João Barbosa Making a Return to Le Mans

If absence makes the heart grow fonder then its easy to say, João Barbosa has his heart set on a victory in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The Portuguese driver who claimed every championship available last season in the IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar Championship will make his first return to the famed French circuit since finishing on the podium in 2011.

Barbosa will jump out of his familiar Mustang Sampling Chevrolet Corvette Daytona Prototype and slide into the Ligier JS P2 Judd of Houston based Krohn Racing. Barbosa will co-drive with Nic Jonsson and team owner/driver Tracy Krohn. For Barbosa, it was casual conversation about his desire to return to Le Mans led to an unexpected opportunity with the ultra-competitive team.

"Once you've competed at Le Mans the desire to return is always there," said Barbosa. "I believe the desire is even stronger when you had a podium finish in your last outing there, and I'm thrilled to be able to do the race with Nic and Tracy. I've competed against both guys so it will be nice to be on the same team for this event and finally get to know them on a more personal level.

"You always want to run Le Mans, but you want to do it in a car that is competitive, that is what made the decision to compete with Tracy Krohn so easy because I know they are fast. They showed us all their speed at Sebring this year, and they have been strong thus far in the WEC and ELMS races."

Although Barbosa will be busy defending his 2014 IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar Championship on May 30 in the Chevrolet Sports Car Classic on Belle Isle in Detroit, resulting in an absence from the Le Mans test on May 31, Barbosa will have plenty of experience to lean on for the race.

In his seven previous starts, Barbosa has a podium finish in 2011 and a career best finish of fourth overall in the 2007 event.

For Action Express Racing team owner Bob Johnson, having one of his drivers entered in a competitive car for one of the biggest races in the world is simply good for business.

"João has been a great driver for us since we formed Action Express Racing in 2010," said Johnson. "With our team not competing at Le Mans, it's terrific that we can still have representation with a guy that I think is one of the best drivers in the world.

"Our focus right now is on winning a second IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar Championship in our Mustang Sampling Corvette DP and we know that João's focus is as well, but we're excited to see what he can do with Krohn Racing in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Having raced against those guys, we know that they have the ability to win, and it will only be enhanced by adding João to their talented lineup of Nic Jonnson and Tracy Krohn."

Barbosa will be on track for the Chevrolet Sports Car Classic in Detroit on May 30 before heading to France to compete in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Barbosa, co-driver Christian Fittipaldi along with Frenchman Sébastien Bourdais have already teamed to win the Twelve Hours of Sebring this season in addition to a second place finish in the Rolex 24 at Daytona. The trio is leading the points for the Tequila Patrón North American Endurance cup, with Barbosa and Fittipaldi running second in the TUDOR Championship standings.

Contact:

Kyle Zimmerman

KZimmerman@hi-revracing.com

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