The Trans Am Series saw its first Champions of the year crowned as the Series completed its first ever appearance at NOLA Motorsports Park. Both Lee Saunders and Ernie Francis, Jr., captured their respective Championships in the TA3 International and American Muscle Groups—clinching their titles with two rounds remaining in the 2015 season.
While the race didn’t yield optimal results for Saunders, driver of the No. 84 Landsearch LLC Dodge Viper, as he missed out on the podium for only the second time this year, his prior success on the season required him to merely take the green flag to secure the International Group Championship for himself and Dodge.
“It’s just amazing; it hasn’t really set in yet,” said Saunders. “I mean I grew up loving Trans Am. The first car I ever had was a Plymouth AAR Cuda, which was built specifically by Chrysler to homologate it for the 1970 Trans Am Season, so I’ve always loved Trans Am. I watched the Archers run the shell zone Daytonas in the Series in the 90’s; I never thought I would ever even get the opportunity to start a Trans Am race, never mind win a championship—it truly is a lifelong dream come true.”
For Saunders the Dodge badge means more than simply a ride, it’s a legacy for him—a make instilled in him at the youngest age by his father and a brand that represents more than just a racecar. Securing the International Group Championship for both himself and Dodge is truly meaningful to Saunders and is an honor that resonates with him to his very core.
“I’m a dyed-in-the-wool Chrysler guy, a MOPAR guy,” said Saunders. “My dad was one from the beginning and he made me one too. He passed away this year, so we’ve dedicated this whole year to him…and it’s just been an emotional year. To win one for Dodge, for MOPAR, in a Viper, which I love, it’s really amazing. It’s hard to quantify, and for all the guys in the Viper Club and all the guys back at Chrysler who engineered the car, it’s a truly amazing vehicle and it’s truly an honor to drive.”
For Ernie Francis Francis, Jr., the day ended in yet another victory, his seventh of the year, and yet another Championship, despite running in second for the initial periods of the race. Still, when American Muscle Group leader Todd Napieralski, in the No. 39 Tremec/SKF/Backstreet Chevrolet Camaro, suffered a mechanical failure that led to overheating issues, Francis, in the No. 98 Breathless Performance Chevrolet Camaro, pulled into the lead and held it for the duration of the race, in turn securing his second consecutive TA3 American Muscle Group Championship at the age of only 17. Better still, Francis was joined on the podium by Breathless teammates Fernando Seferlis and Mel Shaw.
“This weekend really means a lot for our team. For us to get all of our drivers on the podium and for us to clinch the Championship, it really, well I can’t even find the words to describe it. The crew did a great job all season; they’ve worked so hard and have always had our cars running out in the front, so I just have to say thank you to them. To win two Championships in the Trans Am Series is pretty incredible. I’m pretty taken aback by it; again, I don’t know how to describe it, how to express it. At the end of they day, a lot of people worked hard to make this happen; and it feels great to make sure that all of that paid off.”
While the TA and TA2 Championships both seem ready to go down to the wire, Amy Ruman and Gar Robinson saw their own Championship hopes boosted by their victories at NOLA Motorsports Park.
Ruman finally rebounded to her winning ways in the TA class as she secured her sixth victory of the year, edging out fellow Championship contender Paul Fix for the top step of the podium. The win, while helping Ruman maintain her Championship points lead, also stood as a refreshing change of pace for Ruman who has been absent from the podium since her last victory at Brainerd International Raceway in Round 6.
Initially, it seemed that the TA glory was going to be Paul Fix’s. Fix, in the No. 4 StopFlex.com Chevrolet Corvette, as the Championship challenger began the race on pole and eventually opened up a four-second gap while Ruman battled back and forth with Tony Ave over second position. However, on the 27th lap of the race Ruman, then holding second, was able to capitalize on Fix’s misfortune in turn 10 and power into the lead, one she would not relinquish.
“We definitely needed this win, especially for the points chase,” said Ruman. “We couldn’t be more happy for this McNichols team—the President and CEO of McNichols is here this weekend to celebrate this win with us so I’m really excited about that. You know, we struggled a bit with setup herel; and we kept trying and trying things. We went out for the morning warm-up and felt like the car was pretty good, so we tried to stay with Paul throughout the race. While I still think he was the guy to beat today, he made a mistake and we capitalized on it. I’ve made some mistakes on the last few races and he was able to capitalize on those, so this time it was our turn. We’ve got two to go, and we’re still in it to win it.”
In a Championship race that has gone back and forth throughout the year, Ruman now believes that the momentum might be back in her favor as the season comes to a close.
“It’s funny in racing, results go in swings like that,” said Ruman. “Hopefully we can just keep moving forward and having good racing and finishing strong. I haven’t been to COTA before, so we’ll do our best to learn it quickly, Daytona we’ve been strong at in the past, and we won there last year. We got hurt in the points a little bit in the qualifier, qualifying third, but a win is a win and I’ll take it.”
Fix managed to recover with little difficulty, continuing in fourth and eventually working his way up to second by the time the checkered flag flew—securing his eighth podium of the year, keeping Ruman, and the Championship, well within striking distance.
Simon Gregg, driver of the No. 59 Derhaag Motorsports Chevrolet Corvette, joined them on the podium in his first top three appearance of the year, while Jim McAleese, in the No. 03 McAleese and Associates Chevrolet Corvette, and John Baucom, in the No. 86 RoadRaceParts.com Ford Mustang, rounded out the top five for the TA class.
Now the two Championship contenders, Ruman and Fix, will head to COTA with 14 points between them, setting the stage for one of the closest TA Class Championships in recent times.
In TA2, Rookie Gar Robinson captured his second win of the season, helping him, and the No. 74 74 Ranch Resort Chevrolet Camaro, close the gap on current points leader and two-time TA2 Champion Cameron Lawrence.
“We came into this race and we knew Adam was right behind us in points; after VIR he had really closed the gap on us,” said Robinson. “We knew this race was probably going to be the race to figure out who was going to be the main challenger for the Championship. Now we’ve got a points gap on Adam, and we’re closing the gap on Cameron. We’re just looking forward to taking this momentum to the top.”
Robinson ran nose-to-tail with fellow rookie and Robinson Racing teammate Shane Lewis, driver of the No. 72 74 Ranch Resort Chevrolet Camaro, for the entire duration of the race, overtaking Lewis on the 20th lap—a move later deemed the Cool Move of the Race, presented by CoolShirt Systems.
“Racing with, and battling for the lead with, a teammate proposes a big challenge. You obviously don’t want to ball up both the cars up because you know who’s working on them. We each give ourselves enough grace to race clean, have a good time and hopefully have a strong finish.”
Lewis would finish second, joining Robinson in a one-two finish for the team for his third podium finish of the year. Lewis also turned the fast lap of the race for the TA2 class, a 1:43.842. Joining the Robinson Racing duo on the podium was Adam Andretti, in the No. 44 Engineered Components Chevrolet Camaro, who managed to hold third position for the entire duration of the race on the way to his fifth podium of the year.
Cameron Lawrence, in the No. 1 MOPAR Dodge Challenger, would finish fourth while Lawrence Loshak, in the No. 5 Raybestos Powertrain/ Loshak Racing Ford Mustang, rounded out the top five in the TA2 class.
Lawrence’s finish helped him maintain his Champion lead, as he leaves NOLA with 259 points to Robinson’s 239. Andretti completes the three-way battle for the Championship with 228, creating an intriguing showdown for the trio with only two races remaining.
While Ernie Francis, Jr., and the Breathless Racing team secured a podium sweep in the American Muscle Group, it was Steve Streimer, in the No. 42 Lux Performance Dodge Viper, who was victorious on the day— capturing his second win of the year.
Streimer began the day in second position, starting alongside Lux Performance teammate, and polesitter, Cindi Lux, driver of the No. 45 Lux Performance Dodge Viper. Early on, Lux was comfortably in the lead, managing to keep a friendly distance between herself and her teammate, but unfortunately fell victim to mechanical issues on the 12th lap that ended her race. Streimer then assumed the lead and secured it for the remainder of the race.
“I’m really pleased with our finishes this year,” said Streimer. “I’m sorry to see my teammate not finish, she’s been my coach for years and she’s taught me a lot, but the important thing is we were there at the end. Today was really just about keeping my head up; I had a spotter telling me when the faster classes were crossing start-finish so I tried my best to pick the spots where they would pass me and go by.”
Streimer was joined on the podium by Carey Grant, in the No. 55 Courtyard Hotel by Marriott Porsche , making his first ever Trans Am podium appearance in the International Group or otherwise. John Gutleber, in the No. 89 Breathless Racing Chevrolet Corvette, finished third—his first podium appearance and fourth for the Breathless Racing team this weekend.
The race experienced three separate full course yellows and ended under yellow due to a grass fire with only two laps remaining. In total the field ran six of the 37 laps under a full course yellow.
About Me: Adam has been a race fan since the first time he went through the tunnel under the Daytona International Speedway almost 30 years ago. He has had the privilege of travelling to races all across the state of Florida (as well as one race in Ohio), watching nearly everything with a motor compete for fame and glory, as well as participating in various racing schools to get the feel of what racecar drivers go through every week. Adam has spent the last three years covering motorsports for Examiner.com., where he had the opportunity to see the racing world from behind the scenes as well as the grandstands. He invites everyone to follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and Google Plus, and looks forward to sharing his enthusiasm for all things racing with the readers of SpeedwayDigest.com.Be sure to tune in for his weekly sports talk program, Thursday Night Thunder, where he discusses the latest in motorsports news with drivers, crew members, and fans. The show takes place every Thursday at 8:00 pm EST on the Speedway Digest Radio Network.
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