Honda Racers Star at NASA National Championships

SANTA CLARITA, Calif. (Sept. 10, 2012) – Five Honda National Auto Sport Association (NASA) racers closed out their 2012 racing seasons in the best possible manner, winning six class titles at the NASA National Championships, September 8-9 at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

More than three dozen Honda and Acura racers made the annual trek to Lexington, Ohio, for
this year’s national championship races, with the majority taking part in the Honda Challenge
classes.

In Honda Challenge 1, Jason Kohler led the field from the green flag in his Honda S2000 and
was never challenged to claim his first NASA National Championship. Driving a newly race prepared Acura Integra – a job that was completed only just before the race start – Jonathan
Meris came from the back of the starting field to record an incredible second-place finish.
“I was able to get a great start. I think the open track in front of me really helped me get a gap
to second place, as everyone had to sort themselves out behind me,” Kohler said. “The car was really good. The tires were getting greasy at the end, but that happens when you push it really hard.” Kohler doubled his championship tally on Sunday, with a victory in the TTB class in the Group F Time Trial event.

Jeremy Croiset took the Honda Challenge 2 crown in his Honda CRX after an early-race battle with Egidijus [Eddie] Sadauskas until Lap 5, when Sadauskas went off track in the Mid-Ohio Carousel and Croiset broke away from the rest of the H2 field to claim his first NASA Championship trophy.

“My crew chief helped me put together a dynamite car,” Croiset said. “The CRX was perfect
from the beginning to the end. I got a good start and that helped me get a gap, which was
critical in my race. Egidijus was fast all weekend, but I got the jump at the start and that is what I needed. I had to drive a little defensively for a few laps until Eddie went off. That allowed me to get a gap to the end of the race.”
Members of the Honda Racing Line taking part in the Honda Challenge races were eligible for up to $2,500 in contingency awards at Mid-Ohio. In addition, American Honda provided catered trackside hospitality exclusively for Honda/Acura competitors and their crew members.