Young Arizona Tag Cadet pilot Anthony Willis decided over the winter break that 2015 was going to be his breakout year in the class.  “His training and testing schedule has been intense and relentless in the offseason.  Anthony really wants to leave his mark in the cadet classes this year.  Part of the necessary pieces to the puzzle would be to assemble a team that would not hinder this goal.  Seth Nash of Nash Motorsportz was a clear choice to have responsible for chassis engineering.  Phil Carlson would continue to shoulder the responsibility of providing the engine power, driver coaching and team management, ” stated Anthony Willis Racing Team principal Stewart Willis.   After, extensive off-season chassis testing, the decisive winner was the Benik Kart.  With all of the key players and support system in place the team knew that they would be contenders.

February 6, 2015 marked the opening round of the 2015 edition of the SKUSA! California ProKart Challenge at the Buttonwillow International Raceway.  There were rumors that the excitement surrounding the new IAME Mini Swift Tag Cadet Class was going to draw a big crowd of the young pilots from around the western United States.  Not many would expect to see the record-breaking turnout of 42 drivers to attend the commencement of Mini Swift Tag Cadet racing in California.

Leading up to ProKart Challenge at Buttonwillow, Anthony’s was not one of the names mentioned to watch out for.  But, after setting fastest laps during the first couple official practice sessions, it was clear that Willis was going to be a player.

In the qualifying session, which was damp but not yet wet, Willis chose to run on rain tires.  Throughout the session as it started to rain, the young Arizona driver began to keep falling to the back of the field, eventually qualifying 14^th out of the split group of 21 drivers, inevitably placing him in 29^th position to start the first heat.  It was later discovered that the tire pressure was never bled down after beading the tires.

Anthony would start the first heat in the back of one of the largest fields ever assembled in a cadet race.  He would work his way up to 5^th place, passing 24 karts in the heavy rain.  In the second heat, Willis would work his way to the very front, and engaged in a fierce battle with  Ryan Schartau.  The Benik pilot would win the heat race and start the main event on the Pole Position.

After continuously having the start jumped by the off-pole position Anthony was forced to the second row, to start the main event from 3^rd position.  Over the first 4 laps, Willis worked his way to lead the race, never losing a spot.   Once it was clear that he outpaced the rest of the field and began to open 10-20 kart lengths on the nearest competitor, he was instructed to slow down and to be careful when going through lap traffic to ensure the inevitable victory.

When asked how they ran through the weekend with virtually no issues other than qualifying, while many others were off track broken down off track team principal Stewart Willis said, “ Many of the karts that were broken down on the side of the track had problems with their drive system and the muddy conditions.  Our team is obsessed with a perfect drive system.  That is why we use X.A.M. Sprockets and RK Takasago Chain.  There really is no comparison to the quality that they provide in our industry.  We kept the chain in new condition by cleaning it every session with Motul Chain Clean and used Motul Off-Road chain lube.  These details may not sound important.  But, in the harsh conditions that we faced at Buttonwillow, it eliminated any failures in that area.

Anthony Willis Racing would like to  thank:

1.) Tom and Patti Kutscher of SKUSA! for putting on a great race

2.) SethNash  of Nash Motorsportz and Nick Mitchell of Benik Kart for putting the clearly best chassis available on the market underneath us.

3.)Phil Carlson for providing an unbelievable Mini Swift together for us.

4.) Courtney Concepts for their top of the line RK Chains and X.A.M. Sprockets

5.)Asset Preservation Tax & Retirement Services

6.) TMW- Ted Tucholski for technical consulting

For additional information on Anthony Willis Racing’s schedule and partnership inquiries you can visit his Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/AnthonyWillisRacing

Or by email: Stewartawillis@hotmail.com

Share on Facebook

Tweet