Bowmanville, Ont., Canada – After winning both the driver and team championships in 2012, Team Pelfrey has endured a disappointing first half of the Pro Mazda Championship Presented by Cooper Tires season, highlighted by a pair of second-place finishes for Spencer Pigot.
The team and driver bounced back in fine style by scoring his first victory in Race 1 at the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park.
Pigot came up to the series this year after spending two seasons in the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda, where he finished runner-up both years. He was the BF Goodrich/Skip Barber National Series presented by MAZDA champion in 2010.
“It is great for me and it’s great for the team.” said Pigot. “We have been working hard all year and haven’t quite had it for some of the other teams, especially at Toronto which was probably the worst weekend I have ever had. To come back and get the win is great for the whole team."
FULL RESULTS
Pigot, who qualified second, fought his way past polesitter Shelby Blackstock on Lap 2 and managed to edge out a slight margin over the two battling Andretti Autosport entries of Blackstock and series points leader Matthew Brabham.
On Lap 4, Pigot’s advantage was erased when Colombian Juan Piedrahita crashed his JDC MotorSports entry heavily into the tires at Turn 3, causing a lengthy full-course caution. Piedrahita was not seriously injured in the accident and was taken to a Bowmanville hospital for further precautionary tests.
The field was obliged to run behind the Safety Car for 10 laps while the car was removed and the tire barrier repaired. When the race was restarted with around five minutes remaining, the top three contenders felt they had a legitimate shot at the victory.
The final couple of laps saw all three jockeying for position, frequently running side-by-side, but it was Pigot who held on for the victory by just 0.118 seconds ahead of Blackstock at the checkered flag. Brabham was a scant 0.081 second behind in third.
“It’s a shame to lose the winning streak, but you can’t have every win so we will take it as it comes,” Brabham said. “For me, it was a great race. I am so happy for Shelby and Spencer.”
Scott Anderson finished only a second or so in fourth for Juncos Racing, while Brazilian Nicolas Costa (Team Pelfrey) found a way past Diego Ferreira in a second Juncos Racing entry for fifth in the closing stages.
Contingency awards included the Quarter Master Hard Charger Award which went to Costa for a gain of four positions from ninth to fifth, the Staubli Award to Blackstock and the PFC Award to the winning team of Team Pelfrey.