With less than a week to go, eyes turn again to the Dixie Region and one of the only concrete autocross sites in the Southeast for the 2015 Georgia Match Tour. Though one of the smaller tours of the season, with only 134 competitors, Moultrie should prove to be quite a battle across several classes. As everyone starts to get their concrete setups dialed in, let's have a look forward to see what we can expect on Saturday and Sunday.
The Street classes make up the bulk of the registration, and leading the pack is C Street with 18 entries. From an ever-so-close second place at the Dixie Champ Tour, Jason Stroud will be looking to jump up a spot into the top position, in the only RX-8 in the field. The vast majority of the class is populated by "The Twins", with the Subaru BRZ slightly outnumbering the Scion FR-S. Dixie FSP winner Steven Duckworth has jumped into his FR-S, along with his codriver Geoff Zimmer, to try their collective luck in Street class. Rounding out the competition are two Mazda MX-5s and a lone Nissan 350Z, hoping to upset the establishment and prove the dominance of added lightness or power.
Moving down the list, G Street has some stiff competition with perenially fast drivers and cars. Clay McCool, in the lone Dodge SRT-4 in the field, will square off against a number of Ford Focus STs, in a class solidly packed with turbocharged front-wheel-drive four cylinder cars. In BS, with S2000s, 370Zs, and a singular MX-5 MSR, Matt Hugenschmidt, fresh off of a second place at the Dixie Champ Tour, will have a tight battle with Dat Nguyen, the two separated at Dixie by 1/10th over two days. E Street is another Miata battle, with a lone MR-Spyder driven by Phil Currin. The Spyder has shown significant promise against the Miatas in ES and Currin will be looking to take advantage of that lack of weight over the Mazdas. Notable this year is the lack of SSR, with the few Corvettes present choosing to run in A Street instead.
Street Touring has a strong turnout, with 28 entries over all the classes. In STS, Rick Cone returns (in the Harbour Miata) to national level competition after a long hiatus. He will have his hands full competing against Mike Licursi, Justin Harbour, and Jesse Seeley (potentially the youngest competitor in the field). STX is another BRZ showdown, with David Marcus looking to add another win to his record. Jim Fossum rounds out the field with the lone RX-8. STU has the most variety of any class, with a Subaru WRX and STI, Camaro, 350Z, M3, and a Corvette. Depending on weather conditions, the all-wheel-drive cars might have a significant advantage over the greater tire'd rear-wheel-drive field. Street Modified pits Dixie winner Tim White against the quick Mitsubushi Lancer Evolution of Chaisit and Sara Tongsuvone, and SMF brings a couple generations of Honda Civics against an Acura RSX in a triumph of tires over physics. In the largest Modified category, the Brunton Stalker of Scott and Glen Minehart will square off against the Del Long Jeep, with Steve Brueck and Rick Donalson hoping to stay high and dry.
As it stands, the weather forecast for the weekend remains dry through Friday and Saturday, with a slight chance of rain by the evening on Sunday, potentially adding another factor to the challenging shootouts. Temperatures are forecast to be hitting the 90's, so remember to stay hydrated and don't forget that sunscreen! Be sure to come on down for the welcome party on Friday evening and Saturday afternoon awards ceremony.
This event may not have a live uStream broadcast, but as with the rest of the Tire Rack Solo National Tour series, live results will be up on sololive.scca.com.
