The Brandon Jarsocrak Racing duo of Pauly Massimino and James Overbeck claimed victory and $10,000 (Photo: Kart Chaser / Kyle Cuthbertson)

It was simply a flawless performance from start to finish for the Brandon Jarsocrak Racing duo of Pauly Massimino and James Overbeck on Sunday afternoon, as they claimed the $10,000 victory in the inaugural Mark Harrison Memorial 200 at New Castle Motorsports Park. The team started the race with Massimino behind the wheel and then after three flawless stops from the crew on pit lane, Overbeck brought it home for a whopping 62-second victory over the Magik Kart USA / Adrenaline Fix Karting team of Max Weiland and Annie Rhule. Weiland and Rhule took home $5000 for their efforts.

The return of the 200-lap classic at New Castle Motorsports Park drew 20 teams, including INDYCAR drivers Josef Newgarden, Will Power, and Kyffin Simpson, INDY NXT vice-champion Jacob Abel and USF Pro 2000 title winner Lochie Hughes. The remainder of the field included top national two-cycle drivers and several NCMP regulars who were up for the challenge.

Pauly Massimino piloting the winning MHM 200 entry for Brandon Jarsocrak Racing (Photo: Kart Chaser / Kyle Cuthbertson)

One of the key talking points all weekend long was strategy, and whether a two-stop approach would work. It had been almost a decade since the race’s predecessor was run – the RoboPong 200 – and in those days, the TaG 125cc engine was used so it was impossible to compare to the fuel mileage of the KA100, which was the spec engine for this year’s race. Common thought was that a two-stop strategy would be risky and that the driver would need to be in fuel-save mode all race. This feeling began to change throughout the weekend and heading into the race, many had changed their minds, and the two-stop idea became more prevalent. In fact, after starting with a three-spot plan, the Magik Kart team pivoted early in the race to the two-stop strategy, and it certainly paid off. That said, the BJR team stayed true to their three-stop belief and focused on maximizing their outright pace to run away and hide. In the end, that strategy won out, although three of the four remaining spots on the podium were achieved with a two-stop approach.

Onto the action. Drivers and teams had ample practice time over Friday and Saturday morning to get their rides dialed in, which all led to a three-lap qualifying session that took the average time instead of the fastest lap. Massimino took the reins for BJR aboard their BBS-powered LN Racing Kart and he laid down the best three-lap run to lock down the pole for Sunday afternoon’s endurance run. Brandon Lemke (Quickswimmers / Kosmic) was second quick, securing a front row start for the race for he and teammate Jackson Wolny.

Chase Jones nearly pulled off runner-up finish in Ironman performance before a mechanical failure with nine laps remaining sent him to the sidelines (Photo: Kart Chaser / Kyle Cuthbertson)

When the race went green at noon on Sunday, Massimino and Lemke quickly pulled away to a sizeable lead over an MPG Motorsports duo of Chase Jones and Austin Olds. Jones was a particularly great story for the event, as he was one of two drivers who attempted to run the race solo, carrying the ‘Ironman’ flag. NCMP local driver Vaughn Beesley also ran the entire race on his own and finished an extremely impressive sixth.

The first stint was fairly clean with Massimino and Lemke pulling away from the rest of the field but once the leaders worked their way around to the tail of the field, lapped traffic started to become a factor. Braden Eves (Jimmy Simpson Racing / Energy) was the driver on the move early, knifing through the field up to third, where he led a trio that included Olds and Jones. As the three drivers attempted to overtake a slower kart at the I-70 hairpin, only Eves was able to clear the lapper before he moved back to the racing line on entry, sending Olds off into the grass. Olds got back on cleanly and after another lap, he kicked off the pit stops as he elected to come to pit lane, handing his Kart Republic over to Jackson Diehl. The initial stops began coming after lap 50 for the three-stoppers, and the last driver to pit was Hughes, who went 73 laps on his first stint before passing the wheel over to Abel.

The initial turning point of the race was actually the initial stop. Massimino was the first of the leaders to pit on lap 55 and the BJR team nailed the stop, sending Overbeck back out for his stint. Lemke stopped the next lap from the lead, but the pit service was significantly slower and Wolny returned to the track with a six-second deficit. That was essentially the race, as the gap between first and second simply grew from there.

The second and fourth place entries were fielded by Magik Kart USA / Adrenaline Fix Karting (Photo: Kart Chaser / Kyle Cuthbertson)

The middle stints of the race featured many groups of drivers running together, leveraging the draft to save fuel. It was also highlighted by an extension of the lead as Overbeck gave the kart back to Massimino with an even larger advantage, although many eyes were on Jones and his two-stop Ironman strategy. Jones was super consistent all race long and while the strategy appeared to be spot on for a runner-up finish behind the super-quick BJR duo, a broken chain on lap 191 dashed his hopes of a $5000 payday, leaving him on the side of the track, physically exhausted. It was a herculean effort that almost paid off. The DNF left Beesley as the only Ironman driver finish the race, finishing two laps down in sixth.

Aiming to extend their lead to build the gap needed to stay in front of Jones, Massimino went deep in his second stint, coming to pit road for the final time on lap 166. Overbeck was back in the seat for the last 34 laps and he didn’t put a wheel wrong, pacing himself home to the race win.

Jones’ departure opened the door for Weiland to move into second at the checker, as the only other team on the lead lap. Weiland’s pace over the final laps was setting up for a head-to-head battle with Jones with two to go, as the 13-year-old was over a half-second faster a lap and closing fast. The fight for the position would not materialize with Jones’ mechanical DNF but that does not take away with the impressive performance of the young driver. Rhule was stellar during her single stint as the team moved to the two-spot strategy during the first stint. The mileage that Weiland was getting on the first stint prompted the team to push deeper and run more laps, which was needed to move to the two-stop run.

Vaughn Beesley led the Ironman effort, finishing sixth overall (Photo: Kart Chaser / Kyle Cuthbertson)

The Lemke-Wolny storyline was similar to the winning strategy as they leaned into their outright pace to stick with the three-stop strategy. Their slower pit stops hampered their ability to challenge for the win, and ultimately for second as well, but they finished third, taking home $2500 for the effort.

The remainder of the top-five featured the second Magik Kart USA / Adrenaline Fix Karting team and the Jimmy Simpson Racing effort with Eves and Simpson.  Eli Warren and Matt Powers teamed up with the second Magik entry, and like many, they began the race thinking three stops. Warren’s initial stint was strong and after going 62 laps, the team’s decision to go to the two-stop with the #33 was extended to the #32 as well. However, this was a different result as Warren did not get quite the mileage as Weiland/Rhule and he was forced to save a ton of fuel over his final stint, slipping in behind Wolny to fully leverage the draft. Warren was not in any position to attack over the final laps as he did his best to make it to the end, backing way off over the last two laps to coast across the line under the checkered flag. The tank was dry when he came to a stop at start-finish after the cool down lap.

IndyCar drivers Will Power and Kyffin Simpson partnered up to finish ninth (Photo: Kart Chaser / Kyle Cuthbertson)

Jimmy Simpson’s effort for the MHM 200 took a turn when his initial partner became unavailable and a Facebook post looking for a driver prompted Eves to make the call. The duo fought handling woes throughout Friday and Saturday, but they were able to dial things in for Sunday’s race. As mentioned, Eves was on the move through the first stint, moving from ninth to third in 15 laps. Eves was strong through the first stint, running a whopping 71 laps, and then took the kart back from Simpson on lap 133 as he’d keep them in the top-five. Eves battled through his final 66 laps, fighting neck and shoulder pain from the consistent g-forces, still needing to overcome the effects of his USF Pro 2000 wreck at Indianapolis in 2020. It was a valiant effort that delivered a top-five finish.

The remainder of the top 10 was led by Beesley in sixth and duo of Charlie Stines and Carson Sauter (GP Kart) in seventh. Hughes bookended the race for he and Abel, finishing eighth after qualifying 14th, and both have vowed to return in 2025 better prepped for the adventure. Hughes had not been in a kart since racing a KZ back in 2021.

The top finishing Masters drivers, who split a $1000 check, were the team of Tim Hollowell and Robert Fiege. This duo ran incredibly strong all race and were part of exciting four-kart pack during the final stint.  The top 10 was capped by the INDYCAR duo of Simpson and Power. Simpson started and finished the race while Power, who was not feeling 100%, did a 63-lap stint mid-race as they also employed the two-stop strategy.

When the dust had settled, the vibe in the paddock was super positive, with everyone discussing how much bigger the race will be in 2025.

Main Event Results

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