After a season-long battle which came down to the very last race of the year, Spencer Bucknum crossed the finish line in his No. 5 LA Honda World Racing Honda Civic Si FE1 at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway to clinch the TCA Class title in the TC America Powered by Skip Barber Racing championship.
With five wins and eight podium finishes in the 2023 season, Bucknum finished in the Top 3 in all but one race this season. His consistency and tenacity proved to be invaluable, as every single point was vital in order to maintain his advantage to the very end.
Winning the championship was no walk in the park either, as Bucknum found himself accompanied by the ever-competitive Devin Anderson as the two remained neck and neck in the standings across each and every round. It wasn’t until he crossed the finish line at the Brickyard that he could finally breathe a sigh of relief, a testament to each and every hard fought moment over the course of the year.
“The pressure was on until the very end,” said Spencer Bucknum. “We had great battles all year long and I knew it was important to get the best results I could achieve. I just tried to focus on consistency and that’s what helped us win the championship this season.”
Bucknum had his fair share of challenges to overcome as well, with setbacks forcing him to dig deeper than ever. Although it wasn’t always smooth sailing, the support from his team combined with his competitive spirit enabled him to stay on target.
“VIR in particular was a tough weekend,” Bucknum explained. “I made a mistake in the first event which resulted in me hitting the wall and I wasn’t able to finish the race. The LA Honda World team did an incredible job getting the car back together for Race Two. I started further back in the pack and was able to make my way back up to P2. Without those valuable points in the second race, we would not have been able to win the championship this year. The ups and downs from that weekend were tough but the whole team helped me to stay motivated and fight for a podium.”
However, all the hardships were worth it once he took the checkered flag in the final event of the season to add a championship title to his name.
“The emotions absolutely hit me when I crossed the finish line to win the championship,” he expressed. “All the hard work we put in round after round truly paid off and it meant so much to me and the team. I couldn’t have done it without everyone on the LA Honda World crew. It was anything but an easy year and to grab the championship was an awesome way to cap off the 2023 season!”