Andrews Leads F1600 Practice at Road Atlanta
Braselton, GA – Scott Andrews paced Friday practice at Road Atlanta in the first timed session of the 21-race 2015 season in the F1600 Formula F Championship Series. The No. 94 Spectrum/Honda from Exclusive Autosport ran under the track’s F1600 race record with a quick lap of 1:29.869. Ben Auriemma and Andrew Hobbs followed on the morning time sheets from Team Pelfrey, while an afternoon session saw slower times from a damp race track.
“Obviously the Exclusive car is really well prepared, and it’s a brand new chassis,” said Andrews, who is 24 and from Melbourne, Australia. “There is lots of track available here at Road Atlanta and I like using it. Compared to racing in Australia, this car has much more grip, it’s crazy.”
Auriemma missed out on the top time of Friday by a slim .028 seconds, while second-year F1600 driver Andrew Hobbs was a further two tenths back in third place in a similar yellow-and-black Mygale/Honda out of the Pelfrey stable. A total of 19 cars posted times on Friday at Road Atlanta ahead of the Series’ first-ever triple-header race weekend.
Exclusive Autosport sandwiched the Pelfrey entries as Jack Mitchell Jr. put in a lap good enough for fourth fastest on Friday in his sophomore F1600 season.
Will Harvey was the first of four Chastain Motorsports entries with the fifth fastest time in a very tight Friday practice time sheet.
Austin Mack, who ran well at the Winter Exhibition in Palm Beach in February, was sixth fastest for K-Hill in a Mygale/Honda as K-Hill fields entries in F1600, F2000 and Atlantic.
Robert Megennis, Thomas McGregor, Kyle Kirkwood and Steve Bamford completed the top ten.
In the Masters Class, for drivers over the age of 40, Bamford was fastest and 10th overall, followed by Art Foster and Mike Scalan.
In other news, Mack will be joined at K-Hill this weekend by 2014 F2000 Championship Series runner-up and multiple race winner Skylar Robinson, who will make his first appearance in the F1600 Series with K-Hill. Robinson put in a lap for 11th fastest in the morning session.
2014 Road Atlanta race winner Jim Goughary battled through car problems that saw the team changing an engine late in the No. 7 entry late in the day.
A rain storm followed the morning session, with rain eventually stopping but leaving the track damp and significantly slower for an early afternoon practice.
With the first day of official practice in the books, qualifying and race one of the 2015 F1600 Series season will follow on Saturday. Sunday sees two races scheduled, with starting grids set by fastest laps from the previous race. Follow the action on www.F1600Series.com.
Results are available on www.F1600Series.com under the results tab.