Lebwohl, Larson win World Racing League’s regional car Championship on Tooele track

Holding the championship trophies from both Saturday and Sundays race. From left to right Mike Tilton (lead mechanic), Alec Lebwohl, William Perret, Scott Mann, Jason Lebwohl, Zachary Lebwohl, Lincoln Larson, Robert Lebwohl Photo: Julie Larson

TOOELE, Utah — Zac Lebwohl and Lincoln Larson won their GP1 Championship in the World Racing League’s (WRL) auto race with their Team Blaze at their home track of the Burt Brothers Motorpark in Tooele on Saturday, and again on Sunday, then they went back to college, and high school respectively on Monday.

In this region, it’s called the Midwestern Championship and the car they won this one in was their purpose-built 1995 BMW M3. This was the first time this specific category of racing had been held at this venue.

Among others on this Park City-based team, it’a a family affair including Zac’s dad, Jason, mom Casey,  younger brother Alec, and Uncle Rob. Jonas Axboe and William Perret round out the Park City parts of Team Blaze.

Larson, Axboe, and both Lebwohl brothers are recent graduates or current attendees of the Park City High School, which means when the drivers are racing in this series with tour stops around the country, against competitors twice their age, three times their age, it adds a whole other level of accomplishment as 17-year-old Larson, the youngest athlete in the competition, told TownLift.

“It feels really good to be able to be competitive with people that have so much more experience especially considering I started racing relatively late compared to most pros. But it wouldn’t be possible without the team and how much work they have put into the car and the team in the past few years. I am beyond grateful to be a part of the Blaze Racing Team and looking forward to future races with them,” he said. 

When he was even younger, Larson was the Spec Miata Champion in the National Auto Sport Association.

On Saturday, a pass with two laps to go saw Zac cross the finish line first for their first WRL win after years of trying. Then on Sunday, coming off the back of that win, they knew another and helpful results elsewhere would potentially clinch this 2025 Midwest GP1 Championship. Larson had two successful days in a row including a double stint on Sunday which helped earn them their second win of the weekend. That win and the final order of the race was not only enough to complete a sweep at home but a very unlikely Midwest Championship. 

These are multi-hour, multi-driver races with often up to 15 hours on the track with the same car that then gets brought to the next state to do it all over again, and again. Back in June they got to race at the iconic Daytona track among races in Texas, Wisconsin, and New York. In this race Teammate Scott Mann was the third driver alternating with Larson and Lebwohl.

Axboe is an occasional team driver, not for this particular race, Perret is a strong supporter of the team behind-the-scenes and the support and Pit Crew also includes Rob. Jason, who races in other series, served as the driving coach  this time, just like how he travels the country instructing other drivers in Team Porsche cars. 

Zac told TownLift, “I remember, after the end of the race, getting out of the car, looking up in the stands and seeing everyone there, and that was really cool to see. I had a bunch of friends there. I mean, there were probably 15 or 20 people who’d come from Park City to cheer us on in the larger crowd of spectators and for that we’re really thankful.” 

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Photos by Chase Hales // phattyhales, and by Casey Lebwohl

Larson drove the first three hours on Saturday. Mann drove the second three hours on Saturday, Zac drove the last two. On Sunday, Larson drove the first three again, Zac drove the middle, “there was a slight problem that cost me to go out earlier” he explained, and then Lincoln got in and drove the last hour and a half.

This win in Utah is a bit of a mini win within the nation-wide ongoing season series and the the team feels like there’s still a chance to finish the season on the podium, with two weekends to go, for races to go in East and the much broader National has six races to go, which they hold a 16 point lead in now, which was a 12 point deficit coming into this weekend.

Alec travels with his family to help with the races whenever he can carve out time around his Park City High School commitments of; serving multiple years on the Student Council; being a part of the Drama Club, which is going to compete in the Shakespeare Festival on Friday, public speaking at his religious entity, and volunteering as one of the only teenagers ever accepted into the current leadership Park City Class.

Zac, whose finishing up his degree as a commercial airplane pilot,  finished up his interview with TownLift by talking about how great it is to share this sport with his dad, Jason. “It’s always nice to have him there and at all the races, he comes in handy with a lot of different things besides just what he does during the pit stops, he is our, technical reserve driver so he’s always there as a backup if we need it. He has the deep knowledge of driving, and he has the knowledge of racing. He knows the rules, but he usually has an outside point of view, since he’s not necessarily in the car, he’s crucial to the team dynamics, and the driver dynamics. He has the two point of view so it’s definitely helpful having him there. He’s very good at coordinating everything and helping everything stay smooth.”