BRASELTON, Ga. Thomas Annunziata continued his strong start to the season, earning his second-straight CUBE 3 Architecture TA2 Series victory in the Mission Foods Road Atlanta SpeedTour at Road Atlanta.

Annunziata started on the pole and led from flag to flag in his No. 90 Gazoo Racing/Nitro Motorsports Toyota Camry, spearheading a podium-sweeping 1-2-3 finish for Nitro Motorsports and leading a 1-2 finish for the new Toyota Camry.

The event aired live on SPEED SPORT 1. 

After setting a new track record and winning the pole in qualifying, Annunziata took the green flag and pulled ahead to an immediate lead. Behind him, second-place starter Julian DaCosta (No. 30 Nitro Motorsports Ford Mustang) and third-place starter Tyler Gonzalez (No. 10 Mobil 1/Nitro Motorsports Toyota Camry) were side-by-side, drag racing through the esses before Gonzalez took over second place in Turn 7. The field was slowed by the conclusion of the first lap for a car in the wall, with racing resuming on lap five.

Annunziata led Gonzalez, DaCosta, three-time champion Rafa Matos (No. 57 Concord American Flagpole/SHR Chevrolet Camaro) and Boris Said Jr. (No. 60 Nitro Motorsports Ford Mustang) across the line on the restart, and he and Gonzalez began to distance themselves from the rest of the top five. The two battled each other until lap 10, when the safety car was deployed for a caution period to clean up several on-track incidents, including one involving fifth-place Said Jr. and seventh-place Mike Skeen (No. 2 Guthries Garage Chevrolet), which allowed Sam Corry (No. 70 Nitro Motorsports Ford Mustang) to enter the top five.

The green flag waved once again on lap 15 and Gonzalez fought hard on Annunziatas tail. On lap 17, Matos put two wheels off the racing surface, allowing Corry to pass him for the fourth position. By lap 20, Annunziata began to open up a lead over Gonzalez, gapping him by a second and a half. A long green-flag run ensued, and when racing was slowed on lap 30, Annunziata had a nearly four-second advantage over his teammate.

The restart on lap 33 was excellent for Gonzalez, but the double yellow was displayed on lap 34 for a car stuck in Turn 10. Gonzalez was able to do it again when racing resumed on lap 37, hanging tightly on Annunziatas rear bumper. The following lap, he looked poised to challenge for the lead, but Gonzalez made his first mistake of the race, putting two wheels off the track and slightly slowing his progress. With two laps remaining, Gonzalez was unable make the pass, and Annunziata took the checkered flag. Annunziata was followed by Nitro Motorsports teammates Gonzalez, DaCosta, and Corry, with Silver Hare Racings Matos crossing the finish line fifth.

After the race, a post-race penalty for avoidable contact was assessed to Sam Corry, relegating him to the 14th position. With Matos promoted to fourth, Tristan McKee (No. 28 Spire Gainbridge/SLR-M1 Chevrolet Camaro) became the final car to finish in the top five.

The race was good from start to finish, said Annunziata on the podium. I was a little worried there in the beginning. I didnt have the greatest short-run pace, and I thought Gonzalez was going to have something for me there. We started to eke it out, and I felt really good. I mean, its an amazing way to introduce Toyota to the CUBE 3 Architecture TA2 Series, which is super, super cool. Thank you to everyone at Nitro Motorsports, Michael Brallier, Ronnie Otto, and Nick Tucker for giving me such an amazing opportunity and allowing me to drive these race cars.

Its the first time weve ever had a Nitro Motorsports 1-2-3 finish, which is super cool. Thats all down to having such a talented group of people behind us and talented drivers such as Tyler Gonzalez and Julian DaCosta. Congrats to them as well. Gonzalez kept me honest there at the end. I thought I was going to potentially lose it there. That was scary; I didnt like that. Thank you to Chipoys and everyone here at Road Atlanta.