Season report
The 2025 Atlantic Championship started at Road Atlanta, and 16 drivers entered the event. Competition in the 016 Class was clear-cut: MotoNomaddicts' John McAleer set pole position in qualifying and dominated both races. Arrive Drive Motorsport’s 2024 class champion Nathan Byrd took pole position in the Open Class, but could only manage third and second in the races, with Forty 48 Competition’s James French winning race one and Havoc Motorsport’s Brandon Schwarz victorious in race two. Previously a two-class series, the 2025 season saw the introduction of a separate class for entries from the USF Juniors Championship. Exclusive Autosport’s Gabriel Cahan won both races in that class. [9]
Twelve entrants traveled to Mid-Ohio for round two. K-Hill Motorsports’ Tõnis Kasemets was the only 016 Class entrant and thereby swept the weekend. The Open Class saw Jensen’s Athan Sterling closely battle Schwarz for both race wins, with the former coming out on top both times and Arrive Drive Motorsports’ Paulie Gatto and Havoc Motorsport’s Ken DeNault completing the class podiums. After the weekend concluded, Sterling was disqualified from all sessions for using non-declared tires, so Schwarz inherited both race wins. Four cars entered the USF Juniors Class, and the two races were won by the Exclusive Autosport pair of Kaylee Countryman and Justin Di Lucia. [10]
Round three was held at Pittsburgh, and this time the sole 016 Class competitor was McAleer, who was therefore able to extend his championship lead. Eight cars entered the Open Class, where Alliance Racing’s Bob Corliss claimed two pole positions but was unable to convert both. Instead, points leader Schwarz notched up two more victories, rising from sixth on the grid in race one and beating Corliss off the front row in the second race. Arrive Drive Motorsports’ Tim Pierce took two second places, with Corliss coming third in race one before dropping to seventh in race two. Di Lucia was the only USF Juniors Class entrant and took two wins and with it the points lead in the class. [11]
23 drivers entered the event at Road America, a high point not seen in years. In the 016 Class, K-Hill’s Dudley Fleck entered his only weekend of the season and swept the weekend, while points leader McAleer took two second places, further cementing his championship advantage. Fourteen drivers entered the Open Class, but Schwartz was once again the class of the field in the first race. Series debutant J.R. Smart won the second race driving for Team Tonis, with Gatto and K-Hill’s Bruce Hamilton also featuring on the podium across the weekend. In the USF Juniors Class, Countryman and Di Lucia each notched up another win, with Countryman now third in class behind Gabriel Cahan. [12]
Entry numbers were back down to single digits upon the series’ return to Watkins Glen. 2024 016 Class champion Matthew Butson returned to competition for K-Hill and was back in front right away, taking two pole positions and winning the first race. He suffered a mechanical failure in race two, leaving McAleer to take his fifth win and further cement his championship advantage. Schwartz took two further victories in the Open Class, both times leading Arrive Drive Motorsports’ Charles Livingston and Gatto and thereby claiming the class title with four races to spare. With Di Lucia once again the only USF Juniors Class competitor, that title was also sealed early in Watkins Glen. [13]
The entry record from Road America was followed by a low point two rounds later, as only two cars entered the weekend at New Jersey Motorsports Park, and both were in the 016 Class. SMT/Zober Industries’ Richard Zober was joined by Bruce Hamilton, who had spent the year so far competing in the Open Class and had switched cars for this round. With Hamilton not used to the Swift 016 car, Zober was able to set pole position in the weekend’s only qualifying session, before winning both races comfortably and taking two fastest laps. This saw him close up to points leader McAleer and secure his runner-up spot in the class with two races yet to run. [14]
The 016 Class entry list for the finale at Summit Point again featured only McAleer, who swept the weekend and clinched the class title with a lead of over 100 points. He was unable to finish the second race, but as he had covered more than half of the race distance, he was still awarded points. With the Open Class title already sealed and champion Schwarz absent, Livingston and Gatto continued fighting for the runner-up spot. Bruce Hamilton won both races, but with Livingston second twice, he beat Gatto to second in the standings by a single point. USF Juniors class champion Di Lucia was once again the only entrant in his class, so he claimed both races to bring his season total to eight wins. [15]
