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| June 14, 2008 News |
| EKN Trackside: WKA Manufacturer’s Cup Series Grand Nationals - Saturday Report |
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 | TJ Koyen started off the Merlin triumph with the HPV Lite victory
(Photo: Go Racing Magazine) |
After battling weather conditions and a late fuel truck, activities completed for day one of racing at round three WKA George Kugler/Bridgestone Manufacturer’s Cup Series Driven by Mazda for the Racersites.com Grand Nationals at the Badger Raceway in Dousman, WI. While the day began with clear skies, a late fuel truck delayed the beginning of on-track action with rain causing havoc during the main events. With all that, the WKA did an excellent job in getting all the events in on the day. On track, Merlin was the big winner on the day with four victories while driver-wise Chris Larson took home two wins, including a rain-soaked TaG feature win.
It was a clean sweep for TJ Koyen (Merlin) in the HPV Heavy division as he lead the 19 kart field all day, taking the first WKA Grand National Eagle of the event. After edging Ryan Stewart (Birel) by just 0.092-seconds in Streeter Super Stands Qualifying, he continued on to lead all 30 laps in the Prefinal and Finals with Stewart running second in both sessions. The win put Koyen into the provisional championship lead with Brandon Adkins (Birel) dropping out early in the main event. Lowe’s winner Travis Firing (Margay) was third with Wyatt Gooden (Margay) and Jesse Wirtz (Merlin).
An unusual green flag on the first try for the Cadet Jr. Sportsman division. A six kart lead group battled for the win with early contender Kyle Crump (Birel) retired on lap four after running second. Jeremy Remick (Margay) led the way before getting shuffled around. The end though would see Remick work his way back to the front and take the win just in front of Logan Bearden (Birel). Point leader Stephen Kalogiannis (Merlin) was third with Kilian Bloat (Junco), advancing from 12th to fourth, and Austin Self (Birel) completing the top five.
 | Two wins on the for Chris Larson as the only double winner in day one - both in the rain
(Photo: Go Racing Magazine) |
A red flag would stall the main events after karts were scattered over the Badger Raceway in the opening lap for the HPV Jr. Lite class. With everyone checked out and no injuries, the race was restarted with a four kart lead pack of Prefinal winner Tommy Andersen (Merlin), Zach Busch (Arrow), Cody Robinson (Arrow), and pole winner Jordon Bachmeyer (Merlin). Busch looked to be the challenger for the top spot however Andersen would put down a pace to pull away from the three drivers.
Bachmeyer got quicker as the laps wound down, getting by Robinson and Busch. Andersen would take the win and Bachmeyer would make it a Merlin 1-2. Busch, Robinson, and Sam Beasley would make it three Arrows on the podium. Hard chargers of the class would be Shinya Michimi (Merlin) and Alessandra Madrigal (Kosmic). Michimi came from 20th to ninth while Madrigal used the LCQ to get into the rest of the day’s action and finished 12th in the Final.
Jason Foley continued the Merlin train up front as he swept the Yamaha Heavy division. Stewart was again the chaser after placing second in qualifying and third in the Prefinal. Chuck Tate (Margay) was second in the Prefinal however retired early after throwing a chain. Foley pulled out to comfortable lead and Stewart was just not able to close any ground on him for the third Merlin win of the day. Point leader Corey Reeves (Margay) recovered from a DNF in the Prefinal to finish third with Josh Call (Margay) and Chris Larson (First Kart) completing the top-five.
With the rain closing in, the Yamaha Jr. Sportsman got underway. It was another 1-2 finish for Merlin with Kyle Kalish and Stephen Kalogiannis running all three on-track sessions that way. Kyle Crump (Birel) challenged the two but ran out of time as the rains fell on lap 14, making the race official. James Bennett (Birel) and Jeremy Remick (Margay) were fourth and fifth when the red and checkered flags waved.
 | Tommy Andersen grabbed an Eagle in HPV Jr. Heavy
(Photo: Go Racing Magazine) |
After the lightning rolled through, the TaG went on to the wet track for their main event. Brian Jacobsen (Haase) and Jamie Sieracki (Merlin) led the field to the green flag with everyone making it through the opening corners. Jacobsen assumed the lead with Travis Firing sliding into second ahead of Sieracki and Caleb Loniewski (Kosmic). Sieracki dropped back after spinning with a flat tire. While Jacobsen looked to be in a comfortable spot, Chris Larson (First Kart) was on the move from 10th. By lap seven, Larson had caught and passed the Prefinal winner.
Larson was in the groove and cruised to the win with Firing crossing the stripe second. The drive of the race was Chris Keller. Switching from his CRG to a Gillard before the race, the New Jersey pilot drove from 27th to 10th by the start of lap two. Running the fastest laps of the race, Keller put Jacobsen back to fourth in the closing laps. Scott Ferris (Margay) rounded out the top five.
Continuing to rain harder, the Yamaha Masters class was brought out for their main event with Missy Nelson-Tate (Margay) and Jeff Jewel (Haase) on the front row. Jewel used the outside line to his advantage and took the lead as they went around the opening corners. Unlike in the earlier sessions, Jewel was on rails in the wet and had the field covered by nearly half a second per lap. The lightning returned as the race passed the halfway point and the WKA officials were forced to stop the race early with Jewell taking the win to extend his point lead. John Dixon (Birel) was second with Steve Rumsey (Arrow), John Ferris (Margay) and Nelson-Tate crossing the line to complete the top-five. Rumsey however was removed in the results due to a can issue in tech, moving Dale Roller (Birel) into the top-five.
With time winding down for the track to run, the final two races were cut to 16 laps from 20 laps. The early leader was Prefinal winner Cody Robinson (Arrow) until Canadian Kevin Monteith (First Kart) - a well-rounded rain racer - came up from ninth starting position to take the lead. Monteith held the spot with Robinson within striking distance for the remainder of the race.
 | Canadian Kevin Monteith earned his first Man. Cup win in his first weekend with the series
(Photo: Go Racing Magazine) |
Following the field receiving the white flag at the start/finish line, a corner worker in the final corner mistakenly pointed the lead group into the pit lane while waving the yellow flag. The front half of the field followed the worker’s direction while others drove around to the finish line. After officials discussed the situation, it was ruled to go back to the previous completed lap as the finishing order. This kept Monteith at the point and awarded him his well-deserved win in his first WKA Manufacturer’s Cup appearance. Sam Beasley (Arrow) ran to third with Zach Busch (Arrow) and Shawn Sharkey (Merlin) rounding out the top five.
The final race of the day had the clouds clear up just enough for no rain and sunshine while the track still held a good amount of water. As he did in the TaG race, Chris Larson (First Kart) liked the wet dance floor. Starting fifth, it did not take him long to move to the front as he quickly assumed the point. From there, he drove out to a four-second victory in the 16-lap race over Mark Dismore Jr. (Arrow) - who started seventh - and Prefinal winner Tony Jump (Margay). CJ Lintner advanced from 11th to fourth with Jason Foley (Merlin) completing the top five.
For complete coverage, including the Official Discussion Thread and full results, visit the Official Event Page. |
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