CalSpeedMagMarch2018

Pole - Chris Huerta C ontinuing his impressive run in qualifying so far this year, Chris Huerta scored his second pole position of the season, his second on the Sportivo layout and 4th of his career. He would do it by the slimmest of margins over Tony Severson, putting in a stout performance to come up just .015 short of the top time. Sean Fite would bring home the final bonus point in qualifying with his third overall, the top five in qualifying separated by just .087 seconds… The close lap times and hard fought results would continue into the heat races, with six different drivers coming home with heat race wins. Usual suspects Charles Eichlin, Alyssa Yauney, and Jose da Silva would each bring home the ‘W’ in the first set of heats, while some new faces came out on top with TJ Blackledge, Rodney Bryant, and Tony Severson scoring victories in the second set of heat races. Consistency would be the key to a strong starting spot in the mains however, the A-Main pole position going to Severson via his third and first pairing. The outside front row would see a tie breaker between Alexander Bermudez and Paulo Franca, each earning a pair of thirds in their heats, but the nod went to the former via his faster time in qualifying… by just .008. The C and B-Mains were a stark contrast to each other, as Darwin Felix went flag to flag in the C-Main, while the B-Main saw a battle from start to finish. For Felix, a pole position starting spot saw him shoot out to a health lead while battling ensued behind him, although one driver was able to squirt through. Starting 6th, Sprint Series regular Nathanial Small slowly closed the gap to Felix, coming up just short to settle for second in the C-Main to Felix. The B-Main would see Lukas Dziemidok also take command from pole, but his reign at the top came under fire about halfway through, first from Don Diego Veloria, and then by Nick Marascio. It all came down to the final corner, as an attack followed by counter attacks- saw a drag race to the line. The momentum lost by the front three also saw fourth place Eric Monteith get a run, offering up a 4-wide run to the line that saw Nick Marascio on top by .012, and the front four separated by just .062 at the line… For the first time since the rolling starts have returned, the pole sitter elected to take the outside lane at the start, with Tony Severson leading everyone away at the green. A Main Podium B-Main Winner Nick Marascio C-Main Winner Darwin Felix Round 3 March 31