The
second race of The Formula 100 Karting Series 2012 season was held on July 21st
at Calspeed in Fontana in conjunction with Tri-C Karters. With many of the
usual Rotax racers and crew in Utah for SKUSA Summernats, the day felt like a
step back in time as most of the racers had 100cc powered karts. There were six
classes of 100cc karts on the day, three of which belonged to the Formula 100
Karting Series.
The most hotly contested of the
Formula 100 classes was the 100cc Senior Intermediate where ten racers showed
up for a shot at victory. Kyle Gash put down the fastest lap in qualifying
running a 55.627, almost a tenth faster than second place qualifier Timmy
Fritch. Steve Muehler, Ivan Urueta, John Shepherd and David Schall were all
nipping at Fritch’s heels with qualifying times all within three tenths of the
pole.
In the first heat Muehler raced
strong and got the victory over Urueta, Gash, Shepherd, Schall and Yong. Timmy
Fritch ran into a bit of trouble but kept the kart on track. He was able to
finish the race, but well back of the rest of the
field. The top four in the first heat were separated by about a second.
Heat two proved to be as exciting
as the first. The first turn coming up the hill showed the risk inherent in
tight racing situations. Steve Muehler and John Shepherd went into turn two
side by side. Muehler’s kart slid out a little bit in the front causing contact
between he and Shepherd. Before he knew it, John
Shepherd was flying backwards across the field as they head for the tight right
hander at the top of the hill right in front of the pits. Only one racer was
unfortunate enough to make contact. David Schall took quite a hit that broke
his sidepod off and almost flipped his kart over. Luckily for Schall, the kart stayed right side up, but the damage would end his day and a bid for
the win. After a strong showing two races ago at Apex, Schall has had trouble
in the first two points of the races of the year, but with continued effort and
a little more luck he will be back in the hunt. Shepherd’s race also ended at
that point but there was minimal damage to his kart and he would race again.
The race had one other incident between Gash and Muehler, as they got into it
right before the tight left hand hairpin. The crash would end their heat race
but not their day. Back at the front Ivan Urueta was harassing 100cc Senior
Advanced driver Kalvin Chen for the overall lead. Urueta ran the fastest lap of
the race at a 55.835. Chen crossed the line first but the battle for the
overall win had only just begun. Adrian Yong was able to finish strong with a
second place. After some incidents in the last few races, Yong was able to keep
his nose clean and attain a strong result in all races. Timmy Fritch would
finish in fourth. Alex Bacon, who at the last Grange race ran the fastest 100cc
Intermediate lap time, had a catastrophic engine failure that knocked him out
for the day during heat two. He would finish in fifth during the heat, but his
day was done.
The main saw eight racers take the
green flag in Intermediate. There was action all over the field but the most
intriguing battle was at the front where Ivan Urueta and Kalvin Chen continued
their fight from the second heat for the overall lead. Urueta would get passed
Chen early. Chen would give chase, but the two would never swap positions
again, with Urueta taking the checkered by a healthy one second margin for his
first victory of the year. Urueta would run the fastest lap of the race at a
55.246. Timmy Fritch put in another strong performance after his win at Grange
finishing in second to keep him at the top of the points standings after two
races. Adrian Yong put his speed to use as he raced strong and came away with a
third place. John Shepherd, who also ran in World Formula with Tri-C, put in
another strong showing as he finished in
fourth. Kyle Gash, the pole sitter, had the speed early on in the day but was
not able to maintain his advantage over the rest of the field. He put in the
second fastest lap of the main at a 55.310, but
he was not able to parlay his fast lap times into a podium result. Gash finished the day strong though in the fiercely competitive Intermediate class and grabbed a fifth place finish. Heat one winner, Steve Muehler finished sixth, a few seconds behind Gash. The racing was fast
and furious in 100c Senior Intermediate. With a little more luck any of the
racers could have taken home the victory but this was Urueta’s day, as he
captured his first win of the young season.
100cc Senior Novice provided some
great racing action as well. Gregorio Urueta proved to be too much for Tom
Denker, Jeremy Specht and Rich Johnson as he captured win number two on the
season. Specht, who was recovering from sickness, put in a valiant effort on
the day and is one to watch for as the season progresses. Tom Denker looked
solid early in the day, as he laid down the fastest qualifying time. In both
heats and the main Denker raced hard and was consistently fast. Denker would
qualify on pole but Gregorio Urueta would prove too much as he continued to get
faster as the day progressed. Denker and Urueta would be close all day and the
battle between the two of them provided for some great entertainment. Both
drivers are looking very good on track, racing clean and consistent. Rich
Johnson, in his first race with his new Yamaha KT-100, proved he had the guts
to go fast, crashing through a barrier during qualifying. Once he gets his kart
dialed in he will be another racer to watch for as the season continues.
100cc Senior Advanced was run with
the Tri-C class 100cc Senior. The class featured a strong showing of fast and
experienced racers and proved to be an exciting class to watch throughout the
day. Joe Grable, Greg Perhacs, Nathan Thibodeaux, Chris Smith, Mike Pringle,
Tyler Coffman, Sebastian Bacon and Kalvin Chen locked horns in each event of
the day. P1 on the grid went to Joe Grable with a 54.171.
Thibodeaux took heat one over Perhacs and Chen.
Heat two was probably the most exciting race of the day with Grable coming from
the back to take second position. Bacon would follow Grable through the field
but was not able to make it as far forward. Perhacs and Bacon would cross the
finish line neck and neck with Perhacs taking the position narrowly. Chris
Smith would cross the line in first during heat two, with Grable close behind.
Right behind Grable and in front of Perhacs was Thibodeaux who would finish in
third. In the main Smith led the field down to the green. The field went hard
into turn one, with Perhacs and Thibodeaux coming into turn one side by side.
Thibodeaux hit the curb and slid out into Perhacs
who would be forced into the wall. Perhacs was able to continue but, due to damage, would not be able to put up a strong
challenge for position. Grable would get around Smith and would take off from
the field. Thibodeaux would also pass Smith and would secure second position.
Bacon was hot on Smith for several laps eventually getting past. He set off in
pursuit of Thibodeaux but would not be able to make serious inroads. Chen and
Smith would battle for several laps with Chen eventually getting around Smith
as well, and although Chen had the speed to challenge for higher positions, his
battle with Smith had lasted for several laps and he would run out of time.
Chen would finish in fourth but would run the second fastest lap time of the
race with a 54.971. Behind Chen were Smith, Pringle and Perhacs. Grable ran
away with the main event, running the fast lap at 54.746.
The Formula 100 Karting Series
hopes to see all of these racers at their next race on August 11th
at Apex in Perris, CA. Advanced class points will not be calculated until after
the August 11th race. Racers that competed on July 21st and compete and pay $45 for an F100
membership at the August 11th race at Apex, will
receive points for their finishing positions in both races. Kalvin Chen and
Sebastian Bacon, both of whom are already F100 members, will receive points for
the July 21st race but these points will only be calculated after
the August 11th race. Those that do not show up to the August 11th
race who raced in the July 21st race will forfeit their position and
the closest F100 member that finished behind them will take their position and
their points.
The racing at round two of the
Formula 100 Karting Series was excellent. Round three should be more of the
same. For more information on the Formula 100 Karting Series check out their
website, F100karters.com, and if you have any questions send them an email,
formula100kartingseries@gmail.com.
