It was business as usual for Robert Noaker in the Mustang Challenge series’ trip to VIRginia International Raceway.
With two pole-to-win victories in two races, Noaker left VIR with a 900-point lead in the Dark Horse class championship, putting him in position to mathematically clinch his second championship at Circuit of the Americas on the weekend of 5–7 September.
TechSport drivers Devin Anderson (Race 1) and Colin Harrison (Race 2) split runner-up honours across the weekend; McCumbee McAleer Racing driver Marcos Vento was third in Race 1, and Noaker’s teammate Sandy Satullo was third in Race 2, ahead of Vento.
In the Dark Horse Legends class, Zachry Lee (McCumbee McAleer Racing) and Tom Tait (Competition Motors) each earned their first wins of the season. Lee won Race 1 with a fourth-place overall finish, and Tait won Race 2.
Alex Bachoura (Spark Performance) was involved in early incidents in both races which has slashed his lead in the “DHL” championship to 150 points over Lee, and 160 points over Alfonso Diaz (TechSport), who finished second in Race 1. Diaz was given a drive-through penalty for the Race 1 incident with Bachoura but recovered for a podium finish.
But the most significant podium finish of the weekend was Paolo Salvatore’s third-place run in Race 1. Salvatore made a promise to his girlfriend Michelle that he would marry her if he finished on the podium.
And after the top three finishers collected their trophies from Race 2, Paolo and Michelle Salvatore officially became husband and wife, having their ceremony on the VIR podium!
Stephen Vajda (NV Autosport) and Joseph Dederichs (Robert Noaker Racing) completed the Dark Horse Legends podium from Race 2.
Images © Wes Duenkel / Ford
