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The Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup, presented by Michelin, is in its twenty-first season.
This is a spec series for the Mazda MX-5 model. The cars are fourth-generation Miatas.
The MX-5 Cup race cars are produced at the Mazda factory in Hiroshima, Japan, and then shipped to Flis Performance in Daytona Beach. Flis Performance adds more than 250 motorsport parts for enhanced performance and safety. The SKYACTIV 2.0-liter engine found in the Mazda MX-5 is sealed to ensure parity and reduced costs. All MX-5 Cup cars are equipped with Michelin Pilot Sport Competition 215/40R X 17 racing slicks mounted on Ray forged wheels. The 2026 championship consists of fourteen rounds conducted at seven different racing venues.
Mazda Motorsports offers more than $1 million in prize money and scholarships to attract competitors and advance their careers. The winner of each race earns $6,000 while the series champion collects a cheque for $250,000. Rounds seven and eight of the 2026 Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup, presented by Michelin, were held at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park during the Chevrolet Grand Prix weekend. Drivers competed in two forty-five-minute contests on the ten-turn, 2.459-mile road course. This event marked the season’s halfway point.
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The start of round eight for the 2026 Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup. On Sunday morning, thirty competitors headed into Canadian Tire Motorsport Park’s corner one. Leading the field in the No. 11 Advanced Autosports Mazda MX-5 was rookie Matt Novak. His teammate, Nathan Nicholson, in the No. 56 Advanced Autosports Mazda MX-5, shared the front row. Bobby Gossett and Helio Meza followed immediately behind. |
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Bobby Gossett was the fastest qualifier for race one at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park; however, a penalty wiped out his two fastest laps. The driver of the No. 44 BSI Racing prepared Mazda MX-5 started eighth. During the race, Gossett moved up the order and finished second. Ethan Lampe was first across the finish line but was disqualified for a technical infraction, giving the win to Gossett. On Sunday, he started third and finished in the runner-up spot. |
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Until rounds seven and eight, rookie Ethan Lampe’s best result was fourth place at Daytona. The 2025 MX-5 Cup Scholarship Winner qualified fourth for Saturday’s first race at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. Lampe moved to the front and was in first place when the race ended under caution. However, the No. 31 Hendrick Motorsports Mazda MX-5 failed tech inspection and was disqualified. In the finale, Lampe redeemed himself with a win. |
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Local racer and rookie Marcello Paniccia delivered his best result of the season at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. Paniccia qualified twelfth for round seven, driving the No. 38 McCumbee McAleer Racing Mazda MX-5. He avoided much of the drama in front of him and moved to second after Ethan Lampe was disqualified. Paniccia started twenty-first in the weekend’s final contest but charged to a ninth-place finish. |
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The 2026 Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup points leader is Justin Adakonis. Adakonis pilots the No. 23 McCumbee McAleer Racing Mazda MX-5. This year’s record includes three podium finishes, two of them victories at Saint Petersburg and Mid-Ohio. In Saturday’s contest at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, Adakonis started seventh, finished third after Ethan Lampe’s disqualification, and was classified fourth in the final results. |
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Jared Thomas is a two-time Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup champion and drives the No. 96 Mazda MX-5 entered by JTR Motorsports Engineering. He qualified ninth fastest for round seven at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. Thomas ran second late in the race before contact with Jeremy Fletcher dropped him to fourteenth. In the final race of the weekend, he charged from twenty-fourth to third place at the checkered flag. |
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Frankie Barroso tops the Rookie standings and sits fourth in the championship. Barroso has yet to finish on the podium but has amassed his points through consistency. He has three top-ten results after six rounds and improved that mark at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. In the weekend’s first contest, Barroso qualified fifteenth and finished eighth in the No. 48 Spark Performance Mazda MX-5. In the finale, he started fourteenth and finished sixth. |
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| FINISH | START | DRIVER | CAR | ENTRANT | LAPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 | Bobby Gossett | Mazda MX-5 | BSI Racing | 28 |
| 2 | 12 | Marcello Paniccia (R) | Mazda MX-5 | McCumbee McAleer Racing | 28 |
| 3 | 3 | Justin Adakonis | Mazda MX-5 | McCumbee McAleer Racing | 28 |
| 4 | 11 | Parker DeLong | Mazda MX-5 | Parker Delong Racing | 28 |
| 5 | 10 | Noah Harmon | Mazda MX-5 | Hendricks Motorsports | 28 |
| 6 | 13 | Cam Ebben (R) | Mazda MX-5 | Advanced Autosports | 28 |
| 7 | 19 | John Salerno (R) | Mazda MX-5 | JTR Motorsports Engineering | 28 |
| 8 | 15 | Frankie Barroso (R) | Mazda MX-5 | Spark Performance | 28 |
| 9 | 14 | Ethan Jacobs (R) | Mazda MX-5 | JDH Racing | 28 |
| 10 | 16 | Vaughn Mishko (R) | Mazda MX-5 | Advanced Autosports | 28 |
| 11 | 20 | Glenn McGee | Mazda MX-5 | JTR Motorsports Engineering | 28 |
| 12 | 24 | Justin Gravett (R) | Mazda MX-5 | JTR Motorsports Engineering | 28 |
| 13 | 17 | Logan Stretch (R) | Mazda MX-5 | Wheels America Racing | 28 |
| 14 | 9 | Jared Thomas | Mazda MX-5 | JTR Motorsports Engineering | 28 |
| 15 | 21 | Ellie Gossett (R) | Mazda MX-5 | BSI Racing | 28 |
| 16 | 26 | Christian Hodneland | Mazda MX-5 | BSI Racing | 28 |
| 17 | 25 | Massimo Sunseri | Mazda MX-5 | BSI Racing | 28 |
| 18 | 27 | Charlotte Traynor (R) | Mazda MX-5 | Parker Delong Racing | 28 |
| 19 | 29 | Ryan Leach (R) | Mazda MX-5 | Spark Performance | 28 |
| 20 | 7 | Julian DaCosta | Mazda MX-5 | BSI Racing | 28 |
| 21 | 31 | Damon Ockey | Mazda MX-5 | BSI Racing | 28 |
| 22 | 23 | Aidan Shimbashi (R) | Mazda MX-5 | Hendricks Motorsports | 28 |
| 23 | 30 | Brian Dombroski (R) | Mazda MX-5 | Rocksteady Racing | 28 |
| 24 | 2 | Nathan Nicholson | Mazda MX-5 | Advanced Autosports | 28 |
| 25 | 1 | Matt Novak (R) | Mazda MX-5 | Advanced Autosports | 27 |
| 26 | 6 | Helio Meza | Mazda MX-5 | BSI Racing | 27 |
| 27 | 5 | Jeremy Fletcher | Mazda MX-5 | McCumbee McAleer Racing | 26 |
| 28 | 18 | Max Stallone (R) | Mazda MX-5 | Wheels America Racing | 25 |
| 29 | 28 | Carlton MacFarlane (R) | Mazda MX-5 | McCumbee McAleer Racing | 12 |
| 30 | 22 | Gresham Wagner | Mazda MX-5 | JTR Motorsports Engineering | 1 |
| DSQ | 4 | Ethan Lampe (R) | Mazda MX-5 | Hendricks Motorsports | 28 |
| FINISH | START | DRIVER | CAR | ENTRANT | LAPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | Ethan Lampe (R) | Mazda MX-5 | Hendricks Motorsports | 24 |
| 2 | 3 | Bobby Gossett | Mazda MX-5 | BSI Racing | 24 |
| 3 | 24 | Jared Thomas | Mazda MX-5 | JTR Motorsports Engineering | 24 |
| 4 | 7 | Justin Adakonis | Mazda MX-5 | McCumbee McAleer Racing | 24 |
| 5 | 4 | Helio Meza | Mazda MX-5 | BSI Racing | 24 |
| 6 | 14 | Frankie Barroso (R) | Mazda MX-5 | Spark Performance | 24 |
| 7 | 2 | Nathan Nicholson | Mazda MX-5 | Advanced Autosports | 24 |
| 8 | 8 | Cam Ebben (R) | Mazda MX-5 | Advanced Autosports | 24 |
| 9 | 21 | Marcello Paniccia (R) | Mazda MX-5 | McCumbee McAleer Racing | 24 |
| 10 | 22 | Justin Gravett (R) | Mazda MX-5 | JTR Motorsports Engineering | 24 |
| 11 | 20 | Glenn McGee | Mazda MX-5 | JTR Motorsports Engineering | 24 |
| 12 | 9 | Logan Stretch (R) | Mazda MX-5 | Wheels America Racing | 24 |
| 13 | 14 | Noah Harmon | Mazda MX-5 | Hendricks Motorsports | 24 |
| 14 | 28 | Ryan Leach (R) | Mazda MX-5 | Spark Performance | 24 |
| 15 | 26 | Charlotte Traynor (R) | Mazda MX-5 | Parker Delong Racing | 24 |
| 16 | 6 | Parker DeLong | Mazda MX-5 | Parker Delong Racing | 24 |
| 17 | 23 | Aidan Shimbashi (R) | Mazda MX-5 | Hendricks Motorsports | 24 |
| 18 | 24 | Ellie Gossett (R) | Mazda MX-5 | BSI Racing | 24 |
| 19 | 29 | Damon Ockey | Mazda MX-5 | BSI Racing | 24 |
| 20 | 30 | Brian Dombroski (R) | Mazda MX-5 | Rocksteady Racing | 24 |
| 21 | 3 | Julian DaCosta | Mazda MX-5 | BSI Racing | 24 |
| 22 | 1 | Matt Novak (R) | Mazda MX-5 | Advanced Autosports | 24 |
| 23 | 19 | Gresham Wagner | Mazda MX-5 | JTR Motorsports Engineering | 24 |
| 24 | 25 | Massimo Sunseri | Mazda MX-5 | BSI Racing | 24 |
| 25 | 7 | Jeremy Fletcher | Mazda MX-5 | McCumbee McAleer Racing | 23 |
| 26 | 12 | Max Stallone (R) | Mazda MX-5 | Wheels America Racing | 23 |
| 27 | 27 | Christian Hodneland | Mazda MX-5 | BSI Racing | 20 |
| 28 | 15 | Vaughn Mishko (R) | Mazda MX-5 | Advanced Autosports | 9 |
| 29 | 18 | Ethan Jacobs (R) | Mazda MX-5 | JDH Racing | 9 |
| 30 | 13 | John Salerno (R) | Mazda MX-5 | JTR Motorsports Engineering | 5 |
| DNS | 31 | Carlton MacFarlane (R) | Mazda MX-5 | McCumbee McAleer Racing | - |
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