2022 Spec MX-5 Challenge Season Recap
The 2022 season of Spec MX-5 Challenge turned into one of high-high’s and low low’s. We ended up winning the North Region Championship and went into Circuit of the Americas in a prime position to contend for the Overall. Unfortunately mechanical troubles would inevitably take us out of it. This is a recap of the 2nd half of the season and how we got there.
Road America - July 8th-10th
Road America marked a 3rd National Series stop for the Flatout Motorsports team. Coming off a successful Mid-Ohio, our hopes for good finishes were high. This was my first time at Road America so the test day was going to have to be important. Unfortunately, a leaking axle seal that we chased all day forced me to only get 3 or 4 full laps of practice. Luckily it felt like the car was going to be fast with very little adjustments necessary before race day.
In qualifying I put myself in a great position with my teammate Camden Gruber behind me to push on a track where draft is king. Ran a lap that was good enough for 2nd fastest despite my lack of practice. Unfortunately I only know this because of our data system, the transponder that feeds times to timing and scoring did not work so I would be starting last.
I was aggressive on the start and made up 6 spots in half a lap, placing me firmly with the lead back. A lap later that would end as an engine let go with no warning. This took us out of Race 1 and kept us out of Race 2. Huge blow considering the speed I had shown.
Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta - July 22nd-24th
Due to our misfortune at Road America, a choice was made to attend the event at Road Atlanta later that month. I chose to skip this one initially but I really like Road Atlanta and have raced it before. This would ultimately be a weekend to break in a new engine which would put the car well down on power. Despite this, I would still qualify 5th in a strong south region field.
Race 1 was a hard and exciting fight all race. Battling the 90+ degree Georgia weather and the cooling problems associated with it I only managed to get as high as 3rd before falling back into a battle for 4th. With only a few laps to go I slid on some oil while pushing hard in turn 5 and took a trip through the gravel. This would ultimately lead to a 6th place finish.
Race 2 would be equally as exciting. Made it all the way to the front on lap 1 and was actually 3 wide for the lead briefly. After settling in I lacked the power to fight back so I started slipping back, ending up finishing 6th once again. Not our best weekend but one that was expected since the engine was not running at full power yet.
Daytona International Speedway - August 5th-7th
Daytona would be the redemption story for the Flatout Motorsports Spec MX-5 team. The new engine was broken in and we were flying immediately. Worked on some drafting and was consistently towards the top of the time sheets on practice day.
In qualifying I found a familiar drafting partner and we took off. He would qualifying 1st and I would qualify 3rd in a perfect position for the races.
Woke up on race day with flu like symptoms and would have to tough it out through some hot Florida weather. It wouldn’t hold me back though. Race 1 was one of the most exciting races I have been a part of. Caution free throughout and I stayed top 3 the entire race. Me and eventual race winner Alex Berg would work together to make it a 2 car race for the win with me in 2nd coming out of the bus stop on the last lap. I would come up just .011 of a second short at the line and have to settle for 2nd. So close to a win and a photo finish that had no-one knowing who won until the timing posted.
The one unfortunate thing about Race 1 is I didn’t manage to get a great lap time so I would be forced to start 8th in Race 2. I had an aggressive start and made it up to 5th half a lap in when a full course yellow flew. We would sit under this caution for 23 minutes leading to a shootout for the win at the end. I quickly made up spots and on the last lap found myself leading the race with Alex bearing down on me in 2nd. He would pull out of the draft and get the advantage coming to the line but would also allow the pack behind us to close. I would finish 3rd in a 5 car photo finish.
Huge weekend for points and to bring home some trophies from one of the most famous racetracks in the world. I would go into Circuit of the Americas for the championship race 4th in overall points and a North Region Champion.
Circuit of the Americas - September 9th-11th
This would be a great event with the Spec MX-5 Challenge field sharing the weekend with the GT Celebration series at an F1 grade track. Practice would be tough as we battled the setup but finally made some good adjustments by the end of the day to have some confidence going into race day.
Qualifying would be decent as I got to 4th in a great position to contend for the lead. Race 1 started promising as well as a good start got me to 3rd briefly before issues began to arise. Before finishing the first lap the car would start cutting out in right hand corners. Forcing me to eventually just retire as I couldn’t keep any pace, ending my championship hopes.
We thought we figured out the issue but it was apparent after a hardship lap that it was an unfixable electrical issue. Luckily the Flatout Team had a 3rd, unused car at the track that I would be able to drive for Race 2.
Due to the backup car I would start last, but since this race was more or less going to be for fun I didn’t mind much. I drove from 18th to 6th in the first half of the race giving it my all in a car that wasn’t even fully set up the same as I was used too. The racing gods had it out for us though. My engine would begin to lose power and eventually give out in the last corner before the finish.
Such a disappointing end to the season but I am so proud of what both the team and I accomplished this season. From taking cars that were brand new to us at VIR to making them capable to winning races and championships in such a short time frame was impressive. The competition in this series is insane and it was so fun to be a part of.
I have to thank everyone that made it possible:
Flatout Motorsports
Grenon’s of Newport
Ikoniqa Motorsport Studio
Cambox
Toyo Tires
and so many others.
Thank you for all you have done for me and I am looking forward to bigger and even better things in 2023!