JDX Signs Mexican Standout Perez de Lara For 2016 Season

JDX Racing will return to the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge by Yokohama championship for the third straight year. JDX is honored to continue its partnership with The Hertz Corporation, now entering its fifth consecutive year. JDX Racing is also excited to announce the signing of sports car ace Ricardo Perez de Lara. Ricardo will pilot the No. 02 JDX Racing / Hertz Porsche starting this weekend at Sebring International Raceway, kicking off the 2016 season campaign.

The Mexican standout Ricardo Perez de Lara, affectionately known as "RPL" is a native of Mexico. Ricardo began his racing career in South America, with back to back Formula 2 and Formula 3 Championships. Perez de Lara will make his JDX Racing debut after most recently winning the 2014 IMSA Ferrari Challenge championship, along with the 2014 Ferrari World finale in Abu Dhabi. RPL has experience in both endurance and sprint racing, spanning North America, South America and Europe.

Perez de Lara commented, “This is an incredible opportunity for me - thank you to Hertz and JDX Racing. We tested the No. 02 JDX Racing / Hertz Porsche last month at the winter test, which was my first exposure to Sebring and the Porsche GT3 Cup car. The track is very bumpy with a number of surface changes, so I took the opportunity to build confidence, without trying to go for a fast time. We have a good baseline so I'm comfortable heading into the season opener. JDX Racing claimed five race wins and more than a dozen podium finishes last year, so of course I'm looking to continue building on that success. I'm so excited to be in this series - JDX and I are going to work extra hard to represent Hertz, Porsche, the team and series with great pride."

"We look forward to another successful year partnering with JDX Racing," said Hertz Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Matt Jauchius. "Our sponsorship provides an outstanding opportunity to highlight the Porsche vehicles available to rent in our Dream Collection. Porsche's track-bred technology and class-leading performance offers a truly unique driving experience to Hertz customers."

Team principal Harrison Brix said, “Ricardo is new to the series, but certainly not new to racing. He has won a number of Championships over the past several years, most recently right here in IMSA, in 2014. Testing here last month was extremely valuable for both him and our race engineer, Luke Goldenstein. We still have plenty of work ahead of us, but Ricardo is a consummate professional, I have no doubt he will get settled right in and make a charge to the front of the field at the drop of the flag."

The green flag for the first two rounds of the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge USA by Yokohama are scheduled for March 16-18 at Sebring International Raceway in Sebring, Florida. Both races are timed, 45-minute events that support the WeatherTech Championship Sebring 12-Hour race on Saturday, March 19. Live timing and scoring will be available on IMSA.com.

Stay tuned to jdxracing.com, follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/jdxracing and on Twitter @jdxracing for more news, announcements and imagery from the 2016 race campaign. Over the air television coverage is available on the Sinclair Broadcast Group family of stations, available in over 80 markets across the United States and represented by 154 stations. In addition races may be viewed live on-line and are archieved at isma.tv.