A Test of Perseverance: Part 2
Welcome To Sebring
Arriving at Sebring, I felt a renewed sense of optimism compared to how I left Homestead a few days before. After a productive meeting with my team boss, Ben at Advanced Autosports, we devised a game plan to maximize our performance and make the most of the weekend despite the engine issues we knew we couldn’t fix in time.
Making Progress
Day 1 at Sebring went way smoother than Homestead and I began to get in a rhythm with both the car and the track. In addition, I also got to work with Tyler Cooke and learn all the ins and outs of the circuit from a professional with tons of experience here. Much to my surprise the infamous bumps weren’t as bad as I expected. Every session I continued to get faster and things looked on the up.
Qualifying Day
When qualifying came around, my goal was to put a solid lap together and maximize everything in my control knowing the result was going to be heavily skewed by our lack of straight-line speed. I finished Q1 P18 and Q2 P15, with the two sessions’ times combined I would be starting both races from P20. With a large pace gap to both the car ahead and behind me, patience would be key heading into the races.
My Wish Came True!
I saw in the forecast for Race 1 that there was a chance of rain and when I woke up on Saturday it was raining, my wish had come true! I now had the chance to make up for our loss in straight-line speed. Seeing that the track was drying out, we decided to start on slicks instead of rain tires hoping that we would have significantly stronger pace in the second half of the race. I got a good start and found myself running in 15th for most of the race, but unfortunately, most of the field on rain tires had pulled away early on and I was all by myself on track. Moving up spots I would take though as that was still a decent race.
Continuing To Experiment
After Race 1, my data engineer, driver coach, and the team at Mazda Motorsports helped us investigate the engine issues further. We swapped the ECU to see if the problem was electrical. While we saw a slight improvement, the power deficit persisted. With a dry forecast for Race 2, our focus shifted to maximizing cornering performance. Using my teammate’s race-winning setup, I saw this as my best opportunity yet to learn and adapt.
Never Give Up
Race 2 started relatively uneventful until halfway through on lap 1 when I was punted off track. A few laps later my power steering failed and the car became extremely difficult to drive. Running alone in P20, the team radioed to ask if I wanted to retire the car. My answer was an unwavering “no.” This was our final session after a challenging two weeks, and I was determined to see it through. Wrestling the car lap after lap, I found my stride, setting my fastest lap on the very last one.
A Lot To Unpack
Leaving Sebring I realized not only how much I was challenged in these last two weeks but also how much I had learned. These two weeks really developed me as a driver. A new chapter begins in March—my first Spec MX-5 race with the Mazda Motorsports Factory Club Racing Team at Road Atlanta!
Jan 20, 2025
POST RACE
Sebring
January 9-12, 2025


















