Daily Report by ROK Cup USA
Photos courtesy of Canadian Karting News
With the final Saturday of the Florida Winter Tour now complete, grids for Championship Sunday have been set. As weather moved in and out of the area throughout the day, it was a long day of competition at Ocala Gran Prix.
Nash Motorsports VLR Senior
Heat #2
Andres Ardiles (Zanella Racing) began his Saturday from the inside of the front row and maintained the lead as Cole Schroeder (Syntech) gained five positions in the opening lap. Ardiles stretched his lead to nearly one second by lap three but Rocco Pasquarella (JC Karting) closed the gap and moved to the point on lap five bringing Schroeder with him. Ardiles made a mistake on lap eight, opening the door for Hallie Schroeder (Syntech). With a two-kart race for the win, Cole Schroeder made a bid for the lead two corners from the end, sneaking by as Pasquarella drove through the dirt. Hallie Schroeder crossed the line in P3 with Ardiles in fourth and Charlie Murphy (Rolison Performance Group) in fifth.
Heat #3
It was Pasquarella who drove to the front of the VLR Senior class as he was able to gain two positions on the opening lap as Ardiles fell to last after opening lap contact. Murphy settled into second ahead of Hallie and Cole Schroeder. The field remained static throughout the 12-lap heat with the front four remaining unchanged as Ardiles moved his way back up to fifth.
Prefinal
It was Cole Schroeder who would lead the field to green in the VLR Senior prefinal, but it was Andres Ardiles who moved to the point early. Schroeder ran in second until lap nine when he was passed by Rocco Pasquarella. Rocco set multiple fast laps in a row to close the gap on Ardiles and on lap ten was able to get to the leader’s bumper. Pasquarella took the lead on lap eleven but lost it to Ardiles one lap later. Ardiles would hang on for the win as Pasquarella crossed the line in second ahead of Cole Schroeder, Hallie Schroder, Grace Hemmerde and Charlie Murphy. Following the race Cole Schroeder was removed from the results for contact on the track as well as the scale lane as tempers flared.
Utah Motorsports Campus VLR Master
Heat #2
Juan Basco (SLA Racing) and Cristian Vomir (Tecno Kart USA) slotted into the top-two positions as Basco was able to stretch the gap by nearly one second after two laps. Laurentiu Mardan (Tecno Kart USA) moved to P2 on lap three pushing Vomir back to third, just ahead of Martin Stone (Goodwood Kartways) and David Morris (Nadie). Basco was able to set fast lap after fast lap to open the gap as the top-five remained unchanged.
Heat #3
Basco continued his winning ways in heat three as he jumped out to the lead early and never looked back driving to a 2.593 victory. Mardan and Vomir were able to hold their positions to finish second and third as Martin Stone crossed the line in fourth, just ahead of David Morris as the top-five remained unchanged. Following the heat, Morris would be excluded from the results for an improperly mounted exhaust.
Prefinal
Juan Basco has been the driver to beat all weekend long and controlled the prefinal from his pole position starting spot until Mardan was able to take the point on lap three. Martin Stone moved into third ahead of Vomir and Brad Danieli (Mike Doty Racing). Mardan and Basco opened a large gap on the rest of the field to battle for the prefinal win. Running nose to tail, Mardan tried to defend as the pair went wheel-to-wheel for several corners and was able to hold his competitor at bay. Basco earned a second place result for his efforts ahead of Stone, Vomir and Danieli.
REM VLR Junior
Heat #2
It was Jack Jeffers (PSL Karting) and Chase Hand (Rolison Performance Group) that led the field to green in heat race two with Jeffers getting the jump as Hand fell to P5. Benefiting from the opening lap aggression, Cooper O’Clair (J3 Competition), Paul Bocuse (Parolin USA) and Sebastian Wheldon (JC Karting) all moved forward. O’Clair moved to the point on lap two and began to open a gap. Bocuse would hold up a train of karts causing contact behind him resulting in Beckham Jacir (Jacir Karting) to spin. Hand moved to fourth and then one lap later snuck by Bocuse for third. O’Clair took the win ahead of Hand, Beckham, Jeffers and Jake Walker.
Heat #3
With the field coming to green, Paul Bocuse failed to take the start and was classified in P11. Jack Jeffers took the lead early with Chase Hand, Cooper O’Clair and Sebastian Wheldon in the top-four as they began to break away. As the top-four battled hard on lap five, Wheldon took advantage of some hard racing to move to P2 as seven karts ran nose to tail. O’Clair would get by Wheldon on lap seven as Jeffers defended his position. O’Clair made a bid for the lead around the outside of the showcase corner but a trip through the dirt relegated him to P5. Beckham Jacir moved to second, before Wheldon retook the spot a few corners later. Jeffers continued to defend until Wheldon laid the bumper to him with two laps remaining to take the point and the checkered flag. O’Clair ended his third heat in second ahead of Hand, Jacir and Jeffers. Following the heat and a host of penalties, O’Clair would get the win with Hand, Jeffers, Jake Walker and Wheldon rounding out the top-five.
Prefinal
O’Clair took the lead on the opening lap as Jeffers spun and fell to the tail of the field in 11th. Chase Hand moved into second ahead of Jacir, Reed and Graham Trammel (Rolison Performance Group). Jacir moved to second on lap two as Reed advanced to third on lap three. O’Clair opened a slight gap on the rest of the field. Chase Hand scored the fastest lap of the race as he moved back to the second position and began to hunt down the leader. Running laps faster than O’Clair, Hand took the lead on lap eleven as O’Clair moved back to the point a lap later. Hand made a bid for the point a lap later and the pair went wheel-to-wheel through the final corner with O’Clair scoring the win. Hand finished second ahead of Jacir, Xander Reed (Parolin USA) and Jeffers who recovered for fifth.
Leading Edge Motorsports Mini ROK
Heat #2
After claiming the pole position and heat race win yesterday, Diego Ardiles (Supertune) began heat two from the inside of the front row as Enzo Vidmontiene (Team Benik) lined up alongside. Vidmontiene got a jump on the start, a little too good of a jump and would be penalized post-race. Ardiles fell to sixth on the opening lap as Salvador Della Vecchia (San Antonio Racing) and Sarah Bradley (SB Racing) moved to second and third ahead of Oliver Wheldon (JC Karting) in fourth. The top five remained lock step together as Ardiles moved into fourth. Della Vecchia moved to the point on lap seven as Ardiles moved to third and then second. With one lap remaining, Wheldon went to third as Ardiles made some bold moves to get back to the point and claim the win ahead of Vidmontiene, Wheldon, Della Vecchia and Carson Weinberg (WB Racing). Vidmontiene would be dropped to ninth after his three second time penalty.
Heat #3
After a thirty-minute weather delay, the Mini ROK drivers took to the track for heat three. At the start, Wheldon jumped to the lead from third passing both Diego Ardiles and Enzo Vidmontiene. Kai Johnson (PSA Check) and Carson Weinberg (WB) both had strong starts and took over the fourth and fifth positions and continued to battle throughout the race. At the start of lap four, Wheldon was passed and polesitter Ardiles managed to retake the lead. With two to go, Wheldon once again worked his way past Ardiles and settled into the top spot and in a race to the finish, Ardiles was able to get past Wheldon and took home the win just 0.013 seconds to continue his perfect weekend.
Prefinal
Looking to cap off a perfect weekend, Ardiles led the field to the green for the prefinal but Oliver Wheldon got a great start and moved to the front by the exit of the first corner. Della Vecchia slotted in P3 as Enzo Vidmontiene moved to fourth disposing of Kai Johnson. Ardiles moved back to the point on lap five as Sarah Bradley slotted into the top-five. In just two more laps, Bradley advanced to third bringing Vidmontiene with her into fourth. The second to last lap saw two passes as Wheldon took over the lead and Vidmontiene moved into third. Wheldon scored the prefinal win over Ardiles, Vidmontiene, Bradley and Salvador Della Vecchia.
ANSA Motorsports Master Shifter ROK
Heat #2
From the off pole, Jordon Musser (PSL Karting) jumped to the lead as polesitter Rene Martinelli (TB Kart USA) fell to third. Luis Mendez (AKT Racing) was a big benefactor gaining two positions as Pete Licciardi (TB Kart USA) advanced to P4. Musser stretched his lead to over one second by mid-race distance as the top-four remained unchanged. Musser scored the win as Martinelli was able to sneak by Mendez to earn the second position. Mendez would come home P3 ahead of Licciardi and Daniel Dibos (Dibos Racing).
Heat #3
After winning heat two earlier in the day, Jordon Musser once again jumped to the front of the field passing polesitter Rene Martinelli for the lead. Setting the fastest lap of the race, Martinelli was unable to get past Musser and finished heat three in second while Musser took home his second win of the weekend. Luis Mendez finished in third while Peter Licciardi and Patrik Madsen (Ansa Motorsports) rounded out the top-five.
Prefinal
From the off pole starting position, Rene Martinelli had an outstanding start jumping to the lead and opening more than a half second gap. Musser fell to second ahead of Mendez, Madsen and Sanchez. Musser was the fastest driver on the track and closed the gap by the end of lap four as he looked for a way by. Martinelli responded later in the race with a few fast laps of his own as Sanchez moved to third to be the best of the rest. Martinelli would hold Musser at bay to take the win ahead of Musser as Sanchez, Medez and Madsen rounded out the top-five.
Rolison Performance Group Senior ROK
Heat #2
It was Diego Ramos (REM) who jumped from P2 to the lead on the opening lap as Ryan Norberg (Rolison Performance Group) was able to get by Connor Zilisch (Mike Doty Racing) in turn five. Norberg closed on the bumper of Ramos and on lap two, was able to get by for the lead brining Zilisch with him. Alex Stanfield (Crosslink) maintained his position in fourth, just ahead of Aaron Benoit (URace). Benoit was able to get by Stanfield on lap eight as the front three remained unchanged. Norberg scored the win ahead of Zilisch and Ramos while Benoit and Stanfield rounded out the top-five.
Heat #3
Ryan Norberg jumped to the head of the Senior ROK time sheets in heat three as he gained two positions in the opening laps to take the lead. Diego Ramos settled into second as polesitter Connor Zilisch fell to P3. Thomas Nepveu had a good drive forward as he gained six to enter the top-five with two laps remaining, but it was all Norberg upfront. Norberg took the win ahead of Ramos and Zilisch, Stanfield and Nepveu.
Prefinal
Ryan Norberg opened a .400 gap over the opening lap as Diego Ramos moved to second on the start. Connor Zilisch was able to get back by Ramos on lap two and set his sights on Norberg. Thomas Nepveu advanced forward four positions in five laps to move into fifth as Norberg began to stretch the gap on Zilisch up front. Aaron Benoit ran in fourth as he looked to hold Nepveu behind him. Zilisch set the fastest lap on lap seven to close the gap slightly to Norberg who responded later with his own fastest race lap. On lap nine, both Benoit and Nepveu would sneak by Ramos dropping him to fifth as Norberg continued to command the race lead. Nepveu gained another position on lap 12 to P3 but less than a lap later, retired with an issue. Norberg took the win with Zilisch in second, Benoit third, Ramos fourth and Alex Stanfield in fifth.
Orsolon Racing Master ROK
Heat #2
It was a 12-lap heat two for Master ROK competitors as Scott Roberts (Speed Concepts Racing) led Renato Jader David (Orsolon Racing) at the close of lap one. Mario Barrios (Rolison Performance Group) fell to third, just ahead of AKT Racing’s Gonzalo Aponte and William Isaias (International Motorsports). The top-five remained unchanged until lap nine when Barrios moved to P2 ahead of Jader David as Roberts opened the lead to just over half a second. Roberts took the win ahead of Barrios and Jader David as Aponte and Isaias were fourth and fifth.
Heat #3
Kim Carapellatti (J3 Competition) rocketed forward six positions at the start of the third Master ROK heat, but it was Scott Roberts who led and controlled the pace early. Jader David moved past Barrios on lap one to take over the second position and Isaias and Frank Runco (Checkered Motorsports) rounded out the top-five. Roberts scored the fastest lap of the race en route to a 1.924 victory over Jader David who outpaced Barrios by .067 for P2 and ahead of Isaias and Runco. Following the post-race technical inspection, Mario Barrios was excluded from the results.
Prefinal
Roberts led the field to the green, but it was Jader David who moved to the point on the opening lap as Mario Barrios gained three positions by the end of lap three to third. Roberts made a move for the lead on lap six in the showcase corner pushing Jader David to second. Barrios continued to hold on to the third position but on lap eight, was able to advance to second. Roberts hung on to the lead and prefinal win as Barrios was the biggest mover, gaining four to finish second. Jader David crossed the line in third ahead of Aponte and Isaias.
Zanella Racing Micro ROK
Heat #2
Heat one winner and polesitter Matheus Ramalho (REM) led lap one while Alessandro Truchot (Parolin USA) and Marco Romero (Zanella Racing) each gained positions. Lap two saw Truchot take the point bringing Romero with him while lap three saw Augustus Toniolo (Rolison Performance Group) move to P2 as Ramalho followed him to slot into third. Truchot pulled a gap but Toniolo was able to knock out some quick laps to close the gap and take the lead on lap six as Max Cristea (Magik Kart USA) moved to P4. Ramalho was able to slip by for second and nearly the lead with two laps remaining but was unable to advance forward any further. Toniolo scored the heat two win ahead of Ramalho, Truchot, Cristea and Romero.
Heat #3
Toniolo had trouble leaving the grid and could not regain his starting position on the warmup lap and was forced to come from the tail of the grid. Gaining six positions on the opening lap, Toniolo moved to 13th while Ramalho led early. Max Cristea moved to third in the opening few laps as Tristan Murphy, Truchot and Aleksander Ratushnyy (URace) rounded out the top-five. With rain starting to fall on lap three, the pace slowed as drivers began to spin. Phaethon Saradpon (AKT) moved to fifth, taking advantage of the wet weather as did Toniolo who gained six more positions in two laps to slot into P2 on lap five. On lap six, Toniolo took the lead in what could have been the drive of the weekend and never looked back, taking the win ahead of Ramalho and Ratushnyy, Cristea and Truchot. Following the heat, the top two positions would remain unchanged as Cristea advanced to third ahead of Gabriel Balog (Checkered Motorsports) and Marco Romero.
Prefinal
Toniolo led lap one as Cristea and Romero both gained positions in the opening lap to run second and third. Matheus Ramalho moved to third on lap three as Truchot fell to fifth. Ramalho moved by Cristea on lap seven and stuck to the bumper of Toniolo as the pair looked to battle it out for the win. It would get worse for Cristea as Romero snuck by one lap later as Ramalho moved to the point on lap ten. Toniolo continued his winning ways regaining the lead on the final lap and taking the checkered flag. Ramalho ended his day in second with Romero, Cristea and Truchot rounding out the top-five. Following post-race technical inspection, Toniolo would keep the win as Ramalho was removed for a technical infraction. Romero would be classified in second ahead of Cristea.
Speed Concepts Racing Junior ROK
Heat #2
After the start of the race was briefly red flagged due to weather concerns, the Junior ROK field received the green flag just after 12:00pm. In the first lap of turn one, a large crash involved a number of drivers, shuffling the order as some slight rain fell. At the start, Noah Baker (Supertune) took the lead while polesitter and yesterday’s heat one winner, Ayden Ingratta (Speed Concepts Racing) fell to the back of the field into P20. Further back in the field, Jake Walker (Mike Doty Racing) and Daniel Perez (Orsolon Racing) avoided the opening lap incident, and each gained nine positions in the opening few circuits. Five laps in, Noah Baker, Cameron Weinberg (WB Karting), Paul Bocuse (Parolin USA), Jeremy Fletcher (Team Felon) and Kekai Hauanio (OGP) settled in to the top five positions. In the final laps, Fletcher and Hauanio battled for the fourth position with Fletcher ultimately taking the spot. After falling back through the field at the start, polesitter Ayden Ingratta remained one of the quickest drivers in the field and quickly made his way back through the field up into seventh and set the fastest lap of the race.
Heat #3
Ingratta would hold the lead at the start of heat three as the top-three remained unchanged over the opening lap. Baker ran second ahead of Bocuse but on lap two, Bocuse moved to second pushing Baker wide and down to fifth. Cameron Weinberg (WB Racing) advanced to third ahead of Logan Toke (RPM) in fourth. Toke set a fast lap on lap four as he moved to P3 as Michael Costello (Team Benik) advanced nine positions to seventh. The front of the field settled just past the half race distance as Ingratta and Bocuse were evenly spaced and ahead of Weinberg and Baker. Jeremy Fletcher (Team Felon) moved to fifth getting past Toke as Jorge Ortiz (Supertune) and Costello followed him through. Ingratta took the checkered flag ahead of Bocuse, Fletcher, Baker and Weinberg.
Prefinal
It was Cameron Weinberg and Jeremy Fletcher who would take advantage of the opening lap melee as they both were able to get by pole sitter Ayden Ingratta and point leader Noah Baker. As they battled hard behind him, Weinberg opened a .734 gap over Ingratta who moved back to the second position. Logan Toke gained two positions to run in fifth behind Fletcher. With Ingratta and Baker running together on the track, the duo was also the top-two in the championship standings, but they would make contact and be forced to retire. Starting from the tail of the field tomorrow, they will both look to drive forward and see what they can do for their championship hopes. Weinberg continued to lead ahead of Fletcher and Paul Bocuse as Toke moved to fourth ahead of Ortiz. Bocuse moved into P2 on lap eleven, but Weinberg was already a second down the road. Marcello Paniccia gained eight positions to move into fifth on lap twelve, but it was all Weinberg up front. Weinberg took the win ahead of Bocuse, Fletcher, Ortiz and Paniccia.
PSL Karting Shifter ROK
Heat #2
In the opening lap, drivers experienced a slick track due to rain that sent a number of drivers spinning, with polesitter Austin Garrison (RPG) retiring early. AJ Myers (Checkered Motorsports) was able to pass Jake French (PSL Karting) for the lead, with Danny Formal (ANSA) in third. Four laps in, Jacob Gulick moved up eight positions and was able to get around Danny Formal to take over third. At the halfway-point, Jake French and AJ Myers battled back and forth for the lead, with Gulick and Formal quickly gaining on the leaders. On lap seven, Danny Formal got around Myers to take over second and was up into the lead on lap nine. Up until the finish, it was a battle for the top four positions, with all five drivers finishing within 1.458-seconds of each other. Ultimately, Danny Formal took home the win, followed closely by French, Myers and Zach Hollingshead (TB Kart USA).
Heat #3
While Austin Garrison held his lead, AJ Myers and Mathias Ramirez moved up into second and third. Danny Formal maintained his fourth place starting position and Jake French fell back to fifth from second. With a new top-five determined in the opening lap, they held their positions for the next eleven laps while the rest of the field battled behind them. After retiring from heat two earlier in the day, Garrison was once again able to stay at the front of the field to take home the win with Myers, Ramirez, Formal and French rounding out the top-five.
Prefinal
With a clean start in the final event of the day, the top five Shifter ROK drivers held their positions in the opening lap led by AJ Myers. In the opening few circuits, Zach Hollingshead gained two positions as he, Austin Garrison and Mathias Ramirez began to battle for fourth. Shuffling the running order, Ramirez jumped up into second on lap five with a bold move, knocking Danny Formal down to third. During the second half of the race, Ramirez was quickly chasing down Myers, continually running faster laps than the race leader. However, Myers was able to hold him off in the final few circuits. Myers, who had been in the top-three in all three heat races, claimed his first win of the weekend and set himself up to start on the pole position on Championship Sunday. Mathis Ramirez finished in second while Danny Formal, Jake French and Austin garrison completed the top-five.
At time of posting, all results are unofficial
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