Just days after the conclusion of Sunday’s chaotic Grand Prix of Long Beach, Global Motorsports Group (GMG) will head to this weekend’s Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama with two freshly prepared machines. Determined to return to the podium, not only will James Sofronas and his Audi R8 LMS ultra look to capitalize after his season-best performance on Sunday, but the team will also welcome the return of 19-year-old Alec Udell after being forced to miss the most recent round.

“I know there’s been a lot of attention focused on Long Beach, but in truth it was a good event for us, and we’re excited to get back to racing this weekend.” stated GMG team owner and driver James Sofronas. “Our team is firmly engrained in the tradition of the Pirelli World Challenge, and let’s hope that legacy is even furthered this weekend. Historically this has been a great circuit for us, most notably last year when Andrew took that great last-lap victory, and we should be able to see success this weekend. It’s great to see Alec back as well. It was such a rough way to go out at St. Petersburg that all of our hearts sank when we realized the extent of the damage, but everyone’s done a great job of getting everything back on form and hopefully Alec can return where he left off in Austin.”

With the series returning to a natural terrain road course, the first since the season opener in Austin, the 17-turn, 2.38-mile road course has historically favored the prodigious Audi R8 LMS ultra. In his first visit to the circuit last year, GMG’s Andrew Palmer instantly proved the strength of the car, running up front all weekend and ending the weekend with a spectacular last-lap pass over the Ferrari of Anthony Lazzaro. Driving the No. 14 Mobil 1 / The Thermal Club / Spyder Audi R8 LMS ultra, James Sofronas will be GMG’s sole Audi entrant this year, with a keen focus on taking his first podium of the year.

After a devastating first lap incident during Round Three on the streets of St. Petersburg, Alec Udell will once again return to the No. 17 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup 991. Competing in the one-make GT Cup class, formed exclusively for Porsche 911 GT3 Cup machinery, Udell looks to get his season back on track after a frustrating three weeks. Taking repeat podium performances during the season-opening rounds in Austin, the Texas native was caught in a start-line incident during Round Three at St. Petersburg. With an errant Lamborghini smashing Alec’s Porsche into the track’s inside retaining wall, the damage proved so extensive that he would not only have to miss the following day’s Round Four, but the entire Long Beach Grand Prix weekend. With his car now completely repaired and ready for action, the Clemson University student is focused on a return to form.

“It’s difficult to describe the last few weeks, but we’re very fortunate to have everything back on track,” stated Udell. “Sitting on the sidelines is always very tough, but thankfully it’s all behind us now, and we can just concentrate on the weekend ahead. I can’t thank everyone at GMG enough for their patience in this process, and hopefully we can reward the guys with a good finish. Barber is always a great place to drive, and in a Porsche it should be especially interesting. My experience here should hopefully play to an advantage, and I’m anxious to get out there and push.”

The first official practice for the MOMO Grand Prix at Barber Motorsports Park presented by Porsche begins today at 10:45 AM CDT, with Race One taking place at 11:20 AM on Saturday. Race Two will take place less than 24 hours later, with the events scheduled to start at 10:55 AM. Live race coverage can be found at world-challengetv.com, as well as continued reports throughout the weekend through GMG’s Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook accounts.