Epic Mazda MX-5 Cup VIR Finish: First to Fifth in 0.15 Seconds

Nathanial Sparks extends Battery Tender Global Mazda MX-5 Cup presented by BFGoodrich Tires points lead in pursuit of $200,000 Mazda Road to 24 Scholarship.After a month off, the Battery Tender Global Mazda MX-5 Cup presented by BFGoodrich Tires jumped back into the season on a freshly paved track at Virginia International Raceway. Competitors had a lot on the line entering the home stretch of the season. Points from the weekend would be vital for those in the hunt for the $200,000 Mazda Road to 24 scholarship entering the finale at Road Atlanta next month.

After the dust settled, Nathanial Sparks, from Spanish Fort, Ala., (No. 8 Sick Sideways) scored his first career MX-5 Cup win to extend his championship points lead. The margin of victory was 0.017 seconds while the margin from first to fifth was just 0.15 seconds.

Sparks summed up the race; "In the last lap, we all got bunched up under yellow and my team at Sick Sideways were one-two-three. When you have your teammates in that position, it's always a difficult chess game to keep all three of us up there while defending your position. Coming into the last corner, we got a couple of bad runs and everyone was trying to make a mess out of it. I'm glad we made it through safely but that was one heck of a race. Going into Road Atlanta, being the points leader was not something I expected. I think working on my car keeps my head in the game, but by doing what I've been doing, I'll be in good shape for the point standings."

Race Recaps

The Saturday race was held in the early evening with a 6:15 p.m. start time. The newly paved track proved to be a double edged sword for competitors. The grip was fantastic, but an earlier storm in the day caused slippery conditions on the track and on the grass when wheels were dropped.