The TC America Powered by Skip Barber field started off their day bright and early at Sebring International Raceway, with a total of 22 cars setting off for Practice One to get up to speed and master the bumpy terrain. The 30 minute session took place under bright blue skies as the temperatures gradually began to rise, and although a red flag briefly punctuated the session for a few minutes, the drivers made the most of the green flag running.
TCX
There were a number of drivers vying for the top spot on the leaderboard over the course of the session, but it was ultimately Colin Garrett, the current championship leader, who claimed the fastest lap of the session in his No. 44 Rooster Hall Racing BMW M2 CS (Cup). With a time of 2:19.172, he was separated from the No. 26 Rigid Speed Company BMW M2 CS (Cup) of Lucas Catania by 0.177 seconds.
Dai Yoshihara followed closely in third place on board his No. 99 VGRT Honda Civic Type-R, sitting just 0.057 seconds behind Catania. The Top 5 was completed by Kenny Schmied in the No. 14 AOA Racing BMW M2 CS (Cup) and Maddie Aust in the No. 09 Fast Track Racing BMW M2 CS (Cup).
TC
Drivers in the TC class were separated by the smallest of margins, with Celso Nato snagging first place in his No. 7 Skip Barber Racing School Honda Civic Type-R by just a mere 0.017 seconds over Jeff Ricca in the No. 78 Genracer / Ricca Autosport Hyundai Elantra N TC.
The times between the remaining drivers in the Top 5 were also very tight, with Clayton Williams taking third place in the session in his No. 60 MINI JCW Team Mini JCW Pro TC, while his teammate Cristian Perocarpi sat just behind in his No. 37 MINI JCW Team Mini JCW Pro TC, with the duo looking very evenly matched. Sally McNulty followed suit in fifth in the No. 780 GenRacer Hyundai Veloster N DCT TC.
TCA
There was a lot of back and forth in the TCA class as well, but it was William Lambros who rose to the top in his No. 77 Skip Barber Racing School Honda Civic Si FE1. Devin Anderson and Spencer Bucknum followed in second and third place in the No. 22 TechSport Racing Subaru BRZ and the No. 5 LA Honda World Racing Honda Civic Si FE1, with the championship battle between the two frontrunners continuing to ramp up with each and every session.
P.J. Groenke set the fourth-fastest time in his No. 62 MINI JCW Team Mini JCW, and Shaoyi Che finished the opening practice session in fifth place in the No. 23 TechSport Racing Subaru BRZ.
LET’S GO
The series takes to the track later today for Practice Two at 2:15 p.m. ET. Fans can follow progression with Griiip Live, live timing. The studio makes it easy to follow class battles, lap times, and pit strategy for the five SRO America series.