This past weekend, we were on site in Monterey California for the first race of the 2014 Ultimate Street Car Association Series at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. Thanks to the guys at Kahn Media, along with Jesse Kiser, we’ve got great photos, full results, and more. Stay tuned for more information on the Optima Search For The Ultimate Street Car television show coming as well, with our own Chad Reynolds as the host. The racing at Laguna Seca was fierce, with tons of familiar faces, and some new ones as well, tearing up the Ridetech Street Challenge Autocross, Wilwood Speed Stop Challenge, Lingenfelter Performance Design and Engineering Challenge, Detroit Speed Road Rally, and BFGoodrich Hot Lap Challenge. It was awesome racing, with awesome people, and you aren’t going to want to miss the next one.
We’ll have more information on registration, and the new television show, coming tomorrow but if you need info right now just visit UltimateStreetCarAssociation.com. The next race is a week from now at Texas Motor Speedway and we’re looking forward to great Texas weather, the best fried chicken in the world at nearby Babe’s, and the smell of burning rubber and Texas BBQ. Yummmmmmyyyyyy! Don’t miss out, come join us. Any street legal car is eligible. Check out all the details at the link above.
Big thanks to Jesse Kiser who shot all our photos. He’s got great stuff and we really appreciate his efforts throughout the weekend. Take a look at the photos and you’ll realize that this dude never sat still and was EVERYWHERE.
Full results are below.
OPTIMA’s SEARCH FOR THE ULTIMATE STREET CAR QUALIFYING SERIES KICKS OFF 2014 SEASON AT MAZDA RACEWAY LAGUNA SECA
The first USCA-sanctioned event goes smoothly with over 2,000 laps, competitors from across North America and dozens of new friendships as the best American, Japanese and European performance street cars battled in Monterey, CA for top honors and a spot in the OPTIMA Ultimate Street Car Invitational.
Fun Facts:
- The first episode of 2014’s OPTIMA’s Search for the Ultimate Street Car series will air on MAVTV later this summer (exact dates and times TBD)
- First USCA sanctioned event, held at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca
- Competitors ran over 880 autocross/speed stop laps and over 1,400 road course laps
- Overall Winners (by class): Mike Maier’s 1966 Mustang, Mark Frazier’s 1971 240Z, Ricky Kwan’s 2012 Nissan GT-R, Betim Barish’s 2011 Porsche 911
Grafton, WI (March, 2014) – The “Corkscrew” at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca is perhaps the most famous corner in motorsports and has seen everything from modern production-based and prototype race cars to historic vintage racers clip its apexes. This past weekend, OPTIMA’s Search for the Ultimate Street Car Qualifying Series, sanctioned by the Ultimate Street Car Association, added performance street cars to that list when they brought together driving enthusiasts to participate in a three day event at the famous track that focused on safety, education and fun. Created for real street cars, this event tested every facet of a vehicle’s performance and gave the owners their first shot at earning a spot in the OPTIMA Ultimate Street Car Invitational scheduled to begin the day after SEMA in Las Vegas, NV.
The first OPTIMA Search for the Ultimate Street Car and USCA-sanctioned event of the year saw a full field entrants enjoy more time behind the wheel than drivers get at almost any other driving event, with competitors making nearly 900 autocross/speed stop laps and over 1,400 laps on the track. The event kicked off on Friday with a 60-mile Road Rally presented by Detroit Speed & Engineering that took participants through historic Cannery row and along some of the most beautiful coastline California has to offer. The Road Rally ended at the host hotel with the Holley Welcome Party and Cruise-In where six decades of street cars from the 1950s to present were represented. Saturday’s events included the Ridetech Street Challenge Autocross and the Wilwood Disc Brakes Speed Stop Challenge while judging for the Lingenfelter Performance Design & Engineering Challenge took place throughout the day. The final day of the event on Sunday was dedicated solely to the BFGoodrich Hot Lap Challenge road course segment where the three run groups made a total of 1,422 laps before the end of the day.
Taking top honors at the inaugural event were Mike Maier and his 1966 Mustang in the GT3K class, Mark Frazier and his 1971 Datsun 240Z in the GT2K class, and in an unexpected tie, Ricky Kwan and his 2012 Nissan GT-R, and Betim Barisha and his 2011 Porsche 911 in the AWD class. These drivers put together a solid, consistent performance throughout the weekend to earn their spots in the OPTIMA Ultimate Street Car Invitational taking place in November immediately following the SEMA Show. Taking home the K&N Spirit of the Event Award and the 5th spot in the Invitational was Martin Pond, whose 1980 Ford Fairmont captured the attention of the judges for best embodying the spirit of having fun in your street car.
“We are extremely happy with how well this event went,” said USCA Co-Founder Jimi Day. “We had a great group of enthusiasts and a very diverse field of cars. The participants enjoyed more time behind the wheel than you would get at just about any other high performance driving event. Everyone had fun and the five Jet-Hot driving instructors were busy all day teaching everyone how to be safer and faster in their cars. With this event now officially under our belts we are looking forward to the rest of the season and our upcoming events at Texas Motor Speedway and Daytona International Raceway.”
The Ultimate Street Car Association also announced the launch of a new referral program as a thank you to all of the participants that help spread the word about the event series. This program will award a 50-percent discount off your entry fee when the person that you refer to the event signs up.”
The next OPTIMA’s Search for the Ultimate Street Car Qualifying Series events, sanctioned by the USCA, are coming up on March 21-23 at Texas Motor Speedway and May 23-25 at Daytona International Speedway. For more information on OPTIMA’s Search for the Ultimate Street Car Qualifying Series, OPTIMA’s Ultimate Street Car Invitational, and the Ultimate Street Car Association, including a list of track dates, complete event results, season points, rules and membership information, please visit www.ultimatestreetcarassociation.com or follow us on Facebook, Google+ and Instagram. #DriveUSCA #becausestreetcar.
OFFICIAL EVENT RESULTS
Overall Winners:
| GT3K | #035 Mike Maier | 1966 Ford Mustang |
| GT2K | #011 Mark Frazier | 1971 Datsun 240Z |
| AWD | #030 Ricky Kwan #057 Betim Barisha |
2012 Nissan GT-R 2011 Porsche 911 Turbo |
| K&N Spirit of the Event Winner | #007 Martin Pond | 1980 Ford Fairmont |
BF Goodrich Hot Lap Challenge:
| 1st Place – GT3K | #052 Danny Popp | 2010 Chevrolet Camaro |
| 2nd Place – GT3K | #019 Filip Trojanek | 1966 Ford Mustang |
| 3rd Place – GT3K | #006 Jake Rozelle | 1969 Chevrolet Camaro |
| 1st Place – GT2K | #31 John Lazorak | 1988 Chrysler Conquest TSI |
| 2nd Place – GT2K | #055 Ken Suen | 2012 Honda Civic Si |
| 3rd Place – GT2K | #011 Mark Frazier | 1971 Datsun 240Z |
| 1st Place – AWD | #030 Ricky Kwan | 2012 Nissan GT-R |
| 2nd Place – AWD | #022 Brandon Ranvek | 2006 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution RS |
| 3rd Place – AWD | #045 Casey Wallace | 2011 Nissan GT-R |
Ridetech Street Challenge Autocross:
| 1st Place – GT3K | #035 Mike Maier | 1966 Ford Mustang |
| 2nd Place – GT3K | #052 Danny Popp | 2010 Chevrolet Camaro |
| 3rd Place – GT3K | #006 Jake Rozelle | 1969 Chevrolet Camaro |
| 1st Place – GT2K | #011 Mark Frazier | 1971 Datsun 240Z |
| 2nd Place – GT2K | #055 Ken Suen | 2012 Honda Civic Si |
| 3rd Place – GT2K | #031 John Lazorak | 1988 Chrysler Conquest TSI |
| 1st Place – AWD | #022 Brandon Ranvek | 2006 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution RS |
| 2nd Place – AWD | #057 Betim Berisha | 2011 Porsche 911 Turbo |
| 3rd Place – AWD | #030 Ricky Kwan | 2012 Nissan GT-R |
Wilwood Disc Brakes Speed Stop Challenge:
| 1st Place – GT3K | #035 Mike Maier | 1966 Ford Mustang |
| 2nd Place – GT3K | #025 Bret Voelkel | “48 Hour Camaro” |
| 3rd Place – GT3K | #006 Jake Rozelle | 1969 Chevrolet Camaro |
| 1st Place – GT2K | #011 Mark Frazier | 1971 Datsun 240Z |
| 2nd Place – GT2K | #031 John Lazorak | 1988 Chrysler Conquest TSI |
| 3rd Place – GT2K | #055 Ken Suen | 2012 Honda Civic Si |
| 1st Place – AWD | #026 Ronnie Soliman | 2006 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution |
| 2nd Place – AWD | #022 Brandon Ranvek | 2006 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution RS |
| 3rd Place – AWD | #057 Betim Berisha | 2011 Porsche 911 Turbo |
Lingenfelter Performance Engineering Design & Engineering Challenge:
| 1st Place – GT3K | #001 James Shipka | 1967 Chevrolet Camaro |
| 2nd Place – GT3K | #029 James Stancel | 2014 Mercedes SLS AMG Black Series |
| 3rd Place – GT3K | #025 Bret Voelkel | “48 Hour Camaro” |
| 1st Place – GT2K | #011 Mark Frazier | 1971 Datsun 240Z |
| 2nd Place – GT2K | #010 Brian Battaglini | 1970 Chevrolet Camaro |
| 3rd Place – GT2K | #055 Ken Suen | 2012 Honda Civic Si |
| 1st Place – AWD | #057 Betim Berisha | 2011 Porsche 911 Turbo |
| 2nd Place – AWD | #030 Ricky Kwan | 2012 Nissan GT-R |
| 3rd Place – AWD | #045 Casey Wallace | 2011 Nissan GT-R |
In order to compete, is it required to cover your car in all those decals? Just curious. I see that some of the competitors are company “test” cars that have decals as well as the Optima ones.