Celso Neto led from green to checkered at Road America in TC America powered by Skip Barber Racing School’s TCX class, earning his third victory of the year. It was a very strong weekend for MINI JCW Team, with Cristian Perocarpi picking up his second win of the weekend with a last lap pass, while PJ Groenke pulled away in TCA and never looked back.
TCX
With the exception of a big lock up from Neto on the opening lap, the driver of the No. 22 Skip Barber Racing Acura Integra Type S was calm and collected throughout the remainder of the race. He managed to pull a significant gap over the rest of the field, aided by the fact that championship leader Chris Walsh was entangled in an early battle with Cooper Broll.
The drivers of the No. 104 Carrus Callas Raceteam BMW M2 CS (Cup) and No. 19 Skip Barber Racing Acura Integra Type S swapped positions briefly before Walsh reclaimed second place.
It was smooth sailing for Neto from there, going unchallenged as he focused on the clear track ahead all the way to the finish line. As he reached the checkered flag, he swept the weekend in the process, standing on the top step of the podium for the third time this season.
Walsh wrapped up his time at Road America with another second-place finish, accompanied by Christopher DeFreitas on the podium, who drove his No. 39 Racers Edge Motorsports Acura Integra Type S to his first podium result of the year.
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“The plan was the same as yesterday—to get a strong start,” explained Neto. “Chris (Walsh) had really good pace at the beginning, so I focused on putting my head down and building a gap. My teammate Cooper Broll also had a great start and got between us, which really helped create that early gap. The draft is really important here, and Chris didn’t have it today, which worked to our advantage. The car was fantastic, and I have to thank the entire team at Skip Barber, SimCraft Racing Simulators, and all the people who support me, including my sponsors. It was definitely a great weekend—we swept it. I couldn’t ask for anything better than pole position, and P1 in both races.”
TC
Perocarpi was on the charge early on in his No. 37 MINI JCW Team MINI JCW TC Pro, moving up to first in class and fourth overall right at the start of the race. However, Jeff Ricca was eager to challenge in the No. 78 Ricca Autosport Hyundai Elantra N1 TC.
Ricca muscled his way past Perocarpi on the second lap, and the two remained neck and neck, swapping positions a couple of times before Ricca began to pull ahead slightly.
The TC class championship leader was looking poised to take the win in race two, but ran into trouble on the final lap, allowing Perocarpi to sweep past at the last minute to claim back-to-back victories. Ricca concluded the event in second place, with the podium completed by teammate Sally McNulty in the No. 780 Ricca Autosport Hyundai Elantra N1 TC.
“Honestly, I feel bad for him,” Perocarpi said about Ricca. “He had a great race, and we really battled hard. We had an issue midway through that set us back, but we managed to recover, got our boost back, and put in some great laps toward the end. That definitely put us in a better position.”
TCA
Groenke was back in the winner’s circle at Road America, claiming an uncontested victory in the TCA class aboard his No. 62 MINI JCW. The Canadian driver stayed out of trouble for the 40-minute race and was able to offer MINI JCW Team the win and valuable championship points.
Behind Groenke, it was looking like a strong podium finish for Alex Garcia in the No. 14 Skip Barber Racing Honda Civic Si FE1, however, he suffered a suspension failure at the halfway mark and was unable to complete the race.
Bruce Myrehn finished in second place, bringing home more hardware for the MINI JCW Team.
“To sweep at Road America, my favorite track in North America, is just incredible” said Groenke. “Achieving this in front of so many fans at such an iconic venue is truly out of this world. I can’t thank MINI USA, the MINI JCW team, my sponsors, and everyone else enough for all their support. This win is for all of you. We are number one!”
The TC America powered by Skip Barber Racing School field will return on track at Barber Motorsports Park from September 6th to 8th.