2011 Round of British Columbia

The 2011 Round of British Columbia was the 17th race of the 2011 TM Master Cup season. It was held at the HLR Circuit near Vancouver, British Columbia. It was the second consecutive race held in Canada, and also the first win for Vancouver native Marcos Leonard. It is also the second time this season that a driver has won their first race in their home race (Franz Redlich's triumph in Germany being the other instance).

Watch
1KMRs0DsojM

Pre-race storylines
Trevor Carrington Racing shut down after the Round of Quebec.

Heavy rain was forecast for the day of the race, and it arrived the morning of the event. The cars were outfitted with rain tires, but, as the summary will show, they weren't much help.

The race
Zelda Ashby took the Delano Pole Award. Marcos Leonard completed the front row. Despite the heavy rains, the race started as scheduled.

The weather played an impact almost immediately, as several drivers, including Scott Bates, Alan Hodges, and Ethan Everett, slid off course in Turn 3. Adrien Devereux followed suit by spinning out in the Mousetrap. Hodges would retire due to the damage he received in the Turn 3 fracas.

Ashby, Leonard, and Chris Johaanes also encountered traction issues, sliding off in Turn 9. More cars, including Danny Savin and Louis Kingston, spun off-course in turn 14, leading commentator Dan Mullen to declare, "this is getting silly."

Jacques Bouvier and Bobby Porteau also threw their cars off-course coming out of the final turn. Bouvier was adamant over his radio that he felt the race never should have started in the conditions they were facing.

Oh, did we mention the drivers hadn't completed a lap yet?

More fun ensued on the beginning of Lap 2, as Arto Kekkonen – among others – also make acquaintances with the sand traps. As a result of all the cars spinning out, Independent's Trophy entrant and ARLA regular Allie Riggs found herself leading the race. But she, like the others, was not immune from picking up a case of the spins – in her case, Turn 14 (again) was her undoing. She would get her car straightened out, but not before being greeted by Kraig Mummert, who also spun out in the same corner. Other drivers, including Scott Steudler and Tom Delgado, joined the party, as did Tony Durbin, who managed to plow into the melee without really slowing down, much to Mullen's puzzlement.

On Lap 3, Mathias Taube and Michael Sykes get together, sending Taube into the wall and out of the race. Rachel Rainsford also got up close and personal with the wall, spinning out shortly after Taube and Sykes did. Ian Cooper was also involved.

Ashby retired on Lap 3 due to turbo failure; her drive for three straight podium finishes was over.

The only driver who seemed to be immune from the spins was Yevgeny Kuznetsov, whose Katzev Engineering car was set up with low boost and higher downforce. The setup allowed him to stay on course, albeit at a pace slower than everyone else. Still, the strategy seemed to be paying off as he was running third at this point. By Lap 6, Kuznetsov had managed to work his way to the front.

After Lap 6, officials threw the yellow and red flags simultaneously, as track conditions were deteriorating to the point where it was no longer safe to continue. The race was halted and was picked up the following day.

The restart
Kuznetsov held the lead when the race was finally restarted – under much more favorable conditions. However, only 23 cars would take the restart, as, per Master Cup Series rules, only the cars running when the red flag was thrown would be allowed to restart.

Almost immediately, Luciano Soveral made a move on Kuznetsov for the lead, but Soveral threw his car into the wall, allowing Riggs to retake the lead. She would lead the next two laps. Kuznetsov, on the other hand, went in the opposite direction - he had dropped like a rock in the standings once the race got going again.

Meanwhile, Marcos Leonard was on the move. He had made up a number of spots since the restart, and was looking like he'd have something to say at the end of the race.

Lap 13 saw most of the field pit – save Kuznetsov. When stops cycled out, Riggs still led, with Palmer Stiles and Leonard rounding out the top three. Leonard and Stiles had a spirited run for second place thereafter, with Leonard eventually taking the slot.

Leonard would eventually catch Riggs, making an attempt to pass her in the Bear Trap turn, but failed to do so. On Lap 19, however, Leonard would get the lead from Riggs as she dove into the pit area.

Leonard pitted on Lap 34, along with Dale Roswell. Both drivers were able to manage their fuel mileage better than the other drivers, meaning that they would be left to battle for the victory.

But Leonard was clearly the class of the field on this day, and coasted to the victory, beating Roswell by just over 10 seconds.

Results

 * For the complete results, click here.

Leonard's first career victory was a popular one with the Vancouver crowd, as the celebrations spilled onto the race track proper.

Points

 * For the complete points standings, click here.

Leonard rocketed up to second in the standings by virtue of his race win, but still trailed Devereux by 17 points heading into Japan.

Penalties

 * None