Michael Satterfield
TGR Staff
Veteran road racer Craig Stanton piloted the TMG 86 Cup Car to TCA class finishes of third and fourth in last Saturday’s Pirelli World Challenge (PWC) action at Utah Motorsports Campus, marking the debut for the TMG-built Toyota 86 in North America.
After starting fourth, Stanton moved up to second before finishing third in class in the day’s first TC/TCA/TCB class race to give the TMG 86 Cup Car a podium finish in its North American debut. The former GRAND-AM champion then finished fourth in the afternoon’s second race.
“I’m so proud to [podium] for the culture and the lineage of 86 and Toyota and all that goes along with the Toyota 86,” Stanton said after finishing third. “It’s not just a cool car, but it’s a cool lineage and a community. Just so many people that I don’t even know that have wished me luck and congratulated me. The podium is so sweet.”
The TMG 86 Cup Car is a Toyota 86 prepped for customer racing by Toyota Motorsports GmbH in Germany that competes in the GT86 Cup, part of the VLN racing series in Germany, as well as other series. The PWC entry by DG-Spec Racing marked the North American debut for the TMG 86 in a one-race effort to promote the Toyota 86 and TMG 86 Cup Car as a customer racing option for PWC and in other efforts.
Stanton and DG-Spec previously won the 2016 One Lap of America in a Sienna R-Tuned and the racer also worked with Toyota to help former NASCAR driver Carl Edwards set the land speed record for an SUV in the Land Speed Cruiser at 230.02 mph in 2017.
The TMG 86 Cup Car is not currently scheduled to compete in any additional events, but racing development for the 86 Cup Car is promising as a competitor to the MX-5 as an entry-level road racing platform.
