Jim Burke Nissan
Jim Burke Nissan
Bushey Scores GT-3 National Championship Win at Runoffs
Ric Bushey, of Virginia Beach, Va., captured his first-career SCCA
National Championship Saturday, winning the Sunoco GT-3 Challenge at
the SCCA National Championship Runoffs at Road America. Mike Henderson,
of El Cajon, Calif., and John Black, of Olympic Valley, Calif.,
completed the top three.
After qualifying his No. 30 Abacus
Racing/Goodyear/Nissan 350Z on the pole, Bushey quickly dropped behind
the Mazdas of second- and third-starting Henderson and Rob Warkocki at
the beginning of the race. Henderson led initially in the No. 12 Mazda
RX-7 before Warkocki took the point in Turn 12 on the opening lap with
his No. 78 Empcor/Goodyear/Mazda/Red Line Mazda RX-7.
Warkocki
led the opening two laps before Bushey made his way past entering the
Carousel. From there, he gradually pulled away to take a 4.261-second
victory in the 13-lap, 52-mile race, averaging 98.828 mph.
“I
think I’m going to wake up tomorrow and ask someone to pinch me,
because I think it’s all a dream,” Bushey said of his National
Championship. “I said that after that qualifying run, because my time
was so unexpected. I said I was going to wake up tomorrow and feel like
this was one of those motorsports dreams. I have a feeling I’m going to
have that same surreal feeling tomorrow, as well.
“Every lap I’d
check my mirrors coming out of Five to make sure I gapped out enough
that they couldn’t catch me coming down the straight, and that was my
race strategy. It paid off.”
Henderson fell to third, but
eventually worked back past Warkocki into second place. At one point,
he held the fastest lap of the race honor, while working away at
Bushey’s lead, but he could not overcome the gap. It was Henderson’s
first-career podium finish at the Runoffs.
Black started fourth
in his No. 17 Nissan 350Z and battled for much of the race with
Warkocki before he finally was able to sneak by under braking in Turn
12 on the penultimate...
