“Hot-lanta” finally shifted from summer heat to cooler temperatures and with a hurricane off the coast and lots of wind!
On Saturday, Jose Garcia led the 14-car Spec Miata field with a 1:47.15 lap to qualify P1, with Curt Trawick in P2 and Dylan Stancil in third.
On the first lap Jarrett Jones, who had qualified toward the back of the field with some mechanical issues, started working his way forward from P11. By the end of lap one he was P6 and Trawick had moved from second to take the lead from Garcia.
By the end of lap four, Kaney had moved up to P2 and Jones to P3. On lap five, a wreck at Turn 6 brought out a full-course caution for about five laps. The race went green as the SM field was approaching T10a. Garcia, who was in fourth, received the green call from his spotter and got a super jump on the rest of the field moving to the lead as he entered 10a.
On the next lap, Jones lost his brakes approaching T10a and ended his race in the gravel trap. Trawick got by Garcia and held him off with some defensive moves and Kaney got Garcia at the line. Trawick took first followed by Kaney and Garcia.
Sunday morning brought cooler temperatures and faster times. During qualifying, Dylan Stancil, in his 1.6 miata, nailed down P1 with a 1:46.19. Jarrett Jones was P2 with a 1:46.50 and Keith Williamson P3 with a 1:46.66.
On the start, Jones tucked in behind Stancil going up the hill out of T1 and Kaney got the edge on Williamson going into T3. Stancil and Jones started working together on the back straight and pulled about a four-car gap over Williamson pushing Kaney. Jones passed Stancil on lap four on the back straight after getting a better run out of Turn 7. On lap five Williamson passed Kaney going into T10a only to get sideways in T1 and collect Kaney; eventually bringing out a full-course caution.
However, before a rather late yellow came out in T1, Garcia managed to slip past Trawick when he checked up for the Williamson/Kaney wreck. This left the order at the front: Jones P1, Stancil, Garcia and Trawick. Trawick passed Garcia in Turn 1 on the next lap to move up to P3. Following the double-yellow, with the field closed up, Stancil made an outside pass coming out of Turn 1 as he and Jones battled through traffic. Stancil’s lead was short lived, when in the next lap, braking for traffic in Turn 7, he went wide and Jones reclaimed the lead.
In the end, Jones finished first, followed by Trawick and Garcia.
