It was a challenging weekend at the VIRginia International Raceway (VIR) for Nitro Motorsports Toyota GR Cup North America program. Running four drivers with series regulars Tyler Wettengel and Jade Avedisian, Ethan and Jackson Tovo made their series debut as they graduated through the Nitro Motorsports Driver Development program.
After two practice sessions on Friday, Saturday opened with qualifying as Tyler Wettengel led the Nitro Motorsports program on the results sheet. Turning a lap that was quick enough for seventh overall, Wettengel started race one from the inside of row four. Female driver Jade Avedisian was the next quickest of the Nitro quartet in 18th while Ethan and Jackson Tovo made their GR Cup Series qualifying debuts in 22nd and 30th.
Wettengel continued his strong performance in race one as he stayed in the top-ten and eventually finished in the eighth position. Jade Avedisian had a solid run going before a passing under the yellow drive-through penalty ruined her race, relegating her down the running order and to an eventual 25th-place result. Just ahead of Jade was Jackson Tovo, making his series debut and completing the full race distance to finish 24th while brother Ethan ran into trouble completing only eight race laps.
Back to the track Sunday for the final event day of the weekend, a second qualifying session set the grid for the second wheel-to-wheel race of the weekend. In qualifying, Wettengel once again led the quartet of drivers, slotting into the 12th position with Jade Avedisian in P20. Ethan and Jackson Tovo, continuing their GR Cup development during the opening weekend, qualified 23rd and 28th and will shift their focus to the race that afternoon.
Race two was a 21-lap affair and a difficult one for Nitro Motorsports. Jade Avedisian scored a team-best finish in 16th while Wettengel fell from his P12 starting spot to cross the line 22nd. Jackson and Ethan Tovo managed to close their gap to the quickest car on track in their first GR Cup Series weekend, finishing the complete distance in race two in the 25th and 26th positions.
“It was a tough weekend for our GR Cup Series program but one that we can learn from for sure,” expressed Nitro Motorsports’ Nick Tucker. “This was the first time we ran four cars in this series and the first time this season that we have had a split program racing at two different locations. We have just under a month until the next race, and we will return better and stronger.”
Next up for the Toyota GR Cup North America program will be a trip to Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, and Road America over the August 16-18 weekend.
Photo Credit: RTD Media