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| eKartingNews.com Driver of the Month: 2012 |
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In a continued effort to highlight the many outstanding performances by drivers around the country, eKartingNews.com is proud to introduce the ‘Driver of the Month’ program. Each month, the staff at EKN will determine the one driver who stood out above the rest and give the viewers a chance to know exactly what they accomplished and who they are.
Driver of the Month - November 2012 - Sabre Cook
 | Sabre Cook - EKN Driver of the Month - November 2012
(Photo: On Track Promotions - otp.ca) |
A privilege working within the industry and providing the leading karting website in the world is the ability to look back at the beginning of the careers for so many drivers and watching them grow and mature as talented, well-respected individuals. The past decade has seen a number of them begin at the Cadet level and eventually reach the top level of our sport. Colorado driver Sabré Cook is among one of those, on the verge of competing at the top level of the Superkarts! USA Stock Moto ladder system thanks to her championship in the S2 Semi-Pro category this season, which she clinched by placing runner-up at this year’s SKUSA SuperNationals XVI.
Cook entered the SuperNationals, the final event of the 2012 SKUSA Pro Tour series, leading the championship by just a few points after factoring in the drop race. A few mechanical issues hampered her speed during practice, but by the time qualifying came, she was ready to battle. She set the fifth quickest lap of the timed session - a 45.149-second lap around the temporary circuit outside the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino. This placed her P5 in the three heat races to set the grid for the main event on SuperSunday.
She opened up the racing with a solid performance in heat one, quick out of the gate with one of her best starts of the season. She ran second the entire race and recorded the fast lap of the race. In heat two, Cook held her fifth spot until the closing laps when she relinquished the position. Another great start to begin heat three placed her third at he start and she was the quickest of the leaders, able to steal the second spot on the final lap. Her results placed her on the front row for the Main Event, starting from P2.
From the outside of row one, Cook laid down a great start once again to lead the 20-lap battle. Leading the first laps of the SuperNationals main event, she and the top qualifier broke away from the rest of the field. On lap six, she surrendered the lead and settled into the second spot right on the bumper of the new leader. They matched each other’s pace until the leader was able to pull out a small advantage over Cook in the final few laps. Cook kept her CRG-USA entry clean in the final laps to earn the runner-up position, her best result at the SuperNationals, clinching the SKUSA Pro Tour S2 championship. The title made her the first female driver to earn a SKUSA Pro Tour championship in its three year history.
Cook is looking forward to making the jump to S1 Pro Stock Moto category next year, as she continues her progression through the karting ranks. Off the track she earned her high school diploma this past Spring, carrying a 4.0 GPA, and is currently studying Mechanical Engineering at the Colorado School of Mines outside Denver.
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Driver of the Month - September 2012 - Connor Lund
 | | Connor Lund - EKN Driver of the Month - September 2012 |
Four-cycle racing has been a constant at the Rock Island Grand Prix since the race was first held back in 1994. Numbers have seen high points and low points as the years passed. but in recent editions of the GP, entries were falling to the point of concern. The emergence of the Clone engine program to the sport has provided new growth in the region and the Clone class was introduced at the Labor Day weekend street race in Illinois in 2010. The first year welcomed 20 drivers and, in 2012, both the Clone Lite and Heavy saw entries close on the 30-driver mark. This year was also highlighted by the introduction of the Briggs and Stratton LO206 engine to the event, hosting 24 drivers in the inaugural offering. One driver stood out last month, storming around the Rock Island streets, ahe he was Connor Lund, who scored two of the three 4-cycle category victories to earn the eKartingNews.com Driver of the Month honors for September.
Lund entered all three 4-cycle categories this year, and was heading into the weekend looking for redemption as victories in both Clone categories were taken away from him last year by a tech issue due to a slight infraction during engine inspection. Up first this time around was the LO206 category, where Lund was on rails in qualifying on the wet track. He was the only driver in the 44-second category, beating out the closest competitor by six tenths. Connor led from the pole position to the checkered flag in on a dry track, pulling out to a near five-second victory with a fast lap of 37.832 seconds.
The Clone Heavy category was his next target and once again stepped up to the plate. He proved to have the quickest rain set-up for qualifying, posting a 44.519-second lap to secure the pole position. The start of the feature race looked as if Lund may be in trouble, as he was shuffled back to fifth on the opening lap. Posting the fast laps of the race, he quickly made it into the top-four and was at the point by the completion of lap six. From there, he continued his torrid pace to stretch out to a three-second victory in the 15-lap main event, taking his second ROCK trophy of the weekend. It also gave him another $500 check for a victory, bringing his winnings to $1,000 for the event.
Lund completed the weekend with a third place in the Clone Medium category. A drying track put during qualifying put him seventh overall after he sat on the provisional pole following the running of the first group. The opening corner of the main event collected a number of drivers in a wreck, but Lund was able to avoid any real damage and continued on in eighth. He would post the fast laps of the race as he drove up to the third position, simply running out of time to earn the Clone sweep. With his result, however, he still secured the championship in the Rock Island Grand Prix Clone Challenge.
Lund’s season is all but over, although some indoor racing this winter, along with a 100-lap event in Norway, Illinois at the end of the month, will keep him sharp. His main concern is at school, where he is working to graduate next spring with a finance degree from Indiana University.
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Driver of the Month - August 2012 - Ashley Rogero
 | Ashley Rogero - EKN Driver of the Month - August 2012
(Photo: Go Racing Magazine) |
No matter what you do in life, the ‘never quit’ attitude will take you places. It helps you earn respect from your peers, as they know you will always give it your best no matter the situation or obstacles before you. Ashley Rogero demonstrates that type of attitude every day, especially when at the race track. The Florida driver spent most of the summer away from home, racing across the east coast with her family, including father and mechanic Jim Rogero. Rogero’s positive attitude and performances on the track help her earn the eKartingNews.com Driver of the Month title for August 2012.
Rogero’s big win came at the WKA Manufacturers Cup Series KartLift Nationals at the Concept Haulers Motor Speedway in Norway, Illinois. Rogero qualified seventh in the Komet Jr. Heavy category to kick off the weekend. Running in the top-five during the Prefinal, she was involved in an incident that dropped her outside the top-10. She worked her way to tenth in the final laps to start from outside row five in the 14-lap main event. A great start moved her to seventh in the opening lap and after gaining two positions the next two laps, she took advantage of the hard racing to move into the second position. Lap 11, Rogero moved into the lead and drove away to a two-second advantage when the checkered flag fell - putting in one of the best performances of the weekend. The next day in the Lite category, she advanced from fifth to third to earn her second podium finish of the weekend.
The next weekend at the United States Rotax Max Challenge Grand Nationals in South Bend, IN at the Michiana Raceway Park, Rogero was making her third start in the Junior category, looking for another ticket to the Grand Finals. She was top-10 in practice but rain hit before qualifying and she ended up 33rd overall. After a tough opening heat race, Rogero drove up to a fourth and sixth in her final heat races to secure a 19th place start in the Prefinal. An opening lap crash put her on the sidelines and sent her to 33rd on the main event starting grid. Rebounding back once again and benefitting from the conditions returning to back to dry weather. Cautious on the opening laps, she began making her way forward and reached the top-20 by lap seven. Pushing each lap, finding the right opportunities to gain another position, she managed to cross the line in the 14th position after 26 laps, and then moved up to the 11th spot after penalties, all while recording the fast laps of the race.
Rogero contested the WKA Manufacturers Cup Series Grand Nationals this past weekend at the New Castle Motorsports Park, earning a victory in the Yamaha category. Her win gives her the chance to test a F2000 Ralph Firman Car, presented by McLaughlin Motorsports. This weekend, she and her father are making the trip to Colorado for the Rotax Pan American Challenge Championship event, looking to secure a ticket to the Rotax Grand Finals in Junior Max.
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Driver of the Month - July 2012 - Carter Williams
 | Carter Williams - EKN Driver of the Month - July 2012
(Photo: On Track Promotions - otp.ca) |
From the west coast to the east coast, the United States has a large number of young drivers from the ages of 12-17, showing signs of what could be a great future for karting nation wide. It seems each month we are adding another driver to the list, and July was no different. California driver Carter Williams did just that as he scored a double win weekend in TaG Junior at the SKUSA Pro Tour SummerNationals, held at the Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele, Utah.
Saturday’s events began with Williams qualifying third out of 27. He drove to second in the opening heat race but was shuffled back to sixth in heat two, moving him to outside row three for the start of the main event. On the move early, Williams steadily drove his way toward the front of the field. By lap nine, Williams took over the lead and led the remaining seven laps to score his first SKUSA Pro Tour victory by a margin of 1.239 seconds.
The following day for round four of the Pro Tour series, Williams began in a worse position then the previous day. Williams could only muster a ninth position in the qualifying to start heat one from inside row five. Carter gained two positions in heat one, then moved up four in heat two with a third place finish. Just as he did on Saturday, Williams was quick early and took over the lead on lap two. Pacing the field lap after lap, Carter posted the fastest laps of the race, including his final circuit to secure the second victory of the weekend by 1.602 seconds.
The two wins propelled Williams up the championship standings to third, just 62 points out of first heading into the SKUSA SuperNationals XVI, the final Pro Tour event. Williams also ran double duty, competing in S5 Junior Stock Moto. Williams battled for a podium finish on Saturday until rains came and slowed his pace, finishing eighth. The next day, Williams was in the hunt on Sunday, driving to a runner-up finish to score his third podium of the weekend. Like TaG Junior, Carter is third in the championship standings, trailing the leader by 97 points.
Williams had a solid month of June as well. In the same week, Carter raced at two events and scored four feature wins. Williams began the week at the IKF 2-Cycle Sprint Grand Nationals in Fresno, California. There he earned the coveted Duffy trophy with two victories, two Screaming Eagles for pole positions, and a runner up finish in the three classes he competed in. That Saturday, he traveled to the fourth round of the California ProKart Challenge at the Buttonwillow Raceway Park, where he earned two feature wins once more, this time in TaG Junior and S5 Junior Stock Moto.
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Driver of the Month - June 2012 - Adam Myers
 | | Adam Myers - EKN Driver of the Month - June 2012 |
Earning multiple victories at one event is always looked upon as a great accomplishment. Secure four wins in a two day span is something that just does not happen very often. The time spent behind the wheel for the ‘ironman’ road racers can match that of the professional road racers in Grand-Am and ALMS series. New York driver Adam Myers piloted his sprint-enduro and laydown machines for roughly three hours in five different races, earning four WKA Grand National Eagles in the process. His efforts have helped him earn the eKartingNews.com Driver of the Month for June.
The event was the World Karting Association National Road Racing Series Grand Nationals at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Mansfield, Ohio - hosted by the Dart Kart Club. The weekend began in the WKA Sprint 1 class for Myers. As the defending champion, Adam started on the pole position and would never look back against one of the largest fields for the class to this year (16 drivers). Running a fast lap of 1:43.484, Myers outpaced the field by nearly 1 to 2 seconds a lap. At the checkered flag, Myers scored the win after 30 minutes by 37 seconds. After scaling his kart, he jumped into the laydown kart for the large Yamaha Medium class in a 45 minute race behind the wheel. Running in the top-five for much of the race, his kart fell off pace in the second half and he fell to finish sixth. Just an hour later, he was back on track for the 100cc Pipe Heavy class. Similar to the sprint race earlier, Myers drove nearly three seconds a lap quicker than his closest competitor. He would nearly lap the entire field for his second WKA Eagle of the day.
The following day began very similar to the events of Saturday. First on the docket was the WKA Sprint 2 final. In a shortened 20-minute race, Myers drove unchallenged to victory by 14 seconds with a 1:44.630-second fast lap. Adam earned his fourth WKA Eagle of the weekend in the shortened 100cc Pipe Medium class. Myers is the championship leader in the each of the classes - 100cc Pipe Medium, 100cc Pipe Heavy, and WKA Sprint. He has won seven of the eight races in the laydown machine while posting victories in the last five straight for the sprint-enduro ride.
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Driver of the Month - May 2012 - Mason Chelootz
 | Mason Chelootz - EKN Driver of the Month - May 2012
(Photo: Sean Buur - Go Racing Magazine) |
Each season brings about some new faces at the front of the fields in the Senior categories. With a wealth of young talent in the Junior ranks, the new faces will continue to emerge year after year. For 2012, that new face is Mason Chelootz. A front-runner in Cadet and Junior ranks, Mason is now into his second season at the Senior level and the 16-year old has shined in the last few months. His performance at the third stop of the WKA Manufacturers Cup Series at the newly-named Pittsburgh International Race Complex gained four victories and the title of May 2012 eKartingNews.com Driver of the Month.
The big wins of his four victories came in the TaG division. On Saturday, Chelootz swept the day in the 29-kart field. Mason laid down a monster lap in qualifying, posting a 55.264-second lap to secure the position by over a half-second. He backed that up with a 1.2-second win in the eight-lap heat race, leading wire-to-wire. The 13-lap final saw Chelootz unchallenged for a 2.7-second margin of victory and posting the fast lap of the race. Sunday saw the competition catch up as Chelootz was second after the qualifying session. During the second lap of the Prefinal, Mason was shuffled back to seventh in the order. He drove back to fifth after the eight-lap run. A great start put the Top Kart driver into the top three and after some battling, into the lead by lap six. From there, he drove off to the victory by six-tenths for a second TaG win of the weekend.
Mason was dominant in the Komet categories as well on the weekend, earning victory in the Lite and Heavy divisions. In the Heavy category on Saturday, he swept the action, driving to a near seven-second victory. On Sunday in the Lite division, Chelootz was second through qualifying and the Prefinal. A great start to the main saw Mason take the lead and able to hold it through the 13-lap event for his fourth win of the weekend.
The wins in the TaG category helped move Mason to the top of the EKN TaG Driver Rankings for the first time in his career. Six of his seven races come from the WKA series with an average finish of 1.67 thanks to three wins, two runner-up finishes, and a third for events at New Castle last year coupled with Kershaw and his results from PIRC. He currently sits second in both TaG 1 and TaG 2 standings behind defending champion Robert Bujdoso while leading both Komet Lite and Komet Heavy championship chase.
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Driver of the Month - April 2012 - Phil DeLaO
 | Phil DeLaO - EKN Driver of the Month - April 2012
(Photo: On Track Promotions - otp.ca) |
The 2012 season thus far has been a stellar run for Arizona driver Phil DeLaO. The 19-year old has returned back to the sport full time after a limited schedule last season that included some racing in Europe. Returning with Top Kart USA, DeLaO was a front-runner in the Gatorz Challenge of the Americas, earning the Senior Max championship and a spot on the Team USA squad for the Rotax Grand Finals in Portugal come November. Moving to the SKUSA Pro Tour last month, Phil put in a dominant performance in his series debut to sweep the weekend against a field of 43 drivers, earning him the title of eKartingNews.com Driver of the Month for April 2012.
The 2012 Superkarts! USA Pro Tour kicked off with the MG Tires SpringNationals at the PKRA Formula K Raceway in Phoenix, Arizona. While the circuit was DeLaO’s home track, he still had to compete against a strong TaG Senior field that included many returning stars from 2011, led by the top three in championship chase a year ago. Phil began Round #1 with a statement, qualifying on the pole position with a 45.011-second lap that was over three-tenths quicker than the next fastest time. He then went wire-to-wire in the heat races, with wins by four seconds and two seconds. The 20-lap main event was uneventful for DeLaO, posting consistent fast laps of the race to score his first Pro Tour feature victory by over eight seconds.
The following day for Round #2 began with Phil posting an even quicker time in qualifying for the pole position, a 44.723-second lap. As the only driver into the 44-second bracket, he earned the P1 grid position by just under three-tenths. The opening heat race matched Saturday’s, winning by over two seconds. The second 10-lap run saw DeLaO get his first challenge. Edged out for the lead through the opening corners, Phil fell to the third position by lap three. Quick to return the favor, DeLaO retook the positions he lost to gain the lead once again, driving away to a one-second win. With a better start in the main event, the Top Kart driver drove away to victory number two of the weekend by a 2.3-second margin.
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Driver of the Month - March 2012 - Brandon Jarsocrak
 | Brandon Jarsocrak - EKN Driver of the Month - March 2012
(Photo: Sean Buur - Go Racing Magazine) |
The Junior categories in the World Karting Association Manufacturers Cup Series has helped to groom some of the top karters in recent years. Sam Beasley and Nick Neri come to mind, as both battled for wins and championships a few years ago. Beasley is now a two-time runner-up at the Rotax Grand Nationals and ranked as the top TaG driver by eKartingNews.com. Neri is the defending Rotax Grand Nationals champion and SKUSA SuperNationals S2 Semi-Pro Stock Moto winner. There are now a solid handful of drivers from last year and stepping up this year that could carry on the torch as karting’s next rising stars. Joining the list after his performance at round two of the series is Brandon Jarsocrak - the March 2012 eKartingNews.com Driver of the Month.
Jarsocrak won both main events in the Yamaha Junior categories at the WKA Manufacturers Cup Series Zoom Zoom Nationals at Carolina Motorsports Park in Kershaw, SC on the March 23-25 weekend. Piloting his Mike Doty Karting Haase, powered by a Woltjer Racing Engines Yamaha, Jarsocrak bagged his first two wins of the season as he starts his second season in the Junior ranks.
The first win came in the Yamaha Jr. Lite division. Qualifying third, Brandon was in a heated battle for the Prefinal win, coming across the line in the second spot to start the Final in the off-pole position. Starting outside Triple Crown winner from 2011 - Joel Jens - Jarsocrak held his own through the opening lap. Skylar Robinson joined the fight, sliding through for the second spot and pressuring Jens for the top spot. Jarsocrak waited for the right opportunity, first getting around Jens for second and then Robinson for the lead on lap nine. From there, he drove away from both to score the victory by four-tenths.
Victory number two was in Yamaha Jr. Heavy on Sunday. Jarsocrak qualified fourth in the class to sit row to for the Prefinal start. Jumping up to second in the opening lap, it was another hard-fought eight laps where he placed fourth. Dropping to sixth on the first lap of the 13-lap Final, Brandon moved his way forward from the tail of the lead group. The last lap was a scramble for the victory. Jarsocrak started the circuit in fourth and came to the checkered flag first by a half-second. He completed the weekend with an eighth in Komet Jr. Heavy and a fourth in Komet Jr. Lite.
Heading into the series third round of six - scheduled for May 4-6 at the renamed Pittsburgh International Race Complex (formerly known as BeaveRun) in Wampum, PA. - Brandon is leading the Yamaha Jr. Lite championship by 45 points and sits second in Yamaha Jr. Heavy by just 10 points. His plans for 2012 will take him through the Manufacturers Cup Series, fighting it out for championships with some possible Rotax races on tab to make the Rotax Grand Nationals and possibly compete at the SKUSA SuperNationals XVI.
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Driver of the Month - February 2012 - Luke Selliken
 | Luke Selliken - EKN Driver of the Month - February 2012
(Photo: Sean Buur - Go Racing Magazine) |
Those drivers who have made their way up the professional motorsport ranks got their start in karting. While progressing up the ladder is not something every driver will be able to achieve, they all begin their journey with that special win or weekend that gets their name in the limelight. In recent years, the names continue to grow with a number of gifted young pilots rising up in the sport. The newest member to that list is Oregon’s Luke Selliken, the double winner in the Junior Max category at the Challenge of the Americas event in Phoenix, is the eKartingNews.com February 2012 Driver of the Month.
The Formula K Raceway - home of the Phoenix Kart Racing Association - was the site of rounds three and four of the international Rotax Max Challenge program with a trip to the Rotax Grand Finals on the line for the series champion. Going into the weekend fourth in the championship chase, a mistake-free weekend was on the menu to solidify Selliken as a championship contender. Practicing within the top-five during the official test day, Selliken stepped up to the plate as he put his Rolison Performance Group Kosmic on the pole position to kick-start round three, edging out championship leader Parker Thompson by just 0.063 seconds. Selliken - working with karting veteran Mike Rolison and mechanic Joey Wimsett - led the way early in the Pre-Main before Thompson and Zacharie Scalzo worked by to put him third, where he finished the 17-lap race. The 25-lap Main Event was a great battle involving five drivers early with Selliken in the mix. As they reached the halfway point, Selliken began his drive forward. Luke would take over the lead on lap 17, driving away from there to score the first big win of his career.
The following day was round four with Selliken back near the top, this time placing second in the qualifying session that saw the top three separated by less than three hundredths. Selliken ran second the entire 17-lap Pre-Main but was penalized 10 seconds for start infraction, dropping him to seventh on the grid for the Main Event. Putting the penalty behind him, Selliken was quick on cold tires as he moved to fourth by the completion of the first lap. Into third by lap four, he began running down the top two drivers. Once around Scalzo for second on lap 10, he set his sites on Thompson. What was sure to be a great finish with Selliken closing in on Thompson, the chain broke off Parker’s driveline as he completed lap 16 and he coasted off track. That handed Selliken the lead with Scalzo chasing. Exchanging fast laps to the end, Selliken established a large enough lead that he went on to score his second victory of the weekend.
Luke now leads the Junior Max standings by just 16 points over Scalzo as the series wraps up on March 30-April 1 at CalSpeed Karting facility in Fontana, California. Selliken is focused on Rotax Max Challenge competition with plans to finish off the Gatorz COTA, compete at the Rotax Grand Nationals and Rotax Pan American Challenge in addition to local United States RMC events.
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Driver of the Month - January 2012 - Brent Harper
 | Brent Harper - EKN Driver of the Month - January 2012
(Photo: Sean Buur - Go Racing Magazine) |
After winning a national championship, one of the hardest things to do is defend that very same crown the following year. History has shown that repeating as a champion in any sport is a difficult task, and motorsports is no different…unless you are Jimmy Johnson. For Brent Harper, 2012 will be a year of defense as he is out to prove that his Rotax Grand Nationals championship was no gift, rather rightly deserved. Thus far, he’s proven to be just as quick with a double win weekend to open up the Gatorz Challenge of the Americas program, earning him the honor of eKartingNews.com January 2012 Driver of the Month.
The weekend began for the CMC/Swiss Hutless/Engine Services driver pitting along with veteran Don Holmboe, the same combination that won him the national crown last July. Making his Gatorz COTA debut after previous starts at the Florida Winter Tour program, Harper fit right in and was near the top of the practice time charts. Qualifying for Saturday’s opening round saw Harper place second behind series frontrunner Paul Bonilla, only to see his time removed for an improper carburetor part. Sent to the back of the 13-kart field for the 17-lap Prefinal, Harper advanced his way forward into the second position by lap 12, unable to cut into the gap Bonilla had established through the checkered flag. Now on the front row, Harper was within reach early until navigating the opening corner. With not much grip on the outside, Harper fell back to fourth. Once settled in, Harper reassumed the second spot and set his sights on Bonilla. Taking the lead over on lap 13, the two ran near identical laps with Harper able to manage an eight-tenth gap for the victory.
Sunday began very similar to Saturday with Bonilla once again getting the better of Harper on fresh Mojo tires. Bonilla took the top spot in qualifying, but this time by only 0.042 seconds, showing just how close their lap times were throughout the weekend. Stuck out in the dirty side of the starting grid, Harper would lose a spot once again at the start of the Prefinal. Keeping pace with Bonilla, Harper worked around Curtis Ruth for second and took over the lead on lap five. Bonilla kept the pressure on, sizing up Harper for any weakness. Harper would be too strong, driving to the win and securing the inside row one position for the main event. Bonilla, one of the toughest competitors in the Masters category, never quit. Muscling by at the start of the feature, he once again showed Harper is bumper. Harper was quick to retake the lead and Scott Falcone joined the party to make it a three-kart battle. As the laps clicked off, Harper continued a consistent pace the other two was unable to keep lap after lap, emphasized by recording the fast lap of the race on his 21st circuit. At the checkered flag, Harper scored his second win of the weekend by nearly three-seconds to secure the championship lead in the series.
Harper will finish out the Gatorz COTA in hopes of scoring the championship. Come August, Brent will defend his title at the 2012 Rotax Grand Nationals, this year at the Michiana Raceway Park in South Bend, Indiana. Before then, he’ll contest events at his new local tracks in Lubbock and Dallas, along with competing in the Southeast Karting Challenge while also looking at competing at the SKUSA SuperNationals again.
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