CROSSFLOW CUP NEWSLETTER

Volume 2026, Issue 5

2026 Neil Porter Farewell Tour: Season Finale Report

Sonoma Finale Delivers Blue Skies, Fierce Battles, and Year-End Honors

The 2026 Crossflow Cup season came to a triumphant close over Labor Day weekend with the SCCA at Sonoma Raceway. While Thursday’s load-in started under rainy skies, the weather cleared rapidly, leaving clear blue skies and dry asphalt for the remainder of the event.

Drivers kicked off the action on Friday with an optional test day featuring five sessions and 95 minutes of track time to dial in their setups for the championship finale.

Saturday: Action-Packed Racing and Katshua Shop BBQ

Qualifying Breakdown

  • Historic Ford: Newcomer Tim De Silva laid down a scorching 1:43.7 to grab pole position in his Techno FF, followed by James Hakewill (1:44.0) and John Plavan (1:45.3).

  • Club Ford: Neil Porter, Chris Cook, and Sam McCord led the pace across the Club Ford group.

  • Incidents: An incident in Turn 9 between Jay Streets and the one FV resulted in a flat tire for the FF and ended qualifying early for both drivers.

Race 1 Highlights The green flag brought a clean start, but early drama unfolded when the late-arriving FV was released onto the track ahead of the field, forcing the leaders to navigate traffic much earlier than anticipated. On lap 2, Ian Sweeney missed a shift into Turn 2, leaving his Crossle stranded on the inside. A quick, efficient full-course yellow recovery by the safety crew got racing back underway rapidly.

  • Historic Ford Podium: Tim De Silva (1st, best lap 1:43.9) → James Hakewill (+0.44s) → John Plavan (3rd).

  • Club Ford Podium: Neil Porter took victory in his final full-time season race weekend → Chris Cook (2nd) →Sam McCord (3rd).

  • Masters Podium: Ed VanTassle executed a dramatic last-lap pass on Jay Streets in Turn 7 for the win → Chris Schoap (3rd).

  • Hard Charger: Elvis Lieban gained 4 positions during the race.

Saturday Night Celebration & Raffle The evening gathered at The Katshua shop for brisket, cold drinks, the podium presentation, and the year-end raffle. With the Hoosier tire award coming down to a tie-breaker between Ian Sweeney and Chris Schoap (due to the one-win-per-season rule), Chris Schoap secured the full set of Hoosiers after Ian had to depart early to take his Crew Chief to the Cal game.

  • Avon Tires: Chris Cook

  • Panasport Wheels: Ed VanTassle

  • Ivey Head Refresh: Dave Sandlin

  • Scot Young Certificate: Jay Streets

  • HyTech Exhaust Certificate: Steve Jeffords

  • Alan Dezzani Original Art: Fred Griess

  • Porter Racing Brake Pads: Alan Dezzani, Augustin Valero

  • Apparel & Swag: James Hakewill, Mark Kelley, Sam McCord, John Plavan, Neil Porter, Robert Kozinski, Ed Abate

Sunday: The Main Event and Top Gun Shootout

Sunday morning featured qualifying and the main race prior to lunch, paving the way for the 2:00 PM season awards ceremony and the Top Gun Shootout.

Race 2 Highlights

  • Historic Ford: James Hakewill took the victory over Tim De Silva, with John Plavan completing the podium in 3rd.

  • Club Ford: Chris Cook edged out Neil Porter for the win, with Sam McCord taking 3rd.

  • Masters: Chris Schoap claimed the win after a chaotic last lap in Turn 7 when Ian Sweeney half-spun in front of the group. Jay Streets, running low on fuel, sputtered across the line after being passed late by Steve Jeffords out of Turn 11.

2026 Crossflow Cup Champions & Award Winners

Historic Ford

John Plavan

Denny Renfrow

Jay Streets

Frist Avons: John Plavan

First Hoosiers: Brian Forester


Club Ford

Adam White

San McCord

Kelly Hiel

First Avons: Adam White

First Hoosiers: San McCord



Master

Jay Streets

Chris Schoap

Ed VanTassel

First Avons: Jay Streets

First Hoosiers: Chris Schoap

  • Avon Hard Charger 2026: Dave Sandlin

  • Hoosier Hard Charger 2026: Ian Sweeney

  • Fanciest Ford: Oliver Abate

  • Rookie of the Year: Elvis Lieban

  • Mechanic of the Year: Mace Gjermane

  • VIP Award: Sam McCord

  • THE CROSSFLOW CUP WINNER: Chris Schoap

Top Gun Shootout

With three qualified drivers present and John Plavan opting to take the green, the remaining grid for the 10-minute sprint was populated by random draw based on championship standings:

  1. Sam McCord

  2. Elvis Lieban

  3. Fred Griess

  4. Steve Jeffords

  5. Chris Schoap

  6. John Plavan

  7. Augustin Valero

  8. Chris Cook

At the green flag, Rookie of the Year Elvis Lieban launched into a commanding lead, pulling away from the field early. Meanwhile, John Plavan and Chris Cook mounted a steady charge from the back of the grid. Despite a late spin by Fred Griess in the carousel, the field passed cleanly. At the checkered flag, John Plavan completed his drive through the field to win, followed by Chris Cook in 2nd and Elvis Lieban taking a impressive 3rd-place finish.

Thank you to all drivers, crews, sponsors, and corner marshals who made 2026 an unforgettable season. We look forward to seeing everyone back on track in 2027!

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