🇲🇽 Joel Cortes

Joel Cortes holds a Racer Rating of 3,301, which places him in the semi-professional band; this means he is a competitive amateur typically racing in pro-am and one-make classes, capable of beating some professionals but operating below the full-time professional level. The FIA Bronze grading confirms his status as an amateur sportscar driver racing alongside professionals in endurance racing. His record spans two seasons in GT America from 2025 to 2026, during which he has scored two podium finishes from twelve starts without a race win.[1]

Cortes has raced primarily for the RS1 team, which maintains a competitive record in the championship with 36 wins across its roster. His typical performance places him fifth on average across classified finishes. In head-to-head racing against his most frequent opponents, Cortes shows a mixed record against drivers of similar standing. He has finished ahead of Kyle Washington four times in eleven shared races, and achieved three victories over Scott Blind across six races despite Blind's considerably stronger credentials as winner of multiple one-make championships. However, he trails Memo Gidley heavily, the 2023 GT America SRO3 champion rated at 4,913; Cortes has beaten him once in twelve meetings but finished behind Gidley eleven times, reflecting a significant gap in racecraft and consistency.

His most recent activity in 2026 saw him score one podium finish across six rounds while holding seventh in the championship standings. Cortes remains a developing competitor in the GT America field, demonstrating occasional flashes against stronger rivals but establishing himself as a back-of-the-grid presence in a series where Gidley has dominated with multiple wins throughout the season.