Marin motor sports: Caceres’ mentorship contributes to TMC national crown

Since Novato’s Lisa Caceres decided to take over the Teen Mazda Challenge reins following the sudden death of TMC creator Ron Cortez in 2018, she’s focused a large part of her professional life on bringing young talent up from the karting ranks to Spec Miata in NASA, the National Auto Sport Association.

Cortez brought NASA and Mazda together originally to realize his vision for giving talented young kart racers a chance to rise on merit in the sport. Now as the Series Leader for TMC for NASA’s Northern California region, Caceres has added her own twist. She’s been a driver coach and personal trainer in karting and road racing for decades through her businesses Race Karts! Inc. and RaceFit.

Caceres has expanded the TMC’s mentorship role through lessons learned in a pro career in Pro Mazda, SCCA World Challenge, and both IMSA’s Camel GT and Firestone Firehawk series in the ‘80s,

Some drivers struggle with the transition from karts. The aggression has to be dialed back, and with significantly more weight, mistakes are harder to overcome.

And then along comes a young driver like Will D’Elia (pronounced duLEEah) of San Mateo who made the transition from karts to full-sized cars seamlessly. Not only has he been fast in just over two years of racing cars, he’s been consistent enough to win nine straight races overall in Spec Miata, often among fields of 30 or more cars. And what D’Elia has brought to both the cockpit and the paddock is a sense of professionalism that few 20-year-olds can muster.

That was put to the test last weekend during the NASA Championships at Utah Motorsports Campus near Tooele, Utah. D’Elia’s big points leads in both TMC and overall regionally meant nothing against the competition.

Caceres knew D’Elia was up for the challenge.

“Where there’s a Will, there’s a win,” said Caceres, a phrase she’s uttered many times about D’Elia. “Having trained and coached thousands in karting and hundreds in car racing, he’s just one of those drivers that stands out,”

The Teen Mazda Challenge is a separate series within the Spec Miata series, waged within the same race, so D’Elia had two national titles on his mind heading into Utah.

In practice he and his main TMC rival, Max Stallone, were rarely separated by more than a tenth of a second on the timing charts. Caceres offered subtle coaching on drafting techniques used, but mostly her role was more as mentor than coach.

With the stakes so high, Caceres brought a calming sense of normalcy in the paddock and pit lane. Her 2 1/2 seasons of working with D’Elia helped him get ready for a next-level challenge.

“It was more just being there for him, kind of in the background,” Caceres said. “Then talking with him after each session to see how things went and how he felt. And a lot of encouragement.

“One of the first things that I said when I got there was, ‘You know I’ve watched some of these guys you’re racing with, and I’ve seen them in cars with other drivers. And you have all the talent, you’re such a good driver so don’t forget that. You’re right there at the top of your game,’” Caceres said.

In Saturday’s qualifying race, D’Elia started the No. 14 SISU/D’Elia Construction Mazda Miata seventh in the 33-car field. And for most of the race, just a few feet ahead was Stallone. D’Elia bided his time. And on the final lap, he was able to put his drafting skills to the test at the end of the long front straight, nipping inside for sixth. That was crucial, because that move allowed D’Elia to start a row ahead of Stallone in the race for national TMC honors.

They were three and four wide entering Turn 1 on the opening lap of Sunday’s championship finale. D’Elia got a sniff of the lead but had to settle into the main pack.

“We had a pretty wild start,” D’Elia recalled. “I got a good bump and was able to be three-wide by Turn 1 with the leaders, on the outside. I came out of Turn 1 in fourth from sixth. I was stuck on the outside for the next five corners because they’re all left handers and I was on the right.”

As they had on Saturday, the two leaders locked together nose to tail for efficient drafting and slowly pulled away. D’Elia was in the second pack, running fifth for most of the race.

Overheating meant he couldn’t draft aggressively and challenge for position, but Stallone was in the next pack, a swarming speck in Will’s mirror until the checkered flag. D’Elia crossed the finish line in fifth place as he did just what he needed to to claim the TMC national title.

“I think he did very very well,” Caceres said, considering that it was an unfamiliar track so different than the NorCal tracks with no long straights. “He was clean all weekend, no contact.”

“It feels great” Will said about winning the championship. But he came to Utah aiming higher. “A top five wasn’t the goal when I got into the motorhome and started the 13-hour drive to Utah. I was kind of hoping to be on the podium overall.”

But the season isn’t over. There are still two more races left to clinch both his regional titles. And in November more accolades are available — and even a partially sponsored ride in a televised pro series, the IMSA MX-5 Cup.

Mazda has a separate competition to catapult amateur drivers one or even two steps up the ladder. In their annual MX-5 Cup Shootout each November, one driver will be chosen to bridge that gap immediately with a $110,000 scholarship to use towards fielding a car in the next season’s Mazda MX-5 Cup series. The runner up prize will be a $75,000 scholarship, and there’s also a $75,000 Women’s Initiative Scholarship.

The Shootout is an invitation-only event that isn’t just a series of races; it also is a test of each driver’s maturity and integrity on and off the track. If granted the invitation, D’Elia has to submit a video that includes a business plan for a long-term racing career, and how he and his team would attract additional funding to complete their MX-5 Cup season.

Caceres is confident that D’Elia has many of the important off-track qualities that Mazda is looking for in the Shootout alongside his driving prowess. She sees that the tools needed so desperately just happen naturally for D’Elia.

“There are so many little things; there’s the smile, there’s the upbeat and optimistic personality that he caries on and off the track,” Caceres says. “Even on a bad day he’ll keep that smile going where he doesn’t show his emotions if he’s upset.

“Those things are really important in racing,” Caceres says about D’Elia’s demeanor. “As I call it, it’s like a shark going after blood in the water. If you show the blood in the water, the shark is going to come get you.”

And that analogy has sunk in with D’Elia.

“Lisa is such a great asset to have at the track,” Will says. “She’s always on the kids about how important the off-track is. Because that’s the area where she can help best, I think. She does a phenomenal job at it and this is a prime example. This kind of thing wouldn’t be possible without her.”

D’Elia’s mental control when the chips are on the table could increase his odds for being chosen as a Shootout finalist.