Menard & McKee Are Trans Am Series Stars

BOWMANVILLE, Ontario — The Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli returned to Canadian Tire Motorsport Park and was once again met with exciting battles and results affecting championship hunts.

In the TA class, defending champion Paul Menard scored his second-consecutive win, while rookie Tristan McKee tallied his third CUBE 3 Architecture TA2 Series victory in four races. Toronto-born Roberto Sabato found vindication at his home track, winning in the CUBE 3 Architecture TA2 Series Pro/Am Challenge after an early crash took him out of contention last season.

Finally, Ontario native James Beaton earned the win in the XGT class with his second-consecutive victory in the class.

Polesitter Chris Dyson controlled the start of the race in his No. 16 GYM WEED Ford Mustang and showed incredible speed as he led the first six laps. Unfortunately, a tire issue required a pit stop the following lap, and he relinquished the lead and dropped to the back of the TA class.

From there, last year’s winner Paul Menard (No. 31 Pittsburgh Paints/Menards Ford Mustang) took over the point position. Behind him, Adam Andretti (No. 17 TOP LINER Chevrolet Camaro) remained tight on his bumper, closing in to attempt the pass multiple times, but he was unable to close the deal.

A late-race restart caused commotion for the TA competitors in the front of the field, as a miscue resulted in both Dyson and Tomy Drissi (No. 8 Trench Shoring Co./Motul Chevrolet Camaro) getting penalized for jumping the start.

As the race reached its conclusion, the running order sorted out, and when the checkered flag waved, Menard led Andretti and Drissi over the finish line. Amy Ruman in the No. 23 McNichols Co./Valley Automotive Group Chevrolet Corvette was scored fourth and Dyson finished fifth.

“It was an eventful race,” said Menard. “It’s always great to come back up here to Canada. There’s great race fans, and seeing the crowd all the way around the track and the support that we get with the series is amazing. I had a great car all weekend. We didn’t have to adjust on the car much, just little tweaks here and there. You know, [Chris] Dyson got us in qualifying, and he kind of set sail at the start. I thought I had a tire rub, but I was smelling the smoke coming from his car. Once he had his issue, it cleared up for us. We had a little power steering issue and the restart was crazy. We’re chipping away. Adam [Andretti]’s keeping us honest week in and week out. 3GT just does an amazing job every week. On to Virginia.”

After securing the pole in yesterday’s qualifying session, Tyler Gonzalez led the field to green in his No. 10 Nitro Motorsports Toyota Camry. Gonzalez controlled the race for the first five laps, but a tire issue required the leader to drop to pit road before the beginning of lap six.

From there, second-place starter Tristan McKee (No. 28 Spire/Gainbridge/SLR-M1 Chevrolet Camaro) took over the point position and remained unchallenged for the remainder of the race. Sam Corry (No. 70 Nitro Motorsports Toyota Camry) had advanced from his fourth-place starting position to follow McKee across the finish line.

Remarkably, Gonzalez, who had dropped to the very back of the field when he went to pit road but remained on the lead lap, was able to take advantage of the late-race caution bunching the field and picked his way through his competitors, ultimately rising to claim the third podium spot. Julian DaCosta (No. 30 Nitro Motorsports Toyota Camry) crossed the finish line fourth, and Gian Buffomante (No. 95 Nitro Motorsports Toyota Camry) finished fifth.

“It was a really good race,” said McKee. “Obviously, the No. 10 had some issues there, so it’s unfortunate for them, but once we got past them, we controlled the race and just maintained. Everyone was kind of worried about some tire issues there throughout the whole race, and throughout practice, we knew some people had some issues, so that was all a thought in the back of our minds. My TeamSLR guys brought me a really fast Chevy, so props to them. They worked hard this weekend getting this car dialed in. Had a lot of changes since the past race, so it feels really good to be just as fast as we were after the changes. Thank you to Gainbridge, HendrickCars.com, Franklin Road Apparel and everyone at Spire. They prepared me really well to come to this race, and I’m thankful to all of them.”

Hometown driver Roberto Sabato (No. 61 6th Gear Garage Ford Mustang) led from flag to flag in the CUBE 3 Architecture TA2 Series Pro/Am Challenge, but he was not without challenge from Jared Odrick (No. 00 Black Underwear/CoolBoxx Chevrolet Camaro), who remained on his tail throughout the race.

Odrick made a move in the final corner of the final lap, but it was not enough. Sabato captured his second-consecutive win of 2025, followed by Odrick and Keith Prociuk (No. 9 HP Tuners/Cope Race Cars Ford Mustang).

“First, I’d like to thank CUBE 3, Trans Am, and Mosport for having us back,” said Sabato. “My team, guys, you were unbelievable. Thank you. To my competitors, unbelievable. This is a humble win, because if Barry [Boes] was here, the podium might look a little bit different. It was a great race, such a clean drive. It’s great redemption from last year, getting bumped in the third lap, to come back here again this year and actually be able to finish and win. Thank you.”

As the only competitor in the XGT class, James Beaton (No. 82 Playtime Hot Rods & Motorsports Chevrolet Corvette) stood atop the podium in today’s event. He recovered from a mid-race off in which he nosed into the wall, and then recovered from a late mechanical issue to still finish the race, earning his second-career Trans Am victory.

“Well, it started off pretty good, and then we sort of overheated the tires after about 10 laps,” said Beaton. “From then, we just tried to make sure we didn’t mess with too many other people’s races, and hopefully, I didn’t. So, after that, it was just surviving to the end. I’ve got to thank my wife at home; for 38 years, she has been letting me do this. We have two beautiful kids and two beautiful grandkids. And of course, thanks to the crew.”