The inaugural Star Mazda Winter Series continued over the weekend, December 8-9, with Rounds Three and Four taking place at Firebird International Raceway. Taylor Hacquard and Bill Goshen shared the top honors, each scoring a win during the Arizona doubleheader.
In untypical weather conditions for the region, rain played a part in both the morning practice and qualifying session, prior to the Star Winter Series cars taking to the 1.6-mile course on Saturday afternoon for the opening race of the weekend. While Hacquard started from the pole position, it was championship leader Mike Hill who led the way early on in his John Walko Racing entry. With the World Speed Motorsports driver and Kelly Gallant in hot pursuit, Hill maintained the lead until just past the halfway mark of the 17-lap affair. Making the pass for position, Hacquard never relinquished the top-spot, scoring his first win of the series. Hill and Gallant joined the race winner on the podium, while Goshen, piloting a Hearn Motorsports finished fourth leading Larry Mason, the leading standard Formula Mazda car, to the stripe.
Returning to the Firebird road course, which utilizes a ¼ mile drag strip, day two of the doubleheader once again featured less than ideal wet conditions. Having captured his fourth consecutive pole position, Hacquard led the field to the green flag on a wet but drying track, followed by Goshen and Hill, the lone front-runner electing to start on slicks. With Hacquard held the lead, it initially appeared as though Hill and his team had made the right choice, as the track steadily began to dry. That quickly changed however, when the rain resumed. Using their rain tires to full advantage, Hacquard and Goshen quickly established a sizeable lead on Hill in third. Just prior to the midway point of the 20-lap race, the field was bunched back together via a full-course caution for an incident.
On the ensuing re-start, Hacquard managed to hold off the challenges of Goshen, while not far behind Hill retained third despite remaining on racing slicks. Running in close formation the entire second half of the race, the final two laps witnessed some great dicing for the lead. Goshen passed for the top-spot on lap 19, however Hacquard immediately responded, retaking the top-spot at the start of lap 20. His chances at the weekend sweep evaporated a few corners later, when he spun while coming under intense pressure from Goshen.
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