Daytona Beach, Florida - Parents occasionally bring their children to work to get a glimpse of their professional life, but this will be a regular occurrence this year for Carlos and Michael de Quesada.

Carlos de Quesada and his son Michael will race together this season in the Ultra 94 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada by Michelin for Alegra Motorsports. Michael de Quesada, 16, will make his debut in the series in a Gold Cup car, while his father will remain in the Platinum Masters class. All classes in the series are on track simultaneously.

The elder de Quesada has proved his racecraft for the last three years in the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA)-sanctioned Single-Make Series. Now it's his son's turn to get a chance behind the wheel of a Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car.

"I do have experience racing, and I've attended a few racing schools," Michael de Quesada said. "I've competed in karting since I was 12. I also went to the Bob Bondurant racing school out in Arizona. Recently I did a F2000 race at Road Atlanta. It went really well. I finished 12th and 18th in Race One and the second race. I also raced a Miata at West Palm Beach."

Michael de Quesada's learning curve could be flatter than the typical 16-year-old rookie in the series. He has observed and watched the successful Alegra team - owned by his father - and understands what it takes to win. The younger de Quesada sees his father, who was 2013 Gold Cup champion and 2014 Platinum Masters runner-up, as a measuring stick.

"I might not beat him right away," de Quesada said. "We'll see. I'll have some work to do. I've never been in the car before, so I have a lot to learn. I might be able to take him in a turn, though."

The fun family rivalry will heat up once the 2015 season starts on Victoria Day Weekend, May 15-17, at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. Until then, de Quesada continues to study and prepare.

"Before the first race, I'm going to go out to Sebring for testing," de Quesada said. "So we'll see how it goes there. It will be my first time in a Porsche and first time at Sebring. I've watched my dad race a lot at that track. I've also worked with JF Dumoulin, Darren Law and Jan Heylen. I've had them out testing with me."

With all the preparations for the big first race at CTMP, de Quesada is getting more and more excited to be a part of Alegra Motorsports. It is the team he knows. It is the team he has grown up with. Best of all, there is something special about the Porsche he is racing.

"I'll be driving Spencer's (Pigot) car from two years ago," de Quesada said. "So that was my Dad's car from three years ago. I'm excited. I'm taking this matte purple scheme from my Miata. My car will be gold, purple and black. It'll be different than the rest of the team. It's new, exciting and cool."

Driving a race-winning car may create some high expectations for de Quesada in his rookie season. But he is confident for success due to the experienced, skilled Alegra team and his father's support.

"He's definitely inspired me because his parents didn't want him to race," de Quesada said of his father. "Just seeing how hard he's worked to do all that he has. I know how hard he's worked. Going to the tracks with him, the 24-hour races are insane races. I watched him race at Daytona, I watched him win there. My dad has, for sure, been an inspiration."

The biggest challenge now for de Quesada is adjusting to driving a Porsche and adapting to the intensity of the series. Those lessons will take time. But de Quesada still can't wait to get started, to fulfill a dream of racing with his father and possibly begin a career path as a professional driver.

"My goal is to learn as much as I can," de Quesada said. "We'll see how I do. I don't want to jinx it. I'd love to be in a GT car or prototype if I was given the opportunity. I'll go wherever the opportunity is."

The 2015 Ultra 94 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada by Michelin series starts on Victoria Day Weekend, May 15-17, at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in Bowmanville, Ontario.

For updates on the series, follow @IMSA on Twitter with the hashtag #GT3CAN and on Facebook. The latest news can be found by visiting IMSA.com.

Ultra 94 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada by Michelin

The Ultra 94 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada by Michelin enters its fifth season in 2015 ready to produce more intense, exciting competition for semi-professional and aspiring professional drivers in the world's most produced and iconic race car, the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup. The International Motor Sports Association (IMSA)-sanctioned series is one of Porsche's 20 global single-make Cup Challenge series and is the perfect platform for aspiring drivers to ascend to the highest levels of GT competition, such as the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship.

Racing is divided into two classes - Platinum Cup, featuring the 2014 and 2015 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car, which is based on the seventh, and current, generation of the street car; and Gold Cup, which is comprised of the previous iteration (model years 2010-2013) of the race car. A Masters Championship also is conducted in the Platinum class. Each class is awarded with its own podium at the end of every race and individual champion at the end of every season. Points are awarded by finish in class.

ABOUT IMSA

The International Motor Sports Association, LLC (IMSA) was originally founded in 1969 with a long and rich history in sports car racing. Today, IMSA is the sanctioning body of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship, the premier sports car racing series in North America. IMSA also sanctions the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge and the Cooper Tires Prototype Lites Powered by Mazda, as well as four single-make series: Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge USA by Yokohama; Ultra 94 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada by Michelin; Ferrari Challenge North America; and Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America. IMSA - a company within the NASCAR Holdings group - is the exclusive strategic partner in North America with the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO), which operates the 24 Hours of Le Mans as a part of the FIA World Endurance Championship. The partnership enables selected TUDOR Championship competitors to earn automatic entries into the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans.