After four years away from Watkins Glen International, the Idemitsu Mazda MX-5 Cup presented by BFGoodrich® Tires is back at this historic racetrack.
As the halfway point of the 2022 season, this 3.4-mile road course may be where we find out which drivers will emerge as the top contenders for championship contention.
Current leader, Jared Thomas (No. 96 JTR Motorsports Engineering, pictured above, smiling) arrives in upstate New York as the only driver to win a race at each of the 2022 venues thus far. This consistency has kept Thomas at the top of the points through the first half of the season. With a lot of great challengers looking to usurp Thomas, Selin Rollan (No. 87 Hixon Motor Sports) is the closest, just 95 points adrift. Rollan has finished in the top three in each of his five seasons in MX-5 Cup competition but is still searching for that elusive championship title and $250,000 prize.
Joey Atanasio (No. 43 Formidable Racing) is coming off a strong performance at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and currently leads the rookie standings, 125 points ahead of Mazda MX-5 Cup Shootout winner Connor Zilisch (No. 72 Hixon Motor Sports). Atanasio, Zilisch and the other rookies are all competing for the $80,000 Rookie of the Year prize.
The stage is set for a pivotal doubleheader this weekend at Watkins Glen. Round Seven is set for 12:20pm ET on Friday, June 24, while Round Eight will go green at 10:00am ET on Saturday, June 25. Both races will be streamed live on RACER.com.