The UAB Medicine GT World Alabama benefiting Teal Wings of Hope officially commenced on Thursday at Barber Motorsports Park, with GT America powered by AWS taking to the track for Practice 1 under the afternoon sun. Known for its flowing corners, elevation changes, and scenic 880-acre parkland setting, Barber provides a challenging backdrop as the championship enters its penultimate round of the 2025 season.
Blake McDonald set the benchmark early on and held firm at the top of the timesheets, steering the No. 11 DXDT Racing Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R to a session-best 1:22.599 lap time. His Corvette led the field with title contenders and veteran names, outdoing Memo Gidley in the No. 56 SKI Autosport Audi R8 LMS GT3 EVOII.
The final five minutes brought a shuffle at the sharp end, as Justin Rothberg surged forward in the No. 29 Turner Motorsport BMW M4 GT3 to slot into second place, bumping Gidley to third and Ross Chouest to fourth. Chouest, fresh off his maiden SRO3 class victory at Road America, looked strong in the No. 50 Chouest Povoledo Racing Corvette before the late changes.
Rothberg’s charge meant that three different manufacturers were represented in the top four, Chevrolet, BMW, and Audi, signaling a competitive weekend ahead. Kyle Washington rounded out the top five in the No. 32 GMG Racing Porsche 992 GT3 R.
Further down the order, Jason Bell piloted the No. 2 Racers Edge Motorsports Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 EVO as he looked to rebound from a challenging weekend in Wisconsin. The session also marked the first appearance of the year for Joel Cortes in the No. 19 RS1 Porsche 992 GT3 R. Farhan Siddiqi, in the No. 20 FASTMD Racing with Remstar Audi R8 LMS GT3, completed the field to close out Practice 1.
Let’s Get Racing
The GT America powered by AWS series will return to the track for Practice 2 on Friday morning, September 5th at 8:25 AM CT.
If you can’t make it to Barber Motorsports Park, be sure to tune-in to SRO’s free live streams all weekend long on YouTube (GTWorld) and Twitch (SROMotorsports) and follow all the action through our social media channels and the event hashtag #GTBHM.