After a difficult three rounds of Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli competition, points leader Ernie Francis, Jr., and the No. 98 Frameless Shower Doors Ford Mustang returned to the top step of the TA class podium in the COTA Trans Am 100 and Circuit of The Americas (COTA).  Brothers Ryan and Warren Dexter also claimed Trans Am victories in the the TA3 and TA4 classes, respectively. 

Francis’ difficult stretch dates back to a practice session at Road America where the No. 98 found oil and made a heavy impact into a barrier.  Francis would salvage points in a loaned car later that weekend, the first of three consecutive finishes well outside the top ten with the No. 98 struggling to get up to its customary speed following repairs.  

However, the month between Trans Am competitions gave the Breathless Pro Racing team time to regroup and get the No. 98 back up to speed, efforts that paid dividends in the 102.81-mile contest, 30 laps around the 3.427-mile, 20-turn circuit with the No. 98 starting in first position and leading every lap.   Francis would cross the finish line just over two seconds ahead of runner-up Chris Dyson, in the No. 20 Plaid Enterprises/ CD Racing Ford Mustang.  

“We definitely needed this result,” said Francis. “It’s been a tough couple races for us, and we were all kind of in a low spell.  To get a good result and a win, really a dominant win, out there, it will boost the moral of the whole team.  We’re ready to go Daytona, finish it off and bring home this championship.”

“The effort from the team has been unbelievable,” said Francis.  “Mark Meissen pretty much rebuilt the whole car after the issue at Road America.  That was followed by issues at Watkins Glen and VIR—the car just wasn’t working the way we needed it to.  Finally, we were able to get the car back down to Fort Lauderdale and our team, so we could do some testing and get it where it needs to be.  A big thank you to our sponsors Frameless Shower Doors and Baldwin Richards Foods for their support.”  

Francis’ second consecutive TA class victory at COTA was his fifth of the season and also saw the No. 98 turn a new track record 2:09.486, breaking his own mark set last year.  Now Francis and the Breathless Racing team will head south to their home state of Florida for the Trans Am Season finale next weekend at a track they know very well, Daytona International Raceway.  

“We’re pretty confident,” said Francis.  “Daytona is a big power track; and even though that’s where we we are usually lacking, last year we were able to start on pole and bring home the win last year.  I think if we can get our setup down and get this car trimmed out real nice for the banking we’ll be pretty good out there.  We have one thing on our minds though, just win; that’s what we’re going to go out and do.”

For Dyson the podium finish marked his fifth of the season and first since Road America.   Tomy Drissi, in the No. 8 The Grinch Chevrolet Camaro, who had started in fourth position completed the TA class podium.  

Finishing fourth in class was Amy Ruman, in the No. 23 McNichols Company Chevrolet Corvette, celebrating her 100th career Trans Am start.  Ruman’s Trans Am career began in Cleveland in 2005 and since that mark she and the Ruman Racing team have amassed 16 victories and captured two championships while setting historic marks.  Ruman became the first woman to win a Trans Am race in 2011 at Road Atlanta and the first female professional road racing champion in North America in 2015, a mark she repeated in 2016.  

The TA class top five was completed by David Pintaric, in the No. 57 Kryderacing Cadillac CTS-V, after battling back from tenth position on lap three.  Championship challenger Lawrence Loshak, in the No. 2 Pennzoil/ ETE/ GOShare Chevrolet Camaro, saw his title hopes dealt a heavy blow early on in the race, entering the pits with only three laps complete due to motor issues.  Loshak and the No. 2 were unable to re-enter the contest and now head to Daytona 22 points behind Francis. 

In TA3 it was Trans Am debutant Ryan Dexter, in the No. 62 Joe’s Hand Cleaner / Dexter Racing Ginetta G55, who captured the class victory by way of a 23rd lap pass of Jason Daskalos, in the No. 27 Vintage Four Twenty-Three Dodge Viper, after a race-long pursuit.  

“We recently picked up two new Ginettas,” said Ryan Dexter.  “So we decided I’d take a shot and see how I do.  In the race, I just had to hold on.  I knew the Vipers would eventually have their tires fall off towards the end.  So I just tried to be consistent and hit my marks, and towards the end I was able to make my way by.”

Dexter would also set the fast lap for the class, a 2:18.401 while his pass for the lead was named the COOLSHIRT Systems “cool move” of the race.  Daskalos would finish second for his second podium finish in as many appearances this season, while Marko Radisic, in the No. 22 Precision Driving BMW M4 GT4, finished third, tying a career best set earlier this season at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.   

In TA4, class champion Warren Dexter, the elder brother of Ryan, secured his sixth win of the season in the No. 60 Joe’s Hand Cleaner/ Dexter Racing Ginetta G55.  Dexter would finish the final stages of the race unopposed in class, following Shane Lewis and the No. 72 74 Ranch Resort Chevrolet Camaro’s retirement due to differential issues on the 26th lap; however, he would run amongst the TA3 class leaders, finishing just behind Daskalos.  Warren Dexter would also set a TA4 class track record with a 2:19.078.  

“What more can you ask for than coming out of one weekend with two victories,” said Warren Dexter. “It was fun and awesome that I was close enough towards the end to watch Ryan make his pass for the lead.  We’re super happy with how the car has been running this year and the way the Trans Am Series has worked with us; their hospitality is really second to none. We’re super excited about this year and looking forward to more in the future.”

The race underwent a single full-course caution to retrieve the No. 71 of Dave Ricci stranded just off course in turn 11, that spanned from lap 12 to the completion of lap 15.  Starting positions for the race were based on official practice times, per Trans Am Rule Book Article 6.2.8, after track delays and daylight issues saw qualifying canceled on Saturday.  

Previously in the weekend, the Trans Am Series held the COTA Muscle Car Challenge, an equidistant competition, that saw Gar Robinson victorious. Full details and results of the contest can be found at gotransam.com. 

The Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli will now head to Daytona International Speedway for the 2018 Trans Am Series Finale, with the multi-class TA, TA2, TA3 and TA4 class contest to be held on Saturday, November 10th.  

Trans Am featured on the Circuit of The Americas weekend alongside the Sportscar Vintage Racing Association holding the US Vintage Racing National Championship.  

Fans can keep up with the Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli at www.gotransam.com, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/gotransam and on Twitter at @gotransam. 

he Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires enters its 10th year in 2019 and continues to set the standard as one of the most successful driver development programs in the world, providing a scholarship-funded path to reach the Verizon IndyCar Series and Indianapolis 500. Andersen Promotions today confirmed the champion’s prize packages for each of the three series – Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires, the Pro Mazda Championship Presented by Cooper Tires and the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship – as the globally recognized platform prepares for the new season.

When Andersen Promotions took over operations of Indy Lights in 2014, it set in place an unprecedented prize – its champion would be guaranteed a three-race IndyCar Series program. This tradition will continue in 2019 with an increased champion’s purse of $1.1 million built on a three-race IndyCar program including the 104th Running of the Indianapolis 500 in 2020.

In Pro Mazda, a vital step in the career path of many drivers including James Hinchcliffe, Spencer Pigot and Graham Rahal, the champion’s purse is valued at $596,700, which includes a $500,000 scholarship to advance to Indy Lights the following year and $96,700 in Cooper tires and entry fees towards the champion’s next step on the ladder.

USF2000, which has a rich history dating back to 1990, will provide its 2019 champion with a prize package valued at $305,600, which includes a $250,000 scholarship to graduate to Pro Mazda and $55,600 in Cooper tires and entry fees for the following season.

The full per-race prize money structure and end-of-season prize money and awards list, including second/third place finishers payouts, Rookie of the Year, team champions and other year-end prizes, is being finalized and will be publicized in the coming weeks.

“We are pleased to announce the continuation of the highly regarded Road to Indy scholarship program for all three of our champions each year,” said Dan Andersen, Owner and CEO of Andersen Promotions. “Our goal has always been to advance the careers of talented drivers to the IndyCar ranks, and these awards will help pave the way for even more Road to Indy stars to race in future Indy 500s. There are no driver development programs in the world with as much on offer.”

The vast majority of the 2019 IndyCar Series grid will be comprised of drivers who have come through the Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires. Among them will be reigning Indy Lights champion Patricio O’Ward and vice champion Colton Herta, driving for Harding Steinbrenner Racing, and newly announced Chip Ganassi Racing driver Felix Rosenqvist, who turned heads in a partial season of Indy Lights two years ago claiming three wins in 10 starts. Rosenqvist initially impressed the Ganassi team after being invited to test at Mid-Ohio both in 2016 and 2017 as part of an initiative supported by INDYCAR with the intention of promoting the talents of Indy Lights drivers.

The 2019 Road to Indy season will kick off on the streets of St. Petersburg, Fla., in support of the IndyCar Series’ season-opening race. The highly popular event is held on a temporary circuit downtown overlooking Tampa Bay and the St. Petersburg Harbor and Marina on March 8-10.

The Road to Indy will close out the year with an Open Test at the Homestead-Miami Speedway road course in Homestead, Fla., on December 3/4. The test provides new drivers the opportunity to test the waters, and returning drivers and teams the chance to jumpstart their 2019 campaigns. Six test sessions totaling four hours of on-track time are on deck for each series.

Three days after Homestead, the focus will shift to Phoenix, Ariz., where the third annual Mazda Road to Indy USF2000 $200K Scholarship Shootout will see 20 champions of junior open-wheel and karting series vie for a scholarship to USF2000 in 2019. Drivers from North and South America, Europe, Asia, Australasia and Africa will undergo two days of competition at the Bondurant Racing School on December 8/9.