DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Jan. 24, 2025) - Anything can, and did, happen when Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup presented by Michelin takes to Daytona International Speedway. A large-scale incident at the start of the race collected several key players and set the stage for Jared Thomas (No. 96 JTR Motorsports Engineering) to take his third series victory at Daytona on Friday.
Under sunny skies, 35 cars lined up side-by-side at Daytona to take the green flag for Round Two of the Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup. Unfortunately, two cars near the front of the field came together, sending both into the wall and then bouncing back into the charging pack of cars. Thus began a chaotic chain reaction that ended with numerous cars disabled on the front straight or the grass.
“I was right behind Alex [Bachoura] and Gresham [Wagner],” said fourth-place starter Ren Messinger (No. 3 McCumbee McAleer Racing). “I saw Alex just push up a little bit, and Gresham came down to side draft right at the same time, and they just got hooked together. I didn't see what happened afterwards. Luckily, I made it through, but it looked really big.”
When racing resumed, polesitter Nate Cicero (No. 19 Saito Motorsports Group) led Helio Meza (No. 27 BSI Racing), Bailey Cruse (No. 11 JTR Motorsports Engineering) and Thomas to the green. Rookies Meza and Cruse were no match for Thomas, the two-time series champion. He was quickly around the pair and onto the rear bumper of Cicero.
Time was of the essence. The lengthy cleanup from the accident meant there was only 16 minutes of green flag left to chase the Daytona win.
Starting from 26th, Jeremy Fletcher (No. 22 McCumbee McAleer Racing) threw his hat in the ring with three minutes left on the clock and brought Todd Buras (No. 58 AAG Racing) with him.
On the penultimate lap, the leaders got into traffic, which shook up the order. Now, it was Fletcher bringing the pack to the white flag. But anyone who’s watched MX-5 Cup at Daytona knows, you do not want to be leading on the final lap.
Exiting the Le Mans Chicane without a drafting partner, Fletcher was swallowed up by the group and became an obstacle for Cicero to navigate. Meanwhile, Thomas got the best exit out of the chicane and with a healthy push from Buras, took the lead. Messinger chose to follow Thomas and Buras onto the banking. The trio were a slipstream train headed toward the finish line.
Buras did his best to time his move, but when he pulled to the inside of Thomas it wasn’t enough. Thomas beat him to the line by 0.038-second.
“[Westin] Workman (in a lapped car) was up there,” Thomas said. “So I held way back, and then got my run on the bottom. I didn't know it was Todd [Buras] at the time, but Todd went with me on the bottom, and we just went right around, got the draft off of Workman, and it worked great. You could replay that lap 100 times and get 100 different results.”
It was Thomas’ third MX-5 Cup win at Daytona. His first two were in 2022 and 2023, the two years he went on to win the season championship.
“Epic way to start the season,” added Thomas. “Let's see if history repeats itself.”
Buras is a longtime Spec Miata and MX-5 Cup competitor, but this was his first time racing MX-5 Cup at Daytona and he had no clue what to expect for the final lap.
“I had (spotter) Paul Shepherd in my ear saying ‘just go, go, go, push, push, push,’” Buras said. “And I went, went, went! Then he said, ‘go low, go low.’ And we went low. I really didn't have any idea.
“At the start of the last lap I got bumped out of second, and I went outside and slid a little, but we got it back. I just got to thank the good Lord that everything came through when we were involved in that wreck and what an amazing thing for my family and for everyone involved.”
As the highest finishing driver over the age of 40, Buras also earned the Takumi Award, which recognizes the performance of drivers who’ve spent decades mastering their craft.
Messinger, taking part in his first ever MX-5 Cup race, knew exactly what he needed on the last lap to get a win, but it never materialized.
“I'm looking for someone on my bumper and looking for a pair of cars a few car lengths ahead of me and then we can generate a run,” explained Messinger. “I got the two car lengths ahead of me part coming out of the bus stop, but I didn't have anyone on my bumper. It still worked out pretty well, but I think if I had been able to drag one of my teammates up with me we might have had a shot at it.”
Just missing the podium in fourth was Nathan Nicholson (No. 56 Advanced Autosports). His remarkable drive from 31st on the grid to fourth at the finish earned him the “Penske Shocking Performance Award.”
The latest Mazda Women in Motorsports Initiative Scholarship winner, Ashyln Speed (No. 31 Hendricks Motorsports) was also recognized at the podium for finishing 16th, the highest placed female driver, after starting 34th on the grid.
Both Mazda MX-5 Cup races at Daytona are available to watch anytime on the RACER and YouTube channels.
Rounds Three and Four head across the state of Florida to the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, February 28 – March 2.