Mustang Cup Heads to VIR to Kick Off Season Half of Season

Photo: Ford Racing

Mustang Cup USA heads to Virginia International Raceway this weekend for the fourth round of the season.

Halfway through the campaign, the championship fights are heating up. The battle for the Dark Horse championship in Parnelli Cup is particularly close, with first through fourth separated by only 34 points.

In 2025, Mustang Cup ended its inaugural season at VIR. In that season finale, Will Lucas swept the weekend in the Dark Horse class to clinch both the Miles Cup and Parnelli Cup championships.

In Dark Horse Legends, Craig Capaldi won both races and earned the Miles Cup championship. Nick Smither earned two podiums and claimed the Parnelli Cup championship.

Lucas has since graduated to Mustang Challenge North America, while Capaldi and Smither are both running in Mustang Cup USA, with Capaldi currently leading both the Miles Cup and Parnelli Cup championships in class.

In the third round of the season at Circuit of The Americas, Logan Adams won the Miles Cup race in the Dark Horse class and Kale Buhl earned a win at his home track in the Parnelli Cup race.

Capaldi was victorious in both of the weekend’s races in the Dark Horse Legends class.

A total of 13 entries are entered across the Parnelli and Miles Cups this weekend, with Charlie Bosselman set for his second weekend of the season in the Mustang Cup Classic class, in his Mustang Boss 302S.

Bruce Griffin will be at the wheel of a Ford Mustang Dark Horse R after an accident in practice at the Mustang Challenge North America season opener at Sebring International Raceway in March, again running with Flying Lion Motorsports.

TPC team owner Michael Levitas, the son of Harris, will share their entry this weekend between the two Cups, while Steven Denton, who took part in last year’s Mustang Challenge Le Mans Invitational, has joined Capaldi Racing for this weekend.

Smither, who missed the recent Mustang Challenge rounds due to a family wedding, is not slated to take part at VIR either.

Track action kicks off on Friday with three practice sessions, prior to Miles Cup qualifying and the Miles Cup race on Saturday, the latter getting underway at 12:45 p.m. EST.

It will be followed by Parnelli Cup qualifying in the late afternoon, with the Parnelli Cup race set for Sunday at 8:30 a.m. EST. Both races will be streamed live on Ford Racing’s YouTube channel.

Source: Sports Car 365