4 Time Champion Returns to USTCC Field with a Podium Finish
Sonoma, CA - Stepping in for teammate Michael McColligan for the second race of the USTCC season was 4 time Champion Tom Lepper. After a few years away from USTCC racing, Lepper found his way back into the field with the GoGoGear.com Racing Team and their race winning Honda Civic. Lepper was keen to jump back into the Honda Civic, as he was the previous owner of the car. Since his ownership the car has been completely redesigned from the ground up with a powertrain that is much more competitive in the USTCC-SP class. Lepper spent much of the weekend coming up to speed with the car, but ultimately the 4 time champion was able to find the pace around the 2.5 mile circuit at Sonoma Raceway. Qualifying an excellent third on the grid, Lepper was right behind the RSX-S of Sean Milburn. The race showed why Lepper was a 4 time champion, his consistency and speed were on display for all to see. With other competitors struggling with reliability issues, it was Lepper who was in the right position to take advantage. He expertly piloted his familiar Konig Wheels K-Tuned Hasport Honda Civic to a fantastic second place ahead of his teammate Chris Evertson’s BMW 328i. The podium was a great haul of points for the team of Lepper/McColligan who are aiming at the overall season’s points. McColligan is taking the helm for the next round at Fontana where his Mazda RX8 will suit the high speeds of the banked oval at Auto Club Speedway.
GoGoGear.com Racing Team is a professional racing team that has been winning races since 1994 and has grown from one car to seven cars. The team has won dozens of championships since then in different classes and different cars. The team most recently won the driver’s championship in the United States Touring Car Championship in 2019 and placed second in the Team Championship. The team does more than just win races though. The team has built some awesome project cars, including ones for the SEMA show for major manufacturers including General Motors, Hyundai, Honda, Toyota and Kia.
USTCC is a professional road racing series comprising of late model sport compact sedans such as BMW 3 series, Mazdaspeed 3, Hyundai Genesis Coupe, Chevrolet Corvette, Porsche 911, Audi R8, Ford Mustang, Honda Civic and others. The cars use slightly modified engines and highly modified suspensions with aerodynamic ground effects and sticky Hankook slick race tires. The races can be seen exclusively on Final Drive TV available on NBC Sports on Xfinity cable, Dish Network, DirecTV and AT&T U-verse. For more information on USTCC, visit www.ustcc.com.