|
 |
|
 |
| July 16, 2011 News |
| EKN Trackside: SKUSA Pro Tour Mothers® SummerNationals - Saturday Report |
| |
The first day of action went into the books for Superkarts! USA Pro Tour Mothers® SummerNationals. The Grand Junction Motor Speedway in Colorado was the back drop for what was another exciting day of racing in the eight categories on hand. The weather challenged the competitors all day long, beginning with cloudy skies early on before the weather cranked up throughout the day while the occasional gust of wind dusted the track surface and tested the tents throughout the paddock. While each category had its own hero of the day, NorCal’s Brett Felkins left the day extending his point lead in the TaG Senior Pro Tour standings with win number two of the season as SoCal’s Brad Dunford earned his first national victory in S1 Pro Stock Moto.
TaG Senior
The headline class for day one of action was the TaG Senior division as they began their day with an open pit 12-minute session for qualifying. British native and recent IndyCar Series signee Martin Plowman (Zanardi/Leopard) set the early mark in his first three laps, on the border to break the 53-second mark. Lap three was the best Plowman could do during his first stint, posting a 54.107-lap with 14-year old Dakota Dickerson (Arrow/Rotax) back by just 0.048-seconds on his fourth lap. They would all drop down the order when veteran Eric Jones (Arrow/Rotax) posted his fifth lap of the session, just three-thousandths of a second quicker than Plowman’s time. Late in the session, point leader Brett Felkins (Intrepid/Leopard) made a charge into the top three, just 15-thousandths off Jones’ mark. Jones rejoined the track with less than two minutes in the session after a carburetion change on his KartSport North American Rotax powerplant but pulled off before completing a timed lap. His best time stood through to the checkered flag with Plowman second, Felkins third and Dickerson fourth - all separated by just 51-thousandths of a second. Matt Johnson (Tony Kart/Vortex) finished off the fast-five, two-tenths off the best lap.
 | Brett Felkins extended his point lead in TaG Senior with victory on Saturday
(Photo: On Track Promotions - otp.ca) |
Clean through the opening corners to begin heat one, Jones held the top spot through the first lap with Felkins and Devin Lindsey (Tony Kart/Vortex) able to advance forward as Plowman and Dickerson dropped out of the top five with Johnson and Will Owen (Arrow/Rotax) also advancing. Jones and Felkins showed the way through the halfway mark with Jones holding the lead by half a second. Behind them, Lindsey and Johnson continued to lead the second group as Owen, Plowman and Dickerson jostled for position. Felkins, in his Leading Edge Motorsports entry, kept pace with the veteran lap after lap, turning his fast lap of the race on lap seven to cut the gap by one-tenth of a second. Even faster on lap eight, the gap was down to under three tenths of a second. With a great run down the back straight, Felkins moved around Jones for the lead in turn five. Taking the white flag, Felkins recorded his fourth straight fast lap of the race, pulling out by three-tenths over Jones for the final circuit. At the stripe, Felkins took the win over Jones with Johnson able to work by Lindsey for the third spot on the final lap with Plowman up to fifth over Dickerson, Mason Marotta (Tony Kart/Vortex) and Owen.
After a botched start to begin heat two, the field was regrouped for a second attempt at a start. Once the green flag waved, they were able to get through the first few corners clean. Felkins held the lead but Johnson took it over as they exited turn five. Jones was shuffled back to sixth. As they crossed the line for the first time, Johnson led Plowman with Marotta, Adrian Starrantino (Tony Kart/Vortex), Felkins, Jones and Lindsey. Plowman took over the lead with a deep move down into turn nine. Johnson held off Marotta, but Felkins broke that Tony Kart West duo up with a deep move into turn five as they worked lap three. Jones went through as well, getting by Marotta to move up to fourth. He and Felkins then worked together to work by Johnson on lap four as they were the two quickest drivers on the track. Plowman turned to look behind and saw Felkins and Jones closing in with Johnson and Marotta trailing. The fireworks increased more on lap six as Felkins worked around Plowman at turn five. As they exited the esses into turn nine, Plowman dove to the inside of Felkins while Jones made the same move on Plowman - making it three wide. At the exit, Jones went from third to first. Jones continued to show the way until two laps to go when he and Plowman exchanged the lead spot. This brought Felkins back into the mix and he brought Johnson with him, getting around Plowman before the final lap. Still charging, Felkins got a great run up the back straight, drafting by Jones for the lead at turn five. Jones returned the favor in turn nine, with Plowman making the same move on Johnson for third. At the checkered, Jones scored the heat win over Felkins with Plowman and Johnson third and fourth. Marotta ran fifth with Travis Lowe (Kosmic/Vortex) up to sixth after starting 21st with a heat one DNF.
The 20-lap main event closed out the day’s action with all the drivers introduced on the front straight grid one by one as the headline class for the day. Once the green flag waved, Jones kept his position at the point with Plowman, Felkins Johnson and Marotta slotting in behind. The battle began quickly as Johnson made the first advancement, up to third around Felkins. Jones and Plowman then swapped the lead on lap two at two different spots on the track - turn five and turn nine. Despite the shuffling, the top-five were able to pull away from the rest of the pack early. The group continued to shuffle through lap four and by the start of lap five, nine drivers were within striking distance out front. Halfway, Felkins, Plowman and Jones proved to be the top challenges and stepped up their pace despite shuffling positions. Behind them, a battle for fourth raged on with Lowe moving up to the position by lap 13. In the closing laps, Felkins continued to show the way, posting the fast lap of the race on lap 15. Plowman struck back while trailing, posting his own fast lap as the two pulled out a gap over Jones. On lap 18, Plowman was able to get a great run down the front straight, drafting around Felkins for the lead. On lap 19, Felkins came back with his own sling-shot move into turn five to retake the lead. Felkins stamped his name on the trophy with the best lap of the race, pulling out to a two-tenths advantage on the final circuit to score the second victory of the season and add to his point lead. Plowman crossed the line second, however, came across the scales just 1mm too wide on the rear width and was removed from the results. This put Jones on the second step of the podium and Lowe, who crossed in fourth, up to third. Johnson ended up fourth with Marotta fifth.
 | Brad Dunford celebrates his first S1 Pro Tour victory
(Photo: On Track Promotions - otp.ca) |
S1 Pro Stock Moto
The cream of the crop in terms of shifterkart racing made up the S1 field and it showed with veteran Tom Dyer (GP) playing chess with the field. After posting three laps, Dyer was into the pits with the provisional pole position. 17-year old Lukas Johnson (GP) stepped up to the challenge, jumping to the P1 position on his briefly before point leader Daniel Bray (GP) bettered his time. On his fourth circuit, the Kiwi driver posted a 51.952 to hold the pole position by 0.018-seconds over Johnson. Dyer fell to third, 0.091-seconds off Bray’s time with his Aluminos teammate Brad Dunford (GP) in third. Clinton Schoombee, moving from DR Kart to CRG for the weekend, capped off the fast-five.
Bray grabbed the holeshot to begin the opening heat race with Dyer into the second position. At the start of lap two, Johnson was back into fifth when contact was made between he and Nic LeDuc (Birel). Johnson retired while LeDuc continued on. Up front, Schoombee pressured Dyer as Bray continued to show the way. As they battled, the duo actually closed the gap on the leader but Bray picked it up in the final two laps to take the win over Dyer and Schoombee. Dunford was fourth with LeDuc fifth.
Bray and Dyer led the way in heat two for the S1 field with Schoombee, Dunford, and LeDuc making up the top-five early on. Johnson’s troubles continued as he pulled off on lap three with a mechanical issue. Bray and Dyer ran 1-2 until lap eight when they exchanged the lead through turn three. Dyer retried the pass on lap nine, but Bray held him off through the following corners. At the checkered, Bray took the win with Schoombee, Dunford and LeDuc completing the top-five.
The 20-lap main event was a wild one with Dyer kicking off the race with the holeshot from outside row one. Schoombee was great off the line, getting inside of Bray as they went through turn one. Bray came back in the following corners to retake the second spot. Dunford jumped at the chance, getting alongside Schoombee through the esses. The result put Schoombee back to fourth with Dunford up to third. Bray challenged Dyer early on but was not able to make anything stick. On lap five, Bray looked inside Dyer at turn 11, but Dyer closed the door. This brought in Dunford and Schoombee to the front group. By lap 10, Bray came under pressure from Dunford and ran a defensive line through into turn 10. As they hit the corner, Bray spun around and ended up getting high-sided at the apex of the corner. He lost valuable time and a podium finish as Dunford assumed second and Schoombee up to third. Trouble hit Dyer on lap 13 as the fuel line to the tank came disconnected, nearly killing his engine but handing the lead to Dunford and Schoombee up to second. Dyer continued on but would finish sixth. Through the final laps, Dunford and Schoombee ran nose to tail, but no change for position took place as Aluminos driver Dunford earned his first SKUSA Pro Tour win of his career. Select Shifter’s Schoombee settled for second, his first podium finish of the season with GP West’s Johnson recovering to finish third. Ryon Beachner (Tony Kart) ended up fourth with Don McGregor (GP) in fifth.
 | Cory Milne represented Colorado well, earning the win in S2
(Photo: On Track Promotions - otp.ca) |
S2 Semi-Pro Stock Moto
A number of drivers held off for the first half of the 12-minute session for the S2 category with Colorado’s Eli Ziegler (GP) and Brandon Scheiber (AMV) showing the way provisionally. On his second out lap, local driver Cory Milne (GP) moved to the provisional pole position with a 52.398 lap time with Grand Junction’s Sabre Cook (CRG) up to second, back by two-tenths. Utah’s Patrick Cushenberry (CRG) stepped up the game, posting his quick lap on lap two to dethrone Milne off the top spot with a 52.274-lap. Point leader Kyle Hathcox (GP) stepped up the pace as well, challenging Cush and able better his time to a 52.257. On the final lap, Hathcox bettered his time to a 52.256 to edge out Cushenberry by 0.018-seconds. Josh Lane (DR Kart) followed Hathcox on the session, posting the third quickest lap of the session. Milne fell to fourth overall with Arie Luyendyk Jr. (Zanardi) completing the fast-five. Lane however was penalized three positions for improper number plates, dropping him three positions to sixth and moving Cook up to the fifth starting spot for heat one.
Luyendyk Jr. was unable to leave the grid on time and thus lost his fifth spot on the grid to begin heat one. The field left the grid and was clean through the opening corners with Hathcox out front ahead of Cushenberry, Lane, and Milne. On the first circuit, Luyendyk was up to the 17th position from 28th on the grid. Completing lap two, Milne and Lane were able to work by Cushenberry for position as Hathcox held a half-second lead and Cook led a group of drivers battling for fifth. While a war raged on behind the leaders, Hathcox drove away to the win with Milne trailing. Lane held on to third with Cushenberry on his bumper in fourth. After the 10-lap battle concluded, Christian Schureman (GP) drove from ninth on the grid up to fifth while Luyendyk ended up 11th with a great drive from the back of the field.
Another tough break for another championship contender as Lane began with a broken clutch cable, and rolled to the start at the back of the field and kept himself in the race very smartly. As the lights went out for heat two, Hathcox grabbed the holeshot with Milne slotted into second with Clint Korte (Birel) up to third from seventh over Schureman and Evan Walters (Intrepid). Milne kept on the bumper of Hathcox throughout the 10-lap battle as they ran 1-2 to the checkered flag. Behind them, a great race for the third spot as Schureman escaped with the position over Cushenberry and Cook. Luyendyk was up to sixth by lap eight when he retired with a mechanical while Lane drove up to finish 12th after starting 28th.
The lights went out for the start of the 20-lap main event for S2 with Hathcox grabbing the holeshot while Cushenberry and Milne slotted in behind him. Cook jumped up to fourth with Lane making up massive amount of spots to fifth after the first lap. Milne was quick to put back Cushenberry to third and focus his attention to Hathcox. Lap four, Milne drove by Hathcox for the lead in turn nine to move Hathcox out of the top spot for the first time of the day. This allowed Cushenberry to close in somewhat, just a few lengths back in third as Lane worked by Cook for the fourth spot. Meanwhile, Luyendyk continued his charge forward, up to 13th by the sixth lap posting the fast laps of the race. At the halfway mark, Milne and Hathcox continued running 1-2 with Cushenberry still there. Cook and Freytag worked by Lane for position as Luyendyk was up to ninth and still charging. Thing remained unchanged at the five to go mark as the top five ran with two-seconds of each other with Luyendyk closing in on sixth and seventh. Lap 16, Freytag worked by Cook for fourth and at the same time, Luyendyk dropped off track, losing about four positions in the process. Hathcox continued to trail Milne lap after lap until lap 19 when he looked inside at turn one but Milne pinched him to the inside, gapping them by a couple of lengths. That was all he needed as Milne scored the big win with Hathcox completing a 1-2 for Aluminos. Cushenberry held off a late charge by Freytag to score the final podium position as Cook completed the top-five at her home track. Luyendyk recovered to put his Zanardi America entry to tenth after starting 28th.
 | Jimmy McNeil went unchallenged to his third S4 Pro Tour victory of the season
(Photo: On Track Promotions - otp.ca) |
S4 Master Stock Moto
The 22-kart field of S4 Master Stock Moto field all hit the track within the first three minutes with the top spot on the timing sheet shuffling around. Roy Montgomery (CRG) put himself in the hunt for the pole position until double SpringNationals winner Jimmy McNeil (CRG) dropped his second lap down to steal the provisional pole. Lance Lane (DR Kart) jumped to second on his out lap, moving Montgomery to third. McNeil went quicker on his third lap to put the advantage to four-tenths. Tucson podium finisher Nick Firestone (Zanardi) moved up to the second position in the order, besting Lane’s fast lap on his second circuit, running quicker the following lap to cut McNeil’s advantage to just under three-tenths. Late in the session, the eyes were on Robert Marks (CRG) as he found open space to put down his laps for the session. On his third circuit, Marks moved up to the fifth spot, dropping Phil Dunford (GP) out of the fast five. In the end, the positions remained unchanged with McNeil scoring the 10 bonus points for the pole position. Firestone would start from outside row one with Lane and Montgomery in row two with Marks and Dunford in row three for heat one.
McNeil grabbed the holeshot to begin heat one as Lane, Firestone and Montgomery battled for the second spot. After two laps, McNeil was out to a one-second lead. Making his SKUSA Pro Tour debut, Scott Rister (Tony Kart) made his way into the fight for the top-five up to fourth by lap three while Firestone was able to take away the second position. Marks and Dunford joined the fight, making it six karts in the fight. Firestone however was able to break away from them at lap five as Lane found himself hounded by Marks and the rest of the pack. As the laps clicked off, Marks worked his way into third and closed the gap on Firestone’s advantage in second place. On the final lap, Marks dove inside Firestone for the spot at turn 10. Out front, McNeil drove to the win by over four-seconds. Marks, Firestone, Montgomery and Lane completed the top-five.
McNeil and Marks went 1-2 through the first lap to start heat two as the rest of the top-five fell into place. McNeil continued his run at the front, taking the heat win by two-seconds. Firestone pressured Marks for the second spot until Marks drove away to secure the position. Montgomery ran alone in fourth while Rister crossed the line fifth but was penalized one position for an on-track incident, moving Lane up to the spot.
Three for three on the lights, McNeil led the field through the opening corner of the main event with Marks on his bumper with Firestone close. Lane and Montgomery continued to make up the top-five with Rister there to put the top six well out in front. By lap three however, McNeil was well out front with Marks and Firestone nose-to-tail. Montgomery broke away from Lane as he found his rear-view full of Tony Kart Texas duo of Rister and Coy Dayton. Things were static until the halfway mark when Montgomery went straight off in turn five after the long straight, which appeared to be an engine failure. That move Rister to fourth, Phil Dunford (GP) up to fifth and Lane sixth. For much of the second half of the race, Marks appeared to have the right setup on his CRG machine as he continued to cut into McNeil’s large lead. That was until two laps to go when McNeil posted the fast lap of the race and secured the victory and the 10 bonus points to the championship. Marks settled for second with Firestone adding another podium finish in third. Rister drove a solid fourth in his SKUSA Pro Tour debut with Lane able to work by Dunford for the fifth spot on the final lap.
 | The win in TaG Master for Brian McHattie was an emotional one, extending his point lead with his third straight
(Photo: On Track Promotions - otp.ca) |
TaG Master
David Harwin (Tony Kart/Motori 7) took the provisional pole position on the opening lap of the 12-minute qualifying session. Completing the second lap, championship leader Brian McHattie (Kosmic/Vortex) moved into the position with a 55.457. McHattie went faster on lap three, dropping below the 55-mark with a 54.981 lap, over four-tenths quicker than anyone else. Harwin tried to get quicker but was unable to close that gap, giving McHattie 10 bonus points for fast lap in qualifying with Harwin set to start outside row one. Colorado’s Scott Falcone (Arrow/Rotax) posted the third fastest lap of the session with NorCal’s Larry Fraser in P4. Reigning national champion Ethan Wilson (Tony Kart/Motori 7) capped off the fast-five.
Clean through the opening corner to begin lap one of the opening heat race, Falcone was racy up into second through the corner and then by McHattie through the middle corner. McHattie was quick to return, back into the lead before the completion of first lap. By lap four, McHattie was able to shake off the pressure to pull out a gap of eight-tenths as they battle for second. Fraser was the quickest of the pack, moving up to second around Falcone after a few laps of exchanging the position with Harwin in the mix as well. Completing lap six, Fraser broke away as Harwin put the pressure on Falcone for the third spot. McHattie drove in cruise control as Fraser cut into his lead in the final laps but wasn’t enough as the top championship contenders went 1-2. Harwin held on for third over Falcone with Jim Russell Jr. (Parolin/Leopard) up to fifth from 11th on the grid.
The outside line grabbed the advantage to start heat two with Fraser able to push McHattie back to third with Falcone also able to work by for position. By the end of lap two, McHattie was back into the second spot as Falcone came under fire by a host of others. Out front, Fraser’s lead was already one-second after three laps with McHattie clear to pursue. Harwin, Russell, Billy Cleavelin (CRG/Motori 7) and Chuck Gafrarar (Parolin/Leopard) all were able to pass Falcone by the halfway mark as they battled for position. Meanwhile, McHattie cut Fraser’s lead in half as Harwin posted the fast lap of the race to break away from the second group. With three to go, McHattie found the rear bumper of Fraser. Inside of turn five, McHattie retook the lead with Fraser striking back in turn nine. McHattie fought him off, but that allowed Harwin to close back in to make it a three-kart fight for the lead. Fraser and Harwin exchanged the second spot down and up the Grand Junction hill, allowing McHattie to drive off to the win. Fraser crossed the line ahead of Harwin with Cleavelin and Gafrarar in fourth and fifth.
The front of the field changed before the green flag waved for the main event as Falcone’s engine died on track with a carburetor issue, ending his race before it began. As the green flag waved to begin the feature, McHattie held the lead through the opening corners before Harwin worked by for the lead in turn 10. The top two drove away from the pack for third, led by Gafrarar after two laps of the 20-lap main event. The driver on the move was defending champ Wilson, as he was up to fifth by lap two. Completing lap three, Fraser and Wilson worked by Gafrarar for position as the wind picked up and put some dirt on the track in certain places, throwing in an extra challenge to the competitors. McHattie kept the pressure on Harwin, looking for a way by on lap five at turn three but Harwin shut the door on him. Behind them, Fraser broke away in the third spot and began his mission to run down the top-two. For fourth, a group of six karts shuffled around, looking for a way to move forward. At the halfway mark, McHattie and Harwin continued to push each other, running the fast laps of the race and exchanged the lead throughout the lap. Their battle however allowed Fraser to close in by 1.5-seconds on just one lap, now just 1.1-seconds behind them. McHattie struck back, posting the fast lap of the race on lap 11 to pull out to a three-tenths lead but Harwin closed back in to the rear bumper of the leader on lap 13. Within five laps to go, McHattie and Harwin continued to run static up front but behind them Brian Robson (Arrow/Rotax) was coming. Running fourth, Robson continued to cut into the leader’s advantage and close in on Fraser in third with fast laps of the race. Through the final lap, McHattie kept his DB Motorsports Kosmic out front, scoring an emotional third straight win who he dedicated to the recently past Joe Roronka. Harwin settled for second with Fraser completing the podium. Robson, who pushed for a podium finish, ended up fourth with the fast lap of the race while Wilson recovered from the DNF in heat two to round out the top-five.
 | Alex Tartaglia was awarded the win in S5 Junior
(Photo: On Track Promotions - otp.ca) |
S5 Junior Stock Moto
Colorado driver Ryan Rudolph (GP) used the home track knowledge to his advantage, posting the fast lap of the S5 Junior Stock Moto qualifying session. His 53.550 put him on the pole position for the opening heat race over fellow Colorado driver and point leader Austin Schimmel (GP). The gap was two-tenths between their best laps with Micah Hendricks (Intrepid) up to the third spot over Miguel Lopez (GP). Rounding out the fast-five was Alex Tartaglia (Intrepid).
As the lights went out to start heat one, Schimmel was slow off the line as the rest of the field pulled away. Rudolph, however, jumped the start from the pole position and was penalized three positions. Despite that, Tartaglia drove on to take the win over Rudolph. Schimmel recovered to cross the line third over Hendricks and Lopez. Rudolph’s penalty however placed him fifth in the final listing.
Tartaglia grabbed the holeshot from the pole position to begin heat two with the rest of the top four slotting in behind. The young crop of drivers put on a great eight-lap race with Tartaglia taking the checkered flag with Schimmel right on his bumper. Rudolph crossed in third with Hendricks fourth while Lopez finished fifth.
The second heat set up for another wild run for the feature with Tartaglia, Schimmel and Hendricks breaking away for the lead battle. Schimmel and Hendricks exchanged the throughout the course of the 16-lap main event. On the final lap, Tartaglia held the lead and ran a very defensive line through the final corners. Heading into turn 10 on the final lap, Tartaglia ran the inside line. As they entered the corner, Schimmel made contact with Tartaglia’s rear bumper. As the exited the corner, Schimmel came away with the position with Tartaglia able to hold back Hendricks for second. They would cross the line in that order but officials move Schimmel back two positions for the final lap incident and due to other warnings he was given during the run. That move Tartaglia to the top step of the podium with Hendricks into second and Schimmel back to third.
 | Jake Craig became the third different feature winner in TaG Junior and extended his point lead
(Photo: On Track Promotions - otp.ca) |
TaG Junior
Carter Williams (Tony Kart) began as the provisional pole position early in the session until point leader Jake Craig (CRG) took the spot on his third lap out. That was short-lived as Sonny Cervelli (Top Kart) bested his lap, dropping a 55.477 to hold the spot after his fourth circuit. SpringNationals winner Parker Thompson (Tony Kart) used Austin Dement (DR Kart) as a rabbit, moving to the provisional pole for a short time until Cervelli went quicker in back to back laps all by himself. At the end of the session, Cervelli’s late charge earned him the pole position with a 55.299-lap. Jim McKinney (Zanardi) worked with Thompson on track, bettering his best lap to end up second. Thompson dropped to third with Craig in fourth and Missouri’s Mason Daughters (FA Kart) rounding out the fast five.
The opening laps of heat one for TaG Junior set the tone for the weekend as the leaders went three wide a number of spots on the track. All racing clean with one another, Dement emerged as the leader at the halfway point with McKinney, Daughters, Thompson and Craig in the mix along with pole sitter Cervelli back to sixth. With two laps to go, Daughters took his turn at the point, dropping Dement to second as the top four broke away from Craig and Cervelli. Craig however closed back in on the final lap as Dement made contact with Daughters through the esses. As they exited the section, Dement held the lead with McKinney into the second position. Craig moved up to third with Cervelli and Jordan Redlin (Intrepid) into the top-five. Thompson and Daughters came out the losers after the contact, dropping to sixth and seventh.
The first few laps of heat two for TaG Junior saw lots of exchanging for position. After three laps, Dement was the driver on the move and up to the lead with Thompson on his bumper. Daughters and Craig were able to run them both down and the top four shuffled positions to the two laps to go signal. Thompson and Daughters ran 1-2 with Craig able to push Dement back to fourth. As Daughters pressured Thompson, Craig was able to close in on the top duo but nothing changed in the running order. Thompson took the win over Daughters with Craig and Dement in third and fourth. Cervelli, fell back after starting fourth but was able to work back up to the fifth spot after the eight-lap run.
After a few rough corners, the field worked around to complete the opening lap of the main event with Craig up to the lead over Thompson and Daughters. Craig and Thompson locked up and drove away from Daughters, who by lap six was caught and passed by Cervelli as Jesse Woodyard (Intrepid) ran fifth. At the halfway point, the front duo held the lead by three seconds over the Cervelli/Daughters pair in third and fourth. In the final few laps, Craig was able to gap Thompson and took the checkered flap by half a second for his first feature win of the season and established himself as the true point leader. Thompson came home second with Daughters scoring a solid podium finish in third. Cervelli ended up fourth with Woodyard in fifth.
 | Davey Manthei Jr. held on for the victory in TaG Cadet
(Photo: On Track Promotions - otp.ca) |
TaG Cadet
Colton Herta (BA1) left off from the SpringNationals by posting the fast lap in TaG Cadet qualifying, a 1:00.430 lap. Davey Manthei Jr. (Wild Kart) was second quickest, just four-tenths back from Herta. Noah Grey (FA Kart), Christian Brooks (Tony Kart) and Derek Scott Jr. (Birel) were all within 0.04-seconds of each other to complete the fast five.
Herta kept his position at the front of the field through the opening eight-lap heat race as the field spread themselves out across the 9/10-mile Grand Junction facility. Herta earned the win by over three seconds ahead of Manthei with Grey crossing the line third. However, after tech, Grey was removed from the results due to an engine-related issue. That moved Brooks up to third, Flinn Lazier (Tony Kart) to fourth and Scott in fifth.
For heat two, Herta went unchallenged to the win in heat two, pulling to a four-second win. Behind him, the race was for second with Manthei once again earning the runner-up spot, this time over Lazier with Scott and Brooks completing the top five.
Things changed just before the completion of lap one as Herta slowed coming out of turn nine, eventually pulling off to the side under no power. The culprit would be a broken throttle cable, ending his race and his chance at a third-straight feature win on the Pro Tour. This gave the opportunity for the rest of the field to earn their first win of the season. At the early stages, Lazier, Manthei, Scott and Brooks made up the lead back until the halfway point when Brooks fell off the tail of the group. This allowed a three kart battle for the win that began at lap 12. Scott jumped forward into the lead and that triggered a number of lead changes up to the final lap. Scott was back into the lead as they made their way up to turn five. Manthei looked inside but held back. Recovering his momentum, he dove inside at turn nine, completing the pass. Lazier then challenge Scott for second into turn 10, allowing Manthei some space before they hit the final few corners. At the checkered flag, Manthei scored the victory by four-tenths over Scott with Lazier making his second straight podium. Brooks ran to fourth with Camden Donaldson (Birel) improving throughout the day to end up fifth.
Wrap-up
Round three of the five-race SKUSA Pro Tour championship is done with one day and one round remaining in Grand Junction. Following tomorrow’s action, the contenders to be part of the ‘Circle of Champions’ program with SKUSA in 2012 will be narrowed down, setting up for what is to be another amazing Superkarts! USA SuperNationals to close out 2011. But first, drivers will spend Sunday putting it all on the line to record their best performances to close out the 2011 SKUSA Pro Tour Mothers® SummerNationals. Those unable to attend will be able to listen live to the audio play-by-play and view the SKUSA live timing feed through the EKN LIVE page: http://www.ekartingnews.com/live , beginning at 8:50am (MDT)/10:50am (EDT) with qualifying. |
|
|
Go Top
|
|
|
|
|
