Billy Musgrave remains the top driver in the Stock Honda Driver Rankings (Photo: DromoPhotos.com)

Before the schedule gets really busy, here is the latest release of the 2018 eKartingNews.com Stock Honda Driver Rankings powered by Bell Racing USA. The upcoming weeks is going to be a busy one for the EKN staff, with a number of Trackside Live presented by Cooper Tires events over the next two months. During that time, the Driver Rankings are expected to see either some big changes, or much of the same depending on how the top-10 perform in July and August.

The top-10 is unchanged after a month of regional racing for Stock Honda drivers as 2017 SKUSA SuperNationals winner Billy Musgrave (MRC / Aluminos) remains in the top position. The 56-point advantage over Nic LeDuc (Sodikart) can easily be gone in the matter of one main event. Both of the Finals at the SKUSA SummerNationals this August will be the showdown. 2017 #1 driver Jake French (DKC / Sodikart) sits third, on the verge of dropping down the order more should he not compete in any karting events moving forward.

Kyle Wick (RPG / CRG) added his first regional win of the season at the recent Can-Am Karting Challenge. Bouncing back from issues on day one, Wick swept day two at McMinnville. Riley Dickinson (DKC / Sodikart) is still healing from his flip at the SKUSA SpringNationals. We will see if he has healed enough to make the Texas ProKart Challenge event at Amarillo later this month, or come back at the SKUSA SummerNationals. Jamaican Colin Daley (DRT / DR Kart) was among the quick drivers this weekend at the USAC Karting Battle at the Brickyard. Daley won the heat race and Prefinal but ended up second in the Final.

Hunter Pickett (Aluminos) remains in the seventh position, with S1 rookie Rory van der Steur (Tony Kart) in eighth. Both are expected to be podium contenders at the SummerNationals. Kol Bailey (LEM / Praga) sits ninth with Brian Keck (CRG) completing the top-10. The ‘Driver On the Move’ is Cameron Egger. The veteran racer from Oregon is among the drivers fighting for the S2 championship podium. The RPG / Kosmic driver picked up victory at the opening round of the Can-Am Karting Challenge, placing second on day two to help boost his Driver Rankings total.

Upcoming EKN Stock Honda Driver Rankings Schedule

(Photo: DromoPhotos.com)

Stock Moto #1 – Billy Musgrave
Norco, California

The streak continues for Billy Musgrave at the California ProKart Challenge program. The MRC / Aluminos driver put in his fourth straight perfect weekend, besting the S1 field at the Santa Maria Kart Track this past weekend. He will have to wait until September to continue the drive for five and six at Monterey Bay and Lancaster. Musgrave, a race winner on the SKUSA Pro Tour for the past three seasons, needs a victory at the SummerNationals to extend that personal streak. Musgrave is also improving on the TaG side of things, reaching the top-10 for the first time in his career.

Point Breakdown
Race,Rank,Finish,Points
SKUSA SummerNationals ’17 #1 – S1,9.5,5,1026
SKUSA SummerNationals ’17 #2 – S1,9.5,2,1058
SKUSA SuperNationals 2017 – S1,10,1,1177
SKUSA WinterNationals ’18 #1 – S1,9.5,3,998
SKUSA WinterNationals ’18 #2 – S1,9.5,2,1008
SKUSA SpringNationals ’18 #1 – S1,9.5,4,990
SKUSA SpringNationals ’18 #2 – S1,9.5,6,965

Inside the Stats
Average Finish: 3.29
Average Points: 1031.7
Total Points: 7222

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(Photo: EKN)

Stock Moto #2 – Nic LeDuc
Novato, California

Another driver that is well-rounded and has the ability to be fast in anything he jumps in is Nic LeDuc. The NorCal driver has many more years of experience than Musgrave, however, has just returned back to the national scene in the last 2 seasons. LeDuc now has a two-year streak of winning at the SKUSA SpringNationals, including this year’s race out the back of his pick-up truck, something that is becoming the norm in the S1 class. Only 104 points out of first in the SKUSA Pro Tour standings, LeDuc is making the long haul out to Indiana for the series finale. Not only for a chance at the SKUSA Pro Tour championship, but help his case at the EKN Driver Rankings #1 spot.

Point Breakdown
Race,Rank,Finish,Points
SKUSA SummerNationals ’17 #1 – S1,9.5,4,1037
SKUSA SummerNationals ’17 #2 – S1,9.5,4,1037
California ProKart Challenge ’17 #6 – S1,8.5,1,973
SKUSA SuperNationals 2017 – S1,9.5,7,1106
SKUSA WinterNationals ’18 #2 – S1,9.5,3,998
SKUSA SpringNationals ’18 #1 – S1,9.5,3,1000
SKUSA SpringNationals ’18 #2 – S1,9.5,1,1015

Inside the Stats
Average Finish: 3.29
Average Points: 1023.7
Total Points: 7166

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(Photo: EKN)

Stock Moto #3 – Jake French
Sachse, Texas

The 2018 season has not been kind to former #1 Jake French. A tough outing at the WinterNationals was followed by a wreck in his F4 US Championship car at Road Atlanta. Getting the car repaired for the following event at Mid-Ohio, French was hit once again, this time flipping the car over once hitting the dirt trap, thankfully uninjured. Jake and his family is no stranger to bouncing back. When French first moved up to the S1 category, he struggled. Hard work and dedication picked him back up and eventually became one of the top drivers in the country. We wish the same for him in his open wheel career and hope to see him back in kart soon as well.

Point Breakdown
Race,Rank,Finish,Points
SKUSA SummerNationals ’17 #1 – S1,9.5,1,1069
SKUSA SummerNationals ’17 #2 – S1,9.5,1,1069
Texas ProKart Challenge ’17 #5 – S2,8.5,1,932
Texas ProKart Challenge ’17 #6 – S2,8.5,1,932
SKUSA SuperNationals 2017 – S1,10,2,1165
SKUSA WinterNationals ’18 #1 – S1,9.5,10,927
SKUSA WinterNationals ’18 #2 – S1,9.5,5,978

Inside the Stats
Average Finish: 3.00
Average Points: 1010.3
Total Points: 7072

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 Stock Honda 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 2018, the SKUSA SuperNationals will receive a score of 10 in its initial weighting in the TaG and Stock Honda categories. A base ranking of 9.5 is set for the SKUSA Pro Tour, while a base ranking of 9 goes to the SKUSA Winter Series, United States Pro Kart Series, Florida Winter Tour, Challenge of the Americas, Rok the Rio, Rock Island Grand Prix, US Rotax Max Challenge Grand Nationals, and California ProKart Challenge. Other national and regional program races were given a base ranking of either 8.5 or 8.0.

The EKN staff reserves the right to adjust the rankings of each event throughout the year. A minimum entry total for any event to be 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, we calculate each driver’s overall score and subsequent ranking.

eKartingNews.com Stock Honda Driver Rankings powered by Bell Racing USA – as of July 6, 2018