This year, the series started off again in Long Beach on the street course that is laid out for the annual Toyota Grand Prix. Unlike other courses in the series, this one is on a street course that is pretty unforgiving. Utilizing turns 9 through 11, drivers needed to either slide or collide against the formidable concrete k-rails that bordered the track. There is very little room for error as this course is pretty tight.
The weather that day was pretty hot, and I don't only mean the excitement level of this event, Southern California got hit with a high pressure system and it was super hot in the stands and worse trackside. Temps reached 95 degrees and keeping cool and hydrating was pretty much priority one for everyone at this event.
The action and skills that the drivers displayed for the fans did not disappoint. The final battles between Chris Forsberg and Sam Hubinette were a result of tight runs and they had to do additional runs as the crowd cheered out "One more time!" Forsberg eventually came out on top and won Round 1 of the series.
The next round will be at Road Atlanta on May 9-10.
Results of Round 1
1st place - Chris Forsberg (Nissan 350z)
2nd place - Sam Hubinette (Doge Viper)
3rd place - Tanner Foust (Nissan 350z)
1. Forsberg 106 Points
2. Hubinette 96 Points
3. Foust 83 Points
4. Mohan 70 Points
5. Yoshihara 65 Points
6. Haruguchi 64 Points
7. Hayashida 63 Points
7. Tuerck 63 Points
9. McNamara 61 Points
10. Gittin 58 Points
11. Pawlak 57 Points
12. Gushi 56 Points
12. Takatori 56 Points
14. Grunewald 55 Points
14. Miki 55 Points
14. Yamanaka 55 Points
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