|
 |
|
 |
| August 11, 2012 News |
| EKN Trackside: United States Rotax Max Challenge Grand Nationals - Saturday Report |
| |
For complete coverage, visit the EKN Event Page
The final day of competition went into the books Saturday as the 2012 edition of the United States Rotax Max Challenge Grand Nationals completed at the Michiana Raceway Park in South Bend, Indiana. Conditions were changing nearly every minute with rain hitting the area early on, stopping for roughly an hour, returning to close out the Prefinals with a heavy downpour, only to see the sun break through during lunch. Thankfully, the sun stayed out to complete what was a great day of racing which crowned seven Rotax champions, and securing 13 positions for Team USA to compete at the Rotax Grand Finals in Portugal. Capping off the day, nearly $45,000 in prizes awarded on the day, including $2,000 to each Team USA member. Leading this year’s squad will be a long list of veterans, including Senior champ Daniel Formal, DD2 title winner Joey Wimsett, DD2 Masters winner Alan Rudolph, and Junior victor Santino Ferrucci.
Motorama Kart Parts Senior Max
 | Daniel Formal earned his third Rotax Grand Nationals title, his first in Senior Max
(Photo: Ken Johnson - studio52.us) |
The rain began falling even harder for the start of the Senior Max Prefinal with Daniel Formal (Tony Kart) and top qualifier Stepanova Nekeel (Tony Kart) on the front row. Formal took the outside line to his advantage to secure the lead as Fritz Leesman (CRG) came through from fourth to second. Andrew Palmer (Kosmic) was third and made quick work of Leesmann on the second lap to secure second. Nekeel fell back to fourth with Nick Neri (Tony Kart) up from ninth to fifth. The top nine drivers spaced themselves out at the front of the field with Neri moving into fourth, working past Nekeel for position. Jamaican Collin Daley (Kosmic) was running sixth in front of Sam Beasley (Arrow), Mason Chelootz (Top Kart) and Nick Rivellini (CRG). At the halfway point, Formal was well out in front as second, third and fourth ran close. Neri had moved into third, working by Leesmann and set his sites on Palmer in second. Lap 13, Neri was able to find his way around Palmer for second with a pass at turn nine, pulling out by a number of kart lengths the following lap. Formal navigated the course like a speed boat in the Atlantic Ocean, driving to over a 10-second advantage in the 20-lap event, lapping all but the top-13 drivers. Neri drove to second for the outside row one starting position for the Final with Palmer and Leesmann trailing. Daley ran to fifth, working by Nekeel with Beasley, Chelootz, Rivellini and Jonathan Kotyk (Tony Kart) completing the top-10.
Formal and Neri slotted into the lead to begin the Senior Max 26-lap Final. Nekeel ran third with Daley up to fourth with Chelootz leading a battle for fifth. Beasley took over the fifth position on lap five, with Palmer - who dropped to eighth in the opening lap - also working around for position. Leesmann was spun around and dropped to the tail of the field, taking him out of contention for the podium. Beasley closed in quickly on Daley the following lap, beginning to size up the Jamaican. The KartSport North America driver took over the position on lap five with a bold move, and began looking to cut the six tenths advantage Nekeel held at the time. The following lap, Palmer passed Daley as well, moving back into the top-five. Lap eight, Beasley took care of Nekeel and on lap 10, was running the fastest laps of the race. By lap 13, Beasley sat on the bumper of Neri, putting the pressure on the defending champion. Beasley looked inside the Ocala Gran Prix pilot at turn five, but was denied. A few laps later, the moved paid off and Beasley was into the second position with Neri back into third, now feeling the heat from Palmer. It looked as if Palmer would not be able to find a way around but on lap 21, the J3 Competition driver took his shot with a great move in turn four. Now into the third position, Palmer put a couple kart lengths on Neri.
Out front, it was all Formal as the Tony Kart pilot driving away to 1.6-second advantage at the checkered flag. The win was Formal’s third Grand Nationals title, winning Mini Max in 2005 in South Bend, and Junior in 2008 at USA International Raceway in Wisconsin. The third title also matched Neri’s total record, each trailing Jordon Musser who holds a total of four Grand Nationals victories. Beasley recorded his third-straight runner-up finish at the Grand Nationals, putting him on Team USA for the same number of years. Palmer, the 2010 Junior champion, will make his second trip to the Rotax Grand Finals. Neri finished fourth with Nekeel in fifth. Chelootz was sixth while Kyle Byers (Kosmic) won the fight for seventh over Kotyk, Rivellini and Joe Criscione (Komsic), up from 16th.
Rolison Performance Group DD2
 | Joey Wimsett dominated the DD2 category, scoring the title Saturday
(Photo: Ken Johnson - studio52.us) |
The rain continued to fall over the area at a steady pace with the track collecting a lot of water in a number of spots. Joey Wimsett (Kosmic) and Cody Hodgson (Tony Kart) led the field to the green flag with Wimsett gaining the advantage from the outside lane. Defending champion Kristina Vorndran (CRG) worked herself up to second but on lap three, spun at the entry of turn two. That put Hodgson back up to second with Sabré Cook (CRG) now into the third position. Matt Ostiguy (CRG) and Matt Stachura (CRG) ran fourth and fifth, a few seconds behind the front three. Derek Wang (Kosmic) retired early with a flat tire while Connor Wagner (Sodi Kart) lost a tire, putting him on the sidelines. On lap six, Hodgson looped his kart in the esses, relinquishing the second spot to Cook until she spun on the same lap on the exit of the final corner. Rain continued to fall harder and harder with officials calling the race 3/4 of the way in. Wimsett won with Hodgson second. Cook survived in third with Stachura and Ostiguy the remaining drivers running.
Wimsett and Hodgson away got away at the start with Stachura, Vorndran and Cook falling in behind. Both Vorndran and Cook moved around Stachura into turn 10 as they completed lap two with Wang jumping up to fifth a few laps later. The top-five were spaced out nicely until Wang began to pressure Cook for fourth. That stepped up her pace and the two began closing in on Vorndran lap by lap. At lap 18, the three were bumper to bumper with Cook looking for a way around the defending champ. Out front Wimsett had the race in hand, driving to a five-second victory to earn his first DD2 Grand Nationals title and earning his second trip to the Grand Finals as part of Team USA. Hodgson, the 2009 and 2010 champion, finished second and will represent the United States of America for a third time. Cook tried valiantly for a way into the third position on the final circuit, but Vorndran fought strong and held the position to the checkered flag for the PSL Karting driver earning her second straight trip to the Grand Finals. Cook, competing in her first DD2 weekend aboard her CRG-USA entry, settled for fourth with Wang placing fifth.
Dallas Karting Complex DD2 Masters
 | Alan Rudolph secured the DD2 Masters, and will be joined on Team USA by Rene Martinelli (l) and Bill Lester (r)
(Photo: Ken Johnson - studio52.us) |
The DD2 Masters Prefinal began with some chess play as half the field was on wet tires and the others on dry as the rain continued to hold off. The track was still damp with standing puddles, but a possible drying line for the start of the 20-lap event. Alan Rudolph (CRG) was on wet Mojo tires with Tim Lobaugh (Birel) starting on dry tires on the front row. Rudolph got way as the slick drivers struggled to gain grip. John Crow (Arrow) - using wet tires - pressured Rudolph for the lead and took the spot through turn nine on the opening lap. Behind them, Mike Jones (Sodi Kart) - on slicks - was up to third from sixth with Lobaugh holding fourth. Lobaugh would lose more positions with Ariel Castro (AM) - on slick tires - up and Brent Harper (Sodi Kart) - on wet tires - working by for position with Cristiano Piquet (CRG) - on slicks - in the mix. By lap seven, the track seemed to be drying up with Jones on the charge, cutting into the lead Crow and Rudolph established. Both Castro and Jones worked around Rudolph on lap nine and set their sites on Crow. Beginning lap 11, Jones got a push from Castro to shoot him out into the lead in front of Crow with Castro coming through a few corners later, as did Piquet. Lap 16, the fight for the lead heated up with Castro and Piquet working by Jones through turns seven and eight. With two laps to go, Lobaugh was into the mix with the fast laps of the race, closing up on Jones bumper.
On what was perceived to be the final lap, rain began to fall and sent the slick drivers scrambling all over the course. Jones was able to edge out Piquet by just one-hundredth of a second at the line with Lobaugh third and Castro in fourth. Rene Martinelli (CRG) came up to fifth on dry tires while Crow held off Bill Lester (Tony Kart), the sixth and final driver on slick tires for the sixth position. Rudolph would cross the line in eighth. Officials however waved the flag one lap late, and per CIK rules, the results were reverted back to the 20th lap. That gave Castro the win over Piquet with Jones back to third with Lobaugh in fourth. Martinelli remains fifth with Lester in sixth. A penalty however to Castro gave Piquet the win and dropped Ariel to fourth on the starting grid.
At the start of the final, Jones got the jump on Piquet, as did Castro and Martinelli, dropping Piquet back to fourth in the opening lap with Lester trying to hold off Rudolph. Lap three, Jones was leading and pulled off to the side of the track as his engine lost power. That moved Castro to the lead, Martinelli up to second and now Lester in the third position with a host of others trailing. Rudolph moved to fourth, working around Piquet and on lap six, was around Lester for the third position with a turn seven pass. Rudolph, who showed the speed all week, began closing in on Martinelli in the second position. Lap nine, the PSL Karting driver passed the former Team USA member with a move through turn nine and zeroed in on Castro in the lead. Behind them, the battle continued for fourth with Lester leading a train of drivers. Lobaugh tried for a way around Piquet on lap 12, and they criss-crossed through turn seven, giving Lester a little bit of a gap. At the front, Rudolph used turn seven once again to gain another position, leading the field as they took the crossed flags. Both Lobaugh and Crow were able to work by Piquet on lap 15 and set for Lester once again. Lap 17, Castro began slowing and pulled off after the esses with a flat right rear tire, ending his bid for a Team USA position. That move Martinelli up to second and Lester in third with Lobaugh and Crow trailing.
With six laps to go, the battle continued with Crow moving into the fourth spot, diving inside of Lobaugh in turn seven. Out front, Rudolph drove strong as he did all week to score the victory and earn his first Rotax Grand Nationals title, adding to an already strong CV. Martinelli made it a CRG 1-2 finish, earning his second straight trip to the Grand Finals as part of Team USA. Lester fought strong all 26 laps and held off Crow for the final podium position, giving the Ocala Gran Prix driver a spot on Team USA. Lobaugh would hold off Brent Harper (Sodi Kart) to complete the top-five. With Rudolph already part of Team USA with his Florida Winter Tour championship, that gave the third ticket for the class to Crow, the Gatorz Challenge of the Americas DD2 Masters champion, for his fourth place run in the final.
Full Throttle Karting Masters Max
 | With the Masters Max victory, Johnny Blair join Team USA for the Rotax Grand Finals
(Photo: Ken Johnson - studio52.us) |
Paul Bonilla (Arrow) continued to lead the way for the Masters category with Scott Roberts (Tony Kart) again on the outside of row one for their 20-lap Prefinal battle. Roberts grabbed the lead through the opening corner as Bonilla fell back to third behind Johnny Blair (Tony Kart) with Andy Seesemann (Arrow) in fourth. Blair, no stranger to rain racing, took over the point on lap two while Seesemann pressured Bonilla for the third position. Lap three, Seesemann secured the position and Bonilla fell into the grasp of Diego Pelosi (Formula K) and Jason Bell (Kosmic). Seesemann was the second quickest driver, as he closed up on Roberts and made a move for the position to began lap six. Pelosi then began pressuring Roberts for the third position. At lap eight, Blair’s lead was around six-seconds over Seesemann with Roberts holding off Pelosi, and a charging John Bonanno (Kosmic) up from ninth. Starting lap nine, Seesemann entered the esses and spun around to fall back to eighth. The same lap, Bonanno was able to work around Pelosi for what was now third and set his sites on Roberts until contact was made in turn seven. That dropped Bonanno down to sixth with Pelosi back to third, Bell up to fourth and Bobby Greene (Maranello), from 16th to fifth. The fight for second that included five drivers ran static for much of the middle portion of the race. They began dicing up for position with five laps to go with Pelosi still trying to find a way around Roberts with Bell, Greene and Rob Maier (Tony Kart) in the mix. Lap 18, contact left Greene out of contention when his engine shut off as a result from the contact. Blair would go on to score the win by over 12 seconds in front of Roberts. Bell finished third with Pelosi and Maier rounding out the top-five. Bonilla ended up seventh behind Bonanno while Seesemann dropped to 10th. Pelosi however would be penalized for a starting line infraction, dropping him to sixth in the order.
The Masters group welcomed clear skies for their Prefinal with Tony Kart drivers Blair and Roberts on the front row. The two broke away from the field with Bonanno leading Bonilla, Pelosi and Seesemann. Maier spun in the opening lap as did Bell - Maier fell toward the back of the field with Bell continuing on as well. More contact ensued with Bonilla getting caught up in Bonanno losing his chain at the exit of turn 10 while completing the second lap. Bonilla was put into the safety bags, but rejoined the race while Bonanno retired from the event. This moved Full Throttle Karting’s Seesemann up to third with Pelosi in fourth and Greene now up to fifth from 14th. Bonilla rejoined back in sixth, running just in front of Bell. Blair posted fast laps early on, getting away from the pack. Roberts ran second until Seesemann work by for the position at the start of lap six. Lap nine, contact between Pelosi and Roberts sent Roberts off track at the exit of turn seven. That put Roberts out of the race, moving Pelosi to third, Greene to fourth and Bell now fifth after falling back to 13th on the first lap. At the halfway point, Blair’s lead was just over four seconds in front of Seesemann while Pelosi clocked off his fastest lap of the race. Bell’s charge toward the front ended abruptly when he lost his chain on lap 13.
The hard charger now became Scott Falcone (Arrow). After spinning in the opening skirmish, Falcone ran laps consistent with the pace Blair was setting. After getting around Bonilla, the two ran down Green in the fourth position by lap 18. Once around Greene, Falcone put a few kart lengths on both. A few laps later, Bonilla followed suite to secure the fifth position. The field would run that way to the checkered flag as Rolison Performance Group driver Blair would secure the national championship by over nine seconds, posting his fast lap of the race on lap 25. Seesemann would finish a respectable second, his first podium visit since 2007 in Colorado. Pelosi put two Southern California drivers on the podium. KartSport North America driver Falcone came home fourth with Bonilla holding on for fifth. With the win, Blair earned a ticket to the Rotax Grand Finals to compete in the DD2 Masters category in Portugal.
PSL Karting Junior Max
 | Santino Ferrucci was perfect on the week, scoring the Junior Max title
(Photo: Ken Johnson - studio52.us) |
Perfect through day one and two, Santino Ferrucci (Energy) led the Junior field to the green flag with Oliver Askew (Tony Kart) outside of row one. The rain began to fall once again just before their race, sending everyone scrambling for the rain tires. Askew was turned sideways in the opening corner, sending the field around him and collecting a number of drivers. Ferrucci set the pace out front with Gavin Reichelt (Tony Kart) up to second. Patricio O’Ward was up to third with Austin Versteeg (CRG) in fifth. Kyle Kirkwood (Arrow) who started 25th, was into the top-five after the opening lap, but continued to drop his kart off track on lap three and four, dropping outside the top-10. That moved Austin Garrison (Tony Kart), up from 17th to fifth. Askew was on a charge however, benefitting from a number of incidents and smart driving to work his way into ninth after dropping to 17th on the opening lap.
The top five remained unchanged at the halfway point with Ferrucci out to a five-second advantage over Reichelt. Versteeg was able to work past O’Ward for third with Garrison trailing in fifth. Versteeg was gaining pace as the laps went on and attempted a move around Reichelt for second, but the door was shut at the exit. Versteeg had to close back the gap for another attempt as Ferrucci continued to post consistent 53.4-second laps out front. Once back on the bumper of Reichelt, Versteeg looked for a way into second in turn seven, but was unable to close the deal on lap 17. Ferrucci would go on to score the win comfortably with Reichelt holding off the advances of Versteeg. O’Ward and Garrison completed the top-five with Jeremy Doll (Tony Kart) in sixth originally until he was assessed a three position penalty for contact. That moved Thomas Issa (Kosmic), who earned his spot in Saturday’s events with a top-six finish in the Last Chance Qualifier. Starting 30th, he was 13th at the completion of lap one and worked his way forward to end up sixth. Askew would be classified seventh, working around Brian Lockwood (Tony Kart) on the final lap with Juan Manuel Correa (Maranello) rounding out the top-10.
Ferrucci jumped out to the lead to begin the 26-lap final with Reichelt ducking into second, already one second back with Issa jumping up to third. O’Ward and Versteeg were battling for fourth on the second lap when contact was made entering turn eight. Versteeg spun and dropped the tail of the field, moving Garrison back into fifth. Askew, started seventh and was running there, trailing Correa who was able to knife his way forward in the opening laps. Lap five, Askew fought hard and took away the sixth spot from Correa and closed in on the fight for fourth with Garrison and O’Ward. Ferrucci had extended his lead to four seconds by the halfway mark with Issa now in second and Reichelt third. Askew, running laps similar to Ferrucci, made his way up to fourth, working around Garrison for the position with Correa and O’Ward trailing. The Ocala Gran Prix driver continued to run the fast pace, closing in on Reichelt by lap 18. Lap 21, he pulled the trigger in turn six to secure a provisional podium position.
The front of the field remained unaltered in the closing laps with Ferrucci earning the victory, his first Rotax Grand Nationals title, and a spot on Team USA. Issa completed a stellar day with the J3 Competition driver taking home the runner-up spot to join Ferrucci on Team USA. Askew, already on Team USA, completed the podium. That gave Reichelt, who crossed the line in fourth, the final ticket for the Junior category, but he was removed in tech for a clutch issue. That moved Correa into the fourth spot and gave him the spot on Team USA for the Rotax Grand Finals. Garrison completed the top-five with Doll in sixth. AJ Myers (Kosmic) drove up from 23rd to seventh with O’Ward, Alex Keyes (CRG) and Luke Selliken (Kosmic) rounding out the top-10. The hard charger of the week went to Ashley Rogero. The Tony Kart driver bounced back from a tough qualifying result to end up 19th on the Prefinal grid. Collected in an opening lap crash, she started the main event in 33rd. As she did throughout the weekend, Rogero powered up to finish 11th, recording the fast lap of the race.
A-M Engines Mini Max
 | Anthony Gangi Jr. earned his second Grand Nationals title, first in Mini Max
(Photo: Ken Johnson - studio52.us) |
A pair of Tony Kart drivers led the field to the green flag for the start of the Prefinal with Anthony Gangi and Mathias Ramirez on the front row. As they completed the opening lap, Devlin DeFrancesco was up from fourth and into the lead as Gangi slotted into second ahead of Ramirez, Sting Ray Robb (Tony Kart) and Augusto Soto Schirripa (Kosmic). The driver on the charge during the first half of the race was David Malukas. Starting 13th due to a disqualification in heat three, which dropped him down to 13th on the grid, the Birel driver was into the fifth position with the fast laps of the race and was closing in on the fight for third between Ramirez and Robb. Lap eight, he had caught Robb and worked by for the fourth position and began working the bumper of Ramirez. On lap 10, Malukas and Ramirez diced back and forth through the combination of corners from turn six to turn 10. Malukas secured the position and set his sites on Gangi, running second about 1.7 seconds ahead. Malukas cut into that gap quickly, dropping it to just eight tenths at the completion of lap 11. Lap 12, Malukas was pressuring Gangi for second when he spun entering the Monza corner, dropping back to the eighth position with only four laps remaining. Out front, DeFrancesco crossed the line first by over four seconds ahead of Gangi. Ramirez spun around in turn seven on the final lap, moving Robb up to third, Neil Verhagen (Haase) moved up to fourth from 11th, with Schirripa in fifth and Malukas recovering for sixth. DeFrancesco was penalized however in tech for a rear bumper issue, docked two positions to give the win and pole position to Gangi and fell to inside row two.
Gangi used the pole position to his advantage, taking the lead to start the 20-lap event. Schirripa was up to second over DeFrancesco with Robb back to fourth, just ahead of Verhagen. Seven drivers filled out the lead pack with Ramirez and Malukas trailing. They spaced themselves out during the first half of the race with DeFrancesco up to second and Ramirez following suite as Malukas rounded out the top-five, breaking away from Robb, Verhagen and Ryan Lewis (Kosmic), up from 13th. Gangi continued to stretch his lead lap after lap as the battle for second heated up with two laps to go. DeFrancesco held the spot as they began the final lap, but lost the position on the exit of turn one to Ramirez. Gangi would cross the line first to earn his first Rotax Grand Nationals title. Ramirez held on for second with DeFrancesco in third. Schirripa was fourth with Malukas completing the top-five. Hard charger award went to Derek Scott Jr. (Kosmic), jumping up from 36th to 13th in the 20-lap final.
GT7 Motorsports Micro Max
 | Nicholas Brueckner triumphed in the Micro Max division
(Photo: Ken Johnson - studio52.us) |
Harry Coulton (Birel) and Nicholas Brueckner (Kosmic) led the Micro field to the green flag with Brueckner gaining the advantage through the opening corners with Devin Boutot (Tony Kart), Dylan Tavella (Tony Kart) and Justin Sirgany (Tony Kart) making up the top-five. Lap two saw contact in turn seven that dropped Coulton back to fifth and Tavella down to ninth, moving Boutot to second with Sirgany up to third. Giovanni Bromante (Tony Kart) took advantage and moved into the fourth spot. Sirgany however was the driver on the move, first moving around Boutot for second and closing the gap behind Brueckner lap by lap. With four laps to go, Sirgany had the quickest lap of the race and used it to move by Brueckner for the lead through the Monza. With two laps to go, Brueckner came back and took the lead through turn eight. On the final lap, Sirgany took the lead through turn one and their fighting brought Boutot into the mix. He pushed Brueckner hard for second in turn four and five, unable to secure the position. At the line, Sirgany took the win with Brueckner holding onto second ahead of Boutot. Bromante crossed the line in fourth, just ahead of Coulton. Boutot however would be penalized and fell to seventh in the results, moving Alex Verhagen (Haase) into the top-five.
The weather cleared up over launch and the track returned to dry competition for the start of the Micro Max category. Sirgany and Brueckner broke away to begin the 18-lap event while Tavella and Coulton filled out another two kart pack behind them for third and fourth. The top two swapped the lead a number of times and by lap 10, Coulton and Tavella were right there in the hunt. Coming to the white flag, Sirgany held the lead and lost it as they navigated the opening corner with Brueckner returning back to the point. At the checkered, Brueckner crossed the line first for his first Rotax Grand Nationals title. Sirgany settled for second with Coulton rounding out the podium. Tavella finished fourth with Bromante completing the top-five. Jack Miller (Birel) won the hard charger award, coming from 22nd to ninth in the 18-lap event. |
|
|
Go Top
|
|
|
|
|
