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| James Sofronas | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | (1968-09-09)September 9, 1968 (age 57) Westchester County, New York, United States |
| GT America Series career | |
| Debut season | 2021 |
| Current team | GMG Racing |
| Racing licence |  FIA Bronze |
| Car number | 14 |
| Starts | 6 |
| Wins | 3 |
| Podiums | 4 |
| Poles | 3 |
| Fastest laps | 2 |
| Previous series | |
| 2020 2019 2019 2016, 2019 2014, 2021 2009, 2011–12 2009–12 2004–06, 2008, 2017–18 1994–2020 | GT Sports Club America GT Sports Club GT4 America Series Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America IMSA SportsCar Championship Rolex Sports Car Series American Le Mans Series Michelin Pilot Challenge Pirelli World Challenge |
| Championship titles | |
| 2018 2018 2017 2017 | Pirelli World Challenge SprintX – GTS Pirelli World Challenge – GTS Pirelli World Challenge – GTA Pirelli World Challenge SprintX – GT Pro/Am |
James Sofronas (born September 9, 1968) is an American racing driver and the founder of Global Motorsports Group.
Sofronas began his racing career in the early 1990s, purchasing aNissan NX 2000 which was eligible for theSCCA SSB category. In order to make enough money to race it, Sofronas worked as a salesman atPitney Bowes, using the street-legal car on sales calls despite the fact it had no air conditioning unit.[1] In 1994, he acquired an SCCA Pro Racing license and took part in theSCCA Pro Racing World Challenge, driving anOldsmobile Achieva in theSuper Production class, which he rented from Chuck Hemingson for $1,800.[2] In his lone outing that season atRoad America, Sofronas finished 9th in class.[3]
Sofronas began racing under the GMG Racing banner in the early 2000s; the team is used to advertise his auto tuning service he operates out ofSouthern California. He scored his first victory in the then-Speed World Challenge in 2008 atNew Jersey Motorsports Park, en route to a fourth-placed finish in the championship. He would finish runner-up in the GT class the following season, scoring two wins and four podiums.[4] That same season, Sofronas began competing in theAmerican Le Mans Series, beginning with a one-off appearance atLaguna Seca with co-driverBret Curtis, where the duo finished fifth in class. Sofronas and GMG Racing would continue to run a partial schedule in the series until 2012.
In 2017, Sofronas claimed a pair of titles in thePirelli World Challenge, claiming the overall GTA title and the SprintX GT Pro/Am title. Partnering withPorsche factory driversLaurens Vanthoor andMathieu Jaminet, Sofronas took the SprintX title by just 13 points overJan Heylen and Michael Schein. He scored 11 class victories in 19 starts between the two championships that season.[5] He followed his championship haul in 2017 with two more in 2018, this time competing inGT4 machinery. Sofronas and co-driver Alex Welch claimed the SprintX GTS title, while Sofronas alone won the GTS class title overall.[6]
In 2023, Sofronas began his 30th season of competition under the World Challenge/SRO America umbrella, fielding the firstAudi R8 LMS Evo II on American soil.[7] During theGT America Series event atCircuit of the Americas, Sofronas tallied his 350th World Challenge/SRO event appearance.[2]
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Sofronas and business partnerFabrice Kutyba foundedGlobal Motorsports Group (GMG) in 2001, an aftermarket tuning service with a particular focus on European luxury marques.[3] The two opened a shop in 2006, before upgrading to a 16,000 square-foot facility two years later.[3] In August 2021, GMG opened temporary 8,000 square-foot shop at the Thermal Club, with plans to have a 23,000 square-foot facility completed at the site by summer 2023.[8]
The company servicesPorsche,Ferrari,Audi,Mercedes-Benz, andBMW models, among others.[3] Services include standard maintenance such as oil changes, as well as performance tuning.[1] The group also operates a customer racing program in theSRO America umbrella of series, including theGT America Series,GT4 America Series, andGT World Challenge America.[9] Their racing endeavors are closely intertwined with their tuning operations, with a series of World Challenge-based performance products being released in 2008.[3] The team has won a number of titles in thePirelli World Challenge, including a 2017 GTSA class victory forGeorge Kurtz accompanying Sofronas' titles.[4] In 2021, the team added a title in the inaugural season of theGT America Series with customer driver Jason Bell.[10]
The team also works closely withAudi Sport, debuting and competing with the marque's racing cars. In 2012, GMG Racing became the first American providers of the newAudi R8 LMS GT3.[11] In September 2019, Sofronas took part in the global debut of theAudi R8 LMS GT2 at theCircuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.[12] At theSRO GT Anniversary, Sofronas fielded anAudi R8 LMS ultra, one of just two in the field.[13] Ahead of the 2023 season, the team acquired an Audi R8 LMS Evo II, and were awaiting delivery of a Type-992Porsche 911 GT3 R.[14]
In 2021, the team expanded their relationship with Italian manufacturerLamborghini, acquiring aHuracán GT3 Evo as part of a partnership withFFF Racing Team.[15]
* Season still in progress.
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position)
| Year | Team | Class | Make | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | Rank | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | GMG Racing | Challenge | Porsche 997 GT3 Cup | Porsche 3.6 LFlat-6 | MIL | LIM | MDO | ELK DNS | LGA 5 | 7th | 13 | |||||
| 2010 | GMG Racing | GTC | Porsche 997 GT3 Cup | Porsche 3.8LFlat-6 | SEB 7 | LBH 2 | LGA 10 | MIL 7 | LIM 4 | MDO 2 | ELK 8 | MOS | PET | 10th | 60 | |
| 2011 | GMG Racing | GTC | Porsche 997 GT3 Cup | Porsche 4.0LFlat-6 | SEB 8 | LBH | LIM 5 | MOS | MDO | ELK 4 | BAL | LGA 5 | PET | 15th | 36 | |
| 2012 | GMG Racing | GTC | Porsche 997 GT3 Cup | Porsche 4.0LFlat-6 | SEB 7 | LBH 4 | LGA 2 | LIM 3 | MOS | MDO | ELK 5 | BAL | VIR | PET | 9th | 49 |
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position)
| Year | Team | Class | Make | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Rank | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | GMG Racing | GTD | Audi R8 LMS ultra | Audi 5.2 LV10 | DAY 28 | SEB 11 | LGA | DET | WGL | MOS | IND | ELK | VIR | COA | COA | 79th | 22 | |
| 2021 | GMG Racing | GTD | Porsche 911 GT3 R | Porsche 4.0 LFlat-6 | DAY | SEB | MDO | DET | WGL | WGL | LIM | ELK | LGA | LBH 15 | VIR | PET | 72nd | 176 |
| 2022 | GMG Racing | GTD | Porsche 911 GT3 R | Porsche MA1.76/MDG.G 4.0 LFlat-6 | DAY 22 | SEB | LBH 10 | LGA 11 | MDO | DET | WGL | MOS | LIM | ELK | VIR | PET | 52nd | 323 |
* Season still in progress.
| Year | Team | Car | Class | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | Pos. | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | GMG Racing by Car Collection Motorsport | Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) | Pro-Am | MNZ | LEC | SPA 6H Ret | SPA 12H Ret | SPA 24H Ret | NÜR | CAT | NC | 0 |
*Season still in progress.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)We were second in '09, second in '13, so to win it here in the Pro-Am class was gratifying, because this year I did very little testing.
GMG Racing has opened up a temporary 8,000 square-foot shop at The Thermal Club ahead of plans for a dedicated 25,000 square-foot motorsports facility coming in summer 2023 according to team principal James Sofronas.
Besides Sofronas, GMG Racing services cars for three "arrive and drive" racers in the series, including William Ziegler, who finished eighth at Sebring, and Dino Crescentini, who was 17th.
As mentioned earlier, GMG Racing was the first provider of the Audi Sport R8 LMS GT3.