This last weekend was the opening pair of races for the SCCA World Challenge series down in St. Petersberg, Florida. This series pits the top production sports cars and top-notch drivers from around the world in a contest of speed where the cars are not all that different from the ones we see on the streets.
This includes the Mustang Boss 302S, the club racer from Ford Racing. Many teams have fielded the superior Boss 302S in the World Challenge GTS class this year, but once again it was Justin Bell and Tiger Racing who took the checkered flag, reports the SCCA World Challenge website.
Bell stepped in on Saturday for Paul Brown, who suffered a minor injury and was thus not up to snuff for a weekend of intense racing. Bell managed to qualify in 7th place before taking to the track on Saturday, and slowly worked his way through the crowd to second place. There he passed Acura TSX driver Peter Cunningham after one of many caution flags was raised during one of the last laps, snatching victory from the Acura driver.
And Bell would do it again on Sunday during the second race of the weekend double-header. Cunningham once again led the field for most of the race, and Bell once again snuck up on him during the final laps of the race for a first place finish. It’s a great way to open the season for the Tiger Racing team, and Bell now leads Cunningham 35 points, 302 to 267.
But the season has only just begun, and fortunes and can change gear as fast as any of these racers. Bell will need to bring his best performance if he wants to continue to dominate the field.