Sebastian Mateo Naranjo, Joe Colasacco, and Gabriel Cahan Win Big at Lime Rock Park
It was the annual trip to Lime Rock Park for Memorial Day weekend as the Formula Race Promotions (FRP) program was back on track Friday, Saturday, and Monday. Taking on the seven-turn, 1.530-mile circuit, Sebastian Mateo Naranjo earned two wins and three podium results in F1600, Joe Colasacco scored three F1600 Masters wins, while Gabriel Cahan asserted himself in F2000 with a pole position and double victory.
“It’s always a great weekend at Lime Rock Park over Memorial Day weekend,” explained Bob Wright. “The day off in the middle of the weekend allows some of our competitors and teams' families to experience the area. It is a large spectator weekend, and we always have more family and friends at this event, and this year didn’t disappoint.”
In a weekend that featured mixed weather conditions, racing was as close as ever on the shortest circuit on the 2024 calendar.
F1600 Qualifying
1. Jackson Tovo – 54.215
2. Sebastian Mateo Naranjo – 54.387
3. Dillon Defonce – 54.416
4. Karsten Defonce – 54.515
5. Cooper Shipman – 54.520
F1600 Masters Qualifying
1. Joe Colasacco – 54.901
2. John Thompson – 55.889
3. Michael Scanlan – 56.021
4. Bob Reid – 56.163
5. Gary Gecelter – 56.553
Race #1
The 24-lap race one saw Cooper Shipman advance from his fifth-place starting position on route to the third fastest lap of the race. Fast lap honors went to the Tovo twins, Ethan and Jackson, who finished tenth and fourth, respectively, in the first wheel-to-wheel action of the weekend. Behind Shipman up front, Sebastian Mateo Naranjo maintained his outside front row starting position to stand on the second step of the podium, just ahead of Dillon Defonce in third. Jackson Tovo finished fourth after being the youngest pole position qualifier in the history of FRP, just ahead of Karsten Defonce. Joe Colasacco turned his F1600 Masters pole position into a win, with Michael Scanlan and Gary Gecelter finishing second and third in class.
Race #2
With a second-place result in qualifying and a P2 finish in race two, Mateo Naranjo broke through in race two and found his way to the podium's top step over the damp 23-lap affair. Ethan Tovo pushed his way to the pointy end of the results sheet, earning a second-place result for his efforts showing his wet weather prowess. Timothy Steele joined Mateo Naranjo and Tovo on the podium in third, his first podium result of the weekend. In the Masters class, it was once again Colasacco who scored the win, but second and third were podium newcomers this weekend, with Bob Reid and John Thompson in second and third, respectively.
Race #3
Described by many spectators and non-FRP event staff as being the best overall race of the entire weekend, the final F1600 race had close battles throughout the field. The top trio of Naranjo, Shipman, and Steele led in a pack, swapping positions virtually every lap. During lap 18, Jackson Tovo would break free of the second pack and join in with the lead group, leaving an ‘anything goes position swapping’ battle between Dillon Defonce, Ava Hanssen, Aryton Cahan, and Ethan Tovo, who at the checker finished fifth through eighth in the order of Defonce, Tovo, Cahan and Hanssen. A bit further afield, Will Velkoff and Master’s leader Joe Colasacco would swap positions six times during their private battle, while the second to fourth place Masters’ battle between Scanlan, Reid, and Thompson was every bit as competitive as the lead pack, while Michael Dowden and Gary Gecelter followed on with their own close position swapping battle.
At the white flag, Cooper Shipman was in the lead, but at the checker, Mateo Naranjo was on top, joined by Timothy Steele and third-place finisher Jackson Tovo, with Cooper landing in fourth. Joe Colasacco made it three-for-three for the F1600 Masters podium, earning a triple-win weekend, joined by Michael Scanlan and Bob Reid. An exciting and competitive race, with the championship battle taking shape, the next two events at PIRC and Road America in June promise to be as competitive.
F2000 Qualifying
1. Gabriel Cahan – 50.805
2. Dane McMahon – 51.049
3. Carter Sheets – 52.246
4. Robert Wright – 52.581
5. Peter Gonzalez – 54.811
Race #1
It was a performance of driving perfection between Dane McMahon and Gabriel Cahan as they remained glued together in positions one and two while swapping the best lap times between them throughout the 24 laps. Underweight at the scales would DQ McMahon, putting Cahan on the top step of the podium, joined by Robert Wright and Carter Sheets in second and third, respectively, having had their own two-car position-swapping battle. Rounding out the top-five would be Chris Monteleone and Peter Gonzalez.
Race #2
Cahan was the dominant driver on the weekend and doubled up on his wins, scoring the race two victory and fast lap honors. Racing for his family-owned Cahan Racing Team, Gabriel is now a three-time winner in 2024 as he eyes the end-of-season title. McMahon rebounded from his race-one disqualification to stand on the second step of the podium in race two, while Carter Sheets was the best of the rest in P3. Robert Wright and Chris Monteleone finished fourth and fifth, respectively.
Next up for Formula Race Promotions will be a trip to the Pittsburgh International Race Complex over the June 7-9 weekend, followed soon thereafter at Road America with its Thursday, June 27 test day and the racing event Friday-Sunday June 28-30. Stay tuned to RaceFRP.com for more information.
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