Introduction

Oh my goodness, what an event! This course again proved to be everyone’s favorite, as not only were both days featured full slots across all run groups, but 35 drivers filled this SpeedSF Challenge at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, with the S3 and S4 classes being the most stacked, with 8 and 10 drivers respectively.

A notable appearance was made by a Ferrari 488 Pista driven by a capable owner in Class X, as well as a pair of McLaren 720Ss that tried to keep up with the Ferrari.

Now that we have that out of the way, it’s time to move on to the regular cars on the field!

Class S1

Again known as the Porsche GT3 class, this group featured 4 drivers, 2 of whom were in the 1:37s! Maksym Lytvyn brought his 2014 Porsche GT3 ready to dominate, and he surely did as he placed a healthy 1:35.712, earning him a great 1st place win. That was not only the fastest time of the group but was also fastest time of the entire day, beating the 488 Pista by ~.901 seconds! Great work by him here!

2nd place was claimed by Hai Peg Sun in his GT3 thanks to a 1:37.013 fast lap time, while Bruce Lee took home 3rd place with his 1:37.822 lap time with his Camaro ZL1. Pretty close fight!

Class S2

Someone thought he was in S1, because 1st place winner Gary Yeung threw down a 1:37.701 lap time in the Dirty Mango S2000, beating the previous S2 lap record for Laguna once held by Andrie Hartanto and his Porsche GT4. That lap time was a 1:37.974, and Gary didn’t need a Porsche or 6 cylinders to beat it! Congrats on the Wine Country Motorsports $50 gift certificate!

2nd place winner Steve Chi put in a 1:39.030 lap time with his almighty 2010 BMW M3, while Geoff Richards and his 2008 Porsche 997S did well to take home 3rd place thanks to a great 1:42.449 lap time.

Class S3

The S3 class featured consistently fast drivers; the same faces we have seen throughout the season. 1st place winner Gary Wong took “TayTay” the white 2004 Honda S2000 for a thrill ride, resulting in a 1:40.430 lap time. Gary certainly “Shook Off” Gary Yeung’s old Dirty Mango Laguna lap record, which was a 1:40.618 lap time. This earned Gary Wong a $50 gift certificate from Wine Country Motorsports thanks to some great heroics on display! 2nd place winner

Patrick Chio drove his red missile BMW M3 for a great 1:41.033 lap time while Kenneth Yip was rounded out the podium in 3rd place thanks to a 1:42.713 lap time in his 2011 BMW M3.

Class S4

The continuing domination of the S2000s in classes S2 and S3 extended into S4, as the ever-so-competitive Sohan Kota took his own 2000 S2000 around Laguna for a 1:43.581 lap time. What looks like as fresh from the showroom, Nash Ramar’s 2019 Mazda Miata carried him to a 2nd place win thanks to a 1:44.408 lap time, while Joe McGuigan drove the stickered-up FR-S to a 3rd place finish, putting down a 1:45.893 lap time.

Class S5

S5 Miata Club featured close lap times for the podium place winners, as they all hit the 1:49 lap time wall. With tenths separating each other, this was a nailbiter. Wa H brought along a Spec Miata and earned his 1st place due a 1:49.183 lap time. Scott Smith, less than .400 seconds off, drove a fine 1:49.564 lap time. Daniel Doerr and his 2016 Mazda Miata Club (wow a not-Spec Miata) was very close to 2nd, but ultimately had to settle for 3rd place with his 1:49.626 lap time. Great close driving by everyone in S5!

Class X

Ah yes, back to our star players: the Ferrari 488 Pista, McLaren 720S, with the 2 co-star purpose-built racing cars: a Lola Sports Racer and a Radical!

1st place winner was Frank Fun, whose 1:36.613 lap time in his Ferrari 488 Pista removed all doubts as to which would be a faster car on the track. The McLaren 720S piloted by Fui Lam was driven to a well-earned 2nd place thanks to his 1:37.299 lap time, putting him a little over .600 seconds ahead of 3rd place winner David Colbert’s lap time. The 1:37.925 lap time in the 1980 Lola TS40 D Sports Racer was hard-fought for, as the honorable mention goes to 4th place’s Nady, who, in his own McLaren 720S, was only .007 seconds away from getting a podium finish! Wow, that is close!

CONCLUSION

This was a great day out for all of our drivers. The S2000’s dominance was displayed once again in classes S2-S4 with Gary Y, Gary W, and Sohan “Gary X” Kota respectively leading the way in showing the S2000 prowess.

Excellent job to our who won their places and THANK YOU to everyone who participated in the SpeedSF Challenge! For those who are still chasing podium finishes, more seat time, coaching, and watching videos of the track will certainly get you there!

As we look forward to Round 7 of the SpeedSF Challenge at Buttonwillow Raceway on June 30th, we want to say that we truly appreciate our sponsors and participants as it would not be possible without them!

We thank our sponsors Wine Country Motorsports, G-Loc brakes, Titan7 Wheels, Necksgen, and Charles Schwab for their continued and valued support. Please visit their respective websites to show your support and let them know SpeedSF sent you!

Our next SpeedSF Challenge will be held at Buttonwillow Raceway in Buttonwillow, CA. Again, please check out the event website by clicking here. We will see you at our next event!