Round 8
A record-high total of 113 drivers entered Round Eight of the GoPro Motorplex Karting Challenge Presented by Hoosier Racing Tire today. Round Eight marked the first of two Rounds as part of a double-header Labor Day race weekend. In addition, drivers got their first-ever chance to race under the lights during a Karting Challenge club race.
Congrats to all Round Eight winners: Cade Frazier (Briggs LO206 Junior), Mateo Rubio-Luengo (IAME Mini Swift), Aiden Baker Crouse (Briggs LO206 Cadet), Emory Lyda (Yamaha Junior), Aiden Baker Crouse (IAME Swift), Nick Tucker (IAME Heavy), Luke Wallace (IAME Junior), Nick Tucker (Briggs LO206 Senior), Doug Rink (Briggs LO206 Heavy), Dalton Dow (IAME Senior).
Briggs LO206 Cadet Division Sponsored by EnforcerOne powered by FireAde:
The intensity and excitement could be felt as the Briggs LO206 Cadet drivers hit the track as the first to division to race under the lights for their final. Turning his perfect day into a perfect night, Aiden Baker Crouse won both Heat Races earlier in the day and led flag-to-flag to win the Final. Bree Miller fought off a last-lap attempt from Connor Zilisch to take home second and Zilisch settled for third.
Briggs LO206 Junior Division Sponsored by Race City Mobile Detailing:
In the Briggs LO206 Junior division 10-lap Final, Cade Frazier showed the way from the top spot, followed by Alex Keadle and Seth Gentry. However, just before halfway, Frazier and Keadle battled hard through the Hoosier Hairpin. Frazier gave Keadle the lead for just a mere few corners before taking the top position back in Turn Eleven. Frazier took home the Final win, while Keadle held off Gentry in a drag race to the line for second. Gentry finished in third.
IAME Mini Swift Division Sponsored by CNC Performance Engineering:
In the IAME Mini Swift 10-lap final, Sofia D’Arrigo led a six-kart group of frontrunners. By halfway, D’Arrigo was doing everything she could to pull away from the field, establishing a three-kart lead over second place of Sam Corry. However, her lead was short-lived as Corry stole the top spot away from her
in Turn Four. With three laps to go, spectators jumped up and down along the fenceline as D’Arrigo made the pass back for the top spot on Corry in Turn Four. D’Arrigo bobbled to give the lead back to Corry just before the final lap, shuffling her back to fourth. With an all-out, wild last lap, Mateo Rubio-Luengo powered his way to the front for the win, followed by Corry in second and Caleb Gafrarar in third.
IAME Swift Division Sponsored by HMS Motorsport:
A total of 19 young drivers took the green flag for the IAME Swift division’s 10-lap final race. Aiden Baker Crouse and Devin Gomez gapped the rest of the field, running bumper-to-bumper and creating a two- kart battle for the top spot. With two laps to go, Gomez suffered a heartbreaking end to his night with a mechanical problem, surrendering second position to Gray Leadbetter. Crouse strolled on to take the win, followed by Leadbetter and Caleb Bacon.
IAME Junior Division:
In the IAME Junior Division 12-lap final, a three-kart group with Luke Wallace, Pauly Massimino and Sam Tisdale broke away from the field. By halfway, Wallace was looking back over his shoulder from the top spot with Massimino running right on his bumper and turning the fastest laps of the race. However, when Massimino pulled off track with an apparent mechanical failure, it allowed Wallace a huge gap over the field with no close competition. Wallace scored his first-ever victory in the division in dominating fashion with nearly a two-second margin of victory. Rounding out the podium was Brooke Nachtmann in second and Lance Fenderson in third.
Yamaha Junior Division:
In the Yamaha Junior final, Taylor Stanford paced the field in the top position. However, by lap four, Emory Lyda overtook Stanford for the lead in the Hoosier Hairpin. Stanford quickly stole the lead back, but Lyda wasn’t giving up, continuing to chase Stanford and swapping for the top spot on the very next lap. Lyda went on to score the win, followed by Stanford in second and Chase Carey in third.
Briggs LO206 Senior Division Sponsored by Todd Shockman RV Sales:
The Briggs LO206 Senior 12-lap final featured a 20-kart field of drivers. Early on, Hank Hefner and Nick Tucker teamed up as drafting partners to break away from the field. However, they weren’t partners for long, swapping for the top spot while improving their lead to nearly two seconds over the rest of the field. By halfway, Tucker had advanced his lead over Hefner to just over two kart lengths. Tucked in behind Tucker’s draft, Hefner was able to suck up to Tucker’s bumper and run the fastest laps of the race. Bumper-to-bumper on the final lap, Tucker held off Hefner to take the win, followed by Hefner in second and Dan Koehler in third.
Briggs LO206 Heavy Division:
In our newly-formed Briggs LO206 Heavy Division (395 lbs.), Doug Rink scored the win, followed by Jerry Turner in second and Scott Sawyer in third.
IAME Heavy Division Sponsored by Stitch 98:
In the IAME Heavy Division, the field of nine competitors were all chasing Nick Tucker’s bumper as he skyrocketed to a staggering two-second lead over second position of Todd Shambo after just three laps. However, in an absolute nail-biter, Todd Shambo surged to trim down Tucker’s lead to just four kart lengths as the white flag flew. Tucker potentially suffered from exhaustion after running two divisions today. Shambo reeled in Tucker all the way to close onto Tucker’s bumper. However, on the final turn, Shambo may have given it a little too much and spun, allowing Tucker to take the win, followed by Steve Frank in second and John Wehrheim in third.
IAME Senior Division Sponsored by MPI:
In the IAME Senior division headline event under the lights, 17 competitors took the green flag. After just one lap, Nick Johnston charged to the point on the field, trailed closely by a seven-kart train of frontrunners. However, Dalton Dow overtook Johnston in Turn Four after just five laps. Johnston dropped in behind Dow to chase for the lead from the second position. By halfway, the seven-kart train of leaders was still nose-to-tail, forced to be absolutely flawless. Dalton Dow went unchallenged for the final circuit around to win the final. Johnston was able to maneuver around Bovim for the second position on the final lap entering Turn One. Bovim scored the second position and Johnston settled for the final spot on the podium.
RESULTS
Round 9
A total of 95 drivers entered Round Nine of the GoPro Motorplex Karting Challenge Presented by Hoosier Racing Tire today. Round Nine marked the second of two race rounds as part of the double-header weekend. A double-header weekend meant double the points up for grabs for drivers who have just three rounds remaining in the 12-round championship series.
Congrats to all Round Nine winners: Seth Gentry (Briggs LO206 Junior), Sam Corry (IAME Mini Swift), Aiden Baker Crouse (Briggs LO206 Cadet), Emory Lyda (Yamaha Junior), Brent Crews (IAME Swift), Todd Shambo (IAME Heavy), Lance Fenderson (IAME Junior), J.T. Swygert (Briggs LO206 Senior), Blake Hunt (IAME Senior), Ayden Young (Kid Kart).
IAME Senior Division Sponsored by MPI:
In the IAME Senior division final, Blake Hunt led Michael Bovim as the two drivers broke away from the 15-kart field, creating a two-kart battle for the top spot. Hunt set a blistering pace, but Bovim was aiming for the final win to complete his thus far perfect day after qualifying on the pole and winning the pre-final. However, Hunt continued to clock the fastest laps of the race while keeping Bovim at bay with a two-kart gap back. The battle for third was heating up behind the leaders with Nick Losito leading the train of five karts all nose-to-tail. When the checkered flag flew, Hunt earned the final win over Bovim in second and Losito rounded out the podium in third.
IAME Heavy Division Sponsored by Stitch 98:
In the IAME Heavy Division, Nick Tucker pulled out to nearly a second lead over second place of Todd Shambo after just one lap. Shambo clocked the fastest lap in qualifying and was right on Tucker’s heels in the pre-final, but was unable to contend for the lead for the majority of the race in the final. However, when Tucker suffered a mechanical failure on the final lap, Shambo strolled by to celebrate a huge win for him while Tucker suffered a huge disappointment. Michael Womack also passed up Tucker to finish second and Tucker limped across the line in third.
Briggs LO206 Senior Division Sponsored by Todd Shockman RV Sales:
The Briggs LO206 Senior division featured a 17-kart field of closely-matched drivers. During the opening lap, the nine-kart train of leaders swapped for position from corner to corner. Leading the charge from the top spot was Dan Koehler. However, just after Tucker took the lead from Koehler, Koehler was summoned to the pits for a dragging rear bumper. This allowed Tucker and J.T. Swygert to team-up to pull away from the field and settle the battle for the win among themselves. With three laps to go, Swygert attempted his move for the lead briefly into Turn One, but Tucker crossed him over to take back control of the top spot. Swygert wasn’t giving up, though. With one lap remaining, Swygert made a move in Turn Three and this one stuck, giving Swygert the lead. Tucker gave it his all battling side-to-side with Swygert through the final corner, but Tucker jumped the curb, allowing Swygert to take the win. Tucker settled for second and Matthew Turner finished third.
Yamaha Junior Division:
In the Yamaha Junior final, the two nemesis drivers, Emory Lyda and Taylor Stanford, were back at it battling hard for the win. Lyda led the first half of the race, but Stanford took control of the top spot just after halfway. On the final lap, the two drivers swapped for the lead twice, but Lyda was leading when it counted to take the win, followed by Stanford in second and Chase Carey in third.
Briggs LO206 Cadet Division Sponsored by EnforcerOne powered by FireAde:
In the Briggs LO206 Cadet Division 10-lap final, Aiden Baker Crouse looked to make it a trifecta perfect day after winning the pole in qualifying and pre-final and led the opening laps of the final. However, Bree Miller was knocking on Crouse’s bumper to shatter those hopes. Miller took the lead briefly in Turn Four with four laps remaining, but Crouse answered back in Turn One to regain the top spot. Miller made a slight mistake in the Hoosier Hairpin, creating a huge gap between her and Crouse. Crouse went on unchallenged to win the final, followed by Miller in second and Connor Zilisch in third.
IAME Junior Division:
In the IAME Junior Division 12-lap final, Lance Fenderson streaked out to the early lead chased closely only by Luke Wallace. As laps wound down, Fenderson’s lead stretched out. Fenderson scored the win with nearly a two-second advantage over Wallace in second and Mark Manno in third.
Briggs LO206 Junior Division Sponsored by Race City Mobile Detailing:
In the Briggs LO206 Junior division 10-lap Final, Cade Frazier led a four-kart train of karts all nose-to-tail. After just two laps, Seth Gentry was tired of being patient and made his move to take the lead, sending Frazier to third and Alex Keadle improved to second. Gentry was able to score the win with Frazier on his bumper in second. Keadle rounded out the podium in third.
IAME Swift Division Sponsored by HMS Motorsport:
A total of 18 young drivers took the green flag for the division’s 12-lap final race. Brent Crews was certainly the driver to beat after winning the pole in qualifying and the pre-final. In addition, Crews had the field chasing him from the top spot in the opening laps of the final. However, just before halfway, Devin Gomez stole the lead from Crews. Gomez and Crews checked out on the field to work together to stretch their lead over third place of Jacob Graham. On the final lap, it was unclear who would be leading at the line with Gomez and Crews swapping for the top position in nearly each corner. Crews held on to take the win and defended against Gomez who settled for second. Connor Zilisch came home in third.
IAME Mini Swift Division Sponsored by CNC Performance Engineering:
In the IAME Mini Swift 10-lap final, division frontrunner Mateo Rubio-Luengo was the driver to beat, leading early in the final. However, as halfway was signaled to the field, Sam Corry took over the lead with a power-move into Turn One. With two laps to go, Corry stretched out his lead after Rubio-Luengo and Lucas Vera made contact battling for second. Corry walked away with the win, followed by Vera in second and Alex Delemo in third.
Kid Kart Division:
In the Kid Kart Division, Ayden Young, got some valuable laps of experience and was able to take home the trophy for the win as well.
RESULTS