The Toyota Gazoo Racing Vios Cup 2022 season has finally come to an end. And this writer commends all the racers, particularly the podium finishers of their respective race categories. Speaking of race category, yours truly was also one of the eager participants of the of the Autocross Challenge Sporting Media category. I — too — have my own fair share of exciting motorsports stories to divulge to you, readers.

First things first, this season has been my third season of joining the Autocross Challenge. Mind you, this is totally different from what I've been used to, which are karts and circuits. I kid you not. The struggle — truly — is real. Like any struggle, it took me three years to finally land a podium spot in this prestigious affair. And it was not for the faint of heart. For leg 1 of this year, to be honest, I performed poorly since I came unprepared for the battle out there on the race track. However, come Leg 2, which was a month apart from the previous one, I had ample time to prepare. And so, I did my homework, doing research and all. In fact, I even enrolled for an autocross practice staged by one of our respected veterans in the industry. So, when D-Day arrived, it did not disappoint. My hard work paid off. I landed third on the podium — finally.

Okay. So, after landing a third place finish last Leg 2, I pledged to do even better on my next races. I actually even mentioned this on my column: "From wall to the podium" last 28 August 2022, saying the words: "I couldn't wait to even place better the next time around."

To cut the story short, I did on the last and final leg of this prestigious racing affair. I placed second. Well, I was actually gunning for the top spot. But, I guess, I'm not ready for that yet.