Family once again defined the Formula Vee® (FV) race at the SCCA® National Championship Runoffs® presented by Sunoco – taking place Sept. 28-Oct. 6, 2024, at Road America – but this time with a different brother standing atop the podium. In his sixth Runoffs attempt – and at the 60th Anniversary event – Steve Whitston drove a smart race, earning his first Runoffs gold. While he finally got to stand on the podium with his brother, this win fulfilled a dream for another reason.
“When I was a little kid, we had birthday candles for birthdays, and my wish every single year was for my dad to win the Runoffs, so to be able to finally get into a race car, which is a treat itself, to finally win the Runoffs, it's just a dream come true.”
Steve’s brother, Milwaukee Region member Andrew Whitston, ultimately finished second, but he started the race on the Tire Rack Pole driving his No. 12 Rocket Motors/LOA Roofing/Milio's Protoform 2. His qualifying performance came as little surprise since the Whitstons have long been a force to be reckoned with in Formula Vee, not to mention Andrew Whitston was the defending National Champ.
Steve Whitston had earned the outside pole, driving a similar Protoform P2 to brother Andrew. On the second row was Jonathan Weisheit and Brandon Abbott, followed by Alex Scaler and Andrew Abbott, with Zachary and Ron Whitston rounding out the first four rows of the 27-car field.
The Formula Vee racers took to Road America’s 4.048-mile, 14-turn circuit on the last of three Hagerty Race Days on Sunday morning under clear skies and cool conditions – perfect weather for a Vee race.
The green flag flew and the field spread four to five wide, with Steve Whitston grabbing the lead, followed by the Abbots and Weisheit. Into the Carousel, Andrew Whitston took to the front, quickly followed by Weisheit, Steve Whitston, and Brandon Abbott.
The early race shuffle wasn’t over, as the lead pack fanned out once more into Turn 5 on the second lap, and by the time the group made it to Canada Corner, it was Steve Whitston leading Andrew Abbott, with the two beginning to break away from Weisheit, Brandon Abbott, Andrew Whitston, and more.
The battle ensued, with the pack challenging for the lead nearly every time into Turns 1, 5, and 12. Sometimes Weisheit was on point, but other times it was Andrew Whitston or Andrew Abbott.
By the halfway point, the lead pack – where anyone could challenge for the top spot – was eight strong. Then on lap eight, Brandon Abbott got into a small tangle with Weisheit heading into Turn 5, reducing the lead pack to seven.
A heart stopping moment came on lap nine when Weisheit performed a single-car 360 into Turn 5 under braking. That only cost him two spots in the lead pack, but he spun once more exiting Turn 1, dropping him from the frontrunners.
In a drafting class, it all comes down to the final lap, and in this race, it was Andrew Whitston leading brother Steve, with Andrew Abbott third in the breakaway pack. But, of course, the order changed into Turn 1, with Steve emerging at the front. Come Turn 5, Andrew Whitston had the point.
Up the front straight to the checker, they spanned three wide, with Steve Whitston earning the win in his No. 18 LOA Construction Protoform P2 over his brother Andrew Whitston by 0.036sec. Detroit Region’s Andrew Abbott was a scant 0.023sec back in his No. 25 Vector Racecars/Hoosier/TJS Gears Vector AM-1. Fourth went to Farnham more than 6.5sec back, with Zachary Whitston rounding out the top five.
“I figured coming into 14, I had it,” said Steve Whitston of the last lap. “There was a lot of oil, and I saw Andy get a little bit loose and I thought that if I could just keep my foot down, go through it, it'll be OK, and it worked out.
“I have to thank my dad for putting our cars together,” the Milwaukee Region member said. “There's no way that we'd be here without him – there's not a chance. And, obviously, my entire family, my wife, my kids, letting me do this, be gone constantly. And just everyone who's involved with us.”
“Our goal is really to get three cars on the podium and this is about as close as we can get but not do it,” Andrew Whitston said. “I'm so excited for Steve, it's just awesome. He earned that race all by himself. I mean, we were working together a little bit, but he was in the right place at the right time. He drove a really smart race [and] kept his nose clean.”
Finishing third was an emotional Andrew Abbott: “I’ve got to thank my family. My wife, my daughter's here, it’s the first time that she gets to experience the podium. Pat and Jason for coming in. My mom, of course. Losing my dad in February has been a big toll on us, so it's nice to get back on the podium for him here.”
The Sunoco Hard Charger award went to William Styczynski, who started 25th and finished 15th.
The 60th anniversary SCCA® National Championship Runoffs® presented by Sunoco is the pinnacle of American amateur motorsports and crowns Sports Car Club of America’s Road Racing National Champions this year at Road America in Elkhart Lake, WI, during Hagerty Race Days running Friday, Oct. 4, through Sunday, Oct. 6, 2024.
Live, online video coverage of Runoffs races, presented by Mazda, is available throughout the three days of competition at SCCA.com/runoffs-live. Live timing and scoring for each race are also available at SCCA.com/pages/runoffs-live-timing.
Below are final results for Sunday's Formula Vee race at the 2024 SCCA® National Championship Runoffs, with finish position, starting position in parentheses, driver, hometown, car, and laps completed.
1, (2), Steve Whitston, Georgetown, TX, Protoform P2, 13.
2, (1), Andrew Whitston, Neenah, WI, Protoform P2, 13.
3, (6), Andrew Abbott, Livonia, MI, Vector AM-1, 13.
4, (11), Brian Farnham, Medina, OH, Silver Bullet FR-S, 13.
5, (7), Zachary Whitston, Austin, TX, Protoform P2, 13.
6, (13), Mitchell Ferguson, Moore, SC, Vorscha GB4, 13.
7, (3), Jonathan Weisheit, Baltimore, MD, JK Technologies XP-1, 13.
8, (15), Rick Shields, Bridgeville, PA, VDF , 13.
9, (9), Graham Loughead, Carmel, IN, Vortech , 13.
10, (4), Brandon Abbott, Farmington Hills, MI, Vector AM-1, 13.
11, (12), Donnie Isley, Fletcher, NC, Agitator 016, 13.
12, (18), Jon S Adams, Whitmore Lake, MI, Adams V-2, 13.
13, (16), Raymond Carmody, Horseheads, NY, Mysterian M3, 13.
14, (17), Connor Loughead, Columbus, OH, Vortech , 13.
15, (25), William Styczynski, Downers Grove, IL, Vortech , 13.
16, (23), Stuart Delaney, Plymouth, MI, Caracal C, 13.
17, (24), Mark Richardson, Washington, IL, Vortech , 13.
18, (20), Jeffrey Valeo, Brooklyn, NY, Speedsport AM-5, 13.
19, (19), Alexander Bertolucci, Mount Prospect, IL, Citation XTC-41, 13.
20, (27), Marjorie Lundberg, Beaverton, OR, Caracal C, 13.
21, (26), Michael Nitz, Menomonee Falls, WI, Mysterian M3, 13.
22, (10), Mike Lawrence, Charlotte, NC, Protoform P2, 11.
23, (22), Stevan Davis, Danielsville, GA, Vortech , 10.
24, (8), Ron Whitston, Neenah, WI, Protoform P2, 9.
DNF, (5), Alex Scaler, Asbury, NJ, Scaler Mk1, 4.
DNF, (21), Rich Richardson, South Pekin, IL, Protoform P3, 4.
DNF, (14), Quinn Posner, Camas, WA, Protoform P3, 2.
Race Stats
Length of Race: 52.62 Miles
Overall Time of Race: 36:14.298 (avg. 87.130 mph)
Margin of Victory: 00.036 seconds
Fastest Race Lap: 2:44.834 (88.409 mph)
Lap Leaders: #25, Laps 1,7; #18, Laps 2,13; #61, Lap 3; #12, Laps 4-6, 8-12
Sunoco Hard Charger: #24 William Styczynski
Photo by: Jeff Loewe
