Mosack 13th, Liesfeld 21st in Penultimate TA2 Race of 2021

Overview:

Date:  Sept. 26, 2021

Event:  VIR SpeedTour (Round 11 of 12)

Series:  Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli (TA2)

Location:  Virginia International Raceway in Alton

Layout:  3.27-mile, 17-turn road course

Format:  31 laps or 75 minutes

Race Winner:  Rafa Matos of Peterson Racing

TeamSLR:    

• Connor Mosack – Started 5th, Finished 13th (Running, completed 30/31 laps)

• Chris Liesfeld – Started 21st, Finished 20th (Mechanical, completed 20/31 laps)

Connor Mosack, Driver No. 28, TeamSLR:

“We fired off pretty tight – maybe the car didn’t like the full load of fuel and the low tire pressure – but after about four or five laps, the tire pressures came up and we started gaining on them and were running laps matching the leaders. Just had a hard time getting by (Thomas) Merrill, so I backed off a little bit and then tried to get another run at him. Right as I was closing back in on him, the caution came out. On the next restart, we followed Merrill through and got by (Mike) Skeen and were running third for a little bit. I felt like the balance was going away a little bit and Skeen was a lot better than us in one section and he caught us there. I guess he didn’t like when we got by him, so he jacked us up pretty good a couple of times and ended up cutting down our right-rear tire. We ended up coming down pit road and put a right-rear on it. I think we were the fastest car on the track once we got back out but, unfortunately, we were a lap down so we just ended up riding where we were. Not the day we wanted. Had the speed, but it just didn’t work out for us. At least it feels a little bit better now that we have the win (at Watkins Glen), because you know you’re going to have some bad days. We were able to have a good one before we had this bad one. Hopefully, we can just go and have a good run at COTA to cap off the season.”

Chris Liesfeld, Driver No. 96, TeamSLR:

“It all started when I didn’t qualify where I was practicing and ended up pretty far back in the field. When the race started, I was able to hold my position for the first few laps and then I started working my way up through the field to about 11th or 12th before the full-course caution came out. The plan was, knowing that at some point a full-course caution was going to come out, I wanted to work my way up through the field and then be in position to go racing from about where I was practicing. On the restart, there was a little bit of a melee and I got tangled up with another car. I’m not sure what happened, but we hit and I went off into the grass. I lost some positions, but got going again and did another lap or so and then had a mechanical problem. I feel like I’m progressing, certainly improving. Even through the race today, I was constantly learning and working hard to get up to true speed. We have one more race this year, and next year I really want to come back to VIR and finish the race.”

Next Up:

The Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli heads to Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas, for its season finale Nov. 5-7. Practice on the 3.426-mile, 20-turn circuit begins Nov. 5 with qualifying set for Nov. 6 and the race taking place Nov. 7. Coverage will be livestreamed via the Trans Am by Pirelli Racing App, which can be downloaded on Apple iOS and Android Google Play. The app features high-definition onboard footage and real-time data, including live timing and scoring. A week pass can be purchased for $9.99, or an annual pass for $59.99. (NOTE: Downloading the app is free and free content is available, but a subscription is needed to watch live, on-track action.)