Acura Teams Making a Good Lead to the Championship
Kensai Racing with Compass360’s Acuras head to Utah’s challenging Miller Motorsports Park for the second to the last round of the Grand Am KONI Challenge.
Four of the team’s drivers made to the top-ten positions in the driver’s championship. Their team’s #76 Acura TSX, driven by Billy Johnson and Karl Thomson car gets the second place with the #74 car the sixth and Acura is leading the championship.
The competition is very tight in the KONI series with only two races left to run but the team is still pushing hard. “We want to retake the driver’s and team’s championships at Miller,” said Crew Chief Ray Lee. “It’s been a close battle all year between the two teams and we expect another good fight at Miller,” noted Thomson. The team narrowed the gap at the Grand Prix of Trois Rivieres, Quebec, finishing second after maintaining a solid pace in a race of attrition.
Last year, Thomson and Johnson drove together at Miller and enjoyed the circuit. “It’s a real driver’s track. Really technical, with long, sweeping fast corners; no real reference points and some nice elevation changes and banking,” said Johnson. For just the third time this year, the ST-class cars will be on track with the faster GS- class, which is both enjoyed by Thomson and Johnson. “The last time we combined with GS, at Watkins Glen, we took the win, just like we did at Daytona so that bodes well for Utah. Billy is always amazing in traffic, and I really enjoy driving amongst the GS cars, especially on a wide-open track like Miller,” Thomson remarked.
Ranking the sixth place is also the team’s #74 Acura RSX-S which is driven by series veteran David Tuaty and rookie Matt Pritiko. Tuaty joined the team in mid-season, and the pair’s finishes have steadily improved, resulting in a fourth place at Trois- Rivieres. “Matt and David really showed how strong they are in Quebec. They can challenge for the lead in these next two races and we’ll do what we can to get them into onto the podium,” said Lee.
The #75 TSX will be driven by Beau Buisson and Aaron Povoledo. Both are quick and consistent. Buisson led much of the season-opening of Daytona race, and the #75 has continued to have strong showings at every event. Buisson, driving with Taz Harvey, has a season-high finish of fifth at Mosport.
“We’re doing everything we can to get the championship! We were testing at Mosport last weekend, and I think we’ve made some measurable improvements. We’re still aiming to get all three cars to finish in the top ten, and I do believe we can get two on the podium before the year is out,” exclaimed Thomson. The team was very close at Trois Rivieres making them to hit the second and fourth positions.