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| Features |
| eKartingNews.com Driver Rankings – July 30, 2012 – Stock Moto |
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eKartingNews.com is proud to release the newest edition of the 2012 EKN Driver Rankings for Stock Moto. Introduced in 2009, the Stock Moto standings continues to grow as the class expands throughout the United States. A familiar name returns to the top of the order as current Superkarts! USA Pro Tour S1 Pro Stock Moto point leader Fritz Leesmann advances to the number one position after another solid event, this time at the SummerNationals.
Fritz returns to the top spot roughly a year after he relinquished the position, stepping back from the seat for a brief period. Now in position for another Pro Tour championship, Leesmann is in the pole position for the top of the EKN Driver Rankings. His number one challenger is the same in the Pro Tour standings - Oregon’s Joey Wimsett (CRG). A broken chain in heat two of the SummerNationals took away any chance he had to score a double win weekend, allowing Leesmann to cruise to victory. Each have two wins on the Pro Tour schedule with Leesmann holding a better SuperNationals finish from 2011 along with two wins at the regional level. Certainly, the results in Vegas come November should decide who is on top to end 2012.
Behind them is a shuffle for the third position, currently held by Jake French (Birel). His third place at last year’s Rock Island Grand Prix is the Texan’s highest event score of his six races counted toward the Driver Rankings, coupled with four top-10 finishes in S1 this season on the Pro Tour. The 3G Kart Racing pilot is not happy with the results thus far, and they will be pushing for a podium finish at the SuperNationals in November. Former #1 driver Nicky Freytag (FA Kart) falls to fourth this month. Despite the loss of last year’s SummerNationals results in the S2 category, he gained points now competing in the S1 division. Results of sixth and fourth were his best overall weekend performance of the year on the Pro Tour. The Phil Giebler Racing pilot is gunning for a ProKart Challenge title to finish out the year. Remaining in the fifth position is Minnesota driver Lukas Johnson. Moving back to the familiar GP kart at the SummerNationals, the 18 year old record his best Pro Tour weekend of the season with two top-five finishes, improving his score and sticking to the top-five in the Driver Rankings.
Down two positions is the 2011 S2 Pro Tour champion Kyle Hathcox. Making the transition from the GP machine to the CRG brand and also jumping up to S1, the 2012 season is a character-building season. Hathcox continues to work hard and has moved over to the CRG-USA squad, but was unable to find the pace in Utah. DRT Racing driver Josh Lane (DR Kart) remains in the seventh position in the Driver Rankings. The ability to show speed in burst, he has yet to show consistency to challenge for the podium in S1, despite the hard work to on and off the track. Colorado driver Cory Milne (GP) drops down six positions to eighth with the lose of his two S2 SummerNats victories from over a year ago. Now racing in the S1 category, Milne is learning during his rookie season from one of the top teams in the country - Aluminos. Jumping into the top-10 are Jimmy McNeil (CRG) and Tyler Bennett (Tony Kart). McNeil, the 2011 S4 SKUSA Pro Tour champion, currently leads the California ProKart Challenge standings heading to the final two events. Bennett is among the top drivers at the Miller Motorsports Park in the Utah State Championship program, and showed with his first Pro Tour podium during the SummerNationals.
Falling outside the top-10 this month are Brad Dunford and Clinton Schoombee, both longtime residents of the upper portion of the Driver Rankings, missing the SummerNationals this season. The top S2 driver in continues to be Texan Connor Wagner (Formula K), falling to 15th with the rise of S1 drivers moving up the order. Behind him is current S2 Pro Tour championship leader Sabré Cook (CRG) in 17th, just four points apart.
Coming tomorrow will be the release of the TaG Driver Rankings.
Stock Moto
Stock Moto Driver Rankings Top-10
| Pos | Jun. 26 | Plus/Minus | Driver | Races | Score| 1. | 34 | 33 | Fritz Leesmann | 7 | 6471 | | 2. | 3 | 1 | Joey Wimsett | 9 | 6439 | | 3. | 6 | 3 | Jake French | 10 | 6228 | | 4. | 1 | -3 | Nicky Freytag | 11 | 6204 | | 5. | 5 | NC | Lukas Johnson | 7 | 6148 | | 6. | 4 | -2 | Kyle Hathcox | 9 | 6068 | | 7. | 7 | NC | Josh Lane | 9 | 6020 | | 8. | 2 | -6 | Cory Milne | 14 | 5976 | | 9. | 11 | 2 | Jimmy McNeil | 8 | 5955 | | 10. | 21 | 11 | Tyler Bennett | 11 | 5911 | |
For the full Stock Moto Driver Rankings, Click Here
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NEW Stock Moto #1 - Fritz Leesmann
Elk Grove, California
 | Fritz Leesmann
(Photo: On Track Promotions - otp.ca) |
It’s been just over a year since NorCal’s Fritz Leesmann held the number one position in the Stock Moto Driver Rankings. Back at the front on the track, Fritz is back to the top in the standings. One of the top ICC drivers in previous years, the PSL Karting driver is more focused this season, racing nearly every weekend throughout the season thus far. He and Joey Wimsett have exchanged victories in the four SKUSA Pro Tour main events this season, with the SKUSA SuperNationals to decide who will be crowned the 2012 champion. That same driver will likely end the 2012 season the number one pilot in the EKN Driver Rankings.
Point Breakdown
| Race | Rank | Finish | Points| SKUSA SuperNationals 2011 - S1 | 10 | 4 | 1088 | | SKUSA SpringNationals ’12 #1 - S1 | 9.5 | 2 | 1088 | | SKUSA SpringNationals ’12 #2 - S1 | 9.5 | 1 | 1105 | | SKUSA Rocky Moun Challenge ’12 #4 - S1 | 8.5 | 1 | 965 | | SKUSA SummerNationals ’12 #1 - S1 | 9.5 | 2 | 1107 | | SKUSA SummerNationals ’12 #2 - S1 | 9.5 | 1 | 1118 | |
Inside the Stats
Average Finish: 1.83
Average Points: 1078.5
Total Points: 6471
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Stock Moto ‘ON THE MOVE’ - Alec Gumpfer - #19
Lula, Hawaii
 | | Alec Gumpfer |
The ‘Flyin Hawaiian’ Alec Gumpfer is another product of the SKUSA Stock Moto ladder system. A podium finisher at the 2008 SKUSA SuperNationals in S5, Gumpfer has returned to the main land with mix results over the past three seasons. Full time on the Pro Tour for 2012 with Arizona-based Pure Karting, the Tony Kart driver is showing speed this year. An up-and-down SpringNationals was followed by a solid SummerNationals, that included a 25th to ninth drive in heat two en route to his fourth place finish in the main event. Now into the top-20, he’s among the top S2 drivers in the EKN Driver Rankings.
Point Breakdown
| Race | Rank | Finish | Points| SKUSA SuperNationals 2011 - S2 | 9.5 | 13 | 970 | | SKUSA Cali. ProKart Challenge ’12 #2 - S2 | 8 | 2 | 843 | | SKUSA SpringNationals ’12 #1 - S2 | 9 | 6 | 965 | | SKUSA Cali. ProKart Challenge ’12 #4 - S2 | 8 | 3 | 879 | | SKUSA SummerNationals ’12 #1 - S2 | 9 | 6 | 980 | | SKUSA SummerNationals ’12 #2 - S2 | 9 | 4 | 1000 | |
Inside the Stats
Average Finish: 5.67
Average Points: 939.5
Total Points: 5637
Upcoming Stock Moto Driver Rankings Events
| Date | Series | Class | Track | Location | Rank| 8/4 | Utah State Championships #5 | Spec Light | Miller Motorsports Park | Tooele, UT | 8 | | 8/18 | SKUSA California ProKart Challenge #5 | S1 | Santa Maria Kart Track | Santa Maria, CA | 8.5 | | 8/18 | SKUSA California ProKart Challenge #5 | S2 | Santa Maria Kart Track | Santa Maria, CA | 8 | | 8/18 | SKUSA Midwest ProKart Challenge #5 | S2 | New Castle Motorsports Park | New Castle, IN | 8 | | 8/18 | SKUSA Midwest ProKart Challenge #5 | S1 | New Castle Motorsports Park | New Castle, IN | 8.5 | | 8/19 | SKUSA Midwest ProKart Challenge #6 | S2 | New Castle Motorsports Park | New Castle, IN | 8 | | 8/19 | SKUSA Midwest ProKart Challenge #6 | S1 | New Castle Motorsports Park | New Castle, IN | 8.5 | | 8/25 | SKUSA Northwest ProKart Challenge #5 | S2 | Pat's Acres Racing Complex | Canby, OR | 8 | | 8/25 | Utah State Championships #6 | Spec Light | Miller Motorsports Park | Tooele, UT | 8 | | 8/26 | SKUSA Northwest ProKart Challenge #6 | S2 | Pat's Acres Racing Complex | Canby, OR | 8 | | 8/26 | Racing the Rockies #5 | Spec 125 | The Track at Centennial | Centennial, CO | 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 Manufacturer’s Cup, Florida Winter Tour, Challenge of the Americas, IKF 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. |
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