After an almost six-year absence, Mazda MX-5 Cup cars returned to the track yesterday afternoon for the first three sessions of an eight-session test this week at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

#96 Jared Thomas (#96 JTR Motorsports Engineering) led the opening morning stint among the 20 drivers who set a lap time, posting a 1:40.8622. Trailing Thomas in Session 1 were Justin Adakonis (#23 McCumbee McAleer Racing) and Bobby Gossett (#44 BSI Racing) in second and third. Nineteen of the 20 drivers competing in the opening session turned a lap, with Justin Gravett (JTR Motorsports Engineering) the lone exception.

Session 2 mirrored the morning run, as Thomas continued to lead the field on the timing sheets with a 1:41.1103. Adakonis again sat second, while championship leader Gossett placed third.

The final run of the day, Session 3, saw Justin Adakonis take the top spot on the charts with a 1:40.8172. Thomas slotted in second, while Gossett remained inside the top three.

To conclude Day 1, Adakonis set the fastest time across all three sessions with his 1:40.8172 from Session 3. Thomas was the only other driver to dip below the 1:41 mark, courtesy of his 1:40.8622 set in the opening session. Other notable performances included Nathan Nicholson (#56 Advanced Autosport), who posted the fourth-fastest time at 1:41.3177 (Session 3), and Tristan McKee (#7 BSI Racing), who recorded the sixth-fastest time at 1:41.6108 (Session 3).

Only two drivers did not complete a lap during the opening day of the test: Lanie Buice and Helio Meza.

“So far everything’s going good,” said Jared Thomas. “The new brakes here are definitely a lot better because this is a really, really hard track on brakes, and then having the new—the Brembo package now—is a big upgrade.” 

“Having an official test is always nice, and Indy is such a hard place to get to and get track time on, so that’s nice that we can get that worked out. But yeah, we go ahead and test at every other track that we can. This one would have been tough just because it’s an expensive place and limited track time. And it’s nice having all these other cars here and everybody can get a feel for where they actually shake out. So yeah, I would say it’s definitely beneficial having the official test here.”

The series returns to the track for the final day of testing this morning, featuring five sessions: Session 4 (9:00–9:35 a.m.), Session 5 (11:30 a.m.–12:10 p.m.), Session 6 (2:00–2:35 p.m.), Session 7 (3:40–4:15 p.m.), and Session 8 (5:20–6:00 p.m.).

Indy Test Notes from Day 1

  • Some teams are not participating for this test. The list includes: Hendricks Motorsports, AAG Racing, Saito Motorsports Group, Spark Performance, Parker DeLong Racing (PDR), JDH Racing.
  • A handful of drivers competing in the Indy Test feature recent NASCAR experience. Will Robinson (ARCA), Lanie Buice (ARCA), Tristan McKee (ARCA, Late Models), Nathan Nicholson (Trucks). Robinson competed this past weekend in ARCA’s West event at Tuscon Speedway for Jerry Pitts Racing/Nitro Motorsports, finishing 16th. Buice is listed on ARCA’s entry list for Kansas Speedway this weekend in the #77 Pinnacle Racing Group Chevrolet.
  • Lanie Buice signed & announced a sponsorship deal with Sunoco, set to be highlighted on her ARCA car this weekend.
  • According to BSI Racing Team Owner, Shea Holbrook, at a Mazda Racing Exhibition in Orlando, Martinsville will not return to the MX-5 calendar in 2026, following two seasons as non-points event after the final race of the championship season. There is no word on the reason behind the absent of the event on the calendar.
  • Holbrook also confirmed in an interview exclusively with GT REPORT on Saturday that three new drivers are testing for BSI Racing that will be competing in entries either later in 2026 or 2027.
  • Jared Thomas is the only driver on the entry list this week who has Mazda MX-5 Cup experience. Thomas last competed at the track the last time the series was at Indy, in 2020.
  • Thomas on any advantage having experience at Indy: “I don’t. I don’t quite know about that. So much has changed since the last time we were here. I don’t—I can’t even remember how far it’s been. It was a long time ago, so I’ve changed a lot as a driver. The cars have changed, our setups have evolved a lot since we’ve been here, so… I mean, maybe at the slightest, but it’s kind of a new track for us, relearning everything—different tires, different shocks since we’ve been here in 2020. So no, I would say not an advantage, but, you know, not a lot of people get here or get to run through, so.”
  • Jared Thomas led Session #1, 1:40.8622 for JTR Motorsports Engineering in his #96 car. Justin Adakonis & Bobby Gossett places 2-3 in the morning run.
  • Justin Gravett, #46 JTR Motorsports Engineering, did not turn a lap in Session #1 among the 20 drivers listed in the session timing report.
  • Thomas continued to lead in Session #2, 1:41.1103. Adakonis & Gossett continued to stay in 2-3 positions on the timing sheets.
  • Justin Adakonis past Jared Thomas in the final Session, #3, with a 1:40.8172, the best lap of the entire day. Thomas placed 2nd, while Gossett completed each session in 3rd.
  • Both Adakonis & Thomas best overall times on the day would have shattered the track’s Qualifying & Race Lap Time Records.
  • Five sessions take place this morning, beginning at 9am ET.

 

Image Courtesy to Mazda MX-5 Cup