Podcast Summary: The Smoking Tire – "We Won a Race! ft. Tommy Kendall and Jonny Lieberman!"

Date: December 9, 2025
Hosts: Matt Farah, Zack Klapman
Guests: Tommy Kendall, Johnny Lieberman

Episode Overview

In this lively and detail-packed episode, Matt and Zack celebrate a victorious weekend at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) alongside racing icon Tommy Kendall and automotive journalist Jonny Lieberman. The group unpacks their recent class win at a World Racing League (WRL) endurance race in Texas, diving into everything from behind-the-scenes race strategies and driver data analysis, to personal driving revelations, teamwork, and some classic car rental shenanigans. The tone is energetic, self-deprecating, and filled with camaraderie, making this a can't-miss for fans of grassroots motorsport.

Key Themes & Discussion Points

1. Victory at COTA: The Race Breakdown

• Chronological Race Recap:
  • Practice & Qualifying
    • Team Open Throttle prepped several BMWs, with extra seat time for drivers to familiarize with the track.
    • Initial hiccup: Team forgot to fill the race car for qualifying. “We got off to a bad start because our team, Open Throttle, forgot to put gas in the car for qualifying.” (Johnny Lieberman, 05:15)
  • Saturday: Learning and Penalties
    • Saturday felt like a "practice race" for the group, with notable mistakes including fueling violations and track limit penalties.
    • “We got all our mistakes in on Saturday, for sure.” (Tommy Kendall, 03:16)
    • Notable penalty: Visor not down during refueling resulted in a lap penalty.
  • Data Analysis & Improvement
    • Tato (Matteo) served as data coach, overlaying lines and pedal traces to help everyone improve.
    • “I listened to the data… Your best lap and your best lap on both days was about the same, but your worst lap on Saturday was five seconds slower than your worst lap on Sunday.” (Johnny Lieberman, 04:05)
    • Revelations from data and Tato’s sim practice paid dividends.
  • Sunday: The Big Win
    • Strategy: The team skipped a driver change, opting for longer double stints to save critical time.
    • Tato started in P7, surged to P3 by turn 1, and set up the car for a successful multi-hour run.
    • Last-minute splash-and-go fuel stop led to a dramatic finish, winning the class by just 9 seconds.

2. Team Dynamics & Individual Performances

• Tato (“Matteo”):

  • Young racing phenom, coached the team using detailed sim and data analysis.
  • “When I told my wife I wasn’t the fastest in the car… she’s like, what?!” (Tommy Kendall, 08:03)
  • Noted for unique lines through the COTA S’s, which gave the car significant advantage.

• Matt Farah:

  • Notably improved between Saturday and Sunday.
  • Pulled a double stint on Sunday, holding onto P1/P2 under pressure.
  • Notable admission: “I dove into the pits behind the Cayman… it was a bonehead move.” (Matt Farah, 41:13) [Recounts mistaking a flag for an instruction to pit]

• Tommy Kendall:

  • Veteran driver called on for ‘closing’ during both race days.
  • Managed tire wear and navigated yellow flag strategy with expertise.
  • “For two days straight, all Tommy did was talk about yellow flag strategy.” (Johnny Lieberman, 45:16)
  • Returned to competitive racing after 11 years away.

• Jonny Lieberman:

  • Honest about being “slow” on Saturday, ultimately gave up his Sunday seat to Matt for the best chance at a win:
  • “You don’t get any more money for being the fastest journalist.” (Johnny Lieberman, 39:14)

• Open Throttle Racing Crew:

  • Praised for car prep and behind-the-scenes support (shout out to crew chief Zach—only 24 and called the winning strategy).
  • Emotional moment: “I’ve never seen more grown men crying, dude. He just called a winning race with Tommy Kendall driving.” (Johnny Lieberman, 49:42)

3. Technical Insights & Driving Lessons

• The Power of Data:

  • Tato’s sim work and post-race data sessions comparing throttle and brake traces led to major lap time improvements for the whole team.
  • Key lesson: “Whoever gets to full throttle first onto the straightaway is the fastest; NOT whoever gets on throttle first.” (Tommy Kendall, 61:27)
  • Throttle/brake overlap and patience at corner exit, not just “all on/all off”, proved fastest.

• Race Strategy & Endurance Tactics:

  • Maximizing stints to reduce pit stops, capitalizing on yellow flag timing, and risk management with penalties.
  • “The only way we were going to beat the screaming goat [the #1 rival car] was stretching fuel and picking the right strategy.” (Matt Farah, 43:45)

• Track Specifics:

  • COTA’s S’s and the unique lines/pedaling required (“I noticed that nobody else took this line, especially coming out of the S’s, hugging that road all the way to the left… that’s where I could go from 200 ft. behind a car to 50.” – Matt Farah, 32:27)
  • Restarts were wild due to the multi-class structure, with fast prototypes and slower cars all mixed up.

4. Personal & Memorable Moments

• Team Spirit and Unselfish Decisions

  • Jonny giving up his seat: “That’s a bro move right there. Straight up team player.” (Matt Farah, 49:33)

• Tommy’s Return to Victory

  • “The last time you won a race was September 11, 2004. Tato was born in March 2004.” (Johnny Lieberman, 52:17)
  • Emotional reconnection with grassroots racing and old friends: “The grassroots is your peeps, because you built it from… and that’s what this is all about.” (Tommy Kendall, 51:32)

• Crew Chief Zach’s Triumph

  • Overcome with emotion after the win, realizing he’d called the race for legends.

• Classic Rental Car Stories

  • Lengthy digression on racing and “abusing” rental cars over the years:
    • “We used to really race our rental cars.” (Johnny Lieberman, 103:39)
    • Dan Binks and the Cadillac woodpile incident (hilariously returned after jacking the floor back into place).

• Data Coaching Dynamics

  • Tato coaching Tommy Kendall, a racing veteran, on his driving technique, and Tommy’s openness to improvement:
    • “The minute you think you have nothing to learn….” (Tommy Kendall, 116:28)
  • Tato, at 21, not fully aware of the racing legends around him: “I called Hannah that night and I was like, it’s really weird… like, I don’t care how fast you are 21-year-old, I’m tempted to be like, take it.” (Matt Farah, 115:22)

5. Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments (w/Timestamps)

• On Race Improvement:
  • “There were some lessons, some hard lessons learned over wine and data.” – Matt Farah (04:21)
• On Their Rivals:
  • “The car to beat in our class is an E46 M3 with an LS motor… ran two to three seconds a lap faster than [us].” – Matt Farah (34:34)
• Tommy’s Return:
  • “I haven’t been in a competitive race since… 11 years.” – Tommy Kendall (19:44)
• On Data and Coaching:
  • “It was wild for me to watch. [Tato] instantly starts in with: ‘Alright Tommy, so what we’re doing here in this turn is this…’” – Johnny Lieberman (53:50)
• On the Tato Line:
  • “I passed him on that Tato line… that’s where I took it back.” – Johnny Lieberman (71:45)
• On Endurance Racing:
  • “So many opportunities to screw up… It’s refreshing. I was having to think harder than I have in a long, long time.” – Tommy Kendall (19:13)
• On Teamwork:
  • “I knew if we wanted to win, I had to let Matt keep the car. That’s Racecraft.” – Johnny Lieberman (74:36)
• On the Feeling of Victory:
  • “That emotion, though… everyone that has raced knows how hard it is… you have way more bad days than you have good days.” – Tommy Kendall (50:32)

6. Listener Q&A & Fun Sidetracks

• Technical and Car Review Questions
  • Debates on best used SUVs, special editions, value of “notchy” BMW shifters, modern electric car torque democratization, and more.
  • “Whoever gets to full throttle the first onto the straightaways is the fastest — getting on throttle first is the enemy sometimes of getting to full throttle.” – Tommy Kendall (61:27)
• Movie Cars & Nostalgia
  • What movie cars would the crew build for fun/profit? (Tumbler, Ronin S8, Amphibious Esprit).
• Rental Car AI Horror
  • Hilarious/ridiculous experience with new AI-powered rental car inspection scanners at airports.
  • “You drive through and a little AI damage scanner… ring of fire.” – Matt Farah (103:03)

Timestamps for Important Segments

| Segment | Timestamp | |-----------------------------------------|:---------------:| | Introductions & Context | 01:16 | | Saturday Race and Penalties | 13:01 – 19:13 | | Sunday Race Strategy & Execution | 34:08 – 49:03 | | Technical Driving Lessons & Data | 59:04 – 63:17 | | Emotional Victory Moments | 49:32 – 52:02 | | Listener Q&A / Misc. Automotive Topics | 75:32 – 102:46 | | Rental Car & “Old School” Racing Tales | 103:03 – 108:32 | | Final Reflections | 109:12 – End |

Summary & Vibe

The episode’s energy is relaxed yet electric, truly reflecting the post-race high. There’s a strong sense of earned satisfaction—humility in learning, pride in teamwork, and a deep joy in grassroots, analog racing. The crew is refreshingly honest about their mistakes, their learning curves (even for legends like Kendall), and the shared sense of accomplishment. For motorsport fans and track day dreamers, it’s a revealing peek inside the magic, drama, and grit of amateur endurance racing.