The NASA Great Lakes 2025 season finale and eighth race weekend of the year was set at National Corvette Museum Motorsports Park, the Grand Full course with 23 turns and 3.15 miles in length. The layout has nearly every feature a racer would expect from a technically challenging track: high-speed sweepers, esses, off-camber medium-speed corners, a hairpin, and the unique to NCM feature, the Sinkhole.
Coming into the weekend, Spec Miata racers John Allen and Chris Finnigan were in a dead heat for the regional championship, with neither competitor having room for any type of error. The final points races of the year were on Saturday prior to the year-end awards banquet Saturday night.
Ten Spec Miatas lined up on grid for the morning warmup with a dry track, sunshine and 63 degrees. Finnigan topped everyone with a 2:27.8, one of the fastest times of the weekend. Ryan Waldo was second fastest with a 2:29.4 and Chris Schuster a 2:30.1. Championship contender Allen was off pace with a 2:31, battling a handling issue that had perplexed him earlier this year. After the session, that handling issue was attributable to a cracked front subframe, which prevented him from qualifying.
Qualifying for race one took place an hour later with 10 degree warmer temperatures. Waldo again put in a lap that landed him at P3 with a 2:30.0, Teen Mazda Challenge racer Lincoln Olson P2 with 2:28.3, and Finnigan again topped the field another .6 seconds ahead.
Race one took the green flag shortly after noon with continued sunny skies and another 10 degrees on the thermometer. Finnigan did not have the easy race the qualifying times might have suggested. From the drop of the green, Olson was never more than .5 seconds off Finnigan’s rear bumper. With help from a Camaro-Mustang Challenge competitor who had a welding machine, Allen repaired his front sub-frame, made the start and assertively moved up to P3 and catching Olson for the last two laps.
Olson was in P1 to start the white flag lap due to the smallest of bobbles from Finnigan. That lead would last only a few corners as Allen grabbed P1 for one corner, then Finnigan regained the lead after Turn 12 holding until the checkers 11 corners later. The next four cars on track had their own battle going on. Ryan Waldo, Chris Schuster, along with rookies Esteban Velez and Justin Hare all exchanged positions several times until settling out during lap four of the eight-lap race.
The final points-paying race of the year Saturday afternoon gridded by race one fast lap times. Lincoln Olson sat P1 (2:28.2), with Allen P2 (2:28.6) and Finnigan (2:28.8). The top three had the remainder of the field by over 2.5 seconds, with Chis Schuster P4 (2:31.9) and three others within another 1.5 seconds.
The race at the leading edge of the field was much like race one. After Allen dropped out of the race due to a mechanical issue lap one unrelated to the subframe, Finnigan and Olson were separated by less than a half second and exchanged positions no less than four times during the eight laps. Behind the leaders, Schuster again had an excellent run to P3 and battling for fourth and fifth were Velez and Hare again. Hare got his opportunity on lap five, took advantage of it and didn’t look back.
Thanks to everyone who raced with us in 2025 and congratulations to Chris Finnigan for capturing the 2025 season championship! We look forward to seeing you on track with us again in 2026!
Shout-Outs for the Weekend
Chris Schuster and Michael Spivey for helping John Poppenhouse change a transmission after Friday testing. Bob Denton (Camaro-Mustang Challenge) for a quick weld on John Allen’s front subframe. Justen Hare’s father Kevin for hosting a Spec Miata cookout Friday and everyone who brought food, including the “slutty brownies” by Michael Spivey.
