Today is the newest release of the 2013 eKartingNews.com Driver Rankings, beginning with the Stock Moto category. Following a month of racing, the driver’s totals have been tabulated through the May 6 date, including all events over the past 365 days. The Stock Moto category continues to grow with solid fields at the SKUSA Pro Tour opener – the SpringNationals in Tucson, Arizona. The SKUSA regional programs in Texas and the Rocky Mountains opened up its season with good numbers, and the Florida Karting Championship Series continues to introduce new drivers to the Stock Moto category. This updated standings show over 200 drivers competing in an EKN Driver Rankings event over the past 12 months, the most seen in the history of the program.

Still leading the way is 2010 and 2012 SKUSA Pro Tour champion Fritz Leesmann (CRG). The NorCal native matched his results from last year’s SpringNationals, improving his score thanks to the larger and more competitive field that was in Tucson. He swapped the top position with Oregon’s Joey Wimsett (CRG). The CRG-USA driver kicked off the year with the round one victory, just as he did a year ago, and then finished second to Leesmann in Sunday’s action.

The wildcard of that weekend was Sabré Cook. The 2012 S2 Pro Tour champion was stellar in her S1 debut, mixing it up with the top two. Her two podium finishes moved the CRG-USA pilot up to fifth in the EKN Driver Rankings, sitting behind new number three Tyler Bennett (Tony Kart) and top S1 rookie thus far Billy Musgrave (Tony Kart). Bennett was a podium finisher at the SummerNationals last year, and has been top-10 at the SuperNationals and this year’s SpringNationals under the MSquared Karting operation. Musgrave is perfect thus far in California ProKart Challenge competition with a fourth place finish as his best result at the Pro Tour SpringNationals.

Jumping up to sixth is Alec Gumpfer from Hawaii. Another S2 graduate has been solid early on in his rookie campaign. Just recently, the Tony Kart driver for Pure Karting earned his first California ProKart Challenge podium with a runner-up finish at Adams. Moving up one position in the standings is the 2012 California PKC champion Jimmy McNeil (CRG). A solid campaign in Tucson and three straight podiums in Cali have him looking good in 2013, and put three CRG-USA drivers inside the top-10. The top S2 driver this month is veteran Ryan Kinnear (Intrepid). A title contender in 2012, he’s back for more in ’13 as a double podium finisher in Tucson, running back with Champion Racing/Intrepid USA. Down to ninth is Nicky Freytag (FA Kart) who is taking the season off, as of right now. Completing the top-10, reaching it for the first time is Cody Diede (CRG). The NorCal driver was a winner at the SummerNationals last year, and is carrying the SKUSA #3 plate in S2 this season.

Stock Moto

Stock Moto Driver Rankings Top-10

Fritz Leesmann
(Photo: On Track Promotions – otp.ca)

Stock Moto #1 – Fritz Leesmann
Elk Grove, California

The 2013 season has started out much like last year did, Leesmann leading the SKUSA Pro Tour S1 standings after the SpringNationals. The two-time SKUSA Pro Tour champion faired much better in his first title defense outing, compared to his 2011 run in Tucson. Leesmann was runner-up and win weekend in Tucson, and the PSL/CRG/Diede Racing driver holds a 40 point lead heading to the SummerNationals. The trip to Grand Junction will be his first, but the NorCal native is no stranger to new circuits.

Point Breakdown

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Garrett Boone
(Photo: On Track Promotions – otp.ca)

Stock Moto ‘On the Move’ – Garrett Boone
Waco, Texas

The S2 Semi-Pro category has provided great training ground for young drivers, making the transition to the Stock Moto category. The class can also be for those returning to the sport after some time off. Boone fits that category as he was a young driver looking to make a name for himself in ICC competition in the late 2000s. Now, the 23-year old has begun his comeback to karting strong, leading the SKUSA Pro Tour S2 championship chase after the SpringNationals. The 3G Kart Racing driver was runner-up on Saturday and recorded the victory on Sunday to put himself on top of the point standings. Those results promoted him up to 16th from the 34th spot last month.

Point Breakdown

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 2013, 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 Manufacturers Cup, Florida Winter Tour, Rotax Challenge of the Americas, IKF 2-Cycle Sprint Grand Nationals, Rotax Pan American Challenge, United States Pro Kart Series 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.

Stock Moto – as of May 6, 2013

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