If Friday’s Porsche Carrera Cup North America practice session is any indication, TOPP Racing’s Tyler Maxson is ready to clinch his Mobil Pro Class title.
The Porsche Motorsport North America Junior driver posted a best lap of 2:06.255 – just 0.034-second off of Ryan Yardley’s 2025 qualifying track record at Circuit of the Americas– on his ninth of 11 completed laps during the 30-minute session.
Friday’s practice is the lone session for the championship prior to Saturday morning’s qualifying and Saturday afternoon’s 35-minute race and immediately followed the opening Formula 1 Free Practice. Both championships run on their own version of the Pirelli P Zero tires.
Though a variety of used and new tire strategies can sway practice results, TOPP Racing proved strong. Maxson, in his No. 77 TOPP Racing Porsche 911 Cup, and teammate Cole Kleck in the No. 78 TOPP Racing machine, were the only two drivers to dip under 2:07 for their best lap.
“It was a good start to the weekend here at Circuit of the Americas,” Maxson said. “It’s a home race for TOPP Racing. It’s good to start off strong and it’s good for the championship to start off like this. The car feels mega. Every year we come here, the car is just so good.”
JDX Racing’s Callum Hedge was closest, ripping off a lap of 2:07.025 on his final lap of the session just after the checkered flag to move to third in his No. 9 Porsche 911 Cup. Janne Stiak (No. 40 ACI Motorsports Porsche 911 Cup) and Jared Thomas (No. 96 JTR Motorsports Engineering Porsche 911 Cup) completed the top five.
Aaron Jeansonne, the Kellymoss driver trailing Maxson by 27 points entering the final two races of the season this weekend, was sixth – 1.827 seconds behind Maxson.
James Sofronas drove his No. 14 GMG Racing Porsche 911 Cup to the top of the Solairus Aviation Pro-Am standings with just seconds remaining in the session. His lap of 2:09.093 put him just in front of class champion-elect Patrick Mulcahy. Mulcahy’s best lap of 2:09.481 in the No. 54 ACI Motorsports machine came with seven minutes to go in the session.
Mulcahy has clinched the title after winning the opening 14 races of the season. Sofronas is making his first start in the championship since the season opener at Sebring International Raceway, where he finished second in both races. He missed the majority of the season following an off-track injury but is now fully recovered.
“it’s good to be back for sure,” Sofronas said. “I’ve been watching all season after an injury took me out of the car. So I’ve been rehabbing and getting back into the swing of things. The competition is fierce, that’s why I’m back. I want to push myself.”
JDX Racing’s Joel Johnson, a Sprint Challenge competitor and the inaugural Porsche Sprint Trophy Porsche Club of America champion, led the way in the Solairus Aviation Masters Class on Friday. Johnson and his No. 70 Porsche 911 Cup made his championship debut at Road Atlanta earlier in the month and posted a best time of 2:09.923.
Scott Blind (Ruckus Racing), Rob Walker (JTR Motorsports Engineering), Kyle Washington (GMG Racing) and class champion Marco Cirone (ACI Motorsports) completed the top five in the category.
Though the on-track session was the first of the weekend, Porsche Carrera Cup North America competitors got a jump on the U.S. Grand Prix off the track. The No. 37 JDX Racing car piloted by Sabré Cook, the No. 60 Best Buddies/JDX Racing Porsche 911 raced by Kevin Stadtlander, and the Pirelli P Zero Porsche 911 Safety Car were part of the F1 Experiences Live event on the front straight of Circuit of the Americas on Thursday night.
The event was available to select ticket holders and acted as the official welcome event of the weekend, including a pit lane walk.
Championship contenders Maxson and Jeansonne traveled to the Formula 1 Paddock Club for an interview and Q&A session on Friday morning, prior to practice.
The entire 25-car field returns to action on Saturday morning at 9:10am CDT for a 30-minute qualifying session. That session will set the field for Saturday’s 35-minute race, which gets the green flag at 2:35pm.
All Porsche Carrera Cup North America races stream live – and are available to watch anytime – on the Porsche Motorsport North America YouTube channel. Stay up-to-date on all the latest news by following Porsche Motorsport North America on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Threads, and Twitter, and by subscribing to the PMNA newsletter.
RESULTS.
Free Practice
Mobil Pro Class:
- Tyler Maxson, #77
- Cole Kleck, #78
- Callum Hedge, #9
Solairus Aviation Pro-Am Class:
- James Sofronas, #14
- Patrick Mulcahy, #54
- Steve Wetterau, #58
Solairus Aviation Masters Class:
- Joel Johnson, #70
- Scott Blind, #45
- Rob Walker, #53
