Franklin, TENNESSEE – September 28, 2021 – Ken Thwaits returned to the scene of his 2020 triumph in the Xtreme GT Class to claim another podium spot at Virginia International Raceway, this time putting together a smooth drive for his third place in the TA Class. The event marked Round 11
It was the second podium of the season for Thwaits, matching his performance at Laguna Seca and a terrific return for a driver in his first season in the iconic muscle car class. It puts him in prime position to claim P4 overall when the season concludes in November at Circuit of The Americas.
Ken was described in the broadcast commentary as “Mr. Trans Am” for his exploits this year in both TA and TA2, not forgetting his promotion of the Series with branded Franklin Road Apparel.
He qualified the No. 5 Franklin Road Apparel Chevrolet Camaro in P6 with a time of 1:49:416 and subsequently took advantage of the retirements in the race of Ernie Francis, Tomy Drissi and Simon Gregg to climb the field. Chris Dyson took the checkered flag uncontested to claim his first Trans Am Championship title. We spoke to Ken as he stepped off the podium and he was understandably pleased with the afternoon’s work.
“It’s my best finish of the season. On the road, third place podium. I’ll take it. We kind of chipped away at everything all weekend. We weren’t really fast but I knew I had a fast race car.”
After a yellow flag Ken had a brief tussle with Simon Gregg before the former Champion retired, “On the restart Simon and I were pretty much clicking off the same lap times so I was getting ready to dig in and have a battle with him and then I don’t know what happened to his car but he pulled off. It was just clear sailing from there. I just made sure I didn’t make any mistakes. [Crew Chief] Gary was telling me to back it down but whenever you do that you make mistakes so I just kept a decent pace up, and made sure I braked a little early apart from that I kept driving the same line.”
It was a very smooth drive from Ken who avoided all the trouble for a great finish with a reliable TA car.
Ken and Franklin Road have been supporting Trans Am all season and there is a commemorative t-shirt available to highlight the inaugural Music City Grand Prix, together with the rest of a great range of clothing at www.franklinroadapparel.com.
Next up for Ken in the 2021 season is the Heacock Classic for Trans Am at the current Formula One Grand Prix circuit, the Circuit of the Americas November 5 to 7 where we hope Ken can claim a richly deserved fourth place overall in the Drivers’ Championship.
Download the new Trans Am Racing App and watch the race events live from the Google PlayStore or Apple from your smartphone or mobile device.
Learn more about the Showtime Motorsports team partner, Franklin Road Apparel, at franklinroad.com and showtimemotorsports.net. Keep up to date with the Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli at gotransam.com.
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About Showtime Motorsports:
The Showtime Motorsports brand includes Ken Thwait’s racing team and racecars, and an outstanding classic Camaro collection. Showtime Motorsports brings together a dynamic staff who employ diverse talents and share a passion for cars, racing and caring for clients like they are our own family members.
