Lanie Buice charges back to fourth at Watkins Glen as rising Trans Am talent continues strong 2026 campaign
- RACERS
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After a steady Saturday, Lanie Buice produced another superb recovery drive on Sunday at Watkins Glen, climbing six positions to finish fourth overall and in class as the teenage racer continued her impressive rookie Trans Am TA2 season.
Lanie Buice continued to prove why she is regarded as one of the brightest female young talents in American stock car racing with another highly encouraging performance during the Watkins Glen double-header, delivering a superb fourth-place finish in Sunday's race after a steady opening contest in the Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli.
The 19-year-old from Georgia, US, has been balancing an ambitious dual programme in 2026, contesting both the Trans Am TA2 championship and selected ARCA Menards Series events to maximize her development. The strategy has already paid dividends: in ARCA, Buice has been one of the revelations of the season, finishing inside the top five in each of her first four starts, highlighted by an outstanding runner-up finish at Chicagoland Speedway.
Her Trans Am campaign has followed a similarly encouraging trajectory. After opening the season with a learning weekend at Sebring before securing a top-ten class finish at Road Atlanta, Buice made a major breakthrough during the Sonoma Raceway double-header, where she claimed an excellent sixth-place overall finish in Race 1 before issues prevented another strong result on Sunday.
She maintained that momentum with another overall top-ten at Indianapolis Motor Speedway before recording a new personal-best fourth-place finish at Road America, demonstrating her growing confidence aboard the #27 Sunoco/Guthrie's Garage/SLR-M1 Chevrolet Camaro.
Arriving at the iconic Watkins Glen International for rounds eight and nine of the championship, Buice sought to continue that upward trend at one of North America's most demanding road circuits.
The New York venue hosted another competitive Trans Am weekend, with 34 cars entered and 21 competing in the pro TA2 class.
Saturday's opening 100-mile contest saw Buice line up ninth on the grid after another solid qualifying performance. When the green flag flew, the young American settled into the midfield battle as she looked to establish a consistent rhythm over the race distance.
As the race unfolded, she continued to run solidly inside the top ten, extracting consistent performance from the Chevrolet Camaro around the fast, flowing Watkins Glen circuit.
Her best lap of 1:52.621 reflected a steady opening race, and after another composed drive she brought the car home tenth overall and tenth in the TA2 classification, collecting another valuable haul of championship points.
While Saturday may not have produced the spectacular result of recent rounds, it provided a solid platform heading into Sunday's second race.
The grid for Race 2 was determined by each driver's fastest lap from Saturday's contest, placing Buice tenth for the weekend finale.
Sunday, however, proved to be a very different story: from the outset, Buice looked considerably more comfortable and she immediately began moving forward through the highly competitive TA2 field, producing one of the strongest recovery drives of the afternoon.
Finding significantly more pace than she had shown 24 hours earlier, Buice steadily worked her way through the order, with her lap times reflecting that improvement. Buice lowered her personal best to a 1:51.653 - almost a full second quicker than her fastest lap from Saturday.
Continuing to capitalize on every opportunity, she gained six positions over the course of the race, ultimately taking the checkered flag in an outstanding fourth overall and fourth in class.
The result matched the best performances of her season and represented another significant statement from one of the championship's most promising youngsters.
Following the Watkins Glen double-header, Buice now sits ninth in the overall TA2 championship standings with 536 points as the 2026 season enters its closing stages.
With only three rounds remaining, the young racer continues to gather momentum, and after another strong weekend, she will look to continue her charge when the Trans Am Series resumes at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park over Labor Day weekend.