Global Motorsports Group Announces Three Car World Challenge Team for 2010

SANTA ANA, Calif. -- Coming off of its strongest season yet in the World Challenge Championship, Global Motorsports Group is announcing its return to the championship for the 2010 season.

GMG, based in Southern California, will return with a trio of Porsche 911 GT3s to compete in the World Challenge GT class. Leading the team will be team owner and driver James Sofronas of Newport Beach, Calif. Sofronas enjoyed a stellar 2009 season, in which he scored wins at the Long Beach Grand Prix and at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca on his way to finishing a career-best second in the championship.

Joining him will be series veteran Dino Crescentini, of Manhattan Beach, Calif., who is back for his third season in the Stoptech/GMG Porsche 911 GT3. Crescentini scored a win in 2009 at Watkins Glen International Raceway, on his way to finishing the season in ninth place. In the third GMG Porsche will be William Ziegler, the 2009 World Challenge Rookie of the Year. All three cars will be outfitted with GMG’s line of World Challenge parts, StopTech brakes, Sparco safety gear and BBS wheels. GMG also enjoys a close association with Porsche Motorsports North America.

“There is no doubt that World Challenge is one of the most competitive and demanding racing series in North America,” said Fabryce Kutyba, co-owner of Global Motorsports Group. “This allows us to develop and test our World Challenge line of components and complete packages for Porsche cars. GMG’s products are the direct result of our involvement in motorsport, and through this race winning experience we are able to develop the best products in the world to enhance performance and maintain factory reliability.”

“We are very happy and proud to announce that we are returning to World Challenge GT with all three of our 2009 drivers for this season,” said Sofronas. “World Challenge has been the foundation on which we have built our race team and our Porsche product line. GMG World Challenge parts can be found not only on our race cars, but our customer’s street and race cars. We are excited to see what 2010 holds for us.

“On a personal level, I can’t wait to get back into the No.14 GMG Porsche GT3 and fight for a championship. Finishing second last year and getting those two wins was great, but now it is time to go after the top spot at the awards banquet. I can’t wait for the lights to go out in St. Petersburg.”

Sanctioned by SCCA Pro Racing, the 12-race 2010 World Challenge Championship begins March 26-28 with a doubleheader race weekend at the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. For more information, please visit www.world-challenge.com.


Source

Level 5 Motorsports enters ALMS LMP Challenge class

Level 5 Motorsports, which finished third overall in Grand-Am's Rolex 24 at Daytona last month, confirmed on Thursday that it will join the American Le Mans Series' Le Mans Prototype Challenge class for 2010.

Based in Madison, Wis., Level 5 will compete in the full nine-round championship with Oreca's FLM09 prototype.

Team owner Scott Tucker and former 24 Hours of Le Mans winner Christophe Bouchut will compete for the full season. The duo plans to participate in the ALMS's annual winter test Feb. 22-23 at Sebring International Raceway in Florida. Level 5 is the sixth team to purchase an Oreca-built LMPC racer. Other teams that have purchased LMPC cars for 2010 include Green Earth Team Gunnar, Intersport Racing, Genoa Racing, Primetime Race Group and P1 Motorsports/Mathiasen Motorsports.

"We are excited to be racing at Sebring this year in the new Le Mans Prototype Challenge class," said Level 5 team manager David Stone, who has an extensive history of competing in the International Motor Sports Association, which sanctions the American Le Mans Series. "The new LMPC class has certainly been intriguing since it was announced last year. The number of cars continues to increase each week, which should make for some great competition."

New for 2010, the LMPC class features ORECA cars with a minimum weight of 1,984 pounds and about 430 hp. The FLM09 features a full carbon-fiber chassis, carbon brakes and an Xtrac sequential gearbox with paddle-shift actuation. All LMPC cars will race on spec Michelin tires.

Tucker has spent time behind the wheel of an FLM09. He posted two second-place finishes at the Paul Ricard circuit in France during the Le Mans Winter Racing Series despite never having set foot in the car.

To read more visit the AutoWeek ALMS racing news and reports section.


Source