UPDATE: This report has been updated to reflect the time penalty handed to Tanner Foust post-race.
Starting from pole, Cameron McLeod seized the lead at the start of the first race for the Mustang Challenge Le Mans Invitational before putting a five-second gap on Sam Paley that would hold for the duration of the race.
McLeod, who inherited pole position for the #92 Ryan McLeod Racing Cars Ford Mustang Dark Horse R after Robert Noaker was disqualified for a splitter height infraction, was never headed as he took the Race 1 victory in the inaugural event for the one-make Mustang Dark Horse R series at Circuit de la Sarthe.
“The experience is amazing, not only because of Mustang Challenge, but it’s also at a one-of-a-kind track… especially to stand up on the podium.
“The Ford Mustang Dark Horse R is a great car. Ford Performance has done well developing it so far, and it’s going to keep getting better and faster,” a jubilant McLeod said after the race.
Paley, in the #26 Paley Motorsport Dark Horse R, appeared to be closing the gap as the race neared its finish, but a red flag for David Wall’s Mustang in the barrier at the Porsche Curves with just under four minutes left in the 45-minute contest put an end to Paley’s hopes for a dramatic finish. Wall started third and had been running near the front before the incident.
Academy Motorsport teammates Marco Signoretti and Matt Nicoll-Jones had a race-long battle for third. Nicoll-Jones took the position for a moment with an elegant move in the Indianapolis corner with less than 20 minutes to go, but couldn’t hold the position and Signoretti claimed the final podium position in the #97 Mustang Dark Horse R.
Noaker’s drive from the back after losing pole position due to the technical infraction in the #13 Mustang was impressive, but seventh was as far as he could make it before the red flag. After a single lap, he was up 19 positions into 20th, and up to ninth before halfway. However, it took him a while to clear Dark Horse Legends winner Alex Bachoura, stalling his march in the ninth position overall, and could only manage seventh by the end of the final green-flag lap.
Fifth and sixth were occupied by Jenson Altzman and Wall after the race order reverted to positions at the end of the eighth lap before Wall’s incident.
Bachoura took the Dark Horse Legends lead from Dan McKeever early in the race and proceeded to put some distance between him and his rival for the class win, finishing ninth overall in the #33 Spark Performance Dark Horse R.
“I had to make up some spots from the start, but the Dark Horse R came in at the end,” Bachoura commented. “Spark Performance did a great job prepping the car. We had a lot of power throughout the race and kept consistent despite a few mistakes. But, that’s what it’s all about: making the least bit of mistakes to win.
“I’m very honoured to be here and extremely grateful to Ford Performance for putting this event together. What an amazing car and an epic experience.”
McKeever finished second in Legends driving the #91 Robert Noaker Racing entry, 13th overall, with Alfonso Diaz finishing third for TechSport Racing.
In the five-car Dark Horse Stars class for celebrity racers, RallyCross champion, drifter and television personality Tanner Foust won from pole position in the #1 Spark Performance Dark Horse R, despite an apparent mid-race problem that saw him sliding down the order for a bit, and then losing his rear bumper cover on the Mulsanne.
Finishing in 12th position overall, Foust was two spots ahead of the Stars second-place finisher, pro drifter Chelsea DeNofa in the #88 Creative Auto Sport entry. Actor and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series driver Frankie Muniz finished third in the stars class.
However, after the race, Foust was penalised for using “6th gear contrary to the prohibition given in bulletin number four” which “gave an advantage to car #1”. The one minute time penalty dropped him to fourth in the Stars category, promoting Chelsea DeNofa to the win.
Race 2 for the Mustang Challenge Le Mans Invitational takes place at 8:45 CET Saturday morning. You can stream it for free on the Ford Performance YouTube channel.
Feature image © Wes Duenkel / Ford
