Record 41-Car Field Set for Sebring Season Opener

Photo: Jessica Johnk/Porsche

A total of 41 cars are set for this week’s Porsche Carrera Cup North America season kickoff at Sebring International Raceway, marking a new record for the championship, which begins its fourth season.

Porsche’s premier North America single-make series will also feature the debut of Yokohama as its new tire partner, replacing Michelin, as part of a new multi-year agreement.

The 3.7-mile Florida airfield circuit, which has been home to Carrera Cup’s season-opener since its launch in 2021, will feature a number of new and returning faces to the grid, with 17 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup cars competing in the Pro class, 14 in Pro-Am and ten entered in the new-look Masters division.

While Riley Dickinson will not defend his overall title, Kellymoss is set to field a total of five cars, including a Pro entry for Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup ace Loek Hartog.

JDX Racing has four cars in the top class, including the returning Elias De La Torre and Alex Sedgwick, who are joined by Porsche Sprint Challenge North America by Yokohama graduates Zachary Vanier and Madeline Stewart.

Sabre Cook has moved from Kellymoss to MDK Motorsports, which has seven entries, the same number as the expanded ACI Motorsports effort that includes Jimmy Llibre in the Pro category.

Michael Cooper is set to return with Baby Bull Racing, while Rearden Racing, Topp Racing Performance, and McCann Racing are also all back for action.

GMG Racing is set for a two-car entry spread across Pro-Am and Masters, with team owner James Sofronas entering the No. 14 Porsche, with Kyle Washington in Masters.

Mark Kvamme, meanwhile, will defend his title in the class, formerly known as Am, driving for his MDK outfit, although 2023 title rival and teammate Scott Noble will not return.

Several teams still have to-be-confirmed drivers in the entry list, which was released last week.

Pre-Event News & Notes:

***With the start of the 2024 season, Porsche Carrera Cup North America will take on a new naming structure for one of its three classes. While Pro and Pro-Am remain the same, the class formerly known as “Am” is now Masters.

***Pro: The highest level of competition in Carrera Cup North America. The class is recognized through its orange color scheme. The car entry number will be delineated in orange on the doors, the windshield and rear glass. Headlight covers will be clear with orange cross-marks.

***Pro-Am: Restricted to drivers who are 35 years or older as of Jan. 1, 2024. The class is recognized through its green color scheme. The car entry number will
be delineated in green on the doors, the windshield and rear glass. Headlight covers will be clear with green cross-marks.

***Masters: This class is open to drivers who are 50 years old or older as of Jan. 1, 2024. The class is recognized through its yellow color scheme. The car entry number will be delineated in yellow on the doors, the windshield and rear glass. Headlight covers will be clear with yellow cross-marks. Class was formerly known as “Am.”

***Carrera Cup North America held its two-day open test at Sebring on March 4-5. Gustav Burton (No. 47 MDK Motorsports) led the way turning a time of 2:03.188. Alan Metni (No. 99 Kellymoss Porsche) charged to a 2:04.250 lap time as the fastest Pro-Am driver. Matt Halcome was quickest in the Masters class (No. 55 ACI Motorsports) with a lap of 2:04.589 seconds. All of the quick laps were set in the fourth of five sessions.

***Five drivers on the entry list consider Florida their home state: Elias De La Torre (Key Largo), Angel Benitez (Miami), Pedro Torres (Wellington), Moisey Uretsky (Miami) and Carlos De Quesada (Tampa).

***Since its inception, Carrera Cup North America has drawn interest from drivers around the globe wanting to test their mettle in the series. The 2024 season promises to be one of the most hotly contested with drivers from eleven countries entered.

***Mobil 1, a founding partner of Porsche Carrera Cup North America and an OEM partner to Porsche and Porsche Motorsport worldwide, will use the series to celebrate its 50th anniversary. Each car in the field will carry a gold Mobil 1 sticker to highlight the partnership between Porsche and the manufacturer of synthetic motor oil and other automotive lubrication products.

***Porsche Motorsport North America and Yokohama Tire Corporation announced a multi-year partnership expansion beginning with this weekend’s Sebring rounds. The premier one-make championship joins fellow Porsche Motorsport Pyramid North America programs, Porsche Sprint Challenge North America and Porsche Sprint Challenge USA West exclusively utilizing the Yokohama tire.

***The agreement gives Yokohama exclusive rights to market and sell competition tires on-site at all Porsche one-make championships in North America. Yokohama will provide the Advan A005 racing slick and Advan A006 tire for wet conditions on all Porsche 911 GT3 Cup race cars.

***The mission of Racing to End Alzheimer’s, the presenting charity partner of defending Am class champion Kvamme (No. 43 MDK Motorsports), is to increase awareness of this terrible disease while giving families a way to honor their loved ones in a very tangible way while raising funds for research and treatment. For a $250 donation, a loved one’s name is placed on the car as it races across the U.S.

***Two practices are set for Wednesday, with qualifying starting at 9:15 a.m. ET Thursday. Race 1 starts at 4:55 p.m.. Thursday, with Race 2 at 7:15 p.m. Friday. All races air on the Peacock streaming app, IMSA.tv and PorscheCarreraCup.us.

John Dagys

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John