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| Features |
| eKartingNews.com Driver Rankings – May 14, 2012 – TaG |
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It had been some time since the top position in both the Stock Moto and TaG eKartingNews.com Driver Rankings saw a change at the same time. This month shows just how exciting the 2012 season has been so far with the addition of two new drivers in the EKN no.1 fraternity. The TaG category has been hotly contested since being introduced to the Driver Rankings program. Texas driver Mason Chelootz becomes the newest driver to reach the no.1 spot as he hurdles former number one Sam Beasley and others.
Since the start of 2011, Beasley (Arrow) has been at the top of the EKN Driver Rankings, improving his score each and every month. Beasley has been out of the seat since the Daytona KartWeek event, so his score had held on to the number one spot, until now. At the same time that Beasley began his reign at the top, Chelootz made his introduction to the standings, recording his first seven events in the early part of 2011 to debut at 44th. Since then, he’s steadily improved his position until reaching no.1 this month.
In the last five months, the Top Kart driver has added some stellar results to post the top score from events over the past 12 months. His last five results that counted toward the Driver Rankings have him scoring a minimum of 1021 points (third in TaG 1 at Kershaw). Despite Beasley’s absence over the past few months, his total dropped just 12 points, further emphasizing Chelootz's performance in 2012 thus far.
Remaining second is defending WKA champion Robert Bujdoso (PCR). Trying to overtake Beasley all season in 2011, he’s improved his score (increased by 73 points) enough to jump over Sam, only to have Chelootz top him in the same month. New to the top-five is another Top Kart driver - Phil DeLaO. The April EKN Driver of the Month clinched the Gatorz Challenge of the Americas title and capped that off with a dominating sweep in 40+kart field of the SKUSA SpringNationals. If another performance like that is on the horizon for DeLaO at the SummerNationals in July, we could see a new #1 in the August edition of the Driver Rankings. Just 67 points separate the top-four, so anything is possible over the next few months.
Tied for fifth this month is fellow Florida drivers Daniel Formal and Nick Neri. Formal (Intrepid) ended the 2010 season as the no.1 driver in the standings, but has yet to capture similar results since. Neri (Tony Kart) moves up two positions this month, still holding the Rotax Grand National title to his credit. Both also share another accomplishment on their CVs this year, making their KZ2 debuts in Europe this winter - Neri with Tony Kart factory and Formal with Ward Racing aboard a Tony Kart. Down to seventh this month is Cali driver Kiel Spaulding (FA Kart). With just seven races to his credit, Spaulding has the best average for total results in the standings. Rounding out the top-10 is Louie Pagano, Chris Wehrheim and Matt Johnson. Pagano (Birel) lost his SKUSA SpringNationals results from last year, factoring into his drop of four spots this month. Wehrheim moves up the order coming off a solid run at the WKA Manufacturers Cup Series event in Pittsburgh, putting three Top Kart drivers in the top-10. Johnson (Energy) drops three spots despite just losing 11 points from last month’s total. Another up-and-down weekend at the SpringNationals kept him from moving up further in the standings.
Dropping out of the top-10 this month is Florida driver Jesus Rios Jr. (Birel) and Arie Ouimet (CRG). Neither raced over the past 30-some days with Rios falling just to 11th from ninth while Ouimet lost results, dropping him to 20th from 10th.
TaG
TaG Driver Rankings Top-10
| Pos. | Apr. 13 | Plus/Minus | Driver | Races | Score| 1. | 5 | 4 | Mason Chelootz | 23 | 7281 | | 2. | 2 | NC | Robert Bujdoso | 17 | 7267 | | 3. | 1 | -2 | Sam Beasley | 13 | 7256 | | 4. | 66 | 62 | Phil DeLaO | 8 | 7214 | | 5. | 3 | -2 | Daniel Formal | 16 | 7147 | | 6. | 8 | 2 | Nick Neri | 14 | 7147 | | 7. | 6 | -1 | Kiel Spaulding | 7 | 7141 | | 8. | 4 | -4 | Louie Pagano | 16 | 7092 | | 9. | 13 | 4 | Chris Wehrheim | 13 | 7084 | | 10. | 7 | -3 | Matt Johnson | 11 | 7055 | |
For the full TaG Driver Rankings, Click Here
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NEW TaG #1 - Mason Chelootz
Spring, Texas
 | Mason Chelootz
(Photo: Sean Buur - Go Racing Magazine) |
A new bar has been set in the TaG Driver Rankings, and that driver is Mason Chelootz. The Texan earned his first big win at the end of last year, scoring the victory at New Castle for the WKA Manufacturers Cup Series finale. Kicking off the 2012 season with a big win at the Florida Winter Tour Rotax event, the Team Top Kart driver has added four top-three finishes. His most recent event for WKA at Pittsburgh saw Mason record two big wins to put him near the top of the championship chase. While his point total seems unbeatable, there is no room for slacking this season in the top spot with a number of drivers gunning for him.
Point Breakdown
| Race | Rank | Finish | Points| WKA Man. Cup Series ’11 - New Castle - TaG 1 | 9 | 2 | 1027 | | WKA Man. Cup Series ’11 - New Castle - TaG 2 | 9 | 1 | 1045 | | Florida Winter Tour ’12 Rotax #1 | 9 | 1 | 1053 | | WKA Man. Cup Series ’12 - Kershaw - TaG 1 | 9 | 3 | 1021 | | WKA Man. Cup Series ’12 - Kershaw - TaG 2 | 9 | 2 | 1045 | | WKA Man. Cup Series ’12 - PIRC - TaG 1 | 9 | 1 | 1041 | | WKA Man. Cup Series ’12 - PIRC - TaG 2 | 9 | 1 | 1049 | |
Inside the Stats
Average Finish: 1.57
Average Points: 1040.1
Total Points: 7281
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TaG ‘ON THE MOVE’ - Robby Seward - #32
Middletown, Indiana
 | Robby Seward
(Photo: Sean Buur - Go Racing Magazine) |
This month’s TaG ‘On the Move’ could be the #1 driver a year from now, similar to Chelootz. Robby Seward is contesting his rookie season in the Senior categories after some solid year’s in the Junior ranks. No stranger to big racing, Seward has been the co-driver with Jason Knueven at the RoboPong 200 the past three seasons, placing inside the top-10 all three years with a best finish of third in 2010. Another great puzzle to Seward’s story is the chassis he’s piloting in 2012 for the Ultimate Karts USA. The American manufacturer has Seward on their UF1 R30, with Robby earning his first WKA podium in Pittsburgh last weekend.
Point Breakdown
| Race | Rank | Finish | Points| WKA Man. Cup Series ’12 - Daytona - TaG 2 | 9 | 12 | 953 | | WKA Man. Cup Series ’12 - Kershaw - TaG 1 | 9 | 8 | 969 | | WKA Man. Cup Series ’12 - Kershaw - TaG 2 | 9 | 17 | 887 | | SKUSA SpringNationals ’12 #1 | 9 | 17 | 898 | | WKA Man. Cup Series ’12 - PIRC - Parilla | 8 | 4 | 887 | | WKA Man. Cup Series ’12 - PIRC - TaG 1 | 9 | 6 | 989 | | WKA Man. Cup Series ’12 - PIRC - TaG 2 | 9 | 16 | 892 | |
Inside the Stats
Average Finish: 11.43
Average Points: 925
Total Points: 6475
Upcoming TaG Driver Rankings Events
| Date | Series | Class | Track | Location | Rank| 5/19 | SKUSA California ProKart Challenge #3 | TaG Senior | Adams Motorsports Park | Riverside, CA | 9 | | 5/19 | Route 66 Sprint Series #2 | TaG 1 | Concept Haulers Motor Speedway | Norway, IL | 8 | | 5/19 | SKUSA Midwest ProKart Challenge #1 | TaG Senior | TNT Kartways | West Quincy, MO | 8 | | 5/20 | WKA West Super Series #3 | TaG Senior | Allstar Karting | Prairie City, CA | 8 | | 5/20 | WKA West Super Series #3 | PRD Senior | Allstar Karting | Prairie City, CA | 8 | | 5/20 | Route 66 Sprint Series #2 | TaG 2 | Concept Haulers Motor Speedway | Norway, IL | 8 | | 5/20 | SKUSA Midwest ProKart Challenge #2 | TaG Senior | TNT Kartways | West Quincy, MO | 8 | | 5/26 | IKF Region 11 Championship Series #3 | IKF TaG | Southern Oregon Karters | Medford, OR | 8 | | 5/27 | Florida Karting Championship Series #5 | TaG | Orlando Kart Center | Orlando, FL | 8 | | 5/27 | IKF Region 11 Championship Series #4 | IKF TaG | Southern Oregon Karters | Medford, OR | 8 | | 6/2 | IKF Region 7 Sprint Championship #3 | TaG Senior | Apex Raceway | Lake Perris, CA | 8 | | 6/2 | SKUSA Texas ProKart Challenge #3 | TaG Senior | Grandsport Speedway | Houston, TX | 8 | | 6/2 | SKUSA Rocky Mountain ProKart Challenge #3 | TaG Senior | Miller Motorsports Park | Tooele, UT | 8 | | 6/2 | New Jersey Sprint Series #1 | TaG 1 | New Jersey Motorsports Park | Millville, NJ | 8 | | 6/3 | IKF Region 7 Sprint Championship #3 | PRD Senior | Apex Raceway | Lake Perris, CA | 8 | | 6/3 | SKUSA Texas ProKart Challenge #4 | TaG Senior | Grandsport Speedway | Houston, TX | 8 | | 6/3 | SKUSA Rocky Mountain ProKart Challenge #4 | TaG Senior | Miller Motorsports Park | Tooele, UT | 8 | | 6/3 | New Jersey Sprint Series #1 | TaG 2 | New Jersey Motorsports Park | Millville, NJ | 8 | | 6/10 | WKA West Super Series #4 | TaG Senior | Desert Park Raceway | Reno, NV | 8 | | 6/10 | WKA West Super Series #4 | PRD Senior | Desert Park Raceway | Reno, NV | 8 | |
EKN Driver Rankings Calculation Process
The EKN Driver Rankings are calculated using a driver’s best finishes in major North American races. Assembled using events from the previous 12 months from the current date, we use a driver’s best seven finishes in TaG and six in Stock Moto to determine their overall current point total. With each new release, results posted from more than one year ago are discarded. To deliver our ranking list, we tabulate the results of all the national programs and selected regional programs. We have included the results for the major one-off events such as the SKUSA SuperNationals, the US Rotax Max Challenge Grand Nationals, the Rock Island Grand Prix and the Streets of Lancaster Grand Prix.
Each race is initially weighted based on the prestige and history of the event or series with a score of ten (10) being the highest attainable base ranking. For 2012, the SKUSA SuperNationals and US Rotax Max Challenge Grand Nationals receive a score of 10 in their initial weighting in the TaG category while the SuperNationals is the lone event in the Stock Moto division. The SKUSA Pro Tour series events draw a base ranking of nine (9), while the WKA 2-Cycle Sprint Grand Nationals, Rotax Pan American Challenge and other regional program races were given a base ranking of either eight (8) or nine (9).
The EKN staff reserves the right to adjust the rankings of each event throughout the year. A minimum entry total for any events considered for the Driver Rankings program is five (5). If an event does not have at least five (5) drivers starting the race, those results will not be tabulated toward the Driver Rankings.
Added to these initial rankings are two variables that help confirm the true importance of an event to the ranking process – field size and field strength. A percentage of one weighting point is added for the size of the field, while the number of existing top 50 drivers entered offers another full point or fraction of a point. The sum of these numbers becomes the overall ranking for any race. Following a race, drivers receive points based on their finishing positions with 100 points earned for a win. Each subsequent position drops by one point with 99 points given to the second place driver and so on throughout the field. These points are then multiplied by the overall ranking to produce a driver’s final point total from each event. Using a driver’s best seven races in TaG, six for Stock Moto, we calculate each driver’s overall score and subsequent ranking.
Added to these initial rankings are two variables that help confirm the true importance of an event to the ranking process – field size and field strength. A percentage of one weighting point is added for the size of the field, while the number of existing top 50 drivers entered offers another full point or fraction of a point. The sum of these numbers becomes the overall ranking for any race. Following a race, drivers receive points based on their finishing positions with 100 points earned for a win. Each subsequent position drops by one point with 99 points given to the second place driver and so on throughout the field. These points are then multiplied by the overall ranking to produce a driver’s final point total from each event. Using a driver’s best seven races in TaG, six for Stock Moto, we calculate each driver’s overall score and subsequent ranking. |
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