Formula 100 Karting Series Round 6

The Formula 100 Karting Series hit the track for the 6th and final round of the 2012 season on December 9th at Grange Motor Circuit in Apple Valley, CA. A beautiful December day in the high desert greeted the racers as they arrived to do battle. Ivan Urueta had already clinched the Intermediate class title, but points battles were yet to be decided for the final 2 podium positions in the Intermediate class, while all 3 podium positions in the Advanced class were still up for grabs. The closest battle in Advanced was between Stu Hayner, who came in with a 6 point lead over Sebastian Bacon for 1st place in the 2012 Series Championship.

After a morning of open practice the day started with the first of 2 peapick heat races for the Novice and Intermediate classes. The peapick results would be used to determine the grid for the main events. When the dust had settled after 10 exciting laps, it was Bryan Bender who emerged to claim the checkered flag in heat 1. After being sidelined for many months with a severe shoulder injury, Bender made his first race of 2012 count, as he piloted his new Birel machine to top finishes throughout the day. Right behind Bender was Willow Springs race winner Adrian Yong who continued his impressive driving with another strong run. John Shepherd would finish in 3rd place, and although he brought home good results on the day, Shepherd struggled getting his CRG chassis dialed in and was not particularly happy with his performances. After a solid season in 2012, Shepherd will look to put himself at the front of pack in the Intermediate class in 2013. Tom Denker put in another strong drive as he was the first of the  Novice drivers to cross the finish line in heat 1. Denker has been impressive all season and will look to move up the ladder next year and do battle in the Intermediate class. Following behind Denker was another impressive rookie, Jeremy Specht. Specht would have a marvelous day in the high desert, showing speed and determination in his racing. Gregorio Urueta would finish right behind Specht. Urueta had a tough day at the track. Tire and engine issues led to frustrating results, but Urueta has proven himself to be an excellent racer all year, and he will be a force to be reckoned with in 2013. Vincent Lefevre, who participated in his first race of the season at Willow Springs, had a strong showing at Grange, crossing the line behind Urueta. Lefevre got his Top Kart Kt100 powered machine dialed in after a difficult day at Willow and he was able to put down some solid laps. Mike Heron had some trouble in the first heat, but his day was only just beginning as Heron would put in another strong showing eventually landing him on the podium.

The Advanced class was next to take the track. A strong group of racers showed up to battle in the Advanced class and with the points championship and season ending podium positions up for grabs, it was sure to be a great day of racing. In the first heat Kyle Hayner continued his run of excellent drives as he grabbed the checkered flag. He was followed closely by Sebastian Bacon, who was looking for a strong finish and a possible 2012 points championship. Kalvin Chen piloted his number 56 machine to a 3rd place finish in heat 1. Chen challenged for 2nd for much of the race. He and Bacon had a great battle at Grange, as they have for much of the year, with Bacon able to hold off Chen in heat 1. Stu Hayner would grab a 4th place finish as he looked to maintain his 6 point edge over Bacon in the points championship. Tom Ricketts followed closely behind Hayner coming in with a 5th place finish. Jason Bunch, who had an impressive season in KPV4 Heavy with Tri-C Karters, had a difficult day at the track. He would cross the line in 6th position in heat 1. The result was not one that Bunch will be happy with but his determination will allow him to get back into top form, and he will be a driver to watch during the 2013 season. Ivan Urueta would round out the field. Ivan Urueta, much like his dad Gregorio, would also have a bit of a tough day. His lap times were there but he was not able to put up the results that he is accustomed to. Urueta had an off day, as did Bunch, but with continued work both will have their share of podium finishes during the 2013 season.

Heat 2 provided some great racing action as well. Drivers in both classes looked to add a strong result in the 2nd heat in order to solidify their grid positions for the main event. First on the track were the Novice and Intermediate groups. Up front, Adrian Yong and Bryan Bender swapped positions, with Yong taking the win, and Bender taking 2nd. Both drivers raced very closely all race, and it was an exciting race for the spectators to watch. Jeremy Specht would have another strong drive as he would cross the line in 3rd. Tom Denker followed closely behind Specht also putting in another excellent drive. Mike Heron would cross the line behind Denker in 5th. John Shepherd finished in 6th, followed by Gregorio Urueta and Vincent Lefevre.

Next up was the Advanced class. Stu Hayner would be the first to cross the line as the checkered flag flew, followed closely by his son Kyle Hayner who put in another excellent race. Kalvin Chen and Sebastian Bacon would flip flop in heat 2, with Chen taking home 3rd and Bacon coming home in 4th. Tom Ricketts followed closely behind Bacon in 5th, with Ivan Urueta and Jason Bunch rounding out the field.

With the grids set for the main event, it was time to decide the 2012 Formula 100 Karting Series Points Championship. With Bryan Bender electing to start in the back of the field, Adrian Yong would take pole position for the main event. Bender would work his way through the field in a few laps and would eventually meet Yong at the front, but would be unable to unseat Yong from his top position. Yong would claim his 2nd victory in as many races, putting in another strong performance. Bender, in his first race of the 2012 season, would also put in a strong showing crossing the line in the 2nd. Bender will look to continue to challenge at the front of the field in 2013. Jeremy Specht would follow the 2 intermediate drivers putting in an excellent showing en route to claiming his first victory of the season. Specht has continued to put in good drive after good drive and his steady improvement and progression throughout the season has been impressive to watch. Specht will look to continue his winning ways heading into 2013. Following behind Specht was Mike Heron who, after struggling in Heat 1, continued his excellent day with a solid result. Like Specht, Heron will look to continue his solid driving heading into the 2013 season. Gregorio Urueta was finally able to get his tire and engine troubles sorted out in time for the main event and he would put in a good performance on his way to a 5th place finish (3rd in class). Urueta was a force in the Novice class in 2012 and he is looking forward to an excellent 2013 campaign. Tom Denker had speed all day, as he has all season, and was able to translate the speed into a solid result. After excellent performance in both heats, Denker would bring home a 6th place finish in the main. Denker proved himself to be an excellent racer throughout 2012 and Formula 100 is looking forward to watching him pilot his number 19 Birel during the 2013 season. John Shepherd raced well in the main, but a spin sent him off the track and finished his day. Shepherd had an excellent 2012 season, finding himself on the podium in the year end standings. Shepherd will look for a repeat performance in 2013 and he will continue to push towards a first place finish. Vincent Lefevre, after a solid race in heat 1, continued to have trouble with his kart and would round out the field in the main event. Lefevre will look to continue to dial in his equipment heading into 2013. With more seat time and more work Lefevre will be a driver to watch heading into the 2013 season.

Next up was the Advanced class who took to the track for the final on track event of the 2012 season, with points leader Stu Hayner and 2nd place racer Sebastian Bacon gridded 2nd and 3rd for the main event. As the green flag dropped it was the inside of row of Kyle Hayner and Bacon that would get the jump, with Bacon moving into 2nd. Stu Hayner would fall to 3rd, with Tom Ricketts jumping into 4th. The racing stayed clean and tight through most of lap 1, until the final corner. Stu Hayner stuck a nose in on Sebastian Bacon but while attempting to back off was tapped by Tom Ricketts from behind as Ricketts tried to push Hayner past Bacon. Hayner would spin out and would drop all the way to the back of the field. With Bacon maintaining his 2nd position, Stu Hayner would have to work his way back through the field in order to claim the 2012 Series Championship. Kyle Hayner would put in an excellent drive, running away with the main event. His number 55c Birel was dialed in and Hayner made few mistakes making it difficult for Bacon to make up any ground. While Hayner continued to put in an excellent and impressive drive up front, most of the action in the race occurred in the battle for 2nd between Tom Ricketts, Sebastian Bacon and Kalvin Chen. Ricketts hounded Bacon, criss crossing several times, and bumping and touching through many corners. The racing was clean and hard as Bacon tried desperately to hold off the speedy Birel pilot Ricketts. Chen followed closely behind Ricketts waiting for the right time to pounce. With Stu Hayner moving through the field eventually getting himself into 5th position with only a few laps to go, Bacon knew the importance of maintaining his 2nd place finish. On the last lap Bacon led Ricketts followed closely by Chen. On the final turn Bacon ran a blocking line keeping his kart to the inside. Ricketts went high attempting to set up a pass coming onto the main straight. Chen, who had been waiting for the right time to make his move, ducked to the inside and followed Bacon through the final turn. A drag race ensued between the 3 drivers and as they came down the straight it was Bacon who pumped his fists in celebration as he held off the hard charging Chen and Ricketts to bring home a 2nd place finish and seal his first Formula 100 Karting Series Senior Advanced Championship. Chen would follow closely in 3rd, with Ricketts, who raced a very strong race, just missing the podium in 4th. Stu Hayner made up much ground after his lap 1 scuffle but was not able to move past Chen or Ricketts. Ivan Urueta posted solid lap times but had a rough day at the track. After becoming accustomed to finishing in the front of the field, Urueta came home with a solid but dissapointing 6th place. Bunch would come in 7th after a difficult day at the races. Both Bunch and Urueta will look to forget about their day at Grange. Both will be serious contenders in 2013. Congratulations to Kyle Hayner for an excellent performance and a well deserved victory, and to Sebastian Bacon for taking home the 2012 Series Championship.

After an excellent first season, The Formula 100 Karting Series capped its year with a great day of racing at beautiful Grange Motor Circuit. Congratulations to Ivan Urueta and Sebastian Bacon for their 2012 Season Championships, and also to Stu Hayner, Kalvin Chen, Adriany Yong and John Shepherd for their 2nd and 3rd place finishes in the 2012 Points Championship. The Formula 100 Karting Series is working diligently to put together its ruleset, class structure and schedule for 2013, and each of those items will be available very soon. For more information on the Formula 100 Karting Series please visit their website, F100karters.com.

The TKM BT82 Piston Port Engine and TKM Festival Onboard Video

Check out the video below for some great driving action from the TKM Festival in England. The Festival is one of the largest one make engine gatherings in the world. The TKM BT82 2 stroke engine is the engine featured in the video. It is very similar to the KPV/HPV engine package and the Yamaha KT100 in terms of performance. The US received these motors and they were popular for a short time but did not have the staying power of other 100cc packages. Now the British made BT82's that are stateside mostly sit in garages unused. Check out the video and if you're interested check out the TKM website for more information on the engine.

http://www.tal-ko.com/bt82.html

http://youtu.be/eZupAkli2dM