|
 |
|
 |
| September 24, 2005 News |
| EKN Trackside: Rotax Max Grand Nationals - Michiana Raceway Park - South Bend |
| |
 | | Wesley Phillips held off several challengers on his way to the Final pole for the International drivers (Photo: Todd McCall - otp.ca) |
The second day of the Rotax Max Grand Nationals ran nearly flawlessly at the newly re-named Michiana Raceway Park in South Bend. With five classes of heat races, LCQs and Prefinals, it was a good day of competition with plenty of action throughout the fields. Rain fell briefly before the LCQ’s, which made those events interesting but only one driver gambled on dry tires. That paid off for Joel Jackson (Haase) as he ran from the back of the pack to second place in the 20-lap qualifier.
International
The International class began the day with their second round of heat races. The first group pitted flights A and C against each other. After two failed attempts to get the race started, the front row of Juan Sanso (PTK) and Stuart Marsell (Arrow) were moved to row two. The heat got underway and Arturo Gonzales (KRT) took the lead early and never looked back. Finishing second was Mike Hill (CRG) with Ricky Taylor (Kart Mini) third. Taylor made a solid late race pass to get by Marsell who finished fourth. Rounding out the top five was Sanso. The B-D flights faced off next with Wes Phillips (CRG) taking a flag to flag win. Zach Woodsford (Birel) ran second for a bit but lost the spot to Kyle Hedin (Gillard). Running a solid fourth was Texan Lyndsey Adams (Birel) with Drew Cattell (Tony Kart) fifth.
The third heat round rolled out with PCH team manager Phillips taking a narrow win over Sanso. He was close throughout the run but was unable to make the move for the win. Gonzales was third with Nathan Mauel (CRG) fourth. A last lap move past Adams put Mike Rolison (Margay) into fifth. Flight two had Woodsford take the easy win, the pink suit bringing him good luck. Hedin was second and Taylor was third. Cattell and Mike Hill (CRG) moved up late in the race to finish fourth and fifth.
The International Prefinal was a great run from second back to fifth. Philips jumped to the lead off the started and built a good cushion. In second was Gonzales who moved Woodsford aside off the green. Woodsford looked good early but spun and dropped back to tenth. In second, Gonzales had all he could do to hold off Sanso and Marsell. The third and fourth place drivers looked faster but they were unable to get by. Sanso tried several times but it was no use. Taking the win was Philips with Gonzales second and Sanso a quick third. Taking the checker in second, Gonzales raised his hands in the air and as a result slowed, because of this, Sanso gave him a little tap from behind. Marsell was fourth and Hedin rounded out the top five.
 | | A solid run in the Master Prefinal puts David Odenthal on the pole for the Final (Photo: Todd McCall - otp.ca) |
Rotax Masters
The third round of heats for the Rotax Masters class saw a great deal of action from the middle of the pack back. Polesitter Andy Seesemann (Birel) took the lead and drove to the easy win. Missing from the action was David Skinner (Birel) who was hurt in a Heat 1 shunt yesterday. He was back at the track but not cleared to drive. Second was David Odenthal (CRG) with Kyle Eggleton (Monza) third. In fourth was DJ Ortiz (Birel) with Wagner Meyer (CRG) rounding out the top five.
Everything was looking easy for Seesemann as he took the lead off the line and had built a solid lead over Odenthal in the Prefinal. Starting with the third lap, Seesemann said he began feeling a vibration and just prior to the halfway mark, concentrating more on the vibration, spun the kart. That moved Odenthal to the lead and dropped the defending National Champion to tenth. At the front, Odenthal, Eggelton, Pesner and Meyer were running nose to tale but none were able to make a move. Odenthal took the win and Final pole with Eggelton second and Pesner third. Rounding out the top five were Meyer and Ortiz. Seesemann had worked back to eighth when on the final lap; his motor mount broke in turn seven and ended up back in 19th. It will be a long road for the Full Throttle Karting owner to repeat.
 | | It was a big win for Justin Melton in the RM1 Prefinal (Photo: Todd McCall - otp.ca) |
RM1
After a bit of dicing in the opening laps of Heat Three, Mike Beason took control of the action and took a very easy win over Justin Melton. Running third was Phil Gordon with Mauricio Carillo fourth. Beason’s win was short lived as he was docked three spots for cutting the course. On the formation lap, he fell back and skipped a portion of the track to regain his position. This is in violation of the rules and as a result, Beason was sanctioned. That moved Melton to the win, and Beason officially was fourth.
It was a spirited run in the Prefinal for second place. With leader Melton checked out, it was a dogfight between Gordon, Beason and Carillo. The three were racing hard swapping a bit of paint and second place. Then Gordon spun in turn one and dropped back. This moved Beason to second where his finished. Racing to third was Carillo while Borroel was fourth. Recovering for fifth was Gordon.
Rotax Junior
The third round of Junior heats pitted flights A and D and B and C against each other. First up was A and D, a single waved off start yielded a green flag but mid pack there were karts all over the track. Gerard Gonzales (KRT) took the lead off the flag and drove to an easy win. Getting a good start was Timmy Megenbier (Birel) who moved from fourth to second. As the race ran on, he dropped back and finished fourth. Taking over second was David Holland (Birel) who finished in that position. Making a strong move was John Mossey (Tony Kart) from the DL Racing team who took a strong third place. Rounding out the top five was Thomas Silva (Birel). In post race tech, Mossey was DQ’d with a motor issue. In the second flight, James Kennedy (Birel) took the easy win over Edward Coffin (Arrow) with Daniel Garza (KRT) third. There was a great deal of on-track bumping with several drivers having their races end early.
 | | James Kennedy kept his cool and drove to the Prefinal win in the Junior class (Photo: Todd McCall - otp.ca) |
A twenty-lap Prefinal ran lat in the afternoon and off the line, Kennedy took the early lead with Gerard Gonzales on his bumper. Gonzales took the point for a bit but Kennedy stayed close. Contact in turn eight rattled Gonzales and Kennedy kept the pressure on. Heading through turn three later in the race, Kennedy pounced and took the lead and drove away to the win with Gonzales second. Running third basically alone was Gutierrez (CRG) while Holland and Thomas Silva rounding out the top five.
MiniMax
The MiniMax drivers ran their third heat round with Daniel Formal (Birel) winning the first flight. Running second and third were Daniel Vela (CRG) and Mauricio Ayala (CRG). In the second flight, Alex Karabaumiotis (Fittipaldi) used a smooth turn one pass with two to go to take the win of Nick Neri (Fittipaldi), running third was Clay Settles (CRG).
After all the heats were run, the drivers went to the Prefinal to set the grid for tomorrow’s Final. Leading off the line was Formal but he had Neri on his bumper for the entire 15-lap run. Formal was cool as he drove lap after lap with hard a single wheel wrong. Those times he made a mistake; Neri was not in the position to make a move. Formal, hands in the air took the Prefinal followed by Neri. Another Fittipaldi driver, Jack West was third while Karabaumiotis was fourth. Rounding out the top five was Mauricio Ayala (CRG).
It was a very solid racing and now all the remains are the Finals. Tomorrow will see the crowning of a new set of Rotax National Champions and with good weather in the forecast, everyone is expecting a good day’s worth of racing to fill the docket. |
|
|
Go Top
|
|
|
|
|
