Joel's 3rd place was not enough for the championship at Laguna Seca

Joel Miller finished 2nd in the Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear for 2008 in his rookie season.  This past weekend was the final round of the championship at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, California.  Miller was at the top of the charts at the end of each test day leading up to Saturday’s race.  “The car was feeling better and better throughout testing which showed because we were P1,” commented Joel.  However, during qualifying a balance issue came up which resulted in a 4th place starting position. 

Looking at the championship situation, Miller’s rival could not finish in the top 3 and Joel had to win.  The race started behind the pace car when the standing start was waved off due to an on-track incident.  Once the race went green Miller focused on his goal.  Unfortunately for Joel the win was not going to be possible, and after pushing the car to its limit crossed the finish line in 4th.  His rival finished in the top 3 which made it mathematically impossible for Joel’s championship hope, due to the dropped score rule.

“I tried driving around the issue the car had today, but it wasn’t enough.  We needed to be perfect to win with the close competition this weekend, but it was not meant to be.  Rick Cameron and I worked hard and showed that we could run at the top spot during testing, but we lost balance for some reason in qualifying and the race,” Miller commented afterwards.

Joel in Qualifying

“This season has been one to remember for me.  With the help from Mazda and the MAZDASPEED Driver Development Program I was able to compete this year.  The people behind the program are remarkable, and I thank them for the opportunity they gave me.  Also, I was able to learn so much from Rick Cameron and the JDC Motorsports crew which allowed me to raise my performance to the next level.  I also have to personally thank my sponsors for believing in me this season which include Mazda, K&N Air Filters, Mockett Company, Classic Stone Distributors, Sparco, Sportsdrink+, DreamCars, Burns Truck and Trailer, Oakley, as well as the HSUS program which was so fun to be involved in,” comment  Miller.

As of right now Joel is looking at all avenues for next season.  Keep up to date at here www.joelmillerracing.net for his future plans.