Sofronas Wins Carrera Cup Pro-Am at COTA Season Finale

GMG Racing Founder James Sofronas won Saturday's Pro-Am race from the pole in the No. 14 Mobil 1/GMG Racing Porsche 911 Cup at the season-ending IMSA Carrera Cup North America weekend at Circuit of The Americas, finishing in the top 10 overall behind nine Pro drivers. It was the last weekend of 2026 national series competition for GMG Racing, and the win capped an in-season comeback: Sofronas had contested only the opening Carrera Cup doubleheader at Sebring International Raceway before a non-racing injury sidelined him for six months.

"Winning cures a lot of ailments, pain and frustration," Sofronas said after Saturday's victory.

He added: "It was great. I feel great, and my last Carrera Cup race was in March at Sebring, and even that was after off-season shoulder surgery. I am a different driver now. I have been training hard and testing with my son, Jenson, who has been pushing me. The car was just fantastic. Tate Fredlow and the guys have prepared a car that has more potential than I could get out of it, but I am getting faster and faster."

A Spin on Sunday

Sofronas started Sunday's 35-minute final race from the Pro-Am pole and led his class on the opening lap. Two Pro-class cars came together as he was passing, and one of them tapped the No. 14 into a spin. He continued last in Pro-Am, near the back of the overall field, and recovered to second in class by the checkered flag.

Sofronas said: "I was able to get back up to second after the spin, the car was not quite right after taking the hit, but we will take the win and P2 finish."

Sofronas raced solo for GMG Racing on Sunday. Longtime teammate Kyle Washington was uninjured but sidelined after a multi-car incident that ended Saturday's opening race under caution.

A Win Every Season

The victory kept alive a streak of at least one Carrera Cup win a season for Sofronas and GMG Racing since the team entered the series at the 2023 COTA finale, where he won both Pro-Am races. He opened 2024 at Sebring International Raceway with his third series win in a row, a perfect three-for-three to start. GMG Racing now has 11 career Carrera Cup victories, eight of them Sofronas', and the win solidified his standing as the only active Carrera Cup driver in any class with a victory at each of the three North American Formula One venues the series has visited this season or in recent years: Miami, Montreal and COTA.

Washington still had his best season to date with GMG Racing. A little over two weeks earlier, he, Ayhancan Güven and Riccardo Pera won the Indianapolis 8 Hour overall in the No. 32 GMG Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo, the first major endurance race win for Washington and GMG Racing, clinching the 2026 GT World Challenge America Pro-Am driver and team championships. That same weekend, Sofronas and his son Jenson co-drove for the first time and won the Am class in Friday's McLaren Trophy America season finale.

Sofronas said: "It has been a great year and we are looking for an even better one in 2027."