The 2008 Star Mazda Championship was a season of the open wheel racing series the Star Mazda Championship. It consisted of a 12-race schedule beginning in March and ending in October, with only the best eleven race results counting towards the championship. As with 2007, the series featured races exclusively on road and street courses. In addition to the main championship that is typically tested by young, developing drivers, there were also additional class titles for older drivers.
John Edwards won the championship ahead of Joel Miller and Peter Dempsey despite missing the first round of the championship.[1] Edwards won four races, the same as Dempsey, but Dempsey had three finishes of 20th or worse, one of which counted in his points total, while Edwards worst points-scoring finish was 4th. Miller won only once, in the season opener. Noted British drivers Charles Hall and Tom Gladdis also participated in the series and finished fifth and sixth in points, respectively. Each won a single race. British driver Richard Kent won the final race of the season in his series debut, despite not being registered for the championship. Notable international female drivers Natalia Kowalska and Michele Bumgarner also competed in the series despite not being registered for the championship.[2]
Chris Cumming won the Expert class for drivers 30 and older and Chuck Hulse won the Masters class championship for drivers 40 and older.[3]
| Round
|
Circuit
|
Location
|
Date
|
Pole position
|
Fastest lap
|
Winning driver
|
Winning team
|
Supporting
|
| 1
|
United States Sebring International Raceway
|
Sebring, Florida
|
March 14
|
United States Joel Miller
|
United Kingdom Tom Gladdis
|
United States Joel Miller
|
JDC MotorSports
|
American Le Mans Series
|
| 2
|
United States Miller Motorsports Park
|
Tooele, Utah
|
May 17
|
United States John Edwards
|
United States John Edwards
|
United States John Edwards
|
AIM Autosport
|
American Le Mans Series
|
| 3
|
United States Watkins Glen International
|
Watkins Glen, New York
|
June 7
|
United States Alex Ardoin
|
United Kingdom Charles Hall
|
United Kingdom Charles Hall
|
Andersen Racing
|
Grand Am Rolex Sports Cars
|
| 4
|
United States Portland International Raceway
|
Portland, Oregon
|
July 26
|
United Kingdom Tom Gladdis
|
United Kingdom Tom Gladdis
|
United Kingdom Tom Gladdis
|
Andersen Racing
|
stand-alone
|
| 5
|
July 27
|
United Kingdom Tom Gladdis
|
United Kingdom Tom Gladdis
|
United States John Edwards
|
AIM Autosport
|
| 6
|
United States Road America
|
Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin
|
August 9
|
United States John Edwards
|
Republic of Ireland Peter Dempsey
|
Republic of Ireland Peter Dempsey
|
Andersen Racing
|
American Le Mans Series
|
| 7
|
Canada Circuit Trois-Rivières
|
Trois-Rivières, Quebec
|
August 17
|
Republic of Ireland Peter Dempsey
|
Republic of Ireland Peter Dempsey
|
Republic of Ireland Peter Dempsey
|
Andersen Racing
|
stand-alone
|
| 8
|
Canada Mosport International Raceway
|
Bowmanville, Ontario
|
August 23
|
United States John Edwards
|
Republic of Ireland Peter Dempsey
|
Republic of Ireland Peter Dempsey
|
Andersen Racing
|
American Le Mans Series
|
| 9
|
United States New Jersey Motorsports Park
|
Millville, New Jersey
|
September 13
|
United States Joel Miller
|
United States John Edwards
|
United States John Edwards
|
AIM Autosport
|
stand-alone
|
| 10
|
September 14
|
United States John Edwards
|
Republic of Ireland Peter Dempsey
|
Republic of Ireland Peter Dempsey
|
Andersen Racing
|
| 11
|
United States Road Atlanta
|
Braselton, Georgia
|
October 3
|
Republic of Ireland Peter Dempsey
|
Republic of Ireland Peter Dempsey
|
United States John Edwards
|
AIM Autosport
|
American Le Mans Series
|
| 12
|
United States Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca
|
Monterey, California
|
October 18
|
Republic of Ireland Peter Dempsey
|
not available
|
United Kingdom Richard Kent
|
Andersen Racing
|
American Le Mans Series
|
|
|
| Color
|
Result
|
| Gold
|
Winner
|
| Silver
|
2nd place
|
| Bronze
|
3rd place
|
| Green
|
4th & 5th place
|
| Light Blue
|
6th–10th place
|
| Dark Blue
|
Finished (Outside Top 10)
|
| Purple
|
Did not finish
|
| Red
|
Did not qualify (DNQ)
|
| Brown
|
Withdrawn (Wth)
|
| Black
|
Disqualified (DSQ)
|
| White
|
Did not start (DNS)
|
| Blank
|
Did not participate (DNP)
|
| Not competing
|
|
| In-line notation
|
| Bold
|
Pole position (1 point)
|
| Italics
|
Ran fastest race lap
|
|
|
Note: Expert and Masters classes have different point system than the overall championship.
- ^ 2008 Star Mazda Champion: John Michael Edwards, Junior Open Wheel Talent, October 19, 2008, Retrieved 2011-07-25
- ^ Bumgarner: From karting to formula racing, Manila Standard Today, May 30, 2008, Retrieved 2011-07-04
- ^ 2008 Star Mazda points Archived 2011-09-27 at the Wayback Machine, Star Mazda Championship, Retrieved 2011-07-25