Round 3 of the Redline Time Attack at Las Vegas Motor Speedway was an event full of victory and defeat. Emotions ran the gamut of highs and lows as the COBB Tuning Motorsports team continued to have issues with their R35 GT-R, while Cameron Benner and Trey Cobb in the COBB Tuning Motorsports STI and 370Z respectively, were able to grab podium finishes.

The weekend got off to a rough start when large chunks of bearing material were discovered in the oil of the COBB Tuning Motorsports GT-R following Friday morning practice. This engine had come from a badly wrecked GT-R and the team surmised that the bearings might have already been compromised prior to the New Jersey event. While the car was still running and showing good oil pressure, it was decided to park the GT-R instead of risking another catastrophic failure which could compromise not only safety for driver Brian Lock, but possibly the safety of the other competitors as well.

This put the spotlight squarely on Trey Cobb and his 370Z and Cameron Benner in his 2006 STI. Cameron has reached the podium in each race he has contested while Trey has slowly been climbing the ranks while he sorts not only his car, but learns and has become more competent and aggressive as a driver.

Cameron’s weekend started more or less uneventfully, with the car continuing to be the unbreakable war horse of the COBB Tuning Motorsports stable. Cameron continued to push as his competitors posted ever lower lap times. In the end, Steve Ruiz, in the Stoptech/AEM EVOX was able to edge Cameron out by just over half a second to take first with a 1:47.491 to Cameron’s 1:48.0.

In the Enthusiast RWD Class, Trey Cobb continued to show his mettle as he became more comfortable with his 370Z. With a few more refinements to his AST coilovers and a little more daring racing lines, Trey was able to snatch his first podium, a 3rd place in only his 3rd ever race! With the car very close to be optimized, the only adjustments are being made to the nut behind the wheel proving that despite not having huge amounts of horsepower, the 370Z is a capable car and is well suited to the enthusiast class.

Down but not out, Brian Lock ventured back out on track in the AWD Modified class, this time at the helm of Cameron Benner’s Street Tire class STI, in an effort to keep his championship hopes alive. While a DNF would have put Brian completely out of the points chase, he was able to capture 7th in a car that was not only down on power compared to his rivals, but running street tires while the rest of the field ran on R-compound rubber.

Despite the setbacks with the GT-R, the weekend was an overall success for the COBB Tuning Motorsports Team. With two podium finishes from Trey Cobb and Cameron Benner, the team has its sights on more victories in Fontana, CA at Auto Club Speedway, just 32 days away.