Photography by Tradd's Photos/Racing for ALS
So many ways to go fast: spry sports racers, pumped-up pony cars, high-strung Hondas. And we had them all–and more–at our Ultimate Track Car Challenge.
This year, though, our Tire Rack Ultimate Track Car Challenge Presented by Grassroots Motorsports came down two prototypes. Yes, they both were Radicals, but two distinctly different takes.
Nicholas d’Orlando steered an SR3 with a Hayabusa-based 1500cc engine. The car weighs just 1367 pounds, and the engine puts out 229 horses.
“They are just a blast,” Nicholas says of his Radical SR3. “They weigh nothing. They have a decent amount of horsepower for their weight. Lots of downforce. No power steering. The car may not be as fast in a straight line [as a sports car], but in the corner you can pull over 2g.”
Raiden Nicol, just 17, competed with a Radical SR10, which uses a 2.3-liter Ford EcoBoost engine. It packs 1598 pounds but also 419 horsepower. “It’s pretty dang fast for what it is,” Raiden notes. “With this car having so much power, it’s a handful. No power steering. It’s super physical.”
Who won? Nicholas turned a 1:57.496 time, breaking the mythical 2-minute mark at NCM Motorsports Park. Raiden’s fast lap took his breath away. He set what’s believed to be the track record, a 1:54.253 lap, etching his name into the record books and his Radical SR10 as the 2024 Tire Rack Ultimate Track Car.
Fast Lap: 1:54.253
Raiden Nicol started racing karts at 5 years old. Now 17, he owns two SARRC championships and several Spec Miata accolades. He began steering Radicals at age 14 with the 85-horsepower Radical SR1. Now he’s wheeling a 419-horsepower Radical SR10. He has only one Radical Cup event under his belt–Barber Motorsports Park in April–but set the fastest time for the entire weekend. Raiden looks to run the entire Radical Cup 2025 season, and if the UTCC is any indication, he might be one to watch.
Fast Lap: 1:57.496
Nicholas d’Orlando studies marketing at UNC Charlotte, not engineering as one might expect for someone seeking a career in motorsports. Nicholas feels the marketing degree will benefit him as he looks to climb the ladder toward an IndyCar ride. He earned Radical Cup North America vice champion accolades this year and, of course, Tire Rack Ultimate Track Car Challenge runner-up spot. Nicholas hopes to parlay those hard-earned accolades to an open-wheel ride in 2025
Fast Lap: 1:59.146
The reigning Tire Rack Ultimate Track Car Challenge champion brought a newer Stohr this time. Unlike his older Stohr, this one is fully constructed out of carbon fiber, has more downforce and is powered by a BMW S 1000 motorcycle engine. Unfortunately, G.K. battled gearbox issues, forcing him to lift with every shift. Nevertheless, he beat his time last year by 1.75 seconds, but it was not enough to earn another Tire Rack Ultimate Track Car trophy.
Fast Lap: 2:00.603
Can a car built for endurance racing turn just one fast lap? Apparently so in the case of this Sebeco SPX driven by Dakota Dickerson. He typically races it in WRL with a 2.0-liter Mazda engine and on 200tw tires. Dakota brought it to UTCC with a 2.4-liter powerplant and Hankook slicks. That setup almost earned him a podium.
Fast Lap: 2:01.983
This Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 beat a McLaren Senna to break the production car track record last year. Luca came back with a tubed rear frame to reduce weight and added more power, with up to 1200 horses available. It helped him shed nearly a second of time, putting him in the top five this year.
Fast Lap: 2:03.628
Hillclimb. Autocross. Time trials. This Radical does it all well according to its driver, Heikki Rinta-Koski. He went into the event hoping to break the 2-minute mark but came a few seconds short of his goal. Regardless, Heikki, who proudly carries the flag of his native Finland, seemingly had a blast.
Fast Lap: 2:04.782
The quickest front-wheel-drive machine on record at NCM came back with more horsepower–from 480 to 550 at the wheels–plus electric power steering and revised aero. That netted Jimmy nearly 7 seconds, putting his Civic in the same territory as some prototypes.
Fast Lap: 2:08.851
Kenny Naill had never raced anything before trying a Radical a year ago. He made his racing debut at Sebring in March, where he finished last among the running cars. Kenny improved over the year, finishing third in Radical Cup points and eighth in his first time trial event.
Fast Lap: 2:09.175
A free track day that came with Kyle’s new Supra led to him time trialing around the country and souping up his Supra. Those mods include a fully built engine that puts out 840 horsepower, aero add-ons and suspension upgrades. He’s crashed his Supra three times, but at the UTCC he appeared flawless, winning Ultimate Road Car honors.
Fast Lap: 2:10.098
What do Toyota employees do after hours? They field a Supra, among other Toyotas, in events such as the Tire Rack One Lap of America Presented by Grassroots Motorsports and UTCC. The Supra wears many of the common bolt-on mods–brakes, aero, suspension–puts out 650 horses at the wheels and weighs 3800 pounds with driver.
Fast Lap: 2:11.884
How does a 7.4-liter, LS7-based engine in a S550 Mustang sound to you? If you’re a Chevy or Ford loyalist, you might cringe a bit, hence the car’s name, Trigger. Unfortunately, Terry’s weekend ended early when cold tires sent him into an Armco barrier. After repairs, Trigger returned to the track a month later.
Fast Lap: 2:12.845
With a hybrid, you should get the best of both worlds, right? Dallas thought so, buying a Corvette E-Ray with 655 horsepower and 595 lb.-ft. of torque straight from the factory. The only changes he made were swapping on Apex VS-5RS wheels and Vitour P1 tires.
Fast Lap: 2:13.476
What can you do with a mildly modded C6 Corvette? For Nick, it earned him a set of Falken tires. He did so with just long tube headers, a tune, LG coil-overs, Delrin bushings and aftermarket anti-roll bars.
Fast Lap: 2:15.069
The name of Michael’s Z06 with the Z07 package might grab your attention: Big Sexy Edition. If that doesn’t, the orange will. Michael runs those colors for multiple sclerosis awareness as his daughter has MS.
Fast Lap: 2:16.109
Many people stow away their Shelby GT350 Heritage Editions. Not Ryan. “It’s why I ordered this car: Most are museum pieces, and I didn’t think that was how they were supposed to be used,” Ryan says. “Sure, we’re hurting the value, but we’re having a lot of fun doing it.”
Fast Lap: 2:16.324
Mark says his M4, “with 65K miles, it is very reliable … with few maintenance items to attend to.” The car makes “north of 500 horsepower” with a Stage 2 tune from MHD. His other big mods include suspension and wheels. “The car’s balance is great, as expected in a BMW,” he adds.
Fast Lap: 2:17.400
The fastest all-wheel-drive entry from last year returned with hopes of making an even faster time. Rob achieved that, cutting a tenth off his 2023 lap, but it didn’t come easily. He had to overcome a transmission mount failure that sapped him of valuable track time.
Fast Lap: 2:17.471
What to do when you turn 50? Have a midlife crisis and buy a Corvette. Justin never went more than 100 mph before April. Six months later, he was averaging 82-plus mph during the Tire Rack Ultimate Track Car Challenge.
Fast Lap: 2:19.358
Is the FR-S/BRZ platform the new answer? Jerami makes a convincing case. He gutted his car thoroughly (2758 pounds to 2559 with driver), added aero bits, and swapped in a more powerful 2.4-liter from the current-gen BRZ/GR86.
Fast Lap: 2:19.147
Monty first sat behind the wheel of a Radical the day before the Tire Rack Ultimate Track Car Challenge. He’s competed in a variety of motorsport disciplines, from NASCAR to flat track motorcycles. Monty started off with an SR10 and then switched to an SR3, the latter of which he got his fastest time with.
Fast Lap: 2:20.118
Phil campaigned his 350Z with the stock VQ powerplant for four years before an LS1 swap. He blew up that engine and installed another LS the week before the UTCC. Unfortunately, he endured a myriad of mechanical woes, from fluids leaking to a loose kill switch connector shutting down his car on track.
Fast Lap: 2:22.027
We haven’t focused on performance for our BMW 435i project car yet. Instead, we concentrated on reliability and safety. We passed the test for both those factors with flying colors at the UTCC, and now can work on speed for next year.
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