The road to claiming the championship trophy came with many twists and turns for John Capestro-Dubets, but it was all worth it in the end. The path to the Silver class title was far from straightforward, but the right opportunity came at the right time, and the rest was history.
He was heading into the 2024 season with a new team, co-driver, and manufacturer, as well as renewed ambitions. Despite the substantial changes, he was prepared for the task ahead.
“The start of the season was just a couple of weeks away and it seemed like all the available opportunities had gone away,” Capestro-Dubets recalled. “Thankfully, Justin Bellinzoni from RS1 reached out to me and we were able to put something together. They had a change of plans with the initial program they were going to run, so it created this new option for me to drive with Eric Filgueiras.”
Although he had some previous experience with the team in another event in which they had seen prior success, he was eager for the chance to do more, knowing they were equipped with a winning formula. As they approached the season opener at Sonoma Raceway, everything finally came together.
However, their championship pursuit did not come with an easy start, as they faced setbacks in the first two races. Although it did not yield the results they were looking for, it gave JCD the confidence that they could take it in stride and come back swinging to make a statement.
“Sonoma definitely didn’t go our way,” he said. “Unfortunately, a driver ID didn’t register correctly in the Qualifying session, which meant we got disqualified and had to start from the back of the grid. Our car wasn’t in a favorable performance window to begin with, but our starting position certainly didn’t help. But we were able to make our way through the field in both Race 1 and 2, and that felt like a huge win.”
Notably, it also gave him a better understanding of the Porsche package and what they were up against after his previous experience racing with the BMW platform the year before.
“The BMW is an extremely strong car, even beyond just outright pace,” he explained. “It handles extremely well, and is generally more forgiving than the Porsche. With the Cayman, we had to be up on the wheel, and any wrong move can bite you. There are a lot of differences between the two, and it required a lot of focus from Eric and I to be able to execute and be precise.”
“From there, we knew what it was going to take for us to fight for wins,” he continued. “Eric and I both believed in each other and we never let any hard days bring us down. We always built off of what we could do well and examined where we could improve.”
It didn’t take long for success to come their way, as they immediately followed up with back-to-back victories in the following rounds at Sebring International Raceway. By taking a step by step approach for each event, Capestro-Dubets emphasized the importance of only focusing on elements within his control and being prepared for all circumstances.
“We knew no matter what we were dealt, we had a good blueprint for how to set up the car to our liking,” he elaborated. “We were confident that we would be able to score some important points early in the championship, and our plan was to continue to maximize for the rest of the year. Obviously, we're always going into every race trying to win, but it’s important to try to execute in situations where you know you can be successful. The wins at Sebring definitely gave us that extra motivational boost.”
They continued going from strength to strength, with a second-place result at the inaugural Lone Star Enduro at Circuit of The Americas, to a clean sweep at VIRginia International Raceway, to another podium and victory at Road America. While the trophies kept rolling in, with the points margin consistently in the favor, the championship standings still remained close nonetheless.
A difficult weekend at Barber Motorsports Park brought the battle with their title rivals, Random Vandals Racing’s Kenton Koch and Kevin Boehm, even closer heading into the season finale. With next to nothing separating the two teams, the pressure was mounting, and everything was on the line. Conscious of the fact that the entire championship could be won or lost with one wrong move, Capestro-Dubets was acutely aware of the level of performance required to succeed.
“The pressure was the hardest part for sure,” he reflected. “At Indianapolis we had acknowledged that we were having some difficulties with our chassis, and we knew we had some things to overcome, but we were so determined. I had a big weight on my shoulders, especially after not being able to claim the title officially last season. I had a lot of respect from my peers, but never really sat right with me since it wasn’t in the books. I needed to prove that I could get my own title.”
His time finally came at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, with the championship battle swinging in his favor in the very last round of the season. As he crossed the finish line for the final time, the title officially became his at last.
“It still gives me goosebumps,” he said when thinking about the emotions from that day. “I started this journey fifteen years ago, I was the first in my family to go road racing. It feels amazing to have this accomplishment be admired. I've experienced many heartbreaks with championships where it didn’t play out like I had hoped, so to have one finally go my way means the world to me. To be able to go up against such talented drivers like Kenton Koch, Kevin Boehm, Zac Anderson, and Colin Garrett is really special. I have so much respect for them, they kept us honest and they were very tough competitors.”
Now that he has checked the box on a major goal in GT4 competition, he has his sights set on continuing to establish himself in the GT3 world.