Toby Grahovec piloted a Classic BMW Motorsport M235i Racing to its first win in the Pirelli World Challenge TC/TCA/TCB race at Circuit of the Americas on Saturday. It was the first US pro racing win for an M235i Racing, and the first race weekend for the team with the new car. Grahovec had finished second in Friday's season opener.
Grahovec started from the pole and ran in second on the first lap of Saturday’s 40-minute standing start race, following Friday winner Vesco Kosarov in a Nissan 370Z. Nico Wittmer in a Honda Accord took the lead briefly, but Grahovec got by. He had a scant .9-second edge over Wittmer by the ten-minute mark, but he soon extended the lead, holding on for the balance of the race for the win. He finished ahead of Wittmer and Tony Rivera in a 370Z.
Classic BMW’s second M235i Racing, driven by Gino Carini, finished thirteenth on Saturday. Carini had finished sixteenth on Saturday after starting from the back of the grid.
Grahovec said “It is awesome to win close to home. We have about 60 family and friends here today and to win is fantastic. Both races this weekend were tough. I got lucky in traffic and got a little bit of a gap. Traffic is tough here with the B Spec cars and some of the TCA machines. You really have to be on the ball with the standing starts but I had a good one today. We'll have a great party tonight after the win."—Brian S. Morgan
