It took nearly two full seasons, but the wait was worth it. The #3 Tri-State Racing Dallara P217 of Chris Cadiz and Sam Vaughan finally captured its first-ever VSCA SportsCar Championship victory on Saturday at Road America, holding off Twin Turn Simracing by just 1.340 seconds in one of the closest LMP2 finishes in league history.
Starting fifth, Tri-State executed a near-flawless race — patient early on, precise through traffic, and opportunistic when strategy called for boldness. Their consistency paid off late, when they emerged from the final round of stops in control and never relinquished the lead despite relentless pressure from behind.
“It feels incredible,” Cadiz said afterward. “This win means validation for everyone on our team. We stayed clean, we stayed fast, and it was probably our best race ever.”
The result pushed Tri-State to within just 165 points of the lead in the LMP2 series championship, setting up a tense final showdown at Road Atlanta.
Twin Turn’s Title Run and Near Miss
For the #23 Twin Turn Simracing squad, the race was both triumph and torment. While their second-place finish was enough to clinch the 2025 Sprint Cup title, Dominik Isenberg and Lucas Moncla left Wisconsin wondering what might have been.
After a storming start saw Moncla leap to the front, the team’s race unraveled in a series of small but costly incidents — a spin while lapping GT traffic, a drive-through penalty, and a late restart scare. Still, a perfectly timed fuel top-off during the race’s only full-course yellow kept them in contention.
“This win really feels special — to take the Sprint Cup in our debut season,” said Isenberg. “But it also stings a little. We were so close to another race win. A spin and a few mistakes cost us, but the team never gave up.”
Twin Turn’s other entry, the #22 car driven by Viktor Sönnergren and Ryan Suralik, had shown commanding speed, earning pole and leading a race-high 40 laps, before late penalties dropped them to fourth.
iRacing Today Holds Their Ground
The #158 iRacing Today Motorsports entry of Timothy Johnston and Chad Dalton finished a determined third after a turbulent race that included contact under yellow and damage repairs. It wasn’t the smooth run they had hoped for, but it was enough to secure second in the Sprint Cup standings — a strong finish to an up-and-down season.
“Our race was pretty good overall, but it could have been better,” Dalton said. “Once the yellow came out, things got messy, but we just kept our heads down. Tim did a great job bringing it home.”
Johnston echoed the sentiment, crediting teamwork and strategy for salvaging a podium: “Chad was fantastic in traffic. We just kept pushing despite the setbacks. It’s a result we can be proud of.”
Midfield Mayhem and Costly Penalties
Behind the podium finishers, drama was never far away. The race’s only full-course yellow — lasting 34 minutes — came after multiple incidents across the field. The #14 Grow Racing Team and #96 Albrecht Motorsports cars were handed several post-race penalties for contact and unsafe rejoins, while the #531 Pandemonium eSports x Sim-Lab car failed to complete 70% of the winner’s distance, scoring no points, after a horrific crash involving the #74 SRN Motorsports Corvette just 70 minutes into the race, that completely destroyed both race cars.
Still, the midfield delivered strong performances. The #11 Vision 1 Motorsports duo of Kyle Allen and Jeremy Carter finished fifth after a steady run, followed by the #89 Keystone Simsport car of Taylor Parsons and Lukas Santos in sixth. Albrecht Motorsports (#96) recovered from penalties to claim seventh, ahead of Grow Racing Team (#14) in eighth.
Despite their troubles, Vision 1 Motorsports retained second in the championship standings, just 162 points behind leaders Twin Turn.
The Final Chapter Awaits at Petit Le Mans
With just one round remaining, the championship picture has come into sharp focus. Twin Turn Simracing holds the upper hand, leading the overall standings with 3,267 points, while Vision 1 and Tri-State prepare for a final push at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.
The season finale — the iconic **Petit Le Mans** on October 18 — promises high stakes and no shortage of storylines. For Tri-State, it’s momentum finally rewarded. For Twin Turn, it’s a chance to complete a near-perfect season. And for everyone else, it’s one last opportunity to end 2025 on a high.
As the paddock packs up from Elkhart Lake, one thing is certain: at Road America, patience, precision, and persistence once again proved that in endurance racing, it’s not just how fast you go — it’s how well you finish.
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