Congratulations are officially in order, not only for class champions but also for the Round 16 winners, as the 2024 Porsche Carrera Cup North America season came to a close with Sunday’s checkered flag for Ryan Yardley at Circuit of The Americas (COTA).
Yardley started on the second row with Topp Racing Performance, but within 10 minutes, had chased down and passed the leaders to capture the final Pro class victory of the year. The win was crucial, as Yardley broke his tie with Alex Sedgwick (JDX Racing) for second in the championship standings.
For the second weekend in a row, Yardley and and JDX Racing’s Zach Vanier mirrored the scene in victory lane – Vanier winning the first race of the weekend and Yardley the second.
“It’s been an awesome year,” said Yardley after his third win of the season.
“To finish off with a win and to be here with Formula One and here your national anthem on the podium is also pretty special. It’s been a pretty cool day and I was just glad to get through Turn 1 clean, and thankfully, we did that. It was just head down from there.”
While Sedgwick was unable to close the gap to Yardley, he and JDX Racing teammate Vanier had a thrilling battle for second and third that came down to the final 60 seconds. Both drivers ultimately had a successful run in Race 2, as Sedgwick started sixth and finished second, while Vanier started fourth to finish third.
Loek Hartog – who was mathematically crowned the Pro class champion at Road Atlanta earlier this month – completed his season with a fourth-place result on Sunday.
In the Pro-Am class, Alan Metni (Kellymoss) knew he had to beat his teammate Efrin Castro to take the crown, and the Austin resident did just that. Metni celebrated with friends and family on Sunday after enduring pressure from Castro for both the win and the title.
“This is what we talked about – whoever wins, wins,” Metni added. “That was the idea. I was all keyed up by it, but I was also motivated by it. It was really fun, close racing with (Efrin), and I enjoy racing with him.”
Castro was one of several competitors who fell victim to a spin on Sunday, but he lurked in Metni’s mirrors, running in second place before doing so. Moisey Uretsky (Baby Bull Racing) ultimately finished second, and Castro battled back to finish third.
“It feels great, and it’s amazing that we did this here at home,” said Metni.
“I love racing with Efrin and Mosiey and Marco (Cirone) and everybody else. These guys taught me how to race. It’s amazing coming back here. Getting to see my lovely wife and daughter here, and all the guys at Kellymoss did a phenomenal job.”
The Masters class race and championship results were determined on the final corner of the race. Kellymoss driver Chris Bellomo – who was also Friday’s polesitter and Saturday’s Race 1 winner – battled door-to-door with Kyle Washington (GMG Racing) for the win, but tapped his competitor off track coming to the checkered flag. Scott Blind (Ruckus Racing) watched the drama unfold in third place and snuck by both cars for the win, his second of the season.
“(Carrera Cup) is super competitive,” explained Blind, who also competes in the Porsche Sprint Challenge series. “There’s a lot more on the line, a lot more cars in front of me. All in all, both paddocks are full of great people and the grid is fabulous.
“I have some good people behind me and Andrew Davis is one of them. He’s a great coach and good for my headspace, keeping me focused, and Mike Johnson is on the radio. I had a great start and was in first, went deep into Turn 12 and lost a few places. I made all the spaces back and at the end of the day, it was a great day to take first.”
Bellomo was assessed a 10-second penalty for the late incident but maintained second place in class. Therefore, after his success in Texas, Bellomo captured the championship by the narrowest of margins over Matt Halcombe, who finished a place shy in third.
The Porsche Carrera Cup North America field celebrated its accomplishments on Sunday evening with the end-of-season Celebration of Champions, while the class champions will also be recognized at the annual Porsche Night of Champions later this year.
All races from the 2024 season are archived for replays on the Porsche Motorsport North America YouTube Channel.