
Driving the famous corkscrew at Laguna Seca. All photos courtesy of Jesse Kiser
The first round of the USCA Ultimate Street Car Associations’ Optima “Search for the Ultimate Street Car” series is in the books. Not surprising we saw everything from heart pounding LS-powered Chevelle, to a Camaro, even a Datsun 240z. There was Ford Mustangs both old and new, a Honda Civic, BMW M6, Porsche 911 Turbo, a collection of Nissan GTRs and Mitsubishi Evo variants. Even a little Ford Pinto was out on the grounds of Mazda Speedway Laguna Seca all bidding for their shot at this coveted title.Â
Split into groups the competitors filled three classes: all-wheel drive, two-wheel drive over 3,000 pounds and two-wheel drive under 3,000 pounds. Each class at each of the ten events will send one qualifier to the 2014 OPTIMA Ultimate Street Car Invitational in November after SEMA.Â
The competitors in the USCA Optima “Search for the Ultimate Street Car” event made good work of their opportunity to play at the historic Laguna Seca track. A total of 882 passes were completed in the RideTech Street Challenge Autocross and Wilwood Disc Brake Speed-Stop Challenge. Contestants turned a mind boggling 1,420 laps in the BFGoodrich Hot Lap Challenge around the majestic 11-turn, 2.238-mile road course.Â
The series itself has several judging criteria that spans the spectrum of everything from correct sticker packages to fast times on the applicable courses. Â At this time the overall class winners are hot foot Mike Maier in his 1966 Mustang in the over 3000lbs Class, Mark Frazier in his LS powered ’71 Datsun 240z in the under 3000lb class and Ricky Kwan in his outrageous 2012 Nissan GTR for the all wheel drive class. All three competitors have earned their trip to the 2014 OPTIMA Ultimate Street Car Invitational in the fall.Â
Up next for the USCA is Texas Motor Speedway and more contenders looking for their chance to get invited to the 2014 SEMA Show and the OPTIMA Ultimate Street Car Invitational.
For more information about the series check out the Ultimate Street Car Associations webpage and for complete results. We will be covering all the USCA events, so check back for more coverage! Full pictures below.Â
 Overall Winners:Â
GT3K #035 Mike Maier 1966 Ford Mustang
GT2K #011 Mark Frazier 1971 Datsun 240Z
AWD #030 Ricky Kwan 2012 Nissan GT-R, #057 Betim Barisha 2011 Porsche 911 Turbo
K&N Spirit of the Event Winner #007 Martin Pond 1980 Ford Fairmont
BF Goodrich Hot Lap Challenge:Â
1st Place – GT3K #052 Danny Popp 2010 Chevrolet Camaro
2nd Place – GT3K #019 Filip Trojanek 1966 Ford Mustang
3rd Place – GT3K #006 Jake Rozelle 1969 Chevrolet Camaro
1st Place – GT2K #31 John Lazorak 1988 Chrysler Conquest TSI
2nd Place – GT2K #055 Ken Suen 2012 Honda Civic Si
3rd Place – GT2K #011 Mark Frazier 1971 Datsun 240Z
1st Place – AWD #030 Ricky Kwan 2012 Nissan GT-R
2nd Place – AWD #022 Brandon Ranvek 2006 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution RS
3rd Place – AWD #045 Casey Wallace 2011 Nissan GT-R
Ridetech Street Challenge Autocross:Â
1st Place – GT3K #035 Mike Maier 1966 Ford Mustang
2nd Place – GT3K #052 Danny Popp 2010 Chevrolet Camaro
3rd Place – GT3K #006 Jake Rozelle 1969 Chevrolet Camaro
1st Place – GT2K #011 Mark Frazier 1971 Datsun 240Z
2nd Place – GT2K #055 Ken Suen 2012 Honda Civic Si
3rd Place – GT2K #031 John Lazorak 1988 Chrysler Conquest TSI
1st Place – AWD #022 Brandon Ranvek 2006 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution RS
2nd Place – AWD #057 Betim Berisha 2011 Porsche 911 Turbo
3rd Place – AWD #030 Ricky Kwan 2012 Nissan GT-R
Wilwood Disc Brakes Speed Stop Challenge:Â
1st Place – GT3K #035 Mike Maier 1966 Ford Mustang
2nd Place – GT3K #025 Bret Voelkel “48 Hour Camaro”
3rd Place – GT3K #006 Jake Rozelle 1969 Chevrolet Camaro
1st Place – GT2K #011 Mark Frazier 1971 Datsun 240Z
2nd Place – GT2K #031 John Lazorak 1988 Chrysler Conquest TSI
3rd Place – GT2K #055 Ken Suen 2012 Honda Civic Si
1st Place – AWD #026 Ronnie Soliman 2006 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution
2nd Place – AWD #022 Brandon Ranvek 2006 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution RS
3rd Place – AWD #057 Betim Berisha 2011 Porsche 911 Turbo
Lingenfelter Performance Engineering Design & Engineering Challenge:Â
1st Place – GT3K #001 James Shipka 1967 Chevrolet Camaro
2nd Place – GT3K #029 James Stancel 2014 Mercedes SLS AMG Black Series
3rd Place – GT3K #025 Bret Voelkel “48 Hour Camaro”
1st Place – GT2K #011 Mark Frazier 1971 Datsun 240Z
2nd Place – GT2K #010 Brian Battaglini 1970 Chevrolet Camaro
3rd Place – GT2K #055 Ken Suen 2012 Honda Civic Si
1st Place – AWD #057 Betim Berisha 2011 Porsche 911 Turbo
2nd Place – AWD #030 Ricky Kwan 2012 Nissan GT-R
3rd Place – AWD #045 Casey Wallace 2011 Nissan GT-R