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| April 01, 2012 News |
| EKN Trackside: Gatorz Challenge of the Americas - CalSpeed - Sunday Report |
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 | Phil DeLaO locked up the Senior Max title with victory on Championship Sunday
(Photo: Sean Buur - Go Racing Magazine) |
The sixth and final round of the 2012 Gatorz Challenge of the Americas took place at the CalSpeed Karting facility in Fontana, California. Outside the Auto Club Speedway, bright blue skies with the sun shinning down provided great weather to crown the seven champions for the international Rotax Max Challenge program. Despite rain overnight, the track gained grip with lap times quicker in the morning sessions than on Saturday, roughly three-tenths quicker in the early classes but was went away near the end of qualifying. As the temperature rose, so did the competition on track, setting up for a great finale that crowned the Senior, Junior and DD2 champions, each earning a ticket to the Rotax Grand Finals in Portugal later this year in November.
Buddy Rice Karting Senior Max
It was a busy session for the Senior Max category 15-minute hot pit qualifying run. In the early going, Louie Pagano (Birel) set the bar with his 50.902 lap, leaving the rest of the field chasing him. At about the halfway mark, nearly every driver was in pit lane, making changes to improve their time and set up for the Pre-Main. Phil DeLaO made a late run but came 36-thousandths short when the checkered flag waved. Saturday winner Parker McKean (Kosmic) was third in the run with Andrew Zimmer (Energy) improving to fourth and Senior rookie Jonathan May (FA Kart) fifth.
Pagano led the field to the green flag in the shortened 12-lap Pre-Main. Establishing a good lead, he would be eventually run down by DeLaO. With a pass for the lead sticking with a few laps to go, DeLaO went on to score the win with Pagano in second, hounded by Zimmer. McKean fell to fourth with May holding the fifth position.
With a trip to the Grand Finals on the line, DeLaO stepped up to the plate and secured the trip with the championship. DeLaO and Pagano led the way to the green flag with DeLaO holding the top spot through the opening corners. Pagano worked by to lead for a lap until DeLaO came back to secure the position. From that point, DeLaO ran consistent laps at or under the 51-second pace to cruise to a 1.974-second victory. The win locked up the title and gave him a ticket to the Rotax Grand Finals as part of Team USA for the first time. Pagano ran to second with May coming through in third to complete a double podium weekend in his first Senior event. Spaulding drove his way up to fourth to give him second overall in the standings with Marotta capping off the top-five.
 | Fritz Leesmann went 6 for 6 in Main Events for DD2
(Photo: Sean Buur - Go Racing Magazine) |
Overdrive Motorsports DD2 / BRK Engines DD2 Masters
The first laps of the weekend to break the 50-second barrier came in DD2 qualifying. First off, Daniel Burkett (LH) laid the first laps into the 49-second bracket early in the session. He held the provisional pole until championship leader Fritz Leesmann (CRG) was able to make the right changes and steal the top time. His 49.839 was best in the session with Burkett about 0.146 seconds back. Scott Campbell (CRG) was third overall, first in Masters with Austin King (PCR) fourth, John Crow (Arrow) fifth and Jim Carey Sr. (Arrow) sixth.
Leesmann broke away from the field in the Pre-Main and score the win to further establish his championship lead. The battle behind him cost two drivers the race as Burkett got sideways on lap two, collecting Campbell. Burkett pulled off while Campbell continued on. Eventually, he would pull off the track on lap nine, moving the battle between King and Crow for second. Crow slid by King a couple times, but in the end it was King scoring the off pole position for the Main Event. Carey finished off the order in the fourth position.
Completing a perfect season in the Main Events, Leesmann cruised to victory in the final 25-lap event of the series. With the win, he locked up the championship and the spot on Team USA for the Rotax Grand Finals. Former DD2 Masters champ Campbell earned the win in Masters with a second place overall. Burkett finished third with Crow on his bumper the entire run with King and Carey completing the running order.
Rolison Performance Group Junior Max
With the championship just down to two drivers and out of reach for defending champ Parker Thompson (Tony Kart), race victory is the only goal for the Canadian on the day. Repeating his qualifying performance from Saturday, Thompson ended Sunday’s run as the quickest driver with a 51.014 lap. Championship contender Zacharie Scalzo (LH) came just 20-thousandths of a second short of gaining the pole and five extra points in the title chase, but earned the off-pole grid position. Saturday winner Jake Craig (CRG) was third in the session with point leader Luke Selliken (Kosmic) fourth and Jim McKinney (Intrepid) fifth.
 | Parker Thompson ended the 2012 Gatorz COTA with victory in Junior Max
(Photo: Sean Buur - Go Racing Magazine) |
The championship took a turn for the worse for Selliken at the start of the Pre-Main. Involved in contact with McKinney, both were out of the race on the exit of turn one for the opening lap. Out front, Thompson ran away with the win, stretching out to a three-second advantage over Scalzo with Craig in third. Rocha was shuffled out of the top-five early, but battled back to fourth as he worked by Jake Preston (Kosmic) in the late stages.
Thompson, in championship fashion, showed why he was the 2011 title winner in the category with a demanding victory in the Main Event. Driving away to a seven-second victory, Thompson ended the series on a high note. Behind him was the fight for this year’s championship came down to the wire. Scalzo, needing to finish second, fell back to fourth early on as Rocha was the driver on the charge and moved up to second with Craig in third. As the laps clicked off, Rocha’s kart lost grip. Eventually, both Craig and Scalzo worked by for position with the Canadian moving into second. Working the final few laps, Scalzo ran consistent laps, as he had all season long, and secured the position to the checkered to clinch the title. With the championship comes a spot on Team Canada for the Rotax Grand Finals. Craig finished on the podium in third with Rocha and Versteeg rounding out the top-five.
Billet Performance Karting Masters Max
With the championship lead in his grasp, Paul Bonilla (Arrow) focused primarily on adding to his lead in hopes of the series title. As the only driver under the 52-second mark, Bonilla scored five bonus points with the pole position, dropping a 51.995 lap. Saturday winner Scott Holmboe (Swiss Hutless) was second in the session with John Crow (Tony Kart) in third, putting the podium drivers from Saturday into the top three to begin Sunday’s action. Brent Harper (Swiss Hutless) ended up fourth with Scott Falcone (Arrow) coming back from a broken chain early in the session, able to push it back to pit lane and replace it, moving up fifth toward the end.
 | Paul Bonilla come through with victory in Masters Max to secure the title
(Photo: Sean Buur - Go Racing Magazine) |
A clean race for the Masters group in their Pre-Main as Crow benefitted from the fight for second in the opening laps to establish a solid lead early. From there, he drove to a three-second victory. Bonilla was shuffled back outside the top-five but with fast laps, drove his way up to the second spot after 12 laps. Unfortunately, he was docked with a three-second penalty for a starting lane violation, moving him back to sixth. That put Falcone to second, Holmboe third, Harper fourth and Tony Rossetti (Arrow) in fifth.
The Main Event was the race we waited for all weekend, and so did Bonilla. The top five put on a great show in the first half of the race, dicing up positions and numerous lead changes. Bonilla would eventually secure the lead and score the victory to lock up the championship. Scott Falcone came away with the second spot, unable to run down Bonilla. Crow finished third to make it four podiums on the weekend. Harper came back from a stuck throttle to pass Bill Kann (Birel) on the final lap of the race to earn fourth.
BBR Karting Mini Max
Trailing in the standings, Sting Ray Robb (Tony Kart) began his hunt for the title with five bonus points for topping the charts in Mini Max qualifying. His 53.315-lap was quicker by over a tenth of Royal McKee’s (Energy) fast lap. Championship leader and Saturday winner Christian Brooks (Energy) was third with Horatio Fitz-Simon (CRG) and Nicky Hays (Birel) rounding out the fast-five. After tech inspection, it was discovered that Robb had mounted the wrong tires for the session, and thus was removed from the results. That moved McKee to the pole position and Robb to the back of the 12-kart field for the Pre-Main.
The luck turned against Brooks in the Pre-Main as contact in the opening lap put him at the back of the field. He would eventually finish ninth, setting up for some drama come the Main Event for the championship. On the flip-side, Robb drove a great race and was made it a three driver battle for the win with McKee and Hays. McKee led early but lost the spot to Hays mid-way through. Near the end when Robb caught them both, they shuffled position until Hays secured the lead and the win. McKee fought off Robb for second. Garrett Gulenchyn (Tony Kart) advanced to fourth with Carson Vogel (Tony Kart) up to fifth.
 | Christian Brooks drove his way forward to a fourth win of the season and the Mini Max title
(Photo: Sean Buur - Go Racing Magazine) |
Brooks showed why he was the 2011 Mini Max Grand Nationals champion, with an impressive final showing in the Main Event. Starting seventh, Brooks worked his way to the point and drove away to the victory. Despite a three-second starting procedure penalty, he still held the victory in the final classifications and secured the class championship, earning another trip back to the Grand Nationals. McKee fought off Robb to the stripe for the second spot, ending in a photo finish. Fitz-Simon drove a great race, back to fourth from 12th with Hays ending up in fifth.
Apollo Motorsports Micro Max
Sophia Price (Kosmic) continues to be the fast lap guru as she once again earned the top spot in the qualifying session for Micro Max. Her 57.802-lap was quickest in the session as she will lead the field to the green flag for the Pre-Main. Championship leader Jacob Blue Hudson (Energy) was second with Derek DesLauriers (Energy), Griffin Dowler (Tony Kart), and Payton Durrant (Birel) filling out the fast-five.
After a red flag for an accident involving Corbin Emery (Birel), not seriously hurt, the Micro Max Pre-Main restarted. Once underway, Price, Hudson and Rafailov led the field for much of the race. Once they began shuffling for position, Hudson took the point and scored the win. Contact on lap seven left Price off the track and back in ninth in the final order. Rafailov finished second, DesLauriers third, Connor Wick (Wild Kart) fourth and Dowler fifth.
 | A popular figure in the paddock, Jacob Blue Hudson scored the Micro Max win Sunday and the championship
(Photo: Sean Buur - Go Racing Magazine) |
Hudson put the exclamation point on his championship with a great drive in the Main Event. The race came down to five at the front with Price and Dowler closing up on Hudson, DesLauriers and Durrant. Contact shuffled up the group on lap 13, allowing Hudson to cruise to the victory and the title. DesLauriers came home second with Price a great drive to third. Durrant finished fourth with Dowler ending up fifth.
Wrap-up
With the Gatorz Challenge of the Americas now complete, three drivers have set up their travel schedule for the end of November, taking their talents to Portimao, Portugal and competing against the top 'Rotaxians' from around the world. For the other four title winners, a ticket to the Grand Nationals awaits them for August when the event unfolds at the Michiana Raceway Park in South Bend, IN. Putting together it's best attended series in its five years, Andy Seesemann and the Gatorz COTA staff now looks to continue its improvement for the 2013 season. |
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