- Double wins for Yoshihara at the Brickyard in TCX
- Neto claims first win in TC Class
- Williams clinches TC title
- Bucknum sweeps the weekend and claims hard-fought TCA championship
The TC America Powered by Skip Barber field wrapped up their weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and their championship season, on a cloudy Sunday morning. A cool breeze blew across the track for Race Two, and the 40-minute concluding event ran green all the way, with swings in momentum across all classes all the way to the finish line.
Daijiro Yoshihara completed a clean sweep of the weekend in the TCX Class, while Celso Neto claimed his first win of the season in the TCA Class. Spencer Bucknum claimed the win and the TCA Class title after another nail-biter of a race.
TCX
Race One winner Daijiro Yoshihara started on pole position in his No. 99 VGRT Honda Civic Type-R TCX, and although he got a good start as the green flag waved, Colin Garrett in the No. 44 Rooster Hall Racing BMW M2 CS (Cup) and Kenny Schmied in the No. 14 AOA Racing BMW M2 CS (Cup) were quick to raise a challenge and put their rapid pace to good use.
The trio continued to battle, swapping positions back and forth in the opening laps. Yoshihara eventually settled into a speedy rhythm and was able to propel himself back up into the top spot and set off on the clear road ahead, further establishing a six second gap by the halfway mark.
The Japanese driver was simply untouchable, even going on to set the fastest lap of the race with a couple of minutes remaining before going on to cross the finish line to secure his second win of the weekend at the Brickyard. Colin Garrett also went on to pick up his second podium of the weekend, while Schmied completed the Top 3.
TC
It was a dramatic start in the TC Class, as the No. 37 MINI JCW Team Mini JCW Pro TC of Cristian Perocarpi made contact with the No. 78 Genracer/Ricca Autosport Hyundai Elantra N TC of Jeff Ricca, which resulted in left front damage for Ricca while Perocarpi was forced to retire from the race.
Celso Neto was therefore promoted into the lead in his No. 7 Skip Barber Racing School Honda Civic Type-R, with Clayton Williams looking to capitalize in the No. 60 MINI JCW Team Mini JCW Pro TC as he sought after the last crucial championship points. Ricca was able to recover and hang on steadily in third position, but ultimately was unable to close in on Williams ahead.
Neto completed a flawless drive to clinch his well-deserved first victory of the 2023 season. Williams stood alongside him in second on the podium, in addition to claiming the TC Class championship title over long standing competitor Ricca, who took the final step of the podium.
TCA
Spencer Bucknum led the pack in his No. 5 LA Honda World Racing Honda Civic Si FE1, and initially had a comfortable gap between himself and fellow championship challenger Devin Anderson in the No. 22 TechSport Racing Subaru BRZ, who started in sixth position following a grid penalty.
However, Anderson quickly got up to speed and had already navigated his way up to third place within the first five minutes of the race. From there, he pulled off another overtake on William Lambros in the No. 77 Skip Barber Racing School Honda Civic Si FE1, and now set his sights on his championship rival ahead.
The battle ramped up as the 10-minute mark approached, as Anderson closed the gap and came side by side against Bucknum, with the two getting their elbows out and sending bodywork flying as they pushed and shoved each other throughout each corner.
It was a hard-fought, unrelenting fight to the line, and as Bucknum took the checkered flag to claim his second win of the weekend, he also finalized his claim over the TCA championship title. Anderson put up a great fight and finished second in Race Two and runner-up in the standings, with Lambros doing the same in third.
The 2023 Season
The calendar is complete for the TC America Powered by Skip Barber series. Competitors will celebrate their season’s end in a lavish SRO Motorsports America prize-giving ceremony. Then, all attention turns to 2024.