Mazda RX-8 | Pocono Superspeedway Event Highlights

Ride along in the #51 Mazda RX-8 as it tackles Pocono Superspeedway road course (North South Configuration 3 CW) and tri-oval configurations at the May 2026 Hooked on Driving (HOD) event in the Advanced run group. This was my first time running at Pocono, and my first time ever attacking a high speed oval. As simple as it seems, the oval was huge fun and i definitely gained some more respect for those NASCAR boys! I would love to come back someday to the "tricky triangle". This was my first full day running the Falken RT660+ tires in a longer HPDE format (versus shorter time attack sessions). The conditions were very cool (45-55F), and the tires took a full lap to "come in" to full grip. But they also hung in there lap after lap before FINALLY getting greasy and falling off. I was impressed with the lapping heat tolerance, and the tire wear / degradation was pretty reasonable for extended lapping. The Bilstein B14 PSS kit was definitely put to the test at this event - the transitions from the infields to the oval portions were VERY bumpy. Even with my soft setup it was a wild ride! That said i did seem to catch people at those spots, so the setup seemed to be working pretty well. And i was able to REALLY attack the tall curbs and use them to my advantage (stick around for the wild pictures at the end). QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? LEAVE THEM BELOW! #51 Mazda RX-8 Summary 32mm front swaybar, OEM rear swaybar Off-the-shelf Bilstein B14 PSS (fixed valving version) HKS Hi-Power exhaust, Underdrive pulleys, Versatuner, RB REVi intake 255/40/17 Falken RT660+ on Enkei RPF1 17x10 +38 Video details: Helmet camera: Go Pro Hero 9 Foot camera: Akaso EK7000 Data capture: Android phone running RaceChrono, external Racebox Mini 25Hz GPS, VeePeak OBDCheck BLE Data merged with Dashware, video edited with Video Pad.