Curran qualified fifth, but made his move early when he shot to the lead after the standing start. "I went right through the middle of the field and got by (pole-sitter Chip) Herr," he explains.
Curran fell out of the lead only once during the 30-lap race when second-place qualifier Randy Pobst snuck by on the restart after the race's only full-course yellow. But Pobst spun a lap later, and all Curran had to do was fend off the charging Herr. When Herr's Focus found itself challenged by pair of Mazda6s, Curran was able to pull away and secure the win.
Though this is Curran's sixth year driving in this series, this is the first year that he's run the full schedule and this is his first win. He becomes the seventh different driver to win for RealTime and as this is written he's only 11 points behind Cunningham, who remains atop the championship leader ladder.
Meanwhile, RealTime's newbie, 19-year-old Brandon Davis, secured the Rookie of the Year award for himself with a sixth-place finish in his TSX at Denver. "I'm having just an amazing time racing with these RealTime guys," says Davis, who attends the University of Denver. "I've learned a lot from my teammates, had way too much fun, and got to close the deal here in front of my family and friends!"
What about Cunningham and Kleinubing? Kleinubing started fourth and finished eighth despite 190 pounds of rewards weight, while Cunningham, who carried 200 pounds of rewards weight, started eighth and finished 10th.
With just two races to go in the 2005 season, the RealTime early season success is still holding up barely. But weight is coming off of both Kleinubing's and Cunningham's cars before Mosport and Laguna.
Baddest-Ass Paint Ever
Let's review the demographics of this magazine's readership real quick: male, 97 percent. Average age, 23. Annual household income... Yup, you were all born long after the Ford GT40 racked up its greatest glory in the 24 Hours of Le Mans between 1966 and 1969. Despite the fact that even your parents were still in diapers back then, you may recognize the paint job on this new Ford GT as being a reproduction of the Gulf-sponsored John Weir cars that did so well in that race so long ago. That's right, baby blue and orange do make for a perfect racecar color scheme.
"We're very proud to offer the 2006 Ford GT in these timeless colors to celebrate our historic racing achievements and the high-performance and innovative technology behind our supercar," says Carter Balkcom, Ford GT marketing manager in a press release. "The blue-and-orange livery is one of the most memorable paint schemes to ever be displayed on a racecar. The JW Automotive American Gulf Oil Ford GT P/1075 is an iconic racecar, being one of only a few cars to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans twice."
Those four white "roundels" (that's car speak for "spots") are also part of the package and car owners can put any number that they'd like inside them.
Is the GT really a sport compact? Nah. So what? The paint looks great and we're sick of looking at Integras and EVOs covered in vinyl.