With testing now behind them and the start of the 2020 TC America season this coming weekend, Copeland Motorsports and their Hyundai branded program are headed to Austin, Texas. Kicking off the season at the famed Circuit of the Americas, Copeland Motorsports will enter Tyler Maxson and Nikko Reger in the TCR division while Tyler Gonzalez will fly the flag in TCA.
“We have had a very good offseason and are anxious to get back to the track and racing,” expressed Dean Copeland. “I am confident in our drivers and our equipment that I think we can be up front in both classes and challenge for championships at the end of the season. I know the crew and drivers are ready to go.”
2019 TCA Champion and Rookie of the Year Tyler Maxson will level up to the TCR class for 2020 and hopes to continue his winning ways. Showing great pace during preseason testing, including a win at COTA in a test event just one month ago, the 15-year-old has his goals set high for not only the first event of the season, but the entire championship. Joining Maxson in a Copeland Motorsports prepared Hyundai Veloster N TCR will be 21-year-old Nikko Reger. A champion in Battery Tender Global MX-5 Cup Presented by BF Goodrich Tires in 2018 as well as gaining experience behind the wheel of multiple different racing machines, the Dallas, Texas resident is hoping to kick the season off strong at his home event.
Tyler Gonzalez returns to Copeland Motorsports in 2020 and will pilot a Hyundai Veloster Turbo R-Spec machine in the TCA class. Debuting in TC America in late 2019, Gonzalez was the first driver of the new Hyundai TCA in North America and will aim to carry momentum from his winter test program and regional level events to the national scene at COTA this weekend.
Copeland added, “I believe the average age of our three drivers is around 17 and though they may be young, they come into 2020 with heart, determination, drive and the will to win.”
Maxson, Reger and Gonzalez will all hit the track this Thursday for the Promoters Test Session before official practice begins on Friday. Saturday will be the home of qualifying and the first wheel-to-wheel action of the weekend while race two will be on Sunday. Stay tuned to the Copeland Motorsports social media pages for news, information, photos and results from the event weekend.
Photo Credit: Red Case Photography