Golinello drove the No. 55 R&C Motorsports Ford Mustang Boss 302S in front of a large crowd of family and friends, including some who came all the way from New York and Texas.
During Saturday’s qualifying for race one, Golinello felt like he had the car to beat following its pre-season prep by Rehagen Racing. “The car was a first-place car on Saturday. It was perfect. I really thought I was going to be on the podium,” Golinello says.
In fact, Golinello started eighth on the class grid, but he was third heading into turn one after the standing start. Golinello was bearing down on second place when another car got too aggressive and hit Golinello’s Mustang, taking them both out of the race.
The Rehagen Racing crew got “Boss One” repaired in time for race two on Sunday. The grid for the second race was determined by race one’s lap times, and Golinello’s early exit meant he had to start from 17th. To compound the challenge, Golinello was unable to get any practice time between the two races, meaning he started race two with an untested machine.
A master of the standing start, Golinello leaped from 17th to seventh at the green flag, eventually finishing sixth in GTS. “It was a great race. We missed the setup mark a little bit on Sunday because of the damage we sustained on Saturday, but I drove with everything I had to keep sixth,” he says.
As for racing on the streets of St. Pete, Golinello says, “I like the street course, but it’s very intimidating. There is zero room for error. It takes total commitment in every turn.”
Golinello’s next race will mark a return to traditional road courses. Keep up with his racing online at www.r-cmotorsports.com.
