Race 1 of Mustang Challenge North America is in the books at Watkins Glen International, with Cole Loftsgard returning to the top step of the podium in the No. 42 Round 3 Racing Ford Mustang Dark Horse R. Loftsgard claimed both the overall and Dark Horse (DH) class victory. His team’s sister entry, the No. 70 Ford Mustang Dark Horse R of Oleg Gorshkov, earned his first career series victory in his first-time in Mustang Challenge competition behind the Dark Horse Legends (DHL) class to complete a Round 3 Racing sweep.

Much of the action unfolded early in the race, particularly in the DH class, where TechSport Racing’s Devin Anderson challenged Loftsgard for the lead on the opening laps in the No. 22 Ford Mustang Dark Horse R. Wheelhouse Motorsports’ Sandy Satullo also joined the fight aboard the No. 7 Ford Mustang Dark Horse R, creating an intense three-car battle for the overall and DH class lead through the opening corners and into the second lap.

Anderson made one final charge for the lead in the closing laps, but Loftsgard successfully fended off the challenge to secure the victory. Anderson and Satullo completed the overall and DH class podium in second and third, respectively.

In the DHL class, Chris Clarke led the field to the green flag in the No. 9 Paley Motorsport w/ AAG Racing Ford Mustang Dark Horse R. However, Clarke and Tom Tait, driving the No. 8 Wheelhouse Ford Mustang Dark Horse R, eventually fell down the order, allowing Gorshkov to overtake both championship contenders. Gorshkov then pulled away from the field, building a commanding 20-second advantage en route to his first career series victory.

Clarke and Tait rounded out the DHL class podium in second and third, respectively.

“Race one was challenging, especially as I was trying to manage the tires at the end,” Loftsgard said. “Having a big enough gap at the end to manage my tires really helped me grab the win. Congrats to Devin [Anderson] and the No. 22 team, they’ve really been keeping us honest the last few rounds.”

“I started the race further back than I would’ve liked since the grid was based on points, but I had a really good start,” Gorshkov said. “I passed a few cars at the start, and then I got more comfortable, chipped away at the competition, and made my way to the front. I had a lot of fun and I hope I can do it again tomorrow and maybe compete with some of the Dark Horse drivers.”

The series returns to action tomorrow morning, June 27th, for their final race of the weekend at 8am ET, broadcasted live on Peacock and streaming on IMSA.tv & IMSA’s Official YouTube Channel.