PWC: Mazda sweeps TC classes in MRLS Race 2

Mazda completed its second sweep of all three Pirelli World challenge TC classes Sunday morning as Patrick Gallagher (No. 54, above) took his second TC win in two days, Joey Bickers won TBA, and Will Rodgers also did the double in TCB. Gallagher and Bickers also won for the Atlanta Motorsports Group in two classes to close the TC season.

Unofficially (until post-race technical inspection is completed), Toby Grahovec (TC), Elivan Goulart (TCA), and Tom O'Gorman (TCB) are the new champions in each class.

The crash- and spin-filled season finale featured plenty of disruptions from start to finish, and up front, Gallagher commanded TC with his AMG Mazda MX-5 and sprinted to a 3.8-second margin of victory after a late restart. Adam Poland and Grahovec completed the podium.

"It means a lot to us," Gallagher said. "It's awesome to sweep Mazda Raceway in a Mazda and who knows what next year will bring."

"It was an incredible year going for podiums every race," Grahovec said. "Races are so close but you have to stay out of trouble. BMW Motorsport was awesome; they helped us a lot, and the championship is pretty sweet."

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Bickers improved from third on Saturday to earning his first trip to Victory Lane in Monterey on Sunday.

"It's my first win at Mazda Raceway; I've tried a few times, so I'm happy with that," he said. "And it's great to go home with a win for the Atlanta Motorsport Group."

"That was an intense battle," new-champ Goulart said after his Mazda MX-5 Cup entry trailed smoke but held together to deliver the title. "I lost the power steering, up in smoke, a little challenging, but I got back up to second place. The team did an awesome job in their second season to get the championship in TCA."

Henry Morse won the first TCB race of the weekend but was later disqualified for a technical infraction which promoted Will Rodgers to first place. Rodgers was close to taking another second-place finish on the road but won a drag race to the checkered flag and overtook O'Gorman to win by just 0.121 seconds.

"Oh my gosh, what a drag race," Rodgers said after earning his fourth win of the year. "Big props to race with Tom O'Gorman. It's great to get a sweep, even if it's on a technicality. I'd like to dedicate this to the Hale Motorsports team that got me here."