Tight battle highlights Trans Am's Western Championship swing through Laguna Seca.

While Will Rodgers had a lonely afternoon in front of the pack in the XGT class, Greg Tolson and Brody Goble staged a relentless chase in TA2 as the Trans Am Western Championship visited WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca on Sunday, May 7.

Rodgers was unchallenged on his way to the overall and XGT race win in his Chris Evans Race Cars Chevrolet Camaro. He benefited when Erich Joiner was forced to pit for a tire change under caution and fell back in the pack. However, Joiner picked his way through the field with a series of lightning laps in his GoodBoyBob Coffee Roasters Porsche, closing to within 3.6 seconds at the finish.

“I was managing the gap,” Rodgers says of his second consecutive win in the series. “When he put down a good lap time we were able to match it.”

Behind the XGT and TA2 fray, J.C. Meynet led from start to finish in his Killer Shrimp Corvette to take the GT class crown.

The TA2 duel between Tolson and Goble provided the closest action—and it went on through the entire 45 laps.

Goble started on the pole in his Brown Bros. Ford Mustang and edged in front of Tolson GT Auto Lounge Mustang. But Tolson stuck his car inside of Goble in the Corkscrew and took the lead by lap three.

From that point on, the no. 69 stalked the 70, the cars running nose to tail.

“Man, Brody was on me the whole time,” Tolson says. “I was just keeping my eyes ahead, hitting my marks.”

As the two cars sped through Turn 5 for the final time, Tolson’s Mustang sputtered momentarily.

“I thought ‘no way,’” he exclaims, his voice rising and eyes growing wide.

He held on, taking the checkered flag a few 10ths ahead of Goble for his second win in the last three races.

Racing resumes at Laguna Seca this weekend as the first major series arrives at the track. The multi-class IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship plays out May 12-14.