- Ricca Autosport Secures Stellar Race 1 Win
- Hyundai and Acura Fill the Podium
- Race 1 Results
The opening race of the 2025 TC America powered by Skip Barber season took place on Friday afternoon at Sonoma Raceway, showcasing great battles throughout the field, and a strong surge to victory lane from last year’s champion Jeff Ricca.
After starting from pole position, Jeff Ricca powered away and immediately began focusing on building a gap to the rest of the field in his No. 78 Ricca Autosport Hyundai Elantra N1 TC. As he continued to power through each corner, the fights gradually started to unfold for the remaining positions.
Michael Garcia was calm and collected on board his No. 07 Skip Barber Racing Acura Integra Type S, holding steady in second place. PJ Groenke began to apply pressure in his new No. 76 Ricca Autosport Hyundai Elantra N1 TC EVO, but eventually came under threat from his teammate CJ Sepulveda in the No. 77 entry.
A tight battle shaped up between the two teammates for third place, and with only one lap remaining, Sepulveda managed to find a way past into the final spot in the Top 3.
Jeff Ricca kept it smooth and steady, crossing the finish line to take home the win in Race 1, just as he did this time last year. Garcia maintained composure and claimed second as the checkered flag waved, fending off Sepulveda in third.
When reflecting on his race, Jeff Ricca exclaimed: ”It was awesome. We worked very hard over the off-season. We did a lot of development work with the guys in Korea. This new package, the one-class format is going to grow and it's going to be great throughout the year. Hats off to the guys in Korea, Germany and Hyundai USA."
“ It was my first time competing in the TC category, and it was so much fun,” said Michael Garcia. “I’m new to front wheel drive, so I had a lot to learn, especially from (Jeff) Ricca. He did a great job as well. The race was so much fun. I used my rear mirror quite a bit with PJ (Groenke), who was right behind me.”
“I'm incredibly excited, extremely grateful, but I'm not nervous anymore,” expressed CJ Sepulveda. “I'm really happy. This is a dream come true. It’s my first time in SRO, first time in TC America, first time in Sonoma, so my first ever race. Getting a podium is an amazing experience, and I couldn't do it without all the people who support me back home in Puerto Rico.”
“I want to thank Victor Gonzalez who got me to this position,” he continued. “I made a pass at the end, and I had my crew chief on the radio calling the laps left in the race. I knew it was either now or never. Throughout the whole race, I was watching PJ's pace, and the Acura. I saw where I could pick up the pace a bit and where I was trailing behind. All I did was set up comfortably and then lined myself up to get him in the brake zone. I put my nose in, and the rest is history.”
Let’s Get Racing
The TC America powered by Skip Barber field will return to the track for Race 2 on Saturday morning, March 29th at 11:20 AM PT.
If you can’t make it to Sonoma Raceway, be sure to tune-in to SRO’s free live streams all weekend long on YouTube (GTWorld) and Twitch (SROMotorsports) and follow all the action through our social media channels and the event hashtag #GTSonoma.