POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (April 8, 2024) – Excellent results in pre-season testing with his #16 GYM WEED Ford Mustang at New Orleans’ NOLA Motorsports Park has three-time defending Trans Am by Pirelli series champion and 2023 NOLA race winner Chris Dyson feeling good about his prospects for a second straight win at the Louisiana road circuit.
“We had some misfortune at the first two races this year – just bad luck – but I expect this will be a good weekend for us,” said Dyson. “We made real progress over the winter developing our new chassis, including a very successful test at NOLA. The car is fast for a single lap and it’s fast for a long run without using up the tires. I can’t wait to get back in the saddle.”
If not for bad racing luck, Dyson might well be looking for his third straight win of the season rather than his first. A crash in the first turn while contesting the lead ended his race in the season-opener at Sebring, which left him 46 points behind race winner Paul Menard. Holding a comfortable lead in the season’s second race, at Road Atlanta, Dyson spun off the track on freshly fallen oil, returning in last place in the headline TA class. An epic charge left Dyson just 0.159 seconds behind race winner Adam Andretti at the checkered flag. While Dyson was disappointed to not win, his runner-up finish – without the benefit of further caution periods – narrowed his point gap to 17 behind current championship leader Menard, who experienced mechanical problems and finished 8th at Road Atlanta.
“NOLA is a really demanding circuit, physically and technically,” Dyson said. “Last year’s race was our first look at the place, and since then we’ve tested there. But even though it is all more familiar now, the characteristics are the same. There’s absolutely no let-up where you get any kind of break. And then you layer in the track surface and how bumpy it is in the high speed esses, you’re in a fight the whole lap.”
Menard and Andretti, currently third in the points standings, join former series champions Tomy Drissi and Amy Ruman as Dyson’s primary competition this weekend and for the series championship.
“The way points are awarded in Trans Am there’s a bonus not just for winning the race, but also for the pole and leading the most laps,” Dyson said. “But there’s effectively a substantial penalty for a bad finish, like we had at Sebring. Fighting back to a strong finish at Road Atlanta was really important for our campaign for a fourth consecutive championship. Over the course of the season consistency is critical. I am optimistic that we will stay at the sharp end and be in the mix at all the remaining rounds. But we have to capitalize on all the opportunities we get from now on to put some results on the board. This title race has really just begun.”