- Late Caution Cuts Short Washington’s Challenge for the Lead After Battling for The Victory from the Drop of the Green Flag in Sunday’s Second and Final 40-Minute GT America Powered by AWS Sprint
- James Sofronas Leads Saturday and Joins Washington on the Podium Sunday in the No. 14 GMG Racing Audi R8 LMS GT3 EVO2 Only to be Sidetracked by Aero Issues and Hit with a Restart Penalty
AUSTIN, Texas (May 19, 2024) – Kyle Washington capped a competitive and milestone month of May with a season-best second-place finish Sunday in his No. 32 GMG Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R in the second and final 40-minute GT America powered by AWS race of the weekend at Circuit of The Americas (COTA).
Building on a sixth-place finish in Saturday’s first GT America sprint, Washington started fifth on Sunday and began a run to the front from the start. The front runners scrambled when the outside front row starter overshot Turn 1, and Washington jumped to fourth and then passed series veteran Johnny O’Connell in the fast downhill run into Turn 2. Washington then passed his current coach, friend and teammate James Sofronas in the No. 14 GMG Racing Audi R8 LMS GT3 EVO2 a few laps later to move into second.
“Circuit of The Americas is one of my favorite tracks, if not my favorite,” Washington said. “Everything is bigger here, the GMG Racing guys set up the car in tip-top shape, and on Sunday I found myself running up front with Johnny O’Connell and James. Johnny O was one of my very first coaches, and obviously I now work with James everyday, so there is no bigger goal than to get in front of those two, and I had an opportunity to do that today. It felt amazing!”
With Sofronas racing as Washington’s “wing man” in third just ahead of O’Connell, Washington immediately took the fight to the leader but a string of late caution incidents interrupted the battle for first and ended the race under caution.
“The number one goal of our racing program, and one of my top priorities with our customers, is driver development,” said Sofronas, GMG Racing Founder and Team Principal. “Whatever I can do to help them along and expedite the process and learning curve, that’s what I will do, and I noticed Kyle had significant pace on Sunday. I wanted to give him a chance to chase down the leader and I covered his back when we were racing on track. Kyle was nipping at the leader’s heels, and with a little more time I think he could have won the race. We are at mid-season, but I am only doing select races and really helping Kyle develop. To see him get a P2 overall was really a win in my book. It was a victory for our program and what we are trying to do.”
Sofronas crossed the finish line in third and joined Washington on the podium only to be assessed, along with O’Connell and several others, a restart procedure penalty that dropped him down in the finishing order. Sunday’s disappointment followed another heartbreaker in Saturday’s race when Sofronas held the lead only to be slowed by a loose aerodynamic diffuser under the back of the car. Sofronas nursed the stricken Audi to the finish to salvage a fourth-place finish.
“We had pace on Saturday to win,” Sofronas said. “We had it covered up front, but in racing things happen, and we had a diffuser come loose while leading. The car was basically undriveable, but we still held on for fourth place. On Sunday, we had decent pace and made it to the podium with Kyle but later were hit with a restart penalty that I thought was somewhat questionable. In the end, it is all about customers and how they finished. Overall, I am happy with the results from the weekend.”
In addition to the GT America success, Washington also co-drove with coach and first-year co-driver Tom Sargent in the COTA weekend’s 90-minute Fanatec GT World Challenge America races in the Type 992 No. 32 GMG Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R. Both drivers and the GMG Racing team continued to make progress and learn the Type 992 Porsche with a weekend-best seventh-place result Saturday in the just the third GT World Challenge race weekend together for Washington and Sargent.
Washington and Sargent combined for a pair of fourth-place Pro-Am finishes in the GT World Challenge races preceding COTA two weeks ago at Sebring International Raceway. The season-best GT World Challenge finishes began a three-week May stretch of top results for Washington that included Sunday’s runner-up finish at COTA and a Porsche Sprint Challenge USA West Masters class victory in a GMG Racing Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car at Utah Motorsports Campus last weekend.
Next up for GMG Racing is the IMSA Carrera Cup doubleheader at the Canadian Grand Prix Formula 1 race at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal, June 7 – 9.
Washington will drive the No. 32 GMG Racing Porsche 911 GT3 Cup in the Masters Class while Ofir Levy and Sofronas compete in the Pro-Am division in Montreal. Levy looks to build on a solid seventh place finish in his Carrera Cup debut earlier this month at the Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix in His No. 3 GMG Racing Porsche 911 GT3 Cup. Sofronas wheels the same No. 14 GMG Racing Porsche 911 GT3 Cup he drove to the Pro-Am victory in the season-opening race in Sebring in March.
About GMG Racing: Founded in 2001, GMG Racing quickly established itself as North America’s premier performance tuning facility. What began as a small 1,200 sq. ft. shop, maintaining two race cars, has grown into a 30,000 sq. ft. state-of-the-art performance tuning, racing and service facility located in Santa Ana, California in Orange County and with a trackside motorsports facility at 28,000 sq. ft. currently being built at The Thermal Club. The staff, attention to detail, and passion are what make GMG the choice of professionals and enthusiasts worldwide. GMG, in its early years, was located directly across the street from Porsche Motorsport North America (PMNA). This close proximity allowed GMG to build a strong relationship with the legendary racing brand which has helped us support our customers to the highest level possible. From club racing to Sebring, Daytona and Spa, GMG can take you as far as you want to go. More information can be found at www.gmgracing.com.
