JULY 14, 2024 | Photos: IMSA
BOWMANVILLE, Ontario – On a track he just learned the day before, Westin Workman (No. 13 BSI Racing) climbed from sixth on the grid to take the top spot on the Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup presented by Michelin podium at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park. He shared the podium with reigning series champion Jared Thomas (No. 96 JTR Motorsports Engineering) and Connor Zilisch (No. 72 JTR Motorsports Engineering).
Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup is known for its ultra-close racing, but even by Mazda MX-5 Cup standards, seeing the top 11 cars nose-to-tail for a 45-minute race with zero full-course cautions was a sight to behold.
Starting from the pole position, Aaron Jeansonne (No. 24 JTR Motorsports Engineering) and his third-place starting teammate, Thomas, tried to work together to pull away from the pack in the early going, but were unable to do so.
“I mean, always the guy on pole and the guy right behind him, no matter if they’re your teammate or not, we’ll talk about it (the start) and try to give your line the best advantage you can,” Thomas said. “So we did talk about that a little bit, but you know this place, you can’t really get away-we tried multiple times, in different groups and that just seemed impossible.”
Six different drivers representing three different teams were credited with leading a race lap at the timing line. Thomas and Jeansonne slid up and down the order, but by the race’s halfway point, Jeansonne’s pace had slowed and it was up to Thomas to carry the JTR banner.
At the same time, Workman, who started sixth, found his stride and was into the top three. With five laps to go, the rookie and Mazda Shootout Scholarship recipient took over the lead from Thomas.
He only kept it for two laps before Gresham Wagner (No. 5 McCumbee McAleer Racing), who nearly fell out of the top 10 early on in the race, moved into the top spot and crossed the finish line in first. A 10-second penalty for violating track limits, however, bumped Wagner to 10th and promoted Workman to the win and he knew it coming to the checkered flag.
“That was a crazy race,” Workman said. “I started P6 and was really just trying to put myself in the best position to win the race. On the last lap, I felt like I did that with Gresham’s 10-second penalty. I kind of used him as a draft in front of me to keep the cars behind me, behind me.”
It is Workman’s second win of the season, his first coming at Sebring in an exciting 0.004-second margin of victory.
“It’s awesome,” Workman said. “This is only my second time on the podium, so both my podiums have been wins. That feels really good, but I need to kind of improve the consistency a little bit and be getting on the podium more often. It feels really good, but I need to keep this momentum going for the rest of the season.”
The win provisionally puts Workman into the Rookie of the Year points lead.
After a great start, Thomas floated around the top five before putting in another late bid for the win but was unable to manifest the right opportunity.
“It’s always good to be up front especially late,” Thomas, who led seven laps said. “It keeps the car cool, but it’s also the kiss of death. It all depends on how the pack runs on that last lap and how third and fourth get battling. If you can get away then it’s a race for two cars rather than four cars so you just never know. I figured it was gonna be a revolving door at the front. And it was.”
He led the most laps, but in the end it was a third-place finish for Zilisch.
“I feel like these races are longer than people think they are,” Zilisch said. “You have to kind of be patient and understand that you’re not going to lead the whole race. We had a really fast BSI Racing, Silver Hare car today and it helped make my job easier by keeping me in the lead pack.”
Wagner wasn’t the only driver to get called out for track limits, several drivers including Zilisch received warnings. Lucky for him, it was only once, which did not equate to a penalty.
“It’s tough because you have to manage wanting to go fast with taking a risk,” Zilisch said. “Once I heard the first one, it was kind of a signal to not do it again. So I’m glad I could keep it on track and, and not get another one of those.”
Just missing the podium, in fourth place, was Nate Cicero (No. 83 McCumbee McAleer Racing).
Polesitter Jeansonne ended the race in fifth.
Just missing the top five was Jeremy Fletcher (No. 22 McCumbee McAleer Racing), who started at the back of the grid because of an engine change but made a remarkable climb through the field to finish sixth.
Sunday’s Round 10 race is slated for 2:30pm ET with livestreaming available on IMSA.tv.
IMSA | Photos: IMSA
