Adam Andretti Mounts Epic Comeback to Win Inaugural Trans Am Race at Barber, Keeps Championship Battle Tight
October 19, 2025
Erich Joiner Wins in XGT, Eric Foss Finishes Third Overall to Win SGT, Adrian Wlostowski Wins in First GT Start
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (October 19, 2025) - Following a surprise rainstorm just moments before the green flag, tire selections had major consequences in the Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli’s inaugural race at Barber Motorsports Park. Polesitter Chris Dyson gambled on slicks in a decision that turned out to be to his detriment, as the track remained wet long into the event. This allowed points leader Paul Menard to dominate for much of the race. However, championship challenger Adam Andretti found great late-race speed, mounting an incredible comeback in the final laps to capture his first win of 2025 and tighten the championship points battle going into the season finale.
Notes of Interest:
Adam Andretti won Trans Am’s inaugural race at Barber Motorsports Park, scoring his first win of the season and the ninth of his Trans Am career.
This was Andretti’s third-career win in the TA class. He has five victories in the CUBE 3 Architecture TA2 Series and one in the TAH class.
Andretti’s last victory came in the TA class at Road Atlanta in 2024.
With his second-place finish today, Paul Menard continues to lead the TA standings. He holds a 43-point advantage over Adam Andretti going into the season finale at Circuit of The Americas.David Pintaric earned his first podium finish since Road Atlanta earlier this year.
By starting today’s race, Kaylee Bryson clinched her first-career XGT championship, her second title after winning the SGT championship in 2024.
Erich Joiner earned his second XGT win of the season and the 12th of his career.
Eric Foss earned his first-career victory in the SGT class. He finished an impressive third overall.
Adrian Wlostowski took the victory in his first-career GT race. Wlostowski did double duty today, also competing in the CUBE 3 Architecture TA2 Series race and finishing fourth.
Wlostowski’s victory was also the first win for the new Howe HR6.
After taking the pole award in qualifying yesterday, Dyson led the field to green in his No. 16 GYM WEED Ford Mustang. He and his CD Racing team opted to keep slicks on his machine with the assumption that the brief shower before the race would quickly dry out, a strategy call that they hoped would play into their hands in the long run. Andretti’s Burtin Racing team made the last-second decision to change to rain tires before the race started, but was forced to start at the back of his class for missing the window to change tires. When the green flag waved, Dyson was immediately passed by second-place starter Paul Menard (No. 3 Pittsburgh Paints/Menards Ford Mustang), who took the lead and immediately checked out. Dyson was then surpassed passed by the remainder of the competitors in his class on rain tires, including Andretti (No. 17 Top Liner Chevrolet Camaro), who was up to second place by the conclusion of the first lap. Dyson then spun in the wet on lap three, finally making the decision to come down pit road for rain tires.
As Menard pulled out to more than a 20-second advantage over Andretti by lap 16, the track slowly began to dry, and Andretti’s lap times began to improve. By lap 32, Andretti had set the new lap record for the race multiple times, and had reeled Menard in to just a five-second lead. The following lap, a full-course caution was called for a car stopped on the racetrack, closing up competitors until they were nose to tail. Despite still running second, Andretti had the lapped Dyson and Tomy Drissi (No. 8 Trench Shoring Co./Motul Chevrolet Camaro) between himself and Menard, so he had three cars to pass in order to take the lead.
The green flag waved on lap 37, and Andretti made quick work of the lapped cars. He closed in on Menard’s rear bumper and was able to complete the pass on the 2024 champion with just two laps to go. Menard fought hard to take the position back, but when the checkered flag waved, it was Andretti who crossed the finish line first. Menard finished second, and David Pintaric (No. 57 Kryderacing Ford Mustang) was third. Amy Ruman (No. 23 McNichols Co./Valley Automotive Group Chevrolet Corvette) finished fourth, and Dyson rounded out the top five.
“To be inaugural winner in the Trans Am Series at this beautiful facility is hard to put into words,” said Andretti. “I can't thank Burtin Racing enough; this group is an amazing group to work with. They're so much fun, we enjoy each other's company, we laugh, we joke, and we have a good time. And when it's time, we put our heads down and get the job done. To bring this thing from the tail of the field was incredible; we had to make a last-minute decision to put on wets, which ended up being the right call. We make these calls as a group, and our leader, Claudio [Burtin], is such a sound leader, and a great sounding board over the radio. He gives us full support for everything we need to execute. To Top Liner and Service Partners, I can't thank you enough for what you all do. You're putting out the best products on the planet. Bell Helmets, Hinchman racing uniforms, they've been so good to me over the years, keeping me protected. To all our family and friends that showed up and made the trip down here to be a part of this, I can't thank you enough. This has been such a special day and race. Congrats to these guys; it's been an awesome fight all year long. We're building momentum, and it looks like 2026 is going to be another epic year for Trans Am.”
TA Top Five:
1. Adam Andretti, No. 17 Top Liner Chevrolet Camaro
2. Paul Menard, No. 3 Pittsburgh Paints/Menards Ford Mustang
3. David Pintaric, No. 57 Kryderacing Ford Mustang
4. Amy Ruman, No. 23 McNichols Co./Valley Automotive Group Chevrolet Corvette
5. Chris Dyson, No. 16 GYM WEED Ford Mustang
EMCO Gears Lap Leader:
Paul Menard, No. 3 Pittsburgh Paints/Menards Ford Mustang
XGT:
In the XGT class, Erich Joiner (No. 10 goodboybob Coffey Roaster Porsche 991 GT3 R) started the race last, without any practice time due to an incident early in the weekend. Kaylee Bryson (No. 02 Logical Systems Inc. Chevrolet Corvette) took the green flag from the lead and held it for the first five laps. On lap six, Joiner had worked his way up to the front, claiming the point position and defending it as the laps ticked by. Bryson ran second and Billy Griffin (No. 14 Griffin Auto Care Mercedes AMG GT3) was third for much of the race, but Bryson lost oil pressure late in the event, bringing out the full-course caution on lap 33. Joiner maintained the lead until the checkered flag waved, earning the victory. Griffin finished second, and Bryson was scored third. By competing in today’s event, Bryson clinched the XGT championship, becoming the first female driver to win a title in two different classes.
“First of all, thanks to everyone for coming out and supporting us,” said Joiner. “The track and the facility are beautiful. I've never raced here before. I spent some time on a simulator, maybe four hours, before we came out here. The track is amazing and beautiful. It was a heck of a race. I have to say, these two [Griffin and Bryson] were amazing. We were on totally different strategies. In the end, because I didn't choose rain tires, we had our hands full. I felt like I was in a drifting event at the end of the race, and I kept asking how far ahead we were throughout the race. I would also like to thank my crew that supports me. We had a little incident on Saturday and they put the car back together. That was great. Thanks to my family. I would also like to give a special thanks to Sunoco for supporting our series with great racing fuels, and also Pirelli.”
XGT Results:
1. Erich Joiner, No. 10 goodboybob Coffey Roaster Porsche 991 GT3 R
2. Billy Griffin, No. 14 Griffin Auto Care Mercedes AMG GT3
3. Kaylee Bryson, No. 02 Logical Systems Inc. Chevrolet Corvette
SGT:
Eric Foss dominated in SGT, leading from flag to flag in his No. 54 South Dallas Turf Chevrolet Corvette. After laying down the best lap in class in qualifying, his past experience as an instructor at the track and his prowess racing in the rain made him a formidable competitor, even against the 900-horsepower TA cars. Foss crossed the finish line first in class and an impressive third overall. Foss was followed by Carey Grant (No. 6 Grant Racing 2 Porsche GT3 Cup) in second and Milton Grant (No. 55 Sentry Self Storage/Springhill Suites Porsche 991.1), who was celebrating his 77th birthday, in third.
“First off, hats off to GSpeed crew,” said Foss. “We made the last-second call [for rain tires] on the grid. I think we got the car down on the ground with like five seconds before the cutoff and went to the wets. I can't say enough about South Dallas Turf and the opportunity to be here. We have analog brakes and traction control on our cars, so it makes it a lot easier [in the rain] than dealing with 900 horsepower. I'm so impressed with how well those guys did in the TA cars out there. What a pleasure to be here. It was a lot of fun. Thanks for everyone for being here.”
SGT Results:
1. Eric Foss, No. 54 South Dallas Turf Chevrolet Corvette
2. Carey Grant, No. 6 Grant Racing 2 Porsche GT3 Cup
3. Milton Grant, No. 55 Sentry Self Storage/Springhill Suites Porsche 991.1
GT:
In his first-career start in the GT class, Adrian Wlostowski started first in his No. 9 CMI/F.A.S.T./Howe Racing Howe HR6, opting to keep slick tires despite the sudden onset of rain before the green flag. Wlostowski was passed on the first lap by Jake Latham and his rain tires, who was making his Trans Am debut in the No. 27 Coffey Motorsports/Traffic Grafix Maserati MC GT4. As the race went on, the sun began to shine and slowly dry out the track. A restart after a full-course caution closed up the field for a lap-37 restart, and by lap 38, the racing slicks on Wlostowski’s machine finally had the grip they needed to make the pass. Wlostowski took the lead with four laps to go and claimed the checkered flag, earning the Howe HR6 its first Trans Am victory. Latham finished second, and Colin Cohen (No. 38 Norwood Auto Italia/Traffic Grafix Maserati MC GT4) was scored third after retiring early.
“We started out with dry tires to start the race, and the car handled surprisingly well,” said Wlostowski. “Then, when it started raining more and it was wet out there, we had a disadvantage. When it started drying up, the car just came to life. I mean, we had so much speed, I think we were faster than the TA cars at one point. It was a really fun car to drive, easy to drive. Just so much fun. I’m so happy to get this win for the HR6. The Howe family has been working so hard with this. Rich Rinke has been working hard, and we've all been working so hard on this car. It was so nice to prove it here today at Barber Motorsports Park.”
GT Results:
1. Adrian Wlostowski, No. 9 CMI/F.A.S.T./Howe Racing How HR6
2. Jake Latham, No. 27 Coffey Motorsports/Traffic Grafix Maserati MC GT4
3. Colin Cohen, No. 38 Norwood Auto Italia/Traffic Grafix Maserati MC GT4
Final Details:
Official race results can be found here.
An encore presentation of today’s race will air tonight on SPEED SPORT 1 at 8:30 p.m. ET in a block which will also include the CUBE 3 Architecture TA2 Series race.
The Trans Am Series next heads to Circuit of The Americas for the 2025 season finale at the Mission Foods COTA SpeedTour, October 30-November 2. Tickets can be purchased here.
