Jim Rauck Wins Unlimited with Record-Breaking Civic
The pointy end of GRIDLIFE’s Unlimited class is all about pushing the limits of what’s possible, and Jim Rauck’s Honda Civic was the best example in 2025. Rauck won the title with 95 points over Ernestas Puzelis in a Corvette and Andrius Bertulis in his Lexus RCF.
Rauck’s season began at Carolina Motorsports Park in April, where he finished second to Puzelis in the Podium Sprint, but earned the front-wheel drive Unlimited record, scoring 22 points. His best time was just six tenths behind Puzelis as Rauck developed the car throughout the weekend, trying different kinds of street tires and slicks. He returned in June at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, finishing second again, but this time to Eric Fleming. Fleming reset the record and won the event by three seconds, and looked like he may be the biggest threat to the Unlimited championship despite a later start.
At Road America, Rauck only managed fifth, while Fleming and Mike Dusold battled for superiority. Fleming reset the track record, but suffered an engine failure later in the weekend, and Dusold went on to win Road America. However, just weeks later at Lime Rock Park, the tides turned, and Rauck earned his first win of the season. He reset the Unlimited FWD track record to a 51.873, an incredibly fast time, and won the event by nearly four seconds.
In September, at Autobahn Country Club, Rauck was up against a Lamborghini Huracan Super Trofeo racecar driven by Tadas Karlinskas, a competitor in the IMSA-sanctioned Lamborghini Super Trofeo series. Karlinskas led most of the weekend, and reset the track record, but it didn’t last long - as Rauck bested Karlinskas’s time of 1:21.726 with a 1:20.840, shocking spectators and broadcast viewers. He went on to win the Podium Sprint, earning him 26 points for the second time that season. That left him with the lead of the championship, heading into the season finale at Pitt Race.
At the final round of the season, Jim Rauck again reset a record, and set the fastest time of the weekend with a 1:40.118 early on Friday. While he didn’t go quicker and missed the Podium Sprint, he already had the championship locked up, earning himself the Unlimited Class championship in 2025.
