Racing Lines: Club Racers Chase Titles in Fifteen Classes

 

With nine events down and five to go, Tire Rack BMW CCA Club Racing drivers are chasing national championships in fifteen classes. Current standings were posted in August, after the races on the Lightning Circuit at New Jersey Motorsports Park.

National championships are awarded to the racers who score the most points in their respective classes while running in at least four separate events over the course of the season. Results through Lightning are reported here by class size.

Greg Hartman of the North Atlantic Region, who races a 330i, leads Spec E46, by far the largest class competing in the series this year, with 69 participants to date. South Atlantic Region racer Aiden Baker Crouse (330Ci) is second and North Atlantic Region racer Ben Hostetler (330i) is third.

Scott Chang of the South Atlantic Region leads C-Modified. Both Chang and current runner-up Todd Brown race E46 M3s, although Brown has also scored C-Mod points in a special E46 B46, an E46 3 Series powered by a B48D four-cylinder turbo engine. Twenty racers have scored points in C-Mod this season. Emrich Stellar, a North Atlantic Region E36 M3 racer who is the defending champion in PWR3, leads the class again this year. Ron Hougham, who competes in an E46 M3, is second in points. Nineteen racers have competed in PWR3 so far this year. Ryan Agnew of the North Atlantic Region leads I-Prepared. He races an E36 M3, as does runner-up Job Nieman, also a North Atlantic Region racer. Sixteen racers have scored points in I-Prepared so far this season. Bert Howerton of the South Atlantic Region leads Spec E36 ahead of defending champion John Wilkins. Each competes in a 325i. Seventeen racers have run in Spec E36 to date in 2025. Sri Haputantri of the South Atlantic Region, who races an E36 M3, leads the points in PWR4. He is the defending class champion. North Central Region racer Ryan White, who campaigns an E46 M3, is second. Ten racers have run in PWR4 to date in 2025. Mirril McMullen of the North Atlantic Region—the new chairman of the Tire Rack series—leads PWR2 in his E36 323is. Marc Thomaes, who races an E30 M3, is second. Nine racers have run in PWR2 to date this year. Michael Saul of the South Atlantic Region, the defending I-Sport champion, leads the class ahead of North Atlantic Region racer Bill Mellott. Both race E36 M3s. Nine racers have competed in I-Sport to date this season. Michael Kerner of the South Atlantic Region leads M2 Spec ahead of fellow F87 M2 CSR racer and defending champion Frank McCleneghen of the North Atlantic Region. Seven racers have competed in the class so far in 2025. George Denliker of the South Atlantic Region leads K-Prepared in his E30 325is. Six racers have run in the class this year. Warren Wulff of the Northeast Region, who pilots an E92 M3, leads B-Modified. Five racers have run in B-Modified so far this season.

The balance of the classes have been contested so far by three or fewer racers. They are as follows:

Mike Hinkley of the South Atlantic Region leads D-Modified in an E36 328i that he shares with April Curtis. There have been three competitors in D-Modified this year.

Ryan Zmiewski of the North Atlantic Region lead Spec M240iR in his F22 M235iR Just Zmiewski and club-racing veteran Fred Landwehr, who also races an M235iR, have competed in the class this year.

Bob Martin of the North Atlantic Region is the only racer wo has scored points in M3T this year; he races an E30 M3 in the class.

Ross Karlin of the North Atlantic Region is the only racer to have scored points in E-Modified; he races an E21 320i.

An overview of the results so far reveals high levels of participation in Spec E46, Spec E36, and the PWR classes, along with the usually strong C-Modified and I-Prepared classes. The growth of the PWR power-to-weight based classes reflects migration from the Modified and Prepared classes.

Anyone who checks out the complete results on the club racing website will find an EXB class listed along with the BMW classes; EXB is for non-BMWs allowed to compete at BMW CCA club races. Competitors in tis class are not awarded national championships. Three racers have run in EXB; Porsche Cayman racer Justin Dexter leads the class.

For the balance of the 2025 season, racers have opportunities to score additional points at Watkins Glen in September, Road America and Carolina Motorsports Park in October, Road Atlanta in November, and Roebling Road in December.—Brian Morgan, Roundel motorsports editor

The lead photo of Spec E46 leader Greng Hartman is by Brian Morgan

Tags: Club Racing