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| August 08, 2010 News |
| EKN Trackside: WKA Manufacturer’s Cup Series Show Hauler Truck Nationals - Sunday Report |
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 | Cody Robinson swept the Yamaha SuperCan action on the weekend, scoring the Heavy victory on Sunday
(Photo: Go Racing Magazine) |
The final day of action completed at the New Castle Motorsports Park for the WKA Manufacturer’s Cup Series Show Hauler Truck Nationals. Three straight days of awesome weather provided the backdrop for nearly 500 entries in 19 categories. Great racing took place throughout the weekend with no series injuries and the WKA and NCMP staff getting all the action done in a timely manner. The big winner at the end of the weekend was Arrow as they walked away with eight wins total for the event, moving themselves closer to the top of the Manufacturers Championship Trophy standings. Sam Beasley was a big part, winning the two Junior classes on Sunday to bring his total to three for the weekend while Arrow teammates Cody Robinson and Eric Jones each left with two.
Yamaha SuperCan Heavy
The qualifying session for the Yamaha SuperCan Heavy category was a duplicate of Saturday’s main event order at the front as the BTK Motorsports drivers of Cody Robinson and Eric Jones put their Arrow machines to the top of the standings. Robinson’s 1:11.640 was best in the session with Jones just one-tenth off his pace. Championship leader Ryan Stewart put his MKP/Birel entry to third in the order with local driver Eric Ginder (Arrow) putting in a good showing in qualifying to end up fourth in the 30 kart field. Derek Eustis made it four Arrow karts in the fast-five. Title contender Tony Jump (Margay) could only make one lap as a flat tire and broken clutch kept him from making the entire session, leaving him at the back of the field.
The top two of Robinson and Jones were locked together like glue through the eight-lap Prefinal. The duo stretched out to a five-second margin with Robinson leading all eight laps. Stewart ran alone in third until the penultimate lap when he made a slight error, allowing the group fight for fourth to catch him. Coming to the final corner, both Jason Foley (Merlin) and Dakota Pesek (Arrow) drafted by for position, pushing Stewart back to fifth at the line ahead of Adam Crepin (Merlin). Ginder fell to seventh in the order while Eustis was ninth. Jump drove forward to end up 12th while Jamie Sieracki - driving for injured driver Colton Ramsey - piloted his Mark Coats Racing/Merlin to 15th from the tail of the grid.
 | Kyle Tilley celebrates his first Man. Cup win at New Castle, taking the checkered in Cadet Sportsman
(Photo: Go Racing Magazine) |
Robinson and Jones led the way to begin the final with the field getting through the opening laps clean. The top two had some space on third through fifth until they hooked up and ran them down early on. Coming to the halfway mark, Stewart was running third and on the bumper of Jones while Pesek and Foley fell off the pace. Completing the seventh lap, Stewart had worked his way by to Jones to break up the Arrow duo. Lap 12, Jones made his move back to the second spot, getting around Stewart in turn four and giving Robinson some space out front - four-tenths at the line receiving the two-to-go signal. The space was all Robinson needed to score the victory - his second of the weekend - with Jones able to hold off Stewart who completed a good points day. Pesek held off Foley to complete the podium while Jump ran to sixth over Crepin.
Cadet Sportsman
The second day of action for the Cadet Sportsman group saw local driver Kyle Tilley (Arrow) secure the top in qualifying. His 1:15.093 lap time was best of the session as Californian Zane Smith (Top Kart) sat second, four-tenths off Tilley’s time. Austin Osborne (Birel) was third with Matt Solarczyk (Birel) while championship leader Ashley Rogero (Tony Kart) completed the fast-five ahead of Saturday’s winner Gresham Wagner (Birel).
A pack of six drivers formed a lead pack in the eight-lap Prefinal for the Cadet category. After two failed attempts, the front row was pushed back and the second row led the field to the green. After the first few corners, Osborne came away with the lead as Tilley, Rogero, Smith, Wagner and Solarczyk shuffled for the lead. Completing lap six, Osborne and Tilley were able to break away while Rogero led the remaining four in a second pack behind the leaders. In the final two circuits, the second group was able to close back up to the leaders. Coming to the checkered, Osborne held the high line with Tilley going underneath. Rogero got a great run down the straight and tucked it under Tilley to make it three wide into the corner. As the exited the corner, Rogero came away with the lead and took the win while it was three-wide to decide second place. Osborne earned the spot with Tilley and Solarczyk third and fourth while Smith placed ahead of Wagner for fifth.
 | Robby Seward scored his first victory as a Senior driver with a win in TaG Heavy
(Photo: Go Racing Magazine) |
Rogero and Tilley were able to get to the front of the field to begin the 14-lap main event with Smith and Wagner joining them to make up a four kart lead group. The front four ran nose to tail until the final straight. Rogero went to the inside with Tilley going to the outside. Both got help with a push from behind with Tilley able to dive down to the inside before the corner. With a little bump from Rogero, Tilley was able to hold on to the stripe to score the victory - his first of the season. Wagner edged out Rogero for second by just one-thousandths of a second. Smith crossed the line fourth with Ryan Raffa (Top Kart), who put in a stellar drive from 14th to the podium.
TaG Heavy
Leading the way in qualifying for the TaG Heavy category was Robby Seward. The Indiana driver piloted his Tony Kart/Motori 7 package to a runner-up in Saturday’s TaG feature, posting the best time of 1:05.495 in Sunday’s timed session. Yesterday’s pole sitter Nic LeDuc (Energy/Sonik) was second with TaG winner Scott Ferris (Margay/Sonik) in third. Robert Bujdoso (PCR/Leopard) was fourth in the order with his Checkered Flag Motorsports teammate Kyle Knecht (PCR/Vortex) rounding out the fast five. The struggle continued for championship leader Jacob Sekey despite a complete change of the set up on his PCR/Sonik entry, he would end the session in eighth, hoping to race his way back into contention.
LeDuc and Seward were the quick drivers of the Prefinal. Seward was able to get the lead at the drop of the green until LeDuc took over on lap two. LeDuc pulled out to a good lead but Seward would be able to run him down to the final corner. LeDuc went low then high, allowing Seward to the inside. At the exit, Seward dropped a wheel off the track, allowing LeDuc to take the inside line to the checkered. LeDuc edged out for the win by 0.055-seconds. Bujdoso ended up third with Billy Lewis (Arrow/Leopard) recording the fast lap of the race in his fourth place effort while Knecht was back in fifth in front of Reid Jeffries (Gillard/Leopard).
 | Sam Beasley on his way to victory in Komet Jr. Lite
(Photo: Go Racing Magazine) |
At the drop of the green, LeDuc was able hold the pole position to begin the main event. Seward fell back to second and was pressured by Bujdoso and Lewis with the top four running away. Lap five, Seward was able to shake off the pressure and get around LeDuc for the lead. From there, Seward dropped the fast lap of the race to get away from LeDuc. He tried to come back with fast laps of his own but it would not be enough. In the end, Seward took his first WKA victory by 1.592-seconds. Bujdoso won the battle third with Lewis crossing the line fourth. Officials however moved Lewis behind Knecht in the results due to contact. This put Ferris - who came back from a stuck engine in the Prefinal - up to fourth while Knecht completed the podium.
Komet Jr. Lite
With a win yesterday, Sam Beasley is looking to gain ground in the championship chase in both Komet divisions. Today in the Lite category Beasley began the day taking the Streeter Super Stands pole award with a fast lap of 1:07.537. Jacob Donald put in an impressive time to put Arrows on the front row. Championship leader Nick Neri was third in his Ocala Gran Prix/Tony Kart entry. Shawn Sharkey (Merlin) put in his best qualifying run of the weekend thus far to sit fourth after the timed run, as did Garrett Johnston (Top Kart) to complete the fast-five.
Through the opening corners, Donald emerged to P1 for the first time on the weekend but Beasley went to the point before the completion of lap one. Johnston spun in turn two, falling to the tail of the field and out of contention early. By the halfway mark, Neri found himself up to the lead spot as he and Beasley left the fight for third behind them. In the end, Beasley held on for the win with Neri on his bumper. Austin Self in the MKP/Birel entry was able to break away in third until Sharkey and Joel Jens (Merlin) ran him down in the final lap. Sharkey got by for the spot and Jens did as well, but not before contact was made. Officials then moved Jens behind Self, swapping their finishing positions in fourth and fifth. Donald was shuffled back and eventually ended up placing 19th after a spin and off-track excursion.
 | A wild finish in Yamaha Sportsman Lite saw Mike McAndrews emerge as the victor
(Photo: Go Racing Magazine) |
The main event for Komet Jr. Lite was action packed with two packs of four showing the way. Neri led the early way until Sharkey drove his way to the point, leading until the halfway mark with Beasley and Jens in the mix. Beasley and Jens drafted by Sharkey for position to complete lap eight, with Sharkey losing another spot the next lap to Neri. Meanwhile, Dakota Bell (Margay), Raquel Martinez (Top Kart), Dominique VanWieringen (Arrow), and James Bennett (Birel) battling for the fifth and final spot of the podium. Things stayed static up front until the final straight. Beasley went to the inside with Jens going to the outside. Beasley beat Jens to the apex of the corner and was able to hold him off at the line for the victory. Jens crossed in second with Neri in third and Sharkey behind in fourth. Martinez won the fight for fifth over VanWieringen while Self climbed back to seventh after falling off with Bell and Bennett in back of him.
Yamaha Sportsman Lite
Looking for his first win of the season, Yamaha Sportsman Lite point leader Emerson Reed (Merlin) began his bid for the victory the right way, scoring the pole position in qualifying. A lap of 1:14.793 put him at the top of the order as the only driver under the 1:15-lap mark. Kyle Tilley (Arrow) stood as the provisional pole through the first group until Reed came out in the second run to better his time. Collin Campbell (Birel) was third in the order with Zane Smith (Top Kart) and Tristan VanWieringen (KRT) rounding out the fast-five.
The Prefinal for Yamaha Sportsman came down to a wild finish, similar in fashion to the Cadet category. Reed led the way with Tilley tucked in behind until the Arrow driver went wide on lap three into turn one, losing the lead draft and back outside the top-10. The top seven ran together with Brandon Jarsocrak (Haase), Ashley Rogero (Tony Kart) and Gresham Wagner (Birel) in the mix. Reed led until the final lap, final straight when he was drafted by VanWieringen with Rogero going to the outside of both. With another great drive down the straight, Rogero came away with the lead and took the win in spectacular fashion. Van Wieringen crossed the line second with Reed back to third over Jarsocrak, Wagner, and Campbell. Smith fell back to ninth behind Canadian Grant Quinlan (Birel) and Tilley, who drove his way up to eighth.
 | John Dixon earned his fourth victory of the season in TaG Masters
(Photo: Go Racing Magazine) |
Twelve karts made up the lead group as VanWieringen led the way while Rogero began to fall back lap by lap. Positions continued to change through to the halfway mark with Quinlan, Reed, Jarsocrak, and Tilley making up the top-five with seven others behind them. With four laps to go, Quinlan went to the point as Reed went to second the following lap. Coming to the white flag, the group scattered for position. On the exit of the last corner, Tilley came away with the lead with Campbell into second and Mike McAndrews (Margay) into third. On the white flag lap, McAndrews moved by Campbell for the second spot in turn 12. He then ran down Tilley heading to the I-70 corner. Coming to the final turn, Tilley held the inside line. In the final few feet of the braking zone, Tilley left just enough room on the inside to allow McAndrews a way by. At the line, McAndrews took the victory to complete a drive from 14th to first. Tilley ended up second with Jarsocrak, Quinlan and Smith completing the podium. Campbell was sixth with Courtney Innis (Tony Kart) in seventh, VanWieringen ended up in eighth with Wagner and Raffa completing the top-10.
TaG Masters-Rotax
With the number of competitors in the TaG Masters and Rotax categories, the two classes were put together on the track. TaG Masters point leader John Dixon (Tony Kart/Sonik) led the way, taking the pole position by nearly six-tenths of a second over John Ferris III (Margay/Leopard). Michael Busse (Arrow/Leopard) and Brian McEvoy (Merlin/Leopard) made up the top four with Jackson Mears (Birel) claimed the top spot in Rotax to complete the fast-five.
Dixon ran away with the win in the Prefinal while Ferris challenged early, the margin ended up to be 1.5-seconds after eight laps. Busse drove strong to third while Mack McCormack (Arrow/Motori 7) improved on his tough qualifying run to end up fourth over McEvoy. The two Rotax drivers started well behind the TaG Masters field with Mears running away to the win over Robbie Little (Merlin).
From the drop of the green, Dixon was quick to get away. Leading all 14 laps, Dixon took his fourth victory of the season to all but lock up the title. The battle for runner-up continues with Ferris moving up in the standings with his second place performance. The battle for third ended with Daniel Stempfley (Gold/Sonik) edging out McEvoy for the position while McCormack rounded out the podium. Mears led the way the entire day in Rotax, scoring the victory over Little.
Komet Lite
Riding off the win yesterday, Eric Jones continued to be a factor in the Komet category. The BTK Motorsports/Arrow team manager posted the fast lap of the session with a 1:07.349, half a second quicker than the next driver. Shinya Michimi (Merlin) was second with championship leader Patrick Olsen (Birel) in third. Ryan Stewart (Birel) was fourth with TJ Koyen (Merlin) rounding out the fast-five.
 | Eric Jones was untouchable in Komet Lite
(Photo: Go Racing Magazine) |
Jones was able to shake off Michimi to break away from the drop of the green. Michimi came under pressure early and spun in the far section of the track, retiring before completing a lap. Olsen moved up to the second position while the rest of the field began the fight for third. Jones was the quickest kart on track by far, running to a nearly three-second victory over Olsen. Tony Jump (Margay) held the third spot after Stewart was meatball flagged off the track for a loose exhaust. He would however fall to a Merlin trio, including Koyen, Jason Foley and Jamie Sieracki - subbing for Colton Ramsey. Koyen held the spot coming to the final corner, running the inside while Sieracki took to the outside. At the line, Sieracki earned the position with Koyen and Foley right behind as Jump ended up sixth.
The field got through the opening corners in the main event clean with Jones getting out front ahead of Olsen while Sieracki, Foley and Koyen slotted in behind. Jones ran quick laps early on to extend his lead to 1.5-seconds by the halfway point while Olsen fell under pressure from Foley and Sieracki while Stewart was up to fifth after starting shotgun on the field. Lap 10, contact was made while Foley slid by Olsen for second and the two spun off at the exit of turn 12. They would fall to the tail of the field while Sieracki and Stewart assume the second and third positions. Sieracki was able to get away in the second spot as Koyen and Stewart battled for third. The two made contact in the turn 14 and then again in turn 2, sending Koyen off the track and back on in the sixth position. Meanwhile, Jones sped away to a six-second victory for his second of the weekend while Sieracki scored second place points for Ramsey. Cody Robinson (Arrow) was able to slide by Stewart for third with Jump up to fourth. Stewart however was moved behind Koyen in the final tally, moving Jump to fourth and Koyen completing the podium.
Parilla Leopard
Making his second start of the season, Sean Meier (Kosmic) snuck in to steal the pole position in Parilla Leopard. On his final circuit, Meier posted a 1:05.317 to sneak under the lap set by Michael Politis (Merlin), edging him out by 0.087-seconds. Point leader Tommy Andersen (Merlin) was third to put him and Politis, who entered the event 1-2 in the standings, within close proximity of each other. TJ Koyen (Merlin) was fourth in the session with local driver Mark Boos (Top Kart) completing the fast-five.
 | Tommy Andersen scored win number two of the season in Parilla Leopard to retain the championship chase
(Photo: Go Racing Magazine) |
The field fell into order as they shuffled around to begin the Prefinal. Meier led the way until turn 14 when Politis took over the spot. Koyen, Billy Lewis (Arrow) and Andersen made up the lead pack as they broke away from the rest of the field. On lap three, Meier was able to get back to the point while Lewis followed through as well, going from fourth to second in only a couple corners. Coming to the checkered, Lewis made the move and got around Meier for the win. Andersen slid by Koyen for third while Politis fell back to fifth.
Meier got the jump on Lewis as the green flag waved to take the lead right away. Lewis got wide on the exit of turn two and lost a number of spots, falling to eighth with Koyen, Andersen, Politis and Andrew Hobbs (Merlin) made up the early top-five. Andersen made his first move completing lap four with a great late-brake maneuver inside of Meier, completing the pass to lead the end of lap four. Koyen would take second from Meier shortly thereafter in the first section of lap five. Down the long pond straight, both Koyen and Meier were able to draft by Andersen for position. Coming to the halfway mark, Meier and Andersen complete the same pass, showing the three drivers were not primed to sit back and wait for the final stages of the race. Meanwhile, Politis ran in fourth, running similar laps to the leaders about two-seconds back with Hobbs alone in fifth, three-seconds off him.
Yamaha Jr. Heavy
Looking to extend his point lead after the day, Nick Neri (Tony Kart) led the way in the qualifying session with a 1:10.408 lap time. Chase Jones (Birel) was just under two-tenths back to end the session second in a solid qualifying effort, as did the Merlin drivers of Joel Jens and Kyle Kalish. Sam Beasley (Arrow) ended the session in fifth while championship contenders Austin Self (Birel) and Shawn Sharkey (Merlin) were 13th and 19th.
 | Win number three for Sam Beasley on the weekend came in Yamaha Jr. Heavy
(Photo: Go Racing Magazine) |
Jones got the jump from the outside of row one as Neri was slow to start off the eight-lap Prefinal. Neri fell to third briefly behind Jens but was back to second before they reached the mid-point of the first lap. Neri would then get a run by Jones into turn 14, assuming the point before the completion of lap one. Beasley was up to third with a similar move by Jens. Up from P6, Jared Thomas (Arrow) was up to fourth by lap three with Jones dropping a wheel, allowing Kalish by as well. The complexion of the race changed as Neri spun on the exit of turn two, and fell to the tail end of the field. This moved Jens and Kalish up to second and third while Dakota Bell (Margay) was up to fourth from eighth with Jones to fifth. The race would be red flagged after lap five for an incident involving Nicky DeFronzo (Arrow). The order would stay that way as a completed race, heading into the final.
The field took the green flag with Beasley getting out front while Jens was shuffled back to fifth. Kalish moved up to second with Thomas up to third. The top four ran together for most of the race until Jens moved up to second. He then hooked up with Beasley and they broke away from Kalish and Thomas. Beasley led the way until coming to the white flag when Jens took the lead. Beasley struck back as they entered turn four, snagging the top spot back. From there, Beasley held off Jens to the stripe to score his third victory of the weekend. Kalish held off Thomas for third while Sharkey drove his way up to fifth for his only podium of the weekend to edge out a host of driver, including Raquel Martinez (Top Kart), Self, Neri - who drove to a stellar eighth after starting 38th to salvage some points toward the championship - Dominique VanWieringen (Arrow) and Jones.
With their eight wins on the weekend, including five from Sunday, Arrow closed the gap to just two points in the Manufacturers Championship Trophy standings with Birel holding at the top after one win (23 vs. 21). Tony Kart has positioned themselves firmly in the third spot with two more wins on Sunday, bringing their total to 14. Merlin and Margay each took one win on Sunday to bring their totals to seven. The chase for the prized trophy and the 18 class championships will be decided at the final round next month as the series will make its first trip to the New Jersey Motorsports Park F1 New Jersey facility in Millville, NJ on September 17-19. |
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