The rolling hills of Sonoma Raceway were alive with the sound of angry bees as NASA NorCal’s Spec Miata field delivered three intense and unpredictable races across the March 7–8 weekend. With 25-plus cars, bumper-to-bumper action was guaranteed, and Sonoma’s technical turns gave the racers some of the finest wheel-to-wheel racing anywhere.
Saturday Race One: Couch Climbs to Victory
The opening race saw No. 66 Wyatt Couch take command after a fierce multi-car battle that defined much of the 11-lap showdown. Early on, No. 21 Team SJ Motorsports set the pace with a blistering 1:54.789 lap, but Couch’s relentless pressure and precision paid off in the final laps. The finishing order was reshuffled as Team SJ Motorsports penalized with jumping the midrace restart.
The podium fight was pure Spec Miata drama: Aaron Braverman charged up to third, narrowly holding off Teen Mazda Challenge driver Casey Moyer and Christopher LaBouff in a five-car train that could have fit under a bedsheet. Less than 9 seconds separated the top six as cars crossed the line in a blur of drafting duels.
In Teen Mazda Challenge, Moyer took the top spot, followed by Anthony White in second and Carter Knight in third.
Sunday Race Two: Team SJ Strikes Back
Sunday morning’s cooler temps brought faster laps and higher heart rates. Team SJ Motorsports came out swinging, reclaiming the top spot with a dominant performance and the weekend’s fastest recorded lap — a blazing 1:53.774 around Sonoma’s 2.52 miles of twists and elevation.
Couch wasn’t far behind, finishing just 1.6 seconds back after intense side-by-side action that lasted most of the race. Moyer’s gray TMC Miata again proved a podium regular, keeping the leaders honest in third. Behind them, Brian Cross, Kyle Sager, and Nathaniel Spitz were nose-to-tail in a furious mid-pack fight, exchanging positions through Turn 7 lap after lap.
At the checkers, it was Team SJ Motorsports in first, with Couch in second and Moyer in third. Moyer took the top spot on TMC podium, with Spitz in second and Knight in third.
Sunday Race Three — The Showdown
By race three, everyone had knocked all the rust off, and nobody was holding back. Team SJ Motorsports once again set the pace, taking back-to-back wins with another near-perfect drive and a best time of 1:54.082. The burgundy-and-silver Miata built an early gap, fending off Couch and Moyer in a thrilling three-car battle that saw multiple passes in traffic and door-to-door duels through Turn 2.
Moyer brought home an impressive P2, barely five seconds off the winner, while Couch closed out the podium once again with consistent, top-tier pace. Nathaniel Spitz capped his weekend with a top-five finish, trading paint and draft with Brian Cross and Kyle Sager in a photo-worthy six-car freight train to the line.
The TMC podium was Moyer in first, Spitz in second and Ryan Zust in third.
Next stop is Thunderhill Raceway, where the draft trains get longer, the braking zones get deeper, and the NorCal Miata madness rolls on.
