Virginia international raceway- MX-5 Cup Rounds 11 & 12
This past weekend at VIR was one of the most intense of the season, with record-breaking red flags and full-course cautions. That kind of “red mist” usually shows up late in the year as the championship battle heats up.
On Friday, we focused on pace and finding a drafting partner for qualifying, but with three red flags across both practice sessions, it was tough to get clean laps in. By the end of the day, we only logged about 10 laps total—far from ideal. I wasn’t where I wanted to be on the charts, so I shifted my focus to qualifying and Race 1.
Qualifying was bright and early Saturday morning at 8am. We barely got three laps in before another red flag—the fourth of the weekend. I was sitting P9, then we were given a one-lap shootout with just three minutes left on the clock. Unfortunately, my flyer was impeded in the final corner when a car hit the brakes to dive into pit lane. That ended qualifying with a disappointing P21. Upwards and onwards.
Later that afternoon, I felt confident in my race pace. I got a strong start, stayed in the lead pack, and picked up 10 positions to finish P11, with the 9th fastest lap. That meant I’d be starting Race 2 in P9. My goal was simple: stay in the top 10, improve my race craft in the front pack, and move forward.
Sunday didn’t go to plan. On the pace lap, while warming my sticker tires, I felt something odd. Turns out my left rear was going flat and spinning nearly 40mph faster than the other wheels inside the bead. That also knocked out my ABS in the left rear. Going into Turn 1 on Lap 1, we were four-wide, made contact, and I got pushed into the grass. By then, the tire had completely gone down. I limped it back to pit lane, the crew swapped it quickly, but the ABS issue remained. On my next lap, I locked up and slid into the tire barrier. Thankfully it was a slow hit and the car wasn’t badly damaged, but with no ABS (and a steering wheel knocked 30 degrees off), the car was undriveable, and we had to retire.
It was a tough way to end the weekend—sometimes you just get the short end of the stick. That’s racing. I’m already looking forward to Road Atlanta in October and ending the year on a stronger note.
Huge thanks to my partners for making this all possible: Coble Commercial Properties, AE Victory Racing, Collision Careers, The Kirby Foundation, Shift Up Now, and of course my dad.
See you all at Road Atlanta!
August 24, 2025
