“We’re a Lamborghini dealer, and we want to be supportive of the brand, so getting into Super Trofeo was natural as the company went in that direction,” said team owner Tom O’Gara.

O’Gara partnered with another team for two seasons – with O’Gara himself capturing the Amateur championship in 2013 – before forming O’Gara Motorsport in 2014.

“We learned a lot about Super Trofeo, and we were able to go to ACI Vallelunga Circuit in Italy in 2013 for the World Championships,” O’Gara said. “That was our first exposure through conversations that the GT3 was coming. That was two years ago.”

A happenstance meeting at last year’s Petit Le Mans helped O’Gara find his eventual drivers for the WeatherTech Championship program.

“Townsend Bell and Bill Sweedler stopped by at Road Atlanta,” O’Gara recalled. “We sat down and started talking, and they asked me how the GT3 program was coming along at Lamborghini. I told them what I knew about the program, the development of the Huracán and the expectation. Bill and Townsend were both very interested, and asked me to keep them informed. They shared my thoughts on the potential of the program, and thought it was an interesting opportunity.”

This past season, while O’Gara Motorsport was winning the Super Trofeo North America title, Bell and Sweedler won the 2015 GT Daytona championship co-driving a Ferrari 458 Italia for Scuderia Corsa. In the meanwhile, they kept up their conversation with O’Gara.

“We’ve talked for the last two years,” O’Gara said. “As the car developed, I kept the conversations going. They are the only guys I’ve spoken to about it, quite frankly. When the car became available, we continued to discuss it.”

At the most recent Petit Le Mans, the move by the GTD champions to a new team was one of the hottest rumors in the paddock. One month later, Bell and Sweedler got their first taste of driving the Huracán GT3 at the WeatherTech Championship test at Daytona, where they drove a car provided by another team.

“Bill and Townsend were already committed to our program at that point, but the test put a big smile on their face,” O’Gara said. “They both loved the smoothness of the car. We’ll put in a few more days [testing at Sebring] in the factory car, and then we’ll begin a series of tests with our own car in California.

“Racing at this level is a highly competitive event, and having a fast car is just one element in it,” O’Gara said. “But having a fast car and having drivers who are happy is another element that looks like we have covered. We’re excited. I think we will be as competitive as anyone out there.”

In addition to running the Huracán GT3 in GTD, O’Gara Motorsport will also run four cars in Super Trofeo North America for 2016.

“For Daytona, we’re only capable as a team of running one car, putting together our best effort for Sweedler and Bell,” O’Gara said. “I would anticipate – sooner rather than later in the season – picking up a second car for GTD.”

O’Gara finished 11th in the 2015 Super Trofeo North America Pro-Am standings, missing the final three races due to an accident at Road Atlanta. Now, he’s nearly fully recovered from the incident.

“I’m feeling much better,” O’Gara said. “The IMSA people were incredible in the way they took care of me and the follow-up. I was hurt worse than they originally thought, so that was enormously helpful. It was a big hit and I can’t drive until the end of the year, but I’ll be fine.”