Fulltimer Connor Mosack Looks To Lock Down Second Place in TA2 Championship While Part-Timer Chris Liesfeld Seeks Breakthrough Run in Record 55-Car Field
ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. (Nov. 1, 2022) – With 11 races down and one to go, the Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli is set to end its season this Sunday at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas.
TeamSLR driver Connor Mosack looks to put an exclamation point on his second year of TA2 competition with a victory in the 30-lap, 75-minute race around the 3.426-mile, 20-turn road course so he can secure a career-best second in the final championship standings. Mosack will have a wingman in driver Chris Liesfeld, who returns to TeamSLR for his fifth start of 2022. The duo will be part of a record field of 55 TA2-class entries that eclipses previous high of 52 cars that took the green flag for last year’s season finale at COTA. Mosack will again wheel the No. 28 Open Eyes/Nic Taylor Custom Fit Underwear/M1 Racecars Ford Mustang while Liesfeld returns to the No. 96 Fields Racing/M1 Racecars Chevrolet Camaro.
Mosack finished second last year at COTA to clinch third in the championship. The 23-year-old from Charlotte, North Carolina, set sail in 2022 with nothing but the championship in mind. Despite some early season challenges, he was a model of consistency, scoring a series-best five pole positions and rallying his way into title contention with four podium finishes that included his second career victory at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International in September. He was within striking distance of the title heading into the season’s penultimate round at Virginia International Raceway (VIR) in Alton on Oct. 8, entering the weekend 16 points behind two-time and defending TA2 champ Rafa Matos. Mosack took the checkered flag in second place, ahead of Matos, which would have narrowed the 16-point gap heading into this weekend COTA. But Mosack was assessed a 40-second penalty for contact deemed avoidable, moving him down to 17th in the official finishing order. He heads to COTA second in the championship, but an almost insurmountable 30 points behind the front-running Matos.
Bettering last year’s third-place finish in the final standings would be a bittersweet consolation for Mosack, who will be racing as a newlywed for the first time after marrying his longtime sweetheart, the former Daryn Lundberg, on Oct. 15. To do so, he’ll need to ward off the challenges of veteran Thomas Merrill, who’s two points back in third place in the championship, and newcomer and VIR race winner Brent Crews, who’s another point back in fourth. Mosack and Crews occupy the top two spots in the Peter Gregg Young Gun standings with just three points separating them.
Liesfeld is coming off a 13th-place finish at VIR, his best result this season and equaling the 13th-place run he earned on the streets of Nashville, Tennessee, in his first of three TA2 outings last year. The 47-year-old Liesfeld owns and operates Fields Racing, which has competed in an array of racing disciplines over the years, including Stock Car Championship Series, Spec Miata, SCCA Pro, and Trans Am.
Meanwhile, in the race within Sunday’s TA2 race, Jeff Holden of Snohomish, Washington, will look to clinch the 2022 Trans Am Western Championship TA2 title in M1 Racecars equipment. The 37-year-old driver of the No. 11 RelaxAndCBD.com/Dakota Lithium/Mid Valley Transmission Chevrolet Camaro holds a 12-point lead in the driver standings over Ken Sutherland behind three wins and a runner-up finish in the season’s first seven events.
Riding along with TeamSLR once again this weekend is ScreenYourMachine.org, an initiative created in 2016 by TeamSLR founder Scott Lagasse Jr., a colon cancer survivor, in partnership with the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) to educate individuals about the importance of getting age-appropriate screenings for all types of cancer.
“I was still in my early 30s when I was diagnosed, but I knew something was wrong so I didn’t waste any time and I went and saw my doctor,” said Lagasse, whose quick decision paralleled his quickness in a racecar. “They caught it early and that was my saving grace. The treatment worked, but young-onset colorectal cancer is rising. I wasn’t some outlier. In people ages 55 and younger, incidence is rising by two percent every year.”
About TeamSLR: |
TeamSLR competes fulltime in the Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli in a multifaceted effort that includes dedicated entries in the TA2 division, customer programs, driver coaching and car construction. Its history dates back to 1985 and covers a wide spectrum of motorsports, including NASCAR, IMSA, SCCA, ARCA and ASA. TeamSLR is a family-owned organization run by Scott Lagasse Sr., and Scott Lagasse Jr., The father-and-son duo have combined to win more than 100 races and seven championships across a variety of series and styles of racecars, from paved ovals to road courses to dirt tracks. For more information, please visit us online at http://www.TeamSLR.com, on Facebook, on Twitter, on Instagram and on LinkedIn. |