2019CalSpeedMagazineSeptember

W ith the Classico Grand Prix now in the record books, round #9 in the 2019 Super Series campaign saw a return to the season long-battle for the championship, a battle that could come to a conclusion that very weekend. Entering the event, long time point leader Sean Fite held a sizeable lead over the rest of the field, and provided he didn’t put a wheel wrong, could claim his prize one round early… After pacing the series in his qualifying efforts last season, podium contender Chris Huerta picked up his first pole position of the year to kick off the penultimate round, joined by fellow standout qualifying artists Sam Hunt and Jose da Silva in the bonus points. The heat races would not go the way of our top qualifiers however, as only Sam Hunt would score a heat win, his coming in the second salvo of the day. Instead there would be a different winner for each heat race, with Diego Morales, Andres Prieto, Bill Kreig, Alyssa Yauney, and TJ Blackledge all joining Hunt in the heat race win game. Ironically however, it would be a pair of second place efforts from Jose da Silva that would score pole position for the A-main… The first of the two preliminary mains would be the C-Main, and with it a few drivers we have seen vying for the C-Main win in the past, all congregating towards the front once again. Trevor Volin may have started from the P1 spot, but it was Brad Harvey that would not only lead lap one, but pace the field for the first half of the race. His chance at the win would evaporate as the second half of the race started, as he and challenger Leo Ovtcharov would slip down the order from the top two spots to the back half of the top five. Coming out on top of the scuffle would be Mike Carlson, as he would take over the top spot and never looking back, pulling out to an impressive 4+ second before the checkers. Like the main before it, the B-Main would also see the front controlled by a single driver at the start, but unlike the C-main, this race would be a bit calmer. Chris Carter would lead away from the pole position, flanked by Sean Bradley, while Michael Floerchinger and Frank Hs slotted in line after the opening circuit. The front quartet would stay unchanged until nearly the halfway point, albeit with about a second gap between the two pairs. It wasn’t until Pietro Moro scythed his way through on lap 6 did anything change, and he set his sights on P2 from there. And get there he would, taking over 2nd from Sean Bradley with three to go, making it a three horse race for the win. Unfortunately for Moro, his march to the front would be stunted with two laps to go, and he would fall down the order, with Carter holding on for the win by just .147 over Bradley. After a pair of very consistent heat races, Jose da Silva would lead the field from the pole position, but unfortunately his kart would suffer a mechanical issue right form the get go. Round 8 - Sept 28 A Main Podium B-Main Winner Chris Carter C-Main Winner Mike Carlson