Sep 26, 2024
Supply, North Carolina – McCumbee McAleer Racing (MMR) with AEROSPORT, is thrilled to announce that Sam Paley will join Jenson Altzman in the No. 13 Ford Mustang GT4, sponsored by Vervantis, for the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge season finale at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta, October 9-11, 2024. The dynamic duo will compete in the Fox Factory 120, marking an exciting new chapter in MMR's competitive history.
Paley, a standout talent from MMR’s Sports Car ladder system, debuted with the team in 2021 in the MX-5 Cup Championship, where he finished 5th in the standings in both his rookie and sophomore seasons. After a brief hiatus in 2023, Paley returned to racing this year in the Mustang Challenge Series. Earlier in August, Paley and Southern Paley Motorsports announced their strategic partnership with MMR for the remainder of the 2024 IMSA Mustang Challenge season, kicking off their collaboration efforts with a weekend sweep, where Paley took both races’ wins, at Road America. Now, back once again with MMR with AEROSPORT, he steps up to the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge to co-drive alongside Altzman for the final round of the season.
"Racing in the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge has been a goal of mine since I transitioned to sports cars in 2020," said Paley. "Jenson and I have talked about teaming up in GT4 since we became teammates in 2021, and I couldn’t be more excited that it's finally happening. I’m grateful to Stevan, Chad, Stu, and everyone at McCumbee McAleer Racing for helping me prepare for this opportunity over the past four years. With the foundation I've built competing in the Mustang Challenge, I’m confident we have a competitive package heading into Road Atlanta."
Altzman, who has been a key part of MMR’s IMSA effort this season, is eager to welcome Paley to the GT4 program. "As Sam mentioned, this one’s been a long time coming; he was one of my first teammates when I started racing cars, and it didn’t take long before we were bouncing ideas off one another on how we could make a Michelin Pilot Challenge ride work. Awesome opportunity to finally make that happen, and the fact that we’re still with the same team makes it even better! Excited to get the Gen 7 Mustang GT4 to Road Atlanta for the first time and see what we got!" he finalized.
Chad McCumbee, team owner of MMR, expressed his enthusiasm for Paley’s participation in the GT4 program. "Sam joining our GT4 team has been a discussion since the program’s inception. Over the past few seasons, he’s consistently proven himself in IMSA, and it’s a great moment to see another MMR ladder driver rise to the higher levels of the sport," McCumbee said.
Co-owner Stevan McAleer added, "We’re super excited to have Sam in the GT4 at Road Atlanta. The Mustang has performed well there in the past, and with Sam's speed and experience, I’m confident we’ll be competitive. It’s always great to see MX-5 Cup graduates succeed in our program."
The final round of the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge, the Fox Factory 120, will take place at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta from October 9th-11th. The action kicks off with practice sessions on Wednesday, followed by qualifying on Thursday. The race itself begins at 12:45 PM ET on Friday, October 11th, with live coverage available on Peacock starting at 12:40 PM ET.
