One of the breakout teams from 2015’s Continental Tire Series championship will return for its second season of IMSA action with a pair of Porsche Caymans. James Clay’s Next Level European team won using the venerable mid-engine Porsche platform during its Championship debut in the Street Tuner class, and will embark on a new quest for the ST title using a remarkably familiar lineup.

Clay’s racing teams have always thrived on consistency, building from one season to the next with a continuation of the most positive aspects from the previous season. Year two for NLE will follow that practice as the inseparable duo of Seth Thomas and Dan Rogers continue in the No. 38 Porsche Cayman, and Greg Liefooghe, who placed the No. 83 Red Line Oil Porsche in Victory Lane, is also back. He welcomes Ari Balogh to IMSA in the No. 83 for 2016.

“The biggest change you will see with the NLE team for 2016 is a flat-out approach to everything,” Clay said of the general approach heading into the new season. “We entered the Porsche program with maybe a misunderstanding of the status quo, but in 2015, we learned our Porsche racecars, and learned a bit about racing a Porsche as well. We now have the foundation to run these cars the way we run a car, and I think we will see some impressive results.”

The addition of Balogh to NLE marks the only major change to the team as it prepares for the first race later this month in Daytona Beach.

“We thrive on consistency, constantly making improvements from a stable platform,” Clay continued. “Our entire 2015 team is back with a couple of personnel changes, and of course Ari in the No. 83 Red Line Oil car. Ari has an incredible passion and drive to succeed, and we are working to develop an expanded testing and development program even more intensive than usual for us. Our team goals are lofty, and in every position on the team, we are focused on achieving it.”

For Thomas and Rogers, 2016 represents a new opportunity to earn more wins and put some of the less satisfying aspects of 2015 in the rearview mirror.

“Last year, Seth and I just seemed to be ‘snake bit,'” Rogers said. “It was brakes at Daytona, fuel at Sebring, getting hit by an out-of-class car at Laguna, etc. By the end of the season, however, we hit our stride, with solid results at VIR, Austin, and Road Atlanta. Some of that was just putting our heads down and getting the car figured out, and some of it was driving changes on my part. We plan on continuing that trend into the new season, and are looking for some great results for the season!”

Thomas relishes the chance to get a Championship run under way with his trusted co-pilot.

“Part of being successful in racing is to develop great partnerships with sponsors, your team, and your co-drivers,” he said. “Dan and I have had a lot of success in the years we have been teammates. We start by working together at club races in the off season and between races to keep each other up to speed. Then when we are at the track with our NLE Cayman we both are ready to fight for wins and podiums when it counts. 2016 should see us continuing this trend and helping to develop the Next Level European winning path of success.”

Liefooghe had the No. 83 Red Line Oil Cayman near the top of the ST standings for most of 2015, and with plenty of success turning IMSA newcomers into race winners, he and Balogh are primed to continue that tradition.

“Ari and I have been working together for the last year in a different series, and we are going into the season already having a good base and understanding how each other work, which is an advantage,” he said. “It will be a big year with an aggressive schedule including a lot of traveling to learn the East Coast tracks but I know that with his dedication and passion, Ari is up for the challenge. We will be focusing on the learning process this year and I’m expecting the process will yield results along the way.”

Balogh’s previous training with Liefooghe in highly competitive club racing series should pay off once they embark on the new season of IMSA competition.

“Greg has been an incredible coach, and taught me so much about getting pace, race craft, learning new tracks, and staying calm under pressure,” Balogh said. “Racing in ST is such a huge step up in competitiveness, with so many great drivers and at many tracks I’ve never run. This will test everything Greg has taught and more. I’m going to give it my all to get pace quickly on all the new tracks, make sure I’m predictable and can be trusted by other drivers to race hard, and turn over the car to Greg in a reasonable position and in great shape. It’s been a lifelong dream to race, and I feel so privileged to be racing with NLE in a premier series with such a great teammate.”