DeLong Gets 2nd Mazda MX-5 Cup Victory at Road Atlanta

Parker DeLong recently won his second Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup series race, both at Road Atlanta, during the last two-race event of the season.  He started fifth and won a post-safety-car two-lap dash to the finish, passing and then holding off defending series champion Jeremy Fletcher by 0.164 seconds.

DeLong is a 17-year-old race car driver from Arizona whose quick progression from championship karting to professional sports car racing has made him stand out as one of motorsports' most promising professional prospects.  We identified him earlier this year as one of a few 'Young Guns' who practice, train, and occasionally race at the Podium Club.  

He knew when he was five he wanted to be a race car driver, building an impressive karting résumé that includes five IKF Grand National Championships and a vice-championship at the World Championships in Italy. By age 14, he had advanced to the Trans Am TA2 Series, competing in 500-plus-horsepower race cars against considerably more experienced drivers.

In 2024 he moved into the intensely competitive Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup series, driving the No. 42 Mazda for his family-operated, Glendale-based PDR Racing team. He also competes in the Toyota GR Cup North America series with TechSport Racing.

Parker is simultaneously developing as a professional driver while the family operation is developing into a multi-car professional racing team and a pathway for other young drivers.  2026 PDR has fielded MX-5 Cup cars for Parker (#42), Mazda Women's Initiative Scholarship recipient Charlotte Traynor (#43), and 14-year-old Jensen Mechelke (#41) — all 'young guns' from Arizona.

The Podium Club is proud to have Parker DeLong as a member who knows what he wants to do as a profession — and that’s competing, and winning, at the highest levels of racing.  We look forward to watching him achieve his goals, and doing all we can in support of this talented young driver.