WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. – Cape Motorsports enjoyed an incredibly strong campaign in the 2017 Pro Mazda Championship Presented by Cooper Tires, winning five races with Australian driver Anthony Martin. The pairing scored the USF2000 title together in 2016 and Martin returned to the Mazda Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires in 2017 with his Mazda scholarship to take a run at the Pro Mazda crown.
The season wrapped up at Watkins Glen International in New York State, and Martin came home with a second-place finish, narrowly missing the championship by just 18 points. The 22-year-old from Perth was stellar all year long, and was awarded the Rookie of the Year honors, and with that, a brand-new Mazda street vehicle of his choice.
Martin and his Cape Motorsports team arrived at Watkins Glen knowing that they would need to score maximum points in the doubleheader to steal the championship from Victor Franzoni. Martin was third in the long practice session, which was held on Fridaymorning on a cold, green race track, laying down a lap of 1:45.1178 to set the baseline for the weekend. Qualifying for the opening race of the weekend was held that afternoon, and Anthony improved on his time significantly to move to second, putting him on the outside of the front row for Race 1.
At the green flag for Saturday’s Race 1, Martin attacked quickly, moving to the outside of Franzoni on the first run down to the famed ‘Bus Stop’ corner at Watkins Glen. Anthony took the lead entering the corner with an aggressive overtake and would pace the next 11 laps, fending off his competition following a lap 3 caution period and subsequent restart. Martin ran an impressive race, but Franzoni was unfortunately able to slip by in the late going to steal the win, as Anthony finished in second, dropping six additional points in the title chase.
Anthony put it all on the table for Race #2 later that afternoon, qualifying second in damp conditions to again put himself on the front row with a chance at winning the race and the championship. The Sunday morning race was run in wet conditions, the first opportunity for the drivers to be challenged by rain this year, and while Martin relished in the challenge, his 11th podium finish of the year was just not enough to give Cape Motorsports another Pro Mazda title. Anthony put on a show in the wet, searching the race course for quicker lines, finishing third in the final tally to secure the runner-up position in the championship.
In the end, Cape Motorsports and Anthony Martin finished the 2017 Pro Mazda season with a total of five wins, 11 podiums, and 12 top-five finishes.
DRIVER PERFORMANCE / QUOTES
PRO MAZDA CHAMPIONSHIP PRESENTED BY COOPER TIRES
EVENT #6 – SEPTEMBER 1-3, 2017
WATKINS GLEN INTERNATIONAL – WATKINS GLEN, NY
ANTHONY MARTIN – PRO MAZDA #8
Qualifying 1: 2nd – 1:43.24.97
Race 1: Start – 2nd / Finish – 2nd
Qualifying 2: 2nd – 2:04.1078
Race 2: Start – 2nd / Finish – 3rd
Driver Quote: “This weekend was certainly tough for us. In saying that, the Cape Motorsports crew and myself certainly gave it everything we had to put up a fight. It is always hard coming home second in the championship, but we didn't leave a stone unturned throughout the year and gave it our best shot. I am more than happy with how we handled situations and I can't thank the Cape Motorsports crew enough for that.”
About Cape Motorsports: Cape Motorsports campaigns cars in the F4 US Championship, Cooper Tires Presents the USF2000 National Championship Powered by Mazda and the Pro Mazda Championship Presented by Cooper Tires. The team is the winningest operation in USF2000 history, having won the last seven Driver and Team Championships with pilots like Matthew Brabham, Petri Suvanto, Scott Hargrove, Florian LaTorre, Nico Jamin, Anthony Martin and now, Oliver Askew. The goal of Cape Motorsports is to provide unmatched driver development both on and off the track. It is difficult for a young driver to jump into a professional series and win, regardless of talent. Through coaching and mentoring, Cape Motorsports provides young drivers with as much knowledge of motorsports to become as successful as possible.