Jerry Andersen-World
De Silva Claims Victory after Late Race Pass in Round Ten
Round ten began on Saturday afternoon with a 4:00pm qualifying session where it took Timothy De Silva, #3, TLP Racing, DRF Van Diemen just three laps to put up a lap at 1 minute 34.476 seconds to claim his eighth pole position of the season. Starting alongside De Silva on the front row will be Scott Huffaker; #09, Van Diemen RF02. Tom Hope; #10, Primus Racing Parts, Dart, H+M Racing Van Diemen RF03 and Bob Negron, #9, Terri Negron Web Design, Rosy’s at the Beach, Negron Racing Van Diemen RF99 will occupy the second row of the grid, followed by Scott Vreeland, #51, Redhorse Constructors, Porter Racing, BV Training Van Diemen RF01, Paul Rodler in his #45, Porter Racing, 1991 Swift DB6/Pinto, Peter West; #99, Racing Optics, Kodenko Jeans, Malibu Health, Frank Monise Motors, DFR Van Diemen RF05, Harin de Silva; #96, DFR Van Diemen RF06, Tim Fass; #34, Fass Brothers Racing Van Diemen RF96, Ken Rozeboom; #81, Porter Racing Van Diemen RF02, Geoffrey Fass; #85, Fass Brothers Racing Van Diemen RF96 and William Jordanov; #59, Van Diemen RF99.
In a precautionary move prior to the race, the Dave Freitas Racing crew after detecting some strange sounds from the gearbox in De Sivas’ Van Diemen while warming up the engine, managed to change first and second gears and getting the car to the grid in time for the start of the race.
Scott Huffaker, buoyed by his victory in round nine, used his front row starting position to vault into the lead ahead of pole sitter Tim De Silva as the field rounded turn one and headed up the hill into turn two the competitors began to settle into a single file, serpentine formation. By the time the first lap was complete it remained Huffaker in the lead closely followed by Timothy De Silva, Tom Hope, Bob Negron, Scott Vreeland, Peter West, Paul Rodler, Harin De Silva, Tim Fass, Ken Rozeboom and William Jordanov.
Lap three saw Hope fall behind Negron which lasted for two laps before Hope reclaimed his hold on third place as the remainder of the field began to stretch out.
For the first several laps Huffaker managed to have a small gap before T. De Silva began to close in and apply pressure which he was able to maintain throughout the race. Huffaker under intense pressure drove line perfect lap after lap managing to keep De Silva behind.
As the race wore on the pressure continued with De Silva beginning to stick his nose inside Huffaker at several points throughout the lap for lap after lap until lap seventeen entering turn one De Silva, having the benefit of fresher tires due to his retirement on Friday and only running three laps during qualifying, gained an advantage coming out of turn eleven found his way inside Huffaker and as the pair negotiated turn one Huffaker, after contact, went wide, through the dirt and ceded the position losing several seconds. This pass enabled Timothy De Silva to claim the lead which he was to hold
to the end. After breaking a track record that had stood for nearly 20 years, De Silva who set a new record on Friday proceeded to set another record on Sunday setting a lap of 1 minute 34.134 seconds.
Huffaker tried to claw back the lost seconds but this was to no avail as his tires were on their last laps and was forced to settle for second place. This finish enabled Huffaker to close in on second place in the standings.
Tom Hope finished in third place for his ninth consecutive podium result.
Bob Negron, who briefly held third after an overnight gear change, was still unable to fend off Hope and finished in fourth while claiming the Master Class win for the second consecutive event.
Scott Vreeland had another steady run to finish in fifth and was followed to the flag by DFR teammates Peter West in sixth and Harin De Silva in seventh, Paul Rodler in his lone Swift DB6, Ken Rozeboom and William Jordanov.
This season the Pacific Formula F2000 Championship Series is included in the Mazda Road to Indy USF2000 $200k Scholarship Shootout in 2016. The shootout will be expanded to include the champions of junior open-wheel and karting series both nationally and internationally. The winner of the knockout style shootout will be provided with a $200k Scholarship to enter the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda in 2017 – the first rung in the Mazda Road to Indy ladder sanctioned by INDYCAR.
The Mazda Road to Indy is the only driver development program of its type in the world offering a clear, scholarship-funded path to the Verizon IndyCar Series and Indianapolis 500.
The Pacific F2000/F1600 series has a rich history and includes among its alumni drivers J.R. Hildebrand, 2011 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the year, Dane Cameron, IMSA Weather Tech Sports Car Series Prototype and GTD winning driver, and Prototype driver Tristin Nunez along with Pro Mazda Presented by Cooper Tires point leading driver Patricio O’Ward and Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda drivers Nikita Lastochkin, Yufeng Luo and Tazio Ottis.
The series now moves to Auto Club Speedway in Fontana for the final two rounds, October 29th and 30th.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Timothy de Silva (Van Diemen RF01), 1m34.476s; 2. Scott Huffaker (Van Diemen RF02), 1m35.474s ; 3.Tom Hope (Van Diemen RF03), 1m35.548s; 4. Bob Negron (Van Diemen RF99), 1m36.726s; 5. Scott Vreeland (Van Diemen RF01), 1m37.307; 6. Paul Rodler (Swift DB6/Pinto), 1m38.574s; 7. Peter West, (Van Diemen RF05), 1m38.694s; 8. Harindra De Silva (Van Diemen RF06), 1m38.725s; 9. Tim Fass, (Van Diemen RF96/Pinto), 1m41.328s; 10. Ken Rozeboom, (Van Diemen RF02), 1m41.687s; 11. Geoffrey Fass, (Van Diemen RF96/Pinto), 1m42.429s; 12. William Jordanov, (Van Diemen RF99), 1m43.364s. All cars run on Ford Zetec engines, unless noted
and Pirelli Tires.
F2000 Round 10 (19 laps): 1. T. De Silva, 2. Huffaker,+4.642s; 3. Hope, +26.875s; 4. Negron, +51.352s; 5. Vreeland, +57.787s; 6. West, +1:26.970s; 7. H. De Silva, +1:33.222; 8. Rodler, +1:35.578; 9. Rozeboom, +1 lap; 10. Jordanov, +1 lap; 11. T. Fass, +17 laps.
Fastest race lap: T. De Silva, 1m34.134s, (Track record).
Master class winner (over 50): Negron.
Points: 1. T. De Silva, 279; 2. Hope, 235; 3. Huffaker, 228; 4. Hakewill, 142; 5. H. De Silva, 127; 6. West, 122; 7. Funk, 119; 8. Vreeland, 100; 9. Armington, 97; 10. Kirby, 82; 11. Negron, 66; 12. Fierberg, Kodenko, 54; 14. Ellsworth, 41; 15. Fabijanic, 30.
The series can be followed at https://www.facebook.com/pacificf2000racing and https://www.twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to http://www.pacificf2000.com or contact Peter West at 310-363-9444, or by email,
pacificf2000@hotmail.com.
Huffaker Battles Hope to Claim First F2000 Victory in Round Nine
After a morning practice, qualifying was held early Friday afternoon under sunny skies and warm conditions with temperatures reaching into the eighties. Timothy De Silva, #3, TLP Racing, DRF Van Diemen, assumed his now customary position at the head of the pack as he claimed another pole position turning in a lap of 1 minute 34.401 seconds and was the only driver to break the 1 minute 35 second barrier. Occupying the front row with De Silva was Tom Hope; #10, Primus Racing Parts, Dart, H+M Racing Van Diemen RF03. The second row of the grid was headed by Scott Huffaker; #09, Van Diemen RF02 lining up next to Bob Negron, #9, Terri Negron Web Design, Rosy’s at the Beach, Negron Racing Van Diemen RF99. Following this pair were Scott Vreeland, #51, Redhorse Constructors, Porter Racing, BV Training Van Diemen RF01, Paul Rodler in his #45, Porter Racing, 1991 Swift DB6/Pinto, Peter West; #99, Racing Optics, Kodenko Jeans, Malibu Health, Frank Monise Motors, DFR Van Diemen RF05, Harin de Silva; #96, DFR Van Diemen RF06, Tim Fass; #34, Fass Brothers Racing Van Diemen RF96, Ken Rozeboom; #81, Porter Racing Van Diemen RF02, William Jordanov; #59, Van Diemen RF99 and Geoffrey Fass; #85, Fass Brothers Racing Van Diemen RF96.
The field took the green flag on time for the 5:00pm start and as they field streamed through turn one and headed up the hill to turn two it was Timothy De Silva with the lead by the end of the first lap it was De Silva followed by Scott Huffaker, Tom Hope, Bob Negron, Scott Vreeland, Paul Rodler, Peter West, Harindra De Silva, Tim Fass, Ken Rozenboom, William Jordanov and Geoffrey Fass.
De Silva continued to lead for the next several laps with Huffaker and Hope following in his wheel tracks and they were beginning to pull away from Negron, Vreeland and the rest of the field.
Tim Fass was the first retirement on lap four and was followed by Tim De Silva three laps later when he suffered a punctured radiator and quickly retired the car to prevent further damage.
With the retirement of De Silva, Scott Huffaker assumed his place at the head of the field and became the first driver to lead a lap in the series since round two in Fontana in January. Not alone at the head of the field, Huffaker was harried and challenged closely for the lead by Tom Hope with the pair often side by side as evidenced by the wheel mark on the left sidepod of Hope’s Van Diemen. This battle continued lap after lap until the checkered flag when it was Scott Huffaker taking the hard fought victory to end De Silva’s winning streak at six.
Tom Hope, the 2015 series champion had to settle for second place just two and a half seconds behind.
Finishing in third for the final step on the podium was Bob Negron whose Van Diemen did not quite have the pace of the leaders today finishing a further fourteen seconds in arrears. Negron’s effort also netted him the Master Class win.
Just off the podium in fourth place came Scott Vreeland for his best finish thus far this season. Vreeland was followed by Peter West who studied Paul Rodler’s line for the first half of the race before finally moving ahead of the lone Swift in the race on lap eight to claim fifth place with Rodler in sixth. They were followed by Harindra De Silva, Ken Rozenboom and William Jordanov, the last car running at the finish.
The field returns Saturday afternoon for qualifying for the Sunday morning race to be held at 9:45 in the morning.
This season the Pacific Formula F2000 Championship Series is included in the Mazda Road to Indy USF2000 $200k Scholarship Shootout in 2016. The shootout will be expanded to include the champions of junior open-wheel and karting series both nationally and internationally. The winner of the knockout style shootout will be provided with a $200k Scholarship to enter the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda in 2017 – the first rung in the Mazda Road to Indy ladder sanctioned by INDYCAR.
The Mazda Road to Indy is the only driver development program of its type in the world offering a clear, scholarship-funded path to the Verizon IndyCar Series and Indianapolis 500.
The Pacific F2000/F1600 series has a rich history and includes among its alumni drivers J.R. Hildebrand, 2011 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the year and Dane Cameron, Tudor Series Prototype and GTD winning driver along with Pro Mazda Presented by Cooper Tires driver Patricio O’Ward and Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda drivers Nikita Lastochkin and Yufeng Luo.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Timothy de Silva (Van Diemen RF01), 1m34.401s; 2. Tom Hope (Van Diemen RF03), 1m35.153s; 3. Scott Huffaker (Van Diemen RF02), 1m35.308s ; 4. Bob Negron (Van Diemen RF99), 1m35.535s; 5. Scott Vreeland (Van Diemen RF01), 1m37.442; 6. Paul Rodler (Swift DB6/Pinto), 1m38.247s; 7. Peter West, (Van Diemen RF05), 1m39.030s; 8. Harindra De Silva (Van Diemen RF06), 1m39.201s; 9. Tim Fass, (Van Diemen RF96/Pinto), 1m43.411s; 10. Ken Rozeboom, (Van Diemen RF02), 1m43.476s; 11. William Jordanov, (Van Diemen RF99), 1m43.741s; 12.
Geoffrey Fass, (Van Diemen RF96/Pinto), 1m43.989s. All cars run on Ford Zetec engines, unless noted and Pirelli Tires.
F2000 Round 9 (18 laps): 1. Huffaker, 2. Hope, +2.657s; 3. Negron, +16.857s; 4. Vreeland, +34.720s; 5. West, +58.462s; 6. Rodler, +59.484; 7. H. De Silva, +1m26.84s; 8. Rozeboom, +1 lap; 9. Jordanov, +1 lap; 10. G. Fass, +10 laps; 11. T. De Silva, +11 laps; 12. T. Fass, +14 laps.
Fastest race lap: T. De Silva, 1m34.624s.
Master class winner (over 50): Negron.
Points: 1. T. De Silva, 245; 2. Hope, 213; 3. Huffaker, 203; 4. Hakewill, 142; 5. Funk, 119; 6. H. De Silva, 113; 7. West, 107; 8. Armington, 97; 9. Vreeland, 83; 10. Kirby, 82; 11. Fierberg, Kodenko, 54; 13. Negron, 47; 14. Ellsworth, 41; 15. Fabijanic, 30.
The series can be followed at https://www.facebook.com/pacificf2000racing and https://www.twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to http://www.pacificf2000.com or contact Peter West at 310-363-9444, or by email, pacificf2000@hotmail.com.
De Silva Completes Weekend Sweep in Round 8 at Mazda Raceway
A 9:00am qualifying, with the early morning fog clearing, set the field and as it has been for the past five events, Timothy De Silva, #3, TLP Racing, DRF Van Diemen, put up the fastest lap time with a lap of 1m26.349s, faster than the pole time he set on Friday, an impressive performance considering this was the third heat cycle for the tires and included Saturday’s race, demonstrating the performance of the Pirelli tires, specified for use in the series. Lining up next to De Silva on the front row for the afternoon race will be Scott Huffaker; #09, Van Diemen RF02. The second row consists
of Tom Hope; #10, Primus Racing Parts, Dart, H+M Racing Van Diemen RF03 and James Hakewill, #88, Van Diemen RF03 lining up ahead of Bob Negron, #9, Terri Negron Web Design, Rosy’s at the Beach, Negron Racing Van Diemen, Alex Kirby; #81, LA Prep Inc., Fast Forward Components, Piper Race Cars, Piper DL7, Connor Funk; #97, DFR Van Diemen RF03, Scott Vreeland, #51, Redhorse Constructors, Porter Racing, BV Training Van Diemen RF01, Harin de Silva; #96, DFR Van Diemen RF06, Peter West; #99, Racing Optics, Kodenko Jeans, Malibu Health, Frank Monise Motors, DFR Van Diemen RF05, Paul Rodler in his #45, Porter Racing, 1991 Swift DB6/Pinto, Jeffrey Pietz, #80, Cleveland Infant Care, Van Diemen DP 08, Ray Bill Dormandy, #15, Cecilia Rose Foundation, Van Diemen RF02, Sterling Ellsworth, #22, That’s My Juice Racing, LLC, Van Diemen RF01 and Paul McFarlane, #37, Magtrax, HorseTrack Software, Van Diemen RF94. John Fabijanic, #46, Piper DF5 was unable to resolve his brake issues and chose not to start, while Bob Negron spent his evening repairing his gearbox and James Hakewill took four hours replacing a faulty clutch bearing.
The green flag dropped and it was Timothy De Silva using his preferred starting spot to claim the lead ahead of Scott Huffaker and Tom Hope while further down, James Hakewill, having missed a shift and losing several places made his task more difficult by running of course at turn 6, through the gravel and nearly to the tire barrier returning to the track near the rear of the pack and when the field completed the first lap it was T. De Silva leading from Huffaker, Hope, Funk, Negron, Kirby, Vreeland, H. De Silva, West, Rodler, Pietz, Hakewill, Ellsworth, Dormandy and McFarlane.
While the field slowly strung out with T. De Silva still leading, Hakewill was making his charge up through the field passing both Pietz and Rodler taking tenth place on lap 2, moving past West for ninth on lap 4 and H. De Silva on lap 5 to begin his chase of Kirby in seventh.
Kirby was demoted to seventh by Vreeland having been passed on the ninth lap, Kirby was continuing to suffer from the oversteer which took its toll on his rear tires.
Connor Funk, while holding on to fourth place began to experience fuel sensor problems causing a loss of power and eventually wound up losing his position to Negron, having solved his gearbox problems of Saturday. Funk would lose an additional position to Vreeland to finish in sixth place.
Timothy De Silva’s cruised serenely to victory, his sixth consecutive, further extending his points lead and set fastest race lap. De Silva was never headed as he won by a margin of 21.229 seconds.
Scott Huffaker held on to claim second place solidifying his third place in the standings.
Tom Hope, the 2015 Series Champion, hard as he tried, could do no better than third place giving way to the two drivers competing for the opportunity to compete in the Mazda Road to Indy USF2000 Scholarship Shootout while still holding second place in the points.
Bob Negron’s run to fourth place gave him victory in the Master Class (drivers 51 and older), his first of the season.
Fifth place went to Scott Vreeland followed by Funk in sixth, Alex Kirby, Harindra De Silva, James Hakewill, whose early off course excursion resulted in a punctured radiator causing coolant loss and engine overheating, Peter West, Paul Rodler, Jeffrey Pietz, Sterling Ellsworth, Paul McFarlane and Ray Bill Dormandy.
The series now moves to Sonoma Raceway for rounds nine and ten, July 1-3.
This season the Pacific Formula F2000 Championship Series is included in the Mazda Road to Indy USF2000 $200k Scholarship Shootout in 2016. The shootout will be expanded to include the champions of junior open-wheel and karting series both nationally and internationally. The winner of the knockout style shootout will be provided with a $200k Scholarship to enter the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda in 2017 – the first rung in the Mazda Road to Indy ladder sanctioned by INDYCAR.
The Mazda Road to Indy is the only driver development program of its type in the world offering a clear, scholarship-funded path to the Verizon IndyCar Series and Indianapolis 500.
The Pacific F2000/F1600 series has a rich history and includes among its alumni drivers J.R. Hildebrand, 2011 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the year and Dane Cameron, Tudor Series Prototype and GTD winning driver along with Pro Mazda Presented by Cooper Tires driver Patricio O’Ward and Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda drivers Nikita Lastochkin and Yufeng Luo.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Timothy de Silva (Van Diemen RF01), 1m26.349s; 2. Scott Huffaker (Van Diemen RF02), 1m27.602s; 3. Tom Hope (Van Diemen RF03), 1m27.644s; 4. James Hakewill (Van Diemen RF03), 1m27.967; 5. Bob Negron (Van Diemen RF99), 1m28.322s; 6. Alex Kirby (Piper DL7), 1m28.382s; 7. Connor Funk, (Van Diemen RF03), 1m28.825s; 8. Scott Vreeland (Van Diemen RF01), 1m28..924; 9. Harindra De Silva (Van Diemen RF06), 1m29.325s; 10. Peter West, (Van Diemen RF05), 1m30.747s; 11. Paul Rodler (Swift DB6/Pinto), 1m32.191s; 12. Jeffrey Pietz (Van
Diemen DP08), 1m33.671s; 13. Ray Bill Dormandy (Van Diemen RF00), 1m33.911s; 14. Sterling Ellsworth (Van Diemen RF01), 1m35.938s; 15. Paul McFarlane (Van Diemen RF94/Pinto), 1m46.332s. All cars run on Ford Zetec engines, unless noted and Pirelli Tires.
F2000 Round 8 (22 laps): 1. T. De Silva, 2. Huffaker, +21.229s; 3. Hope, +30.244s; 4. Negron, +45.894s; 5. Vreeland, +57.667s; 6. Funk, +1m09.974; 7. Kirby, +1m15.708s; 8. H. De Silva, +1m23.210s; 9. Hakewill, +1m28.415s; 10. West, +1 lap; 11. Rodler, +1 lap; 12. Pietz, +1 lap; 13. Ellsworth, +1 lap; 14. McFarlane +3 laps; 15. Fabijanic, NS.
Fastest race lap: T. De Silva, 1m27.311s.
Master class winner (over 50): Negron.
Points: 1. T. De Silva, 240; 2. Hope, 188; 3. Huffaker, 173; 4. Hakewill, 142; 5. Funk, 119; 6. H. De Silva, 99; 7. Armington, 97; 8. West, 90; 9. Kirby, 82; 10. Vreeland, 64; 11. Fierberg, Kodenko, 54; 13. Ellsworth, 41; 14. Fabijanic, 30; 15. Negron, 25.
The series can be followed at https://www.facebook.com/pacificf2000racing and https://www.twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to http://www.pacificf2000.com or contact Peter West at 310-363-9444, or by email,
pacificf2000@hotmail.com.
De Silva Dominates Field at Mazda Raceway for Fifth Consecutive Victory
Qualifying was held on Friday under sunny and cool conditions with temperatures reaching into the seventies as the series drivers took to the track promptly at 1:10pm and it was Timothy De Silva, #3, TLP Racing, DRF Van Diemen, leading the session and was the only driver to get into the 1m26sec bracket with a time of 1m26.943sec. De Silva’s time was nearly a second faster than second place qualifier Alex Kirby; #81, LA Prep Inc., Fast Forward Components, Piper Race Cars, Piper DL7, putting Kirby in the ideal spot to challenge De Silva in the race. Third fastest went to Bob Negron, #9, Terri Negron Web Design, Rosy’s at the Beach, Negron Racing Van Diemen, in his first appearance in the series this season, drawing on his vast experience at this venue. Next was 2015 series champion Tom Hope; #10, Primus Racing Parts, Dart, H+M Racing Van Diemen RF03. Heading the third row was James Hakewill, #88, Van Diemen RF03 lining up beside Scott Huffaker; #09, Van Diemen RF02. Next up were Scott Vreeland, #51, Redhorse Constructors, Porter Racing, BV Training Van Diemen RF01 and Harin de Silva; #96, DFR Van Diemen RF06 followed by Connor Funk; #97, DFR Van Diemen RF03, Peter West; #99, Racing Optics, Kodenko Jeans, Malibu Health, Frank Monise Motors, DFR Van Diemen RF05, Paul Rodler in his #45, Porter Racing, 1991 Swift DB6/Pinto, Ray Bill Dormandy, #15, Cecilia Rose Foundation, Van Diemen RF02, Jeffrey Pietz, #80, Cleveland Infant Care, Van Diemen DP 08, Sterling Ellsworth, #22, That’s My Juice Racing, LLC, Van Diemen RF01, John Fabijanic, #46, Piper DF5, and Paul McFarlane, #37, Magtrax, HorseTrack Software, Van Diemen RF94.
At the green flag the field streamed side by side down to the Andretti hairpin for the first time with Timothy De Silva edged ahead of Alex Kirby with Tom Hope, Bob Negron, James Hakewill, Scott Huffaker in close pursuit, but by the end of the first lap it was De Silva with a clear lead from Kirby, Hope, Negron, Huffaker, Hakewill, Vreeland, Funk, Harin De Silva, West Rodler, Dormandy, Pietz, Ellsworth, McFarlane and Fabijanic slowed by brake issues.
Unfortunately for Rodler, his race was to last just two laps as a broken header forced his retirement.
Behind De Silva, as he stretched out his lead, were several good battles taking place between Hope and Kirby, Huffaker and Negron and Funk and Vreeland with the latter resolved on lap 6 when Funk got by Vreeland and began to pull away.
Closer to the front Hope managed to get by Kirby as oversteer began to show its affects when Kirby began to lose grip in his rear tire and began losing ground allowing Hope to get by on lap 7. Hope, now in second place, attempted to close the gap to leader De Silva. This was to no avail as De Silva was just too fast on this day and Hope had to settle for the second step on the podium.
Lap 7 also saw Huffaker pass Negron as Negron began to experience gearbox problems that would force him into retirement three laps later.
Huffaker now clear in fourth place began his push toward the Kirby in third eventually catching and passing him with four laps to go to claim third place in a car he was still at odds with, even so he believed that second place was possible and admitted that he was moving in the right direction with the car.
Behind Kirby who finished fourth came Hakewill, Funk, Vreeland, who claimed Master Class honors, Harin De Silva and West, who was the last of the un-lapped cars. These were followed by Dormandy, Pietz and Ellsworth, one lap down, Fabijanic, down two laps and McFarlane, three laps in arrears.
Timothy De Silva’s victory was his fifth consecutive, extending his points lead in the series and with his lap of 1m26.881s, set a new FC track record. During his run to the checker, De Silva was never headed nor seriously challenged as he won by a margin of 11.411 seconds.
The field returns Sunday morning with a brief final qualifying session and 10:30 am race.
This season the Pacific Formula F2000 Championship Series is included in the Mazda Road to Indy USF2000 $200k Scholarship Shootout in 2016. The shootout will be expanded to include the champions of junior open-wheel and karting series both nationally and internationally. The winner of the knockout style shootout will be provided with a $200k Scholarship to enter the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda in 2017 – the first rung in the Mazda Road to Indy ladder sanctioned by INDYCAR.
The Mazda Road to Indy is the only driver development program of its type in the world offering a clear, scholarship-funded path to the Verizon IndyCar Series and Indianapolis 500.
The Pacific F2000/F1600 series has a rich history and includes among its alumni drivers J.R. Hildebrand, 2011 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the year and Dane Cameron, Tudor Series Prototype and GTD winning driver along with Pro Mazda Presented by Cooper Tires driver Patricio O’Ward and Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda drivers Nikita Lastochkin and Yufeng Luo.
F2000 Qualifying (Round 7): 1. Timothy de Silva (Van Diemen RF01), 1m26.943s; 2. Alex Kirby (Piper DL7), 1m27.811s; 3. Bob Negron (Van Diemen RF99), 1m27.914s; 4.Tom Hope (Van Diemen RF03), 1m28.215s; 5. James Hakewill (Van Diemen RF03), 1m28.387; 6. Scott Huffaker (Van Diemen RF02), 1m28.732s; 7. Scott Vreeland (Van Diemen RF01), 1m29.244; 8. Harindra De Silva (Van Diemen RF06), 1m29.520s; 9. Connor Funk, (Van Diemen RF03), 1m29.568s; 10. Peter West, (Van Diemen RF05), 1m30.001s; 11. Paul Rodler (Swift DB6/Pinto), 1m32.275s; 12. Ray Bill Dormandy (Van Diemen RF00), 1m32.932s; 13. Jeffrey Pietz (Van Diemen DP08), 1m33.492s; 14. Sterling Ellsworth (Van Diemen RF01), 1m35.390s; 15. John Fabijanic (Piper DF5), 1m38.728s; 16. Paul McFarlane (Van Diemen RF94/Pinto), 1m47.775s. All cars run on Ford Zetec engines, unless noted and Pirelli Tires.
F2000 Round 7 (17 laps): 1. T. De Silva, 2. Hope, +11.411s; 3. Huffaker, +12.561s; 4. Kirby, +21.831s; 5. Hakewill, +32.621s; 6. Funk, +32.894; 7. Vreeland, +43.526s; 8. H. De Silva, +1m05.422s; 9. West, +1m06.970s; 10. Dormandy, +1 lap; 11. Pietz, +1 lap; 12. Ellsworth, +1 lap; 13. Fabijanic, +2 laps; 14. McFarlane +3 laps; 15. Rodler, +15 laps.
Fastest race lap: T. De Silva, 1m26.881s.
Master class winner (over 50): Vreeland.
Points: 1. T. De Silva, 206; 2. Hope, 166; 3. Huffaker, 148; 4. Hakewill, 130; 5. Funk, 104; 6. Armington, 97; 7. H. De Silva, 86; 8. West, 79; 9. Kirby, 68; 10. Fierberg, Kodenko, 54; 12. Vreeland, 47; 13. Ellsworth, 33; 14. Fabijanic, 30; 15. Negron, 6.
The series can be followed at https://www.facebook.com/pacificf2000racing and https://www.twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to http://www.pacificf2000.com or contact Peter West at 310-363-9444, or by email,
pacificf2000@hotmail.com.
De Silva Sweeps Weekend Takes Series Points Lead in Round 4
Rosamond, Calif. (February 21, 2016) – Timothy De Silva was victorious for the second consecutive race, sweeping the weekends points tally by taking pole and setting fastest race laps at Willow Springs International Raceway in round four of the Pacific Formula F2000/F1600 Championship presented by Primus Racing Parts. The race was run with Cal Club as part of the SCCA U.S. Majors Tour.
Sunday morning’s qualifying session began at 8:00am and was a brief 15 minute session during which the results might improve grid positions since under the Majors format starting spots are determined by fastest lap in either Saturday’s qualifying, race or Sunday’s qualifying. Some series drivers chose to use the session as a warm-up and fitted alternate sets of tires which would disallow any improvement in time since the series tire rule stipulates one set of tires per race weekend while others down the order sought to improve their times using their designated weekend set of tires and
still others, confident of the time chose not to participate at all.
It was a chilly 44 degrees and clear, sunny and with very little breeze when the cars hit the track and of those eligible only James Hakewill; #88, Van Diemen RF03 and Alex Kirby; #81, LA Prep Inc., Fast Forward Components, Piper Race Cars, Piper DL7 managed to improve their previous times while Ira Fierberg; #27, Sparco, Injury Law, LDF Pro Fitness, The Yard, DFR Van Diemen RF05 was run into by a competitor in another class, one of the hazards of running in a multi-class field, damaging the right rear suspension, putting pressure on the team to effect repairs before the 10:30am scheduled start time.
At the green flag, Tom Hope; #10, Primus Racing Parts, Dart, H+M Racing Van Diemen RF03 got the jump and looked to take the lead as the cars headed to turn one and was able to hold Timothy De Silva, #3, TLP Racing, DRF Van Diemen and at the line it was Hope, De Silva, Hakewill, Scott Huffaker; #09, Van Diemen RF02, Robert Armington, #11, Firestone 805, Audioengine, Tomasi Motorsports Van Diemen RF00, Scott Vreeland; #51, Redhorse Constructors, Porter Racing, BV Training Van Diemen RF01, Fierberg, Connor Funk; #97, DFR Van Diemen RF03, Harin de Silva; #96, DFR Van Diemen RF06, Kirby, Nick Kodenko#31, Kodenko Automotive, Associated Tire, Kodenko Jeans, Van Diemen RF-05, and Peter West; #99, Racing Optics, Kodenko Jeans, Malibu Health, Frank Monise Motors, DFR Van Diemen RF05.
On lap two T. De Silva reclaimed the lead with Hope, Hakewill, Huffaker, Armington and Funk in close attendance followed by Fierberg, having lost a position to Funk, H. De Silva, Kirby Vreeland, West and Kodenko.
Lap three saw Hakewill pass Hope for second place and contact between West and Kirby with West out on the spot and Kirby continuing one more lap but found he was unable to continue. Meanwhile there were several incidents involving cars in other classes causing race control to call for a full course caution which helped Vreeland who had become high centered at the outside edge of the track at turn three and was assisted and able to continue.
When the green flag again waved on lap eight the field was tightly bunched which meant the series drivers would have to deal with lapping slower traffic for the remainder of the race. De Silva duly led away at the restart but was now under threat from behind and on lap ten, as a result of traffic, Hakewill swept past De Silva to take the lead. Hakewill’s lead was short lived as on lap twelve De Silva retook the lead and was able to hold it to the end while stretching his advantage with each successive lap. For De Silva, he once again set the fastest lap of the race and with the points gained both Saturday and Sunday, now holds the lead in the standing.
Hakewill’s hold on second place was far from secure as his mirrors were full of the red Van Diemen of Tom Hope and on the final lap Hope managed to get by Hakewill for second and Hakewill had to settle for another third place finish. Hope and Hakewill are now second and third respectively in the standings.
Behind the top three the battle for fourth and fifth between Huffaker and Funk was just as intense with Funk taking fourth from Huffaker on lap 18 but the rookie was able to re-pass Funk on the penultimate lap to claim fourth position. Scott Huffaker said that the cars handling was good enough to enable him to make up ground in the corners but lacked a little straight line speed and felt as though he were a sitting duck on the straights which put him in a defensive mode throughout the race.
Connor Funk had another solid drive to finish in fifth place.
Ira Fierberg came home in sixth place, netting him another Master Class victory.
Robert Armington claimed seventh place followed by Nick Kodenko, Harin De Silva and Scott Vreeland with Alex Kirby and Peter West the only non-finishers.
The Series now move on to Buttonwillow Raceway Park April 29th to May 1st for rounds five and six.
This season the Pacific Formula F2000 Championship Series is included in the Mazda Road to Indy USF2000 $200k Scholarship Shootout in 2016.
The Mazda Road to Indy is the only driver development program of its type in the world offering a clear, scholarship-funded path to the Verizon IndyCar Series and Indianapolis 500.
The Pacific F2000/F1600 series has a rich history and includes among its alumni drivers J.R. Hildebrand, 2011 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the year and Dane Cameron, Tudor Series Prototype and GTD winning driver along with Pro Mazda Presented by Cooper Tires driver Patricio O’Ward and Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda drivers Nikita Lastochkin and Yufeng Luo.
The series now move on to Buttonwillow Raceway Park for rounds 5 and 6.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Timothy de Silva (Van Diemen RF01), 1m18.054s; 2. Tom Hope, (Van Diemen RF03), 1m18.679s; 3. Scott Huffaker, (Van Diemen RF02), 1m18.931s; 4. James Hakewill, (Van Diemen RF03), 1m19.007s; 5. Connor Funk, (Van Diemen RF03), 1m19.301s; 6. Robert Armington, (Van Diemen RF00), 1m19.479s; 7. Scott Vreeland, (Van Diemen RF01), 1m19.814s; 8. Ira Fierberg, (Van Diemen RF05), 1m19.978s; 9. Peter West, (Van Diemen RF05), 1m20.326s; 10. Harin de Silva (Van Diemen RF06), 1m20.517s; 11. Nick Kodenko, (Van Diemen RF-05), 1m20.631s; 12. Alex Kirby, (Piper DL7), 1m20.710s. All cars run on Ford Zetec engines and Pirelli Tires.
F2000 Round 4 (20 laps): 1. T. De Silva, 2. Hope, +6.069s; 3. Hakewill, +6.235s; 4. Huffaker, +8.230s; 5. Funk, +8.301s; 6. Fierberg, +11.683s; 7. Armington, +17.070s; 8. Kodenko, +38.627s; 9. H. De Silva +1lap; 10. Vreeland, +1 lap; 11. Kirby, +16 laps; 12. West, +17 laps.
Fastest race lap: T. De Silva, 1m18.641s.
Master class winner (over 50): Fierberg.
Points: 1. T. De Silva, 104; 2. Hope, 97; 3. Hakewill, 93; 4. Huffaker, 76; 5. Funk, 69; 6. Armington, 63; 7. Fierberg, 54; 8. Kirby, 49; 9. H. De Silva, 47; 10. West, 39; 11. Vreeland, 33; 12. Kodenko, 24.
The series can be followed at https://www.facebook.com/pacificf2000racing and https://www.twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to http://www.pacificf2000.com or contact Peter West at 310-363-9444, or by email,
pacificf2000@hotmail.com.
De Silva Claims Record Setting Victory at Willow Springs in Round 3
Qualifying was held under sunny and cool conditions with temperatures in the mid forties as the series drivers were the first group to take to the track promptly at 8:00am. The twenty-five minute session gave the drivers ample time to get tires up to temperature despite the morning chill as most drivers set their best times late in the session and Timothy De Silva, #3, TLP Racing, DRF Van Diemen, served notice of his intentions by setting a time of 1m18.054s, a time below the existing track record, but as it was set in qualifying was still considered ‘unofficial’. De Silva’s time was over half a second faster than second place qualifier Tom Hope; #10, Primus Racing Parts, Dart, H+M Racing Van Diemen RF03. Heading the second row was Scott Huffaker; #09, Van Diemen RF02 who lined up along side James Hakewill; #88, Van Diemen RF03 and were followed by Connor Funk; #97, DFR Van Diemen RF03, Robert Armington, #11, Firestone 805, Audioengine, Tomasi Motorsports Van Diemen RF00, Peter West; #99, Racing Optics, Kodenko Jeans, Malibu Health,
Frank Monise Motors, DFR Van Diemen RF05, Scott Vreeland; #51, Redhorse Constructors, Porter Racing, BV Training Van Diemen RF01, Harin de Silva; #96, DFR Van Diemen RF06, Nick Kodenko, who is returning to the series, #31, Kodenko Automotive, Associated Tire, Kodenko Jeans, Van Diemen RF-05, Alex Kirby; #81, LA Prep Inc., Fast Forward Components, Piper Race Cars, Piper DL7 and Ira Fierberg; #27, Sparco, Injury Law, LDF Pro Fitness, The Yard, DFR Van Diemen RF05 who never got a hot lap having suffered a broken fourth gear.
The green flag fell one lap late after an aborted start due to a car that was briefly stranded on the first pace lap and Timothy De Silva sprinted into the lead from Hope, Huffaker, Hakewill, Funk, Armington, West, Vreeland, Harin De Silva, Kodenko, Kirby and Fierberg.
Timothy De Silva began to stretch out a small lead and it was not long before the field encountered traffic, De Silva as the leader benefitted from blue flags to make his way through while Hope was slightly balked giving enough of a cushion to cruise to the checkered flag virtually unchallenged as he was able to respond each time Hope managed to close the gap. During his leading of the race De Silva managed to nearly equal his qualifying time to set a new track record and thus gained the two bonus points for the races fastest lap.
Tom Hope never gave up in his pursuit of De Silva but never quite managed to close enough to make a passing attempt and finished in second place following a solid drive.
Behind the two leaders the battle for the final podium spot raged on between Hakewill Huffaker and Funk with Huffaker initially holding the position followed by Hakewill with Funk in third. Once Hakewill was by on lap four, he drew away slightly and was able to maintain his advantage while Huffaker dropped back into the clutches of Funk who closed to the point where on the final lap he managed to get by and so it was Hakewill on the podium in third, Funk in fourth and Huffaker in fifth.
Ira Fierberg had a lonely race after starting at the back of the field and quickly moving up to claim the sixth position in the opening half of the race. After passing Kodenko and H. De Silva on the first lap he would pass Vreeland and West on the fourth lap and finally getting by Armington, who had spun to the back of the field and Kirby. Though his pace had not diminished he was unable to make up any further ground and finished in sixth place. His hard charging performance enabled him the gain the most positions and with it took the trophy for the Master Class victory.
Robert Armington made an astounding start claiming five positions on the first lap from eleventh to sixth the dropping back to twelfth after a spin on lap six and then working his way back up through the field to finally finish eighth.
Alex Kirby lost a couple of positions at the start and fought a loose handling car throughout and fighting his way back up to seventh place at the finish.
Peter West made a good start and managed to hold station for several laps before being overtaken and would up in ninth.
The battle over tenth and eleventh place between Scott Vreeland and Nick Kodenko was the closest throughout the race while lap after lap this pair circulated nose to tail with Vreeland holding the advantage until the final lap when Kodenko managed to nip by to claim tenth with Vreeland eleventh.
Harin De Silva started eighth and held that until a fuel pressure issue forced him to retire the car at the midway point of the race and claimed twelfth place points.
The field returns Sunday morning with a brief final qualifying session and 10:30 am race.
This season the Pacific Formula F2000 Championship Series is included in the Mazda Road to Indy USF2000 $200k Scholarship Shootout in 2016. The shootout will be expanded to include the champions of junior open-wheel and karting series both nationally and internationally. The winner of the knockout style shootout will be provided with a $200k Scholarship to enter the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda in 2017 – the first rung in the Mazda Road to Indy ladder sanctioned by INDYCAR.
The Mazda Road to Indy is the only driver development program of its type in the world offering a clear, scholarship-funded path to the Verizon IndyCar Series and Indianapolis 500.
The Pacific F2000/F1600 series has a rich history and includes among its alumni drivers J.R. Hildebrand, 2011 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the year and Dane Cameron, Tudor Series Prototype and GTD winning driver along with Pro Mazda Presented by Cooper Tires driver Patricio O’Ward and Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda drivers Nikita Lastochkin and Yufeng Luo.
Sunday begins with a brief morning qualifying followed by racing at 2:35 p.m.
F2000 Qualifying: 3. Timothy de Silva (Van Diemen RF01), 1m18.054s; 2. Tom Hope, (Van Diemen RF03), 1m18.679s; 3. Scott Huffaker, (Van Diemen RF02), 1m18.931s; 4. James Hakewill, (Van Diemen RF03), 1m19.301s; 5. Connor Funk, (Van Diemen RF03), 1m19.348s; 6. Robert Armington, (Van Diemen RF00), 1m19.831s; 7. Peter West, (Van Diemen RF05), 1m20.326s; 8. Scott Vreeland, (Van Diemen RF01), 1m20.457s; 9. Harin de Silva (Van Diemen RF06), 1m20.517s; 10. Nick Kodenko, (Van Diemen RF-05), 1m20.631s; 11. Alex Kirby, (Piper DL7), 1m21.856s; 12. Ira Fierberg, (Van Diemen RF05), 1m24.791s. All cars run on Ford Zetec engines and Pirelli Tires.
F2000 Round 3 (18 laps): 1. T. De Silva, 2. Hope, +4.993s; 3. Hakewill, +10.452s; 4. Funk, +1 lap; 5. Huffaker, +1 lap; 6. Fierberg, +1 lap; 7. Kirby, +1 lap; 8. Armington, +1 lap; 9. West, +1 lap; 10. Kodenko, +1 lap; 11. Vreeland, +1 lap; 12. H. De Silva, +9 laps.
Fastest race lap: T. De Silva, 1m18.186s.
Master class winner (over 50): Fierberg.
Points: 1. Hope, 72; 2. Hakewill, 71; 3. T. De Silva, 70; 4. Huffaker, 57; 5. Funk, 52; 6. Armington, 49; 7. Kirby, 48; 8. Fierberg, 39; 9. West, 38; 10. H. De Silva, 35; 11. Vreeland, 22; 12. Kodenko, 11.
The series can be followed at https://www.facebook.com/pacificf2000racing and https://www.twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to http://www.pacificf2000.com or contact Peter West at 310-363-9444, or by email, pacificf2000@hotmail.com.
Hope Victorious as Rains Drench Auto Club Speedway in Round 2
Fontana, Calif. (January 31, 2016) – The second round of the Pacific Formula F2000/F1600 Championship presented by Primus Racing Parts at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California was held under changing conditions which included heavy and intermittent rain, a drying track and even a brief spot of sunlight. The race was held on the infield 2.88 mile road course, difficult in the dry due to its flat featureless nature becomes treacherous in the wet as large puddles develop and rivers of water drain across the track surface. The event was run with Cal Club as part of the SCCA U.S.
Majors Tour.
This season the Pacific Formula F2000 Championship Series is included in the Mazda Road to Indy USF2000 $200k Scholarship Shootout in 2016. The winner of the knockout style shootout will be provided with a $200k Scholarship to enter the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda in 2017 – the first rung in the Mazda Road to Indy ladder sanctioned by INDYCAR.
The Mazda Road to Indy is the only driver development program of its type in the world offering a clear, scholarship-funded path to the Verizon IndyCar Series and Indianapolis 500.
Starting positions for Sundays race were determined by selecting the fastest lap posted in either qualifying or Saturdays race and yielded Tom Hope; Tom Hope; #10, Primus Racing Parts, Dart, H+M Racing Van Diemen RF03 who posted a time of 1m39.983s in qualifying to take the pole position. Hope was joined on the front row by Timothy de Silva; #3, DFR Van Diemen RF01 with a time of 1m40.261s to edge Alex Kirby by .001 of a second. The second row was headed by Alex Kirby; #81, LA Prep Inc., Fast Forward Components, Piper Race Cars, Piper DL7 and James Hakewill; #88, Van
Diemen RF03. The third row was made up of Harin de Silva; #96, DFR Van Diemen RF06 and Scott Huffaker; #09, Van Diemen RF02. In the fourth row were Ira Fierberg; #27, Sparco, Injury Law, LDF Pro Fitness, The Yard, DFR Van Diemen RF05 and Connor Funk; #97, DFR Van Diemen RF03 followed by Peter West; #99, Racing Optics, Kodenko Jeans, Malibu Health, Frank Monise Motors, DFR Van Diemen RF05 with Saturdays race winner Robert Armington choosing to sit out this round and Scott Vreeland unable to start by not having rain tires.
As the cars left the grid under threatening skies, that had produced rain throughout the day, the rain began to fall and by the time the pace lap was complete and the field took the green flag the track was completely drenched. As on Saturday there again was a split start and as the flag fell the field opened up as following drivers sought to find visibility through the spray. It was Tom Hope from his pole position who eased into the lead followed by Tim de Silva, James Hakewill, Scott Huffaker and Alex Kirby, Connor Funk, Harin de Silva, Ira Fierberg and Peter West. By the end of the first lap it
was Hope with a margin over Huffaker, having moved up several positions, Hakewill, Funk, Kirby, T. de Silva who lost out on his front row position, H. de Silva, Fierberg and West.
On lap two while Hope was streaking away and already encountering slower traffic, Funk surged past Hakewill for third place only to lose it a lap later and Fierberg passed H. De Silva for seventh.
The order remained static for several laps until lap 8 when Kirby found his way around Funk for fourth place and began to challenge Hakewill in front. Hakewill in turn moved in and took second from Huffaker on lap 9.
The next time around Kirby had slipped by both Huffaker and Hakewill to briefly hold second position behind Hope who was well clear in the lead. Kirby’s hold on second place lasted only one lap as the next time around, lap 13, he was caught out by water streaming across the track before turn 7 and spun into the grass and just touched one of the barriers putting an end to his day as everyone moved up one position.
With laps winding down Tom Hope consolidated his lead over Huffaker and managed to cruise to the checkered flag on a drying track to take his first victory of the season and add 32 points to his tally.
After some disappointment on Saturday, Scott Huffaker finished in a well deserved second place in only his second race in a F2000 car.
James Hakewill finished third and also claimed the races’ fastest lap and coupled with his second on Saturday is now tied for the lead in the championship with Tom Hope both with 49 points.
Connor Funk drove to fourth place for his best result considering he had never completed in the rain before while fifth place went to Timothy de Silva, not getting the result he had hoped for having started on the front row.
Peter West pulled himself up to sixth place by the finish having passed first Harin de Silva and Ira Fierberg in the late laps of the race and claimed the Masters Win. West was followed to the finish line by Ira Fierberg and Harin de Silva in seventh and eighth places respectively.
The Pacific F2000/F1600 series has a rich history and includes among its alumni drivers J.R. Hildebrand, 2011 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the year and Dane Cameron, Tudor Series Prototype and GTD winning driver along with Pro Mazda Presented by Cooper Tires driver Patricio O’Ward and Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda drivers Nikita Lastochkin and Yufeng Luo.
The series now moves on to Willow Springs International Raceway in Rosamond, CA for rounds 3 and 4 also to be run with CalClub and the U.S. Majors Tour on February 20th and 21st.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Tom Hope, (Van Diemen RF03), 1m39.938s; 2. Timothy de Silva (Van Diemen RF01), 1m40.261s; 3. Alex Kirby, (Piper DL7), 1m40.262s; 4. James Hakewill, (Van Diemen RF03), 1m40.310s; 5. Harin de Silva (Van Diemen RF06), 1m40.323s; 6. Scott Huffaker, (Van Diemen RF02), 1m40.958s; 7. Ira Fierberg, (Van Diemen RF05), 1m41.179s; 8. Connor Funk, (Van Diemen RF03), 1m41.496s; 9. Peter West, (Van Diemen RF05), 1m41.641s. All cars run on Ford Zetec engines and Pirelli Tires.
F2000 Round 2 (16 laps): 1. Hope, 2. Huffaker, +11.198s; 3. Hakewill, +12.969s; 4. Funk, +31.771s; 5. T. de Silva, +1 lap; 6. West, +1 lap; 7. Fierberg, +1 lap; 8. H. de Silva, +2 laps; 9. Kirby, +4 laps.
Fastest race lap: Hakewill, 1m53.336s.
Master class winner (over 50): West.
Points: 1. Hakewill, 49; Hope, 49; 3. Huffaker, 40; 4. T. de Silva, 36; 5. Armington, 34; Kirby, 34; 7. Funk, 33; 8. H. de Silva, 26; West, 26; 10. Fierberg, 24; 11. Vreeland, 12.
The series can be followed at https://www.facebook.com/pacificf2000racing and https://www.twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to http://www.pacificf2000.com or contact Peter West at 310-363-9444, or by email, pacificf2000@hotmail.com.
Armington Victorious in Season Opener at Auto Club Speedway
Fontana, Calif. (January 30, 2016) – The Pacific Formula F2000/F1600 Championship presented by Primus Racing Parts opened this season’s championship at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California. The race was held on the 2.88 mile road course inscribed within the 2 mile oval that plays host to NASCAR and IndyCar. This weekend is the first of seven double race weekends and was run with Cal Club as part of the SCCA U.S. Majors Tour. All events points will be scored with the best 12 results to be counted for the championship.This season the Pacific Formula F2000 Championship Series is included in the Mazda Road to Indy USF2000 $200k Scholarship Shootout in 2016. The shootout will be expanded to include the champions of junior open-wheel and karting series both nationally and internationally. The winner of the knockout style shootout will be provided with a $200k Scholarship to enter the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda in 2017 – the first rung in the Mazda Road to Indy ladder sanctioned by INDYCAR.
The Mazda Road to Indy is the only driver development program of its type in the world offering a clear, scholarship-funded path to the Verizon IndyCar Series and Indianapolis 500.
Qualifying began at just after quarter past ten a.m. under mostly cloudy skies and mild temperatures and was led by Robert Armington, his #11, Firestone 805, Audioengine, Tomasi Motorsports Van Diemen RF00 with a sub 1 minute 40 second lap to claim the pole at 1m39.968s narrowly edging defending series champion Tom Hope; #10, Primus Racing Parts, Dart, H+M Racing Van Diemen RF03 who posted a time of 1m39.983s to claim the outside front row starting position. Lining up behind the front row starters were Alex Kirby; #81, LA Prep Inc., Fast Forward Components, Piper
Race Cars, Piper DL7 up from the F1600 class and James Hakewill; #88, Van Diemen RF03 followed by Harin de Silva; #96, DFR Van Diemen RF06, Timothy de Silva; #3, DFR Van Diemen RF01, Scott Huffaker; #09, Van Diemen RF02 the F1600 class champion, Ira Fierberg; #27, Sparco, Injury Law, LDF Pro Fitness, The Yard, DFR Van Diemen RF05, Peter West; #99, Racing Optics, Kodenko Jeans, Malibu Health, Frank Monise Motors, DFR Van Diemen RF05, 2015 Rookie of the Year Connor Funk; #97, DFR Van Diemen RF03 and Scott Vreeland; #51, Redhorse Constructors, Porter
Racing, BV Training Van Diemen RF01.
The race got under way under cloudy and threatening skies and with a split start the field was well bunched together at the green flag. From his pole position, Robert Armington swept into the lead closely followed by Tom Hope, Alex Kirby and Hakewill having lost two positions a slight gap then Tim de Silva, Harin de Silva, Ira Fierberg, Peter West, Connor Funk and Scott Vreeland.
On lap two with the order the same and Armington continuing to lead, Hakewill managed to get by Huffaker to take fourth position.
On lap three the leaders began to encounter traffic as they began to catch the slower cars of the pack that had started in front of them and it was Armington who got there first as he deftly moved through the traffic sometimes passing two or more cars per lap. His pursuers were not as fortunate enabling Armington to build a small but comfortable lead. At the same time West passed teammate Fierberg for eighth place only to lose it again a lap later while closer to the lead Hakewill passed Kirby to reclaim third place.
On the fifth lap both Fierberg and West passed H. de Silva dropping him down to ninth position.
At half distance the order was Armington, Hope, Hakewill, Kirby, T. de Silva having passed Huffaker, Huffaker, Fierberg, West, H. de Silva, Funk and Vreeland. At this point things began to unravel as teammates West and Fierberg collided at turn three when West left his braking too late in an attempt to pass Fierberg, went through on the inside only to contact Ira’s right rear tire while attempting to regain the position sending Fierberg into a spin and contacting the sidepod of the #27 machine damaging the radiator and causing Fierberg to retire on lap 8 while West suffered a damaged front wing and dropped to tenth place. Lap 8 was also when Hope began to suffer from a mechanical problem and lost second place to Hakewill.
Hope continued to fall down the order as he was next passed by Kirby and T. de Silva, the last places he would lose.
When the checkered flag fell, it was Robert Armington who saw it first as he finished unscathed and unchallenged at the end and managed to also set the fastest race lap to collect the two bonus points that go along with it. His first series victory was a long time in coming, this being his third season in the series, was hard earned with a flawless drive and well deserved.
Second place went to James Hakewill, who had his best performance since Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in 2014, made up for the lost positions at the start which probably cost a chance at victory.
Alex Kirby came home in third place showing the promise of the new Piper DL7 in its debut in the series and for Alex it is his fourth year in the series and appears to be one of great promise.
Fourth place went to Timothy de Silva who is in his first full season in the series having had earlier success with a pair of wins at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in 2015.
Defending series champion Tom Hope nursed his ailing car home in fifth place, not the start he wanted but also not a dnf.
Sixth place finisher Scott Huffaker if the defending F1600 champion and has moved up to the F2000 class to challenge for the championship looks to improve on his debut result.
The remaining places were held by Connor Funk; seventh, Harin de Silva; eighth, Scott Vreeland a newcomer to the series; ninth, Peter West; tenth and Ira Fierberg; eleventh.
The Pacific F2000/F1600 series has a rich history and includes among its alumni drivers J.R. Hildebrand, 2011 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the year and Dane Cameron, Tudor Series Prototype and GTD winning driver along with Pro Mazda Presented by Cooper Tires driver Patricio O’Ward and Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda drivers Nikita Lastochkin and Yufeng Luo.
Sunday begins with a brief morning warm-up followed by racing at 2:35 p.m.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Robert Armington, (Van Diemen RF00), 1m39.968s; 2. Tom Hope, (Van Diemen RF03), 1m39.938s; 3. Alex Kirby, (Piper DL7), 1m40.262s; 4. James Hakewill, (Van Diemen RF03), 1m40.310s; 5. Harin de Silva (Van Diemen RF06), 1m40.323s; 6. Timothy de Silva (Van Diemen RF01), 1m40.421s; 7. Scott Huffaker, (Van Diemen RF02), 1m41.017s; 8. Ira Fierberg, (Van Diemen RF05), 1m41.179s; 9. Peter West, (Van Diemen RF05), 1m41.704s; 10. Connor Funk, (Van Diemen RF03), 1m41.921s, 11. Scott Vreeland, (Van Diemen RF01), 1m42.309s. All cars run on
Ford Zetec engines and Pirelli Tires.
F2000 Round 1 (12 laps): 1. Armington, 2. Hakewill, +4.762s; 3. Kirby, +5.028s; 4. T. De Silva, +5.331s; 5. Hope, +8.839s; 6. Huffaker, +10.615s; 7. Funk, +23.802s; 8. H. de Silva, +24.387s; 9. Vreeland, +43.960s; 10. West, +53.736s; 11. Fierberg, +4 laps.
Fastest race lap: Armington, 1m40.043s.
Master class winner (over 50): H. De Silva.
Points: 1. Armington, 34; 2. Hakewill, 25; 3. Kirby, 22; 4. T. De Silva, 19; 5. Hope, 17; 6. Huffaker, 15; 7. Funk, 14; 8. H. de Silva, 13; 9. Vreeland, 12; 10. West, 11; 11. Fierberg, 10.
The series can be followed at https://www.facebook.com/pacificf2000racing and https://www.twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to http://www.pacificf2000.com or contact Peter West at 310-363-9444, or by email,
pacificf2000@hotmail.com.
Huffaker, de Silva Take Victories as Dave Freitas Racing Sweeps F2000 Podium
Monterey, Calif. (June 7, 2015) – The historic Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca was the scene of round 8 of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship Series as drivers once again challenged the scenic 2.238 mile course. Scott Huffaker (F1600) and Timothy de Silva (F2000) duplicated their Saturday victories in the event run with the San Francisco Region of the SCCA in their SFR Championship Series Double Regional as both classes competed in the same run group for the first time this season.
There were changes to the series this weekend with an increase in prize money paid down to sixth place and the allowance for drivers not competing on the spec Pirelli tire to compete for prizes but not series championship points which meant that ten of the eleven drivers competing in the F2000 class and all of the F1600 drivers were series participants at this event.
Sunday was all about racing with the qualifying sessions having been held on Saturday afternoon during which Timothy de Silva, driving the #98, TLP Racing, DFR Van Diemen, once again led the F2000 field and claimed the pole position with a best lap of 1m28.143s. Tom Hope driving his #18, H+M Racing Van Diemen was second followed by Peter West; #99, Racing Optics, Kodenko Jeans, Malibu Health, Frank Monise Motors, Dave Freitas Racing Van Diemen; Connor Funk, #97, Dave Freitas Racing Van Diemen; Harin de Silva; #96, Dave Freitas Racing Van Diemen; Paul Rodler, #45, Porter Racing, Swift DB6; Scott Vreeland, #51, Redhorse Constructors, Porter Racing, BV Training Van Diemen; Chuck Raggio, #14, Apex Orthopedics, Van Diemen; Jeffrey Pietz, #80, Cleveland Infant Care Van Diemen and William Jordanov, #59, Van Diemen. Rodler was the only Pinto powered entry with all others using the Ford Zetec engine.
Leading the qualifying in the F1600 class and using all of his local knowledge was David Jalen, #50, Over Budget Racin’, Swift DB1/Ford having cured the mechanical issues suffered in round 7. Jon Brandstad, #44, JBF Racing, Swift DB6/Honda was second ahead series point leader Scott Huffaker, #9, Van Diemen RF97/Honda who only managed three laps in qualifying due to a faulty sensor limiting his engines performance.
Unlike Saturday, the green flag waved over the field after a single pace lap and once again it was Timothy de Silva who took the early advantage over West, Funk, Hope, Harin de Silva, Rodler, Raggio, Vreeland, Pietz and Jordanov, while behind the F1600 group was led by Huffaker followed by Brandstad and Jalen.
Connor Funk took West for second place on the fourth lap, a position he would hold until lap thirteen, just two laps from the end, he spun the car at turn eleven with the car nosed into the guardrail. There was no damage to the car but he could not get the car into reverse and was force to retire the car on the spot as it was in a precarious position. He finished in ninth place and claimed fourth place points.
Lap 6 saw Tom Hope nurse his car back to the paddock with mechanical issues. He gained a single point for his efforts finishing tenth and having not completed half distance dropping him into third place in the standings.
Peter West, once again using his wealth of experience managed his race beautifully and took the checkered flag in second place and with it claimed the Master Class victory.
With the demise of Hope, Harin de Silva moved into fourth place where he remained until his teammate Funk’s unfortunate spin moved him onto the podium giving Dave Freitas Racing a sweep of the podium for the second time this season.
Scott Vreeland ran steadily seemingly having cured his electrical issues and ran as high as seventh, where he finished again slowed at the end by ignition problems.
Paul Rodler brought his aging but still competitive Swift DB6/Ford to the finish in fourth place and was followed home by Chuck Raggio in fifth, Jeffrey Pietz in sixth, Vreeland and William Jordanov in eighth.
Timothy de Silva, again drove flawlessly scoring his second series victory and sweeping the weekend with two victories, two poles and two fastest laps, not a bad debut for the Rancho Palos Verdes resident. With his father also claiming a podium position, it was the first time in series history that a father and son stood on the podium together.
The F1600 race result was much the same as Saturday with Huffaker victorious but it was not without drama. The pace of the F1600 leaders brought them right to the back of the F2000 group and on lap 2 Huffaker was balked allowing Brandstad to use his momentum to get by to take the lead he held for only one lap as Huffaker was soon back by and into the lead taking his fourth win of the season. Huffaker also claimed the fastest race lap.
Jon Brandstad, gave his best and was 10 seconds back at the checkered flag and again finished in second place and again claimed the Master Class trophy in his Swift DB6/Honda.
David Jalen showed well with his Swift DB1/Ford but was unable to take advantage of his pole position but did manage to keep the leaders in sight to the end and completed the podium.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Timothy de Silva, (Van Diemen-P), 1m28.143s; 2. Tom Hope, (Van Diemen-P), 1m29.648s; 3. Peter West, (Van Diemen-P), 1m30.509s; 4. Connor Funk, (Van Diemen-P), 1m31.069s; 5. Harin de Silva, (Van Diemen-P), 1m31.148s; 6. Paul Rodler, (Swift/Ford-H), 1m31.251s; 7. Scott Vreeland, (Van Diemen-A), 1m32.145s; 8. Chuck Raggio, (Van Diemen-A), 1m32.336s; 9. Jeffrey Pietz, (Van Diemen-A), 1m35.489s ; 10. William Jordanov, (Van Diemen-A), 1m35.557s. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, G-Goodyear, H-Hoosier, P-Pirelli.
F2000 Round 8 (15 laps): 1. T. de Silva; 2. West, +17.597s; 3. H. de Silva, +37.522s; 4. Rodler, +41.822s; 5. Raggio, +60.932s; 6. Pietz, +1m19.135s; 7. Vreeland, +1m33.233s; 8. Jordanov, +1m33.535s; 9. Funk, +3 laps; 10. Hope, +9 laps.
Fastest race lap: T. de Silva, 1m28.996s.
Master class winner (over 50): West.
Points: 1. West, 133; 2. Funk, 125; 3. Hope, 114; 4. T. de Silva, 68; 5. Armington, 51; 6. Kodenko, 44; 7. H de Silva, 41; 8. Kirby, 34; 9. Rozenboom, 20.
F1600 Qualifying: 1. David Jalen, (Swift DB1/ford-H), 1m36.931s; 2. Jon Brandstad, (Swift DB6/Honda-H), 1m37.021s; 3. Scott Huffaker, (Van Diemen RF97/Honda-A), 1m39.681s. Tires: AAvon, C-Cooper, G-Goodyear, H-Hoosier, T-Toyo.
F1600 Round 8 (14 laps): 1. Huffaker; 2. Brandstad, +10.656s; 3. Jalen, +13.537s.
Fastest race lap: Huffaker, 1m35.426s.
Master class winner (over 50): Brandstad.
Points: Huffaker, 176; Swanbeck, 85; Kirby, 75; Renfrow, 72; Smrz, 58; Brandstad, 50; Payne 49, Jalen, 43; Erlandson, 34.
The series now takes a break for the summer returning to Buttonwillow Raceway Park, September 5-6, 2015.
The series can be followed at https://www.facebook.com/pacificf2000racing and https://www.twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to http://www.pacificf2000.com or contact Peter West at 310-363-9444, or by email,
pacificf2000@hotmail.com.
Round 7 Sees Huffaker and de Silva Take Victories as Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca
Monterey, Calif. (June 6, 2015) – Round 7 of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship Series was held at the historic Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, the scenic and challenging 2.238 mile course. Running with the San Francisco Region of the SCCA in their SFR Championship Series Double Regional, both classes competed in the same run group for the first time this season and saw Scott Huffaker and series newcomer Tim de Silva claim victories in F1600 and F2000 respectively.
With seven run groups competing, the San Francisco Region began the action with practice and qualifying for Saturday’s race held on Friday.
There were changes to the series this weekend with an increase in prize money paid down to sixth place and the allowance for drivers not competing on the spec Pirelli tire to compete for prizes but not series championship points which meant that ten of the eleven drivers competing in the F2000 class and all of the F1600 drivers were series participants at this event.
Qualifying began at 3:10 on Friday and it was Timothy de Silva, a newcomer to the series and son of series regular Harin de Silva, driving the #98, TLP Racing, DFR Van Diemen who claimed the pole position for the F2000 class with a best lap of 1m27.951s, over a second ahead of Tom Hope driving his #18, H+M Racing Van Diemen. Series point leader Peter West; #99, Racing Optics, Kodenko Jeans, Malibu Health, Frank Monise Motors, Dave Freitas Racing Van Diemen was third fastest ahead of Scott Vreeland, #51, Redhorse Constructors, Porter Racing, BV Training Van Diemen;
Connor Funk, #97, Dave Freitas Racing Van Diemen; Harin de Silva; #96, Dave Freitas Racing Van Diemen; Paul Rodler, #45, Porter Racing, Swift DB6; Chuck Raggio, #14, Apex Orthopedics, Van Diemen; William Jordanov, #59, Van Diemen and Jeffrey Pietz, #80, Cleveland Infant Care Van Diemen. Rodler was the only Pinto powered entry with all others using the Ford Zetec engine.
Leading the qualifying in the F1600 class was series point leader Scott Huffaker, #9, Van Diemen RF97/Honda ahead of Jon Brandstad, #44, JBF Racing, Swift DB6/Honda and David Jalen, #50, Over Budget Racin’, Swift DB1/Ford. Both Brandstad and Jalen have been previous competitors in the series, Bradstad having won two races at Sears Point in 2011 prior to converting his Swift to Honda power and Jalen competing earlier this season at Thunderhill Raceway.
After an aborted start and a second lap at pace car speed, the field saw the green flag to begin the second lap and it was Timothy de Silva who took the early advantage over Hope followed by Vreeland, West, Funk, Harin de Silva, Rodler, Raggio, Pietz and Jordanov, while a little further back the F1600 group was led by Huffaker followed by Brandstad and Jalen.
On lap 2 Scott Vreeland got past both West and Hope to take over second place with the remainder of the field beginning to string out behind. Vreeland managed to hold off Hope for two laps but on lap 4 Hope had displaced Vreeland and set off after de Silva who was breaking away from the field recording laps nearly a second faster than Hope in second place and set the fastest lap of the race on lap 7, at 1m28.517s.
Timothy de Silva, in his series debut, drove flawlessly to the end and the Rancho Palos Verdes resident scored his first series victory while Tom Hope pressed on finishing in second place, 4.783 seconds behind and for Hope it meant re-taking the lead in the championship.
The battle for third place raged on as the position was held by four different drivers before the final step on the podium was decided. West, Hope and Vreeland all held the position until Vreeland spun at the Andretti hairpin on lap 8 dropping him down to sixth place elevating Connor Funk to the podium, finishing nearly 20 seconds back.
Harin de Silva drove a steady race to finish in fourth place another 15 seconds back and claimed the Master Class victory.
Peter West looked set for a fourth place finish until lap 11 when, while negotiating the corkscrew, the suspension gave way and West was forced to nurse his car back to the pits with a bent suspension arm. This dropped him to tenth among series runners and fifth among those eligible to score points.
Paul Rodler brought his Swift DB6 home in fifth place, the first of the drivers not running for championship points. Rodler was followed by Chuck Raggio, Jeffrey Pietz, and Scott Vreeland, who nursed his car to the end suffering from electrical problems, and William Jordanov in sixth through ninth positions respectively.
The F1600 race was a straight forward affair with Huffaker leading from wire to wire to claim his third win of the season. Huffaker also claimed the fastest race lap and the two bonus points that go along with it to take a commanding lead in the standings.
Jon Brandstad, who last raced with the series in 2011, did all he could to try to hang on to the youngster from Menlo Park taking the runner-up spot in his Swift DB6/Honda.
David Jalen showed well with his Swift DB1/Ford until his race was cut short with mechanical woes and completed the podium.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Timothy de Silva, (Van Diemen-P), 1m27.951s; 2. Tom Hope, (Van Diemen-P), 1m29.043s; 3. Peter West, (Van Diemen-P), 1m29.847s; 4. Scott Vreeland, (Van Diemen-A), 1m30.387s; 5. Connor Funk, (Van Diemen-P), 1m30.548s; 6. Harin de Silva, (Van Diemen-P), 1m30.688s; 7. Paul Rodler, (Swift/Ford-H), 1m31.490s; 8. Chuck Raggio, (Van Diemen-A), 1m32.557s; 9. William Jordanov, (Van Diemen-A), 1m35.643s; 10. Jeffrey Pietz, (Van Diemen-A), 1m35.729s. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, G-Goodyear, H-Hoosier, P-Pirelli.
F2000 Round 7 (16 laps): 1. T. de Silva; 2. Hope, +4.783s; 3. Funk, +19.610s; 4. H. de Silva, +35.222s; 5. Rodler, +53.666s; 6. Raggio, +56.646s; 7. Pietz, +1m32.561s; 8. Vreeland, +1 lap; 9. Jordanov, +1 lap; 10. West, +5 laps.
Fastest race lap: T. de Silva, 1m28.517s.
Master class winner (over 50): H. de Silva.
Points: 1. Hope, 113; 2. West, 108; 3. Funk, 106; 4. Armington, 51; 5. Kodenko, 44; 6. Kirby, 34; 7. T. de Silva, 34; 9. Rozenboom, 20; 9. H. de Silva, 19
F1600 Qualifying: 1. Scott Huffaker, (Van Diemen RF97/Honda-A), 1m35.941s; 2. Jon Brandstad, (Swift DB6/ Honda-H), 1m36.984s; 3. David Jalen, (Swift DB1/ford-H), 1m37.597s. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, G-Goodyear, H-Hoosier, T-Toyo.
F1600 Round 7 (15 laps): 1. Huffaker; 2. Brandstad, +6.686s; 3. Jalen, +8 laps.
Fastest race lap: Huffaker, 1m35.060s.
Master class winner (over 50): Brandstad.
Points: Huffaker, 144; Swanbeck, 85; Kirby, 75; Renfrow, 72; Smrz, 58; Payne 49, Erlandson, 34; Brandstad, 25; Jalen, 19.
Qualifying for round 8 will be held later this afternoon with the race to be held Sunday morning at 10:10am.
The series can be followed at https://www.facebook.com/pacificf2000racing and https://www.twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to http://www.pacificf2000.com or contact Peter West at 310-363-9444, or by email,
pacificf2000@hotmail.com.
West Survives Race of Attrition for Second Victory of Season in Round 6
Buttonwillow, Calif. (May 3, 2015) – Series veteran Peter West, driving for Dave Freitas Racing, survived as others fell out around him to claim the win in the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship on the 3.020 mile, 25A configuration at Buttonwillow Raceway Park in the California central valley. The race was run with the Cal Club Region of the SCCA as part of the SCCA U.S. Majors Tour.
The series format, designed to allow drivers to compete in the series and SCCA sanctioned events simultaneously, saw the Formula 2000 group run in FC and was grouped with FA, FM and the sports racer groups P1 and P2.
The grid for Sunday is set based on either the fastest qualifying lap or fastest race lap from Saturday which put Tom Hope; #10, H+M Racing Van Diemen on pole followed by Robert Armington; #11 Cypress Lane Racing, Hoosier Tires, Premium Power Systems, Inc. Van Diemen, Peter West; #99, Racing Optics, Frank Monise Motors, Dave Freitas Racing, Van Diemen; Nick Kodenko, #31, Kodenko Automotive, Associated Tire, Kodenko Jeans, Van Diemen; Connor Funk, #97, Dave Freitas Racing, Van Diemen; Alex Kirby, #81, LA Prep Inc., Fast Forward Components, Swift DB3 and Kim
Wilcox, #62, Hooverspeed Van Diemen. Hope secured the pole his lap of 1m45.606s from qualifying.
Fuel consumption was a concern for many of the teams before the beginning of the 40 minute race as the teams added all the fuel they could to help make the distance, calculations indicating that some cars may come up short.
The field came to the green flag only for the start to be waved off as the starter was unhappy with the alignment of the field and so after an additional pace lap, the green was waved and the drivers headed for the first turn. Upon their arrival Tom Hope and Connor Funk, who made a brilliant start both spun in synchronized fashion without contacting each other resulting in Armington also spinning to a stop to avoid the cars blocking the track in front of him and West took to the dirt on driver’s right to avoid the melee and fortunately for all they were able to continue unscathed the order however was scrambled and by the end of the first lap it was West with a sizable advantage over Armington, Kodenko, Kirby, Hope, Wilcox and Funk.
Armington whittled away at West’s lead and soon was able to get by leaving West in second followed by Kodenko with Hope, having already disposed of Kirby, closing in, Kirby, Funk and Wilcox.
Tom Hope’s charge continued as he got by both Kodenko and West and began to challenge Armington for the lead while Funk was trying to make his way forward had contact with a Formula Mazda spinning both cars off and leaving Funk stranded at the side of the track with a bent lower front wishbone while the Mazda driver was able to continue.
With only four laps to go and Armington in his sights, Hope after negotiating Sunrise made an uncharacteristic mistake and spun off approaching the Offramp and became stranded as he was unable to re-start the car after several attempts, his race ending then and there. This promoted West to second with Kodenko in third followed by Kirby and Wilcox.
Just two laps to go and it was now Armington’s turn to suffer misfortune as his engine began to misfire allowing West to close and eventually overtake Armington and to eventually see the checkered flag in first place. West later claimed that due to fuel concerns he was short shifting all around the track just to conserve and even abandoned his victory lap in order to not be stranded out on the course. The victory not only gave West the Master Class win but vaulted him in the lead in the standings.
Armington came home in second but was ineligible for points or prizes for not using the series spec tire, which elevated Alex Kirby to second place having passed Kodenko between the final turn and the checkered flag. Kirby was also not eligible for points for this round awaiting his new Piper to be completed for later in the season.
Nick Kodenko, after a fine drive, fell victim to fuel starvation and only coasted across the finish line to take a well earned third place, stating the car was staggering in the corners.
Kim Wilcox was fourth in another non-points drive however he will be fitted with the Pirelli tire for the next event.
Tom Hope claimed fifth place having covered sixteen laps and received full points leaving him just three points behind West in the standings, his points total be bolstered by having the pole position and fastest race lap.
Connor Funk covered sufficient distance to be classified in sixth place.
The series now heads to the Monterey Peninsula and Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca for rounds 7 and 8 on June 5-7, 2015.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Tom Hope, (Van Diemen-P), 1m45.606s; 2. Peter West, (Van Diemen-P), 1m45.987s; 3. Connor Funk, (Van Diemen-P), 1m47.519s; 4. Nick Kodenko, (Van Diemen-P), 1m47.394s; 5. Alex Kirby, (Swift-H), 1m47.558s; 6. Kim Wilcox, (Van Diemen-A), 1m53.769s. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, G-Goodyear, H-Hoosier, P-Pirelli.
F2000 Round 6 (20 laps): 1. West; 2. Kirby; 3. Kodenko; 4. Wilcox; 5. Hope, +4 laps; 6. Funk, +5 laps.
Fastest race lap: Hope, 1m45.966s.
Master class winner (over 50): West.
Points: 1. West, 91; 2. Hope, 88; 3. Funk, 84; 4. Kirby, 59; 5. Armington, 51; 6. Kodenko, 44; 7. Rozenboom, 20; 8. Wilcox, 0.
The series can be followed at https://www.facebook.com/pacificf2000racing and https://www.twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to http://www.pacificf2000.com or contact Peter West at 310-363-9444, or by email,
pacificf2000@hotmail.com.
Huffaker Takes Well Deserved Victory in Round Six
Buttonwillow, Calif. (May 3, 2015) – Scott Huffaker came back strong after his second place finish on Saturday with a damaged car, to take his second series victory at Buttonwillow Raceway Park for the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship run with the Cal Club Region of the SCCA as part of the SCCA U.S. Majors Tour. Huffaker who damaged a left front pushrod and cautiously soldiered on to the finish had no such problems on Sunday with the car repaired and after a morning warm-up to confirm it race worthiness was able to compete confidently over the 3.020 mile layout.
As part of the revised series format, Pacific series drivers were able to compete in the series and SCCA sanctioned events simultaneously. This weekend the Formula 1600 group ran in FF and was grouped with F500 and FV.
The schedule for a ten minute morning warm-up session at 8:00am to be followed by the 20 lap race to be flagged off at 9:05 am. This schedule proved beneficial to Huffaker as his car was perfect in the warm-up whereas Saturday Race winner Brett Smrz, whose Ivey prepared Kent Ford performed flawlessly was now experiencing electrical causing the car to misfire and with less than forty minutes before the cars were to be gridded up the team was fighting an uphill battle to diagnose and solve the problem.
The Sunday grid was set based on the best lap of either the Saturday qualifying session or the fastest race lap in the Saturday race. This format put Brett Smrz on the pole with a best time of 1min50.784sec, set during the race. Smrz was followed by Huffaker in his #99, Van Diemen RF97/Honda. Denny Renfrow in his #11, Wheely Open Racing, Piper DL7/Honda and Daniel Swanbeck, #27, BigWheels.net, SmugMug, TwoSeven Design, Piper/Honda made up row two and were followed by Alex Kirby, #81, LA Prep Inc., Fast Forward Components, Piper Race Cars, Piper DL7/Honda; Rick Payne, #75, Payton Pools, Van Diemen/Honda; and Ed Erlandson, #8, Artwork by Eli, Porter Racing, 1993 Swift DB6/Honda.
The green flag fell on the race promptly at 9:05am, and under clear, sunny and warming skies the field began the first of twenty laps and at the end of the first lap it was Swanbeck who had taken the lead in the first turn and held on to the completion of lap one. The field came around in a tight bunch and behind Swanbeck it was Smrz fending off Huffaker for second followed by Renfrow, Kirby Payne and Erlandson.
The next time around Huffaker passed Smrz for second place to begin the chase of Swanbeck while Renfrow passed Smrz for third and by then end of the lap Huffaker moved on Swanbeck in Sunset only to be re-passed by Swanbeck into Sunrise at the other end of the front straight. Renfrow maintained third, followed by Smrz, Kirby, Payne and Erlandson.
By lap four Huffaker had taken the lead for good as Swanbeck and Renfrow both were off course after contact at the Sat Mazda hairpin to elevate Payne into second place followed by Smrz, Kirby, Erlandson, Swanbeck and finally Renfrow who came to the pits to retire.
With Huffaker still leading, Smrz regained second place when Payne went off course elevating Kirby and Erlandson with Payne rejoining ahead of Swanbeck in sixth.
As the race approached the midway point the field was stretching out with Huffaker leading ahead of Smrz whose car began to exhibit the same misfire that befell it in the morning warm-up and started to slip back into the clutches of Kirby, who was steadily gaining. Swanbeck had passed Erlandson for fourth and was now beginning to close on Kirby, while Payne continued in sixth having had another off-course excursion.
On lap fourteen Kirby finally managed to catch and pass the sputtering DB6 of Smrz and begin his pursuit on Huffaker, while Payne came into the pits to retire his car with handling issues and the order was Huffaker, Kirby, Smrz, Swanbeck, and Erlandson.
Nearing the last lap Swanbeck takes the wide way around Sunset and loses his fourth place to Erlandson while the field begins the final lap.
At the Checkered flag it was Scott Huffaker taking his second win of the season, setting the fastest race lap and leads the standings by a huge twenty-five point margin over Daniel Swanbeck with a further ten points back to Alex Kirby who finished in the runner-up spot and Brett Smrz hung on to finish in third place to add another podium finish for his first weekend in the series.
Daniel Swanbeck clawed his way back to finish in fourth place, having had a most trying time with his contact and off-course adventures.
Ed Erlandson finished in fifth and claimed the Master Class victory.
The series now heads to the Monterey Peninsula and Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca for rounds 7 and 8 on June 5-7, 2015.
F1600 Qualifying: 1. Brett Smrz, (Swift DB6/Ford-H), 1m50.389s; 2. Scott Huffaker, (Van Diemen RF97/Honda-A), 1m51.180s; 3. Denny Renfrow, (Piper DL9/Honda-H), 1m51.952s; 4. Daniel Swanbeck, (Piper DF5/Honda-H), 1m52.674s; 5. Alex Kirby, (Piper DL7/Honda-H), 1m53.030s; 6. Rick Payne, (Van Diemen/Honda-A), 1m53.505s; 7. Ed Erlandson, (Swift DB6/Honda-A), 1m54.063s. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, G-Goodyear, H-Hoosier, T-Toyo.
F1600 Round 6 (20 laps): 1. Huffaker; 2. Kirby, +17.209s; 3. Smrz, +28.597s; 4. Swanbeck, +50.681s; 5. Erlandson, +51.074; 6. Payne, +7 laps; 7. Renfrow, +17 laps.
Fastest race lap: Huffaker, 1m50.784s.
Master class winner (over 50): Renfrow.
Points: Huffaker, 110; Swanbeck, 85; Kirby, 75; Renfrow, 72; Smrz, 58; Payne 49, Erlandson, 34; Jalen, 18.
The series can be followed at https://www.facebook.com/pacificf2000racing and https://www.twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to http://www.pacificf2000.com or contact Peter West at 310-363-9444, or by email,
pacificf2000@hotmail.com.
Funk Claims Maiden Series Victory in Round Five
Buttonwillow, Calif. (May 2, 2015) – Series rookie Connor Funk, starting only his third race in the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship, survived a race that saw many of the leading drivers have misfortune to claim his first win on the 3.020 mile, 25A configuration at Buttonwillow Raceway Park in the California central valley. The race was run with the Cal Club Region of the SCCA as part of the SCCA U.S. Majors Tour.The series format, designed to allow drivers to compete in the series and SCCA sanctioned events simultaneously, saw the Formula 2000 group run in FC and was grouped with FA, FM and the sports racer groups P1 and P2.
The three-day format allowed for practice and qualifying sessions on Friday with a second qualifying session and race on Saturday followed by a warm-up session and race on Sunday. This format and the ninety degree afternoon temperatures allowed drivers to choose whether to run in the heat of the afternoon on Friday or save their equipment for the cooler early morning temperatures on Saturday and Tom Hope; #10, H+M Racing Van Diemen did just that only running one lap on Friday hoping that Saturday morning would bring more favorable times. Series regular driver Robert Armington; #11 Cypress Lane Racing, Hoosier Tires, Premium Power Systems, Inc. Van Diemen elected to run on Friday posting the fastest time however would not be eligible for points and prizes this weekend by choosing to not run the series specific Pirelli tires as this race would also help qualify him for the SCCA Run-Offs to be held later this year in Daytona. All of this meant that the #99, Racing Optics, Frank Monise Motors, DFR Van Diemen of Peter West posted the fastest time to claim provisional pole for Saturday’s race. West was followed by Tom Hope, whose solitary lap put him second fastest, Dave Freitas Racing teammate Connor Funk, #27, DFR Van Diemen; Nick Kodenko, #31, Kodenko Automotive, Associated Tire, Kodenko Jeans, Van Diemen, returning to the series after a years’ hiatus, and Alex Kirby again in the aging #81, LA Prep Inc., Fast Forward Components, Swift DB3.
The Saturday early morning qualifying session was only fifteen minutes in duration and as anticipated times fell rapidly. Tom Hope quickly secured the fastest time of the session eclipsing the mark set by Armington to claim the pole with both Armington and Peter West all within 0. 381s. Connor Funk was next followed by Nick Kodenko, Alex Kirby and Kim Wilcox; #62, Hooverspeed Van Diemen, making his first appearance in the series.
Unable to participate this weekend were the Dave Freitas Racing duo of Yufeng Luo; #13, DFR Van Diemen, who was off at Indianapolis with the U.S. F2000 Series group and Harin DeSilva; #96, DFR Van Diemen, whose travel commitments did not allow him to be here this weekend.
The green flag to begin the race flew at 3:07, delayed briefly due to track clean up from the previous session, and it was Tom Hope in his bright red Van Diemen who immediately claimed the lead over Armington and Peter West as the three began to break away from the rest of the field and at the end of lap one it was Hope, Armington, West, Kodenko, Kirby and Wilcox.
On lap two West had a big off course excursion going through the fast right hand turn, modeled after and know as Riverside, which dropped him to the rear of the field from where he began his charge to reclaim the lost ground.
On lap three things changed at the front as the pace of the remaining duo of Hope and Armington brought them up to the rear of a Formula Atlantic competitor and when Hope was unable to get around he lost momentum and Armington surged by into the lead leaving Hope in second. At the same time as Armington had gotten by Hope, West improved his position passing Wilcox for fifth.
The next time around, lap four, Hope was again in the lead as Armington in his attempt to get by the Formula Atlantic made contact damaging the nose of his Van Diemen and losing the whole front wing assembly which immediately reduced his pace and all he could do from that point was to hang on for his best result. At the same time Hope retired to the pits having lost fourth gear. The order was then the wounded Armington who was rapidly being caught by the remaining competitors led by Connor Funk, Nick Kodenko, Alex Kirby, Peter West and Kim Wilcox.
From here the race settled down a little with Funk clearly ahead of the field and Armington falling back to his eventual fifth place finish the battle was now on between Kodenko and Kirby for second place as they changed positions several times before the finish.
Connor Funk led the final laps unscathed to take his first series win and put Dave Freitas Racing on the top step of the podium. The victory also moves Funk into the lead in the points by two over Tom Hope.
The battle for the runner-up spot was decided at the line as Alex Kirby in the 1989 Swift DB3 with the Ford Pinto engine edged out Nick Kodenko in his Van Diemen with Zetec Ford power by just 0.629s and for Kirby it was a bright spot of the day after having been taken out at the first corner of the F1600 race earlier in the day.
Nick Kodenko’s third place fine was an impressive result having taken the year off and as he stated this would have been a one weekend outing this year, may return in September when the series returns to Buttonwillow Raceway Park.
Peter West came home in fourth place and with that became the Master Class victor.
Kim Wilcox claimed fifth place after being unable to compete at Thunderhill due to an ankle injury for his first series finish.
Hope was sixth but only claimed a single point by not having completed half distance. He did however manage to set the races’ fastest lap during his brief stint on the track and collected bonus points for that and the pole position claimed earlier in the day.
Round six will commence at 2:40pm on Sunday.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Tom Hope, (Van Diemen-P), 1m45.606s; 2. Peter West, (Van Diemen-P), 1m45.987s; 3. 4. Connor Funk, (Van Diemen-P), 1m49.997s; 4. Nick Kodenko, (Van Diemen-P), 1m48.631s; 5. Alex Kirby, (Swift-H), 1m49.346s; 6. Kim Wilcox, (Van Diemen-A). Tires: A-Avon, CCooper, G-Goodyear, H-Hoosier, P-Pirelli.
F2000 Round 5 (13 laps): 1. Funk; 2. Kirby; 3. Kodenko; 4. West; 5. Wilcox, +1 lap; 6. Hope, +9 laps.
Fastest race lap: Hope, 1m46.278s.
Master class winner (over 50): West.
Points: 1. Funk, 69; 2. Hope, 67; 3. West, 61; 4. Kirby, 59; 5. Armington, 51; 6. Kodenko, 22; 7. Rozenboom, 20; 8. Wilcox, 17.
The series can be followed at https://www.facebook.com/pacificf2000racing and https://www.twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to http://www.pacificf2000.com or contact Peter West at 310-363-9444, or by email,
pacificf2000@hotmail.com.
Round Five Sees Smrz Victorious in His Series Debut
Buttonwillow, Calif. (May 2, 2015) – Buttonwillow Raceway Park played host to Rounds five and six of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship run with the Cal Club Region of the SCCA as part of the SCCA U.S. Majors Tour. Bret Smrz in his series debut won Saturday’s round five on the 3.020 mile layout driving a Ford Kent powered Swift DB6. It was the first victory for a Ford powered car since Ethan Shippert’s victory at auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California nearly three years ago.
As part of the revised series format, Pacific series drivers were able to compete in the series and SCCA sanctioned events simultaneously. This weekend the Formula 1600 group ran in FF and was grouped with F500 and FV.
The schedule for the weekend began Friday morning with a practice session followed by the first of two qualifying sessions in the afternoon during which Brett Smrz quickly rose to the top of the time sheets to claim provisional pole in his #10, Swift DB6/Ford. Following Smrz was the #11, Wheely Open Racing, Piper DL7/Honda of Denny Renfrow, the #81, LA Prep Inc., Fast Forward Components, Piper Race Cars, Piper DL7/Honda of Alex Kirby, the #99, Van Diemen RF97/Honda of the most recent series winner Scott Huffaker, the #27, BigWheels.net, SmugMug, TwoSeven Design, Piper DF-5/Honda, the #75, Payton Pools, Van Diemen RF99/Honda of Rick Payne and the #8, Artwork by Eli, Porter Racing, 1993 Swift DB6/Honda of Ed Erlandson. Friday qualifying took place in ninety degree temperatures and it was hoped that the Saturday morning qualifying session in cooler temperatures would produce better lap times.
Saturday qualifying was held at 8:00 am in the morning and as hoped times were much improved and it was initially Smrz who held the fastest time until midway through the session Huffaker posted a better lap, good enough for pole, which he held until on his final lap Smrz bettered Huffaker’s time by .029 of a second to secure his first pole of the season. This moved Huffaker down to second and he was followed by Renfrow, Kirby, Swanbeck, Payne and Erlandson.
The green flag fell on the race, scheduled for 10:20am, and as the field headed toward turn 1 it was Brett Smrz who took the initial lead with Huffaker second. Alex Kirby was nudged into a spin by Renfrow and as he was spinning the front of his Piper was hit by Swanbeck on his way by and damaged to severely to continue and when the cars came back to the line it was Smrz with Huffaker in close pursuit followed by Swanbeck, Payne, Erlandson and Renfrow.
As the field came around to complete the second lap Huffaker seized the lead from Smrz at Sunset only to have Smrz retake the lead on the next lap going into the long high speed right hand Riverside turn followed by Swanbeck, Payne, Erlandson and Renfrow. Later on lap three Renfrow got past Erlandson to move into fifth position.
Renfrow continued his move toward the front of the field passing Payne for fourth place on lap four heading into Phil Hill while Smrz retakes the lead lost earlier at the tight left hand Sunset turn just before the main straight.
By lap six Smrz began to increase his lead over Huffaker who had run over a curb at the left hand turn at the bottom of Phil Hill and damaged his left front pushrod causing the car to oversteer badly as he began to drop back into the clutches of Swanbeck who was well clear of Renfrow in fourth, Erlandson in fifth and Payne in sixth have been briefly off course.
The order continued to the end of the race with Smrz taking the victory by a twenty five second margin over the wounded Huffaker. Bret Smrz not only claimed his first series win but also had the fastest lap of the race, good for two bonus points, and with it set a new track record.
Scott Huffaker managed to hold on for second place as he continues to lead in the point standings.
Daniel Swanbeck finished a very close third and claimed his fifth consecutive podium finish.
Fourth place went to Denny Renfrow and with it the trophy for the Master Class win.
Rounding out the field was Ed Erlandson finishing in fifth place and Canadian Rick Payne in sixth.
Round 6 is to be held Sunday at 9:05am.
F1600 Qualifying: 1. Brett Smrz, (Swift DB6/Ford-H), 1m21.151s; 2. Scott Huffaker, (Van Diemen RF97/Honda-A), 1m51.180s; 3. Denny Renfrow, (Piper DL9/Honda-H), 1m52.292s; 4. Alex Kirby, (Piper DL7/Honda-H), 1m53.030s; 5. Daniel Swanbeck, (Piper DF5/Honda-H), 1m53.473s; 6. Rick Payne, (Van Diemen/Honda-A), 1m54.755s; 7. Ed Erlandson, (Swift DB6/Honda-A), 1m54.990s. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, G-Goodyear, H-Hoosier, T-Toyo.
F1600 Round 5 (14 laps): 1. Smrz; 2. Huffaker, +25.032s; 3. Swanbeck, +27.024s; 4. Renfrow, +39.351s; 5. Erlandson, +55.075; 6. Payne, +1m05.491s; 7. Kirby, +14 laps.
Fastest race lap: Renfrow, 1m52.705s.
Master class winner (over 50): Renfrow.
Points: Huffaker, 78, Renfrow, 71; Swanbeck, 66; Kirby, 50; Payne 34, Smrz, 34; Jalen, 18; Erlandson, 17.
The series can be followed at https://www.facebook.com/pacificf2000racing and https://www.twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to http://www.pacificf2000.com or contact Peter West at 310-363-9444, or by email,
pacificf2000@hotmail.com.
Tom Hope Wins Round Four to Sweep Thunderhill Race Weekend
Willows, Calif. (April 12, 2015) – Tom Hope followed his Saturday success with another victory on Sunday to sweep the weekend events at Thunderhill Raceway also giving him four consecutive SCCA U.S. Majors Tour events as the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship closed out the weekend on the 2.866 mile Thunderhill course through the rolling hillsides of northern California. The race was run with the San Francisco Region of the SCCA as part of the SCCA U.S. Majors Tour.
The grid for Sunday is set based on either the fastest qualifying lap or fastest race lap from Saturday which put Robert Armington; #11 Cypress Lane Racing, Hoosier Tires, Premium Power Systems, Inc. Van Diemen on the pole followed by Tom Hope; #10, H+M Racing Van Diemen, Peter West; #99, Racing Optics, Ken Partch, Frank Monise Motors, DFR Van Diemen; Connor Funk, #27, DFR Van Diemen; Ken Rozeboom, #81, Van Diemen and Alex Kirby, #8, Swift DB3. Armington secured the pole his lap of 1m45.042s from qualifying.
Tom Hope was on his game this weekend seizing the lead from Robert Armington on the first lap and immediately beginning to edge away. Hope and Armington were followed by West, Funk, Rozeboom and Kirby.
As Hope continued to stretch his lead over Armington, West, in third place, was beginning to feel pressure from behind as his new teammate at Dave Freitas Racing, Connor Funk was closing and starting to look for a way around the series veteran. Funk, a series rookie was finally shaking off the effects of having two offs in practice and qualifying destroying two nose assemblies in the process and coming to grips with this track, one he has never been to. Funk finally managed to get past West, moving into third place, securing his place on the podium.
Hope was able to maintain his lead over Armington and led to the flag by a comfortable margin taking his second win of the weekend, fourth U.S. Majors win in succession and again the fastest race lap which is good for two bonus points. He now takes a thirteen point lead on to the next two rounds to be held at Buttonwillow Raceway in May.
Armington’s second place finish was a fine result but he was unable to fully mask his disappointment on the podium as he had hoped for victory having had the fastest car of the weekend.
Connor Funk finished in third place for his first podium appearance and as his experience grows may not be his last.
Alex Kirby, who had been victorious on Saturday in the F1600 race in his Piper/Honda, brought the aging Swift home to a fine fourth place finish.
West continued on in fourth place without incident and looked to be heading when on the last lap had a misjudgment allowing Alex Kirby, who normally runs in the F1600 class, to get by in his 1989 Swift DB3 and take fourth place. The finish earned him the Master Class trophy.
Ken Rozeboom retired from the race after lap 5 and claimed one series point for his effort.
The series now moves south to Buttonwillow Raceway Park in Buttonwillow, California on the weekend of May 1-3 where rounds 5 and 6 will be contested.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Robert Armington, (Van Diemen-H), 1m45.042s; 2. Tom Hope, (Van Diemen-P), 1m46.213s; 3. Peter West, (Van Diemen-P), 1m48.600s; 4. Connor Funk, (Van Diemen-P), 1m49.036s; 5. Ken Rozeboom, (Van Diemen-A), 1m49.938s; 6. Alex Kirby, (Swift-H), 1m50.715s. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, G-Goodyear, H-Hoosier, P-Pirelli.
F2000 Round 4 (16 laps): 1. Hope; 2. Armington; 3. Funk; 4. Kirby; 5. West; 6. Rozeboom, +11 laps.
Fastest race lap: Hope, 1m46.087s.
Master class winner (over 50): West.
Points: 1. Hope, 64; 2. Armington, 51; 3. West, 42; 4. Funk, 39; 5. Kirby, 34; 6. Rozeboom, 20.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificf2000racing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Peter West at 310-363-9444, or by email,
pacificf2000@hotmail.com.
Teenage Rookie Huffaker Claims First Victory in Round 4
Willows, Calif. (April 12, 2015) – Scott Huffaker, in only his second start in the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship race, run at the 2.866 mile road circuit at Thunderhill Raceway in Willows, California on Sunday afternoon managed to eclipse the field to claim his first ever victory in his new #99, Van Diemen RF97/Honda, having overcome the gearbox issues of Saturday. The race was run with the San Francisco Region of the SCCA as part of the SCCA U.S. Majors Tour.
The series drivers competed within run groups made up of several different classes due to a series format designed to allow drivers to compete in the series and SCCA sanctioned events simultaneously. This weekend the Formula 1600 group ran in FF and was grouped with F500 and FV.
The Sunday grid was set based on the best lap of either the Saturday qualifying session or the fastest race lap in the Saturday race. This format put Scott Huffaker on the pole with a best time of 1min52.446sec, set during qualifying. Huffaker was closely followed by Denny Renfrow in his #11, Wheely Open Racing, Piper DL7/Honda, who again claimed the outside front row starting position. Lining up behind Huffaker and Renfrow were Rick Payne, #75, Payton Pools, Van Diemen/Honda; Daniel Swanbeck, #27, BigWheels.net, SmugMug, TwoSeven Design, Piper/Honda; Alex Kirby, #81,
LA Prep Inc., Fast Forward Components, Piper Race Cars, Piper DL7/Honda and David Jalen, #50,
OverBudgetRacin’, Swift DB1/Ford.
Once again the weather was clear and sunny with temperatures in the mid-seventies as the cars formed up on the pre-grid one car was notably missing, the brown and black Van Diemen of Rick Payne, the Mission, B.C. resident being unable to diagnose and repair the electrical problem that had sidelined him from round three.
Huffaker took the lead immediately at the start being closely pursued by Renfrow, Kirby, Swanbeck and Jalen.
Renfrow pushed his way into the lead with Huffaker right on his tail and the two of them began to distance themselves from Kirby who was now beginning to fall back into the clutches of Swanbeck in fourth place.
The battle at the front between Denny Renfrow and Scott Huffaker continued throughout the middle stages of the race with Renfrow leading and Huffaker just inches behind and often showing a nose inside keeping Renfrow aware of his presence but not yet ready to take the lead himself.
Finally with just a handful of laps remaining, Huffaker made his move and eased past Renfrow who was unable to defend to take the lead and begin to edge away as he moved toward the checkered flag to record his first win in the series. With bonus points collected for pole position and fastest lap, Huffaker was able to move into the points lead with a narrow one point margin over Renfrow.
By finishing in second place, Denny Renfrow also collected the trophy for the Expert Class victory and move into second place in the standings.
The fight for third place finally went to Daniel Swanbeck, who managed to save enough for the charge to the final step of the podium.
For Saturday’s winner, Alex Kirby finishing in fourth place dropped him out of the lead in the championship but with eight rounds yet to be contested is still in the hunt.
David Jalen’s fifth place finish was a result of overcoming the mechanical woes of Saturday as he looks forward to the next round of the series.
Unable to contest Sunday’s race, Rick Payne hopes for better as the series moves on to Buttonwillow Raceway in May.
The series moves to Buttonwillow Raceway for rounds 5 and 6 on May 1-3, 2015.
F1600 Qualifying: 1. Scott Huffaker, (Van Diemen RF97/Honda-A), 1m52.446s; 2. Denny Renfrow, (Piper
DL9/Honda-H), 1m52.705s; 3. Rick Payne, (Van Diemen/Honda-A), 1m53.389s; 4. Daniel Swanbeck, (Piper DF5/Honda-H), 1m53.475s; 5. Alex Kirby, (Piper DL7/Honda-H), 1m53.712s; 6. David Jalen, (Swift DB1/Ford-A), 2m03.636s. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, G-Goodyear, H-Hoosier, T-Toyo.
F1600 Round 4 (16 laps): 1. Huffaker; 2. Renfrow; 3. Swanbeck; 4. Kirby; 5. Jalen; 6. Payne-NS.
Fastest race lap: Renfrow, 1m52.787s.
Expert class winner (over 35): Renfrow.
Points: Hufffaker, 53; Renfrow, 52; Kirby, 49; Swanbeck, 44; Payne, 19; Jalen, 18.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificf2000racing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Peter West at 310-363-9444, or by email,
pacificf2000@hotmail.com.
Tom Hope is Victorious on Series Return to Thunderhill Raceway
Willows, Calif. (April 11, 2015) – Tom Hope arrived at Thunderhill Raceway having completed a weekend sweep at the recent SCCA U.S. Majors Tour event at Chuckwalla Valley Raceway, ready to put the woes of Fontana behind him and did so by claiming victory in round three of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship on the 2.866 mile Thunderhill course through the rolling hillsides of northern California. The race was run with the San Francisco Region of the SCCA as part of the SCCA U.S. Majors Tour.
Series drivers competed within run groups made up of several different classes due to a series format designed to allow drivers to compete in the series and SCCA sanctioned events simultaneously. The Formula 2000 group ran in FC and was grouped with FA, FM and the sports racer groups P1 and P2.
The mid-morning qualifying session was twenty minutes in duration and was held in nearly perfect clear and sunny conditions. The session began and Robert Armington; #11 Cypress Lane Racing, Hoosier Tires, Premium Power Systems, Inc. Van Diemen and Tom Hope; #10, H+M Racing Van Diemen immediately moved to the top of the time sheets and established themselves as the prime contenders for the victory posting times 2 second ahead of the rest of the field which included Peter West; #99, Racing Optics, Ken Partch, Frank Monise Motors, DFR Van Diemen; Connor Funk, #27, DFR Van Diemen; Ken Rozeboom, #81, Van Diemen and Alex Kirby, #8, Swift DB3. Armington
secured the pole with a lap of 1m45.042s, 1.2 seconds ahead of Hope.
Unable to participate this weekend were Michael Manning, #25, Fast Forward Racing Components, Van Diemen, who lost an engine in testing as was without a spare; Yufeng Luo; #13, DFR Van Diemen, who was off competing in the U.S. F2000 Series; Harin DeSilva; #96, DFR Van Diemen, whose travel commitments did not allow him to be here and series newcomer Kim Wilcox, #62, Hooverspeed Van Diemen, with an injury.
At the green flag it was Hope who made the best start getting the jump on Armington and led the first lap ahead of West, Funk, Kirby and Rozeboom.
A full-course caution came out on lap two and as the field came by Hope led Armington with another class competitor in between them followed by West, Funk, Kirby and Rozeboom.
When the green flag came out with another class competitor in between them Hope easily managed to not only hold his lead but begin to extend it while Armington waited behind for an opportunity to pass the other competitor to set his sights on Hope. The process would take several laps as Hope continued to push his Pirelli shod Van Diemen farther ahead.
Sadly for Armington as they began moving through some lapped traffic, Armington was forced to take avoiding action as a result of a car spinning in front of him which dropped him to fifth place behind West, Rozeboom and Funk. This put an end to his chance for victory as he was now faced with the task of recovering as many positions as possible and with a car capable of sitting on the pole he set forth, his climb limited by the remaining number of laps. His task was made somewhat easier because of the field being strung out and he could pick them off one at a time which he managed by
first passing Funk for fourth place and then Rozeboom for third. His time would run out as he pursued West in second place and he had to settle for the final podium step.
Tom Hope went unchallenged to the finish and claimed his first series win of the season, his third consecutive U.S. Majors victory, the fastest lap of the race and the lead in the point standings.
Peter West drove consistently to claim the runner up spot and thus continue with his best results in the series, also claiming the Master Class victory.
Behind Robert Armington in third came Ken Rozeboom, Connor Funk and Alex Kirby in fourth, fifth and sixth respectively, Kirby having retired after the tenth lap.
Round four will commence at 4:10pm on Sunday.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Robert Armington, (Van Diemen-H), 1m45.042s; 2. Tom Hope, (Van Diemen-P), 1m46.271s; 3. Peter West, (Van Diemen-P), 1m48.600s; 4. Ken Rozeboom, (Van Diemen-A), 1m49.938s; 5. Connor Funk, (Van Diemen-P), 1m49.997s; 6. Alex Kirby, (Swift-H), 1m51.169s. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, G-Goodyear, H-Hoosier, P-Pirelli.
F2000 Round 3 (17 laps): 1. Hope; 2. West, +1 lap; 3. Armington+ 1 lap; 4. Rozeboom, +1 lap; 5. Funk, +1 lap; 6. Kirby, +7 laps.
Fastest race lap: Hope, 1m46.213s.
Master class winner (over 50): West.
Points: 1. Hope, 32; 2. West, 25; 3. Armington, 24; 4. Rozeboom, 19; 5. Funk, 17; 6. Kirby, 15.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificf2000racing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Peter West at 310-363-9444, or by email,
pacificf2000@hotmail.com.
Kirby Edges Renfrow for Victory in Round Three
Willows, Calif. (April 11, 2015) – Thunderhill Raceway in the hillsides west of Willows, California was the site of round three of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship run with the San Francisco Region of the SCCA as part of the SCCA U.S. Majors Tour. Alex Kirby won the opening round of the weekend as he had at the opening round at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California in January.
This weekend the series drivers competed within run groups made up of several different classes due to a revised series format designed to allow drivers to compete in the series and SCCA sanctioned events simultaneously. This weekend using the 2.866 mile undulating road circuit, the Formula 1600 group ran in FF and was grouped with F500 and FV.
The Saturday qualifying session began at 10:00am and was twenty minutes in duration as the field took to the track under clear, sunny skies and temperatures in the mid-seventies it was series rookie Scott Huffaker who made an immediate impression as he moved his #99, Van Diemen RF97/Honda to the head of the time sheets. When the flag fell on the session, Huffaker remained the fastest, claiming the pole for the afternoon race. Huffaker was closely followed by Denny Renfrow in his #11, Wheely Open Racing, Piper DL7/Honda, just 0.3 of a second behind to claim the outside front row starting position. Lining up behind Huffaker and Renfrow were Rick Payne, #75, Payton Pools, Van Diemen/Honda; Daniel Swanbeck, #27, BigWheels.net, SmugMug, TwoSeven Design, Piper/Honda; Alex Kirby, #81, LA Prep Inc., Fast Forward Components, Piper Race Cars, Piper DL7/Honda and David Jalen, #50, OverBudgetRacin’, Swift DB1/Ford.
Absent this weekend were series veterans Ed Erlandson, #8, Artwork by Eli, Porter Racing, 1993 Swift DB6/Honda, Chuck Horn, #54, Hotel California, Porter Racing, Swift DB6/Honda, and Dave Zurlinden, #31, Pro Pack Systems, Fast
Forward, Piper DF5/Honda.
The green flag fell on the race, scheduled for 3:20pm, and as the field surged toward turn 1 it was Alex Kirby with a bold move on the outside that moved into the lead of the race followed by Huffaker, Swanbeck, Renfrow, Payne all in close attendance and Jalen, already beginning to sound rough.
Kirby worked to increase his lead as Swanbeck moved past Huffaker into second place as the two began a several lap duel that allowed Kirby to pull away at the front while just behind Renfrow battled Payne with the Canadian harrying Renfrow all the way around the circuit.
With Kirby continuing in the lead the battle behind raged as positions swapped at nearly every corner. Renfrow pulled clear from Payne and began to close in on the battle for second between Swanbeck and Huffaker and in the matter of a couple laps Renfrow had dispatched not only Huffaker, but Swanbeck as well to move into second place. Once clear, Renfrow began to close on Kirby whose comfortable lead had diminished and the two began a spirited duel which was later joined by Scott Huffaker making it a three car tussle, Huffaker having decisively passed Swanbeck, moved to the
take his place in the leading pack. Renfrow eased past Kirby to take the lead as the race headed toward the closing stages but that continued to change as the three positions continued to change as laps wound down.
With six laps to go, Huffaker ground to a halt with the gearbox locked in two gears and was unable to continue, which left Renfrow closely leading Kirby battling for the lead.
With the retirement of Huffaker, Payne closed on Swanbeck for third place as the field moved onto the final lap. With the checkered flag in the air, Renfrow and Kirby battled down the front straight toward it and when it fell, Kirby had edged Renfrow by the narrowest of margins. The win gives Kirby his second victory of the season following his non-championship win in Fontana, the early lead in the point standings. Kirby is in his third season in the series having joined in June of 2013 and is also competing this weekend in the F2000 class in a Swift DB3/Ford later today.
Denny Renfrow with his strong second place finish makes it a one-two finish for the new Piper DL7 paired with the Honda Fit engine. Renfrow also claimed the Expert Class Victory.
Daniel Swanbeck finished third for his third podium this season in his beautifully prepared red, black and chrome, ex-Kirby Piper DF-5.
Rick Payne finished fourth his car having come to a stop on the final lap with an undiagnosed electrical problem.
David Jalen exited the race early on with mechanical woes.
Round 4 to be held Sunday at 1:25pm.
F1600 Qualifying: 1. Scott Huffaker, (Van Diemen RF97/Honda-A), 1m52.446s; 2. Denny Renfrow, (Piper DL9/Honda-H), 1m52.746s; 3. Rick Payne, (Van Diemen/Honda-A), 1m53.389s; 4. Daniel Swanbeck, (Piper DF5/Honda-H), 1m53.475s; 5. Alex Kirby, (Piper DL7/Honda-H), 1m54.920s; 6. David Jalen, (Swift DB1/Ford-A), 2m16.742s. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, G-Goodyear, H-Hoosier, T-Toyo.
F1600 Round 3 (16 laps): 1. Kirby; 2. Renfrow; 3. Swanbeck; 4. Payne; 5. Huffaker; 6. Jalen.
Fastest race lap: Renfrow, 1m52.705s.
Expert class winner (over 35): Renfrow.
Points: Kirby, 30; Renfrow, 27; Swanbeck, 22; Payne 19, Huffaker, 19; Jalen, 15.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificf2000racing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Peter West at 310-363-9444, or by email,
pacificf2000@hotmail.com.
Luo Leads Dave Freitas Racing Podium Sweep in Round Two
Buttonwillow, Calif. (January 18, 2015) – The second round of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship was held on the 2.88 mile infield road course at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California and Yufeng Luo led a podium sweep for Dave Freitas Racing a longtime series participant.
The was the second non-points two-race weekend run with Cal Club as part of the SCCA U.S. Majors Tour as Luo hopes to establish himself as one of the contenders for the championship.
This weekend the series drivers were competing within run groups made up of several different classes due to a revised series format designed to allow drivers to compete in the series and SCCA sanctioned events simultaneously. This weekend using the 2.88 mile infield road circuit, the Formula 2000 group ran in FC and was grouped with FA, FM and the sports racer groups P1 and P2 as they negotiated the 20 turn course.
A fifteen minute warm-up session was held in the morning followed the race scheduled to roll off at 10:50. The starting positions were determined by the fastest recorded lap of either of the first two qualifying sessions or Saturday’s race which put Yufeng Luo on the pole in his #13, DFR Van Diemen based on his Saturday qualifying time. Luo was followed by Peter West; #99, Racing Optics, Ken Partch, Frank Monise Motors, DFR Van Diemen and Tom Hope; #10, H+M Racing Van Diemen with Harin DeSilva; #96, DFR Van Diemen and Robert Armington; #11 Cypress Lane Racing, Hoosier Tires, Premium Power Systems, Inc. Van Diemen rounding out the field.
Armington was again first away and led the field as they headed to turn three when he got to the braking zone he was caught out by the early braking of a Formula Atlantic car ahead and ran up the rear of the car taking off the rear wing and damaging his front wing and nose section not to mention the fact that he was lodged atop of the Formula Atlantic and carried down to turn four where he was finally dislodged and retired on the spot. In the ensuing mayhem the field scattered in all directions seeking refuge on any unused portion of racing surface and by the end of the first lap it was Tom
Hope leading from Harin DeSilva, then a gap to Peter West and Yufeng Luo.
The race then settled down after the first lap incident and it was Hope beginning to stretch out a lead on DeSilva a gap to the fast charging West and Luo.
Luo moved past West on lap 4 and as the duo continued their charge up through the field, they soon caught DeSilva with Luo moving ahead on lap 8 and West following six laps later on lap 14. While all this was going on Hope was cruising serenely in the lead which at one point was nearly fifteen seconds ahead.
Tom Hope’s hopes were crushed as while on the final lap after having taken the one lap to go signal and completely without warning a lower rear suspension arm mounting pulled out of the side of the gearbox casing and Hope was left stranded almost within sight of the checkered flag and for the second race mechanical reliability struck it’s fatal blow.
Fortunately for Hope this was a non-points race and did not hurt his championship hopes and his flawless drive was a signal the he is a force to be reckoned with for the title.
Tom Hopes misfortune was atonement for Yufeng Luo after yesterday’s incident with teammate DeSilva. He now led a sweep of the podium for Dave Freitas Racing leading home Peter West in second place and Harin DeSilva in third place. For West it was his second Master Class trophy of the weekend while DeSilva claimed his first Expert Class win.
Round three and four will be held at Thunderhill Raceway Park on April 11 and 12.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Yufeng Luo, (Van Diemen-A), 1m40.435s; 2. Peter West, (Van Diemen-A), 1m40.643s; 3. Tom Hope, (Van Diemen-A), 1m41.761s; 4. Harin DeSilva, (Van Diemen-A), 1m41.945s; 5. Robert Armington, (Van Diemen-H), 1m42.226s. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, GGoodyear, H-Hoosier.
F2000 Round 2 (18 laps): 1. Luo; 2. West; 3. DeSilva; 4. Hope, +1 lap; 5. Armington, +18 laps.
Fastest race lap: West, 1m40.473s.
Expert class winner (over 35): DeSilva.
Master class winner (over 50): West.
Points: No points awarded, non-championship event.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Peter West at 310-363-9444, or by email,
pacificf2000@hotmail.com.
Swanbeck Follows Second Place in Debut with Victory in Round Two
Buttonwillow, Calif. (January 18, 2015) – The second round of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship was held on the 2.88 mile, 20 turn infield road course at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California and Daniel Swanbeck claimed victory in the second race of his series debut weekend. The was the second non-points two-race weekend run with Cal Club as part of the SCCA U.S. Majors Tour as Luo hopes to establish himself as one of the contenders for the championship.The Formula F1600 group was again classified as FF and place in the run group with F500 and FV and is designed to allow drivers to compete in the series and SCCA sanctioned events simultaneously.
A fifteen minute warm-up session was held in the morning followed the race scheduled to roll off at 10:50. The starting positions were determined by the fastest recorded lap of either of the first two qualifying sessions or Saturday’s race which put Alex Kirby on the pole in his #81, LA Prep Inc., Fast Forward Components, Piper Race Cars, Piper DL7/Honda. Kirby was followed by Denny Renfrow; #11, Wheely Open Racing, Piper DL7/Honda and Rick Payne; #75, Payton Pools, Van Diemen/Honda with Ed Erlandson; #8, swift DB6/Honda, Daniel Swanbeck; #27, BigWheels.net,
Piper DF5/Honda, Chuck Horn; #54, Hotel California, Porter Racing, Swift DB6/Honda and Dave Zurlinden, #31, Pro Pack Systems, Fast Forward, Piper DF5/Honda rounding out the field.
The green waved and it was Denny Renfrow in his yellow and black Piper who surged ahead to take the lead followed by Kirby, Payne, Swanbeck, Horn, Erlandson and Zurlinden. Renfrow’s lead was to last but one lap as he was displaced by Payne and Kirby and now running in third place at the end of the second lap.
On lap three Alex Kirby asserted himself, took the lead and was able to hold it while behind him the battle for second place raged on between Swanbeck and Horn with Swanbeck holding station holding off Horn lap after lap. The battle for second pushed itself ahead as Kirby was now under pressure from Swanbeck for the lead which he claimed on lap 12 and was able to hold on to until the end.
Kirby made a pit stop on lap 13 to drop to fourth while Erlandson continued his drive up through the field and took third on lap 12 after being down as far as seventh place. Erlandson and Kirby were to do battle one more time with Kirby relieving Erlandson of third place with three laps remaining and held it to the finish.
At the front it was Swanbeck following up his debut second place finish with a brilliant drive to claim his first victory in the Series, his chrome, red and black Piper/Honda performing flawlessly.
Putting the disappointment of Saturday behind him Chuck Horn finished a fine second at one point sweeping by Swanbeck into turn 4 only to be re-taken in turn five in some of the best wheel to wheel action seen in this series. Chuck also claimed the Expert Class win.
Alex Kirby came back after a pit stop to stand on the final step of the podium with another exciting drive by the veteran driver in his third year in the series.
Ed Erlandson finished fourth and was never quite able to match the pace of the Pipers ahead of him but persistence and consistency was able to move him forward.
Dave Zurlinden finished in fifth place and would have been placed higher had he used the slick tires of the other competitors, but aware the series would be moving to a spec tire, used this opportunity to gain some valuable information.
Rick Payne finished in sixth place and the final car on the lead lap while Denny Renfrow succumbed to mechanical troubles and retired after six laps.
Round three and four will be held at Thunderhill Raceway Park on April 11 and 12.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Alex Kirby, (Piper DL9/Honda-H), 1m46.015s; 2. Denny Renfrow, (Piper DL9/Honda-H), 1m46.682s; 3. Rick Payne, (Van Diemen/Honda-H), 1m46.821s; 4. Ed Erlandson, (Swift DB6/Honda-A), 1m47.101s; 5. Daniel Swanbeck, (Piper DF5/Honda-H), 1m47.505s; 6. Chuck Horn, (Swift DB6/Honda-H), 1m48.004s; 7. Dave Zurlinden, (Piper DF5/Honda-T), 1m50.590s. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, G-Goodyear, H-Hoosier.
F2000 Round 2 (18 laps): 1. Swanbeck; 2. Horn; 3. Kirby; 4. Erlandson; 5. Zurlinden; 6. Payne; 7. Renfrow, +6 laps.
Fastest race lap: Kirby, 1m45.850s.
Expert class winner (over 35): Horn.
Points: No points awarded, non-championship event.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Peter West at 310-363-9444, or by email,
pacificf2000@hotmail.com.
Peter West Claims First Victory in 12th Season Opener
Buttonwillow, Calif. (January 17, 2015) – The Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship opened its twelfth season on the 2.88 mile infield road course at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California with an impressive victory by Peter West, his first in the series. The series is beginning with a non-points two-race weekend run with Cal Club as part of the SCCA U.S. Majors Tour.This weekend the series drivers competed within run groups made up of several different classes due to a revised series format designed to allow drivers to compete in the series and SCCA sanctioned events simultaneously. The run groups will be determined by the sanctioning club and therefore vary from region to region. This weekend using the 2.88 mile infield road circuit, the Formula 2000 group ran in FC and was grouped with FA, FM and the sports racer groups P1 and P2.
A twenty-five minute practice session was held on Friday morning followed the first of two qualifying sessions set to began 1:45pm. The first session was twenty-five minutes in duration which allowed plenty of time for the drivers to get in a clear lap with an entire field of 28 cars. The session was well underway when Yufeng Luo; #13, DFR Van Diemen, set his fastest lap, at 1:41.387, good for provisional pole position, final positions to be determined by the best lap of either session. Luo was closely followed by Tom Hope; #10, H+M Racing Van Diemen and Peter West; #99, Racing Optics,
Ken Partch, Frank Monise Motors, DFR Van Diemen both also in the 1 min. 41 sec. range with Harin DeSilva; #96, DFR Van Diemen and Robert Armington; #11 Cypress Lane Racing, Hoosier Tires, Premium Power Systems, Inc. Van Diemen rounding out the field.
The cooler temperatures and 8:40am start allowed all but Tom Hope to improve their times from Friday and the final starting order was Luo, West, Hope, DeSilva and Armington for the race to be held at 12:50pm.
At the green flag it was Armington who made the best start and led the first two laps ahead of DeSilva, West, Luo having been shuffled behind several of the other competitors and Hope.
Lap two saw West get by DeSilva, Luo make up two of his lost positions and the retirement of Hope with a camber bolt having broken in the front suspension ending his day on the apron between turns 1 and 2. West passed Armington for the lead, a lead he would not relinquish throughout the race. This lap also had DeSilva beginning to drop back as his Dave Freitas Racing teammate Luo continued his march forward.
Luo’s efforts were undone on lap 4, when he collided with DeSilva, breaking the cars nose and front wing while damaging DeSilva’s wheel. DeSilva pitted and continued after a brief inspection, however now a long way behind the battle at the front.
West and Armington now circulated nearly as one they were so close until on lap 9, coming around turn 9, one of the slowest corners on the track, the tail of Armington’s Van Diemen came around dropping several positions and then to make matters worse the car would not re-fire and he had to reset the electronics and finally got going again losing more places while the car was stationary but still maintaining second place among the F2000 competitors and giving West the precious breathing room needed to run to the end.
Peter West drove one of his best races and won by a comfortable margin over Robert Armington, a strong second place finisher and Harin DeSilva, who brought his Van Diemen home in third place. West claimed the trophy for the Master Class victory while Armington took the Expert Class honors.
Round two will commence at 10:55 on Sunday the 18th.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Yufeng Luo, (Van Diemen-A), 1m40.435s; 2. Peter West, (Van Diemen-A), 1m40.643s; 3. Tom Hope, (Van Diemen-A), 1m41.761s; 4. Harin DeSilva, (Van Diemen-A), 1m41.945s; 5. Robert Armington, (Van Diemen-H), 1m42.226s. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, GGoodyear, H-Hoosier.
F2000 Round 1 (16 laps): 1. West; 2. Armington; 3. DeSilva, +2 laps; 4. Luo, +13 laps; 5. Hope, +15 laps.
Fastest race lap: West, 1m42.138s.
Expert class winner (over 35): Armington.
Master class winner (over 50): West.
Points: No points awarded, non-championship event.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Peter West at 310-363-9444, or by email, pacificf2000@hotmail.com.
Kirby Victorious at Fontana as Pacific Formula F1600 Opens 5th Season
Buttonwillow, Calif. (January 17, 2015) – The Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship opened its twelfth season, fifth for the F1600 class, on the 2.88 mile infield road course at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California with Alex Kirby taking an impressive win in his Piper/Honda. The series is beginning with a non-points two-race weekend run with Cal Club as part of the SCCA U.S. Majors Tour.This weekend the series drivers competed within run groups made up of several different classes due to a revised series format designed to allow drivers to compete in the series and SCCA sanctioned events simultaneously. The run groups will be determined by the sanctioning club and therefore vary from region to region. This weekend using the 2.88 mile infield road circuit, the Formula 1600 group ran in FF and was grouped with F500 and FV.
Friday morning produced a twenty-five minute practice session to be followed the first of two qualifying sessions. The first session was twenty-five minutes in duration as twenty two cars took to the track, twelve of which were FF with seven competing in the F1600 series, the largest field thus far. Alex Kirby; #81, LA Prep Inc., Fast Forward Components, Piper Race Cars, Piper DL7/Honda took eleven laps to set the fastest time of the session and was the only driver in the 1 minute 46 second bracket with a 1:46.836. Second fastest in the #8, Artwork by Eli, Porter Racing, 1993 Swift
DB6/Honda was Ed Erlandson a veteran of the F1600 series. Ed was followed by Denny Renfrow; #11, Wheely Open Racing, Piper DL7/Honda, Chuck Horn in his second season in the series; #54, Hotel California, Porter Racing, Swift DB6/Honda, newcomer Daniel Swanbeck; #27, BigWheels.net, Piper DF5/Honda, Rick Payne; #75, Payton Pools, Van Diemen/Honda and another series veteran Dave Zurlinden, #31, Pro Pack Systems, Fast Forward, Piper DF5/Honda. Dave’s practice and qualifying times were off from the rest of the field as he was the only driver using the proposed Series Spec Tire and with no points at stake took the opportunity to do some testing since the final race of
the season will be held at Auto Club Speedway in October.
Saturday was warm, clear and sunny as the second round of qualifying began and again it was Alex Kirby with the fastest time of the F1600 group improving on Friday’s time to a 1:46.015. Kirby was followed into the 1 minute 46 second bracket by Canadian Rick Payne whose Van Diemen clicked off a 1:46.821. These two were followed by Ed Erlandson improving his time, Daniel Swanbeck, Denny Renfrow, Chuck Horn and Dave Zurlinden.
Though the series is open to any FF competitor, Honda powered cars now dominate the field and even Ed Erlandson switched from Ford (Kent) to Honda engines. Of the twelve FF cars entered, only three were powered by Ford engines, a Piper DF5, a Swift DB1 and a Lola T540.
The late afternoon start meant that drivers were driving into the sun as they approached turns 3, 5 and 12 the most critical being turn 3 coming off the banking.
As the race went green, the field streaked off around the banking through NASCAR turns 1 and 2 and headed for turn 3 and Alex Kirby made it through cleanly, Payne while in second place was clipped into a spin by Chuck Horn, who had come down the inside braking late. Horn went straight through clipping Payne and off drivers left and when he re-entered the track collided with non-series competitor Mike Lewis who in turn spun and hit car owner Bill Kephart. Kephart’s car was too damaged to continue as was Horn’s DB6 while Payne and Lewis continued. This left Kirby with a
clear lead over the ensuing pack. The first lap completed and it was Kirby with a clear lead followed by Swanbeck, Erlandson, Renfrow, Zurlinden and Payne.
Kirby had a stranglehold on the race as the other competitors now battled for the runner-up positions which became a three car duel with positions changing on every lap between Swanbeck, Erlandson and Renfrow. Erlandson held the runner-up spot until lap 5 when he dropped to fourth. Then it was Renfrow’s turn to hold second, which he did until lap 11 when finally it was Swanbeck who swept past to finally claim the second step on the podium.
The final quarter of the race saw the positions stabilize somewhat with Kirby leading, Swanbeck, Renfrow, Erlandson, Payne and Zurlinden until the final lap when Erlandson passed Renfrow to claim the final podium step.
Kirby was fortunate to not be involved in the first lap mayhem was able to cruise to victory and to set the fastest lap of the race which should stand him in good stead for tomorrows event.
F1600 Qualifying: 1. Alex Kirby, (Piper DL7/Honda-H), 1m46.015s; 2. Rick Payne, (Van Diemen/Honda-H), 1m46.821s; 3. Ed Erlandson, (Swift DB6/Honda-A), 1m47.101s; 4. Daniel Swanbeck, (Piper DF5/Honda-H), 1m47.505s; 5. Denny Renfrow, (Piper DL9/Honda-H), 1m47.518s; 6. Chuck Horn, (Swift DB6/Honda-H), 1m48.004s; 7. Dave Zurlinden, (Piper DF5/Honda-T), 1m50.590s. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, G-Goodyear, H-Hoosier, T-Toyo.
F1600 Round 1 (15 laps): 1. Kirby; 2. Swanbeck; 3. Erlandson; 4. Renfrow; 5. Payne; 6. Zurlinden; Horn DQ.
Fastest race lap: Kirby, 1m46.552s.
Expert class winner (over 35): Erlandson.
Points: No points awarded, non-championship event.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Peter West at 310-363-9444, or by email,
pacificf2000@hotmail.com.
Evans is Victorious at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, Claims Series Title
Monterey, CA (October 11, 2014) – The 2014 SCCA National Championship Runoffs was the site of round nine of the Pacific Formula 1600/F2000 Championship with thirteen of the twenty-three Runoffs qualified drivers participating and dominating the results taking eleven of the first twelve places. Just one month after claiming his second series victory, Andrew Evans returned to Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca and won round nine and became the series champion for 2014.The Runoffs format provided three days of qualifying on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday over the undulating, 2.238 mile, eleven turn course and was the first visit by the series since 2010.
Tuesday’s qualifying saw Zach Craigo, #27, Rocky Mountain Medical Lasers, Van Diemen with the fastest time of 1m 28.727s just edging out Andrew Evans, #62, ProFormance Racing School, PR1 Motorsports Van Diemen by .098 of a second. James Hakewill, #88 Van Diemen was next followed by Bob Negron, #8, Hoosier, Rosie’s At The Beach, Terri Negron Web Design Van Diemen and Peter West, #99 Frank Monise Motors, Ken Partch, Racing Optics, Zombo.com, DFR Van Diemen as the only drivers in the 1 minute 29 second range. Peter Thomas, #7 Refrigeration Control Co., PR1 Van Diemen; Michael Manning, #25 Cypress Lane Racing, Fast Forward Racing Components, Dauntless Racing Cars, Van Diemen; Yufeng Luo in the #00, DFR Van Diemen; Robert Armington, #11 Premium Power Systems Inc., Metro Cab SF, MCI Van Diemen; Harin de Silva, #96, DFR Van Diemen, Bill Kincaid, #46, La Curva, Van Diemen, and Chuck Raggio, #14, Apex Orthopedics of California, Inc., Scuderia Raggi Van Diemen completed the field with Tom Hope, #18 Primus Racing Parts, H & M Racing Van Diemen having his time disallowed for a fuel infringement.
Qualifying on Wednesday produced faster times for most of the field but again it was Craigo and Evans, the only drivers in the 1 minute 28 second range heading the time sheets, this time Evans with the fastest time. Wednesday also saw Peter West’s time disallowed as the rear wing was found to be too wide.
Thursday’s qualifying produced the best times and again it was Andrew Evans with the fastest time claiming the pole with a time of 1 minute 27.998 seconds. Craigo was again second fastest followed by Tom Hope, having made up for his earlier disqualification, James Hakewill, Yufeng Luo, Bob Negron, his best time having been set on Tuesday, Robert Armington, Michael Manning, Harin de Silva, Peter Thomas, Peter West, his best time disallowed and reverting to his Tuesday time, Bill Kincaid, and Chuck Raggio.
For the final Pacific Formula F2000 Championship round of 2014, double points are to be awarded, increasing the pressure on both teams and drivers to achieve their best results.
The green flag waved and as everyone sprinted down to the Andretti hairpin it was Andrew Evans who surged into the lead ahead of Zach Craigo, Tom Hope, James Hakewill, Bob Negron, Yufeng Luo, Michael Manning, Robert Armington, Peter West, Peter Thomas, Harin de Silva, Bill Kincaid and Chuck Raggio.
On lap two Hakewill eased his way past Hope and when Negron approached the gap closed and unfortunately there was contact sending Hope into the gravel at turn 5 and Negron continuing with a severely damaged right front upper wishbone. This caused a two lap caution period while Hope’s stricken Van Diemen was removed. For Hope it was a bitter disappointment having come into the race with a chance to win the championship only to have his race ended on the second lap.
When the race resumed, Evans again began to streak away from the field with Craigo and Hakewill filling the top three positions. Yufeng Luo had passed the wounded Van Diemen of Negron for fourth place while the remainder of the field remained constant with Manning leading the group in sixth place.
On lap six Armington spun dropping to the rear of the field but was able to continue and began his pursuit of Raggio in eleventh.
With Evans continuing to lead and pull away from Craigo, Zach in turn began increasing his gap over Hakewill, who was being closed in on by Luo. The battle between Hakewill and Luo would continue to the end maintaining a .2 second advantage to the flag.
In the closing stages of the race Kincaid moved past DeSilva, Thomas and West for sixth place.
As the laps wound down, it was Andrew Evans who cruised to a 13 second win in the twenty lap race. It was a fine result for the Sammamish, Washington resident, in his second season in the series and first in the F2000 group, to take his third race victory and the season championship.
Zach Craigo, a winner in Portland, came home in a somewhat lonely second place nearly five seconds ahead of the battle for the final step on the podium.
James Hakewill claimed third place on his return to the series ahead of Yufeng Luo and with that also takes the victory in the Expert (drivers 35-50) class.
Bob Negron nursed his damaged Van Diemen home in fifth place and with it the Master (drivers over 50) class win.
Peter West finished in eight place giving him the Master Class championship for 2014.
Even though Tom Hope had his race end in the turn 5 gravel trap, his season performance of two race wins and three second place finishes was enough to maintain second in the championship and claim the Expert Class championship.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Andrew Evans, (Van Diemen-A), 1m27.998s; 2. Zach Craigo, (Van Diemen-A), 1m28.537s; 3. Tom Hope, (Van Diemen-A), 1m28.909s; 4. James Hakewill, (Van Diemen-A), 1m28.924s; 5. Yufeng Luo, (Van Diemen-A), 1m29.049s; 6. Bob Negron (Van Diemen-H), 1m29.189s; 7. Robert Armington, (Van Diemen-A), 1m29.388s; 8. Michael Manning, (Van Diemen-A), 1m29.795s; 9. Harindra de Silva, (Van Diemen-A), 1m29.891s; 10. Peter Thomas, (Van Diemen-A), 1m29.911s; 11. Peter West (Van Diemen-A), 1m29.926s; 12. Bill Kincaid, (Van Diemen-A), 1m31.143s; 13. Chuck Raggio, (Van Diemen-G), 1m33.350s. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, G-Goodyear, H-Hoosier.
F2000 Round 9 (20 laps): 1. Evans; 2. Craigo; 3. Hakewill; 4. Luo; 5. Negron; 6. Manning; 7. Kincaid; 8. West; 9. Thomas; 10 De Silva; 11. Armington; 12. Raggio; 13. Hope, +19 laps.
Fastest race lap: Evans, 1m27.705s.
Expert class winner (over 35): Hakewill.
Master class winner (over 50): Negron.
Final Points: 1. Evans=267; 2. Hope=176; 3. West=160; 4. Negron=150; 5. Thomas=147; 6. Luo=137; 7. Manning=114; 8. Craigo=109; 9. DeSilva=106; 10. Hakewill=94; 11. Phillips=74; 12. Kincaid=55; 13. Armington=51; 14. Raggio=46; 15. Stewart=23; 16. Kodenko=16.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Evans is Victorious in Round 8 at Mazda Raceway, Extends Points Lead
Monterey, CA (September 14, 2014) – Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, the undulating, 2.238 mile, eleven turn course played host to the eighth round of the Pacific Formula 1600/2000 Championship as part of the San Francisco Region’s SFR Championship Series Double Regional, NORPAC Divisional Runoffs Qualifier. The race was won by Andrew Evans in his first season competing in 2-liter cars, taking his Second victory of the season.Qualifying for Sunday’s race was held on Saturday afternoon and held in near perfect conditions with partly sunny skies with temperatures in the seventies.
The session was led by Andrew Evans, #127, ProFormance Racing School, PR1 Motorsports Van Diemen, having switched from Goodyear to Avon tires, who set a time of 1:28.074 a whopping 1.329 seconds ahead of second place qualifier Tom Hope, #18 Primus Racing Parts, H & M Racing Van Diemen and Bob Negron, #8, Hoosier, Rosie’s At The Beach, Terri Negron Web Design Van Diemen, these two both in the 1:29 range. These three were followed by Peter Thomas, #7 Refrigeration Control Co., PR1 Van Diemen, Harin de Silva, #96, DFR Van Diemen and Peter West, #99 Frank Monise Motors, Ken Partch, Racing Optics, Zombo.com, DFR Van Diemen with Michael Manning, #25 Cypress Lane Racing, Fast Forward Racing Components, Dauntless Racing Cars, Van Diemen unable to participate due to his engine failure in the morning race.
Sunday’s race was the next to last of the weekend with a scheduled start at 2:30pm giving Manning the opportunity to get his car repaired before the race but the task was too daunting and he never managed to make it to the grid.
After a ten minute delay for track clean up from a car depositing a liberal amount of oil on the track at turn 8, the green flag waved and the field was off and this time it was Andrew Evans who emerged with the lead ahead of Bob Negron, Tom Hope, Peter West, Peter Thomas and Harin de Silva.
Evans continued in the lead as the field began to encounter slower cars and begin the lapping process during which Hope managed to get past Negron for second place and began his chase of Evans while at the same time Thomas was closing on West for fourth and de Silva still in sixth.
West managed to hold off Thomas for several laps before the handling began going away and Thomas was through into fourth place with only Negron between him and his second podium of the season.
While Evans maintained a comfortable lead over Hope, Thomas continued closing on Negron eventually demoting Negron down to fourth place.
On his way to his second victory of the season, Andrew Evans managed to also put up the race’s fastest lap which is good for two bonus points and along with the bonus points for pole position maximized his points total for the race which gives him a substantial 25 point lead heading to the final race of the season.
Tom Hope kept his championship hopes alive finishing in second place and also garnering the victory in the Expert Class. Hope will need a little good fortune but with double points available for the season finale, anything is within the realm of possibility.
Peter Thomas completed the podium finishing in third place, running consistently while putting in his best lap times of the weekend.
Bob Negron’s fourth place finish was a disappointment after his victory on Saturday and highlights the competitiveness of the series and he did find some consolation in taking the Master Class win.
Peter West struggled to fifth place with an ill handling car which from midrace grew worse with each successive lap, a testament to his skill in keeping in on the track to the checkered flag.
Harindra de Silva took sixth place in his newly prepared “Shadow” liveried Van Diemen, prepared by Dave Freitas Racing.
Round nine, the series’ season finale is to be held in conjunction with the SCCA National Championship Runoffs, October 6-12, 2014. It will be a single race with double points to determine the series champions.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Andrew Evans, (Van Diemen-A), 1m28.074s; 2. Tom Hope, (Van Diemen-A), 1m29.403s; 3. Bob Negron (Van Diemen-H), 1m29.999s; 4. Peter Thomas, (Van Diemen-G), 1m30.726s; 5. Harindra de Silva, (Van Diemen-H), 1m31.871s; 6. Peter West (Van Diemen-H), 1m31.952s. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, G-Goodyear, H-Hoosier.
F2000 Round 8 (20 laps): 1. Evans; 2. Hope; 3. Thomas; 4. Negron; 5. West; 6. De Silva.
Fastest race lap: Evans, 1m28.794s.
Expert class winner (over 35): Hope.
Master class winner (over 50): Negron.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Negron Tops Field in Round 7 at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca
Monterey, CA (September 13, 2014) – Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca was the site for rounds seven and eight of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship. The San Francisco Region was hosting the SFR Championship Series Double Regional, NORPAC Divisional Runoffs Qualifier over the undulating, 2.238 mile, eleven turn course and was the first visit by the series since 2010. Last years Series Champion earned his first victory of the season, leading from green flag to checker.Due to the large field and eight total run groups, qualifying for Saturday’s race was held on Friday afternoon after a morning test session under partly sunny skies with temperatures in the seventies.
The session was led by Bob Negron, #8, Hoosier, Rosie’s At The Beach, Terri Negron Web Design Van Diemen, closely followed by Andrew Evans, #127, ProFormance Racing School, PR1 Motorsports Van Diemen, both lapping in the 1 minute 29 second range with Michael Manning, #25 Cypress Lane Racing, Fast Forward Racing Components, Dauntless Racing Cars, Van Diemen; Peter Thomas, #7 Refrigeration Control Co., PR1 Van Diemen and Tom Hope, #18 Primus Racing Parts, H & M Racing Van Diemen, all of whom lapped in the 1 minute 30 second bracket. Next were Peter West, #99 Frank Monise Motors, Ken Partch, Racing Optics, Zombo.com, DFR Van Diemen and Harin de Silva, #96, DFR Van Diemen. Not in attendance this weekend was series regular Les Phillips, #2, Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes Van Diemen.
The green flag waved and as everyone sprinted down to the Andretti hairpin it was Bob Negron who surged into the lead ahead of Michael Manning, Andrew Evans, Peter West, Peter Thomas, Tom Hope and Harin de Silva, his car painted in the colors of the Shadow formula one team.
Negron continued in the lead with Manning, Evans, West, Thomas, Hope and de Silva trailing.
Tom Hope began his charge up through the field, this being his first time at this venue, and having missed all of the practice session, qualifying was his first time on the track, and he was now beginning to come to grips with the circuit. Hope passed Thomas on lap two and brought de Silva along with him for fifth and sixth.
On the fifth lap Manning disappeared having had an idler pulley bolt shear causing a timing jump and shutting down the engine and ending his chances of another podium following his victory in Portland. Manning’s retirement boosted Evans into second place where he began his pursuit of Negron, who appeared comfortably ahead.
West, now in third, was having a good race and looked forward to another podium until the Malibu resident was caught by the charging Hope, demoting him to fourth place.
The leaders were now beginning to encounter slower traffic as they moved through the tail end of the field making lapping conditions tricky as even though now a lap behind, these drivers were still hotly contesting for positions within their given classes, and Peter Thomas came up to lap two such cars and spun coming into the Corkscrew and found himself backing down the track to safety before rejoining the race nearly a lap behind himself.
Just beyond the midway one of the Formula F drivers spun, stalled his car and was unable to restart.
Unfortunately his car was in a hazardous location causing Race Control to bring out the Pace Car and put the field under a full course yellow, which bunched the field up for what turned out to be the final two laps of green flag racing.
Negron’s once comfortable lead was now in jeopardy as the field exited turn eleven and headed up the main straight toward the starter and the green flag. Negron once again surged into the lead for the final two laps and came home to claim the victory by just over half a second. The victory also gave him the Master Class win for drivers 51 and up. Negron also completed the race’s fastest lap which along with the pole position, set on Friday, gave him maximum points for his effort.
Championship point leader Andrew Evans, by finishing in second place ahead of his nearest series rival, takes a sixteen point lead into Sunday’s race.
Tom Hope finished in third place, the final step on the podium, showing steady improvement, this being his first trip to Mazda Raceway, and with it claimed the Expert Class (drivers 35-50) win and only dropping three points as he battles with Evans for the series title.
Peter West had a fine run finishing in fourth place and maintaining third place in the championship.
Harin de Silva brought his newly obtained and beautifully rebuilt Van Diemen home incident free in fifth place and was followed by Peter Thomas in sixth with Michael Manning in seventh.
Round eight is to be held Sunday August 14, 2014.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Bob Negron (Van Diemen-H), 1m29.368s; 2. Andrew Evans, (Van Diemen-G), 1m29.992s; 3. Michael Manning, (Van Diemen-H), 1m30.604s; 4. Peter Thomas, (Van Diemen-G), 1m30.803s; 5. Tom Hope, (Van Diemen-A), 1m30.886s; 6. Peter West (Van Diemen-H), 1m32.183s; 7. Harindra de Silva, (Van Diemen-H), 1m32.268s. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, G-Goodyear, H-Hoosier.
F2000 Round 7 (13 laps): 1. Negron; 2. Evans; 3. Hope; 4. West; 5. De Silva; 6. Thomas; 7. Manning, +9 laps.
Fastest race lap: Negron, 1m29.237s.
Expert class winner (over 35): Hope.
Master class winner (over 50): Negron.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Craigo Chases Down Luo and Takes Victory in Round Six
Portland, OR (July 6, 2014) – Round Six of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship saw series rookie Zach Craigo, in only his fourth start in the series lead the last two laps to claim victory on Sunday at Portland International Raceway.Run in conjunction with the SCCA U.S. Majors Tour event, the series made its return to Portland International Raceway after a 9 year absence. The historic 12-turn, 1.967 mile road course has been the scene of many classic battles from the days of the IMSA Camel GT Series to the more recent Champ Car series.
Race day dawned sunny, clear and warm and after hardship laps were run in the morning, cars were gridded for their 11:15am race. Grid positions were established by either fastest qualifying time or fastest lap in Saturday’s sprint race which ever was better. The F2000 group lined up with Andrew Evans, #127, ProFormance Racing School, PR1 Motorsports Van Diemen, on the pole followed by Zach Craigo, #27, Rocky Mountain Medical Lasers, Van Diemen; Yufeng Luo in the #6, DFR Van Diemen; Tom Hope, #18 H & M Racing Van Diemen and Michael Manning, #25 Cypress Lane Racing, Fast Forward Racing Components, Dauntless Racing Cars, Van Diemen, all of whom lapped in the 1 minute 15 second bracket. Next were Peter West, #99 Frank Monise Motors, Ken Partch, Racing Optics, Zombo.com, DFR Van Diemen; Peter Thomas, #7 Refrigeration Control Co., PR1 Van Diemen and Chuck Raggio, #14, Apex Orthopedics of California, Inc., Scuderia Raggi Van Diemen.
Once again the series was able to get a split start enabling their group to start behind the remaining classes in the group and settle into their race before encountering traffic.
At the green flag both groups safely navigated the Festival turns (chicane), often a scene of opening lap incidents due to the inviting nature of a very wide front straight, and once again Zach Craigo surged ahead leading Yufeng Luo, Tom Hope, Peter West, Michael Manning, Andrew Evans and.
Lap two saw Luo take the lead and begin to pull away from Craigo who was closely followed by Hope, Manning, West, Evans and Thomas.
Evans took fifth place from West on lap three and began closing in on Manning for fourth a position he was not to obtain as around lap twelve he lost second gear and began to drift backwards eventually finishing in seventh.
The order remained constant for most of the rest of the race with Luo leading Craigo by almost three seconds. Undaunted, Craigo began to claw his was back toward Luo until by lap 23 the pair were now nose to tail and for Craigo it was time to make his move. He passed Luo and went on to victory leading the final two laps of the race. The win was his first in the series and just to put an exclamation point on things posted the fastest lap at 1:15.354, faster than his fastest qualifying lap.
Second place went to Yufeng Luo with a strong performance leading most of the race laps.
Tom Hope finished in third, a good rebound after the disappointment of the retirement on Saturday. His third place finish also good enough to claim the Expert Class win.
Fourth place went to Saturday’s round 5 victor Michael Manning, who just did not quite have the pace of the leaders today.
Peter West finished in a solid fifth position which also earned him the Master Class win for the second day in a row, a solid finish for West and his new sponsors Ken Partch and Racing Optics.
Peter Thomas came home in sixth and was followed by his teammate Andrew Evans.
The series now moves on to Monterey, CA for rounds 7 and 8 to be held on the scenic Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca on September 12, 13 & 14.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Andrew Evans, (Van Diemen-G), 1m15.357s; 2. Zach Craigo (Van Diemen-G), 1m15.462s; 3. Yufeng Luo, (Van Diemen-H), 1m15.563s; 4. Tom Hope, (Van Diemen-A), 1m15.791s; 5. Michael Manning, (Van Diemen-H), 1m15.866s; 6. Peter West (Van Diemen-H), 1m16.494s; 7. Peter Thomas, (Van Diemen-G), 1m16.680s. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, G-Goodyear, H-Hoosier.
F2000 Round 6 (25 laps): 1. Craigo; 2. Luo; 3. Hope; 4. Manning, +1 lap; 5. West, +1 lap; 6. Thomas, +1 lap; 7. Evans, +1 lap.
Fastest race lap: Craigo, 1m15.354s.
Expert class winner (over 35): Hope.
Master class winner (over 50): West.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Manning Claims First Series Victory in Round 5
Portland, OR (July 5, 2014) – The Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship traveled to the Pacific Northwest for rounds 5 and 6. Run in conjunction with the SCCA U.S. Majors Tour event, the series made its return to Portland International Raceway after a 9 year absence. The scenic 12-turn, 1.967 mile road course is nestled between the Columbia and Willamette Rivers proved challenging to many of the series drivers competing here for the first time. Michael Manning was declared the winner after Yufeng Luo was demoted to second place for a violation of GCR section 6.11.3, Failure to follow chicane procedures. It was Manning’s first victory in the Series.Two qualifying sessions were scheduled for Friday and were held under partly cloudy skies with temperatures in the eighties.
The morning session was led by Andrew Evans, #127, ProFormance Racing School, PR1 Motorsports Van Diemen, 1:15.357 closely followed by Zach Craigo, #27, Rocky Mountain Medical Lasers, Van Diemen; Yufeng Luo in the #6, DFR Van Diemen; Tom Hope, #18 H & M Racing Van Diemen and Michael Manning, #25 Cypress Lane Racing, Fast Forward Racing Components, Dauntless Racing Cars, Van Diemen, all of whom lapped in the 1 minute 15 second bracket. Next were Peter West, #99 Frank Monise Motors, Ken Partch, Racing Optics, Zombo.com, DFR Van
Diemen; Peter Thomas, #7 Refrigeration Control Co., PR1 Van Diemen and Chuck Raggio, #14, Apex Orthopedics of California, Inc., Scuderia Raggi Van Diemen. Not in attendance this weekend were series regulars Les Phillips, #2, Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes Van Diemen; Bob Negron, defending series champion, #8, Terri Negron Web Design, Van Diemen.
Yufeng Luo led the afternoon session with a 1:16.369 and while the session was briefly interrupted to retrieve a stranded car none of the drivers managed to improve their morning times and Andrew Evans claimed the two bonus points for the taking the pole.
The series was able to get a split start enabling their group to start behind the remaining classes in the group and settle into their race before encountering traffic.
The green flag fell on the first group and with everyone able to safely navigate the Festival turns (chicane), often a scene of opening lap incidents due to the inviting nature of a very wide front straight, the green was waved for the second group and Zach Craigo surged into the lead ahead of Andrew Evans, Michael Manning, Tom Hope, Peter West, Yufeng Luo, Peter Thomas and Chuck Raggio.
Craigo continued to lead with Evans, Manning, Hope, Luo, having got by West on lap two, West, Thomas and Raggio.
The order remained constant until lap 8 when Hope passed Manning for third place, a position he would hold for only two laps before rising water temperatures forced him into the pits to retire after completing only nine laps. A punctured radiator was found to be the cause.
The battle between teammates West and Luo seesawed back and forth with Luo taking West for what was now fourth place on lap five only to lose it again as West reasserted himself and re-took the position on lap nine as the pair battled for team superiority.
West was now beginning to close on Manning in third while Craigo continued to lead Evans.
A brief full course yellow closed the field and at the re-start, there was contact between competitors in the classes running ahead of the FC’s at the Festival corner partially blocking the track causing some competitors to short cut the course while others wove their way through the blockage which would have an affect later in the race.
The complexion of the race changed for Craigo and Evans on lap fifteen while the pair were running almost nose to tail, Craigo spun on his own damaging his front wing and Evan was forced to take avoiding action which left him in the tire barriers and unable to continue with a broken left front lower wishbone, which brought out another full course yellow while Evans’ car was retrieved.
The field once again closed and coming to the re-start with Luo now in the lead, Manning second and West in third, West clipped the right rear of Manning’s car as he suddenly slowed to avoid contacting the car in front of him. West had a damaged left front wing and began to drop down through the field.
Luo was now leading Manning as the race was coming to a close and took the checkered flag less than a second ahead of Manning. After the podium ceremony and the stewards reviewing of the incidents that occurred during track blockage at the chicane, Luo was judged to have not followed the proper procedure when re-entering the track and was demoted one position giving the victory to Manning. For Manning it was his first series victory having joined the series this year.
Peter Thomas came home in an unscathed third place and was also the Expert Class victor.
Peter West held on for fourth place and with it the Master Class win.
Chuck Raggio finished fifth followed by Zach Craigo in sixth and Andrew Evans in seventh and Tom Hope in eighth.
Round six to be held Sunday July 6, 2014.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Andrew Evans, (Van Diemen-G), 1m15.357s; 2. Zach Craigo (Van Diemen-G), 1m15.462s; 3. Yufeng Luo, (Van Diemen-H), 1m15.563s; 4. Tom Hope, (Van Diemen-A), 1m15.791s; 5. Michael Manning, (Van Diemen-H), 1m15.866s; 6. Peter West (Van Diemen-H), 1m16.494s; 7. Peter Thomas, (Van Diemen-G), 1m16.680s; 8. Chuck Raggio, (Van Diemen-H), 1m18.779s. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, G-Goodyear, H-Hoosier.
F2000 Round 5 (23 laps): 1. Manning; 2. Luo; 3. Thomas; 4. West, +1 lap; 5. Raggio, +1 lap; 6. Craigo, +3 laps; 7. Evans, +7 laps; 8. Hope, +14 laps.
Fastest race lap: Craigo, 1m15.487s.
Expert class winner (over 35): Thomas.
Master class winner (over 50): West.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Round Four Sees Lastochkin Take Second Series Victory and Increase Points Lead
Buttonwillow, Calif. (April 27, 2014) – Nikita Lastochkin put the events of yesterday behind him driving his Mygale/ Honda flawlessly around the 3.020 mile, 25A road course at Buttonwillow Raceway Park in Buttonwillow, CA to claim victory in round four of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship.
Having had the fastest qualifying time yesterday and also the fastest race lap, there was no doubt who would start from the pole and Nikita Lastochkin duly took up his position at the head of the field driving the #2 Russkaya Mekhanika, PR1 Motorsports Mygale/Honda followed by Thomas Merrill in the #51, Fast Forward, Piper Race Cars, NOCO2, Speedbourne,NoBozoRacing, Hoosier Tire, Thomas Merrill Motorsports, Piper/Honda. Row two consisted of Alex Kirby in the #15 LA Prep Inc. Piper/Honda and Chuck Horn, #54 Isys engineering, Porter Racing Swift DB6/Honda followed by Ed Erlandson in his #8, Artwork by Eli, Porter Racing, Swift DB6/Honda and James Stewart in the #89, True Ventures, Mygale/Honda.
Sunny skies and mid seventies temperatures greeted the drivers as they lined up on the grid for the late afternoon (4:00pm) start.
After an uneventful pace lap, the field took the green flag and when they arrived at the first corner it was Alex Kirby who went for the brakes and the pedal went straight to the floor and Alex not wanting to create a greater incident drove straight off at the first turn, twenty yards into the dirt slowed got the car turned around and waited for the FV field to pass before re-entering the track to begin his charge to an eventual fifth place finish.
Lastochkin leapt into the lead at the start, his Mygale a bit too quick for Merrill’s Piper, and proceeded to slowly inch ahead of Merrill until he had a comfortable margin between them. From this point on Lastochkin was able to control the race and it seemed as though there were nothing that Merrill could do. Lastochkin raced on leading every lap and setting the fastest race lap to claim the two bonus points that go along with it and win by nearly ten second.
Merrill for his part drew on all of his previous F2000 experience to try to close the gap to Lastochkin but in the end had to settle for the second step on the podium, still a fine result for not having competed in the series since 2007.
Ed Erlandson starting third drove steadily to claim an uneventful third place, his Swift not quite able to match the pace of the leaders. Erlandson’s third place also earned him the Expert Class win.
Chuck Horn had an early spin trying to stay ahead of another competitor and dropped to the back of the field and steadily worked his way back up to third at one point only to spin again at the Mazda hairpin and go on to a fourth place finishing position.
Sixth place went to James Stewart who is re-familiarizing himself with the Mygale/Honda after having driven in the F2000 class at the opening round of the series.
The series now move on the Portland International Raceway for rounds 5 and 6 on July 4-6.
F1600 Qualifying: 1. Nikita Lastochkin, (Mygale/Honda-A), 1m53.205s; 2. Thomas Merrill, (Piper/Honda-H), 1m54.179s; 3. Alex Kirby, (Piper/Honda-A), 1m54.756s; 4. Chuck Horn, (Swift DB6/Honda), 1m54.727s; 5. Ed Erlandson, (Swift DB6/Honda-A), 1m57.397s; 6. James Stewart, (Mygale/Honda-A), 1m58.746s. Tires: A-Avon, G-Goodyear, H-Hoosier.
F1600 Round 4 (16 laps): 1. Lastochkin; 2. Merrill, +9.843s; 3. Erlandson, +1m29.323s; 4. Horn, +1m32.857s; 5. Kirby, +1m33.192s; 6. Stewart, +2m03.214s.
Fastest race lap: Lastochkin, 1m53.052s.
Expert class winner (over 35): Erlandson.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Hope Wins Round 4 to Sweep Weekend Events
Buttonwillow, Calif. (April 27, 2014) – Tom Hope was victorious in round four of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship was held Sunday at Buttonwillow Raceway Park on the 3.020 mile, 25A road course in Buttonwillow. His victory allowed him to close to within four points of the championship lead with 5 races yet to be held, signaling his intent to claim this season’s title.There was a brief 10 minute warm-up in the morning before the cars were gridded for their 10:05am race. Grid positions were established by either fastest qualifying time or fastest lap in Saturday’s sprint race which ever was better. The F2000 group lined up with Andrew Evans on the pole followed by Tom Hope, Yufeng Luo, Bob Negron, Michael Manning, Peter West, Peter Thomas, James Hakewill, Zach Craigo, Harindra DeSilva, Les Phillips, Nick Kodenko and Chuck Raggio.
Under partly cloudy skies and with temperatures in the mid-seventies the field took the green flag and as on Saturday it was Yufeng Luo in the #6, DFR Van Diemen who seized the lead from Bob Negron, #8, Terri Negron Web Design, Van Diemen; Tom Hope, #18 H & M Racing Van Diemen. Michael Manning was fourth in his #25 Cypress Lane Racing, Fast Forward Racing Components, Dauntless Racing Cars, Van Diemen followed by Peter West, #99 Frank Monise Motors, Zombo.com, DFR Van Diemen; James Hakewill, #88 Van Diemen; and Harindra de Silva, #22 DFR Van Diemen in positions 4 thru 7. Andrew Evans, #27, PR1 Motorsports Van Diemen was shuffled back as a result of contact
between Peter Thomas, #7 Refrigeration Control Co., PR1 Van Diemen and Zach Craigo, #27, Rocky Mountain Medical Lasers, Van Diemen, both cars retiring on the spot, and came across the line at the end of the first lap in eighth place. The final three places were held by Les Phillips, #2, Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes Van Diemen; Nick Kodenko, #3, Kodenko Jeans, Kodenko Engines, Van Diemen and Chuck Raggio, #14, Apex Orthopedics of California, Inc., Scuderia Raggi Van Diemen.
With Luo leading, Hope was again on the charge taking second place from Negron on lap three and applying the pressure to Luo before finally displacing him and taking the lead on lap six. From here Hope looked very strong and seemed to easily control the race pace.
Meanwhile Evans was eager to make up the lost places and began to work his way through the field having disposed of DeSilva on lap two. Continuing his charge he passed Hakewill on lap four and West on lap seven and was now into fifth place. Two more laps and he was past Manning and closing on Negron for third place. Evans chased down Negron on the fourteenth of sixteen laps got a run coming out of the esses and attempted a pass into the Sunset corner. Evans was carrying too speed while Negron gave him plenty of room. Evans’ car ran wide taking himself and Negron off into the dirt.
Both managed to continue, Evans in third place and Negron now nursing his car home with a bent left front wing and steering arm.
Late race contact between Luo and Hope resulted in a broken nose on Luo’s Van Diemen as Hope defended his position. Luo then dropped back to finish 14.074 seconds behind Hope at the checker.
The win gave Hope his second win of the weekend, the second Expert Class victory and second place in the point standings. Hope looks very strong and hi new Van Diemen showed well this weekend.
For Luo it was his second podium finish in two races in the series and signaled he is a force to be reckoned with again leading the Dave Freitas Racing team to another podium.
Andrew Evans after being caught out by the Thomas/Craigo incident managed a storming drive up through the field claimed the final step on the podium despite the controversial passing attempt on Negron late in the race. Evans continues to maintain the points lead as a result of bonus points earned for pole positions and fastest race laps.
Bob Negron, having limped home to his second fourth place finish of the weekend, claimed another Master Class victory and moved up six places in the points to fourth.
Series newcomer Michael Manning finished in fifth for the second day in a row and was followed by Peter West in sixth, James Hakewill in seventh, Harindra DeSilva in eighth, Les Phillips in ninth and Chuck Raggio in tenth.
Nick Kodenko retired on lap three with a broken CV joint.
The series now moves on to Portland International Raceway on July 4-6 for rounds 5 and 6.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Andrew Evans, (Van Diemen-G), 1m46.368s; 2. Tom Hope, (Van Diemen-A), 1m46.848s; 3.Yufeng Luo, (Van Diemen-H), 1m46.997s; 4. Bob Negron, (Van Diemen-H), 1m47.443s; 5. Michael Manning, (Van Diemen-H), 1m48.464s; 6. Peter West (Van Diemen-H), 1m48.501s; 7. Peter Thomas, (Van Diemen-G), 1m48.807s; 8. James Hakewill, (Van Diemen-A), 1m49.172s; 9. Zach Craigo (Van Diemen-G), 1m49.481s; 10. Harindra DeSilva (Van Diemen-H), 1m50.082s; 11. Les Phillips, (Van Diemen-G), 1m50.185s; 12. Nick Kodenko, (Van Diemen-G), 1m52.415s; 13. Chuck Raggio, (Van Diemen-H), 1m55.620s; 14. Bill Kincaid, (Van Diemen-A), no time. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, G-Goodyear, H-Hoosier.
F2000 Round 4 (16 laps): 1. Hope; 2. Luo, +17.074s; 3. Evans, +17.744s; 4. Negron, +25.147s; 5. Manning, +1 lap; 6. West, +1 lap; 7. Hakewill, +1 lap; 8. DeSilva, +1 lap; 9. Phillips; +1 lap; 10. Raggio, +1 lap; 11. Kodenko, +13 laps; 12. Thomas, +16 laps; 13. Craigo, +16 laps.
Fastest race lap: Evans, 1m46.481s.
Expert class winner (over 35): Hope.
Master class winner (over 50): Negron.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Merrill Surprise Victor at Buttonwillow in Round Three
Buttonwillow, Calif. (April 26, 2014) – Round three of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship was held Saturday at Buttonwillow Raceway Park on the 3.020 mile, 25A road course in Buttonwillow and was won by Thomas Merrill after a three position penalty was handed to race winner Nikita Lastochkin for passing under yellow.The run groups, set by the sanctioning club, has split the F1600 from the F2000 cars this season and finds them running as FF’s in a group with FE’s, FV’s and F500.
Since rounds 1 and 2 at Fontana, three drivers have returned to the F1600 group for this event.
Thomas Merrill will see his first action in the series since 2007 when he drove an F2000 Van Diemen for PR1 Motorsports finishing second to teammate Patrick Barrett in the championship. Thomas will be driving the #51, Fast Forward, Piper Race Cars, NOCO2, Speedbourne,NoBozoRacing, Hoosier Tire, Thomas Merrill Motorsports, Piper/Honda. Merrill won one of the most recent Majors races at Thunderhill Raceway Park prior to re-joining the series.
Ed Erlandson after challenging for the 2012 championship with a Swift/Ford, returns with Honda power in his #8, Artwork by Eli, Porter Racing, Swift DB6/Honda. Joining Erlandson will be James Stewart back in the F1600 group with the #89, True Ventures, Mygale/Honda, Dave Zurlinden in the #131 Pro Pack systems, Fast Forward Piper/Honda and Alex Kirby in the #15 LA Prep Inc. Piper/Honda and Chuck Horn in the #54 Isys engineering, Porter Racing Swift DB6/Honda.
PR1 Motorsports is fielding a single entry for Nikita Lastochkin, the #2 Russkaya Mekhanika, PR1 Motorsports Mygale/Honda. Lastochkin won round two of the series at Fontana.
The F1600 group was the last qualifying group on track for their 25 minute qualifying session that began at 11:30pm under clearing skies and warming temperatures. When the session began it was Lastochkin who set a pole time of 1m53.205s, nearly a second ahead of Merrill in the Piper and almost two seconds ahead of Kirby, who set his fastest time on his first timed lap. Horn was next followed by Zurlinden and Erlandson with Stewart rounding out the field.
Lastochkin lead away at the start with Merrill glued to his gearbox followed by Kirby, Horn, Erlandson and Stewart. Mechanical issues meant Zurlinden was unable to take the start.
Lastochkin and Merrill continued their duel at the front as the remaining runners fell further behind Merrill continuing to hound Lastochkin, trying to press him into a mistake. Lastochkin did not oblige Merrill and drove flawlessly to the end building a lead of over eleven seconds by the end.
Thomas Merrill’s return drive, also mistake free, was rewarded with a second place finish.
The battle for third place was finally decided in favor of Alex Kirby who spun and was passed by Horn on lap 4. Kirby kept pressing on and was able to get back by Horn on the eighth lap when Horn had a spin of his own to claim the final step on the podium.
Chuck Horn finished the race in fourth place which was enough to claim the Expert Class Victory.
Horn was followed by Ed Erlandson in fifth and James Stewart in sixth.
After the race the stewards convened and decided to demote both Lastochkin and Kirby three places for passes made under yellow flag conditions. This resulted in the final order being Merrill, Horn, Erlandson, Lastochkin, Kirby and Stewart.
F1600 Qualifying: 1. Nikita Lastochkin, (Mygale/Honda-A), 1m53.205s; 2. Thomas Merrill, (Piper/Honda-H), 1m54.179s; 3. Alex Kirby, (Piper/Honda-A), 1m55.128s; 4. Chuck Horn, (Swift DB6/Honda), 1m55.886s; 5. Dave Zurlinden (Piper/Honda), 1m57.087s; 6. Ed Erlandson, (Swift DB6/Honda-A), 1m57.499s; 7. James Stewart, (Mygale/Honda-A), 1m58.932s. Tires: A-Avon, GGoodyear, H-Hoosier.
F1600 Round 3 (15 laps): 1. Merrill, +11.629s; 2. Horn, +1m07.692s; 3. Erlandson, +1m23.666s; 4. Lastochkin, +0; 5. Kirby, +26.380s; 6. Stewart, +1m46.131s; 7. Zurlinden, DNS.
Fastest race lap: Lastochkin, 1m53.399s.
Expert class winner (over 35): Horn.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Round Three Sees Hope Earn Victory with Last Lap Pass
Buttonwillow, Calif. (April 26, 2014) – Round three of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship was held Saturday at Buttonwillow Raceway Park on the 3.020 mile, 25A road course in Buttonwillow and was won by Tom Hope with a last lap run from third to first passing Andrew Evans at Sunrise and following that up with a pass of race leader Yufeng Luo into Cotton Corners and holding on for the victory.After nearly three months since the opening rounds in Fontana the teams and drivers have put the time to good use to be able to put forth their best effort in a season that boasts nine races in four event weekends. The series is running with the SCCA U.S. Majors Tours events this season as drivers prepare to qualify for the SCCA National Championship Run-Offs to be held at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.
In previous seasons the series has had their own run group and been able to run the F2000 and F1600 cars in the same group. Because of running with SCCA, the F2000 group will run as FC along with FA, FB, FM, P1 and P2 in the run group established by Cal Club while the F1600’s will race in a separate group.
After a season fraught with mechanical unreliability, Tom Hope decided to switch from the Carbir to the Van Diemen chassis during the break allowing ample opportunity for testing. This would enable him to have the car sorted and ready when the season continued.
Dave Freitas Racing took the time to bring teenager Yufeng Luo, from driving school graduate to Majors race winner having claimed victory two weeks earlier in the Saturday sprint race at Thunderhill Raceway Park.
Defending Series Champion Bob Negron was also victorious at Thunderhill claiming the Sunday race, which also featured several other series regulars.
Qualifying began at 8:35 in the morning under cloudy skies and cool conditions, an overnight rain having washed the track clean with drivers eager to get on track and post a top time before traffic became an issue.
Leading the way was young Lufeng Luo in the #6, DFR Van Diemen with a time of 1:46.997. Luo was closely followed by Bob Negron, #8, Terri Negron Web Design, Van Diemen; Andrew Evans, #27, PR1 Motorsports Van Diemen and Tom Hope, #18 H & M Racing Van Diemen. Michael Manning, newcomer to the series was fourth in his #25 Cypress Lane Racing, Fast Forward Racing Components, Dauntless Racing Cars, Van Diemen followed by Peter West, #99 Frank Monise Motors, Zombo.com, DFR Van Diemen; James Hakewill, #88 Van Diemen; Zach Craigo, #27, Rocky
Mountain Medical Lasers, Van Diemen; Peter Thomas, #7 Refrigeration Control Co., PR1 Van Diemen; Harindra de Silva, #22 DFR Van Diemen; Les Phillips, #2, Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes Van Diemen; Nick Kodenko, #3, Kodenko Jeans, Kodenko Engines, Van Diemen and Chuck Raggio, #14, Apex Orthopedics of California, Inc., Scuderia Raggi Van Diemen. Unfortunately for Bill Kincaid’s, #46, La Curva, Van Diemen, a bolt from the diff carrier came loose and exited the sideplate of the housing and was unable to qualify.
The series was able to get a split start enabling their group to start behind the remaining classes in the group and settle into their race before encountering traffic.
The green flag fell on the first group and at the first turn there was an incident involving as many as five cars and almost completely blocking the track. Race control called for a full course caution before the F2000 cars took the green flag, which had the effect of bunching up the field for the restart and negating the advantage of having the split start.
After three laps behind the pace car, the green waved again and Yufeng Luo in the DFR Van Diemen, having the advantage of a single file re-start surged into the lead and at the end of the first racing lap Luo led Evans, Negron, Manning, West, Hope, Hakewill, Craigo, Thomas, DeSilva, Kodenko, Raggio, Kincaid in Pietz’s car and Phillips having spun.
The field was already encountering traffic and Luo was most efficient in working his way through and built himself a gap, while Hope was recovering from his poor start passing West, Manning and Negron on lap five to move into third position.
Evans, Hope and Negron were locked into a tight battle that brought them closer to Luo as his advantage diminished and West now in fifth place tried desperately to maintain his position eventually lost out to Hakewill, Manning and Craigo on lap seven and dropped to eighth.
With three laps remaining Luo’s advantage had been eaten up by the trailing cars as Hope, Evans and Negron closed and these four were to battle for the top three positions to the end.
On lap 12 Evans got by Hope, and as they began the final lap all three cars were now nose to tail. Hope moved inside Evans at the end of the front straight to claim second place, closed on Luo and when Luo was balked by traffic Hope pounced, the two running side by side into Cotton Corners. Hope was through into the lead when Luo’s car lost some rear grip which enabled Evans to grab the runner-up spot from Luo as they headed for the long back straight.
Tom Hope claimed the victory coming from as far down as sixth place with an outstanding drive and later commented, “It was a great way to christen the new car.” Hope’s victory also meant that he also took Expert Class honors.
Andrew Evans finished second, his third podium finish of the season, set the fastest race lap and maintains and eight point advantage in the point standings.
Rookie Yufeng Luo claimed the final step on the podium, a fine result for his first outing in the series.
Bob Negron finished in fourth place which also gave him the Master Class victory.
Series newcomer Michael Manning finished in fifth followed by Peter West in sixth, Peter Thomas in seventh, Harindra DeSilva in eighth and Nick Kodenko in ninth and the final car on the lead lap.
Les Phillips having survived two spins finished in tenth with Chuck Raggio eleventh and the final car running at the finish.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Yufeng Luo, (Van Diemen-H), 1m46.997s; 2. Bob Negron, (Van Diemen-H), 1m47.836s; 3. Andrew Evans, (Van Diemen-G), 1m48.013s; 4. Tom Hope, (Van Diemen-A), 1m48.031s; 5. Michael Manning, (Van Diemen-H), 1m48.464s; 6. Peter West (Van Diemen-H), 1m48.501s; 7. James Hakewill, (Van Diemen-A), 1m49.172s; 8. Zach Craigo (Van Diemen-G), 1m49.481s; 9. Peter Thomas, (Van Diemen-G), 1m49.887s; 10. Harindra DeSilva (Van Diemen-H), 1m50.082s; 11. Les Phillips, (Van Diemen-G), 1m50.185s; 12. Nick Kodenko, (Van Diemen-G), 1m53.170s; 13. Chuck Raggio, (Van Diemen-H), 1m55.726s; 14. Bill Kincaid, (Van Diemen-A), no time. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, G-Goodyear, H-Hoosier.
F2000 Round 3 (13 laps): 1. Hope; 2. Evans, +0.076s; 3. Luo, +1.556s; 4. Negron, +9.927s; 5. Manning, +18.364; 6. West, +19.296s; 7. Thomas, +19.504s; 8. DeSilva, +40.941s; 9. Kodenko; +48.882s; 10. Phillips, +1 lap; 11. Raggio, +1 lap; 12. Craigo, +5 laps; 13. Hakewill, +6 laps; 14. Kincaid, +8 laps.
Fastest race lap: Evans, 1m46.368s.
Expert class winner (over 35): Hope.
Master class winner (over 50): Negron.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Evans Victorious in Round Two of F2000 Series at Fontana
Fontana, Calif. (January 19, 2014) – The second round of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship was held Sunday at the 2.880 mile infield road course at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana and was won by Andrew Evans in only his second outing in an F2000 car. The series is running this season with the SCCA U.S. Majors Tours events.Sunday’s event has again split the F2000 from the F1600 cars and the F2000 group will run as FC along with FA, FB, FM, P1 and P2 in the run group established by Cal Club.
After a brief 10 minute warm-up in the morning to allow teams and drivers to make any final adjustments, the field took to the track for race two at 12:50pm.
Grid positions were based on the combination of the fastest lap in each qualifying session and race lap on Saturday afternoon which put Round 1 victor Les Phillips, #2, Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes Van Diemen and Bob Negron, #8, Terri Negron Web Design, Van Diemen on the front row ahead of Tom Hope, #18 DFR Van Diemen and Andrew Evans, #27, PR1 Motorsports Van Diemen, followed by James Hakewill, #88 Van Diemen; Robert Armington, #111 Premium Power Systems Inc., Metro Cab SF, MCI Van Diemen; Peter Thomas, #7 Refrigeration Control Co., PR1 Van Diemen; Harindra de Silva, #6 DFR Van Diemen; Peter West, #99 Kodenko Jeans, Frank Monise Motors, Zombo.com, DFR Van Diemen; Jim Stewart, #38 True Ventures Van Diemen and Bill Kincaid, #46, La Curva Van Diemen.
The first start was aborted and as the field came around on the second pace lap, the green flag again did not wave and the pace car was sent back out to gather up the field. Towards the end of the third pace lap, as the field was coming to the green, Bob Negron’s race came to an end when his car coasted to a stop before turn 12 with a dead battery, the three slow laps not allowing the alternator to charge it sufficiently.
When the green flag finally waved it was Les Phillips who again surged into the lead followed by Hope, Evans and Hakewill all in close pursuit. There was a slight gap then came Thomas, DeSilva, West, Stewart and Kincaid.
Phillips, the track FC lap record holder, is always fast here and today was no exception although Evans did manage to get into the lead on lap five, the next time around Phillips was back in front.
Evans continued his chase of Phillips and was the beneficiary of Phillips’ spin on lap thirteen that dropped him down to sixth place behind the five cars battling for second place. From this point on Evans took command of the race and led the remaining laps to the finish. It was a first win for Evans since his switch from the F1600 group.
Behind Evans there was a titanic battle going on for second place between Hope, West, Armington and Thomas that had been raging for most of the race. Hope, who hails from Downey, seemed to have the measure of his competitors and managed a well judged second place finish which gave him the Expert Class win.
Malibu resident Peter West clawed his way up from ninth on the grid, driving flawlessly as he passed one driver after another, all the way to the third step of the podium to claim third place and the Master Class victory. West paid tribute to his DFR team for all their efforts in getting his car repaired from his Saturday morning crash and allowing him this opportunity.
Peter Thomas, who had dropped back as far as eighth place, also performed well, steadily moving up through the field and took a well earned fourth place. Peter has returned to the series full time this season after a couple of seasons off and showed little rust in his return.
Fifth place went to Robert Armington, from El Dorado Hills, California, a newcomer to the series having spent several years driving in lower formulae, has shown great promise and competitiveness and is a welcome addition. Armington was the last driver on the lead lap.
Sixth place went to Les Phillips, who looked like a dominant force this weekend with his victory Saturday and leading most laps today and setting the fastest lap. Phillips effort was undone on the final lap when, after having caught up to the battle for third, while attempting to lap a slower car got pinched off, ran wide and clouted a cone damaging his right front suspension and ending his charge on the spot.
Palo Alto’s Bill Kincaid finished in a fine seventh place after a three year absence, missing Friday practice, qualifying and running on Cooper tires.
Harindra DeSilva brought his DFR Van Diemen home in eighth place and was followed by Jim Stewart finishing ninth.
Tenth place and the final car running went to James Hakewill, who ran as high as third at one point in the race, had the misfortune of losing fourth gear dropping him back down through the field as he limped his Van Diemen home.
The series moves on to Buttonwillow raceway Park, April 26 & 27, for the next round in the championship and will once again be running with Cal Club and the U.S. Majors Tour.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Les Phillips (Van Diemen-G), 3m21.333s; 2. Bob Negron (Van Diemen-H), 3m22.287s; 3.Tom Hope (Van Diemen-A), 3m22.873s; 4. Andrew Evans (Van Diemen-G), 3m23.633s; 5. James Hakewill (Van Diemen-A), 3m24.403s; 6. Robert Armington (Van Diemen-H), 3m24.721s; 7. Peter Thomas, (Van Diemen-G), 3m25.695s; 8. Harindra DeSilva (Van Diemen-H), 3m26.695s; 9. Peter West (Van Diemen-H), 3m26.901s; 10. Jim Stewart, (Van Diemen-G), 3m28.299s; 11. Bill Kincaid, (Van Diemen-C), 2m34.877s. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, G-Goodyear, HHoosier.
F2000 Round 1 (17 laps): 1. Evans; 2. Hope, +12.303s; 3. West, +15.752s; 4. Thomas, +15.856s; 5. Armington, +16.094; 6. Phillips, +1 lap; 7. Kincaid, +1 lap; 8. DeSilva, +1 lap; 9. Stewart; +1 lap; 10. Hakewill, +1 lap; 11. Negron, +10 laps.
Fastest race lap: Phillips, 1m40.187s.
Expert class winner (over 35): Hope.
Master class winner (over 50): West.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Lastochkin Takes Dominant Victory in Round 2 at Fontana
Fontana, Calif. (January 19, 2014) – Round two of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship was run on the 2.880 mile infield road course at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana on Sunday morning.
The California Sports Car Club hosting the Fontana event as the series is running this season with the SCCA U.S. Majors Tours events to qualify series drivers for the season ending Run-Offs.
Sunday’s event has again split the F1600 from the F2000 cars and finds them running as FF’s in a group with FE’s, FV’s and F500.
The F1600 group remains intact and is headed by Round 1 race winner Ethan Shippert driving the #55 Fast Forward, Piper Race Cars, Pro Pack Systems, Shippert Racing Piper DF5/Honda. He is joined by Dave Zurlinden in the #131 Pro Pack systems, Fast Forward Piper/Honda, Alex Kirby in the #15 LA Prep Inc. Piper/Honda, Nikita Lastochkin, the #2 Russkaya Mekhanika, PR1 Motorsports Mygale/Honda and long time San Francisco Region Club Ford racer Chuck Horn, who made his series debut Saturday, in the #54 Isys engineering, Porter Racing Swift DB6/Honda. All series cars
are shod with Avon tires.
The F1600 group was again first on track for a 10 minute warm-up that began at 8:00am with the race due to start at 9:00am.
Starting positions were determined by a combination of fastest lap in qualifying and Saturday’s race and as a result it was Lastochkin who claimed the pole with a combined time of 5m15.194s. He was followed by Shippert in the Piper, Kirby, Horn and Zurlinden rounding out the field.
Lastochkin made another brilliant start getting ahead of an FE car and using it as a buffer between himself and the field and, as he had on Saturday, began to draw away.
By contrast, Shipperts’ start was far more hectic as the field compressed in the braking zone coming off the oval, several cars became tangled up and Horn actually vaulted over Shipperts’ right front wheel, damaging the steering of the #55 machine. Horn continued apparently unscathed in second followed by Zurlinden, Shippert and a cautious Kirby as they completed their first lap.
Confident his car was not seriously damaged, Shippert re-passed Zurlinden on the next lap and Horn two laps later as set his sights on Lastochkin in the distance.
Kirby also got past Zurlinden and by the quarter distance the order was Lastochkin, Shippert, Horn, Kirby and Zurlinden.
Zurlinden passed Kirby on lap 6 and by mid-race the running order was Lastochkin drawing away followed by the train of Shippert, Horn, Zurlinden and Kirby, all running virtually nose to tail until Horn had a spin on lap 9 dropping him to the rear of the train.
As the race approached the conclusion, Shipperts’ handling was going away and to make matters worse with three laps to go lost fourth gear dropping to fourth at the finish and later admitting that he “burned the tires of the car trying to keep up”.
Nikita Lastochkin continued unchallenged to the checkered flag 42.435 seconds ahead of the second placed Alex Kirby steadily moved up into that position in the latter stages of the race, again setting the fastest lap of the race. The bonus points earned for pole and fast lap can make the difference in the championship at year’s end.
Dave Zurlinden worked himself up to finish in third place taking the final step on the podium and claiming the Expert Class win.
Following Shippert in fourth was Chuck Horn in fifth place, his Swift showing signs of his race battles.
Even though the field was small, the drivers were extremely competitive and looks to make for a championship chase that will go down to the final race at Laguna Seca in October.
F1600 Qualifying: 1. Nikita Lastochkin (Mygale/Honda), 3m29.780s; 2. Ethan Shippert (Piper/Honda), 3m31.250s; 3. Alex Kirby (Piper/Honda), 3m33.635s; 4. Chuck Horn (Swift DB6/Honda), 3m34.692s; 5. Dave Zurlinden (Piper/Honda), 3m35.496s.
F1600 Round 2 (16 laps): 1. Lastochkin; 2. Kirby, +42.435s; 3. Zurlinden, +44.462s; 4. Shippert, +46.462s; 5. Horn, +1m10.806s.
Fastest race lap: Lastochkin, 1m44.542s.
Expert class winner (over 35): Zurlinden.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Phillips Claims Maiden F2000 Series Victory in Eleventh Season Opening Round
Fontana, Calif. (January 18, 2014) – The Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship opened its eleventh season at the 2.880 mile infield road course at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana on Saturday afternoon. The series running this season with the SCCA U.S. Majors Tours events to qualify series drivers for the season ending Run-Offs to be held on the West Coast for the first time in forty-six years, last held at Riverside International Raceway in 1968.This year the F1600 and F2000 groups will not be running together and will run in groups established by the sanctioning club. The F2000 group will run as FC along with FA, FB, FM, P1 and P2 in the run group established by Cal Club.
Back in the F2000 group this season will be PR1 Motorsports with two entries for Peter Thomas, back after a year hiatus and Andrew Evans graduating from the F1600 group. PR1 is running Van Diemens on Goodyear tires.
Dave Freitas Racing brought two cars to Fontana for long time series participant Peter West and Harindra de Silva, also in Van Diemens, will be running on Hoosier tires.
Independent entries include defending series champion Bob Negron, Van Diemen, Hoosier; Les Phillips, Van Diemen, Goodyear; Jim Stewart, Van Diemen, Goodyear; Tom Hope, Carbir, Avon; James Hakewill, Van Diemen, Avon; Bill Kincaid, Van Diemen, Cooper and Robert Armington, Van Diemen, Hoosier.
Friday’s 25 minute qualifying session began at 2:20pm under sunny skies and warm temperatures as the cars rolled off the grid. Six laps into the session Les Phillip set a time of 1m41.771s in his #2, Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes, Van Diemen to take the provisional pole ahead of Bob Negron, #8, Terri Negron Web Design, Van Diemen, 1m42.255s and James Hakewill, #88 Van Diemen, 1m42.359s. These three were followed by Andrew Evans, #27 PR1 Van Diemen; Harindra de Silva, #6 DFR Van Diemen; Peter West, #99 Kodenko Jeans, Frank Monise Motors, Zombo.com, DFR Van
Diemen; Peter Thomas, #7 Refrigeration Control Co., PR1 Van Diemen; Robert Armington, #111 Premium Power Systems Inc., Metro Cab SF, MCI Van Diemen and Jim Stewart, #38 True Ventures Van Diemen. Tom Hope coasted to a stop in his #18 H & M Racing Carbir during the session when the engine on his Carbir holed a piston.
Saturday morning qualifying was only 15 minutes long and began at 9:00am, with cooler temperatures and sunny skies and again it was Phillips improving on his Friday time to take pole at 1m40.154s improving his Friday time as did many of the competitors. Tom Hope was out of his Carbir and into a DFR Van Diemen thanks to Ira Fierberg who allowed the use of his car and Robert Podlesni who retrieved the car from their shop in Santa Fe Springs. Bob Negron only managed one timed lap as mechanical issues brought his qualifying to an end. Peter West also was unable to better
his time when he crashed under braking at turn three, damaging the nose and removing the right front
suspension from the car.
Under now clear and sunny skies and temperatures in the mid eighties the field rolled off the grid for the pace lap and when they took the green Les Phillips used the advantage of his pole position to lead the Formula F2000 group as they headed off the oval into the infield section on the first lap.
Phillips continued to lead as the field completed the first lap. He was followed by Hope, Evans, DeSilva up three positions, Negron, Hakewill, West down two spots in his newly repaired Van Diemen, Armington down three spots, Thomas, Kincaid and Stewart.
These positions continued until lap 5 when Armington got by West and Thomas passed Kincaid.
As the field began to string out toward the rear, at the front things were getting tighter as Negron passed Hope for third place and began his pursuit of Evans who was holding a steady second place and even closing some on Phillips in the lead.
Les Phillips appeared dominant and maintained the lead to the finish to claim his first Pacific Series victory, although a late race spin cost him nearly all of his lead and he finished a scant 0.162s ahead of Evans in second place. Phillips’ win also gave his the Masters Class trophy.
Andrew Evans, from Sammamish, WA, drove consistently from the start and takes his first podium in his first outing in the F2000 car.
Bob Negron finished third from his sixth starting spot, the only other driver to complete the full race distance and had to be pleased considering in the two qualifying sessions mechanical problems allowed him to complete a total of four laps.
Tom Hope was buoyed by the performance of the #18 DFR Van Diemen during the race and finished a fine fourth which also gave him the Expert Class win. A good result considering the bleak outcome of Friday’s qualifying.
James Hakewill finished in fifth place and was followed by Peter Thomas sixth, newcomer Robert Armington seventh, Harindra DeSilva eighth, Bill Kincaid ninth, Jim Stewart tenth and Peter West eleventh.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Les Phillips (Van Diemen-G), 1m40.154s; 2. Tom Hope (Van Diemen-A), 1m41.811s; 3. Andrew Evans (Van Diemen-G), 1m42.050s; 4. Robert Armington (Van Diemen-H), 1m42.235s; 5. Bob Negron (Van Diemen-H), 1m42.255s; 6. James Hakewill (Van Diemen-A), 1m42.288s; 7. Harindra DeSilva (Van Diemen-H), 1m42.897s; 8. Peter West (Van Diemen-H), 1m43.291s; 9. Peter Thomas, (Van Diemen-G), 1m43.369s; 10. Jim Stewart, (Van Diemen-G), 1m43.661s; 11. Bill Kincaid, (Van Diemen-C), 1m49.887s. Tires: A-Avon, C-Cooper, G-Goodyear, HHoosier.
F2000 Round 1 (16 laps): 1. Phillips; 2. Evans, +0.162s; 3. Negron, +5.355s; 4. Hope, +1 lap; 5. Hakewill, +1 lap; 6. Thomas, +1 lap; 7. Armington, +1 lap; 8. DeSilva, +1 lap; 9. Kincaid; +1 lap; 10. Stewart, +1 lap; 11. West, +1 lap.
Fastest race lap: Negron, 1m41.032s.
Expert class winner (over 35): Hope.
Master class winner (over 50): Phillips.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Shippert Takes Piper to Victory in First F1600 Round of 2014
Fontana, Calif. (January 18, 2014) – The Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship opened its eleventh season at the 2.880 mile infield road course at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana on Saturday afternoon. The series running this season with the SCCA U.S. Majors Tours events to qualify series drivers for the season ending Run-Offs to be held on the West Coast for the first time in forty-six years, last held at Riverside International Raceway in 1968.The run groups, set by the sanctioning club has split the F1600 from the F2000 cars this season and finds them running as FF’s in a group with FE’s, FV’s and F500.
The F1600 group this season will see the return of Ethan Shippert, who won at Fontana two years ago in a Van Diemen, driving the #55 Fast Forward, Piper Race Cars, Pro Pack Systems, Shippert Racing Piper DF5/Honda, Dave Zurlinden, who campaigned in the series last season, in the #131 Pro Pack systems, Fast Forward Piper/Honda and Alex Kirby in the #15 LA Prep Inc. Piper/Honda.
PR1 Motorsports is fielding a single entry for Nikita Lastochkin, the #2 Russkaya Mekhanika, PR1 Motorsports Mygale/Honda. After a year in the Skip Barber Racing Series, Nikita joins PR1 with hopes of winning the F1600 championship.
Long time San Francisco Region Club Ford racer Chuck Horn will be making his series debut this season in the #54 Isys engineering, Porter Racing Swift DB6/Honda.
Unlike the F2000 field, all of the F1600 runners will be competing on Avon tires.
The F1600 group were the first on track for Friday’s 25 minute qualifying session that began at 12:30pm under clear sunny skies and warm temperatures. In his visit to Auto Club Speedway Lastochkin was immediately on the pace and set a provisional pole time of 1m45.964s, three quarters of a second ahead of Shippert in the Piper and almost a full second ahead of Kirby. Horn was next with Zurlinden rounding out the field.
The 15 minute long Saturay Qualifyinig began at 8:00am and with cooler temperatures times dropped dramatically as Lastochkin knocked over two seconds off his previous session time with a 1m43.783s lap. Shippert manage to take off one and a half seconds but still found himself 1.369 seconds adrift.
All drivers managed to improve their times on Saturday and Lastochkin and Shippert will be followed by Kirby, Zurlinden and Horn.
Lastochkin jumped away at the start and managed to place one of the FE cars between himself and the field enabling him to draw out a big advantage on the rest of the runners consistently lapping in the 1m45s range while the others were running 1m46s and above.
Kirby dropped a couple of places at the start and Zurlinden’s opening lap spin sent him to the rear of the field leaving the running order at the end of the first lap, Lastochkin, Shippert, Horn, Kirby and Zurlinden.
The order remained constant until lap 7 when Shippert, having closed the gap to Lastochkin, managed to get by when the latter had contact with one of the FE contenders while lapping a slower car and was forced into a spin dropping him back to second. Meanwhile Kirby got past Horn to claim third spot as the race reached the midway point.
Lastochkin chased down Shippert and on lap 10 took over the lead using the draft on the banking and outbraking Shippert into turn 3.
At three quarter distance the running order was Lastochkin leading Shippert, Kirby, Horn and Zurlinden.
Unfortunately Nikita Lastochkin’s excellent first series race came to a premature end when an electrical issue ended his race with three laps remaining. This allowed Shippert to cruise home to his second series win and his second victory at Auto Club Speedway. The victory also gave Ethan the Expert Class trophy.
Second place went to Alex Kirby who drove flawlessly and take advantage of others mistakes or misfortune.
Dave Zurlinden pulled himself up from the back of the field to finish in third place after his early spin and taking advantage of a last lap spin by Chuck Horn ceding the final step on the podium and ending up in fourth place.
F1600 Qualifying: 1. Nikita Lastochkin (Mygale/Honda), 1m43.783s; 2. Ethan Shippert (Piper/Honda), 1m45.152s; 3. Alex Kirby (Piper/Honda), 1m46.604s; 4. Dave Zurlinden (Piper/Honda), 1m46.612s; 5. Chuck Horn (Swift DB6/Honda), 1m46.641s.
F1600 Round 1 (15 laps): 1. Shippert; 2. Kirby, +10.899s; 3. Zurlinden, +52.131s; 4. Horn, +1m0.684s; 5. Lastochkin, +3 laps.
Fastest race lap: Lastochkin, 1m45.447s.
Expert class winner (over 35): Shippert.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
2014 Schedule Announced for Eleventh Season
Buttonwillow, Calif. (December 4, 2013) – The eleventh season of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship gets under way in January as the 2014 schedule has been announced. After a successful 15 race season in 2013 which saw the growth of the Formula 1600 class, the series will focus on the SCCA Majors Tour events. The series has announced a nine race schedule to be run exclusively with the SCCA as it seeks to qualify participants for the Runoffs to be held at Laguna Seca. This will be the first west coast appearance of the Runoffs in over twenty years.
The series is boasting a $25,000 prize fund for this year and is looking for increased participation coming from Majors Tour drivers seeking a Runoffs opportunity. Series enrollment is required as qualification for prizes from the series and its sponsors.
The cars will be governed by the SCCA GCR, which opens up the rules regarding, aero, gears, tires, etc., allowing various modifications not previously available, although Buttonwillow Raceway is the tire dealer for the series and all participants must purchase tires through them.
The series will not have its own run group as in the past and will run in the groups established by the hosting region who will also handle individual race entries.
The first event of the season will be held at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana will be a Double Major race weekend and held under the Cal Club banner on January 17-19, 2014.
Following the season opener, the series moves on to Buttonwillow Raceway (Double Major, April 26 & 27), Portland International Raceway (Double Major, July 4-6), Laguna Seca (Double Regional, September 12-14) and concludes at Laguna Seca with a single event at the SCCA National Runoffs (October 6-12). The concluding event, in addition to being part of the Runoffs will be a double points race to crown the 2014 series champions. In addition, the series will have Expert (F1600 & F2000) and Master (F2000) class champions.
The combination of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship Series and the SCCA National Runoffs promises to provide the best open wheel racing on the west coast.
Series sponsors include VP Racing fuels, Bob Schaefer and Sierra Tire in Las Vegas, Porterfield Brakes, Wine Country Motorsports, Aerocraft Fiberglass & Design, Buttonwillow Raceway Park and a special thank you to Honda Performance Development for their continued support of the Formula F1600 Class.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to http://www.pacificf2000.com/ or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333 or by email lesrace@aol.com.
Kelley, Herta Victorious in Season Finale
Las Vegas, NV. (October 6, 2013) – The Season finale of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship Series was held Sunday afternoon at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Bobby Kelley, the 2012 F2000 champion, returned and was victorious in the F2000 group while Colton Herta won his third race of the weekend to complete a sweep of the weekend’s event. The series is racing with the Vintage Auto Racing Association during the Datsun-Porsche Shootout Event.
The race was schedule to begin at 12:50pm and was held under sunny skies and slightly breezy conditions and temperatures approaching eighty degrees.
With starting positions based on the finishing positions from the morning race which meant the F1600 group was lead to the green by Colton Herta in his #98, PR1 Motorsports w/BHA Curb-Agajanian entry sponsored by DVS shoe Company, Curb Records, Mygale N. America, OMP, Bell Helmets, Penske Shocks, Mygale/Honda and Alex Keyes, #32, Lynx Racing, Spectrum/Honda. Joey Bickers, #34, PR1 Motorsports Mygale/Honda and Andrew Evans, #19, Lynx Racing Spectrum/Honda made up row two and were followed by Les Phillips, #89 Swiss Motorsports, Porterfield Brakes, Mygale
SJ04/Honda and newcomer Tazio Ottis in the #17, HPD, Piper Honda for Cameron Racing.
The F2000 group was led by Patricio O’Ward #6 POW Motorsports, Pequeneces, DFR Van Diemen. O’Ward was followed by Bobby Kelley driving the #2, DFR Van Diemen, Bob Negron, #9,Terri Negron Web Design, fengshuimebaby.com, Van Diemen, Ira Fierberg in his #27, Pinnacle Performance, Sparco USA, DFR, Van Diemen, Peter West, #99, Frank Monise Motors, Zombo.com, Kodenko Jeans, T.J. Martell Foundation, DFR Van Diemen, Peter Hastrup, #62, Western Building Materials, DFR Van Diemen, and Tom Hope, #18, H&M Racing, Dart, Carbir.
Kelley took the lead as the green flag waved and was closely followed by O’Ward, Negron, Fierberg, Hope, Hastrup and West.
Kelley led the first two laps before O’Ward re-took the position and began to put some distance between himself and Kelley while the rest of the field held station, this tight circuit not providing many passing opportunities. West did manage to chase down Hastrup and take sixth place on lap six and by halfway, the order was O’Ward, Kelley, Negron, Fierberg, Hope, Hastrup and West.
During the second half of the race the drivers settled into their rhythms and set about consolidating their positions. Around this time Kelley slowly began to reel in O’Ward, as his tires began to lose their grip and on lap thirteen, Kelley was through and back into a lead he was to hold to the finish. The 2012 Series champion was able to finish the weekend as successfully as he had a year ago when he claimed his title.
Although O’Ward’s tires were gone he managed to maintain enough pace to hold his position and finish in second place. He also managed the races’ fastest lap.
Bob Negron, who beat Ira Fierberg to third position at the start eased ahead throughout the race and by the end was 9 seconds ahead but more important than that gained three valuable points by finishing ahead of Fierberg enabling him to claim not only the Master Class Championship but the overall title as well. It was a fine effort for his independent operation and shows how level the field is in F2000.
Ira Fierberg finished fourth, just missing the title, but having one of the strongest seasons and best performances of his career.
Fifth place went to Tom Hope, managing to break the string of bad luck and have his best finish since Buttonwillow claiming the Expert Class trophy.
Peter West finished sixth ahead of DFR teammate Peter Hastrup after a spirited battle. Hastrup finished in seventh.
Joey Bickers asserted himself to grab the lead of the F1600 group determined to claim at least one win during the weekend. Bickers was followed by Herta, Keyes and Evans, all in close attendance with Phillips and Ottis trailing the field. This order was short lived as on lap two Bickers lost first place to his teammate Colton Herta, who went on to win.
For Herta, the victory was his tenth in the fifteen races run and also claimed his eleventh fastest lap.
With Joey Bickers now in second place, he became vulnerable to the attacks of Alex Keyes who dived inside Bickers at turn two where contact was made with the result being Keyes having to retire the car with a bent pushrod, only three laps into the race. Bickers held second place until the end of the race finishing nine seconds adrift of Herta.
Alex Keyes retirement meant it was up to the second Lynx driver, Andrew Evans to take up the charge and he did not disappoint mounting an early challenge to Bickers pushing him until near the end and finished in a strong third place, his first podium in six races.
After a steady race, Les Phillips finished fourth and claimed the Expert Class win. Phillips was followed home by Tazio Ottis who brought the Piper home in fifth with Keyes claiming sixth place.
The single-seat, open-wheel F2000 cars are powered by 2-liter Ford Zetec engines and run on Hankook tires supplied by Sierra Tire. The F1600 cars will be powered by either the 1500cc Honda Fit engine or the 1600cc Ford ‘Kent’ engine and will run on Toyo tires.
F1600 Qualifying (round 15): 1. Colton Herta (Mygale/Honda); 2. Joey Bickers (Mygale/Honda); 3. Alex Keyes, (Spectrum/Honda); 4. Andrew Evans (Spectrum/Honda); 5. Les Phillips (Mygale SJ04/Honda); 6. Tazio Ottis (Piper/Honda).
F1600 Round 15 (15 laps): 1. Herta; 2. Bickers, +9.422s; 3. Evans, +20.608s; 4. Phillips, +1 lap; 5. Phillips, +1 lap; 6. Ottis, +1 lap.
F2000 Qualifying (round 15): 1. Patricio O’Ward (Van Diemen; 2. Bobby Kelley (Van Diemen); 3. Bob Negron (Van Diemen); 4. Ira Fierberg (Van Diemen); 5. Peter West (Van Diemen); 6. Peter Hastrup (Van Diemen);7. Tom Hope (Carbir).
F2000 Round 15 (16 laps): 1. Kelley; 2. O’Ward, +1.739s; 3. Negron, +27.039s; 4. Fierberg, +36.322s; 5. Hope, +41.763s; 6. West, +53.827; 7. Hastrup, +55.498s.
Fastest race lap: F1600 Herta, 1m33.277s. F2000 O’Ward, 1m24.873s.
Expert class winner (over 35): F1600 Phillips, F2000 Hope.
Master class winner (over 50): F2000 Negron.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
O’Ward Wins Fourth Straight, Herta Victorious for the Ninth Time in Round 14
Las Vegas, NV. (October 6, 2013) – Round 14 of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship Series was Sunday morning at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway saw Patricio O’Ward claim his fourth consecutive victory pacing the F2000 group and Colton Herta win his ninth race and with it clinch the F1600 series title. The series is racing with the Vintage Auto Racing Association during the Datsun-Porsche Shootout Event.
The 8:40am race was held under sunny skies and with no breeze began heating up quickly as the pace car set off leading the field to the green flag, the grid being set by the finishing order of round 13.
The F1600 group was lead to the green by Colton Herta in his #98, PR1 Motorsports w/BHA Curb-Agajanian entry sponsored by DVS shoe Company, Curb Records, Mygale N. America, OMP, Bell Helmets, Penske Shocks, Mygale/Honda and Joey Bickers, #34, PR1 Motorsports Mygale/Honda.
This pair was followed by Alex Keyes, #32 and Andrew Evans, #19, both in Spectrum/Hondas for Lynx Racing, newcomer Tazio Ottis in the #17, HPD, Piper Honda for Cameron Racing and Les Phillips, returning to the #89 Swiss Motorsports, Porterfield Brakes, Mygale SJ04/Honda.
Saturday’s winner Patricio O’Ward led the F2000 field driving his #6 POW Motorsports, Pequeneces, DFR Van Diemen. O’Ward was followed by 2012 Series Champion Bobby Kelley driving the #2, DFR Van Diemen, Ira Fierberg in his #27, Pinnacle Performance, Sparco USA, DFR, Van Diemen, Bob Negron, #9,Terri Negron Web Design, fengshuimebaby.com, Van Diemen Peter Hastrup, #62, Western Building Materials, DFR Van Diemen, Peter West, #99, Frank Monise Motors, Zombo.com, Kodenko Jeans, T.J. Martell Foundation, DFR Van Diemen and Tom Hope, #18, H&M Racing, Dart, Carbir.
O’Ward took seized the lead as the green flag waved and immediately began to draw away from the field. Kelley claimed second and was followed by Negron who managed to edge ahead of Fierberg, this pair fighting for the championship, West, Hope and Hastrup.
On lap two Hope passed West for fifth place as the field began to string out. The race settled down as the field strung out and the order was to remain to the end with O’Ward taking the victory by 14.881 seconds ahead of Kelley in second place.
For the second race, Kelley finished in second place this time hampered by a stripped bolt on the front wing mounting pylon causing the wing to become dislodged with a handful of laps remaining and still managed a strong second place finish.
Third place went to Bob Negron, who having beat Fierberg into turn one, was able to outdistance his rival for the championship and closing the points gap to one with this afternoons race to decide the title. Negron also claimed the Master Class win.
Fierberg drove steadily to a fourth place finish, seemingly not able to stay with Negron but also under no threat from behind and perhaps able to conserve his tires for the final showdown.
Fifth place went to Peter West, having one of his best seasons. West was followed to the flag by his Dave Freitas Racing teammate Peter Hastrup in sixth and rounding out the field in seventh was Tom Hope, whose long run of mechanical issues continued as he stopped in the pits just as the white flag came out to begin the final lap. He did manage to claim the expert class win which was of little consolation.
Colton Herta again made an excellent start seizing the lead of the F1600 group and went on to win, leading every lap. Joey Bickers held second place until the right hand turn at the end of the back straight when the car under-steered off course dropping him back to fourth place behind the two Spectrum/Hondas of Alex Keyes and Andrew Evans and ahead of Phillips and Ottis. Herta led virtually unchallenged to the finish being able to maintain the gap to the second placed Keyes. Herta claimed the fastest race lap and the series title with one race remaining.
Alex Keyes, who has been consistently improving throughout the course of the season, never put a wheel wrong to take second place, his highest finish of the season. Keyes pace this weekend has been much improved as he tries to close the gap between himself and the leading Mygales.
Bickers moved up to third on lap four after chasing down Evans and began his pursuit of Keyes in second. He was never able to catch Keyes, almost fell back into the clutches of Evans and went on to finish third.
Andrew Evans had much better pace today and drove well to finish fourth followed by Les Phillips and Tazio Ottis finishing fifth and sixth respectively.
The series now has the final race on Sunday at 12:50pm with the Overall and Master Class Championship still to be decided.
The single-seat, open-wheel F2000 cars are powered by 2-liter Ford Zetec engines and run on Hankook tires supplied by Sierra Tire. The F1600 cars will be powered by either the 1500cc Honda Fit engine or the 1600cc Ford ‘Kent’ engine and will run on Toyo tires.
F1600 Qualifying (round 14): 1. Colton Herta (Mygale/Honda); 2. Alex Keyes, (Spectrum/Honda); 3. Joey Bickers (Mygale/Honda); 4. Andrew Evans (Spectrum/Honda); 5. Les Phillips (Mygale SJ04/Honda); 6. Tazio Ottis (Piper/Honda).
F1600 Round 14 (15 laps): 1. Herta; 2. Keyes, +9.269s; 3. Bickers, +19.128s; 4. Evans, +20.480; 5. Phillips, +1 lap; 6. Ottis, +1 lap.
F2000 Qualifying (round 14): 1. Patricio O’Ward (Van Diemen; 2. Bobby Kelley (Van Diemen); 3. Ira Fierberg (Van Diemen); 4. Bob Negron (Van Diemen); 5. Peter Hastrup (Van Diemen); 6. Peter West (Van Diemen); 7. Tom Hope (Carbir).
F2000 Round 14 (16 laps): 1. O’Ward; 2. Kelley, +14.881s; 3. Negron, +23.469s; 4. Fierberg, +28.441s; 5. West, +57.268s; 6. Hastrup, +1m01.001s; 7. Hope, +1 lap.
Fastest race lap: F1600 Herta, 1m32.022s. F2000 O’Ward, 1m24.646s.
Expert class winner (over 35): F1600 Phillips, F2000 Hope.
Master class winner (over 50): F2000 Negron.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
O’Ward Edges Kelley, Herta Extends Series Lead with Eighth Victory in Round 13
Las Vegas, NV. (October 5, 2013) – The third and final three-race weekend of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship Series was held on Saturday at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The 1.940 mile outfield road course saw Patricio O’Ward claim his third consecutive win in F2000 since joining the series and Colton Herta win his series leading eighth race in F1600 as the series opened the season ending race weekend, racing with the Vintage Auto Racing Association during the Datsun-Porsche Shootout Event.
The mid-morning qualifying for round 13 was held under sunny skies, mild (low seventies) temperatures and a slight breeze as the drivers took to the track.
The F1600 group was lead by Joey Bickers, #34, PR1 Motorsports Mygale/Honda. Bickers claimed pole position and the much needed two bonus points by a mere 0.066 seconds ahead of teammate Colton Herta in his #98, PR1 Motorsports w/BHA Curb-Agajanian entry sponsored by DVS shoe Company, Curb Records, Mygale N. America, OMP, Bell Helmets, Penske Shocks, Mygale/Honda.
This pair was followed by Alex Keyes, #32 and Andrew Evans, #19, both in Spectrum/Hondas for Lynx Racing, Les Phillips, returning to the #89 Swiss Motorsports, Porterfield Brakes, Mygale SJ04/Honda and newcomer Tazio Ottis in the #17, HPD, Piper Honda for Cameron Racing.
Patricio O’Ward continued to show his dominance over the F2000 field and took the pole position, his third, driving his #6 POW Motorsports, Pequeneces, DFR Van Diemen. The only driver to have the pace of O’Ward was 2012 Series Champion Bobby Kelley driving the #2, DFR Van Diemen lapping within three tenths of O’Ward’s lap of 1:24.534. Row two featured Bob Negron, #9,Terri Negron Web Design, fengshuimebaby.com, Van Diemen and Ira Fierberg in his #27, Pinnacle Performance, Sparco USA, DFR, Van Diemen with Tom Hope, #18, H&M Racing, Dart, Carbir, Peter West, #99, Frank Monise Motors, Zombo.com, Kodenko Jeans, T.J. Martell Foundation, DFR Van Diemen and Peter Hastrup, #62, Western Building Materials, DFR Van Diemen completing the grid.
O’Ward took the advantage at the start, just edging ahead of Kelley as the pair raced toward turn one followed by Fierberg, Negron, West and Hastrup.
O’Ward maintained his lead over Kelley as the pair raced off, nose to tail, leaving the remainder of the field behind. Kelley patiently followed O’Ward for the remainder of the race while he plotted his strategy for his attack on O’Ward. Kelley gained a slight edge as the field was lapping one of the slower cars and drew alongside O’Ward down the front straight through turn one and finally conceding the position as they entered turn two. Kelley’s final attempt came as they exited the final turn on the last lap and Kelley with a slightly better exit drew alongside, the pair touched and fought all the way to the checkers with O’Ward taking victory by 0.075 seconds, about three feet, his third straight and claimed the fastest lap to take maximum points.
Kelley drove extremely well considering this was his first race since winning the championship at this event last year.
Behind O’Ward and Kelley were Ira Fierberg and Bob Negron battling, not only for third position, but for the lead in the championship which Fierberg maintained to the end to take the final step on the podium and claim the Master Class win, while Negron was never quite close enough to try an overtaking move and finished in fourth.
Next were Peter West and Peter Hastrup, teammates at Dave Freitas racing, having their own two car fight. West led from the start and managed to hold off Hastrup until lap ten when Hastrup charged through to take fifth place, where he finished despite West’s last lap charge, aided by slower traffic that fell just short, finishing in sixth.
Seventh place went to Tom Hope, whose run of bad luck continued as the throttle cable snapped as he took the green flag. Hope managed to coast around to the straight between turns two and three and pulled off course and was left stranded until the end of the race. Hope had led the championship for much of the season until the mechanical issues took its toll.
Colton Herta made an excellent start seized the lead of the F1600 group at the green, a position he was not to relinquish throughout the race. Herta was able to pull out a gap on Joey Bickers in second place and finished a whopping 13.497 seconds ahead when the checkered flag fell, his largest margin of the season. The win was his eighth of the season and all but clinched the F1600 title in addition to taking the race’s fastest lap.
Bickers in second fell back into the clutches of Alex Keyes from the start and spent several laps trying to break away to pursue his teammate. By this time Herta had built a three second lead and was continuing to inch ahead. His hopes of catching Herta ended when lapping a slower car was forced wide and off course losing almost all of the advantage he had built up over Keyes trailing in third place. He managed to hold off Keyes and take second place.
Keyes in third drove exceptionally well keeping in touch with Bickers throughout, something he had not been able to do in past events, signaling an improvement in his performance. Keyes finished in third, the final step on the podium, for the eighth time this season and seems sure to take third in the championship.
Behind Keyes was his Lynx Racing teammate Andrew Evans who, for the first time this season, was unable to maintain the pace of his teammate. This was the first time the pair had raced here which may have had some affect on Evan’s performance and he finished fourth.
Newcomer Tazio Ottis in only his first outing in the Piper, sitting in the car for the first time on Friday during testing, finished in fifth place.
Les Phillips retired five laps from the end of the race having run out of fuel on lap 10.
The series now has two more races on Sunday, the first at 8:40am followed by the season finale at 12:50pm.
The single-seat, open-wheel F2000 cars are powered by 2-liter Ford Zetec engines and run on Hankook tires supplied by Sierra Tire. The F1600 cars will be powered by either the 1500cc Honda Fit engine or the 1600cc Ford ‘Kent’ engine and will run on Toyo tires.
F1600 Qualifying (round 13): 1. Joey Bickers (Mygale/Honda); 2. Colton Herta (Mygale/Honda); 3. Alex Keyes, (Spectrum/Honda); 4. Andrew Evans (Spectrum/Honda); 5. Les Phillips (Mygale SJ04/Honda); 6. Tazio Ottis (Piper/Honda).
F1600 Round 13 (15 laps): 1. Herta; 2. Bickers, +13.497s; 3. Keyes, +13.891s; 4. Evans, +33.386; 5.
Ottis, +1 lap; 6. Phillips, +5 laps.
F2000 Qualifying (round 13): 1. Patricio O’Ward (Van Diemen; 2. Bobby Kelley (Van Diemen); 3. Bob Negron (Van Diemen); 4. Ira Fierberg (Van Diemen); 5. Tom Hope (Carbir); 6. Peter West (Van Diemen); 7. Peter Hastrup (Van Diemen).
F2000 Round 13 (16 laps): 1. O’Ward; 2. Kelley, +0.075s; 3. Fierberg, +27.256s; 4. Negron, +27.683s; 5. Hastrup, +1m2.076s; 6. West, +1m02.400s; 7. Hope, +16 laps.
Fastest race lap: F1600 Herta, 1m32.469s. F2000 O’Ward, 1m24.767s.
Expert class winner (over 35): F1600 Phillips, F2000 None.
Master class winner (over 50): F2000 Fierberg.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
O’Ward Sweeps Weekend, Bickers Takes Fourth Win at Buttonwillow
Buttonwillow, Calif. (September 8, 2013) – Round Twelve of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship Series held in conjunction with the Vintage Auto Racing Association during their Oktoberfest event saw newcomer Patricio O’Ward take pole position, fastest lap and victory for the second time in two days and sweep the top honors in the F2000 group while Joey Bickers fought off Colton Herta to take victory and stay in the hunt for the F1600 series title at Buttonwillow Raceway Park on Sunday in Buttonwillow, California.
Grid positions were established by the finishing order of Saturday’s round 11 which left PR1 Motorsports team mates, Colton Herta in the #98, PR1 Motorsports w/BHA Curb-Agajanian entry sponsored by DVS shoe Company, Curb Records, Mygale N. America, OMP, Bell Helmets, Penske Shocks, Mygale/Honda and Joey Bickers #34, PR1 Motorsports Mygale/Honda again heading the F1600 group. This pair was followed by the Lynx Racing duo of Alex Keyes #32, Spectrum/Honda and Andrew Evans, #19 Spectrum/Honda, Sage Marie, #93, Honda Racing,HPD, Piper/Honda,
returning to the series and newcomer Mike McCarthy #89, Bertram Ink, H & M Motorsports, Mygale/Honda.
The F2000 group was led by Patricio O’Ward, after a fine victory on Saturday in the #6 POW Motorsports, Pequeneces, DFR Van Diemen and Bob Negron in the #9,Terri Negron Web Design, fengshuimebaby.com, Van Diemen followed by Ira Fierberg in his #27, Pinnacle Performance, Sparco USA, DFR, Van Diemen, Jim Stewart, #38, True Ventures, Van Diemen, Peter West, #99, Frank Monise Motors, Zombo.com, Kodenko Jeans, T.J. Martell Foundation, DFR Van Diemen, Peter Hastrup, #62, Western Building Materials, DFR Van Diemen and Tom Hope, #18, H&M Racing, Dart,
Carbir and Les Phillips, #2, Swiss Implants, Porterfield Racing Brakes, Van Diemen.
The 9:15am race was flagged off on schedule and as on Saturday it was newcomer O’Ward who seized the lead from Negron, Fierberg, West, Phillips, Stewart, Hastrup and Hope who managed an overenight engine change.
Before the first lap had been completed, West got two wheels off at Cotton Corners and spun in front of Phillips who had no place to go and collected the West’s Van Diemen retiring both cars on the spot which brought out a full course caution while the cars were towed to safety.
After four laps behind the pace car the green flag came out and the race resumed and once again it was O’Ward taking the lead from Negron, Fierberg, Stewart, Hope and Hastrup.
Lap 5 saw Fierberg pass Negron for second place, a position he would hold to the end despite the best efforts of Negron. The two raced clean and close in an intense battle that lasted to the checkered flag with Negron falling just inches short. Fierberg claimed the Master Class victory.
O’Ward led comfortably, was never threatened and took the checkered flag 13 seconds ahead of the Fierberg/Negron battle, one again claiming the races fastest lap.
Stewart had another trouble free run to fourth place and was followed by Hastrup in fifth.
Hope continued despite electrical problems to finish sixth and claim the Expert Class win.
As the Formula F1600 group took the green flag it was Herta who claimed the lead followed by Keyes, Bickers, Evans, Marie, and McCarthy.
Bickers passed Keyes on lap five and Herta on lap six to take the lead as he attempted to try to pull away from Herta but quickly realized that was not going to work and that is was going to be down to the last lap yet again. The lead changed hands several more times as the laps wound down and it was Bickers who prevailed at the finish. Bickers also earned the fastest race lap. With each claiming the same number of points for the weekend, the gap remains the same and with three races left, the battle for the championship is going to go to the last lap of the last race of the season.
Behind the Bickers/Herta battle it was Lynx Racing’s Alex Keyes with another strong run to third place.
Andrew Evans held fourth place until a pit stop to have his radiators cleared dropped him to last place. Evans managed to recover and move up to fifth place by the finish.
Sage Marie finished fourth in his Piper earning the Expert Class win.
Mike McCarthy finished in sixth in the Mygale.
The series now moves to Las Vegas for rounds 13, 14 and 15 on October 4, 5 & 6 and will again be run with VARA’s Silver State Classic.
The single-seat, open-wheel F2000 cars are powered by 2-liter Ford Zetec engines and run on Hankook tires supplied by Sierra Tire. The F1600 cars will be powered by either the 1500cc Honda Fit engine or the 1600cc Ford ‘Kent’ engine and will run on Toyo tires.
F1600 Qualifying (round 12): 1. Colton Herta (Mygale/Honda); 2. Joey Bickers (Mygale/Honda); 3. Alex Keyes, (Spectrum/Honda); 4. Andrew Evans (Spectrum/Honda); 5. Sage Marie (Piper/Honda); 6. Mike McCarthy (Mygale SJ04/Honda).
F1600 Round 12 (13 laps): 1. Bickers; 2. Herta; 3. Keyes; 4. Marie; 5. Evans; 6. McCarthy.
F2000 Qualifying (round 12): 1. Patricio O’Ward (Van Diemen; 2. Bob Negron (Van Diemen); 3. Ira Fierberg (Van Diemen); 4. Jim Stewart (Van Diemen); 5. Peter West (Van Diemen); 6. Peter Hastrup (Van Diemen); 7. Tom Hope (Carbir); 8 Les Phillips (Van Diemen).
F2000 Round 12 (13 laps): 1. O’Ward; 2. Fierberg, +13.154s; 3. Negron, +13.216s; 4. Stewart, +29.788s; 5. Hastrup, +38.299s; 6. Hope, +4 laps; 7. West, +13 laps; 8. Phillips, +13 laps.
Fastest race lap: F1600 Bickers, 1m54.827s. F2000 O’Ward, 1m44.404s.
Expert class winner (over 35): F1600 Marie, F2000 Hope.
Master class winner (over 50): F2000 Fierberg.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Herta Claims Seventh Victory of Season, O’Ward Takes His Maiden Win at Buttonwillow
Buttonwillow, Calif. (September 7, 2013) – Round Eleven of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship Series saw Colton Herta take his seventh win of the season after a race long battle with team mate Joey Bickers in the Formula F1600 group in the early afternoon race while newcomer Patricio O’Ward breezed to his first F2000 group victory, leading Bob Negron and Ira Fierberg to the checkered flag in the Formula F2000 group at Buttonwillow Raceway Park on Saturday in Buttonwillow, California. The series will be part of the Vintage Auto Racing Association’s Oktoberfest
weekend.
The Formula F1600 group was facing the challenge of adapting to a new tire as a switch was made from the Hoosier to the Toyo R888 radial tire for the balance of the season. The tire thought to be roughly three seconds per lap slower gives greater longevity and consistency.
Qualifying began at 8:30am under clear, sunny and warm conditions and as it had all season, the battle for the pole position was down the two PR1 Motorsports team mates, Colton Herta in the #98, PR1 Motorsports w/BHA Curb-Agajanian entry sponsored by DVS shoe Company, Curb Records, Mygale N. America, OMP, Bell Helmets, Penske Shocks, Mygale/Honda and Joey Bickers #34, PR1 Motorsports Mygale/Honda and when the session was concluded, the F1600 group pole was won by Herta just edging Bickers by with a lap of 1:53.390, just .108 of a second ahead. This pair was followed by the Lynx Racing duo of Alex Keyes #32, Spectrum/Honda and Andrew Evans, #19
Spectrum/Honda, Sage Marie, #93, Honda Racing,HPD, Piper/Honda, returning to the series and newcomer Mike McCarthy #89, Bertram Ink, H & M Motorsports, Mygale/Honda.
The F2000 group was led by Patricio O’Ward, a new addition to the series in the #6 POW Motorsports, Pequeneces, DFR Van Diemen who lapped the 2.920 mile circuit at 1:43.228. Bob Negron in the #9,Terri Negron Web Design, fengshuimebaby.com, Van Diemen was second followed by Ira Fierberg in his #27, Pinnacle Performance, Sparco USA, DFR, Van Diemen, Peter West, #99, Frank Monise Motors, Zombo.com, Kodenko Jeans, T.J. Martell Foundation, DFR Van Diemen, Jim Stewart, back in his familiar #38, True Ventures, Van Diemen, series veteran Peter Hastrup in the
#62, Western Building Materials, DFR Van Diemen and series leader Tom Hope, #18, H&M Racing, Dart, Carbir, having managed just one lap.
The race was scheduled to begin at 12:30pm and with temperatures approaching 100 degrees the drivers set out on the pace lap and when the green flag fell it was newcomer O’Ward who seized the lead from Negron, West, Fierberg, Stewart, Hastrup and Hope who retired at the end of the lap without oil pressure.
O’Ward continued to lead comfortably from Negron who was pulling away from West. West was closely followed by Fierberg with Stewart and Hastrup slowly losing ground.
The order remained static until lap seven when Fierberg found his way past West and set off after Negron in second. Fierberg worked hard to try to close the gap to Negron.
When the checkered flag fell it was Patricio O’Ward cruising home to a well deserved victory in his debut in the series. O’Ward maintained a comfortable gap throughout and finished over 5 seconds ahead of second place. O’Ward also earned the fastest race lap.
Bob Negron did all he could to maintain the pace of O’Ward but from the drop of the green flag O’Ward was able ease his way ahead. Negron’s second place finish coupled with Hope’s retirement enabled Negron to take a slim lead in the points and give him the Master Class victory.
Fierberg finished third and was closing the gap to Negron but rued the time spent behind West and felt that cost him the opportunity to challenge Negron.
West crossed the line in fourth place but was dropped one position for jumping the start and finished in fifth behind Stewart, who had a trouble free run to fourth place.
Hastrup in his return to the series finished sixth.
As the Formula F1600 group took the green flag it was Herta who claimed the lead followed by Bickers, Keyes, Marie, McCarthy and Evans who had gone off track briefly but returned and began his charge up through the field.
Bickers passed Herta to lead lap two as this pair continued their season long duel. The lead changed hands at the line three more times with several position changes taking place throughout each lap as the drivers measured each other as they prepared their strategies and positioning for the final lap charge to the finish. At the checkered flag it was Herta taking another narrow victory over Bickers who had bobbled slightly in the final corner. Bickers’ effort was rewarded with the fastest race lap.
Behind the Bickers/Herta battle it was Lynx Racing’s Alex Keyes with a strong run to third place managing to keep the leaders in view for most of the race as his pace in the car is continually improving.
Andrew Evans stormed back from last place first getting by McCarthy and finally Marie to take fourth
place.
Sage Marie drove his Piper to fifth place earning the Expert Class in his return to the series and was
followed by McCarthy in the Mygale in sixth place in his series debut.
Round twelve is schedule to start at 9:15am Sunday morning.
The single-seat, open-wheel F2000 cars are powered by 2-liter Ford Zetec engines and run on Hankook tires supplied by Sierra Tire. The F1600 cars will be powered by either the 1500cc Honda Fit engine or the 1600cc Ford ‘Kent’ engine and will run on Toyo tires.
F1600 Qualifying (round 11): 1. Colton Herta (Mygale/Honda); 2. Joey Bickers (Mygale/Honda); 3. Alex Keyes, (Spectrum/Honda); 4. Andrew Evans (Spectrum/Honda); 5. Sage Marie (Piper/Honda); 6. Mike McCarthy (Mygale SJ04/Honda).
F1600 Round 11 (14 laps): 1. Herta; 2. Bickers; 3. Keyes; 4. Evans; 5. Marie; 6. McCarthy.
F2000 Qualifying (round 11): 1. Patricio O’Ward (Van Diemen; 2. Bob Negron (Van Diemen); 3. Ira Fierberg (Van Diemen); 4. Peter West (Van Diemen); 5. Jim Stewart (Van Diemen); 6. Peter Hastrup (Van Diemen); 7. Tom Hope (Carbir).
F2000 Round 11 (14 laps): 1. O’Ward; 2. Negron, +5.620s; 3. Fierberg, +9.763s; 4. Stewart, +39.739s; 5. *West, +22.714s; 6. Hastrup, +1:19.276s; 7. Hope, +13 laps. *West penalized one position for jumping the start.
Fastest race lap: F1600 Bickers, 1m54.997s. F2000 O’Ward, 1m44.689s.
Expert class winner (over 35): F1600 Marie, F2000 None.
Master class winner (over 50): F2000 Negron.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Round Ten Sees Bickers and Fierberg Victorious at Buttonwillow
Buttonwillow, Calif. (July 28, 2013) – Joey Bickers claimed victory in a race that saw the lead change hands no less than seven times in the Formula F1600 group in the early morning race while Ira Fierberg took the honors for the fourth time this season in the Formula F2000 group in round 10 of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship Series, at Buttonwillow Raceway Park on Sunday in Buttonwillow, California.The race was scheduled to begin at 8:00am with the grid positions set by the finishing order of Saturday’s race. Once again the temperature was already approaching 80 degrees as the cars took to the track with the Formula F1600 group led by Colton Herta in the #98, PR1 Motorsports w/BHA Curb-Agajanian entry sponsored by DVS shoe Company, Curb Records, Mygale N. America, OMP, Bell Helmets, Penske Shocks, Mygale/Honda with teammate Joey Bickers, #34, PR1 Motorsports Mygale/Honda alongside on the front row.
Lynx Racing with teammates Andrew Evans, #19 and Alex Keyes, #32 side by side in their Spectrum/Hondas on the second row. They will be followed by Alex Kirby, #81, Fast Forward Components, Piper DF5/Honda and Jim Stewart, #89, Mygale SJ04/Honda.
Bob Negron and Ira Fierberg led the Formula F2000 group, Bob Negron in the #9,Terri Negron Web Design, fengshuimebaby.com, Van Diemen and Fierberg in his #27, Pinnacle Performance, Sparco USA, DFR, Van Diemen.
Les Phillips, #2, Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes, Van Diemen and Peter West, #99, Frank Monise Motors, Zombo.com, Kodenko Jeans, T.J. Martell Foundation Van Diemen make up the second row followed by Michael Murphy, #8 Mygale SJ04, Harindra DeSilva, #6, DFR Van Diemen and Tom Hope, #18, H&M Racing, Dart, Carbir.
Hope and his crew with the help of PR1 Motorsports worked until 2:00am replacing the rear half of the car, mating Van Diemen running gear to the back of the Carbir, after the pinion gear trouble that sideline him on Saturday. Without a morning warm up session Hope’s first lap in the car would be his pace lap and so was facing a huge challenge in the race not knowing how the car would handle.
Bob Negron took the lead at the green flag as the Formula F2000 field headed toward the first turn. Negron was followed by Fierberg, West, Phillips, Hope, Murphy and DeSilva.
Negron continued in the lead until he lost fourth gear and his lead began to dwindle finally losing the lead on lap 10 and continuing to slide down the order until finally finishing in 5th place. Nursing the car he was able to maintain his pace in the tighter sections of the track but lost out on the long fast run from the grapevine, through Riverside and down to the Mazda hairpin.
Fierberg seized the lead on lap ten and went on to the victory, the checkered falling one lap early (lap 13 of 14 scheduled), and was fortunate that it did because he lost the CV joint on the left rear axle on the cooling down lap and just made it back to the paddock. Fierberg also claimed the Master class victory and had the fastest lap of the race.
Phillips drove steadily to finish second and coupled with Saturday’s third place was a fitting reward for the hard work of his crew repairing the car after Friday’s shunt removed the left side front and rear suspension and the front and rear wings.
West dropped a position to Phillips on lap four and another to Hope on lap five but managed to chase down Hope and retake fourth on lap ten. One lap later West passed the ailing Negron while holding off Hope to claim his fourth podium of the season.
Hope finished fourth, a strong effort considering the rebuild of the evening before, claiming the Expert class victory and maintained his championship lead.
Murphy in only his second race after two years away from the series finished sixth and DeSilva finished seventh.
As the Formula F1600 group took the green flag Alex Keyes made an excellent start and stormed into a lead he was to hold for only half of a lap as he was passed by Herta as the pair raced side by side through Riverside and passed once again by Bickers before the end of the first lap to come across the line in third. With one lap completed it was Herta leading Bickers, Keyes, Evans, Kirby and Stewart.
Bickers passed Herta to lead lap two as this pair continued what has become a season long battle with neither driver showing a clear advantage as positions changed from corner to corner for lap after lap, the pair never being separated by much more than inches. In the end, after thirteen laps, the race came down to the last corner of the last lap with Herta defending the inside line into the corner, Bickers chose the outside driving around Herta and with a slightly higher exit speed managed to maintain the lead to the checkered flag to win by 0.030 of a second. Bickers also claimed the fastest
race lap.
Herta with another fine performance finished second and in so doing was able to maintain his lead in the championship.
Behind the Bickers/Herta battle it was the Lynx Racing duo of Alex Keyes and Andrew Evans, not so far back, pushing each other forward and staying in touch with the leading pair for the first half of the race until lap eight when Evans car lost power coming out of Sunset and slowly creeping down the front straight and into retirement leaving Keyes to finish on the podium in well earned third place.
Alex Kirby drove his Piper to fourth place followed by Stewart in the Mygale in fifth place.
The series will be returning to Buttonwillow Raceway Park on September 7th and 8th for rounds 11 and 12, joining the Vintage Auto Racing Association for its Oktoberfest weekend event.
The single-seat, open-wheel F2000 cars are powered by 2-liter Ford Zetec engines and run on Hankook tires supplied by Sierra Tire. The F1600 cars will be powered by either the 1500cc Honda Fit engine or the 1600cc Ford ‘Kent’ engine and will run on Hoosier tires.
F1600 Qualifying (based on results of round 9): 1. Colton Herta (Mygale/Honda); 2. Joey Bickers (Mygale/Honda); 3. Andrew Evans, (Spectrum/Honda); 4. Alex Keyes (Spectrum/Honda); 5. Alex Kirby (Piper/Honda); 6. Jim Stewart (Mygale SJ04/Honda).
F1600 Round 10 (13 laps): 1. Bickers; 2. Herta +0.030s; 3. Keyes, +23.534s; 4. Kirby, +1 lap; 5. Stewart, +1 lap; 6. Evans, +6 laps.
F2000 Qualifying (based on results of round 9): 1. Bob Negron (Van Diemen); 2. Ira Fierberg (Van Diemen); 3. Les Phillips (Van Diemen); 4. Peter West (Van Diemen); 5. Michael Murphy (Mygale); 6. Harindra DeSilva (Van Diemen); 7. Tom Hope (Carbir).
F2000 Round 10 (13 laps): 1. Fierberg; 2. Phillips, +0.920s; 3. West, +6.801s; 4. Hope, +7.778s; 5. Negron, +13.930s; 6. Murphy, +25.934s; 7. DeSilva, +1:06.956.
Fastest race lap: F1600 Bickers, 1m53.119s. F2000 Fierberg, 1m47.776s.
Expert class winner (over 35): F1600 Stewart, F2000 Hope.
Master class winner (over 50): F2000 Fierberg.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Herta and Negron Take Victories in Heat at Buttonwillow in Round Nine
Buttonwillow, Calif. (July 27, 2013) – Colton Herta recovered from a poor start to take the victory in the Formula F1600 group as temperatures approached 100 degrees while Bob Negron claimed his fourth win of the season in the Formula F2000 group round 9 of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship Series, at Buttonwillow Raceway Park on Saturday in Buttonwillow, California.The early qualifying session began at 8:00am with the temperature already approaching 80 degrees as the cars took to the track. The battle for the pole in the Formula F1600 group was once again a duel between Joey Bickers and Colton Herta and when the flag fell to end the session it was Herta, in the #98, PR1 Motorsports w/BHA Curb-Agajanian entry sponsored by DVS shoe Company, Curb Records, Mygale N. America, OMP, Bell Helmets, Penske Shocks, Mygale/Honda prevailed. Joey Bickers, #34, PR1 Motorsports Mygale/Honda joins Herta on the front row.
The second row of the grid was all Lynx Racing with teammates Alex Keyes, #32 and Andrew Evans, #19 side by side in their Spectrum/Hondas. They will be followed by Alex Kirby, #81, Fast Forward Components, Piper DF5/Honda and Jim Stewart, switching to the #89, Mygale SJ04/Honda.
Ira Fierberg took his fourth straight pole, leading the Formula F2000 group in his #27, Pinnacle Performance, Sparco USA, DFR, Van Diemen. Starting on the front row with Fierberg will be Bob Negron, #9,Terri Negron Web Design, fengshuimebaby.com. Peter West, #99, Frank Monise Motors, Zombo.com, Kodenko Jeans, T.J. Martell Foundation Van Diemen heads the second row with Michael Murphy, #8 Mygale SJ04 starting alongside followed by Harindra DeSilva, #6, DFR Van Diemen, Tom Hope, #18, H&M Racing, Dart, Carbir and Les Phillips, #2, Swiss Implants, Porterfield
Brakes, Van Diemen. Neither Hope nor Phillips posted a time in the session as repairs were being completed, Hope replacing an input shaft and Phillips putting on the finishing touches after a practice crash on Friday.
With temperatures approaching the predicted 100 plus degrees, the field set off on the pace lap for the 11:15 start. Tom Hope made an excellent start from his third row starting position and by the end of the first lap was leading the Formula F2000 field. Hope was followed by Fierberg, Negron, West, Phillips, having moved up two positions, Murphy and DeSilva.
Negron passed Fierberg on lap two while Hope increased his advantage as drivers settled into their rhythms. Hope continued in the lead, lapping a second faster than his nearest rivals and was comfortably ahead when on lap 8, the pinion gear gave out and he was forced to retire leaving Negron and Fierberg to fight it out for the win.
Phillips got by West on lap 5 as the two set about in another spirited duel seeking the final step on the podium.
Negron managed to ease his way ahead of Fierberg when Ira bobbled, went off course and nearly lost his second place to the fast approaching Phillips/West struggle but managed to once again pull ahead as Negron was then able to cruise on to victory and with it the Master Class (50+) win with Fierberg in second.
Phillips held off West and finished third with West fourth followed by Murphy and DeSilva.
As the Formula F1600 group took the green flag both Andrew Evans and Alex Keyes made excellent starts and stormed to the front as the field headed to the first turn and by the end of the first lap it was Joey Bickers in the lead. Bickers was followed closely by Evans, Keyes, Herta, Kirby and Stewart.
By lap two Herta had moved past both Keyes and Evans and began his pursuit of Bickers.
The race developed into two two-car battles between teammates of the PR1 Motorsports and Lynx Racing teams with Bickers leading Herta and Keyes ahead of Evans. Herta had to chase down Bickers who had pulled out a gap while Herta was contending with the Lynx Racing duo while Keyes and Evans were circulating nose to tail. Herta and Bickers swapped positions three times in the late laps before Herta finally prevailed and won his sixth race of the season. Herta also claimed the fastest lap and with it two bonus points added to the two points for the pole leads Bickers by 40 points
guaranteeing that when the teams leave Buttonwillow, whatever happens, Herta will continue to be the championship leader.
Evans made a strong move to pass teammate Keyes on lap 8 and from there build a lead and take a strong third place finish ahead of Keyes. The Lynx Racing pair of Alex Keyes and Andrew Evans are making advances with each race.
Fifth Kirby followed by Stewart in sixth.
Sunday’s race will begin at 8:00am with grid positions set by finishing order of Saturday’s race.
The single-seat, open-wheel F2000 cars are powered by 2-liter Ford Zetec engines and run on Hankook tires supplied by Sierra Tire. The F1600 cars will be powered by either the 1500cc Honda Fit engine or the 1600cc Ford ‘Kent’ engine and will run on Hoosier tires.
F1600 Qualifying: 1. Colton Herta (Mygale/Honda), 1m51.670s; 2. Joey Bickers (Mygale/Honda), 1m51.823s; 3. Alex Keyes, (Spectrum/Honda), 1m53.089; 4. Andrew Evans (Spectrum/Honda), 1m53.823s; 5. Alex Kirby (Piper/Honda), 1m58.001s; 6. Jim Stewart (Mygale SJ04/Honda), 1m59.048s.
F1600 Round 9 (14 laps): 1. Herta; 2. Bickers +0.051s; 3. Evans, +1 lap; 4. Keyes, +1 lap; 5. Kirby, +1 lap; 6. Stewart, +1 laps.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Ira Fierberg (Van Diemen), 1m46.512s; 2. Bob Negron (Van Diemen), 1m46.803s; 3. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m47.755s; 4. Michael Murphy (Mygale), 1m52.051; 5. Harindra DeSilva (Van Diemen), 1m52.487s; 6. Tom Hope (Carbir), No Time; 7. Les Phillips (Van Diemen), No Time.
F2000 Round 9 (14 laps): 1. Negron; 2. Fierberg, +7.286s; 3. Phillips, +9.682s; 4. West, +12.002s; 5. Murphy, +1:06.695; 6. DeSilva, +1:10.496s; 7. Hope, +7 laps.
Fastest race lap: F1600 Herta, 1m52.177s. F2000 Hope, 1m47.497s.
Expert class winner (over 35): F1600 Stewart, F2000 None.
Master class winner (over 50): F2000 Negron.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Bickers Notches Second Series Victory, Fierberg’s Fontana Win Streak Reaches Six
in Round Eight
Fontana, Calif. (June 9, 2013) – Joey Bickers outdueled Colton Herta to take his second series victory in the Formula F1600 group and Ira Fierberg made it an even half dozen consecutive victories at Auto Club Speedway in the Formula F2000 group in the third and final race of the weekend for the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship Series, run on the 2.880 mile infield road course at Auto Club Speedway on Sunday in Fontana, California.in Round Eight
Grid positions for the morning race are to be the result of taking the aggregate of Saturdays round six qualifying and Sundays round seven fastest race lap and determining an average one lap time. Colton Herta, in the #98, PR1 Motorsports w/BHA Curb-Agajanian entry sponsored by DVS shoe Company, Curb Records, Mygale N. America, OMP, Bell Helmets, Penske Shocks, Mygale/Honda was yet again on pole, as he has continued to produce the fastest times of the group, ahead of PR1 Motorsports teammate Joey Bickers, #34, PR1 Motorsports Mygale/Honda.
The second row of the grid was all Lynx Racing with teammates Alex Keyes, #32 and Andrew Evans, #19 side by side in their Spectrum/Hondas. They will be followed by Dave Zurlinden, #31, Fast Forward, Pro Pack Systems, Piper/Honda, Alex Kirby, #81, Fast Forward Components, Piper DF5/Honda, Mike Miserendino, #89, Mygale SJ04/Honda newcomer Roy Steele, #17 Piper/Honda.
Ira Fierberg took his third straight pole, leading the Formula F2000 group in his #27, Pinnacle Performance, Sparco USA, DFR, Van Diemen. Starting on the front row with Fierberg in the #18, H&M Racing, Dart, Carbir was Tom Hope. Les Phillips, #2, Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes, Van Diemen leads the second row alongside Bob Negron, #9,Terri Negron Web Design, fengshuimebaby.com, Van Diemen and followed by Peter West, #99, Frank Monise Motors,
Zombo.com, Kodenko Jeans, T.J. Martell Foundation Van Diemen, and Harindra DeSilva, #6, DFR Van Diemen. Jim Stewart was unable to take the start in his #38, True Ventures, Van Diemen as he was unable to complete repairs in time.
The early morning overcast had burned off leaving partly cloudy skies and mild temperatures as the 10:55am start time approached. When the green flag waved it was Ira Fierberg, who asserted himself to lead the Formula F2000 group as they turned off the banking on the first of the fourteen scheduled laps. Fierberg was followed by Tom Hope, Bob Negron, Peter West, Les Phillips and Harindra DeSilva.
Lap two saw Phillips pit and drop to the rear of the field while the order remained unchanged until lap four when Negron passed Hope as the pair chased Fierberg and then on lap five DeSilva moved past West into fourth place. From that point on Fierberg managed to lead with enough of a gap to protect against any challenge and held his lead to the end to claim a remarkable sixth consecutive victory. Fierberg claimed another Master Class win and the fastest race lap.
Now in second, Negron fought tenaciously to try to catch the leader, pushing so hard as to lock-up during braking for turn 12 on a couple of occasions, and did manage to bring the gap down but not enough to challenge and took a hard earned second place finish.
Hope finished in third with a very rough sounding engine due to injector troubles but collected enough points to continue to lead the championship and still take the Expert Class honors. DeSilva came home in fourth place and was followed by West and Phillips.
The Formula F1600 group took the green flag and it was Joey Bickers in the lead as they completed their first lap. Bickers was followed closely by Keyes, Herta and Evans with Steele, Kirby, Zurlinden and Miserendino following.
Order was restored on lap two when Herta moved into second position ahead of Evans, Keyes, Steele, Zurlinden and Kirby with Miserendino having retired.
The race developed into two two-car battles between teammates of the PR1 Motorsports and Lynx Racing teams with Bickers leading Herta and Evans ahead of Keyes both battles equally close and equally compelling as the pairs of teammates swapped positions several times as these two car duos pushed them comfortable ahead of the remaining runners. Zurlinden retired on lap six and Steele, in only his third race in the series drove inspired to hold off Kirby the pair running in fifth and sixth.
Bickers lead all but three laps as he withstood the attacks by Herta and hold on to win by just 0.026s. Herta claimed the fastest lap and with the bonus points allowed Bickers to gain only one point in the championship chase. It was a satisfying win for Bickers as he had been so close in each of his losses. Bickers now trails Herta by 31 points and needs to maximize his efforts to close the gap.
The Lynx Racing pair of Alex Keyes and Andrew Evans showed that they had the tools to battle at the sharp end of the grid, as they had all weekend as they fought for the final step on the podium. This time it was Evans who prevailed to take third with a strong drive. The pair admit there is work to be done to catch the PR1 duo but are making advances with each race.
Fifth place went to Kirby having passed Steele on the twelfth lap and Steele in sixth, with a strong effort which also earned him the Expert Class win.
The series is now off for a seven week mid-season break and returns to action July 27th and 28th at Buttonwillow Raceway Park and returns to its double race format for rounds nine and ten.
The single-seat, open-wheel F2000 cars are powered by 2-liter Ford Zetec engines and run on Hankook tires supplied by Sierra Tire. The F1600 cars will be powered by either the 1500cc Honda Fit engine or the 1600cc Ford ‘Kent’ engine and will run on Hoosier tires.
F1600 Qualifying: 1. Colton Herta (Mygale/Honda), 1m44.303s; 2. Joey Bickers (Mygale/Honda), 1m44.688s; 3. Alex Keyes, (Spectrum/Honda), 1m45.667; 4. Andrew Evans (Spectrum/Honda), 1m45.883s; 5. Dave Zurlinden (Piper/Honda), 1m46.705s; 6. Alex Kirby (Piper/Honda), 1m46.997s; 7. Mike Miserendino (Mygale SJ04/Honda), 1m47.252s; 8. Roy Steele (Piper/Honda), 1m48.323s.
F1600 Round 8 (14 laps): 1. Bickers; 2. Herta +0.026s; 3. Evans, +28.408s; 4. Keyes, +29.898s; 5. Kirby, +1 lap; 6. Steele, +1 lap, 7. Zurlinden, +9 laps; 8. Miserendino, +13 laps.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Ira Fierberg (Van Diemen), 1m40.491s; 2. Tom Hope (Carbir), 1m40.743s; 3. Les Phillips (Van Diemen), 1m41.038s;; 4. Bob Negron (Van Diemen), 1m41.351s; 4. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m41.652s; 6. Harindra DeSilva (Van Diemen), 1m42.441s; 7. Jim Stewart (Van Diemen), 1m46.219s.
F2000 Round 8 (14 laps): 1. Fierberg; 2. Negron, +0.516s; 3. Hope, +16.313s; 4. DeSilva, +23.587s; 5. West, +38.430s; 6. Phillips, +2 laps; 7. Stewart, +14 laps.
Fastest race lap: F1600 Herta, 1m45.478s. F2000 Fierberg, 1m41.617s.
Expert class winner (over 35): F1600 Steele, F2000 Hope.
Master class winner (over 50): F2000 Fierberg.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Herta Claims Second Victory of Weekend while Fierberg Extends Fontana Win
Streak to Five in Round Seven
Fontana, Calif. (June 9, 2013) – For the second time this weekend, Colton Herta and Ira Fierberg claimed victories in their respective classes as the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship held its second of three races this weekend on Auto Club Speedway’s 2.880 mile infield road course on Sunday morning in Fontana, California.Streak to Five in Round Seven
Grid positions for the morning race are to be the result of taking the aggregate of Saturdays round six qualifying and Saturdays round six fastest race lap and determining an average one lap time. The Formula F1600 group was led by Colton Herta, #98, PR1 Motorsports w/BHA Curb-Agajanian entry sponsored by DVSshoeCompany, CurbRecords, Mygale N.America, OMP, BellHelmets, PenskeShocks, Mygale/Honda who took pole ahead of PR1 Motorsports teammate Joey Bickers, #34, PR1 Motorsports Mygale/Honda. The second row of the grid was all Lynx Racing with
teammates Alex Keyes, #32 and Andrew Evans, #19 side by side in their Spectrum/Hondas. They will be followed by Dave Zurlinden, #31, Fast Forward, Pro Pack Systems, Piper/Honda, Alex Kirby, #81, Fast Forward Components, Piper DF5/Honda, Mike Miserendino, #89, Mygale SJ04/Honda newcomer Roy Steele, #17 Piper/Honda.
Ira Fierberg again led the Formula F2000 group in his #27, Pinnacle Performance, Sparco USA, DFR, Van Diemen. Sharing the front row with Fierberg is Les Phillips, #2, Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes, Van Diemen. The second row of the grid will be led by the #18, H&M Racing, Dart, Carbir of Tom Hope alongside Bob Negron, #9,Terri Negron Web Design, fengshuimebaby.com, Van Diemen and followed by Peter West, #99, Frank Monise Motors, Zombo.com, Kodenko Jeans, T.J. Martell Foundation Van Diemen, Jim Stewart, #38, True Ventures, Van Diemen and Harindra DeSilva, #6, DFR Van Diemen making his third start in the series.
Overcast skies greeted the drivers for the 8:00am start as they rolled off the grid for the pace lap and when they took the green flag Les Phillips charged ahead leading the Formula F2000 group followed by Peter West, Tom Hope, Ira Fierberg, who slipped back three places, Bob Negron, Jim Stewart and Harindra DeSilva.
Contact on lap two between Stewart and DeSilva forced Stewart into retirement with a broken right rear suspension while DeSilva managed to continue. Ahead of DeSilva, Fierberg and Negron both passed Hope for third and fourth, as they still trailed Phillips, who was pulling away from West in second place.
With Phillips still leading, West was able to hold on to second place for as long as he could while Hope and Fierberg would finally get by him on lap six, relegating him back to fourth place. None of this was lost on Phillips who had built up a six second advantage and seemed to be pulling away, however Hope and Fierberg worked together to use the draft and began to whittle away at Phillips’ lead.
Meanwhile on lap seven Negron displaced West for fourth place as Hope and Fierberg were closing on Phillips.
On lap eight the lead was to change hands as Phillips “threw it in the weeds”, spun and made light contact with the wall forcing him to pit to have the car checked for any damage and with none evident was able to continue in sixth place.
Hope led lap nine in the fourteen lap event but was soon passed by Fierberg who was not going to be denied and held the lead to the finish for his fifth consecutive victory at Auto Club Speedway which he described as his “most satisfying”, while also claiming the Master Class victory. Hope for his efforts did manage the races’ fastest lap and the two bonus points that go along with it in addition to taking the Expert Class win.
Negron finished in third with West moving back up to fourth followed by DeSilva and Phillips.
Colton Herta led the field on the inside lane as Formula F1600 group took the green flag storming past Joey Bickers, in the outside lane, as he initially fell back to fourth place, but as they completed their first lap Bickers had worked his way back to the lead. Bickers was followed closely by Herta, Keyes and Evans as the lead group began to pull away from the second pack led by Zurlinden and followed by Miserendino, Kirby and Steele.
Lap two saw both Keyes and Evans get by Herta giving Bickers some breathing room at the front. This was short lived as by lap four Herta was back by the Lynx pair and on lap five passed Bickers for the lead as these two began to break away from their pursuers intent on continuing their own private duel.
With Herta in the lead it was Bickers turn to apply the pressure and determine where he would make his final lunge. The two exchanged positions twice more before the finish with Bickers making his final attempt as they raced for the checkered flag only to fall inches short at the line and 0.021s behind. This was Herta’s second win of the weekend and fourth overall. He also recorded the fastest race lap.
The Lynx Racing pair of Alex Keyes and Andrew Evans again had a spirited battle for third. Keyes maintained his advantage and took third place with a pass on the penultimate lap while Evens ended up fourth.
Fifth place went to Mike Miserendino, who was followed by Steele in sixth, Zurlinden in seventh after an early spin and Kirby in eighth.
Round eight is scheduled for a 10:55am start.
The single-seat, open-wheel F2000 cars are powered by 2-liter Ford Zetec engines and run on Hankook tires supplied by Sierra Tire. The F1600 cars will be powered by either the 1500cc Honda Fit engine or the 1600cc Ford ‘Kent’ engine and will run on Hoosier tires.
F1600 Qualifying: 1. Colton Herta (Mygale/Honda), 1m44.790s; 2. Joey Bickers (Mygale/Honda), 1m45.421s; 3. Alex Keyes, (Spectrum/Honda), 1m46.446; 4. Andrew Evans (Spectrum/Honda), 1m46.678s; 5. Dave Zurlinden (Piper/Honda), 1m47.193s; 6. Alex Kirby (Piper/Honda), 1m47.315s; 7. Mike Miserendino (Mygale SJ04/Honda), 1m47.884s; 8. Roy Steele (Piper/Honda), 1m49.166s.
F1600 Round 7 (14 laps): 1. Herta; 2. Bickers +0.021s; 3. Keyes, +18.491s; 4. Evans, +18.779s; 5. Miserendino, +39.963; 6. Steele, +1 lap, 7. Zurlinden, +1 lap; 8. Kirby, +1 lap.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Ira Fierberg (Van Diemen), 1m40.927s; 2. Les Phillips (Van Diemen), 1m40.984s; 3. Tom Hope (Carbir), 1m41.692s; 4. Bob Negron (Van Diemen), 1m41.717s; 4. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m42.748s; 6. Jim Stewart (Van Diemen), 1m43.384s; 7. Harindra DeSilva (Van Diemen), 1m43.440s.
F2000 Round 7 (14 laps): 1. Fierberg; 2. Hope, +0.447s; 3. Negron, +3.434s; 4. West, +9.668s; 5. DeSilva, +33.541s; 6. Phillips, +1m09.676s; 7. Stewart, +13 laps.
Fastest race lap: F1600 Herta, 1m44.390s. F2000 Hope, 1m40.743s.
Expert class winner (over 35): F1600 Steele, F2000 Hope.
Master class winner (over 50): F2000 Fierberg.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Herta Nips Bickers at Line for Victory, Fierberg Cruises to Fourth Straight Fontana
win in Round Six
win in Round Six
Fontana, Calif. (June 8, 2013) – The Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship began its second triple race weekend much the way it ended the previous event with Joey Bickers and Colton Herta staging another epic nose-to-tail battle ending with Herta taking the victory while Ira Fierberg cruised to his fourth consecutive victory at the 2.880 mile infield road course at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana on Saturday afternoon.
Qualifying began early at 8:00am under clearing skies as the cars rolled off the grid. It was a while before tires came up to temperature and as is now becoming the custom Colton Herta, #98, PR1 Motorsports w/BHA Curb-Agajanian entry sponsored by DVSshoeCompany, CurbRecords, Mygale N.America, OMP, BellHelmets, PenskeShocks, Mygale/Honda set the pace in the Formula F1600 group with a lap of 1m 44.216s over half a second ahead of PR1 Motorsports teammate Joey Bickers, #34, PR1 Motorsports Mygale/Honda. Alex Keyes, #32, Lynx Racing Spectrum/Honda
qualified third and was followed by Dave Zurlinden, #31, Fast Forward, Pro Pack Systems, Piper/Honda, Andrew Evans, #19, Lynx Racing Spectrum/Honda, Alex Kirby, #81, Fast Forward Components, Piper DF5/Honda, Mike Miserendino, #89, MBI, Swiss Motorsports Mygale SJ04/Honda and newcomer Roy Steele, #17 Piper/Honda.
Leading the Formula F2000 group as he has for the past two races at Fontana was Ira Fierberg in his #27, Pinnacle Performance, Sparco USA, DFR, Van Diemen threatening to break the 1minute 40second barrier with a lap of 1m 40.021s to claim his third consecutive pole position. Lining up next to Fierberg on the front row will be Les Phillips in his #2, Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes, Van Diemen. This pair will be followed by Bob Negron, #9,Terri Negron Web Design, fengshuimebaby.com, Van Diemen, Peter West, #99, Frank Monise Motors, Zombo.com, Kodenko Jeans, T.J. Martell Foundation Van Diemen, Jim Stewart, #38, True Ventures, Van Diemen and Harindra DeSilva, #6, DFR Van Diemen making his return to the series. Unfortunately Tom Hope in his #18, H&M Racing, Dart, Carbir had a gearbox problem causing him to be unable to participate in qualifying.
Under now clear and sunny skies and temperatures in the mid seventies the field rolled off the grid for the pace lap and when they took the green Ira Fierberg took command with a well executed start and led the Formula F2000 group as they headed off the oval into the infield section on the first lap. Fierberg continued to lead as the field completed the first lap. He was followed by Phillips, West, Negron, Hope, up two places from last on the grid, DeSilva and Stewart.
On lap two West dropped two positions having been passed by both Negron and Hope. Hope passed Negron for third on lap four and began his pursuit of Phillips who was still holding second place. Hope managed to ease his way by Phillips on lap 7 and held second for three more laps until Phillips re-passed Hope to claim second, a position he would hold to the checkered flag. Phillips would also claim the races fastest lap honors.
Fierberg maintained enough of a gap as to not be seriously pressured throughout the race and cruised home to victory, his fourth in a row at Fontana dating back to the 2011 season, and with it the Master Class win.
Tom Hope came home third after starting last increasing his lead in the standings.
Negron while holding fourth place came to a halt in turn five with an electrical problem that left this car with no power and dropped out leaving West to finish fourth followed by DeSilva with a steady race to fifth and Stewart finishing sixth.
Joey Bickers was swamped as the Formula F1600 field swept around the banking for the first time but managed to gain the lead as the cars headed into the infield section of the track on the first lap. As the field swept back onto the banking to complete the initial lap it was Bickers in the lead ahead of Herta as these two eased away from the pack they were followed by Keyes, Evans, Miserendino, Kirby and Steele.
The PR1 Motorsports duo of Bickers and Herta cruised around in tandem with Herta just off his rivals’ gearbox as they circulated lap after lap. Herta managed to lead lap five but by the next time around Bickers was back in front with Herta seemingly content to remain behind. It was not until exiting turn eighteen on the final lap that Herta made his move, pulling out of the draft at precisely the right moment to nip his teammate at the finish line by 0.017 of a second to claim his fourth win in the series and leaving Bickers with thoughts of what might have been. Herta also managed to capture the
fastest lap honors as he extended his points lead.
Bickers claimed, “It was very nerve racking on the final lap because I knew he was going to try to pass, but I didn’t know where. I thought he would try under the bridge into turn twelve and when he didn’t I was surprised. He was definitely faster in some spots. My car hit the rev limiter as we headed toward the checker and stuttered just a bit”. Which may have been all Herta needed.
The Lynx Racing pair of Alex Keyes and Andrew Evans had a spirited battle for the final step on the podium. They exchanged positions several time throughout with Keyes finally settling the dispute claiming third place with a pass on the twelfth of the fourteen laps while Evens ended up fourth.
Behind the Lynx Racing duo was Alex Kirby changing positions with Mike Miserendino, who is getting more comfortable in the open wheel cars after having won four consecutive Spec Racer Ford National Championships. They swapped placed on several occasions and in the end it was Kirby who maintained the advantage and finished fifth with Miserendino sixth.
Zurlinden was nudged into a spin on lap two dropping to the end of the field but managed to work his way bay into seventh at the finish with Steele, in his first race finishing eighth.
Round seven will take the green flag at 8:00am Sunday morning with round eight to follow at 10:55 am.
The single-seat, open-wheel F2000 cars are powered by 2-liter Ford Zetec engines and run on Hankook tires supplied by Sierra Tire. The F1600 cars will be powered by either the 1500cc Honda Fit engine or the 1600cc Ford ‘Kent’ engine and will run on Hoosier tires.
F1600 Qualifying: 1. Colton Herta (Mygale/Honda), 1m44.216s; 2. Joey Bickers (Mygale/Honda), 1m44.882s; 3. 3. Alex Keyes, (Spectrum/Honda), 1m45.967; 4. Dave Zurlinded (Piper/Honda), 1m46.239s; 5. Andrew Evans (Spectrum/Honda), 1m46.265s; 5. Mike Miserendino (Mygale SJ04/Honda), 1m47.664s; 6. Alex Kirby (Piper/Honda), 1m48.583s; Roy Steele (Piper/Honda), 1m48.583s.
F1600 Round 6 (14 laps): 1. Herta; 2. Bickers +0.017s; 3. Keyes, +1 lap; 4. Evans, +1 lap; 5. Kirby, +1 lap, 6. Miserendino, +1 lap; 7. Zurlinden, +1 lap; 8. Steele, +1 lap.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Ira Fierberg (Van Diemen), 1m40.021s; 2. Les Phillips (Van Diemen), 1m40.466s; 3. Bob Negron (Van Diemen), 1m41.388s; 4. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m41.688s; 5. Jim Stewart (Van Diemen), 1m42.096s; 6. Harindra DeSilva (Van Diemen), 1m42.343s; 7. Tom Hope (06 Carbir), No Time.
F2000 Round 6 (14 laps): 1. Fierberg; 2. Phillips, +4.267s; 3. Hope, +4.956s; 4. West, +29.716s; 5. DeSilva, +41.859s; 6. Stewart, +57.584s; 7. Negron, +5 laps.
Fastest race lap: F1600 Herta, 1m45.363s. F2000 Phillips, 1m41.522s.
Expert class winner (over 35): F1600 Zurlinden, F2000 Hope.
Master class winner (over 50): F2000 Fierberg.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Herta Repeats Morning Victory, Hope Cruises in Round Five
Buttonwillow, Calif. (May 19, 2013) – The third and final race of the weekend produced another victory for Colton Herta, his second of the day, in Formula F1600, and Tom Hope repeated his Saturday win in Formula F2000 in the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship Sunday afternoon at Buttonwillow Raceway Park. This weekend the series is running with CalClub as they celebrate 50 years of Formula Vees.
Grid positions for the afternoon race are to be the result of taking the aggregate of Saturdays round three qualifying and Sundays round four fastest race lap and determining an average one lap time.
The Formula F1600 group was led by Joey Bickers, #34, PR1 Motorsports Mygale/Honda claiming his third pole of the weekend. Colton Herta, #98, PR1 Motorsports w/BHA Curb-Agajanian entry sponsored by DVSshoeCompany, CurbRecords, Mygale N.America, OMP, BellHelmets, PenskeShocks, Mygale/Honda was second to be followed by Lynx Racing with teammates Alex Keyes, #32 and Andrew Evans, #19 in their Spectrum/Hondas, Mike Miserendino, #89, Mygale SJ04/Honda and Alex Kirby, #17, Piper/Honda.
In the Formula F2000 group, Tom Hope, as he did on Saturday, grabbed the pole in his #18, H&M Racing, Dart, Carbir. Bob Negron, #9,Terri Negron Web Design, fengshuimebaby.com, Van Diemen was second fastest with Peter West, #99, Frank Monise Motors, Zombo.com, Kodenko Jeans, T.J. Martell Foundation Van Diemen in third, Ira Fierberg #27, Pinnacle Performance, Sparco USA, DFR, Van Diemen in fourth and Jim Stewart, #38, True Ventures, Van Diemen in fifth. Les Phillips, #2, Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes, Van Diemen was unable to get the damage from the morning race repaired in time to make the grid and was a non-starter.
Temperatures stayed in the low to mid eighties at the 1:35 pm start time as the pace car set off. Joey Bickers jumped into the lead in the Formula F1600 group ahead of Herta as this pair set off on the first of the sixteen laps that would make up this race. Behind them followed Keyes, Evans, Miserendino and Kirby.
The Mazda hairpin claimed two more victims with Evans and Kirby making contact and retiring on the opening lap reducing the field to four cars.
Unaware of what was going on behind them Bickers and Herta began a classic duel that contained no less than seven lead changes. The pair often mere inches apart set a blistering pace on the same tires they had used all weekend to demonstrate how two teammates and rivals with mutual respect, maturity and skill can circulate lap after lap at the edge of adhesion, pass and re-pass each other without contact for the duration of the 16 lap race and bring the cars home in the same condition as they left the grid. The race was an exciting exhibition with first Bickers leading with Herta on his gearbox, then Herta was by to lead his share of the laps as this pattern repeated itself throughout. The race ultimately came down to the last corner on the last lap as with tortured tires Herta and Bickers came into the Sunset corner for the last time braking on the limit and side by side, Herta on the inside, Bickers on the outside, Bickers tried to hold Herta tight in the corner to slow Herta’s exit speed to allow him a run at him to the finish. Bickers’ tires finally had had enough and he slid wide on exit with wheels at the very edge of the track and maybe a little beyond, lost just enough momentum to allow Herta to take the victory by 0.272 of a second. Bickers did manage to take the fastest lap honors as some consolation. The cooling down lap display of sportsmanship and mutual admiration as the drivers saluted each other with waves and fist pumps was a reminder that in the end this is sport.
Behind the battle for the lead, Mike Miserendino, a former four time Spec Racer Ford National Champion, was coming to grips with the Mygale he sat in for the first time less than a week ago, began closing on Alex Keyes who was having a solid drive. On lap 6 Miserendino made his move and took over third place. Miserendino eased his way ahead of Keyes and took his first podium of the series with his third place finish. Keyes had another solid performance to finish fourth.
When the green flag fell for the Formula F2000 group, it was Tom Hope seizing the lead he would never relinquish. Behind Hope were DFR teammates Peter West in second, Ira Fierberg in third, and Jim Stewart in fourth with Bob Negron having retired before the completion of the first lap.
Hope drew away and the battle was for the runner-up position that West held until lap 4 when Fierberg got by. The positions remained static until the final lap when Fierberg received a puncture and with a deflating tire was bumped off of the second step of the podium by West who completed his best ever weekend in the series. West’s second place finish earned him the Master Class victory.
Hope finished 25.527 second ahead of second place and had a straightforward race to the finish. Hope doubled up by also claiming the Expert Class trophy.
Fierberg was third, the final step of podium and was followed by Stewart in fourth who again completed all of the race laps without incident.
The next event of the series takes place in three weeks at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California on the weekend of June 8th and 9th.
The single-seat, open-wheel F2000 cars are powered by 2-liter Ford Zetec engines and run on Hankook tires supplied by Sierra Tire. The F1600 cars will be powered by either the 1500cc Honda Fit engine or the 1600cc Ford ‘Kent’ engine and will run on Hoosier tires.
F1600 Qualifying: 1. Joey Bickers (Mygale/Honda), 1m49.853s; 2. Colton Herta (Mygale/Honda), 1m49.959s; 3. 3. Alex Keyes, (Spectrum/Honda), 1m51.619; 4. Andrew Evans (Spectrum/Honda), 1m51.655s; 5. Mike Miserendino (Mygale SJ04/Honda), 1m52.748s; 6. Alex Kirby (Piper/Honda), 1m53.094s.
F1600 Round 5 (16 laps): 1. Herta; 2. Bickers +0.272s; 3. Miserendino, +1 lap; 4. Keyes, +1 lap; 5. Evans, +16 laps; 6. Kirby, +16 laps.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Tom Hope (06 Carbir), 1m44.835s; 2. Bob Negron (Van Diemen), 1m45.006s; 3. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m47.151s; 4. Ira Fierberg (Van Diemen), 1m47.914s; 5. Les Phillips (Van Diemen), 1m48.338s; 6. Jim Stewart (Van Diemen), 1m49.271s.
F2000 Round 5 (16 laps): 1. Hope; 2. West, +25.527s; 3. Fierberg, +34.157s; 4. Stewart, +1m20.746s; 5. Negron, +16 laps.
Fastest race lap: F1600 Bickers, 1m51.170s. F2000 Hope, 1m46.314s.
Expert class winner (over 35): F2000 Hope.
Master class winner (over 50): F2000 West.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Herta, Negron Repeat Round One Success in Round Four
Buttonwillow, Calif. (May 19, 2013) – Colton Herta, Formula F1600, and Bob Negron, Formula F2000, returned to the top step of the podium for the first time since round one at Thunderhill Raceway withvictories in round four of the Pacific Formula F1600/F2000 Championship, Sunday morning at Buttonwillow Raceway Park. This is the first time the series has held a triple race weekend with round five to take place later this afternoon. This weekend the series is running with CalClub as they celebrate 50 years of Formula Vees.Grid positions for the morning race are to be the result of taking the aggregate of Saturdays round three qualifying and Saturdays round three fastest race lap and determining an average one lap time.
The Formula F1600 group was led by Joey Bickers, #34, PR1 Motorsports Mygale/Honda edging out Colton Herta, #98, PR1 Motorsports w/BHA Curb-Agajanian entry sponsored by DVSshoeCompany, CurbRecords, Mygale N.America, OMP, BellHelmets, PenskeShocks, Mygale/Honda and claimed pole and the additional bonus points that go with it by a mere .00125 of a second. The second row of the grid was all Lynx Racing with teammates Alex Keyes, #32 and Andrew Evans, #19 side by side in their Spectrum/Hondas. They will be followed by Mike Miserendino, #89, Mygale SJ04/Honda and Alex Kirby, #17, Piper/Honda.
Ira Fierberg led the Formula F2000 group in his #27, Pinnacle Performance, Sparco USA, DFR, Van Diemen, having taken second place in round 3 managed to squeak by the #18, H&M Racing, Dart, Carbir of Tom Hope to take the pole by .00061 of a second. Next up were Bob Negron, #9,Terri Negron Web Design, fengshuimebaby.com, Van Diemen and Les Phillips, #2, Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes, Van Diemen followed by Peter West, #99, Frank Monise Motors, Zombo.com, Kodenko Jeans, T.J. Martell Foundation Van Diemen and Jim Stewart, #38, True Ventures, Van
Diemen.
The 9:00am start time meant slightly cooler temperatures as the drivers set off on the pace lap. Just as he had on Saturday, Joey Bickers took and immediate lead in the Formula F1600 group fending off the challenge of teammate Colton Herta while Andrew Evans was induced into dropping two wheels off at the first turn and dropped to the rear of the field, so at the end of the first lap it was Bickers leading Herta, Kirby having moved up, Miserendino and Evans.
These positions remained the same with Bickers in front of Herta by inches, the two pulling away from the rest until lap 6 when Kirby spun moving up Evans, who got around Miserendino on lap 4, and Miserendino.
From here on it was the two Mygales stretching their lead both driving flawlessly until lap 13 when coming into the Mazda hairpin Bickers missed a downshift and spun the car handing the lead over to Herta who then preserved his lead to the finish crossing the line 6.839 seconds clear of Bickers who was able to continue and finish second. Herta also claimed the races’ fastest lap honors and the two points that go along with it.
Alex Keyes had another solid drive to finish third leading Miserendino, Evans and Kirby to the flag.
When the green flag fell for the Formula F2000 group, Ira Fierberg got a good start to lead a hard charging Phillips into turn one and the order at the end of the first lap Fierberg, Phillips, Hope, Negron, West and Stewart.
The complexion of the race changed on lap 2, as heading into Cotton Corners, there was contact between Phillips and Fierberg sending both cars off course and into immediate retirement. This handed the lead over to Hope, his Carbir beginning to ease away from Negron’s Van Diemen.
Once in the lead Hope continued to push to build his advantage during which he set the fastest lap of the race. This continued until while lapping a slower car there was contact damaging his front wing eventually allowing Negron to take the lead on lap 13.
Negron was able to continue on in the lead and three laps later took the checkered flag as the race victor. Negron was followed to the flag by Hope, who managed to keep the wing damage to a minimum and finish second, an elated West with his second podium of the weekend in third and Stewart having another consistent race in fourth.
The win by Negron also meant he was the Master Class(drivers +50) victor while Hope took the Expert Class(driver 35-49) win.
Round 5 is scheduled to take the flag at 1:35 pm as the teams will now scramble to prepare the cars for the final race of the weekend.
The single-seat, open-wheel F2000 cars are powered by 2-liter Ford Zetec engines and run on Hankook tires supplied by Sierra Tire. The F1600 cars will be powered by either the 1500cc Honda Fit engine or the 1600cc Ford ‘Kent’ engine and will run on Hoosier tires.
F1600 Qualifying: 1. Joey Bickers (Mygale/Honda), 1m50.157s; 2. Colton Herta (Mygale/Honda), 1m50.282s; 3. 3. Alex Keyes, (Spectrum/Honda), 1m51.643; 4. Andrew Evans (Spectrum/Honda), 1m52.061s; 5. Mike Miserendino (Mygale SJ04/Honda), 1m53.408s; 6. Alex Kirby (Piper/Honda), 1m53.546s.
F1600 Round 4 (16 laps): 1. Herta; 2. Bickers +6.839s; 3. Keyes, +1 lap; 4. Miserendino, +1 lap; 5. Evans, +1 lap; 6. Kirby, +1 lap.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Ira Fierberg (Van Diemen), 1m45.113s; 2. Tom Hope (06 Carbir), 1m45.174s; 3. Bob Negron (Van Diemen), 1m45.423s; 4. Les Phillips (Van Diemen), 1m45.960s; 5. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m46.796s; 6. Jim Stewart (Van Diemen), 1m48.851s.
F2000 Round 4 (16 laps): 1. Negron; 2. Hope, +9.481s; 3. West, +45.105s; 4. Stewart, +1m21.250s; 5. Fierberg, +15 laps; 6. Phillips, +15 laps.
Fastest race lap: F1600 Herta, 1m50.177s. F2000 Hope, 1m45.188s.
Expert class winner (over 35): F2000 Hope.
Master class winner (over 50): F2000 Negron.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Bickers, Hope Take Initial Series Victories in Round Three at Buttonwillow
Buttonwillow, Calif. (May 18, 2013) – Round three of the Pacific Formula F2000/F1600 Championship, holding its first triple event weekend saw Joey Bickers and Tom Hope claim their first victories in the Formula F1600 and Formula F2000 groups respectively at Buttonwillow Raceway Park in Buttonwillow California May. This weekend the series is running with CalClub as they celebrate 50 years of Formula Vees.
The sole qualifying session began at 11:05 am under clear and sunny skies as the drivers took to the 2.920 mile circuit and it was not long before the times started plummeting. In the Formula F1600 group, Joey Bickers having switched from the Piper/Honda he drove in rounds one and two to the round two race winning #34, Mygale/Honda, for PR1 Motorsports, took only four laps to set his pole winning time of 1m49.460s, edging his new teammate Colton Herta, #98, PR1 Motorsports w/BHA Curb-Agajanian entry sponsored by DVSshoeCompany, CurbRecords, Mygale N.America, OMP,
BellHelmets, PenskeShocks, Mygale/Honda by just over two tenths of a second with Herta clocking in at 1m49.741s. Next up were the Lynx Racing duo of Alex Keyes, #32 and Andrew Evans, #19 in a pair of 2014 Spectrum/Hondas. This pair will be followed by four time Spec Racer Ford National Champion Mike Miserendino who has taken over the #89, Mygale SJ04/Honda, driven by Les Phillips in the opening weekend of the series, and Alex Kirby taking over #17, Piper/Honda vacated by Bickers.
The Formula F2000 was led by Tom Hope lapped at 1m44.482s in his #18, H&M Racing, Dart, Carbir to take the pole by .17 of a second over Bob Negron #9, Terri Negron Web Design, fengshuimebaby.com, Van Diemen with Ira Fierberg, making his first appearance this season in his #27, Pinnacle Performance, Sparco USA, DFR, Van Diemen another .14 of a second back as all three drivers lapped under 1m45s. These three were followed by Les Phillips, back in his #2, Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes, Van Diemen, to defend his Master Class (drivers 51+), Peter West in his newly liveried #99, Frank Monise Motors, Zombo.com, Kodenko Jeans, T.J. Martell Foundation Van Diemen and Jim Stewart, #38, True Ventures, Van Diemen.
Mid eighty degree temperatures greeted the field as they came to the green flag for the 2:40pm start and Joey Bickers took advantage of his pole position to take the lead of the Formula F1600 group as they set off on the first of the sixteen laps. Bickers was closely followed by Herta, Evans, Keyes, Miserendino and Kirby still getting acquainted with the Piper.
On lap two Miserendino had a spin at the Mazda hairpin and dropped to the rear of the field.
Bickers and Herta circulated nose to tail with both drivers careful to not abuse their tires, mindful that there were still two more races to be run on them, with Bickers just fast enough to hold Herta at bay and Herta unable to mount any kind of challenge as the two Mygales eased away from the field. Bickers maintained his advantage over Herta for the entire race distance and took the checkered flag a mere .303s ahead. Bickers’ win was his first in the series and makes three different winners in three races. Though finishing in second position Herta was able to post the fastest race lap for the group.
The battle for third was almost as fraught as Evans and Keyes were never more than a second apart and Keyes never was able to get any closer as the race wore on and the pair of new Spectrum chassis’ finished third and fourth.
A lonely fifth place went to Kirby finally getting comfortable in the Piper and was followed to the Flag by Miserendino completing his first outing in the Mygale. In addition to his spin Miserendino’s late addition to the field meant he was unable to complete all of the modifications necessary to get him comfortable in the car and did a creditable job just the same.
The Formula F2000 group was led at the start by Tom Hope, his Carbir running flawlessly, Ira Fierberg who exhibited none of the rust associated with time spent out of the cockpit as he began his pursuit of Hope, who seemed to have everything going his way this weekend. Peter West held third and was followed by Phillips, Negron, who took a while to get going, and Stewart.
West was passed for third by Phillips on lap 4 and lost another place a lap later as Negron managed to get by as well. This lasted until lap 5, when Negron and Phillips got together at the Mazda hairpin, an incident that spun Phillips and caused Negron to get airborne, landing hard and damaging the right side suspension ending his race on the spot while Phillips ended up high centered on the curbing and was pushed to safety and his race was also over. This elevated West back to the third position he initially held and was able to maintain his third step on the podium to the finish.
Hope continued to lead as Fierberg continued to close in and apply some pressure, when on lap eleven Fierberg came by in the lead having passed Hope and it was now Hope’s turn in pursuit. Fierberg began to pull a slight advantage but then Hope closed back in and after two laps in the lead Fierberg was passed and trailed Hope to the flag finishing 1.348s in arrears. Like Bickers, Hope’s victory was his first in the series and for the first time since Scott Rarick in his Piper, a chassis other than a Van Diemen had taken victory in the series. His victory also meant that Hope was the Expert
Class (drivers 35-49) win while Fierberg’s second place meant that he was the Master Class winner and managed the fastest race lap.
Jim Stewart came home in fourth place to round out the finishers.
Because of the triple event format qualifying for round 4 has been determined by combining Saturday’s qualifying time added to the drivers fastest race laps and divided by 2 to give a one lap average speed. Based on this format Bickers had just enough advantage over Herta to claim the pole for Sunday’s first race while Fierberg managed to overcome
Hopes advantage and will start from the pole Sunday morning.
Round 4 is scheduled to take the flag at 9:00 am Sunday morning with round 5 to follow at 1:30 in the afternoon.
The single-seat, open-wheel F2000 cars are powered by 2-liter Ford Zetec engines and run on Hankook tires supplied by Sierra Tire. The F1600 cars will be powered by either the 1500cc Honda Fit engine or the 1600cc Ford ‘Kent’ engine and will run on Hoosier tires.
F1600 Qualifying: 1. Joey Bickers (Mygale/Honda), 1m49.460s; 2. Colton Herta (Mygale/Honda), 1m49.471s; 3. 3. Alex Keyes, (Spectrum/Honda), 1m51.318; 4. Andrew Evans (Spectrum/Honda), 1m51.775s; 5. Mike Miserendino (Mygale SJ04/Honda), 1m52.871s; 6. Alex Kirby (Piper/Honda), 1m53.357s.
F1600 Round 3 (16 laps): 1. Bickers; 2. Herta +.303s; 3. Evans, +1 lap; 4. Keyes, +1 lap; 5. Kirby, +1 lap; 6. Miserendino, +1 lap.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Tom Hope (06 Carbir), 1m44.82s; 2. Bob Negron (Van Diemen), 1m44.652s; 3. Ira Fierberg (Van Diemen), 1m44.792s; 4. Les Phillips (Van Diemen), 1m45.539s; 5. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m46.455s; 6. Jim Stewart (Van Diemen), 1m48.971s.
F2000 Round 3 (16 laps): 1. Hope; 2. Fierberg, +1.348s; 3. West, +53.328s; 4. Stewart, +1m4.078s; 5. Phillips, +11 laps; 6. Negron, +11 laps.
Fastest race lap: F1600 Herta, 1m50.822s. F2000 Fierberg, 1m45.433s.
Expert class winner (over 35): F2000 Hope.
Master class winner (over 50): F2000 Fierberg.
The series can be followed at facebook.com/pacificformulafracing and twitter.com/PacificF2000.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Cheng Takes Victory as Negron Completes Weekend Sweep in Round 2
Willows, Calif. (April 14, 2013) – David Cheng seized victory in the Formula F1600 group while Bob Negron completed a sweep of the honors on Sunday at round 2 of the Pacific F2000/F1600 Championship at Thunderhill Raceway Park in Willows California. Cheng a former winner in Formula F2000 was making his first start this weekend in Formula F1600 driving for PR1 Motorsports. The scenic 3.0 mile, 15 turn course was kind to Negron enabling him to again take maximum points with a pole, victory and fastest race lap.Sunday morning qualifying had near perfect conditions, clear and sunny with temperatures in high sixties and a slight breeze. The Formula F1600 group was highly competitive with the top four drivers finishing within one second of each other and many having improved their times over Saturday. PR1 Motorsports again prevailed but this time it was David Cheng, #23, PR1 Motorsports, Iskin, Mygale/Honda leading the way with a 1m50.634s, having accomplished that time on his final lap.
Lynx Racing’s Alex Keyes, #32, Lynx Racing, Spectrum/Honda with a time just 0.483s behind Cheng.
Third fastest was Saturday’s winner Colton Herta, #98 PR1 Motorsports w/BHA Curb-Agajanian entry sponsored by DVSshoeComp, CurbRecords, Mygale N.America, OMP, BellHelmets, PenskeShocks, Mygale/Honda followed by Joey Bickers, #17, Cameron Racing, Piper/Honda, Andrew Evans, #19, Lynx Racing, Spectrum/Honda, Dave Zurlinden, #31, Piper/Honda and Les Phillips, #89, Swiss Racing, Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes, Mygale SJ04/Honda.
The Formula F2000 group was again led by Bob Negron, #9, Negron Racing, Terri Negron Web Design, fengshuimebaby.com, Van Diemen/Zetec. Negron also improved on his Saturday time with a lap at 1m45.305s. Tom Hope in his #18 H&M Racing, Dart, Carbir/Zetec improved his qualifying by nearly two second and will join Negron on the front row. This pair is followed by Peter West, #99, Dave Freitas Racing, Frank Monise Motors, Zombo.com, Kodenko Jeans, T.J. Martell Foundation Van Diemen/Zetec, Jim Stewart, #38, True Ventures, Van Diemen/Zetec and Pierre DeMartines, #62,
Dave Freitas Racing, Van Diemen/Zetec.
David Cheng took full advantage of his pole position at the green flag and led the formula F1600 group from the start with Colton Herta filling his mirrors and Alex Keyes and Joey Bickers in tow, a small gap then Andrew Evans and Les Phillips. Dave Zurlinden discovered a vibration that turned out to be a loose wheel and retired after the pace lap.
Cheng was unable to pull out any lead as Herta dogged him and for lap after lap the two circulated mere inches apart.
Behind the leading pair the duel for third place was just as hotly contested as Bickers closed on Keyes threatening to seize the position and finally succeeding on lap 6. The next time by Keyes had the Spectrum back in front of Bickers’ Piper. These positions switched twice more and Keyes finally was able to maintain his advantage to the end for third place while Bickers was fourth, just off the podium but did manage the fastest race lap.
At the front things were far from comfortable for Cheng as he still had Herta to contend with as the two Mygales continued in tandem. Herta managed to pass Cheng on lap 10, but Cheng returned the favor on the following lap and was able to hold off his young teammate to the end to claim his first Formula F1600 victory, never putting a wheel wrong until he ran wide at turn 9 on the cool down lap.
Cheng (22) commented, “These young kids are fast, it took everything I had to stay ahead.”
Andrew Evans came home in fifth place with Les Phillips in sixth.
Tom Hope got the jump on Bob Negron to take the lead of the Formula F2000 group at the start and led Negron, Peter West, Pierre De Martines and Jim Stewart at the end of the first lap.
Negron was back by Hope the next time around and the two were set for repeat of their race on Saturday, however it only lasted six laps as Hope’s Carbir broke a rocker in the rear suspension and was forced to retire. By this time Negron had built a substantial lead and was able to claim victory virtually uncontested though he did manage the race’s fastest lap.
Behind the Negron/Hope contest, Pierre DeMartines and Peter West were having a struggle of their own which sadly only lasted three laps when West’s Van Diemen suffered a broken rear axle and he was forced to retire on lap 4 which left Pierre in a lonely second place as he had worked his way clear of Jim Stewart behind in third.
The next event for the Pacific Formula F2000/F1600 Series will be held on May 18th and 19th at Buttonwillow Raceway Park and will be a triple race weekend.
The single-seat, open-wheel F2000 cars are powered by 2-liter Ford Zetec engines and run on Hankook tires supplied by Sierra Tire. The F1600 cars will be powered by either the 1500cc Honda Fit engine or the 1600cc Ford ‘Kent’ engine and will run on Hoosier tires.
F1600 Qualifying: 1. David Cheng (Mygale), 1m50.634s; 2. Alex Keyes (Spectrum), 1m51.117s; 3. Colton Herta (Mygale), 1m51.157s; 4. Joey Bickers, (Piper), 1m51.296; 5. Andrew Evans (Spectrum), 1m52.419s; 6. Dave Zurlinden (Piper), 1m53.936s; 7. Les Phillips (Mygale), 1m57.354s. (All use Honda engines unless otherwise noted.)
F1600 Round 2 (14 laps): 1. Cheng; 2. Herta +4.495s; 3. Keyes, +10.844s; 4. Bickers, +13.518s; 5. Evans, +1 lap; 6. Phillips, +1 lap; 7. Zurlinden, +14 laps.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Bob Negron (Van Diemen), 1m45.305s; 2. Tom Hope (Carbir), 1m45.729s; 3. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m50.606s; 4. Jim Stewart (Van Diemen), 1m51.129s; 5. Pierre DeMartines (Van Diemen), 1m51.625s. (All use Ford/Zetec engines unless otherwise noted.)
F2000 Round 2 (14 laps): 1. Negron; 2. DeMartines, +1m22.870s; 3. Stewart, +1m35.474s; 4. Hope, +8 laps; 5. West, +11 laps.
Fastest race lap: F1600 Bickers, 1m51.101s. F2000 Negron, 1m46.276s.
Expert class winner (over 35): F2000 DeMartines.
Master class winner (over 50): F2000 Negron.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Herta, Negron Open Tenth Season with Victories at Thunderhill Raceway
Willows, Calif. (April 13, 2013) – Colton Herta and Bob Negron claimed victories on Saturday as the Pacific F2000/F1600 Championship opened its tenth season at Thunderhill Raceway Park in Willows California. Herta, competing in his first ever event in the renamed Formula F1600 series, started on pole, led every lap and won his debut race at the undulating 3.0 mile, 15 turn course. Negron a veteran and former Masters Class Champion led the Formula F2000 group from start to finish toclaim his second series victory.
Qualifying was held under clear skies and sunny conditions with temperatures in mid seventies and a slight breeze. From the outlap the battle was on in the Formula F1600 group between the PR1 Motorsport, Lynx Racing and Cameron Racing drivers and by the time the checkered flag fell on the session it was Colton Herta, #98 PR1 Motorsports w/BHA Curb-Agajanian entry sponsored by DVSshoeComp, CurbRecords, Mygale N.America, OMP, BellHelmets, PenskeShocks,
Mygale/Honda, securing the pole position with a 1m50.288s lap, just .179 of a second off of the official track qualifying record.
Second fastest was Joey Bickers, #17, Cameron Racing, Piper/Honda, just over a second behind. Bickers was followed by David Cheng, #23, PR1 Motorsports, Iskin, Mygale/Honda, Alex Keyes, #32, Lynx Racing, Spectrum/Honda, Andrew Evans, #19, Lynx Racing, Spectrum/Honda, Dave Zurlinden, #31, Piper/Honda and Les Phillips, #89, Swiss Racing, Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes, Mygale SJ04/Honda.
The Formula F2000 group was headed by Bob Negron, #9, Negron Racing, Terri Negron Web Design, fengshuimebaby.com, Van Diemen/Zetec, lapping at 1m45.529s for an average speed of just over 102 mph. Joining Negron on the front row of the grid will be Tom Hope in his #18 H&M Racing, Dart, Carbir/Zetec followed by Peter West, #99, Dave Freitas Racing, Frank Monise Motors, Zombo.com, Kodenko Jeans, T.J. Martell Foundation Van Diemen/Zetec, Pierre DeMartines, #62, Dave Freitas Racing, Van Diemen/Zetec and Jim Stewart, #38, True Ventures, Van Diemen/Zetec.
When the green flag fell for the late afternoon start Colton Herta immediately seized the lead of the Formula F1600 group and began to draw away from the field and was followed by Joey Bickers, David Cheng, Andrew Evans, Dave Zurlinden, Les Phillips, Alex Keyes, whose ECU unit kept the engine from firing on the grid was late out and he retired after the pace lap.
While Herta eased away from the field the competitors behind were challenging each other at every turn. Bickers was holding second, Cheng briefly dropped behind Evans into fourth only to recapture the position a lap later with Zurlinden and Phillips trailing. Phillips retired at the end of the first lap with a deflating tire caused by a bad valve stem.
With Herta now seemingly comfortably ahead, the race was on for the second step on the podium as Cheng, having re-passed Evans, was now hounding the Piper of Bickers at one point racing side by side through several sections of the track and Cheng eventually edging past. Cheng’s second place was short lived as Bickers fought his way back by Cheng to re-take second.
At the checkered flag, it was Herta taking victory with a little over 12 seconds in hand to win his debut race in the series. He drove consistently without putting a wheel wrong for the entire 14 lap race and in doing so also earned the two bonus points that go with setting the fastest race lap. Behind Herta it was Bickers finally prevailing over the hard charging Cheng taking the final podium steps. These three were followed by Evans and Zurlinden.
Bob Negron took the lead of the Formula F2000 group right from the start pursued by Tom Hope, Peter West, Pierre De Martines and Jim Stewart.
Negron was pushed by Hope and the two were never far apart and circulated most of the race almost nose to tail until a couple laps from the end when Hope’s Carbir started to miss and he dropped back to preserve his runner-up position with his pursuit of Negron pushing the pair well clear of the duel for third place.
Negron was able to cruise home to victory with the threat from behind now gone although he did manage the fastest race lap and with it an additional two points in the championship.
Pierre DeMartines and Peter West had a race long skirmish eventually decided in Pierre’s favor as he showed little of the rust of having sat out the past couple of seasons and took an excellent third place.
West brought his DFR Van Diemen home fourth and was trailed home by Jim Stewart competing in his first event in the series; switching to four wheels after several years of motorcycle competition.
Qualifying for round 2 begins at 9:15am with the race at 12:40pm Sunday.
The single-seat, open-wheel F2000 cars are powered by 2-liter Ford Zetec engines and run on Hankook tires supplied by Sierra Tire. The F1600 cars will be powered by either the 1500cc Honda Fit engine or the 1600cc Ford ‘Kent’ engine and will run on Hoosier tires.
F1600 Qualifying: 1. Colton Herta (Mygale), 1m50.288s; 2. Joey Bickers (Piper), 1m51.331s; 3. David Cheng (Mygale), 1m51.516s; 4. Alex Keyes, (Spectrum), 1m51.653; 5. Andrew Evans (Spectrum), 1m52.034s; 6. Dave Zurlinden (Piper), 1m53.818s; 7. Les Phillips (Mygale), 1m59.115s. (All use Honda engines unless otherwise noted.)
F1600 Round 1 (14 laps): 1. Herta; 2. Bickers +12.126; 3. Cheng, +12.692s; 4. Evans, +26.428; 5. Zurlinden, +2 laps; 6. Phillips, +12 laps; 7. Keyes, +14 laps.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Bob Negron (Van Diemen), 1m45.529s; 2. Tom Hope (Carbir), 1m47.576s; 3. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m51.133s; 4. Pierre DeMartines (Van Diemen), 1m52.877s; 5. Jim Stewart (Van Diemen), 1m53.567s.
F2000 Round 1 (14 laps): 1. Negron; 2. Hope, +32.328s; 3. DeMartines, +1m14.787s; 4. West, +1m21.367s; 5. Stewart, +1m56.570s. (All use Ford/Zetec engines unless otherwise noted.)
Fastest race lap: F1600 Herta, 1m50.839s. F2000 Negron, 1m47.271s.
Expert class winner (over 35): F1600 Zurlinden.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Series Tenth Season Opens with Debut at Thunderhill Raceway
Buttonwillow, Calif. (April 12, 2013) – The Pacific F2000/F1600 Championship Presented by Corsa Car Care opens its tenth season by holding its first ever event at Thunderhill Raceway Park in Willows California. This will be the first time the series will take on the 3.0 mile, 15 turn course in Northern California. There will be a pair of 30-minute races with the first race on Saturday (April 13, 2013) and the second on Sunday (April 14, 2013), and will be running with NASA as part of their
weekend activities.
The series, for both F2000 and F1600 cars will, for the first time, provide fifteen races over six race weekends with triple even weekends scheduled for Buttonwillow Raceway Park in May, Auto Club Speedway in June, and the season finale at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in October. Competitors will count their top thirteen finishes toward the championship.
The series will be returning to the familiar Hankook tires this season for the F2000 runners and for the first time Hoosier will be used as the control tire for the F1600 group.
There will be a mixture of new and familiar faces on the F2000 grid led by Dave Freitas Racing from Santa Fe Springs, CA. fielding entries for series veteran Peter West and Pierre DeMartines who is returning to the series. West will be in his familiar #99, Frank Monise Motors, Zombo.com, Kodenko Jeans, T.J. Martell Foundation Van Diemen while DeMartines takes over the #62 Van Diemen.
Drivers returning to the series include former series Masters Class (drivers 51+) Champion Bob Negron who returns after a seasons sabbatical in his familiar #9, Terri Negron Web Design, fengshuimebaby.com, Van Diemen and Tom Hope, will be competing in the #18 H&M Racing, Dart, Carbir.
Also joining the series is newcomer and veteran of two-wheeled competition Jim Stewart in the #38, True Ventures, Van Diemen.
Defending Masters Class Champion Les Phillips has decided to switch to the F1600 group this year in his #89, Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes Mygale SJ04.
Another team is shifting its focus to the F1600 group is PR1 Motorsports, fielding cars for newcomer Colton Herta and veteran David Cheng. Both will be driving 2012 Mygale’s with Honda engines provided by HPD. Herta the son of Bryan Herta, the race-winning IndyCar driver and Indianapolis 500 winning team owner, brings a wealth of experience having competed since the tender age of six having moved up through the karting ranks to Skip Barber now hopes to continue his climb as he contests in his first season of F1600. Cheng, who came to the series in 2009, began in F2000 cars
was runner up in 2010, his first full season and continued with PR1 competing in the Rolex and ALMS series’ with races including the Daytona 24 hours and more recently winning the Sebring 12-hour in the LMPC class. Herta will be driving the #98 PR1 Motorsports w/BHA Curb-Agajanian entry sponsored by DVSshoeComp, CurbRecords, Mygale N.America, OMP, BellHelmets, PenskeShocks while Cheng will race the #23, Iskin, Mygale-Honda.
Lynx Racing will be returning to competition after nine years since last competing in the former Toyota Atlantic Series. The team is supporting a pair of fifteen-year olds Andrew Evans and Alex Keyes in a pair of new 2013 Spectrum chassis powered by Honda engines. Both Evans and Keyes have had successes during their karting days, having begun at the ages of 8 and 12 respectively, and are hoping their association with the successful Lynx team will further their careers.
Cameron Racing is providing support for the final entry of the weekend for Joey Bickers who will be driving the #77 Piper-Honda.
Qualifying for round 1 begins at 12:35pm with the race to follow at 4:00pm Saturday. Round 2 qualifying is scheduled for 9:15am with the race at 12:40pm Sunday.
The single-seat, open-wheel F2000 cars are powered by 2-liter Ford Zetec engines and are capable of speeds in excess of 140 mph. All cars run on Hankook tires supplied by Sierra Tire. The F1600 cars will be powered by either the 1500cc Honda Fit engine or the venerable 1600cc Ford ‘Kent’ engine and will run on Hoosier tires.
Series sponsors include VP Racing fuels, Sierra Tire, Corsa Car Care, Porterfield Brakes, Wine Country Motorsports, Aerocraft Fiberglass & Design, and Buttonwillow Raceway.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Champions Reign in Season Finale
Las Vegas, NV. (October 7, 2012) – The ten turn, 1.940 mile Las Vegas Motor Speedway was the site of the twelfth and final round of 2012 for the Pacific F2000/Formula F Super Series Championship Presented by Corsa Car Care. The race held as part of the Vintage Auto Racing Association for its Datsun-Porsche Shootout race weekend was held under sunny skies and high eighties temperatures.
Qualifying for round 12 was held in the early morning when temperatures were cooler and there was a slight breeze. As he had on Saturday Bobby Kelley in the #21 A&B Equipment, Dave Freitas Racing Van Diemen fresh from Saturdays victory went on to post the fastest time of the session although a full second slower than yesterday as this was the third heat cycle for the tires and they still had the race ahead of them. Kelley was nearly a second clear of the group containing David Cheng, #4, CJ Wilson Children’s Charities Van Diemen, Camren Kaminsky #34 Van Diemen, both driving for PR1 Motorsports and Ira Fierberg in the #27, Sparco USA, Pinnacle Performance,The Yard, LDF, Dave Freitas Racing Van Diemen all within 1.2 seconds of Kelley. Les Phillips, #2 Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes Van Diemen and Peter West, #99, Frank Monise Motors, T.J. Martell Foundation, Dave Freitas Racing Van Diemen started fifth and sixth respectively.
Conner Ford in the #77, The Keniston's, JF Excavating & Grading, Western Nevada Supply and Sparco USA, PR1 Motorsports Mygale/Honda took the pole in the Formula F group ahead of Tristan Nunez #23, PR1 Motorsports Mygale/Honda and Dan Gulickson in the #17 HPD, PR1 Motorsports Piper/Honda. Nunez a Team USA Scholarship winner will be driving Formula Fords when he goes to England later this year and wanted to take this opportunity to familiarize himself with the ‘H’ pattern shifting as in the Cooper Prototype Lites, as sequential shifting is used.
Series Champion Elect Bobby Kelley took the advantage at the green flag and by claiming the inside line managed to hold off David Cheng as the pair headed to turn one followed by Ira Fierberg, Camren Kaminsky, Les Phillips and Peter West. As the field negotiated turn two there was contact between Kaminisky and Fierberg which resulted in both cars leaving the track and at the end of the first lap it was Kelley leading from Cheng, Phillips, West with a gap and Fierberg and Kaminsky.
When the field came around to complete the first lap things had settled down and Fierberg and Kaminsky set about gaining the lost ground a task Kaminsky found difficult due to front wing damage sustained in the contact with Fierberg.
With the drivers now settling into their rhythms the race positions remained static for several laps. During this time Peter West was slowly catching Phillips and the race was on not only for the final podium step but also victory in the Master Class (drivers 51 & up). Meanwhile Kelley was increasing his advantage over Cheng.
Kaminsky pitted on lap 11 to have his damaged front wing replaced and rejoined in sixth place where he remained to the finish. The battle between Phillips and West was really close by this time with Phillips still holding third but on lap 13, Phillips spun and dropped two positions, one to West and the other to the hard charging Ira Fierberg, who now had his next target, West, in sight.
Kelley slowly edged away from Cheng building a comfortable gap and took the checkered flag 6.422 seconds ahead of Cheng who finished second for the second day in a row on his return to the series.
The victory by Kelley was his seventh of the season and by taking the pole and the fastest lap swept the weekend taking maximum points.
The battle for third was far from settled as by the final lap Fierberg was in a position to make an attempt on West and moving toward the had the outside line entering the corner. There was contact with West’s left front into the right rear of Fierberg damaging the front wing on West’s car and giving the position to Fierberg who held on to the end taking that final step on the podium and with it the Expert Class (drivers 35-50)Victory and clinching Expert Class Championship.
Peter West did a superb job to bring the car home in fourth place with the front wing dragging on the ground and hold off Phillips as he closed in on West at the finish. West’s fourth place earned the Wine Country Motorsports Hard Charger Award and claim the victory in the Master Class (drivers 51 and up).
Les Phillips finished in fifth place after closing to within .35 of a second at the finish.
The Formula F group was a battle between the PR1 Motorsports Mygale/Honda drivers Conner Ford and Tristan Nunez. Ford led at the start but by turn one Nunez moved past Ford but exited the corner wide allowing Ford back into the lead. Nunez was never again able to challenge Ford even though he finished within 2 second of Ford. Ford held the advantage to the end to take his tenth win of the season while Nunez claimed the fastest race lap.
Dan Gulickson again finished third in the Piper/Honda was Dan Gulickson.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Bobby Kelley (Van Diemen), 1m26.774s; 2. David Cheng (Van Diemen), 1m27.685s; 3. Camren Kaminsky, (Van Diemen), 1m27.715; 4. Ira Fierberg (Van Diemen), 1m28.008s; 5. Les Phillips (Van Diemen), 1m29.361s; 6. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m29.812s. (All use Zetec/Quicksilver engines unless otherwise noted.)
F2000 Round 11 (16 laps): 1. Kelley; 2. Cheng +6.422; 3. Fierberg, +47.875s; 4. West, +57.754; 5. Phillips, +58.104s; 6. Kaminisky, +2 laps.
FF Qualifying: 1. Conner Ford (Mygale/Honda), 1m29.602s; 2. Tristan Nunez (Mygale/Honda), 1m30.141s; 3. Dan Gulickson (Piper/Honda), 1m38.875s.
FF Round 11 (16 laps): 1. Ford; 2. Nunez; 3. Gulickson.
Margin of victory: 6.422s.
Winner’s average speed: 79.588 mph.
Fastest race lap: Kelley, 1m27.116s, 80.169 mph.
Expert class winner (35-50): Fierberg.
Sierra Tire Masters class winner (over 50): West.
Wine Country Motorsports Hard Charger Award: West.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com. Follow us on twitter @PacificF2000.
Kelley, Ford Continue Dominance in Round Eleven
Las Vegas, NV. (October 6, 2012) – Round eleven of the Pacific F2000/Formula F Super Series Championship Presented by Corsa Car Care saw more of the dominating performances from Bobby Kelley and Conner Ford that enabled each to win their respective championships.
Las Vegas Motor Speedway was the site of the most recent successes. The race held as part of the Vintage Auto Racing Association for its Datsun-Porsche Shootout race weekend was held under sunny skies and high eighties temperatures.
When qualifying began the temperature was already in the high seventies and the drivers set off to take on the tight, ten turn, 1.940 mile circuit. Rookie Bobby Kelley, the Champion elect, driving the #21 A&B Equipment, Van Diemen for Dave Freitas Racing claimed the pole turning in a lap of 1m25.716s, nearly a second ahead of second place qualifier David Cheng in the #4, CJ Wilson Children’s Charities, PR1 Motorsports Van Diemen and established himself as the favorite for this afternoons race. Following Kelley and Cheng and heading the second row of the grid was Camren Kaminsky in the #34 PR1 Motorsports Van Diemen who suffered the failure of two engines in Fridays testing. Next to Kaminsky was Ira Fierberg in the #27, Sparco USA, Pinnacle Performance, The Yard, LDF, Dave Freitas Racing Van Diemen. Les Phillips, #2 Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes Van Diemen and Peter West, #99, Frank Monise Motors, T.J. Martell Foundation, Dave Freitas Racing Van Diemen made up the third row.
Conner Ford in the #77, The Keniston's, JF Excavating & Grading, Western Nevada Supply and Sparco USA, PR1 Motorsports Mygale/Honda claimed yet another pole in the Formula F group besting Tristan Nunez #23, PR1 Motorsports Mygale/Honda by .403 of a second. Third fastest was Dan Gulickson in the #17 HPD, PR1 Motorsports Piper/Honda.
When the green flag waved it was Cheng from his outside front row starting spot taking the lead followed by Kelley, Fierberg, Kaminsky, West and Phillips. This order remained until Phillips passed West on lap three while at the head of the field the top four cars ran nose to tail and could be covered by a blanket.
While Cheng led, having fended off the challenges of Kelley, positions behind him were changing as Kaminsky moved by Fierberg on lap five and then passed Kelley on lap six to take second place as the top four surged away from the rest of the field. The next time by Kelley had re-passed Kaminsky for second and then in a bold move on the outside of turn one seized the lead from Cheng who had been unwilling to give any opening on the inside. Cheng fought back and the pair raced side-by-side around turn six with Cheng now on the outside trying to force Kelley to hold the tight line on exit but ran out of grip and slid wide and dropped from second to fourth.
Once in the lead Kelley began to ease away from his pursuers and maintained his 2+ second advantage to the end claiming his sixth win of the season while also setting the fastest race lap.
Kaminsky pressed on in his pursuit of Kelley but was not able to get within striking distance of Kelley and finished a strong second well clear of the third placed Fierberg.
In third place and with Cheng challenging from behind Fierberg battled Cheng for the final place on the podium the two having swapped positions a couple of times before the issue was finally settled when Cheng developed brake problems and dropped down to sixth at the finish. Fierberg went on to finish third and the defending Expert Class (drivers 35-50) Champion claimed another Class victory.
Meanwhile Peter West drove a steady race to finish in fourth place earning the Wine Country Motorsports Hard Charger Award and claim the victory in the Master Class (drivers 51 and up).
Les Phillips having spun on lap six lost too much ground and was only able to manage a fifth place finish.
The Formula F group was a battle between the PR1 Motorsports Mygale/Honda drivers Conner Ford and Tristan Nunez. Ford led at the start with Nunez challenging at every corner. Nunez briefly took the lead on lap 4 that he was to hold for only one lap as he was unable to hold off Ford as he surged back into the lead on the next lap. This battle was to last half the race before both cars began to suffer from overheating and had to ease the pace. Ford held the advantage to the end to take his
ninth win of the season and also held the fastest race lap.
Finishing third in his first outing in the Piper/Honda was Dan Gulickson.
The twelfth and final race of the season is set for 12:05pm on Sunday with qualifying to begin at 8:40am.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Bobby Kelley (Van Diemen), 1m25.716s; 2. David Cheng (Van Diemen), 1m26.633s; 3. Camren Kaminsky, (Van Diemen), 1m27.200; 4. Ira Fierberg (Van Diemen), 1m27.525s; 5. Les Phillips (Van Diemen), 1m28.259s; 6. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m29.388s. (All use Zetec/Quicksilver engines unless otherwise noted.)
F2000 Round 11 (16 laps): 1. Kelley; 2. Kaminsky +2.621; 3. Fierberg, +20.339s; 4. West, +48.879; 5. Phillips, +1:05.361s; 6. Cheng, +1:05.460.
FF Qualifying: 1. Conner Ford (Mygale/Honda), 1m29.289s; 2. Tristan Nunez (Mygale/Honda), 1m29.692s; 3. Dan Gulickson (Piper/Honda), 1m39.568s.
FF Round 11 (16 laps): 1. Ford; 2. Nunez; 3. Gulickson.
Margin of victory: 2.621s.
Winner’s average speed: 78.731 mph.
Fastest race lap: Kelley, 1m27.272s, 80.026 mph.
Expert class winner (35-50): Fierberg.
Sierra Tire Masters class winner (over 50): West.
Wine Country Motorsports Hard Charger Award: West.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com. Follow us on twitter @PacificF2000.
Kelley, Ford Sweep Weekend, Clinch Titles in Round 10 at Buttonwillow
Buttonwillow, Calif. (September 9, 2012) – Buttonwillow Raceway Park hosted round 10 of the Pacific F2000/Formula F Super Series Championship Presented by Corsa Car Care. The race was held on #25, a 2.920 mile long configuration in Buttonwillow, California. The event was run as part of the Vintage Auto Racing Association Oktoberfest weekend after a nearly three month summer break.
Qualifying which began at 8:00 am was led by Saturday’s winner Bobby Kelley driving the #21, A & B Equipment, Dave Freitas Racing Van Diemen with a lap of 1m45.975s. Kelley followed by Bob Negron a former Master Class (drivers 51 and up) Champion and race winner in his #9 Terri Negron Web Design Negron Racing Van Diemen and Camren Kaminsky, #34, PR1 Motorsports Van Diemen, all three lapping within one half second of each other. These three were followed by Peter Hastrup in the #6, Dave Freitas Racing Van Diemen, Les Phillips, #2 Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes Van Diemen, Chris Hundley, #62, Limousine Connection, DFR Van Diemen and Peter West, #99, Frank Monise Motors, TJ Martel Foundation, DFR Van Diemen.
Conner Ford in the #77 JF Excavating & Grading, Western Nevada Supply, Sparco USA, PR1 Motorsports, Mygale/Honda took the pole in the Formula F group followed by Ed Erlandson in the #8, Artwork by Eli, Porter Racing, Loyning, Goodyear, Swift DB6/Ford.
The green flag waved under clear, sunny skies for the 12:30 start and it was pole sitter Bobby Kelley who seized the lead immediately ahead of Bob Negron and Camren Kaminsky as the field headed into turns one. These three were followed by Phillips, West and Hundley with Hastrup pitting at the end of lap 1 to replace a flat right rear tire.
The field remained in this order until lap 11 when Hundley passed Phillips for fourth place, a position he maintained until the final lap when Phillips chased him down and retook the position.
Once in the lead, Kelley maintained a steady gap and led every lap to take the victory, his second of the weekend, set fastest lap and with it clinched the series title with two races remaining. Kelley’s win was his fifth win in the ten races season. He also has five second place finishes, two poles and four fastest laps.
Negron drove flawlessly and kept Kelley honest at the front of the field, pushing him hard but was never quite close enough to attempt a passing maneuver and finished second claiming Victory in the Master Class.
Camren Kaminsky finished third, and with it took sole possession of second place in the standings.
Fourth place went to Les Phillips who has moved into third in the overall standings and first in the Master Class.
Behind Phillips it was Hundley finishing in fifth place, Peter West in sixth and Peter Hastrup having made a second pit stop, two laps down in seventh.
In the Formula F group Conner Ford took the lead at start and was closely pursued by Erlandson in the early laps but managed to distance himself from his challenger and went on to victory. The Mygale/Honda/Hoosier combination, new this year has been strong enough in Ford’s hands to earn the second Formula F Super Series title with his eighth win. Ford was the Formula 2000 Series champion last year and is also one of the eight finalists in the Team USA Scholarship which each
year sends drivers to compete in Europe in hopes of furthering their racing careers. Recent alumni include current Indycar drivers Charlie Kimball, Josef Newgarden and J.R. Hildebrand along with Rolex series driver Dane Cameron.
The series now move to Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Las Vegas, Nevada for rounds 11 and 12 on October 6th and 7th.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Bobby Kelley (Van Diemen), 1m45.975s; 2. Bob Negron (Van Diemen), 1m46.160s; 3. Camren Kaminsky, (Van Diemen), 1m46.466; 4. Peter Hastrup (Van Diemen), 1m48.219s; 5. Les Phillips (Van Diemen), 1m48.471s; 6. Chris Hundley (Van Diemen), 1m48.864s; 7. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m50.118s. (All use Zetec/Quicksilver engines unless otherwise noted.)
F2000 Round 10 (14 laps): 1. Kelley; 2. Negron +2.480; 3. Kaminsky, +9.530s; 4. Phillips, +39.147; 5. Hundley, +39.770s; 6. West, +1:17.793; 7. Hastrup, +2 laps.
FF Qualifying: 1. Conner Ford (Mygale/Honda), 1m53.126s; 2. Ed Erlandson (Swift/Ford), 1m56.268s.
FF Round 10 (14 laps): 1. Ford; 2. Erlandson.
Margin of victory: 2.480s.
Winner’s average speed: 97.571 mph.
Fastest race lap: Kelley, 1m46.556s, 98.652 mph.
Expert class winner (35-50): None.
Sierra Tire Masters class winner (over 50): F2000; Negron.
Wine Country Motorsports Hard Charger Award: None.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com. Follow us on twitter @PacificF2000.
Kelley Wins Thriller, Ford Victorious in Round 9 at Buttonwillow
Buttonwillow, Calif. (September 8, 2012) – Round 9 of the Pacific F2000/Formula F Super Series Championship Presented by Corsa Car Care was held on the 2.920 mile Buttonwillow Raceway Park in Buttonwillow, California. The event was run as part of the Vintage Auto Racing Association Oktoberfest weekend after a nearly three month summer break.
Leading the early morning qualifying which began at 8:30 am was Bob Negron a former Master Class (drivers 51 and up) Champion and race winner in his #9 Terri Negron Web Design Negron Racing Van Diemen. Negron was followed by Bobby Kelley, #21, A & B Equipment, DFR Van Diemen and Camren Kaminsky, #34, PR1 Motorsports Van Diemen, all three lapping within one half second of each other. These three were followed by Les Phillips, #2 Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes Van Diemen, Peter Hastrup, back after taking a year away, in the #6, Dave Freitas Racing Van Diemen, Chris Hundley, #62, Limousine Connection, DFR Van Diemen and Peter West, #99, Frank Monise Motors, TJ Martel Foundation, DFR Van Diemen.
The Formula F group was again led by Conner Ford in the #77 JF Excavating & Grading, Western Nevada Supply, Sparco USA, PR1 Motorsports, Mygale/Honda. Ford was followed by Ed Erlandson in the #8, Artwork by Eli, Porter Racing, Loyning, Goodyear, Swift DB6/Ford.
When the green flag waved for the 12:30 start it was Camren Kaminsky from his second row starting position who timed the start brilliantly and surged past both Bob Negron and Bobby Kelley to take the lead into turn one. Negron managed to work his way past Kaminsky by the end of the first lap and was followed by Kaminsky, Kelley, Phillips, Hastrup, West and Hundley.
Lap 2 saw Kelley get past Kaminsky for second place as Negron tried to build on his lead. Once he was in second place, Kelley put in a series of fast laps, one of which turned out to be the fastest race lap, as he closed the gap to Negron and by mid race the pair were running nose to tail. Negron and Kelley circulated mere inches apart for lap after lap with Negron able to maintain the advantage to the white flag lap. Kelley had passed Negron coming to the white flag with Negron moving back ahead entering turn 1 but drove in too deep and went wide allowing Kelley back through on the inside.
Negron chased Kelley and when he dropped a wheel off at the exit of the Grapevine turn seemed to lose any opportunity to catch Kelley but by the Mazda hairpin Negron had closed back up and the pair went through side by side with Negron finally giving way as they entered the esses and Kelley went on to claim his fourth with of the season to take a commanding lead in the points.
Negron finished second and with it took the Victory in the Master Class.
Camren Kaminsky finished a lonely third, not quite able to match the pace of Negron and Kelley but well clear of those behind. The finish boosted him into a tie for second place in the standings.
Fourth place went to Chris Hundley who was displaced by Peter West on lap one. Hundley retook West on lap 5 for sixth, set off after Peter Hastrup eventually getting by for fifth on lap 10 and finally passed Les Phillips for fourth on lap 13 of the 14 lap race to earn the wine Country Motorsports Hard Charger award.
Behind Hundley it was Les Phillips finishing in fifth place, Peter Hastrup in sixth, showing little rust from his time away and Peter West in seventh.
Conner Ford led the FF group comfortably from start to finish and was chased by Erlandson, who has provided Ford with his stiffest competition thus far this season, was unable to match Ford’s pace on this day. The Mygale/Honda/Hoosier combination had the edge on the Swift/Ford/Goodyear today.
The battle between the two is not only Ford versus Honda but Goodyear versus Hoosier as tire choice is open in this group. Ford took maximum points with the pole and fastest lap and all but clinched the second Formula F Super Series title to go with the Formula 2000 Series title won last year. Ford is also one of the eight finalists in the Team USA Scholarship which each year sends drivers to compete in Europe in hopes of furthering their racing careers. Recent alumni include
current Indycar drivers Charlie Kimball, Josef Newgarden and J.R. Hildebrand along with Rolex series
driver Dane Cameron.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Bob Negron (Van Diemen), 1m45.505s; 2. Bobby Kelley (Van Diemen), 1m45.607s; 3. Camren Kaminsky, (Van Diemen), 1m45.956; 4. Les Phillips (Van Diemen), 1m46.581s; 5. Peter Hastrup (Van Diemen), 1m47.592s; 6. Chris Hundley (Van Diemen), 1m47.718s; 7. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m49.477s. (All use Zetec/Quicksilver engines unless otherwise noted.)
F2000 Round 9 (14 laps): 1. Kelley; 2. Negron +0.486; 3. Kaminsky, +11.515s; 4. Hundley, +34.366; 5. Phillips, +34.837s; 6. Hastrup, +44.302; 7. West, +45.162.
FF Qualifying: 1. Conner Ford (Mygale/Honda), 1m52.142s; 2. Ed Erlandson (Swift/Ford), 1m55.210s.
FF Round 9 (14 laps): 1. Ford; 2. Erlandson.
Margin of victory: 0.486s.
Winner’s average speed: 97.801 mph.
Fastest race lap: Kelley, 1m46.360s, 98.834 mph.
Expert class winner (35-50): None.
Sierra Tire Masters class winner (over 50): F2000; Negron.
Wine Country Motorsports Hard Charger Award: Hundley.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com. Follow us on twitter @PacificF2000.
Fierberg Sweeps Weekend with Victory and Shippert Claims FF Win in Round 8
Fontana, Calif. (June 10, 2012) – The 2.880 mile infield road course at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California was the site of round eight of the Pacific F2000/Formula F Super Series Championship Presented by Corsa Car Care. The event was run as part of the Cal Club Region of the SCCA Double Rational weekend.
Just as on Saturday it was the trio of drivers from Dave Freitas Racing, Bobby Kelley, #21, A & B Equipment, Van Diemen, Camden Geise, #6 Van Diemen and Ira Fierberg, #27, Pinnacle Performance, Sparco USA, LDF, Van Diemen, were heading the timesheets as qualifying got underway. Fierberg, winner of Saturday’s race claimed the pole position with a time of 1m 41.824s. He was nearly one second ahead of Kelley and Geise indicating he was not through with his weekend
dominance.
Les Phillips, #2 Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes Van Diemen, with his gearbox repaired, was again fourth starting position ahead of Camren Kaminsky, #34, PR1 Motorsports Van Diemen, Peter West, #99, Frank Monise Motors, TJ Martel Foundation, DFR Van Diemen and Chris Hundley back in his familiar #62, Limousine Connection, DFR Van Diemen. West was moved to the back of the grid because the wrong tires had been inadvertently fitted to his car, a violation of the tire rule.
The Formula F group pole was up for grabs as the times kept coming down and it was not until lap 13 near the end of the session that the pole position went to Conner Ford in the #77 JF Excavating & Grading, Western Nevada Supply, Sparco USA, PR1 Motorsports, Mygale/Honda by a mere 0.098 of a second over Ed Erlandson in the #8, Artwork by Eli, Porter Racing, Loyning, Goodyear, Swift DB6/Ford. Ethan Shippert, with repairs to the suspension complete, was next in his #55, Lucky Strike, Ivey Engines, Shippert Racing Van Diemen/Ford. Shippert was followed by Neil Roberts in his #12
Keenan Honda, Think Fast Engineering, ThinkFastBook.com, Swift DB6/Honda and Sage Marie, again driving the #17 Honda Performance Development Piper/Honda.
The 1:45pm race was started under clear skies and breezy conditions as a perfectly aligned field took the green flag and it was Kelley, having had a broken ring gear in qualifying replaced, who seized the lead from Fierberg who lost an additional position to Phillips as the field come off the oval and entered the infield section for the first time. Kelley led the first lap with a big gap over Phillips, up from fourth, Fierberg, Kaminsky, West, Hundley and Geise. This group was followed by the Formula F group again led by Ford, Erlandson, Shippert, Roberts and Marie.
Kelley was extending his lead over Phillips and Fierberg, not wanting to lose any more time to the leader, passed Phillips in the turns 15 through 18 complex just before entering the oval and began his pursuit of Kelley. Fierberg chased Kelley for several laps before finally getting by on lap 9 of the 16 lap event.
“I knew I had a dominant car and plenty of time, so I put my head down and focused”, Fierberg commented. “It was one of my best races”, he continued, and with the victory, he again claimed the Expert Class (drivers 35-50) win, and the fastest race to sweep the weekends top prizes.
Les Phillips after being passed by Fierberg had some additional pace in the car today and maintained his third place to the checkered flag for a podium finish and the Master Class (drivers 51 and up) win.
Peter West took over the fourth spot on lap two and managed to hold on to it as Kaminsky and Geise battled behind him building a gap that didn’t quite last to the finish. Both Kaminsky and Geise held fifth for several laps exchanging positions until it was settled in Kaminsky’s favor on lap13. Not content with fifth Kaminsky set after West and got by on the last lap to take fourth from West by less than two tenths of a second. For West his fifth place earned him the Wine country Motorsports Hard Charger award, coming from the back of the grid. Geise finally settled for sixth place and was followed by Hundley.
Conner Ford again led the FF group and was closely followed by Erlandson and Shippert, making it three different car/engine/tire combinations in the top three positions, with Ford (Mygale/Honda/Hoosier), Erlandson (Swift/Ford/Goodyear) and Shippert (Van Diemen/Ford/Hoosier). These three were followed by Roberts (Swift/Honda/Hoosier) and Marie (Piper/Honda/Hoosier).
On lap three Shippert moved past Erlandson for second place and take the lead from Ford on the next lap as he sought to keep himself at the front of the field. As Shippert gradually built a lead, Ford and Erlandson ran nose to tail until on lap 8, Erlandson took second place away from Ford, but sadly this was to last only one lap as Erlandson spun in front of Ford on lap 9 at turn 10 and drop to the back of the field. The spin also delayed Ford and created enough of a gap for Shippert to have some breathing room as he continued to lead to the end to capture victory with Ford in pursuit to a second
place finish.
Erlandson continued on moving to fourth on lap 10 by passing Marie and taking the final podium spot on lap 15 by passing Roberts.
Fourth place went to Neil Roberts who was followed to the line by Sage Marie.
The series now takes a two and a half month break until the next event a Buttonwillow Raceway on September 8th and 9th, a race rescheduled from the original Portland International Raceway date in July.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Ira Fierberg (Van Diemen), 1m41.824s; 2. Bobby Kelley (Van Diemen), 1m42.778s; 3. Camden Geise, (Van Diemen), 1m43.018; 4. Les Phillips (Van Diemen), 1m43.105s; 5. Camren Kaminsky (Van Diemen), 1m43.845s; 6. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m43.902s; 7. Chris Hundley (Van Diemen), 1m45.044s. (All use Zetec/Quicksilver engines unless otherwise noted.)
F2000 Round 8 (16 laps): 1. Fierberg; 2. Kelley +7.730; 3. Phillips, +45.357s; 4. Kaminsky, +51.636s; 5. West, +51.813; 6. Geise, +59.584s.; 7. Hundley, +1m13.612s.
FF Qualifying: 1. Conner Ford (Mygale/Honda), 1m46.949s; 2. Ed Erlandson (Swift/Ford), 1m47.047s; 3. Ethan Shippert (Van Diemen/Ford), 1m47.233s; 4. Neil Roberts (Swift/Honda), 1m49.651s; 5. Sage Marie (Piper/Honda), 1m49.986s.
FF Round 8 (16 laps): 1. Shippert; 2. Ford; 3. Erlandson; 4. Roberts; 5. Marie.
Margin of victory: .7.730s.
Winner’s average speed: 90.063 mph.
Fastest race lap: Fierberg, 1m42.029s, 101.618 mph.
Expert class winner (35-50): F2000; Fierberg.
Sierra Tire Masters class winner (over 50): F2000; Phillips.
Wine Country Motorsports Hard Charger Award: West.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com. Follow us on twitter @PacificF2000.
Fierberg Returns to Claim Victory and Ford Fortunate in Round 7
Fontana, Calif. (June 9, 2012) – The Pacific F2000/Formula F Super Series Championship Presented by Corsa Car Care returned to the 2.880 mile infield road course at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California. The event was run as part of the Cal Club Region of the SCCA Double Rational weekend, a weekend that was to pay tribute to longtime SCCA, Cal Club member and series supporter Andy Porterfield who had passed away earlier this year at the age of 81.After a morning warm-up, held under overcast skies, the sun burned through as qualifying began at 11:50 am and the field, which again included five Formula F cars, took to the track. A trio of drivers from Dave Freitas Racing, Bobby Kelley, #21, A & B Equipment, Van Diemen, Camden Geise, #6 Van Diemen and Ira Fierberg, #27, Pinnacle Performance, Sparco USA, LDF, Van Diemen, returning to the seat after last racing in rounds 1 and 2, were heading the timesheets. When the checkered flag fell to end the session it was Fierberg, a winner here last year, who claimed the pole position with a
time of 1m 41.622s. He edged Kelley and Geise by 0.493s and 0.798s respectively showing little rust
after the long layoff.
Les Phillips, #2 Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes Van Diemen claimed fourth starting position ahead of Camren Kaminsky, #34, PR1 Motorsports Van Diemen, Peter West, #99, Frank Monise Motors, TJ Martel Foundation, DFR Van Diemen and newcomer Harin DeSilva in the #62, Limousine Connection, DFR Van Diemen.
The Formula F group was just as hotly contested and in the end it was Ed Erlandson in the #8, Artwork by Eli, Porter Racing, Loyning, Goodyear, Swift DB6/Ford seizing the top spot over Conner Ford in the #77 JF Excavating & Grading, Western Nevada Supply, Sparco USA, PR1 Motorsports, Mygale/Honda. Ethan Shippert was next in his immaculate #55, Lucky Strike, Ivey Engines, Shippert Racing Van Diemen/Ford. Shippert was followed by Neil Roberts in his #12 Keenan Honda, Think Fast Engineering, ThinkFastBook.com, Swift DB6/Honda and Sage Marie, again driving the #17 Honda Performance Development Piper/Honda.
The green flag waved and the field headed by Fierberg and Kelley charged around the banking for the first time leading to turn 3, notorious for first lap havoc, and it was Fierberg who emerged with the lead as the field made it through without incident. By the end of lap one it was Fierberg with a slight advantage over Kelley followed by Kaminsky, who had passed both Geise and Phillips, West and DeSilva. This group was closely followed by the Formula F group led by Ford, Erlandson, Roberts and Marie. Shippert was a non-starter being unable to repair damage suffered in the earlier Rational event when a cone broke a tie rod and bent the lower front wishbone.
Fierberg maintained his edge over Kelley and the gap began to expand with each successive lap until three laps from the end, with a sixteen second lead; he eased back to ensure his finish and conserve his tires for Sunday eventually finishing 13.850 seconds ahead of Kelley. With the victory, he also claimed the trophy for the Expert Class (drivers 35-50) win and set the fastest race lap. It was a dominant victory for Fierberg and added to his list of successes at this track.
Camden Geise was steady in third having re-passed Kaminsky on lap 2 and finished third 29.168 seconds behind unable to match the pace of Fierberg and Kelley. Third place for Geise gave Dave Freitas Racing a rare sweep of the podium.
Behind Geise it was Les Phillips finishing just off the podium in fourth place, which was good enough to take the Master Class (drivers 51 and up) trophy. Phillips was result was sweetened by the fact that he drove the last three laps without fourth gear. He was followed by DeSilva and Kaminsky.
Conner Ford led the FF group but that lead was far from comfortable as he was chased by Erlandson, who has provided Ford with his stiffest competition thus far. The battle between the two is not only Ford versus Honda but Goodyear versus Hoosier as tire choice is open in this group. Erlandson saw his opportunity at the 180 degree turn 5 and seized the lead from Ford. It was a lead he would hold until just before the checkered flag, coming out of turn 18, the car sputtered, out of fuel
within sight of victory and Ford drove through to take the win. It was a sad twist of fate for Erlandson who had driven a fine race and looked set for his second victory of the season. Erlandson did post the fastest race lap to take some of the sting away.
Third place went to Neil Roberts for his second podium in three races since a sixteen year absence from the cockpit.
Roberts was followed to the line by Sage Marie.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Ira Fierberg (Van Diemen), 1m41.622s; 2. Bobby Kelley (Van Diemen), 1m42.115s; 3. Camden Geise, (Van Diemen), 1m42.360; 4. Les Phillips (Van Diemen), 1m42.843s; 5. Camren Kaminsky (Van Diemen), 1m42.881s; 6. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m43.561s; 7. Harin DeSilva (Van Diemen), 1m45.094s. (All use Zetec/Quicksilver engines unless otherwise noted.)
F2000 Round 7 (16 laps): 1. Fierberg; 2. Kelley +13.850; 3. Geise, +29.168s; 4. Phillips, +41.881s; 5. West, +52.674; 6. DeDilva, +1m07.217s.; 7. Kaminsky, +1 lap.
FF Qualifying: 1. Ed Erlandson (Swift/Ford), 1m46.383s; 2. Conner Ford (Mygale/Honda), 1m46.910s; 3. Ethan Shippert (Van Diemen/Ford), 1m47.577s; 4. Neil Roberts (Swift/Honda), 1m48.601s; 5. Sage Marie (Piper/Honda), 1m50.914s.
FF Round 7 (16 laps): 1. Ford; 2. Erlandson; 3. Roberts; 4. Marie.
Margin of victory: .13.850s.
Winner’s average speed: 89.789 mph.
Fastest race lap: Fierberg, 1m41.202s, 102.449 mph.
Expert class winner (35-50): F2000; Fierberg.
Sierra Tire Masters class winner (over 50): F2000; Phillips.
Wine Country Motorsports Hard Charger Award: None.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com. Follow us on twitter @PacificF2000.
Cheng Wins for PR1 and Ford Continues FF Mastery in round 6 at Buttonwillow
Raceway Park
Buttonwillow, Calif. (May 20, 2012) – Buttonwillow Raceway Park was the site of the Pacific F2000/Formula F Super Series Championship Presented by Corsa Car Care round 6. Again using the 2.640 mile 14CW track the event was run as part of the Cal Club Region of the SCCA Double Regional weekend and was the first race of the day with an 11:15 start.Raceway Park
An 8:30 qualifying session meant cooler temperatures but that didn’t keep the battle for the pole from heating up as again Bobby Kelley in his #21, A & B Equipment, Dave Freitas Racing Van Diemen and David Cheng, #4 C.J. Wilson’s Children’s Charities, PR1 Van Diemen picked up right where they left off on Saturday trading fast laps. Again it was Kelley who finally prevailed to wrest the pole away from Cheng with a lap of 1m40.277s.
The second row of the grid was made up of Camren Kaminsky in the #34 PR1 Van Diemen and Bob Negron, #9 Terri Negron Web Design Negron Racing Van Diemen with Les Phillips, #2 Swiss Implant, Porterfield Brakes Van Diemen and Camden Geise, #6, DFR Van Diemen in row three, Peter West , #99 Frank Monise Motors Van Diemen and Peter Thomas, #7 Refrigeration Control Co., PR1 Van Diemen in row four and Chris Hundley in the #62 Limousine Connection, DFR Van Diemen and Nick Kodenko, #31 Kodenko Automotive, Kodenko Jeans, Redline Oil, Associated Tire Van Diemen taking up the final row of the grid.
In the Formula F group Conner Ford in the #77 JF Excavating & Grading, Western Nevada Supply, Sparco USA, PR1 Motorsports, Mygale/Honda with over a second and a half advantage over Ed Erlandson in the #8 Artwork by Eli, Porter Racing, Loyning, Goodyear Swift DB6/Ford. Al Salvo, #23 Miracle Sealants, Corsa Care, PR1 Mygale/Honda was again third followed by Sage Marie in the #17 Honda Performance Development Piper/Honda and Neil Roberts, #12 Keenan Honda, Think Fast Engineering, ThinkFastBook.com, Swift DB6/Honda.
Kelley took the lead at the green flag and was followed by Cheng, Kaminsky and Geise as the field set off on the first lap. Kelley led lap one followed by Cheng, Kaminsky, Geise, Negron, Phillips, Thomas, Hundley and Kodenko with West having called at the pits to retire with a misfiring engine.
The Formula F group was led by Ford, with Salvo, Roberts, Marie, Erlandson, and Andersen.
Lap 2 saw Cheng pass Kelley for the lead, a position he would hold for the next several laps and this was also the lap Geise wrested third place away from Kaminsky as the pair fought for third place and Negron dropped from fifth to ninth.
Cheng led until lap seven when Kelley was able to take a short lived lead as Cheng was back in the lead on the next lap and held on to the end scoring a seventh win in the series for the Sammamish, Washington resident by a comfortable 5.817 seconds over Kelley.
Geise and Kaminsky managed to break away from the field in the battle to claim the final step of the podium. After a brief exchange of positions on lap eleven, Geise regained the spot on the next lap and held on to take a fine third place finish with Kaminsky fourth.
Fifth place went to Negron, who after dropping to ninth worked his way back to fifth by getting by Thomas, who spun on lap three, and Kodenko. He trailed Hundley for three laps before passing him and got his final spot when Phillips spun and got high centered with four laps to go. Negron again claimed the Master Class (drivers 51 and over) honors.
Sixth and seventh went to Hundley, hoping to enjoy more series events, and Kodenko with Thomas claiming eight spot and the Expert Class (drivers 35-50) win.
Formula F honors again went to Conner Ford who was un-harried in his cruise to victory, claiming his fifth win and a commanding lead in the title chase.
Behind Ford in the race for second it was Salvo who prevailed but not without fending off the challenges first of Marie and then Roberts as the Honda powered cars fought it out to see which would stand on the podium as Honda swept the first four places. Salvo held on for second followed by Roberts, who took his first podium after a sixteen year layoff and Marie.
Erlandson would up fifth on three cylinders and Andersen was sixth.
The series is at the mid-way point and now moves on to Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California as it begins the final run for the championship on June 9th and 10th.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Bobby Kelley (Van Diemen), 1m40.277s; 2. David Cheng (Van Diemen), 1m40.463; 3. Camren Kaminsky (Van Diemen), 1m40.935s, 4. Bob Negron (Van Diemen), 1m41.418s; 5. Les Phillips (Van Diemen), 1m41.598s; 6. Camden Geise (Van Diemen), 1m42.062s; 7. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m42.998s; 8. Peter Thomas (Van Diemen), 1m43.670s; 9. Chris Hundley (Van Diemen), 1m43.994s; 10. Nick Kodenko (Van Diemen), 1m44.961. (All use Zetec/Quicksilver engines unless otherwise noted.)
F2000 Round 1 (16 laps): 1. Cheng; 2. Kelley +5.817; 3. Geise, +20.488s; 4. Kaminsky, +24.730s; 5. Negron, +34.327; 6. Hundley, +41.852s.; 7. Kodenko, +1m22.413s; 8. Thomas, +1m34.947s; 9. Phillips, +4 laps; 10. West, +15 laps.
FF Qualifying: 1. Conner Ford (Mygale/Honda), 1m46.508s; 2. Ed Erlandson (Swift/Ford), 1m48.270s; 3. Al Salvo (Mygale/Honda), 1m48.509s; Sage Marie (Piper/Honda), 1m50.751s; Neil Roberts (Swift/Honda), 1m50.866s.
FF Round 5 (16 laps): 1. Ford; 2. Salvo; 3. Roberts; 4. Marie; 5. Erlandson; 6. Andersen.
Margin of victory: .5.817s.
Winner’s average speed: 92.337 mph.
Fastest race lap: Cheng, 1m41.658s, 93.490 mph.
Expert class winner (35-50): F2000; Thomas.
Sierra Tire Masters class winner (over 50): F2000; Negron.
Wine Country Motorsports Hard Charger Award: None.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com. Follow us on twitter @PacificF2000.
Kelley and Ford Claim Victories at Buttonwillow Raceway Park in Round 5
Buttonwillow, Calif. (May 19, 2012) – Round 5 of the Pacific F2000/Formula F Super Series Championship Presented by Corsa Car Care was held on the 2.640 mile 14CW track at Buttonwillow Raceway Park. The event was run as part of the Cal Club Region of the SCCA Double Regional weekend and was held under sunny skies with warm temperatures typical for this time of year.Qualifying began at 10:45 am and fifteen cars took to the track including five of the six Formula F cars entered and immediately the qualifying duel began between Bobby Kelley in his #21, A & B Equipment, Dave Freitas Racing Van Diemen and David Cheng, a series veteran making a one off guest appearance in the series this weekend driving the #4 C.J. Wilson’s Children’s Charities Van Diemen for PR1 Motorsports. Kelley and Cheng traded fast laps until it was finally Kelley who managed to wrestle the pole away from Cheng by a mere thirteen one thousandths of a second.
Camren Kaminsky in the #34 PR1 Van Diemen was next followed by Bob Negron, #9 Terri Negron Web Design Negron Racing Van Diemen, back to defend his Master Class (drivers 51 and up) championship, and Les Phillips, #2 Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes Van Diemen, current Master Class point leader, all of which managed times within one second of the pole time.
Next up was Peter Thomas, #7 Refrigeration Control Co., PR1 Van Diemen followed by Camden Geise having a fraught weekend having already had an engine change in the #6, DFR Van Diemen, Peter West, #99, Frank Monise Motors Van Diemen, Chris Hundley another former series runner back for this weekend in the #62 Limousine Connection, DFR Van Diemen and Nick Kodenko, #31 Kodenko Automotive, Kodenko Jeans, Redline Oil, Associated Tire Van Diemen.
The Formula F group was again led by Conner Ford in the #77 JF Excavating & Grading, Western Nevada Supply, Sparco USA, PR1 Motorsports, Mygale/Honda ahead of Ed Erlandson, back after winning both rounds of the B. F. Goodrich Super Tour Double National. Erlandson, driving the #8 Artwork by Eli, Porter Racing, Loyning, Goodyear Swift DB6/Ford, managed to get within six tenths of Ford. This pair was trailed by Al Salvo, #23 Miracle Sealants, Corsa Care, PR1 Mygale/Honda, Sage Marie, returning after his outing at Miller Motorsports Park in the #17 Honda Performance
Development Piper/Honda and Jerry Andersen, #0 Swift DB1/Ford.
When the green flag waved it was Kelley who took the lead followed by Kaminsky and Cheng as the field headed toward turn 1with a slight gap to the FF group led by Ford and Erlandson and at the end of the first lap it was Kelley, Kaminsky, Cheng, Negron, Phillips, Thomas, Geise, West, Hundley and Kodenko.
The Formula F group was led by Ford, closely pursued by Erlandson and Salvo with Marie, Neil Roberts, who had missed qualifying in his Keenan Honda, Think Fast Engineering, ThinkFastBook.com, Swift DB6/Honda and Andersen.
Cheng passed Kaminsky on lap two and began his pursuit of Kelley in a battle that lasted the entire race with Cheng always applying the pressure and Kelley able to withstand it lap after lap to the end of the race with Kelley finishing only 2.395 seconds ahead of Cheng for his third win of the season to extend his points lead.
Cheng in his dogging of Kelley managed the fastest race lap with a 1:40.784 good for two points and bragging rights.
Behind the Kelley/Cheng battle, Kaminsky and Negron had an equally spirited battle with Negron holding the early advantage, having gotten by Kaminsky on lap three. Kaminsky fought back and got by Negron on lap eleven and held the final podium position until lap fifteen, the penultimate lap, when an off track excursion cost him not only the third place but dropped him to seventh place at the finish.
Negron held on to take the third place finish and with it the Victory in the Master Class and showed that his time away from the series had not diminished his pace.
Fourth Place went to Camden Geise, who after his ill-fortune on Friday and in qualifying charged back to defend his second place standing in the points starting seventh and working his way up to fourth at the finish by first passing Thomas then Phillips and gaining his last position on Kaminsky’s misfortune. His drive earned him the Wine Country Motorsports Hard Charger Award.
Phillips had another competitive drive to fifth place and was followed by Peter Thomas, whose sixth place finish netted him the Expert Class (drivers 35-50) win. Kaminsky, Hundley, West and Kodenko finished seventh through tenth respectively.
Conner Ford raced to another dominant victory in the now familiar Mygale/Honda, not putting a wheel wrong and showing the poise, consistency and skill that earned him the F2000 series title last year. His victory was his fourth of the season and coupled with the race’s fastest lap give him a huge points lead as the series has reached its midway point.
Following Ford home was teammate Al Salvo in and identically prepared Mygale/Honda after a race long duel with Erlandson that saw Salvo get by Erlandson on lap nine to take the position he was to hold to the end to give PR1 Motorsports a one-two finish.
Erlandson finished third and was followed by Andersen, Marie, who dropped out with low oil pressure and Roberts who only managed three laps before electrical problems sidelined him.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Bobby Kelley (Van Diemen), 1m39.618s; 2. David Cheng (Van Diemen), 1m39.631; 3. Camren Kaminsky (Van Diemen), 1m39.688s, 4. Bob Negron (Van Diemen), 1m40.380s; 5. Les Phillips (Van Diemen), 1m40.540s; 6. Peter Thomas (Van Diemen), 1m41.730s; 7. Camden Geise (Van Diemen), 1m41.907s; 8. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m42.628s; 9. Chris Hundley (Van Diemen), 1m43.430s; 10. Nick Kodenko (Van Diemen), 1m43.446. (All use Zetec/Quicksilver engines unless otherwise noted.)
F2000 Round 1 (16 laps): 1. Kelley; 2. Cheng +2.395; 3. Negron, +16.108s; 4. Geise, +28.194s; 5. Phillips, +34.458; 6. Thomas, +35.246s.; 7. Kaminsky, +42.945; 8. Hundley, +57.771; 9. West, +58.713s; 10. Kodenko, +1m24.042s.
FF Qualifying: 1. Conner Ford (Mygale/Honda), 1m46.049s; 2. Ed Erlandson (Swift/Ford), 1m46.657s; 3. Al Salvo (Mygale/Honda), 1m48.273s; Sage Marie (Piper/Honda), 1m50.068s; Jerry Andersen (Swift/Ford), 1m58.093s.
FF Round 5 (16 laps): 1. Ford; 2. Salvo; 3. Erlandson; 4. Andersen; 5. Marie; 6. Roberts.
Margin of victory: .2.395s.
Winner’s average speed: 93.372 mph.
Fastest race lap: Cheng, 1m40.784s, 94.301 mph.
Expert class winner (35-50): F2000; Thomas.
Sierra Tire Masters class winner (over 50): F2000; Negron.
Wine Country Motorsports Hard Charger Award: Geise.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com. Follow us on twitter @PacificF2000.
Lacy and Ford Win Round 4 at Miller Motorsports Park to Complete Weekend Sweep
Tooele, Utah (April 29, 2012) – Round 4 of the Pacific F2000/Formula F Super Series Championship Presented by Corsa Car Care was held on the 3.048 mile Outer Track at Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele, Utah. The event was run as part of the Utah Grand Prix, where it joined the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West with 13 different races held over the weekend.Sunday qualifying began at 8:30am as the cars took to the challenging Outer Course for the first time. Crisp cool temperatures greeted the drivers for the early session that soon heated up as several drivers topped the timesheets throughout the session. The top three changed with each successive lap, as tire temperatures came up and fuel loads went down, with Bobby Kelley, Camden Geise and Ian Lacy each taking their turn at the top. But when the checkered flag fell to end the session, it was Lacy who claimed the pole position with a lap of 1:52.284. Lacy last raced in the series in 2005 with two victories. Camden Geise in the #6, Dave Freitas Racing Van Diemen who turned a lap of 1:53.086 joined Lacy on the front row.
The second row was made up of Bobby Kelley in his #21, A & B Equipment, DFR Van Diemen and Les Phillips in the #2 Swiss Implants Van Diemen. These two were followed by the two PR1 Motorsports teammates with Camren Kaminsky in the #34 Van Diemen and Peter Thomas in the #7 Refrigeration Control Co., PR1 Van Diemen alongside, in row three and Peter West, #99, Frank Monise Motors Van Diemen, and Rick Lee #66, Thomas Petroleum Van Diemen making up the final row of the grid.
The Formula F group was again led by Conner Ford in the #77 JF Excavating & Grading, Western Nevada Supply, Sparco USA, PR1 Motorsports, Mygale/Honda for PR1 Motorsports.
The final green flag of the weekend waved at 4:15 on Sunday afternoon and the field made the long run down the front straight heading toward Sunset Bend on the first race lap with Bobby Kelley, from his third starting position, edging ahead of Lacy and Peter Thomas, having made an excellent start from his sixth staring spot, running third. Kelley’s lead was short lived as Lacy eased his way past at the Black Rock Hairpin and led the field at the conclusion of lap one with Kelley in close pursuit, a gap to Thomas, Kaminsky and the remainder of the field.
Kelley continued to hound Lacy and looked to again challenge at Sunset Bend as the pair drew out a substantial gap on the field now led by Kaminsky, Geise, Thomas, Phillips, West and Lee.
As the race wore on, Lacy managed to inch away from Kelley and by the end of the race finished with a 2.248 second advantage to claim his fourth win in the series with the other two coming in 2005 when he appeared with P1 Motorsports. The overall victory also gave Lacy the Expert Class (drivers 35-50) win and to put an exclamation point on the race also had the fastest lap. The race between these two was so intense they drove away from the field and finished nearly 20 seconds ahead of Kaminsky in third, narrowly edging teammate Thomas.
Kelley again finished second and extended his lead in the championship to 24 points and was joined on the podium by Camren Kaminsky.
Fourth place went to Peter Thomas, who was followed by Les Phillips, Master Class (drivers 51+) winner, Peter West, Camden Geise and Rick Lee.
The Formula F group was again led by Conner Ford who after a second place finish in the Pirelli World Challenge Spec B class in a Honda Fit earlier in the day, managed a flag to flag win in the Mygale/Honda for his third series win and was followed to the flag by Sage Marie who was a late replacement for Tommy Boileau who was unable to start on Sunday. Sage traded honors with Ford today as Sage was the winner of the Spec B class also driving a Honda Fit.
An enthusiastic crowd cheered the drivers home as the weekend’s events came to a close at this world class facility located just thirty minutes from Salt Lake City.
The Series now heads back to California and Buttonwillow Raceway Park for rounds 5 and 6 on May 19th and 20th.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Ian Lacy (Van Diemen), 1m52.284s; 2. Camden Geise (Van Diemen), 1m53.086s; 3.Bobby Kelley (Van Diemen), 1m53.401s; 4. Les Phillips (Van Diemen), 1m53.943s, 5. Camren Kaminsky (Van Diemen), 1m54.163s; 6. Peter Thomas (Van Diemen), 1m55.064s; 7. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m55.998s; 8. Rick Lee (Van Diemen/Pinto), 2m03.535s. (All use Zetec/Quicksilver engines unless otherwise noted.)
F2000 Round 4 (14 laps): 1. Lacy; 2. Kelley +2.248; 3. Kaminsky, +22.189s; 4. Thomas, +22.703s; 5. Phillips, +30.780; 6. West, +54.438s.; 7. Geise, +1:06.3220; 8. Lee, 1 lap.
FF Qualifying: 1. Conner Ford (Mygale/Honda), 1m59.422s; 2. Sage Marie (Piper/Honda), no time.
FF Round 4 (14 laps): 1. Ford; 2. Marie +1 lap.
Margin of victory: 2.248s.
Winner’s average speed: 95.795 mph.
Fastest race lap: Lacy, 1m53.513s, 96.666 mph.
Expert class winner (35-50): F2000; Lacy.
Sierra Tire Masters class winner (over 50): F2000; Phillips.
Williams Racing Developments Hard Charger Award: None.
F2000 Points: Kelley, 114; Geise, 90; Kaminsky, 80; Phillips, 75; Lacy 66; West, 64; Thomas, 33; Lee, 26; Fierberg, 20; Wall, 16.
FF Points: Ford, 129; Erlandson, 57; Simpson, 44; Bangert, 38; Boileau, 25; Marie, 25; Keller, 18.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Lacy and Ford Victorious at Miller Motorsports Park in Round 3
Qualifying was held on Friday morning due to the number of on-track events being held and was led by Ian Lacy, a Tooele resident on his home track driving the #12 VP Fuel Van Diemen. Lacy last raced in the series in 2005 and on his return posted a time of 1:24.859, over half a second ahead of series point leader Bobby Kelley in his #21, A & B Equipment, Dave Freitas Racing Van Diemen who clocked in at 1:25.514 to join him on the front row of the grid.
The second row was made up of Camden Geise in the #6, DFR Van Diemen and Camren Kaminsky in the first of the PR1 Motorsports entries the #34 Van Diemen. These two were followed by Peter Thomas, #7 Refrigeration Control Co., PR1 Van Diemen, Peter West, #99, Frank Monise Motors Van Diemen, Les Phillips, #2 Swiss Implants Van Diemen and Rick Lee #166, Thomas Petroleum Van Diemen in his first appearance in the series.
The Formula F group was led by Conner Ford in the #77 JF Excavating & Grading, Western Nevada Supply, Sparco USA, PR1 Motorsports, Mygale/Honda for PR1 Motorsports ahead of Tommy Boileau driving the #7 Honda Performance Development Piper/Honda in his first outing in the Piper.
The green flag waved Saturday for the 1:45pm start and the field headed toward Sunset Bend on the first race lap with Lacy holding a slight advantage over Kelley. This pair was trailed by Kaminsky, Geise, Thomas, West, Phillips & Lee with a slight gap to the FF group led by Ford.
The order remained the same until lap three when Peter Thomas carried too much speed into the Right Hook-Knock Out double right hand turn, got on the brakes and spun the car dropping to the rear of the field at the same time as Les Phillips managed to pick up a position by passing Peter West at the Black Rock Hairpin.
Three laps later, on lap six, Camden Geise used an over/under move to take third place from Camren Kaminsky at the triple apex Demon/Devil/Diablo complex and then proceeded to pull out a comfortable gap he was to maintain to the end.
The order remained consistent to the finish and there were several passing attempts made without success as Peter West on three consecutive laps pressed Phillips at Sunset Bend pulling out but not quite able to overtake. West tried a move later at the Precision turn when the car pushed out and he went off and rejoined the track without losing a position.
As the race neared its conclusion, the gap between Lacy in first and Kelley in second which had remained constant throughout much of the race, began to shrink noticeably and it looked as though Kelley would have an opportunity to seize the position; but then the gap steadied at about a second and a half and remained that way to the finish with Lacy coming home 1.426 seconds ahead of the Riverside, CA resident. Lacy’s victory was also good for taking the Expert Class (drivers 35-50)
honors.
Geise held his third place to the end to take the final step on the podium and with teammate Kelley finishing second, gave Dave Freitas Racing two drivers on the podium for the third consecutive race.
Fourth place went to Camren Kaminsky, who was followed by Les Phillips, Peter West, Peter Thomas and Rick Lee.
Phillips’ fifth place finish earned him the Hard Charger award in addition to taking the Master Class (drivers 51 and over) win.
The Formula F group was led by Conner Ford who managed a flag to flag win in the Mygale/Honda for his second win in the series and was followed to the flag by Tommy Boileau for his first finish in the series.
F2000 Qualifying: 3. Ian Lacy (Van Diemen), 1m24.859s; 2. Bobby Kelley (Van Diemen), 1m25.514s; 3. Camden Geise (Van Diemen), 1m25.808s, 4. Camren Kaminsky (Van Diemen), 1m25.862s; 5. Peter Thomas (Van Diemen), 1m27.105s; 6. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m27.105s; 7. Les Phillipis (Van Diemen), 1m28.502s; 8. Rick Lee (Van Diemen/Pinto), 1m34.890s. (All use Zetec/Quicksilver engines unless otherwise noted.)
F2000 Round 3 (16 laps): 1. Lacy; 2. Kelley +1.426; 3. Geise, +15.478s; 4. Kaminsky, +20.319s; 5. Phillips, +46.724; 6. West, +1:13.672s.; 7. Thomas, +1:23.748; 8. Lee, 1 lap.
FF Qualifying: 1. Conner Ford (Mygale/Honda), 1m31.519s; 2. Tommy Boileau (Piper/Honda), 1m33.851s.
FF Round 5 (14 laps): 1. Ford; 2. Boileau +18.416s.
Margin of victory: 1.426s.
Winner’s average speed: 93.491 mph.
Fastest race lap: Kelley, 1m25.668s, 94.299 mph.
Expert class winner (35-50): F2000; Lacy.
Sierra Tire Masters class winner (over 50): F2000; Phillips.
Williams Racing Developments Hard Charger Award: Phillips.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Kelley Sweeps F2000, Erlandson Claims FF Victory
Rosamond, Calif. (April 1, 2012) – Round 2 of the Pacific Formula F2000/Formula F Super Series Presented by Corsa Car Care was held under much the same conditions as Saturdays race. An overnight rainstorm gave way to sunny skies and windy conditions.
Sunday qualifying times, as expected, were slower due to the wear and tear on the tires of Saturdays proceedings and the wind, which was blowing with greater intensity. Heading the F2000 group, rookie Camden Geise driving the #6 Dave Freitas Racing, Van Diemen, snatched the pole position from his teammate Bobby Kelley #21, A&B Equipment, DFR, Van Diemen, by 0.231 of a second. Conner Ford, #77, JF Excavating & Grading, Western Nevada Supply, Sparco USA, PR1 Motorsports, Mygale/Honda claimed his second pole of the weekend posting a time nearly two seconds ahead of Ed Erlandson, #8, Porter Racing, Artwork by Eli, Goodyear, Swift DB6/Ford for the Formula F group.
At the green flag it was Geise, taking full advantage of his position and swept into the lead as the field headed into turn 1. Halfway around, Colin Wall, #4, PR1 Motorsports, Van Diemen spun and dropped to the back of the field and at the end of the first lap it was Geise leading Camren Kaminsky, #34, PR1, Van Diemen, Les Phillips, #2, Swiss Implants, Porterfield Racing Brakes, Van Diemen, teammates Bobby Kelley, Ira Fierberg, #27, Barry I. Goldstein, CPA, Sparco, DFR Van Diemen and Peter West, #99, Frank Monise Motors, DFR, Van Diemen and Wall.
On lap two Phillips was now up into second place and Kelley into third as both had gotten by Kaminsky. Ira Fierberg also came in to the pits on lap 2 to retire his car with a broken gearbox.
Kelley was not content in third and passed Phillips in turn 1 to seize second place. He then followed that up with a pass on teammate Geise on lap six to take a lead he was not to relinquish and took the checkered flag 6.16 seconds ahead of Geise who finished a strong second. The win was the second for Kelley this weekend and gives the Riverside, Calif. resident an eight point lead as the series heads to Tooele, Utah and Miller Motorsports Park for rounds 3 and 4.
Kaminsky took the final podium spot away from Les Phillips as he went by at the end of the front straight and into turn 1 on lap 6 while Phillips held fourth to the end and claimed the Masters Class victory, his second of the weekend.
Peter West finished fifth and won the Hard Charger Award with Wall in sixth.
On the strength of 1-2 finishes on both Saturday and Sunday, Dave Freitas Racing looks to have an early advantage in the Team Championship
In FF, Conner again took the lead at the start but this time Erlandson hung on tenaciously pressuring Ford and finally, after several attempts managed to pass the Carson City resident on lap 4 for a lead he would maintain to the checkered flag while also posting the races’ fastest lap. Ford later admitted that the tires were gone and he was just hanging on, a common complaint on this circuit with its long fast corners that puts a heavy strain on the tires and managing their wear was not always easy.
Michael Simpson had another strong race in the #7, HPD, Simpson Motorsports, High Desert Underground, DFR, Piper/Honda to complete the podium.
Larry Bangert, #38, R&A Manufacturing, Swift/Ford finished in fourth place despite two huge spins in turn 9 and Mark Keller, #66, Ivey Engine, Blackjack Racing, R&A Mfg, Keller Racing, Piper/Ford founded out the field.
This was the first race weekend for the Cooper tire and so far teams are still working to determine the proper set ups and this year after the decision was made to stick with 4 tires per weekend rather than the six available when using the Hankook tires at this venue.
The series now moves on to Miller Motorsport Park in Tooele, UT. April 26-28.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Camden Geise (Van Diemen), 1m20.534s, 2. Bobby Kelley (Van Diemen), 1m20.765s; 3. Camren Kaminsky (Van Diemen), 1m20.856s; 4. Les Phillipis (Van Diemen), 1m21.311s; 5. Colin Wall (Van Diemen), 1m21.563s; 6. Ira Fierberg (Van Diemen), 1m21.698s; 7. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m22.822s. (All use Zetec/Quicksilver engines unless otherwise noted.)
F2000 Round 1 (14 laps): 1. Kelley; 2. Geise, +6.616s; 3. Kaminsky, +19.355s; 4. Phillips, +20.040; 5. West, +39.027s.; 6. Wall, +1:03.904; 7. Fierberg, 13 laps.
FF Qualifying: 1. Conner Ford (Mygale/Honda), 1m26.762s; 2. Ed Erlandson (Swift DB6/Ford), 1m28.727s; 3. Michael Simpson (Piper/Honda), 1m29.160s; 4. Mark Keller (Piper/Ford), 1m31.969s.; 5. Larry Bangert (Swift DB6/Ford), 1m35.133s.
FF Round 5 (14 laps): 1. Erlandson; 2. Ford; 3. Simpson; 4. Bangert, 3 laps; Keller, 12 laps.
Margin of victory: 6.616s.
Winner’s average speed: 111.069 mph.
Fastest race lap: Kelley, 1m20.473s, 112.762 mph.
Expert class winner (35-50): F2000; None.
Sierra Tire Masters class winner (over 50): F2000; Phillips.
Williams Racing Developments Hard Charger Award: West, Erlandson.
F2000 Points: Kelley, 62; Geise, 54; Phillips, 41; Kaminsky, 41; West, 36; Fierberg, 16; Wall, 16.
FF Points: Ford, 61; Erlandson, 57; Simpson, 44; Bangert, 38; Keller, 18.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Kelley, Ford Capture Opening round Victories
Rosamond, Calif. (March 31, 2012) – Round 1 of the Pacific Formula F2000/Formula F Super Series Presented by Corsa Car Care was held on the fast and undulating 2.5-mile Willow Springs International Raceway near Rosamond, Calif., as part of VARA’s High Desert Challenge.
Qualifying began in the morning under sunny skies and windy conditions and when the checkered flag fell on the session, Rookie Camren Kaminsky driving the #34 PR1 Motorsports, Van Diemen, claimed the pole position for the F2000 group with a lap of 1 min. 19.358 sec. and Conner Ford, last season’s F2000 series Champion, driving 2011 Mygale/Honda for PR1 Motorsports and sponsored by JF Excavating & Grading, Western Nevada Supply and Sparco USA, set a time of 1 min. 23.702 sec. to secure the Formula F group pole. The entire F2000 group was covered by less than two
seconds.
When the field set off on the pace lap for their mid-afternoon start, still in windy conditions, the pole sitter Kaminsky had spun in turn 2 and was unable to continue without assistance so the field took another lap behind the pace car as emergency crews set about getting the car moving again, now 1 lap in arrears. It was another two laps before the field was ready to take the green flag.
Bobby Kelley, another series rookie took the lead in his #21, A & B Equipment, Dave Freitas Racing, Van Diemen ahead of teammates Camden Geise and Ira Fierberg both in DFR Van Diemens. As the field entered turn 4, Fierberg spun causing avoiding action to be taken by the ensuing drivers with all getting by cleanly and at the end of the first lap it was Kelley leading Geise, Colin Wall in a PR1 Motorsports, Van Diemen and Les Phillips in his newly acquired Swiss Implants, Porterfield Racing Brakes, Van Diemen, Peter West in a third DFR sponsored by Frank Monise Motors, Van Diemen
followed by Ira Fierberg, Barry I. Goldstein, CPA, Sparco, DFR, Van Diemen and Kaminsky in the PR1, Van Diemen.
On lap three as Kaminsky had moved to challenge his teammate Wall entering turn three, there was contact between the two resulting in Wall losing his left rear suspension and wheel assembly in spectacular fashion spinning and coming to rest off course, his first race in the series now over.
Kelley continued in the lead to the end finishing 10.600 seconds ahead of Geise who had lost two positions to Phillips and West with a spin on lap 6 but recovered those positions first taking West on lap 7 and then getting by Phillips, who was looking quite racy in his new acquisition, on lap 11 to finish second. Geise also set the fastest lap of the race with a 1 min. 20.473 sec. at 111.839 mph.
Les Phillips finished a fine third and with it claimed the Masters Class win for drivers 51 and over.
In the Formula F group, Conner Ford, still acclimating himself to the new Mygale took an immediate lead at the start, which he was to never lose, finished a mere 3.873 seconds ahead of Ed Erlandson in the #8, Porter Racing, Artwork by Eli, Goodyear, Swift DB6/Ford.
Finishing in third was Michael Simpson, #7, HPD, Simpson Motorsports, High Desert Underground, DFR, Piper/Honda. Simpson was followed by Larry Bangert, #38, R&A Manufacturing, Swift DB6/Ford and Mark Keller, #66, Ivey Engine, Blackjack Racing, R&A Mfg, Keller Racing, Piper/Ford.
Qualifying for round 2 is at 9:20am and the race follows at 12:05pm.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Camren Kaminsky (Van Diemen), 1m19.358s, 2. Bobby Kelley (Van Diemen), 1m19.483s; 3. Ira Fierberg (Van Diemen), 1m19.665s; 4. Camden Geise (Van Diemen), 1m19.726s; 5. Colin Wall (Van Diemen), 1m20.263s; 6. Les Phillips (Van Diemen), 1m20.777s; 7. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m21.035s. (All use Zetec/
Quicksilver engines unless otherwise noted.)
F2000 Round 1 (14 laps): 1. Kelley; 2. Geise, +10.600s; 3. Phillips, +21.200s; 4. West, +32.400; 5. Kaminsky, 1 lap; 6. Fierberg, 1 lap; 7. Wall, 12 laps.
FF Qualifying: 1. Conner Ford (Mygale/Honda), 1m23.702s; 2. Ed Erlandson (Swift DB6/Ford), 1m25.229s; 3. Michael Simpson (Piper/Honda), 1m27.448s; Larry Bangert (Swift DB6/Ford), 1m32.217s; Mark Keller (Piper/Ford), 1m32.476s.
FF Round 1 (14 laps): 1. Ford; 2. Erlandson, +3.873s; 3. Simpson, 1 lap; 4. Bangert, 1 lap; Keller, 5
laps.
Margin of victory: 10.600s.
Winner’s average speed: 90.564 mph.
Fastest race lap: Geise, 1m20.473s, 111.839 mph.
Expert class winner (35-50): F2000; Fierberg.
Sierra Tire Masters class winner (over 50): F2000; Phillips.
Williams Racing Developments Hard Charger Award: Phillips.
F2000 Points: Kelley, 30; Geise, 27; Phillips, 22; West, 19; Kaminsky, 17; Fierberg, 15; Wall, 1.
FF Points: Ford, 34; Erlandson, 25; Simpson, 22; Bangert, 19; Keller, 17.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Cheng Seizes Fourth Successive Victory, Ford Claims Championship
Driving the CJ Wilson Children’s Charities/Our World Live/PR1 Motorsports/Van Diemen, David Cheng seized his fourth consecutive victory again edging his teammate Conner Ford by four-tenths of a second.
Qualifying, which was held under sunny skies with temperatures in the mid seventies, was again dominated by the PR1 Motorsports duo. Conner Ford took his ninth pole of the season in his Les Schwab/Western Nevada Supply/Keniston/JF Excavating & Grading/PR1/Van Diemen besting Cheng by just .209s.
The second row was headed by Peter Thomas in his Refrigeration Control Co./PR1/Van Diemen giving PR1 Motorsports the top three positions on the grid. Thomas was followed by Bob Negron in his Fengshuimebaby.com/Terri Negron Web Design/Negron Racing/Van Diemen, Les Phillips, now in the #27 DFR Van Diemen of Ira Fierberg, who was unable to attend the race having strained his back, and Peter West Frank Monise Motors, Wendricks Real Estate, DFR Van Diemen.
The 12:00pm race began on schedule and as he had on Saturday, David Cheng was determined to take the lead braking late into the first turn. This time he locked up briefly, the car slid out towards Ford who was on the outside and unfortunately for Conner his avoiding action caused him to go off briefly dropping him to the rear of the field and David losing a position to Thomas, so at the end of the first lap it was Thomas leading Cheng, Negron, Phillips, West and Ford. For Scotsman Thomas this was the first time leading a F2000 race having joined the series at this event just two years ago
without having any open-wheel experience.
Thomas held the lead for one more lap before he succumbed to the advances of Cheng on lap three, Ford meanwhile passed West on lap two and began his surge to the front of the field picking off each competitor in successive laps and by lap 5 was up to second place and beginning to reel in the leader. This was a drive made all the more impressive due to the limited passing opportunities on the tight 1.940 mile circuit and Ford managed to claim the fastest lap during his charge.
The pair had a spirited duel to the end with Cheng taking the checkered flag .410s and securing second place in the championship.
The second place finish earned Ford the Series title in a season that saw 9 pole positions, 8 fastest laps, 6 victories and 9 podium finishes for the teenaged Nevada native who displayed skill, poise and maturity this season, something not normally displayed so early in a racing career.
The final podium position went to Les Phillips in the unfamiliar DFR/Van Diemen he was using after the input shaft failure on Saturday. Les who was fifth on lap 3 began to come to grips with the car and on lap 5 got by Negron fourth, chased down Thomas and passed him for third on the fourteenth of fifteen laps to deny PR1 Motorsports a sweep of the podium. This also gave Phillips the Master Class win (drivers 51+) and the Williams Racing Development Hard Charger award.
Fourth place went to Peter Thomas, the PR1 driver winning the Expert Class (drivers 35-50). Thomas was followed to the line by Bob Negron and Peter West.
Bob Negron became this year’s Master Class Champion while Ira Fierberg earned the Expert Class title.
The Formula F group was again in action and IndyCar and ALMS star Simon Pagenaud driving a PR1 Motorsports prepared Piper DF5/Honda took the lead from start and claimed another series victory. This was the second appearance by the Frenchman having also been victorious on Saturday.
The Formula F title went to Jerry Andersen in his 1984 Swift DB-1 with two runner-up finishes this weekend and a fourth place finish at Buttonwillow.
The series now moves into the off-season with years activities to be announced after the first of the year.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Conner Ford (Van Diemen), 1m25.994s, 2. David Cheng (Van Diemen), 1m26.203s; 3. Peter Thomas (Van Diemen), 1m27.153s; 4. Bob Negron (Van Diemen), 1m27.360s; 5. Les Phillips (Van Diemen), 1m27.439s; 6. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m28.897s. (All use Zetec/Quicksilver engines unless otherwise noted.)
F2000 Round 12 (15 laps): 1. Cheng; 2. Ford, +.410s; 3. Phillips, +20.150s; 4. Thomas, +22.276; 5. Negron, +23.236s; 6. West, +46.238.
FF Qualifying: 1. Jerry Andersen (Swift DB1/Ford), 1m45.140s.
FF Round 8 (15 laps): 1. Pagenaud; 2. Andersen, 1 lap.
Margin of victory: .410s.
Winner’s average speed: 79.851 mph.
Fastest race lap: Ford, 1m26.413s, 80.821 mph.
Expert class winner (35-50): F2000; Thomas.
Sierra Tire Masters class winner (over 50): F2000; Phillips.
Williams Racing Developments Hard Charger Award: Phillips.
F2000 Final Points: Ford, 303; Cheng, 278(279); Negron, 237(250); Kuntze, 175; Fierberg, 169; West, 164(165); Phillips, 162; Thomas, 132; Hastrup, 56; Pinkman, 34; Kincaid, 28; Murphy, 24; Podlesni, 2. Best eleven finishes scored.
FF Final Points: Andersen, 71; Pagenaud, 66; Brandstad, 64; Sakowicz, 62; Erlandson, 51; Schutte, 48; Wittrock, 47; Brenner, 47; Robinson II, 41; Gallaher, 17.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Cheng Takes Third Straight Victory as Ford Nears Championship
Driving for PR1 Motorsports, David Cheng collected his third consecutive victory, coming off back to back wins at Infineon raceway in rounds 9 and 10.
During qualifying which was held under sunny skies with temperatures in the mid seventies, Conner Ford took his Les Schwab, Western Nevada Supply, Keniston, JF Excavating & Grading, PR1 Van Diemen right to the top of the timesheets, picking up right where he left off prior to his two race hiatus. Ford’s lap of 1 minute 25.156s bested PR1 teammate David Cheng by just .210 of a second.
The second row was made up of Bob Negron in his Fengshuimebaby.com/Terri Negron, Negron Racing Van Diemen and Les Phillips, Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes Mygale followed by Peter Thomas, Refrigeration Control Co., PR1 Van Diemen and Peter West Frank Monise Motors, Wendricks Real Estate, DFR Van Diemen.
ALMS and IndyCar driver Simon Pagenaud driving a PR1 Motorsports prepared Piper DF5 Honda claimed the pole in the Formula F group. It was the first appearance for Pagenaud in the series.
David Cheng took the lead at the drop of the green flag edging ahead of Ford as the cars entered turn one. Cheng held his advantage as the pair began to ease away from the field. The two circulated nose to tail throughout the fifteen lap race each knowing that the tight confines of the 1.940 Las Vegas circuit offered few if any passing opportunities and that the race could be decided by the slightest of errors. Neither driver flinched as Cheng led Ford to the Checkers by .409s.
The battle for third place was just has heated with Les Phillips leading Bob Negron until on lap 8,
Phillips came to a halt between turns three and four, the victim of an input shaft failure, which was to put an early end to his season as no spare was available and he would have to sit out Sunday’s final round.
Peter Thomas back from a four race absence took up the chase of Negron closing up to within .2s at the flag with Peter West finishing fifth 28 seconds further back.
The Formula F group saw Pagenaud lead from start to finish taking the Piper /Honda to its first series victory.
Qualifying for the finale begins at 9:00am with the race to follow at 12:00pm.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. Conner Ford (Van Diemen), 1m25.156s, 2. David Cheng (Van Diemen), 1m25.336s; 3. Bob Negron (Van Diemen), 1m26.207s; 4. Les Phillips (Mygale SJ04), 1m26.581s; 5. Peter Thomas (Van Diemen), 1m26.761s; 6. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m27.803s. (All use Zetec/Quicksilver engines unless otherwise noted.)
F2000 Round 9 (12 laps): 1. Cheng; 2. Ford, +.409s; 3. Negron, +30.282s; 4. Thomas, +30.445; 5. West, +58.129; 6. Phillips, 8 laps.
FF Qualifying: 1. Simon Pagenaud (Piper/Honda), 1m31.831s; 2. Jerry Andersen (Swift DB1/Ford), 1m443.136s.
FF Round 5 (12 laps): 1. Pagenaud; 2. Andersen, 1 lap.
Margin of victory: .409s.
Winner’s average speed: 80.192 mph.
Fastest race lap: Ford, 1m26.179s, 81.041 mph.
Expert class winner (35-50): F2000; Thomas.
Sierra Tire Masters class winner (over 50): F2000; Negron.
Williams Racing Developments Hard Charger Award: None.
F2000 Points: Ford, 274; Cheng, 249; Negron, 233; Kuntze, 175; Fierberg, 169; West, 150; Phillips, 140; Thomas, 113; Hastrup, 56; Pinkman, 34; Kincaid, 28; Murphy, 24; Podlesni, 2.
FF Points: Brandstad, 64; Sakowicz, 62; Erlandson, 51; Schutte, 48; Wittrock, 47; Brenner, 47; Andersen, 44; Robinson II, 41; Pagenaud, 34, Gallaher, 17.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Cheng Completes Weekend Sweep with Victory from Pole in Round Ten at Infineon
Raceway
Sonoma, Calif. (September 25, 2011) – Round ten of the Pacific F2000 Series Presented by Corsa Car Care began in overcast, drizzling conditions but ended with the sun shining on David Cheng as he claimed his second win of the weekend from pole position. In the Pacific Formula F Super Series round six, Jon Brandstad took his second win.
Between the mornings warm-up, held under a light drizzle, and the qualifying session rain fell off and on and at the 12:55pm start time teams were scrambling trying to decide between wet or dry tires as the damp 2.520 mile track was beginning to dry. When the session began all teams and drivers settled on slicks hoping for improving conditions as the cars set out on their qualifying laps. The drivers were anxious to get in a good lap early in case the conditions worsened. They actually
improved as the session wore on and Bob Negron, Fengshuimebaby.com/Terri Negron, Negron Racing Van Diemen nearly edged David Cheng, PR1 Motorsports, Van Diemen for the pole as the PR1 driver only completed a handful of laps before fourth gear broke and he was to sit out the remainder of the session hoping his best lap of 1:36.573 would hold up. Negron got within .048s and for the second time this weekend Cheng would start on pole.
Jon Brandstad, BJF Racing, Swift DB6 again led the Formula F group take the pole in the lone kent powered car at 1:42.267, again besting Alex Schutte in a Piper DF5/Honda.
By race time the skies had cleared and the field took the green and David Cheng took the lead followed by Negron, Peter West, Frank Monise Motors, Wendricks Real Estate, DFR Van Diemen and Les Phillips Swiss Racing Mygale. Cheng again managed to ease his way from the field finishing 10.351s ahead of second place.
The race for second saw Bob Negron’s mirrors filled first by West, who timed the start perfectly to lead Phillips in the opening laps, and later Phillips. West Harried Negron for the first several laps before being caught by Phillips and passed. Phillips then proceeded to close on Negron during which he set the fastest race lap which ultimately led to a last lap passing attempt at turn eleven. Negron held his ground and finished in second and took another Master Class (drivers 51+) win.
Les Phillips’ inspired drive resulted in another third place, .405s behind Negron, and his fastest lap was the first for the French car several seasons.
Fourth place again went to Peter West, after an excellent start finally finished 20.565 seconds back.
Jon Brandstad led the Formula F group for the second successive day and again used his pole position to gain an advantage at the start. Brandstad drove a mistake free race as any bobble would have allowed Alex Schutte through into the lead. Schutte hounded Brandstad for the entire 12 lap race and was ready to pounce at any opportunity. Brandstad also claimed the Master Class win.
Alex Schutte also drove exceptionally always providing pressure and waiting for the mistake that never came did set the fastest lap of the group and with it two bonus points and the $300 contingency from Honda.
Doug Brenner in his Brenner Fabrication Van Diemen RF99/Honda finished third and claimed the $200 Honda bonus.
John Robinson II in his Fast Forward Piper DF5/Honda finished in fourth after starting third, lost two positions on lap 4 and gained one back with a pass of fifth place finisher Will Gallaher in the First Community Bank/Piper DF5/Honda on lap eight. Robinson did claim the Expert Class (drivers 35-50) win.
The series now moves to Las Vegas Motor Speedway October 8-9 for the season finale.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. David Cheng (Van Diemen), 1m36.573s; 2. Bob Negron (Van Diemen), 1m36.621s; 3. Les Phillips (Mygale SJ04), 1m37.824s; 4. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m38.630s. (All use Zetec/Quicksilver engines unless otherwise noted.)
F2000 Round 9 (12 laps): 1. Cheng, 19m39.162s; 2. Negron, +10.351s; 3. Phillips, +10.756; 4. West, +20.565s.
FF Qualifying: 1. Jon Brandstad (Swift/Ford), 1m42.267s; 2. Alex Schutte (Piper/Honda), 1m42.593s; 3. John Robinson II (Piper/Hoonda), 1m43.058s; 4.Doug Brenner (Van Diemen/Honda), 1m44.154s; 5. Will Gallaher (Piper/Honda), no time.
FF Round 5 (12 laps): 1. Brandstad, 20m43.075s; 2. Schutte, 20m43.565s; 3. Brenner, 20m59.152s; 4. Robinson, 20m59.558s; 5. Gallaher, 21m12.508s.
Margin of victory: 10.351s.
Winner’s average speed: 92.323 mph.
Fastest race lap: Phillips, 1m37.164s, 93.368 mph.
Expert class winner (35-50): F2000; None, FF; Robinson.
Sierra Tire Masters class winner (over 50): F2000; Negron, FF; Brandstad.
Williams Racing Developments Hard Charger Award: None.
F2000 Points: Ford, 245; Cheng, 219; Negron, 211; Kuntze, 175; Fierberg, 169; Phillips, 139; West, 133; Thomas, 94; Hastrup, 57; Pinkman, 34; Kincaid, 28; Murphy, 24; Podlesni, 2.
FF Points: Brandstad; 64, Sakowicz, 62; Erlandson, 51; Schutte; 48, Wittrock, 47; Brenner, 47; Robinson II, 41; Gallaher, 34; Andersen, 19.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Cheng Takes Pole and Victory in Round Nine at Infineon Raceway
Sonoma, Calif. (September 24, 2011) – Infineon Raceway is the site for rounds nine and ten of the Pacific F2000 Series Presented by Corsa Car Care. In addition to the 2-liter cars this weekend, the Pacific Formula F Super Series, it its inaugural season, will hold rounds five and six.
Qualifying began under sunny skies with temperatures in the low seventies and that began a spirited duel for the pole between Bob Negron, Fengshuimebaby.com/Terri Negron, Negron Racing Van Diemen and David Cheng, PR1 Motorsports, Van Diemen. Negron made an overnight gear change and Cheng just retuned from Malaysia where he competed in the 12-hour Scirocco R-Cup Enduro, finishing second 12 seconds back. Cheng finally seized the pole with a lap of 1:43.039 on his eighth lap with Negron also posting his best time on his eighth lap but .895s off the pole time.
The Formula F group saw Jon Brandstad, BJF Racing, Swift DB6 take the pole in the lone kent powered car at 1:41.495, besting Alex Schutte in a Piper DF5/Honda by .459s.
When the green flag fell for the 2:40pm race, David Cheng took the lead and led the tight pack of cars through the first few corners but when they reached the carousel Bob Negron spun causing Peter West to take avoiding action around the outside allowing Les Phillips through into second place. Phillips was also balked leaving a sizable gap to Cheng who was able to cruise home to his first win of the season and second overall. The Sammamish, WA, resident drove a measured consistent race increasing his gap with each lap finally finishing 24.266s ahead of second place. Cheng also took the 2 points for the races fastest lap and this maximum points haul vaulted him into second place in the standings.
Bob Negron having spun to the rear of the field recovered to work his way back through the field to claim the second step on the podium. The second place finish also gave Negron another Master Class (drivers 51+) win and moved him into third in the overall standings.
Les Phillips drove his Swiss Racing Mygale to third place, the final step on the podium and stubbornly fought to hold back Negron during his charge. Les was back in his familiar seat in the French car having resolved his engine difficulties and finished only 3 seconds behind Negron.
Fourth place went to Peter West, his best series finish, in his Frank Monise Motors, Wendricks Real Estate, DFR Van Diemen. West held on to third for a majority of the race but was unable to fend off the challenge of Negron though he did manage to keep up with him for a couple laps before finishing 21 seconds back.
Meanwhile in the Formula F group, Jon Brandstad used his pole position to gain an advantage at the start taking the lead and inching ahead with every lap to finish 13 seconds clear of second place finisher Doug Brenner in his Brenner Fabrication Van Diemen RF99/Honda. Brandstad did not appear to be seriously challenged throughout the race and also claimed the Master Class win.
Brenner’s second place finish was hard fought when he slipped behind John Robinson II in his Fast Forward Piper DF5/Honda at the start and used a late race pass to secure his second place which also earned him $300 contingency from Honda as the highest Fit engine finisher.
John Robinson II in a one off drive in the Fast Forward Piper DF5/Honda, a former Formula Ford National Champion used the opportunity to claim third place at a track he had seen for the first time during Friday’s test day. This gave Robinson the Expert Class (drivers 35-50) win and $200 in Honda contingency money.
Alex Schutte who had qualified second had difficulties and was late to grid and thus started with a sizable disadvantage clawed his way back to finish fourth and take the two bonus points for the fastest lap.
Will Gallaher in the First Community Bank/Piper DF5/Honda finished fifth 4 laps in back.
Sunday’s round ten gets started at with morning warm-up at 8:40am, qualifying at 12:55pm and the race at 4:30pm.
F2000 Qualifying: 1. David Cheng (Van Diemen), 1m34.039s; 2. Bob Negron (Van Diemen), 1m34.934s; 3. Les Phillips (Mygale SJ04), 1m37.096s; 4. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m37.519s. (All use Zetec/Quicksilver engines unless otherwise noted.)
F2000 Round 9 (12 laps): 1. Cheng, 19m38.710s; 2. Negron, +24.266s; 3. Phillips, +27.247; 4. West, +48.851s.
FF Qualifying: 1. Jon Brandstad (Swift/Ford), 1m41.495s; 2. Alex Schutte (Piper/Honda), 1m41.954s; 3. Doug Brenner (Van Diemen/Honda), 1m44.154s; 4. John Robinson II (Piper/Hoonda), 1m44.185s; 5. Will Gallaher (Piper/Honda), 1m44.342s.
FF Round 5 (12 laps): 1. Brandstad, 20m49.409s; 2. Brenner, 21m01.914s; 3. Robinson, 21m03.370s; 4. Schutte, 21m09.963s; 5. Gallaher, 4 laps.
Margin of victory: 24.266s.
Winner’s average speed: 92.359 mph.
Fastest race lap: Cheng, 1m36.559s, 93.953 mph.
Expert class winner (35-50): F2000; None, FF; Robinson.
Sierra Tire Masters class winner (over 50): F2000; Negron, FF; Brandstad.
Williams Racing Developments Hard Charger Award: None.
F2000 Points: Ford, 245; Cheng, 187; Negron, 186; Kuntze, 175; Fierberg, 169; Phillips, 115; West, 114; Thomas, 94; Hastrup, 57; Pinkman, 34; Kincaid, 28; Murphy, 24; Podlesni, 2.
FF Points: Sakowicz, 62; Erlandson, 51; Wittrock, 47; Brandstad, 32; Brenner, 25; Robinson II, 22; Schutte, 21; Andersen, 19; Gallaher, 17.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Ford Sweeps Buttonwillow Raceway Weekend for Second Time This Season
Buttonwillow, Calif. (September 4, 2011) – Round 8 qualifying for the Pacific F2000 Series Presented by Corsa Car Care at Buttonwillow Raceway Park began at 8:20am under clear skies and warm sunny weather. Just as he had on Saturday Conner Ford in his Les Schwab, Western Nevada Supply, Keniston, JF Excavating & Grading, PR1 Van Diemen led the field with a time of 1:44.260 on the 3.2 mile 16 turn course eclipsing the mark he set on Saturday and 1.232s clear of the field. Again starting next to Conner is Kyle Kuntze driving the DFR, Crow Enterprises, Oktane Visual, Acceleration Karting, DFR Van Diemen. Kyle is a rookie in the series and posted a time of 1:45.492.Row 2 was again comprised of Ira Fierberg who recorded a 1:45.970 and David Cheng with a time of 1:46.143. Ira is driving the Pinnacle Performance, Sparco, DFR Van Diemen while David is in the PR1 Van Diemen
Row 3 was Bob Negron, Fengshuimebaby.com/Terri Negron, Negron Racing Van Diemen and Les Phillips driving in his second outing in a Van Diemen, followed by Peter West, DFR, Frank Monise Motors, DFR Van Diemen and Khyle Pinkman.
With the temperature creeping up, the field took the track behind the Ford GT pace car driven by CalClub’s Steve Lowery. With the green flag waving the field held station down to turn 1 where Conner Ford with the inside line eased ahead of Kuntze followed by Fierberg, Cheng, Negron, Phillips, West and Pinkman. Negron moved past Cheng and the order at the end of lap one was Ford with a sizable advantage, Kuntze, Fierberg, Negron, Cheng, Phillips, West and Pinkman.
Conner was never challenged from there on and cruised to his second victory of the weekend and sixth out of eight for the season and opened up a 70 point lead in the championship with four races remaining and again set the races’ fastest lap to cap another excellent performance for the Carson City native.
Poway’s Kyle Kuntze had no problem with brakes today but his charge to the podium on Saturday may have taken too much out of his tires making it hard to make any inroads into Conner’s lead. Still he drove a measured race and managed to distance himself from the battle for third that raged behind him, finishing 10 seconds behind Ford and moving him to second in the points race.
“I learned a lot this race, how to deal with the tires as they were going off.” Kyle stated, “I think we are inching closer to Conner.”
The battle for third place was thrilling as Fierberg, Negron and Cheng were so close as to never be out of each others’ shadow with Fierberg initially holding the position followed by Negron chased by Cheng. David passed Bob for fourth on lap eight and then managed to get by Ira three laps later. Ira then lost fourth position to Negron on lap twelve. The three remained this way until the final lap when the trio came up to lap Pinkman in the Pinto powered National class car. They caught him entering Cotton corners which slightly balked Cheng and Negron and set up a drag race down the back straight through the kink and heading into the high speed Riverside turn. The three cars headed in with Cheng slightly ahead, Ira next with a full head of steam having eased by Negron and going for David on the inside. The gap closed, Ira ran out of room, there was contact, Ira spun into Negron and David escaped to claim the final podium position 32 seconds back while Fierberg and Negron were left to wait for tows to return to the paddock.
A surprised Les Phillips took fourth place after a steady race and a brief off in the borrowed DFR Van Diemen and with it his first Master Class victory of the season and co-Hard Charger with Peter West, who was fifth, both having improved two positions. Peter was thankful to have had the opportunity to race today as the DFR team did an excellent job of repairing his car from Saturday’s crash.
Bob Negron was classified sixth with Ira Fierberg taking seventh and the Expert Class win.
Khyle Pinkman recovered from the brake issues of Saturday and claimed National Class honors having come all the way from Calgary, Alberta, Canada for the event.
The series now moves to Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California on October 24-25.
Qualifying: 1. Conner Ford (Van Diemen), 1m44.260s; 2. Kyle Kuntze (Van Diemen), 1m45.492s; 3. Ira Fierberg (Van Diemen), 1m45.970s; 4. David Cheng (Van Diemen RF05), 1m46.143s; 5. Bob Negron (Van Diemen RF99), 1m46.237s; 6. Les Phillips (Van Diemen RF02), 1m47.916s; 7. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m47.962s; 8. Khyle Pinkman (Van Diemen-Pinto), 1m52.332s. (All use Zetec/Quicksilver engines unless otherwise noted.)
Round 5 (15 laps): 1. Ford, 28m22.144s; 2. Kuntze, +10.322s; 3. Cheng, +32.728; 4. Phillips +1:12.522; 5. West, +1:34.296, 6. Negron, 1 lap; 7. Fierberg, 1 lap; 8. Pinkman, 1 lap.
Margin of victory: 10.322s.
Winner’s average speed: 108.287 mph.
Fastest race lap: Ford, 1m45.715s, 108.972 mph.
Expert class winner (35-50): Fierberg.
Sierra Tire Masters class winner (over 50): Phillips.
Williams Racing Developments Hard Charger Award: Phillips, West.
Points: Ford, 245; Kuntze, 175; Fierberg, 169; Negron, 161; Cheng, 153; West, 96; Thomas, 95; Phillips, 94; Hastrup, 57; Pinkman, 34; Kincaid, 27; Murphy, 25; Podlesni, 2.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Ford Takes Fifth Victory of Season at Buttonwillow Raceway
Buttonwillow, Calif. (September 3, 2011) – When qualifying for the Pacific F2000 Series Presented by Corsa Car Care at Buttonwillow Raceway Park, at a little after 8:00am, temperatures were already pushing eighty degrees and the action on the track was just as hot as the top three qualifiers finished within .3 of a second. Leading this group was Conner Ford in his Les Schwab, Western Nevada Supply, Keniston, JF Excavating & Grading, PR1 Van Diemen with a time of 1:44.441 on the 3.2 mile 16 turn course. Starting next to Conner is Kyle Kuntze driving the DFR, Crow Enterprises, Oktane
Visual, Acceleration Karting, DFR Van Diemen. Kyle is a rookie in the series and posted an excellent 1:44.441, just .157 off the pole time.
Behind the pole sitter is Ira Fierberg who is coming off a win in the last event at Fontana recorded a 1:44.730. Ira is driving the Pinnacle Performance, Sparco, DFR Van Diemen. Next to Ira will be David Cheng in the PR1 Van Diemen turning in a time of 1:45.699. The Sammamish, WA driver doing well with a bit of throttle lag exiting corners.
Bob Negron, Fengshuimebaby.com/Terri Negron, Negron Racing Van Diemen and Les Phillips driving a Van Diemen for the first time after suffering an engine failure in practice on Friday make up row three with Peter West, DFR, Frank Monise Motors, DFR Van Diemen and Khyle Pinkman next up.
One hundred degree temperatures greeted the drivers as they lined up on the grid and prepared to head out for the pace lap. The field took the green flag and although there was a lot of movement and shuffling for positions, the order through turn 1 was just as they had qualified with Conner Ford taking the lead closely followed by Kuntze, Fierberg, Cheng, Negron, West, Phillips and Pinkman. As they rounded Riverside and headed towards Phil Hill, Kuntze had his brake pedal go to the floor and nearly collected Ford as they crested the hill. Kyle went off track, managed to control the car and rejoined the track in sixth place which enabled Conner to complete the first lap with a huge advantage. From that point on Conner was never threatened thereafter driving flawlessly, setting the fastest lap and taking his fifth win of the season by a 22 second margin.
The race for second place between Ira Fierberg and David Cheng was close throughout with neither driver showing much of an advantage on the other. They ran nose to tail until lap fourteen when approaching Cotton Corners David optimistically dove to the inside; Ira tried to leave enough room, seeing David come alongside as he downshifted and began to turn in for the corner. The cars touched with Ira spinning out of second and by the time he got going found himself in fifth place.
Sitting in sixth place, Kyle Kuntze wanted to atone for his off and set about his quest to finish on the podium. He first passed Peter West on lap 3, then Bob Negron on lap 6 and was closing on the battle for second between Ira Fierberg and David Cheng. Kyle moved into third when Ira spun and finally managed to pass Cheng into turn one on the penultimate lap thus completing a storming drive and setting the second fastest lap of the race.
“I knew there might be a brake issue but when the pedal went to the floor, I nearly hit Conner and tried to keep it on the track but just went off left” Kyle said, then added, “I had a lot of fun today driving through the field and it is good to be on the podium”
David Cheng took the third step of the podium and after his race with Fierberg reflected, “I had a good race with Ira, I had a run on him from turn two and tried inside three, Ira left room, I had my right front in the dirt, we touched a little and he went off.”
Bob Negron drove a steady race and took fourth place and with it the Master Class victory.
Behind Negron was Ira Fierberg who had to settle for fifth but did earn the Expert Class win and commented, “I saw David move out but I didn’t think he would try it there and when I turned in I saw him and tried to give him room but knew he wasn’t going to make it and we touched.”
Les Phillips came home in sixth place in the borrowed Van Diemen and was the final finisher as Khyle Pinkman lost his brakes on lap five and Peter West crashed out on lap eight.
Qualifying: 1. Conner Ford (Van Diemen), 1m44.441s; 2. Kyle Kuntze (Van Diemen), 1m44.598s; 3. Ira Fierberg (Van Diemen), 1m44.730s; 4. David Cheng (Van Diemen RF05) 5. Bob Negron (Van Diemen RF99), 1m46.451s; 6. Les Phillips (Van Diemen RF02), 1m47.651s; 7. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m48.409s; 8. Khyle Pinkman (Van Diemen-Pinto), 1m452.520s. (All use Zetec/Quicksilver engines unless otherwise noted.)
Round 5 (15 laps): 1. Ford, 28m13.304s; 2. Kuntze, +22.348s; 3. Cheng, +24.261; 4. Negron, +32.983s; 5. Fierberg, +47.823s; 6. Phillips; +1:19.066s, 7. West, 9 laps; 8. Pinkman, DNF.
Margin of victory: 22.348s.
Winner’s average speed: 108.852 mph.
Fastest race lap: Ford, 1m45.311s, 109.390 mph.
Expert class winner (35-50): Fierberg.
Sierra Tire Masters class winner (over 50): Negron.
Williams Racing Developments Hard Charger Award: None.
Points: Ford, 153; Fierberg, 155; Kuntze, 150; Negron, 146; Cheng, 131; Thomas, 95; West, 79; Phillips, 75; Hastrup, 57; Kincaid, 27; Murphy, 25; Pinkman, 21; Podlesni, 2.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Fierberg Takes Hard Earned Victory after Wresting Lead Away from Ford
mere 0.083 of a second with a 1m39.612s lap.
Kyle Kuntze, Oktane Visual, Acceleration Kart Racing, Wiener Racing, DRF Van Diemen continued his fine form taking third on the grid followed by David Cheng, PR1 Van Diemen, Bob Negron, Feng Shui Me Baby.com, Van Diemen, Peter Hastrup, Western Building Materials, DFR Van Diemen, Peter Thomas, Refrigeration Control Co., Hytech Exhaust, Church Automotive Testing, PR1 Van Diemen and Peter West, Frank Monise Motors, DFR Van Diemen.
The field took the green flag and headed on the long run to the first corner where they all managed to get through save for Peter Thomas who was a little early on the power and spun himself to the rear of the field. As they filed through Conner held a slight advantage over Fierberg, Kuntze, Cheng, Negron, West, Hastrup and Thomas.
Ford and Fierberg eased their way ahead of the rest and staged a furious battle with the cars mere inches apart at several points on the track with neither driver holding a clear advantage. Lap after lap the car circulated nose to tail until on lap eleven Ira having a good run out of turn nine and with a long run to the braking zone for turn twelve managed to clearly overtake Conner for the lead, a position he would hold to the end scoring his second series win and second Expert Class victory of the weekend and setting the fastest lap of the race to put an exclamation point on his weekend.
Ira later exclaimed, “I knew we were going to be strong, so my only worry was avoiding a first corner crash. After that, I just pushed Conner as hard as I can and tried to put as much pressure on him as possible. I managed to pass him at the end of the back straight, which I think caught him off guard, and then it was just a matter of putting my head down and driving clean laps.”
With two laps remaining Conner spun in turn 12 dropping him to third having taken a long time getting the car re-fired and just nipped Kyle Kuntze at the flag. Kyle drove another strong race and finished in fourth.
David Cheng drove a steady race to finish second and earned the Hard Charger Award, a nice recovery after his Saturday DNF.
Following Cheng were Peter Hastrup, Peter Thomas, Peter West and Bob Negron having suffered an early spin, then losing the draft was unable to make any progress.
The series takes a mid-season break before rounds 7 and 8 at Buttonwillow Raceway Park, September 3 & 4.
Qualifying: 1. Conner Ford (Van Diemen), 1m39.612s; 2. Ira Fieerberg (Van Diemen), 1m39.695s; 3. Kyle Kuntze (Van Diemen), 1m40.086s; 4. David Cheng (Van Diemen RF05), 1m40.248s; 5. Bob Negron (Van Diemen RF99), 1m40.349s; 6. Peter Hastrup (Van Diemen RF02), 1m41.228s; 7. Peter Thomas (Van Diemen), 1m41.460s; 8. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m42.696s. (All use Zetec/Quicksilver engines.)
Round 6 (15 laps): 1. Fierberg, 28m03.962s; 2. Cheng, +13.046s; 3. Ford, +19.466s; 4. Kuntze, +19.480s; 5. Hastrup, +30.766s; 6. Thomas, +31.723s; 7. West, +35.497s; 8. Negron, +36.018s.
Margin of victory: 13.046s.
Winner’s average speed: 92.354 mph.
Fastest race lap: Fierberg, 1m39.755s, 103.935 mph.
Expert class winner (35-50): Fierberg.
Sierra Tire Masters class winner (over 50): Hastrup.
Williams Racing Developments Hard Charger Award: Cheng.
Points: Ford, 177; Fierberg, 138, Negron, 127; Kuntze, 125; Cheng, 109; Thomas, 95; West, 78; Phillips, 60; Hastrup, 57; Kincaid, 27; Murphy, 25; Podlesni, 2.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Ford Extends Win Streak to Three at Auto Club Speedway
Fontana, Calif. (June 11, 2011) – The Pacific F2000 Series Presented by Corsa Car Care arrived at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana for rounds 5 and 6 and was greeted with morning overcast for the first session of the day. It was the first appearance at Auto Club Speedway for Conner Ford and Rookie Kyle Kuntze, who had a fine podium finish in his last event, and it showed in the morning warm-up times with the two being fifth and ninth respectively with Ira Fierberg, Barry I. Goldstein, CPA, Sparco, DFR Van Diemen, taking the morning honors with a lap of 1:40.430 followed by Bob Negron, Feng Shui Me Baby.com, Van Diemen, Peter Thomas, Refrigeration Control Co., Hytech Exhaust, Church Automotive Testing, PR1 Van Diemen and Les Phillips, Swiss Implants, Porterfield Brakes, Mygale.
By the time qualifying began it appeared that Ford, Les Schwab Tire Center, Western Nevada Supply, Keniston, JF Excavating & Grading, PR1 Van Diemen and Kuntze, Oktane Visual, Acceleration Kart Racing, Wiener Racing, DRF Van Diemen had gotten things figured out as they moved to the head of the time sheets with the youngster from Carson City taking the pole with a time of 1:39.853 and Kyle just .345 back as they were set to lead the field for the start of round five.
The surprise of qualifying was Les Phillips in his Mygale posting third fastest time just .374 off the pole time. Phillips was followed by Negron, David Cheng, PR1 Van Diemen, Peter Thomas, Peter West, Frank Monise Motors, DFR Van Diemen and Peter Hastrup, Western Building Materials, DFR Van Diemen and Fierberg who had spun and damaged his car without posting a time.
By race time the overcast had burned off, the drivers set off under sunny skies with Conner taking the lead from the start demonstrating the kind of domination that has vaulted him into the series points lead. Though he was never headed Kyle Kuntze managed to provide some pressure through the opening stages of the race and slowly dropped back but still finished less than four seconds behind for an excellent second place finish in only his fifth outing, and Ford taking his third consecutive victory and gaining maximum points by also taking the fastest lap.
Phillips maintained his third position through the opening lap followed by Cheng, Negron, West, Thomas, Hastrup and Fierberg, Ira having an early spin after having picked up a couple of places.
On the second lap Cheng misjudged his braking while trying to defend his position and punted Phillips into a spin dropping Les to the rear of the field and ending David’s race on the spot with damage too severe to continue leaving Thomas in third, having gotten by Negron, chasing the leading duo. Phillips managed to continue until lap 10 when his engine expired.
On lap 4 Fierberg began a drive that would net him not only the race’s Hard Charger Award, but the Expert Class win and third place on the podium. He began by overtaking both West and Hastrup on lap 4, then in a daring move swept by both Negron and Thomas in turn 3. Once in third he continued to press on finishing just over 15 seconds off the lead and well clear of the fourth place Thomas.
Negron finished fifth followed by Peters’ Hastrup and West who were having a grand dice with positions changing nearly every lap eventually settling in Hastrup’s favor.
Qualifying: 1. Conner Ford (Van Diemen), 1m39.853s; 2. Kyle Kuntze (Van Diemen), 1m40.198s; 3. Les Phillips (Mygale SJ04), 1m40.227s; 4. Bob Negron (Van Diemen RF99), 1m40.495s; 5. David Cheng (Van Diemen RF05), 1m40.992s; 6. Peter Thomas (Van Diemen), 1m41.130s; 7. Peter West (Van Diemen), 1m41.867s; 8. Peter Hastrup (Van Diemen RF02), 1m42.008s. (All use Zetec/Quicksilver engines.)
Round 5 (15 laps): 1. Ford, 27m12.898s; 2. Kuntze, +3.925s; 3. Fierberg, +15.542s; 4. Thomas, +22.320s; 5. Negron, +23.962s; 6. Hastrup, +44.184s; 7. West, +47.568s; 8. Phillips, 5 laps; Cheng, DNF.
Margin of victory: 3.925s.
Winner’s average speed: 95.242 mph.
Fastest race lap: Ford, 1m39.921s, 103.762 mph.
Expert class winner (35-50): Fierberg.
Sierra Tire Masters class winner (over 50): Negron.
Williams Racing Developments Hard Charger Award: Fierberg.
Points: Ford, 153; Negron, 114; Fierberg, 106; Kuntze, 106; Cheng, 84; Thomas, 80; West, 64; Phillips, 60; Hastrup, 40; Kincaid, 27; Murphy, 25; Podlesni, 2.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Teenager Conner Ford Displays Dominant Form at Buttonwillow
Buttonwillow, Calif. (May 22, 2011) – There was no touching Conner Ford in this weekend’s pair of races for the PacificF2000 Championship Presented by Corsa Car Care at Buttonwillow Raceway in central California. The 14-year-old
phenom from Carson City, Nev., qualified his #77 PR1 Motorsports Van Diemen on pole for both 25-minute races by a
comfortable margin and was never seriously challenged on either day.
Ford’s two victories, allied to another win in the opening race of the season at Willow Springs International Raceway, has
vaulted him into a clear lead in the championship standings.
“It’s pretty cool to be leading the championship,” said Ford. “I’ve never actually been a in a real championship [chase]
before because even when I was in karting I used to race at different tracks all the time; but it’s really fun and different
because I’m actually trying to be consistent and put more thought into it without just trying to win every time.
“The PR1 team has been great,” added Ford. “They have so much experience and they have really taught me how to work
on managing tire wear and things like that.”
On Saturday, Ford was chased home by Bob Negron, who once again proved to be the top Masters contender (over 50
years of age) in his self-run Van Diemen RF99. Negron, from Morgan Hill, Calif., who won the second race at Willow
Springs in April, enjoyed a battle virtually throughout Saturday’s race with leading Expert (aged 35-50) Ira Fierberg until
the Manhattan Beach, Calif., attorney collided with a lapped Formula Ford car at the Esses on the final lap. The resulting
brief off-course excursion caused Fierberg to slip to fourth behind Dave Freitas Racing teammate Kyle Kuntze.
Kuntze, 21, from Poway, Calif., continued his rapid learning curve by finishing a clear second in today’s race. The rookie
took advantage of a rare mistake by Negron, who spun at Turn One on Lap 2, costing him the opportunity to claim a
fourth consecutive podium finish this season. Negron instead had to be content with sixth.
“I just tried too hard,” admitted Negron. “I overcooked it. I thought I caught it, and then I was backwards.”
David Cheng, from Sammamish, Wash., rounded out the podium today in another PRI Motorsports Van Diemen. Cheng,
who finished second in the championship last year, took the position after a race-long battle with Fierberg’s #27 Pinnacle
Performance/LDF/DFR/Quiksilver Van Diemen and the rapidly improving Peter Thomas, from San Juan Capistrano, in
the #7 PR1 Motorsports Van Diemen.
“I had two epic races this weekend,” said Fierberg. “I was bummed to get taken out yesterday and a bit frustrated that I
didn’t managed to get onto the podium, but it was great to battle so hard with these guys and a lot of fun.”
Ford now holds a 22-point advantage over Negron, 119-97 after four races. The Pacific F2000 series will continue with
two more races at the Auto Club Speedway of Southern California at Fontana on June 11/12.
The debut of the Pacific Formula F Super Series, for 1600cc cars, saw Jeff Sakowicz, from Sonoma, Calif., claim a pair
of victories in his Van Diemen. Ed Erlandson (Swift DB-6) and Paul Wittrock (Swift DB-1) shared the runner-up spoils.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Score One For Youth and One For Experience at Willow Springs
Rosamond, Calif. (April 3, 2011) – As expected, this weekend’s opening two rounds of Pacific F2000 Championship Presented by Corsa Car Care at Willow Springs International Raceway boiled down to a battle of youth vs. experience.
Honors ended up being shared equally as Conner Ford – at a mere 14 years of age – and top Masters (aged 50 and above) contender Bob Negron each claimed a pole and a win.
The first race on Saturday afternoon saw youth take the upper hand as Ford qualified his #77 PR1 Motorsports Van Diemen on the pole. He then made a perfect start, led the entire race and set fastest lap to earn a maximum 34 points.
"That was the perfect day," said Ford, from Carson City, Nev., who started four races last year, winning once, and, surprisingly, had not been able to conduct any off-season testing. "I didn’t expect to be doing this good, this early in the season, but everything came together really well. The team gave me a great car and it made me very happy."
Negron, from Morgan Hill, Calif., qualified second but made a poor start and fell to fourth on the first lap. He battled back, passing David Cheng (#2 PR1 Motorsports Van Diemen) and Ira Fierberg (#27 Pinnacle Performance/LDF/DFR/Quiksilver Van Diemen) to reclaim the runner-up spot in the updated Van Diemen RF99 he prepares and runs almost entirely by himself....along with some help from wife Terri.
Veteran Les Phillips, from Bakersfield, Calif., enjoyed one of his strongest races in a while to finish fifth in the only Mygale chassis in the field, although he was pressed every inch of the way by F2000 debutant Kyle Kuntze. The 21-year-old from Poway, Calif., was especially impressive when considering the fact he hadn’t so much as sat in Dave Freitas Racing’s #5 Van Diemen RF02 prior to the weekend.
Windier and cooler conditions for qualifying on Sunday morning saw Negron emerge with the fastest time to secure his first-ever F2000 pole position. Furthermore, Negron sensibly completed a bare minimum of laps to ensure his Hankook tires would be in good shape for the race on Willow Springs’ notoriously abrasive surface.
Nevertheless, Negron once again made a poor getaway, allowing Ford to claim the lead going into Turn One.
"I guess I caught him sleeping both times," said Ford with a twinkle in his eye.
Negron remained unflustered.
"I thought, OK, fine, let’s just him and I pull away from everybody else and then I’ll see what I can do," related Negron. "But after a couple of laps I realized we weren’t pulling away from the others, and then I thought, wait a minute, I’m faster than him, let’s have a go!"
Ford, meanwhile, was struggling.
"My car was really loose in just about every corner," said Ford. "I over-did it a bit in qualifying and used up my tires a little more than I should have done. He kind of out-smarted me, I guess."
On Lap 5, Negron timed his run out of the ultra-quick Turn Nine to perfection, used the draft to pull alongside his rival on the front straightaway, then braked a little deeper into Turn One. It was a textbook pass. Once into the lead, Negron gradually inched away to score a long overdue maiden victory.
"It was fun," said Negron. "It’s been a long time coming; it’s been one hell of a long time coming. I’m hoping to get a few more (wins) this year, too."
Ford’s attempts to hold onto second, under intense pressure from Cheng and Fierberg, unraveled when he carried too much speed into Turn Five on Lap 12. The resulting off-course excursion relegated him to fifth at the finish.
"It was still a good weekend," concluded Ford. "I’m pretty happy with how it ended up."
Cheng took second, just over four seconds in arrears of Negron. Fierberg completed the podium, narrowly ahead of a fast-closing Kuntze.
"I was just getting more and more comfortable with every lap," said Kuntze. "Boy, that was so much fun!"
Negron leads the points standings by 57-51 over Ford, while Fierberg holds down third place on 46, two ahead of Cheng. The next two races will be held at Buttonwillow Raceway on May 21/22.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Pacific F2000 Attracts Youngsters and Veterans to do Battle at Willow Springs
Buttonwillow, Calif. (March 30, 2011) – A new season of the Pacific F2000 Championship Presented by Corsa Car Care will commence this weekend on the fast and undulating 2.5-mile Willow Springs International Raceway near Rosamond, Calif., where a pair of 30-minute races will run as part of VARA’s High Desert Challenge.
The series has attracted its usual mix of seasoned veterans and ambitious youngsters, ranging from series promoter and long-time competitor Les Phillips, who will turn 70 later this year – and still shows no signs of slowing down – to 14-year-old phenom Conner Ford, who scored a sensational victory in his very first weekend of car racing at Willow Springs one year ago. The youngster from Carson City, Nev., made only a couple of appearances in 2010 but has been busy testing over the winter with the multiple championship-winning PR1 Motorsports team, from Fresno, Calif., and fully intends to challenge for top honors this year.
"I plan to get as much seat time as possible and improve both in and out of the car," says Ford. "I need to learn more about the car and prepare myself for what is to come in the future."
Chinese-American David Cheng is another young man to watch. A relative old-timer at age 21, Cheng won rookie-of-the-year honors in 2009 and finished second in the title-chase last year. This time his eyes are set firmly on winning the championship in another PR1 Motorsports Van Diemen.
"My experience is going to play a big part this year," says Cheng, who was born in Beijing and now makes his home in Sammamish, Wash. "During the off season, I’ve been able to analyze the success and mistakes from 2010 and I think this will only make me stronger going into 2011."
After enjoying some success in karting and the Skip Barber School Regional events, Kyle Kuntze, from Poway, Calif., is stepping up to make his Pacific F2000 debut this weekend, driving a similar Van Diemen for the rival Dave Freitas Racing team, which has relocated over the winter to Santa Fe Springs, Calif.
"I was looking to move up from Skip Barber and I want to be racing in the USF2000 National Championship next season," says 21-year-old Kuntze, "so this just seemed like the right place to gather experience. The series has been extremely competitive throughout the years and has helped develop some great drivers like Robert Podlesni, Patrick Barrett, Joel Miller, J.R. Hildebrand, Dane Cameron and a host of others.
"The first goal is to get through this first race weekend and learn as much as possible. It will be difficult because I haven’t done any pre-season testing but I know the DFR team will provide me with all the tools I need to be successful."
DFR also will continue to field a car for F2000 veteran Ira Fierberg, who last year scored two poles at Willow Springs and and followed that with his first-ever race victory at this level later last season.
"We are going to try to put the #27 Pinnacle Performance/LDF/DFR/Quiksilver Van Diemen on pole and win the race," says Fierberg, from Hermosa Beach, Calif. "I don’t want to get greedy and say we want maximum points for the weekend, but there are two distinct races and the goal is the same for each. Last year we were on pole both races and finished second both times, so for this year we have naturally set the bar higher. Sunday is my (49th) birthday and I would love to celebrate it on the top step of the podium."
Bob Negron is another veteran campaigner who is more than capable of challenging the youngsters. Cisco Systems engineer Negron, 55, from Morgan Hill, Calif., scored three overall podium finishes last year in his self-run #9 Feng Shui Me Baby Van Diemen while winning the Masters class, for drivers aged over 50, in every one of the 12 races.
F2000 is regarded as the first rung on the professional open-wheel racing ladder in North America. The concept originated in England in 1974 and has helped spawn the careers of many of the sport’s top names, including Formula 1 World Champions Ayrton Senna and Damon Hill. It has been equally productive in North America, producing such alumni as Paul Tracy, Jimmy Vasser, Sam Hornish Jr., Buddy Rice, Dan Wheldon and J.R. Hildebrand.
The single-seat, open-wheel Pacific F2000 cars are powered by 2-liter Ford Zetec engines and are capable of speeds in excess of 140 mph. All cars run on Hankook tires supplied by Sierra Tire. VP Racing fuels also is an official provider, along with Corsa Car Care, Porterfield Brakes, Wine Country Motorsports and Buttonwillow Raceway.
For more details go to www.pacificf2000.com or contact Les Phillips at 661-764-5333, or by email, lesrace@aol.com.
Updated 03/23/2015
