Close Finishes Highlight Formula Race Promotions Event at Road America
Always a premier event on the Formula Race Promotions (FRP) calendar, teams and competitors descended on the 4.048-mile, 14-turn, natural terrain road course of Road America. Taking place in picturesque Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, the track known for drafting and close finishes did not disappoint.
“We had some new FRP records set, and once again we needed the finish line camera to determine several of the finishing positions,” explained Bob Wright. “Road America is such a great facility that provides fun and entertainment for all. It was great to see the smiling faces of our competitors, many of whom chose to camp trackside and enjoy the nighttime festivities. FRP is just one big family but when the helmets go on and the visors close, the family turns into a competition, and it is great to see the camaraderie amongst all.”
Clay Hutchison added, “Congrats to all our race victors and podium winners. It is great to see new drivers join us and have success right away. We had close finishes throughout the fields in both run groups, and multiple times had to verify results with our finish line video. We are already looking forward to New Jersey Motorsports Park in a few weeks' time, and information, schedule and the registration link are all up on the FRP website.”
Register now for New Jersey Motorsports Park – Click HERE
F1600 Championship Series
Qualifying
F1600
1. Jack Sullivan – 2:23.885
2. Porter Aiken – 2:24.561
3. Jason Pribyl – 2:24.731
4. Eddie Beswick – 2:24.869
5. Theodore Burns – 2:24.885
F1600 Masters
1. Scott Rubenzer 2:25.689
2. Ken Bouquillon – 2:26.637
3. David Livingston Jr. – 2:27.191
4. Phil Kingham – 2:29.893
5. Michael Scanlan – 2:31.110
Race #1
Starting second on the grid, Porter Aiken added to his 2023 win total by once again climbing his way to the front of the order and the top of the result sheets. Despite only turning the tenth fastest lap of the race, Aiken methodically worked his way to the front to earn the win at the conclusion of the eight-lap race by a scant two-tenths of a second. Jason Pribyl, in his first F1600 race of the season, started third and gained one position to stand on the podium in the second position with pole position winner Jack Sullivan in third. It was a drag race to the line with the top-five drivers finishing within .317 of the race winner Aiken as a blanket could have been thrown over all of them as they came to the checkered flag. 2023 race winners Ayrton Houk and Sebastian Mateo Naranjo crossed the line fourth and fifth respectively showing the true level of competition of the FRP F1600 program. Post race, it was determined that pole position driver Jack Sullivan had been a tad overanxious at the start, and was penalized five seconds for jumping the green knocking him back to eighth. In the F1600 Masters class, Ken Bouquillon narrowly took the win ahead of Scott Rubenzer as these two drivers had the second and third fastest laps of the 25 competitive field. Michael Scanlan was happy to again celebrate on the podium in third while Phil Kingham and Sam Lockwood rounded out the top-five.
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Race #2
With lap times from race one setting the grid for race two, Theodore Burns earned his first pole position of his 2023 season ahead of a pair of F1600 Masters drivers Ken Bouquillon and Scott Rubenzer. Eddie Beswick slotted himself into fourth ahead of 2023 race winners Sebastian Mateo Naranjo and Ayrton Houk. It was a picture-perfect 2x2 start, with Masters driver Ken Bouquillon taking the lead for the first four laps, before “getting out of the way of the younger drivers.” At the checkers, it was another 2023 first-time winner in the F1600 class in race two on Sunday morning as Eddie Beswick, traveling all the way from Australia for his first foray into FRP racing, was able to find his way to the front of the field after nine laps despite only having the seventh-fastest lap of the race. Team Pelfrey entrant Naranjo moved his way forward from fifth to stand on the podium in the second position ahead of perennial front-runner and championship contender Jack Sullivan. Saturday’s race winner Porter Aiken, with the fastest lap of the race and pole position for race three on Sunday afternoon, slotted into the fourth position while Ayrton Houk earned another top-five result in fifth. Scott Rubenzer returned to the top step of the podium in F1600 Masters with a wily last lap pass over Ken Bouquillon with Michael Scanlan joining them on the podium in third.
Race #3
Porter Aiken lined up from the inside of the front row for race three with Scott Rubenzer to his left in P2. Theodore Burns took the start of race three from the third position beside Bouquillon and ahead of the row three combatants of Jack Sullivan and Jason Pribyl. It was Sullivan who had one of the strongest drives of the weekend, happily converting his P5 starting spot into a win by more than three-seconds, while Timothy Steele set a new FRP Road America record with his 2.22.493 fast lap of the day. Theodore Burns pushed his #8 machine to the second step on the podium ahead of the Rice Race Prep driver Ayrton Houk who narrowly beat Sebastian Mateo Naranjo by .009 in a photo finish for the final podium position. Porter Aiken crossed the line fifth, claiming his third top-five finish of the weekend. Scott Rubenzer and Ken Bouquillon continued their (friendly) close competitive rivalry as Scott once again found his way to the head of the Masters class to celebrate on the podium just ahead of Ken with David Livingston Jr. joining them in third.
Atlantic Championship Series
Race #1 Qualifying
Atlantic 016
1. Jimmy Simpson – 1:59.716
2. Keith Grant – 1:59.949
3. David Grant – 2:00.263
4. Chip Romer – 2:02.074
5. Richard Zober – 2:04.607
Race #1 Qualifying
Atlantic Open
1. Austin Hill - 2:06.606
2. Jim Booth – 2:14.914
3. Kirk Kindsfater – 2:17.134
Race #1
Taking the green flag from the pole position for race one, Jimmy Simpson went on to add another Atlantic 016 race win to his resume as he topped the charts after the 12-lap race. David Grant leveled up from his P3 starting spot to be the best of the rest in the second position but went on to earn the fastest lap of the race just over three-tenths of a second faster than Simpson by fast lap comparison. Dudley Fleck, who was outside the top-five after qualifying, climbed his way forward in relentless pursuit of the leaders to cross the stripe in third and stand on the podium with Simpson and Grant. Chip Romer maintained his fourth-place starting position to come home fourth while Richard Zober rounded out the top-five in fifth.
In the Atlantic Open class, Austin Hill demonstrated he was the class of the field lapping nearly a second faster than his class rivals. Third-place qualifier Kirk Kindsfater crossed the line in second to stand on the box just ahead of Bruce Hamilton who completed the podium trio. Jim Booth held Bob Corliss at bay to secure the fourth position as Corliss crossed under the checkered flag in fifth.
Race #2 Qualifying
Atlantic 016
1. David Grant – 1:58.187
2. Keith Grant – 1:58.740
3. Tonis Kasemets – 1:59.312
4. Chip Romer – 2:00.438
5. Richard Zober – 2:01.991
Race #2 Qualifying
Atlantic Open
1. Bruce Hamilton - 2:05.355
2. Austin Hill – 2:05.822
3. Kirk Kindsfater – 2:06.524
Race #2
With a second-place result from the day prior and leading the field to the green flag for race two, David Grant was on a mission to ensure he stood atop the podium when the checkered flag flew. Piloting a Polestar Motor Racing 2006 Swift Atlantic 016, Grant did just that taking the win and scoring his second podium result of the weekend. Veteran competitor and the always-fast Tonis Kasemets drove his K-Hill Motorsports entry to a second-place result in class as he was joined on the podium by another Grant, brother Keith in third. For the second day in a row, Chip Romer converted his fourth-place qualifying effort to a fourth-place finish at the end while Dudley Fleck rounded out the top-five.
In the open class, Kirk Kindsfater significantly improved his lap times from his Saturday result and climbed his way to the top of the podium block. Bruce Hamilton scored the fastest race lap in the Open class to come home second ahead of multi-series racer Jim Booth in his McDonalds backed entry in third. Bob Corliss and Austin Hill rounded out the top-five.
F2000 Championship Series
Race #1 Qualifying
F2000
1. Michael Varacins – 2:11.406
2. Matthew McDonough – 2:13.431
3. JT Novosielski – 2:15.294
4. Robert Wright – 2:15.478
5. Dave Weitzenhof – 2:21.502
Race #1
Starting from the pole position, Michael Varacins was able to break out to the lead and drive off for the first F2000 race win of the weekend. Showing his speed to earn the pole position and fastest race lap, Varacins is on pace to sweep the weekend with only two more official sessions to go. Matthew McDonough and JT Novosielski qualified second and third in the morning timed session, and both maintained their positions once wheel-to-wheel action began with the top-three in qualifying remaining the front three in the race. Newcomer Hunter Tatman hailing from Fort Collins, Colorado and also competing in the F1600 class, moved forward in race one advancing from outside the top-five in qualifying to finish fourth while Robert Wright celebrated with a P5 result.
Race #2 Qualifying
F2000
1. Michael Varacins – 2:11.840
2. Matthew McDonough – 2:12.174
3. JT Novosielski – 2:13.796
4. Robert Wright – 2:14.785
5. Hunter Tatman – 2:15.064
Race #2
With two pole positions and one win to his credit on the weekend before Sunday's race, Michael Varacins took the green flag from the inside of the front row in his attempt to sweep the weekend. Progression through the 12-lap race with ease, Varacins dominated the F2000 class to add another win. The top two in qualifying once again remained unchanged in the race action just like the day prior with McDonough crossing the line in second as Hunter Tatman made the jump from P5 on the starting grid to the third and final step on the podium. Robert Wright improved on his fifth-place result Saturday to cross the line fourth on Sunday ahead of Hartley MacDonald who earned his best result of the weekend.
FRP new lap records set at Road America:
Atlantic:
Q 1:58.187- David Grant
R 1:58.652 - Tonis Kasmets
F2000:
Q 2:11.406 - Mike Varacins
R 2:11.055 - Mike Varacins
F1600:
R 2:22.493 - Tim Steele
FRP will head to the ultra-fast New Jersey Motorsports Park (NJMP) later this month. Taking place July 28-30, registration is open HERE. Be sure to stay tuned to the Formula Race Promotions social media pages and website for additional information.
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For questions, comments or concerns, please feel free to reach out to Bob Wright RobertW@RaceFRP.com or Clay Hutchison ClayH@RaceFRP.com. For media inquiries, please contact us via email at Media@RaceFRP.com