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| December 12, 2011 News |
| NASCAR’s Tony Stewart Triumphs at Indy Karting Classic |
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A new venue to promote the sport of karting was created this past weekend with the inaugural running of the Indy Karting Classic, held inside the Conseco Fieldhouse on in Indianapolis, IN. Positioned a day after the International Motorsports Industry Show (IMIS) that wrapped up in the downtown area, the one-day karting event was organized by industry veterans Bill McLaughlin and Shannon Parks in an effort to promote the sport by bringing karting to the general public. To highlight the event, which ran in front of roughly 3,000 spectators, a Pro category was featured which included IZOD IndyCar Series and NASCAR drivers running alongside five regular karting divisions.
The Pro category was the fan favorite and it was why the seats were filled around the Conseco floor. In a NASCAR versus IndyCar battle, 11 drivers took to the track to see who would come out victorious. Following some practice time, the Pros took part in a qualifying session where IndyCar’s Ryan Hunter-Reay (Haase) posted a 9.865-second lap to secure the quickest time of the session. NASCAR’s AJ Allmendinger (Arrow), competing in both the Pro and regular TaG class, ended up second. IndyCar’s Tomas Scheckter (Haase) had the least amount of time in the kart before he posted the third quickest lap over Jay Howard (Arrow). Ty and Austin Dillon from NASCAR put their Merlin karts fifth and sixth. Newly signed IndyCar Series driver Josef Newgarden (Top Kart) was seventh ahead of Alex Tagliani (Birel), John Andretti (Birel), and Tony Stewart (Birel). Ed Carpenter (Birel) was unable to get his engine fired for the session and was not able to post a time.
RHR got a great jump on the field and led early in the 16-lap heat race. The field behind him bunched up with Austin Dillon emerging as the lead challenger. He was hooked up like a dirt oval racer around the course and ran down Hunter-Reay in short order. Once around RHR, Dillon drove away to a solid five-second victory. Allmendinger was third, while Scheckter and Newgarden were one lap down in fourth and fifth.
 | Alex Tagliani, Tony Stewart and John Andretti filled out the Pro podium for the Indy Karting Classic
(Photo: Eric Schwarzkopf - ImageWorks) |
The Pro drivers capped off the event with their 30-lap main, which saw Dillon shoot out to the lead from the pole position with Hunter-Reay giving chase in second. Behind them, a gaggle of karts battled for the third position with Stewart and Andretti emerging toward the front of the group thanks to some added work on their tires. Once Stewart took over third, he hammered down to catch Hunter-Reay, enjoying great forward bite exiting the corners. Once around him, Stewart’s next task was to close on Dillon. He got help from Austin’s brother Ty as the two Dillon brothers made contact in turn four. This allowed Stewart to close right on the back of Austin, only to make contact with the outside barriers while trying to shoot around for the lead. Once he continued, Stewart drove some of the fastest laps of the race to close back down on Dillon. Leaving room as they entered turn one, Stewart took the opportunity on Dillon and didn’t look back. After taking the lead, Stewart drove off to score the victory. Tagliani and Andretti followed suit, advancing up to second and third. Newgarden finished fourth, while Dillon dropped back to fifth. All in all, the Pros put on a great show for the fans, kicking off what will very likely become an important annual event for the sport each winter.
Five regular classes took part in the Indy Karting Classic, alongside the Pro drivers, to fill out the day’s activities. The TaG class was as competitive as it was unpredictable. Some confusion in qualifying put John Keefe (Birel) as the top driver over Texan Austin Self (Arrow). The heat races, however, shuffled up the line-up with Allmendinger winning the first moto over Colton Aldridge (Arrow) and Kevin Martz (Top Kart). Ron Peterson (Arrow) scored the win in heat two to start on the outside of row one for the main event, while Brian McHattie (Kosmic) and Trey Shannon (Birel) lined up behind him. The wildcard nature of the night continued during the 20-lap main event, which was all Jamie Sieracki (Merlin). The Franklin Motorsports owner found the right setup for the feature and benefitted when a number of the contenders were involved in crashes, driving from row five to the front during the opening laps. Sieracki was a rocket out of the corners and knifed through the field to take the win, nearly lapping his competition. Mike Richey (GP) took second ahead of Martz, Peterson and Aldridge.
In similar fashion to the dominance shown by Sieracki, the Yamaha Senior class was all Brian Krunnel (Haase). From qualifying to the feature, Krunnel was the fastest driver on the track. Posting an 11.151-second lap in qualifying to secure the top spot, Krunnel won the opening heat race by lapping the entire field. He then went on to win the feature by 3.974 seconds over Cale Wyse (Merlin), Scott Kopp (Tony Kart), Morgan Fisher (Birel) and outside pole starter Steve Schiewer (Birel).
 | NASCAR's Tony Stewart takes the checkered flag for the Indy Karting Classic victory
(Photo: Eric Schwarzkopf - ImageWorks) |
In Yamaha Junior, Chase Jones (Birel) came from the back to the front with a stellar drive in the 20-lap feature. Posting fast lap in qualifying, Jones suffered a tough break in his heat race to start from row 8 in the main. From there, Jones ran times close to his qualifying lap to advance forward, expertly avoiding all the wrecks that littered the track in front of him. Heat two winner Camden Speth (Birel) was the leader for much of the race until he made contact with a barrier to end his run. Jones would go on to score the win by 11 seconds over Jared Thomas (Kosmic), Trent Walko (Kosmic), Collin Campbell (Birel) and Olivia Horn (Tony Kart).
The Yamaha Sportsman category put on another great show, as they do at tracks throughout the country. Kaleb Allison (Merlin) emerged with the victory when the checker was shown to end the 20-lap main event. Michael Paterno (Margay) led the way in qualifying with a 12.458-second lap, but in the heat races, it was Camden Donaldson (Birel) and Kaden Harter (Top Kart) who showed the way to start the feature from the front row. Both were in the mix for the main event win, that is, until Allison came charging through the field. Allison went on to score the victory by 14 seconds over Harter with Paterno in third, Jack Miller (Birel) in fourth and Braden Eves (PCR) in fifth.
Makala Marks was the Kid Kart A Main winner, as she outran Mason Maine and Harrison Hall for the win. In the B Main, Aden Gray took the victory over Austin Kendig and Ayden Gough.
With the first-ever Indy Karting Classic now in the books, a lot of feedback has been streaming in through numerous channels. The sponsors of the event have confirmed their appreciation and support for the event for years to come, which is a great sign. The Pro drivers, while all smiles before and after the event, really showed that no matter the stakes, they want to win, Yes, they wanted to put on a great show for the fans that bought tickets to see one, but when it comes down to the racing, victory means the same any time they strap on a their helmets. The karting drivers in the regular classes, from TaG to Kid Kart, did a great job presenting the sport despite having to endure a challenging and uncharacteristic track. Just as is the case with any first-time event, the organizer have been busy assembling a list of items that need to be changed, fixed or added to the event, and this plan for improvement will only serve to offer up loads of potential for the upcoming Indy Karting Classic events in the future.
Be sure to visit http://www.facebook.com/ekartingnews for videos and photos from the Indy Karting Classic |
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