Page 21 - 2020CalSpeedMagazineAug

Round 5 - Aug 9
The month of August may mean hot temps here in Socal, but it also brings one of the most hotly-contested events on the CalSpeed calendar: The Classico Grand Prix. The
crown jewel in the Super Series season, the Classico GP sees not only season regulars, but also plenty of talent coming in for a one-off shot at the biggest sprint race of the season. The 2019 affair was one of the most exciting to date, but here in 2020, it did everything it could to one-up that spectacle...
Striking first on the day would be a new face and name in the top qualifier ranks, as Michael Hazlewood claimed his first career pole position in the Super Series. He would be joined by a pair of Sprint Series and sportsman category standouts from last year too, as Chase Nickells backed up his pole position from the Sprint Series the day before for P2 overall, while 2019 Sprint champ Tyler Redman claimed the 3rd and final heat race pole with the third best time.
Once the heat races got under way however, it was the veterans of the sport and the Classico Grand Prix that came out in force, all led by one of the best in the sport karting business, Logan Calvin. He paired up a third in heat two with his win in his first race for top points going into the mains, and with it pole position for the A-Main. Fellow heat race winner and point leader Diego Morales locked into P2, while Classico ace and heat race winner lined up third, with Andres Prieto claiming best of those without a heat race win to start 4th after a P2 and P5 in his heats. Fellow heat race winners would be pole sitter Michael Hazlewood, 2019 GP winner Andrew Wood, and Paulo Franca.
Winning any race at the Classico GP is special, and that includes the C-Main; for the 2020 C-Main, it was a tail of two drivers right down to the the end. Nick Marascio led the field away at the start, and would immediately work up to a .6 tenth lead by the end of lap one, while Dmitry Korotkov would slot into second after a solid start from third on the grid. For the next several laps it was Korotkov giving chase, clicking off laps that were fast each time by a tenth. Little by little he crept closer, until getting to the bumper of Marascio on the penultimate lap. He would make his move on the final lap, moving into the lead and holding on for the win; he didn’t lead a single lap until the end, where he led the most important one.
Unlike the C-Main, the B-Main was a much more straight- forward affair, as veteran Bill Kreig took control early, and never looked back. Starting in P2, Kreig claimed the top spot in the opening circuit, and from there clicked off laps consistently quicker than those chasing him. Helped a bit from the infighting behind, his lead would grow to an eventual 4+ seconds at the end, scoring the B-Main win and the transfer into the Classico GP A-Main.
A Main Podium
A three way battle and a last lap pass was one of the most
C-Main Dmitry Korotkov
B-Main Winner Bill Kreig