It is the first race of the final weekend of the season for SRO TC America as they support Sunday's running of the Intercontinental GT Challenge/GT World Challenge America Indianapolis 8 Hours here at the fabled Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the greatest race track in the world, in Indianapolis, Indiana. The TCX battle for the championship is done and dusted. We are in Speedway City, Indiana, on the corner of 16th and Georgetown in Speedway City, Indiana. Two races left in TC America. One today and one tomorrow. TC is one sided but TCA is a fight for sure. We will see fireworks on a wet pit lane. The track is drying out from morning rain.
Eric Powell leads the points in TCA. Mathematically, he could clinch the title. Austin Smith had a great drive at Sebring International Raceway last time out. Eric Powell leads by 29.5 points and Kevin Boehm, mathematically, is also in the fight. Caleb Bacon, Carter Fartuch, and Luke Rumburg are the three drivers in contention. Front Wheel Drive vs. Rear Wheel Drive will be a big deal and we have pop up showers in the forecast. We have a 2.59 mile course with 14 corners, going the opposite direction around part of the famous oval course here. The touring cars will use a slightly different segment of the course. The front wheel and rear wheel drive cars are surely going to handle differently.
In TCX, that's the four BMW's in front of the field. Jacob Ruud has already won the championship at Sebring International Raceway. Steve Streimer, Olivia Askew, and Roy Block are the other contenders in TCX and a class that will grow headed into next year in 2022. One team could have 4-6 entries in the class for next year, for the 2022 season. Steve Streimer leads Roy Block by merely four points. What kind of grip will you have on the opening lap? There's more spray down Hulmann Boulevard. We have had bursts of rain today, but it has subsided. The track needs to dry out. Word is the track has good grip in the wet, but takes a long time to dry out entirely.
Here comes the field, lining up for a green flag. We will have three starts for TCX, TC, and TCA. Off of turn 14 they come towards the yard of bricks. Jacob Ruud, champion elect in TCS ake the green and it's go. Here comes Steve Streimer, two by two into turn one. Olivia Askew tries the inside. Three and four wide as there's contact between the Mini, the Honda, and the Hyudai! Yikes! This is a huge mess. We have Kevin Boehm, championship contender, in strife. Everyone is settling in. There's grip there right now.
A tough start for Clayton Williams in the Mini and Jeff Ricca is out of this motor race. Full Course Yellow now. Ricca is chasing Rob Hines in the championship. But it is an early bath for Jeff Ricca. The inevitable happened as the #60 of Derek Jones in the Mini did not give enough room. The front straightaway is very wide and so is the entrance to turn one before it concertinas. This is a gut punch though for poor old Jeff Ricca. It's a special event to race on the most legendary track in the world. Ricca won overall at Circuit of the Americas in mixed conditions way back in March. The field follows the safety car. Olivia Askew is up to second as Steve Streimer is down in fourth place.
Bryan Sellers is Askew's driver coach. David Askew, her father, says that she will move through TCR, GT4, and eventually, GT3. Olivia Askew has tested a GT3 car. She has a very good pace in her driving and she can really run well. She graduated in mathematics at the University of Utah. Kevin Boehm runs second in TC and Austin Smith has moved to third. Eric Powell, championship leader is tenth overall and sixth in class. He will have to motor to get to his championship rivals. Eric Powell leads by 29 and a half points. Focus on the big picture and the prize ahead. Minimize the damage. Try to seal up the title or be in good shape for the Saturday final.
In replay, Boehm turns the Mini that rotates, and it had to be a scary moment for Eric Powell before he went through the grass to continue on in the motor race. The marshals have cleaned up the mess and we are back to green. Jacob Ruud leads the filed. Roy Block wanted to run by he had to back out of it just a wee bit. He tries Streimer. Nope. Not this time. Kevin Boehm is pushing hard. TCA leader Nico Barbato loses the spot. Barbado drops a wheel and keeps it on the road. Kevin Boehm has the lead. Nico Barbato is a time attack champion but in one of his first competitive races. Turn 14 releases you onto the front straight. Powell in fifth place, passing Roy Block in the TCX BMW. 50-80 horsepower is the didference between the TC and TCX cars. Powell has three or four cars between himself and his competition. Kevin Boehm leads,
Jose Blanco, Luke Rumburg, and Carter Fartuch are the top three in TCA. Rumburg is making a move on Blanco. Rumburg wants by, look. He goes to the outside but no dice yet. Rumburg in the championship picture. Poor old Caleb Bacon is down the field. Rumburg makes his move but Blanco tries and fails to keep the lead in class. Keep the tires cool on the wet line. Rumburg scored podiums at the previous races at Sebring. No power for Caleb Bacon for some reason. Drive through penalty for Kevin Boehm for passing before the restart line! Deary me!
A stop and hold + 30 seconds for incident responsibility on the Mini. The #60 is damaged. Jacob Ruud leads this race, looking for his ninth win of the year as Olivia Askew runs second. Ruud cuts the fastest lap fo the race so far with just 25 minutes left on the board. There's grip in the wet but the track does not dry out well. Chris Valdez, was assessed the penalty we spoke of. Correction. Meantime, Austin Smith is chasing Kevin Boehm. Eric Powell is fighting Tom Capizzi for fourth place. Capizzi is stronger, his BMW M2. The Honda has handling and the BMW has power. Horses for courses indeed.
Tom Capizzi is also in Pirelli GT4 America, sharing with John Capestro-Dubets. That race is up next. Powell is monstering Capizzi. Caleb Bacon is dealing with a misfire and he has to kill the motor and restart it to get it to work. Carter Fartuch is closing in. Will this just be an electronics issue? He needs a Full Course Yellow, a Safety Car. We watch Clay Williams in the #62 Mini Cooper JCW. He is moving in on Jose Blanco. Luke Rumburg will have to hustle to get away from these two boys. Two very different race cars battling each other. Williams has the advantage. Not yet. Blanco is forcing him onto the damp part of the road.
Blanco places the car ahead of Williams and here comes Carter Fartuch as well, look. Williams has not run a full campaign, but he has had some podiums. Christian Pericarpi in the other Mini is also running competitively. Blanco takes it in deep and very nearly runs over the Mini! Egad! That was close! VCMG Motorsports, Victor Gonzalez, team owner, looking on. Christian Pericarpi moves in on Carter Fartuch and wants the spot. He isn't giving this up. Despite the short wheelbase, the Mini is effectve in the wet. Powell passes Tom Capizzi to gain more points. Kevin Boehm still leads the championshiup, but is a long way down the order.
Nicolas Barbado is the next target. Jacob Ruud has a 10.8 second lead on Olivia Askew for the overall lead. The drying track seems to be coming to Kevin Boehm and Austin Smith is having issues. Nicolas Barbato too, is running well. Mike LaMarra is making his move on Tom Capizzi for fifth place. The team is based in Brownsburg, Indiana, LAP Motorsports runs the Mini's and the LA Honda World Honda. Clay Williams is on slick Pirelli P Zero tires. A drying track sees Clayton Williams really beginning to move up with the drying track.
Rumburg is hanging on. Onto the banking another time. Here comes Clay Williams around the inside. Luke Rumburg is entitled to defend but has to give the Mini a place to race. On the dryer sections, the Mini will be faster and quicker through the corners. Clay Williams down Hulmann Boulevard tries, and Rumburg understeers wide! Clay Williams to the lead of the class. Many of the crew members, have experience in IndyCar at the Indianapolis 500 right here at the speedway. Wouldn't it be great if LAP Motorsports could win? We'll see. Austin Smith, second spot in TC, followed by Roy Block in third in TCX competition.
More rain to come. Wow! #51 of Smith runs wide into turn seven! He's back on the button now but he will have to pick up the pieces and stay on the island. Mike LaMarra and Eric Powell are going to close in. We see Nicolas Barbato move past Austin Smith. Eric Powell is ninth overall and fifth in class. Just over ten minutes remaining in the motor race. It's squeaky, squeaky time in the points before the finale tomorrow. Lewis Pericarpi is really into it, watching his son race. Don't make any mistakes. You've been dreaming of this. Poor old Jose Blanco takes his turn on the whirligig and he has right side damage, getting tipped by Mario Biundo.
Those two are team mates. That will be an interesting conversation. Who will pick up the tab at dinner? Devin Anderson, in the Toyota Supra, he won last time out in class at Sebring, and had a breakthrough victory with his family team. Wow. So, Jacob Ruud leads Olivia Askew and Kevin Boehm leads Nicholas Barbato. Eric Powell is chasing down Carter Fartuch and Kevin Boehm. Caleb Bacon, too, has been in this battle. Taylor Hagler in the #98 Hyundai Elantra N Line. Hagler will race in the Indianapolis 8 Hours on Sunday in Intercontinental GT Challenge.
Hagler is racing with BHA in a different touring car championship as well. Meantime, Kevin Boehm slides all over the place with Nicholas Barbato right on his six. Boehm's Pirelli P Zero rain tires are busted. They are squealing for mercy. Barbato also has rain tires. Three and a half minutes left now. Barbato wants a win. Boehm wants points. Barbato wants the win and the glory. Boehm pushing, pusbjing,pushing! He tries nearly doing a Scandinavian flick! Wow! Barbato runs in time trials, but he has to use his head before this race is over. Powell fifth. Smith fourth. Boehm will gain if he gets the win, but Barbato is not done yet.
Kevin Boehm is 2020 TCA champion and has had loads of championships in SCCA racing. Boehm is clear as Steve Streimer moves through, third in TCX. Mike LaMarra wants by Barbato. We're getting close to the white flag next time by. The rain is coming. These tires are knackered. Boehm slides onto Hulmann Boulevard. LaMarra makes the move. Does he help his fellow Honda driver? Jacob Ruud is on his final lap. White flag this time by. Boehm forced to go defensive. LaMarra wants the win. Here comes LaMarra and he zooms past Boehm! Yikes! Boehm is desperate and goes to the inside!
Barbato is not done yet either. Mike LaMarra extends his lead. Clay Williams and Christian Pericarpi have Mini 1-2 in TCA. Last time down Hulmann Boulevard. This is it. Jacob Ruud, champion-elect, wins Indianapolis!
#81 Jacob Ruud USA Classic BMW BMW M2 CS Cup
Here comes Boehm, trying to keep Barbato at bay. TC winners, Mike LaMarra!
#37 Mike LaMarra USA LA Honda World Racing Honda Civic Type-R
Battle of the Mini's at LAP Motorsports in TCA. Clayton Williams vs. Christian Pericarpi. Clayton Williams wins his first TC America race. A 1-2 for JCW Mini!
#60 Derek Jones USA Mini JCW Team Mini JCW PRO TC
Fastest race lap sets pole for tomorrow's race. We will see you tomorrow for another great race in the finale. What an incredible thing to be in victory lane at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Holy cow! Jacob Ruud, mate, you are the winner! Ruud's ninth win of the year and started the year with six consecutive TCX victories! Holy smokes! Mike LaMarra is a former champion in another touring car series, and he has to be happy to win today at The Brickyard. Just go out and win. That's what he had to do and he did today.
This team, called Classic BMW, will now be called Fast Track Racing. Some of the ownership is changing but they will be back next year. Eric Powell needs a good finish in tomorrow's race and we should see a dry event tomorrow. Congratulations, Clayton Williams, on your victory for Mini JCW and LAP Motorsports. So, race one for touring cars is now done and dusted. We look forward to the second and final race of the weekend, final race of the 2021 season, tomorrow. We'll see you then. So long for now, everybody.
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