Alec Udell Returns to Home Track with New Porsche and New Partner Loci

March 21, 2018 | Austin, Texas | Alec Udell, the 2016 Pirelli World Challenge (PWC) GT Cup Champion, returns to the PWC this weekend for a pair of races at his home track, the Circuit of the Americas (COTA), with new partner Loci. Udell, who lives in The Woodlands, Texas, will race the No. 41 Loci Porsche 911 GT3 R prepared by GMG in the first two rounds of the 2018 PWC SprintX Championship. The 21 year-old Clemson University senior will co-drive with Porsche Young Professional Mathieu Jaminet of France for both of the 60-minute events that constitute the Grand Prix of Texas to be held on March 24 – 25.

The weekend returns Udell to the cockpit of a Porsche racecar with new marketing and technical partner Loci. LOCIsearch (https://loci.io) is designed to reform the inventing process through simplifying the process and making it efficient, thereby increasing the possibility of new inventions, innovations and inspiring the next big idea. John Wise, a former automotive engineer and now CEO of Loci, developed the ideas behind LOCIsearch directly from his experiences in the automotive and racing industries. Loci is working alongside traditional processes to increase opportunities for inventors and innovators across industries like racing. In fact, the combination previously worked together in Udell’s 2016 PWC Championship-winning season when Wise was working on the Udell-driven Porsche.

The main patent “System and method for fuzzy concept mapping, voting ontology crowd sourcing and technology prediction” has guided LOCIsearch product development from the beginning. The ideas covered in this patent have been researched and developed since 2008 by the Washington, D.C.-based company.

Udell and Jaminet will compete in the Pro-Pro class of the GT SX category. Neither has raced together previously but at similar ages and backgrounds, the pairing is expected to gel quickly. While this is Udell’s first race of the season, he has been heavily involved in coaching, including multiple days at COTA. Additionally, he maintains a full class load as a senior in mechanical engineering at Clemson.

Udell has 17 class victories in PWC including two GTA class wins driving a 911 GT3 R last season. He also captured his first career overall PWC podium at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and three top-five finishes in the SprintX Championship in 2017. At the season’s conclusion, Udell was awarded the “Hard Charger” Award for the most positioned gained throughout the year.

SprintX, a championship within a championship for North America’s premier sprint format GT racing series, mandates two, 60-minute races per weekend, each requiring a pit stop with a driver change. Rounds 1 and 2 of 10 are scheduled for the 3.4-mile, 20-turn circuit near the Austin International Airport. Testing is set for Thursday, March 22 with official practice getting underway on Friday morning at 10:45 a.m. CT. A second session will be held later that day at 3:55 p.m. Qualifying is slated for 10:15 a.m. Saturday, March 24 followed by Race 1 from 3:45 – 4:45 p.m. that afternoon. The grid for Sunday’s Race 2 will be based on the fastest race lap for each car in Race 1. The 60-minute second race will take the green flag at 2:10 p.m.

Alec Udell |
about the SprintX race at COTA| “This weekend would not have been possible without the hard work from all our supporters. I have to especially thank David Haicjek, Jon Soto and Carlos Sanchez from M Performance in Houston, Nev Agass and Mike Zaric with GMG as well as Alan from Mystery Wraps. Their tireless work on the Loci Porsche to get it prepped in a seemingly impossible amount of time is extremely appreciated. Because of them we will be able to get Mathieu and myself out on the track for the first Sprint X weekend at my home circuit. I cannot express how thankful I am to have such a dedicated group of people from several organizations working together to accomplish this feat.”

about teaming with Loci | “Motorsports is about innovation, ideas and speed. That is exactly what Loci has brought to the patent industry. As an engineering student, I am naturally drawn to invention and the most efficient way to do something. As a racer, I am constantly seeing the quick way we attack and solve a problem in the sport. As an automotive engineering and motorsports guy, John Wise created Loci with those exact principles. Loci allows engineers, developers and inventors of all types create and protect their ideas in a quick and cost effective way. This is a perfect fit for putting them in front of their potential clientele and vice versa here in the World Challenge paddock. Not only does it make sense in this way, but I’m especially excited to be able to work with John again as he was a part of my championship-winning season in 2016. We’ve been a great team together in the past as a mechanic/driver dynamic so I’m excited to see what the future holds! I am looking forward to my first chance to represent Loci here at my home event.”

John Wise, CEO, Loci | “Alec’s an impressive guy who is a hell of a driver. He represents the people we're focused on collaborating with because he's an aspiring engineer and innovator."

about Alec Udell |
Alec Udell is a junior studying engineering at Clemson University. The 21 year-old from The Woodlands, Texas began his racing career in karting at age five. He went on to win the Rotax National Points Championship in 2008 and represented his country as part of Team USA in Egypt in the World Championships in 2009. By 2011, he made history by becoming, at the time, the Pirelli World Challenge’s youngest ever competitor at age 15. He has 17 career Pirelli World Challenge class wins and is the 2016 PWC GT Cup Champion.

about Loci |
Loci, a Northern Virginia based company is breaking down the barriers of innovation with blockchain technology. With LOCIsearch, their powerful and proprietary tool, inventors can search, stake, and sell their ideas.

John Wise, a former automotive engineer and now CEO of Loci, developed the ideas behind LOCIsearch directly from his experiences in the racing industry. Loci is working alongside traditional processes to increase opportunities for inventors and innovators across industries like racing. For more on Loci, please visit https://locipro.io and on Twitter at @Loci_io.

Bio and Images Available Upon Request

More information on the 2018 Pirelli World Challenge can be found at www.world-challenge.com.

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