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The Grid.co.uk the national & club motor racing website - est1998 |
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The Grid.co.uk the national & club motor racing website - est1998 |
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PicsJanice Eakin(except Lime Rock Pics by Angelo Lisuzzo ) The 2010 season continues with the final doubleheader event of the year at Mid-Ohio, September 3-5. |
mail your news to editorthegrid@yahoo.co.uk
www.F2000ChampionshipSeries.com or on Twitter @F2000. Erickson Wins Season Finale at Mid-Ohio
Erickson only ran ten of 14 races this year, missing rounds at Road Atlanta and Mosport due to limited funding before coming back to complete the season, including a sweep of Watkins Glen and today’s victory in the season finale. “I got a great start and Cole gave me a push to the first turn and I managed to get into the lead,” said Erickson, who was driving an ADSA/Wright owned Van Diemen prepped by Primus Racing. “I pushed hard to break the tow and then the safety car came out, so I was a bit worried about the guys behind me. But, I managed to get a jump on the restart and broke the tow again and just tried to drive mistake free the rest of the way.” Morgan finished second in the race today and the overall F2000 Championship for 2010 ahead of Victor Carbone “The car kept getting better and better,” Morgan commented. “Daniel owes me about half that win because I pushed him straight into the first turn. I got past Victor on the restart and then was trying to chase Daniel down but Victor was behind me so I also had to drive a bit defensively. After the way this weekend started it’s a good way to end it.” Carbone finished third after starting from pole both days at Mid-Ohio and clinching the overall title yesterday. “That was a tough race, I could see how on the limit Cole was driving and I was 110 percent all the way,” Carbone, from Brazil and driving for Alegra Motorsports, said. “A lot of people keep commenting about us making this year look easy but it’s really the end result of a dedicated team. This year was far from easy.” Jonathan Scarallo overcame a dead-last starting position to put in an incredible drive to finish fourth, improving some 17 positions and winning the CellMark Paper Hard Charger award for the race. “When the initial green flag flew I was still in the keyhole, so it was sort of a mess to begin with,” explained Scarallo, who won round 12 of the year at Road America. “But I drove as hard as I could and picked off people one by one. It’s a nice result after my mistake in qualifying. I have to give R-Sport credit for putting the car back together so quickly. I am a bit disappointed though as I know if I didn’t make that mistake and go off in qualifying we would have had the car to win here.”
“It feels nice to end the year on a high note like this and win the Masters for GTP Motorsports,” Lombardi said. Canadian Remy Audette finished sixth ahead of Chris Livengood, who had a break-through victory yesterday. Livengood did set fast lap in the race and was followed by Rob Nicholas, Fabio Orsolon and Dave Weitzenhof, to complete the top ten. The race saw one full course caution to collect a stranded Ardie Greenamyer, who was involved in contact with Mark Defer in the early stages of the race. Craig Clawson pitted during the caution period to replace a right-rear tire that was cut, and without a spare in the Clawson Motorsports pits, Caldwell Racing was quick to respond with a spare wheel and Hoosier tire for the #27. The CellMark Paper Hard Charger award on the entire season went to Masters Class driver Paul Farmer, who improved his position 52 places over the course of the 14-event year in his #69 GTP Motorsports Mygale/Zetec. Exciting upcoming announcements about the 2011 F2000 Championship Series are coming. Stay tuned to www.F2000ChampionshipSeries.com for the latest news and features.
Livengood Wins Race, Carbone Clinches 2010 Title
Livengood got the drop on Carbone when the green flag waved on the backstretch, taking the lead and controlling the pace, while setting the fastest lap of the race on the way to his first F2000 win. “It’s a dream, the car was just awesome,” commented Livengood in victory circle. “I got a stellar start and then just hit my marks the rest of the race. It couldn’t be possible without the crew and Work Racing.” Meanwhile, Carbone did everything he needed to clinch the Championship by driving a heads-up race, coming home in fifth. And while it wasn’t the lights-out drive from pole he wanted, Carbone took the 2010 F2000 title for Alegra Motorsports with one race left. “It feels amazing to be champion, and it’s the result of a year of hard work from the Alegra guys,” Carbone said. “In the race, I didn’t get the start I needed and wanted to play it safe from there.” Remy Audette finished a solid second, nearly driving Chris Livengood down at one point before Livengood pulled out to a 4.7 second gap to win.
And while Cole Morgan drove from eighth to third, gaining points on Carbone, it wasn’t enough of a difference to keep him alive in the title fight. The 2007 F2000 Champion Morgan will have to settle for second in the overall points race. Morgan added: “I got a great start and the car was good for the opening part of the race. It felt like I was catching Audette and Livengood but then it started to go off. I saw the Alegra guys coming in my mirrors and just tried to drive mistake free the rest of the way.” Alegra Motorsports teammates Fabio Orsolon and Victor Carbone finished fourth and fifth on the banner day for the Miami-based squad in an all-green flag race. Rob Nicholas was the fastest Masters Class driver, finishing sixth ahead of Phil Lombardi, who moved into a solid position to clinch the Masters Class title tomorrow as main rivals Tim Minor and Keith McCrone both suffered problems as Minor went off the track and McCrone suffered a flat tire on lap one after contact with Nicholas. Dave Weitzenhof finished eighth ahead of Daniel Erickson, who recovered from an off-and-on that put him down to 13th, to finish ninth. Mark Defer rounded out the top ten at Mid-Ohio. Race 1 Results:
Scarallo Wins Epic Race at Road America
“I didn’t get the best start and Erickson was able to get around me along with (Cole) Morgan,” said Scarallo, who survived a post-race protest that he had passed Erickson under a standing yellow. Video evidence showed he had made the pass well before the yellow flag. “By the end of lap two I knew I had a fast car that could win so I wanted to be smart about it. We were battling for the lead and then Morgan disappeared so it was just Erickson and me. “He was driving very defensively so I just threw the car to the inside and then put down two flying laps,” continued Scarallo, an aspiring young American driver. Scarallo also notched bonus points for fast lap of the race and pole. His R-Sport crew burned the midnight oil rebuilding his gearbox that broke while he was running second in yesterday’s 12-lap race. Erickson settled for his second-straight second place effort of the weekend, having lost out to Victor Carbone yesterday. “I managed to hold second on the start and then got around Scarallo,” Erickson stated. “The car developed some handling issues but the racing going on at the front of the pack was just brilliant. Everyone was clean and it was some great dicing.” Keith McCrone made it another podium for R-Sport by coming home in third. “Hats off to the R-Sport effort,” commented McCrone. “They do whatever it takes, they were here all night and the car was just great.” As the race unfolded, Erickson, Scarallo and Morgan were able to separate themselves from the pack and a highly entertaining three-way battle for the lead developed that saw constant jockeying back and forth for position, including a three wide moment down the back straight. The three aspiring drivers were able to use the slipstream to trade positions multiple times each lap. Chris Livengood eventually caught the battle for the lead and made it even more thrilling, giving Morgan a run into turn five. The two cars made contact with Livengood unable to continue. Morgan rebounded for a fourth place effort. “Livengood had the inside and I thought I gave him room,” said Morgan, driving the #1 for K-Hill Motorsports. “Not quite sure what happened but otherwise the car was ok and the race was just awesome. Everyone ran cleanly and there was some good battling going on for the lead.” Livengood, driving a bone-stock 1999 Van Diemen for Work Racing, shared his side of the story: “I drove the race of my life and it got ruined. I’m not sure if it’s one of those racing incidents or what but we were side by side in turn five and touched, and that was the end of my race.” Morgan survives to take the championship fight to Victor Carbone at Mid-Ohio. Carbone’s championship lead is now 85 points, with 110 points up for grabs at the season finale doubleheader. Fabio Orsolon followed Morgan in fifth and then it was Phil Lombardi in sixth and championship points leader Victor Carbone in seventh. “It was a tough race,” Carbone commented. “At the start Fabio (Orsolon) had an issue with a misfiring motor and I was behind him, it was like the entire inside line went by us. I managed to work my way up since the Alegra car was fast. Near the end of the race I had contact with one of the JDC cars and that tweaked the suspension a bit so I was just hanging on for the points.” JDC teammates Gerald Kraut and Mikhail Goikhberg followed in eighth and ninth, with Goikhberg running as high as fourth early in the all-green-flag race. Stevan McAleer rounded out the top ten for the Race House after finishing third yesterday. Brian Belardi grabbed the CellMark Paper Hard Charger honors for Liberty Motorsports by starting dead last en route to a 13th place finish, improving 10 positions. Race Two Results:
Carbone Victorious at Road America
Carbone extends his championship points lead to 92 points over Cole Morgan, who could only manage to finish 10th for K-Hill Motorsports. Carbone adds two more bonus points for the fast lap of the race and moves into a position where he can mathematically clinch the title tomorrow. Carbone, driving for Alegra Motorsports, couldn’t quite break into the fast times in practice and qualifying, as his Alegra crew tried different setups and aero packages. But the team apparently found the right recipe as once 17-year old Carbone got his #23 Van Diemen into the lead, it was a lights-out performance. “The car felt great, I had a great start and then got by Scarallo”, said Carbone, who stretched his lead to nearly four seconds over Erickson in the 12-lap race. “Daniel didn’t make it easy but I got around him when he made a mistake in turn 14. The car was just amazing and we worked up the gap and broke the draft.”
“It was a good clean race,” Erickson commented. “We made a change with the aero before the race which didn’t quite work out. Victor did a great job today.” Stevan McAleer, made it his second podium in five starts as the Scottish rookie came home third for the Race House team. McAleer said: “I’m delighted with third place. I was a bit optimistic on the start but managed to get up to fourth. I got around Scarallo when he broke and then just concentrated on getting the car home in one piece. They (Chris Livengood and Mikhhail Goikhberg) gave me a run for my money the end.” Goikhberg, driving for JDC MotorSports, crossed the line in fourth from a 10th place starting positions and got some valuable lessons on race craft in the draft. “This series is definitely fun,” Goikhberg said. “There was lots of dicing at the start and then the entire race. I’m happy with the way I moved up since we didn’t have a radio and I managed to bend one of the steering arms on a curb.” Livengood came home fifth with a broken front wing. The rookie said: “It would have been better if Goikhberg hadn’t hit me but the race was good and the car was really fast.” Keith McCrone followed in sixth as the top Masters Class driver. Then it was Fabio Orsolon, Phil Lombardi, Gerald Kraut and Cole Morgan rounding out the top ten. Morgan, the 2007 title winner, loses important championship ground as Carbone can now mathematically seal the title tomorrow in round 12, even though it would take a nearly perfect day for Carbone and a disaster for Morgan. “The car was good and really fast for the first few laps,” explained Morgan. “I was able to move up and then the handling went, I think the right-rear camber bolts started loosening.” For Scarallo, who set fast time in practice yesterday and sat on the outside of the front-row for today’s race, things did not go to plan. The young American got around Erickson shortly after Carbone and appeared to have his sights set on the Brazilian as he lowered the fast lap of the race, but moment’s later fourth gear went, along with any changes for a decent result at the high-speed Road America circuit. The CellMark Paper Hard Charger award went to Vaughn Horvath who improved seven positions to come home 15th. Race One Results:
F2000: Carbone Wins at Lime Rock from Pole
It was Carbone’s fifth win of the season and first since Mosport. “This is a huge weight off my shoulders, especially due to the DNF this morning,” said Carbone. “I need to thank my Alegra crew because they had to put the car back together and did a great job all weekend.” Daniel Erickson finished second, putting on quite the show for the Lime Rock fans from his 14th place starting position. The Australian rookie commented that the car “was on fire” and went onto say: “We moved up during the race and eventually moved into second but the tires fell off at the end so I was just holding position, especially with all the lapped cars that were getting in the way.” Phil Lombardi made it his second Masters Class win of the day and second third place finish of the day in his GTP Motorsports Van Diemen. “The car was great, so props to the GTP Motorsports guys,” Lombardi commented. “The traffic today was no heads up, I even had contact with one of the backmarkers.” Fabio Orsolon, also recovering from a DNF in his Alegra Motorsports entry in the morning race, finished fourth ahead of Tim Minor – who makes it two top fives in one day. Jonathan Scarallo came home in sixth with Stevan McAleer, Felix Serralles, Cole Morgan and Bobby Caldwell rounding out the top ten. For Morgan, it was an exciting day. The 2007 F2000 Champion took home the win in the first race, but could only muster a ninth place effort as he lost the brakes on his K-Hill Motorsports Van Diemen on lap one after contact with Jonathan Scarallo. “I got into Jonathan in the first time and it shifted the crush box, snapping the reservoirs for the brake fluid,” said Morgan. “The rest of the race was done without brakes, which was sort of exciting.” Chris Livengood missed the race after his Work Racing team found water in three of four cylinders on their Zetec motor. Tim Paul also missed the race after extensive crash damage in the first race earlier today. Jesse Yorio didn’t see the green flag following mechanical issues and Charles Finelli turned over the #83 entry to Brendan Puderbach for the second race of the day. The CellMark Paper Hard Charger award went to Masters Class driver Keith McCrone, who recovered from a 28th place starting position to finish 13th Pics Angelo Lisuzzo
Lime Rock: Cole Morgan Wins Wild First Race
“We had a good start, I went to the left and held on,” said Morgan. “I got McAleer on the restart and then I knew Erickson was coming on the next one so as the track went green again I just took the inside line.” Morgan grabs 47 points back on Victor Carbone, who failed to finish due to contact in his Alegra Motorsports Van Diemen. An epic start saw Fabio Orsolon get bumped off the track as McAleer made it four wide from his fourth place starting position to take the lead from pole-sitter Erickson, who set fast lap of the race, going into turn one. The race marked the best finish ever for McAleer’s Race House team, which moves over from the sprint car ranks, and the best finish for the rookie in his third start to date. “On the start I had the motor way up in the revs and went to the outside,” McAleer explained. “I wanted to see how late everyone was going to brake and was able to get into the lead. On the restart I got caught out paying attention to the pace car and didn’t want to do anything stupid since Cole had a good run on me.” Phil Lombardi rounded out the podium with the Masters Class win as Tim Minor and Keith McCrone, also Masters Class drivers, followed in fourth and fifth. McCrone posted a solid comeback following a massive qualifying crash that saw air-time yesterday. Felix Serralles finished sixth in his first F2000 start ever, continuing to showcase his talent in the GTP Motorsports Van Diemen. “This feels great,” said the rookie. “I was trying to be cautious on the start and on the restarts and ended up falling back to 14th, so I just worked my way up.” Jonathan Scarallo followed in seventh with Jeff McCusker, Tom Fatur and John Dole in positions eight through 10. Bobby Caldwell stayed out the fray to finish 11th with Daniel Erickson, winner of both Watkins Glen races, recovering from a last-lap off course excursion for 12th. Erickson, the quick Australian rookie driving for Primus Racing/Quantum Mechanics, shared his version of the F2000 race: “At the start we ran a lower first gear which caught us out, going into turn one I was in a sandwich that was four wide and backed out. “Unfortunately Fabio (Orsolon) was on the outside and turned in on me. We touched and after that we fell back to fifth and the car was great so I was able to work by way back up to second. Then on the final restart and I tried a wider line going into turn one trying to catch Cole and lost it. I went for the glory and it didn’t work out.” Morgan’s win has huge championship implications as points leader Victor Carbone failed to finish due to a on track incident with Chris Livengood. Carbone’s championship leads gets sliced from 83 to 34. “On the restart we were going into turn one and Chris Livengood just ran straight into me,” Carbone said. Livengood added: “I didn’t know we were three wide and I hit Victor. It was my fault. I’m very disappointed because the car had the speed for a top five finish.” Local driver Chris Gumprecht won the CellMark Hard Charger award with his 14th place finish. Gumprecht started 27th and improved 13 positions. It was a solid effort for Gumprecht as the fourth-year F2000 driver is bouncing back from a qualifying incident yesterday. Race Two
Race One
Erickson Sweeps Watkins Glen with Second Win
“I got a great start and was able to hold off Carbone,” said Erickson. “Midway through the race the car started to go away on the low speed corners and that’s when he caught me. But the car was great through the inner loop so I was able to hold him off. The last couple laps we were side by side down the back straight and I was defending on the inside. It was great to race with him.” Carbone’s second place effort extends his championship points lead over Cole Morgan, and Carbone grabs two bonus points for fastest race lap. “I gave it my best,” Carbone, driving for Alegra Motorsports, said. “At the start we almost got by Daniel (Erickson) and then Chris Livengood was all over me so Daniel was able to get away. I ran him down but his car was much faster through the back part of the track. The last two laps were a lot of fun since we were side by side a ton.” Cole Morgan had a great first lap in the K-Hill/Liberty entry to vault from ninth to fifth, and two laps later snuck by Alegra Motorsport’s Fabio Orsolon to grab fourth. The American spent the next eight laps running down Chris Livengood for third. Morgan sits second in points, a decent margin back from Victor Carbone. “We made some changes and the car was perfect. At the start I just threw it in first gear and went,” commented Morgan. “I got up to fifth and eventually ran down Chris (Livengood) for third. The leaders were too far ahead at that point and I didn’t want to throw it off the track trying to chase them down.” For the second day in a row the 14-lap race at Watkins Glen saw no full course cautions. Chris Livengood started on pole in the first race of the weekend and notched his first career podium with a second place effort yesterday. The American finished fourth today in the #37 Work Racing Van Diemen. “This was a really great weekend,” Livengood said. “We proved we can improve with every event and now we’re on the hunt to make up those last couple of tenths.” Finishing fifth and taking the Masters Class win was R-Sport’s Keith McCrone. Tim Minor followed in sixth ahead of the Race House’s Stevan McAleer, in only his second F2000 start ever. GTP’s Phil Lombardi was eighth followed by Liberty’s Bobby Caldwell and Alegra’s Fabio Orsolon. Mark Defer wins the CellMark Paper Hard Charger award by advancing 11 positions to finish 14th for St. Clair Motorsports. Race two results:
Erickson Wins Race One at the Glen
“Once I got the lead I just tried not to mess anything up,” said Erickson, from Australia. “I got a good run at Chris (Livengood) midway through the race and went for it. I feel confident going into tomorrow but it won’t be easy.” Chris Livengood, a rookie out of the karting ranks, notched his best finish of the year and first F2000 podium with his second place effort. To Livengood’s credit, the #37 is a fully stock 1999 Van Diemen and the team is running a small program. “The start went to plan,” Livengood commented. “Around lap eight or so I started picking up understeer and was making more mistakes than Daniel (Erickson). He caught me going into the chicane and got away so I decided just to save my tires for tomorrow.” Tim Minor started tenth, and got an amazing run going into turn one to take fourth place, eventually moving into third to round off the podium and take the Masters Class victory. “I got almost everyone going into turn one,” commented Minor. “It wasn’t my exact plan but it was a great start. Later on I got it sideways in the busstop and lost the leaders. So from there on I conserved my tires for tomorrow’s race.” The top 11 cars all ran laps under the existing race record, with Cole Morgan notching the fastest lap, gaining a couple points back on Carbone in the chase for the national title with his fourth place finish for K-Hill/Liberty Motorsports. Carbone, however, managed to finish fifth after starting eighth and running as low as 12th. The young Brazilian started eighth for Alegra Motorsports after losing his two fastest laps during qualifying for bringing out a black flag. Carbone actually set faster laps than the pole time during qualifying. “I was supposed to start first but obviously started eighth due to the penalty,” Carbone said. “I had a bad start and fell back but the car was great so I was able to move up during the race. I just wish the race was longer since the car was so good. Tomorrow I’m back on the front row so it should be good.” Rob Nicholas finished sixth ahead of Keith McCrone, James Winslow, Fabio Orsolon and Phil Lombardi, last year’s Watkins Glen victor. Stevan McAleer, in the Race House #14 entry, also nailed the start from ninth on the grid, going to third before a broken rear sway bar in his Van Diemen relegated him to 11th, which is still best finish of the year for the SMR/Race House squad. “I studied the rules on the green flag so knew I could go when I saw it,” McAleer, in his first ever F2000 start, said. “I managed to get to third and then the understeer came so I just hung on from there.”
Charles
Finelli knabs the CellMark Paper Hard Charger award by advancing 15
positions, going from 30th to 15th. Race one results:
F2000: Carbone Goes Flag-to-Flag at Mosport
“It wasn’t as easy as it may have looked,” said Carbone, who also ran the fastest lap of the race and picks up more bonus points. “I got a great start and then just pushed from there and looked forward.” Cole Morgan, on his 22nd birthday, brought home some more hardware for Liberty Motorsports with a solid second place finish. “It was a good race and relatively uneventful from where I was,” Morgan commented. Yesterday, in a crazy wet race, Morgan went from the front, to the back, back to the front and managed to finish third with a loose right front wheel assembly. “Victor (Carbone) did a great job and the Alegra guys are just a class act all around.” Quebec’s Remy Audette was third in the #21 Audette Racing Van Diemen, after a highly entertaining battle with Tim Minor, who settled for fourth and the Masters Class victory. “The car was fast at the start and it ended up going away as the race developed,” Minor said. “The battle with Remy (Audette) was lots of fun, he’s got a ton of laps around here and it’s only my second time here.” Phil Lombardi completed the top five for GTP Motorsports. Keith McCrone made it two six places in two days with a solid run for R-Sport. Seven-time SCCA National Champion Dave Weitzenhof finished seventh in his Citation-chassis, followed by Bobby Caldwell. Chris Livengood was ninth in a car that was thrown back together overnight following a huge crash on Saturday. Peter Gonzalez rounded out the top ten in another GTP Motorsports Van Diemen. After a wild race on Saturday, the F2000 Series drivers were relatively clean as the race ran its complete distance without any caution flags. Jonathan Scarallo, Fabio Orsolon and Paul Farmer did not take part in the race as their cars were not repaired in time following high-profile crashes during Saturday’s wet sessions. Ardie Greenamyer also missed the race after crashing in early-morning qualifying. Bob Wright had a massive gearbox failure during morning qualifying, and was able to jump in GTP Motorsports’ backup Van Diemen for the race, keeping his ironman status, having started every F2000 Championship Series race ever. The only other man to do it is fellow Masters Class competitor Craig Clawson. Race Results:
Audette Wins Wild Wet Race 1 at Mosport
“That was just an amazing race,” said Audette, who won by 20.275 seconds. “I was on the limit the entire way and we went to the wet tires at the last second, and the track just kept changing. This is also special because it is my first win at Mosport.” Audette also set the fastest lap of the race by some two full seconds. The false grid saw some controlled chaos as almost the entire field showed up on Hoosier slicks, and with six minutes before cars were scheduled to roll, the skies opened. Teams raced to change to rain tires and make any adjustments they could. But as the green flag dropped it was clear no one would be able to get near Audette as more chaos ensued back in the field. Chris Livengood made contact with the turn one wall on the first lap after contact with Keith McCrone, to end his day with heavy damage to the #37 and bring out a lengthy caution period. The American rookie, driving with Zetec power for the first time, couldn’t capitalize on his best career starting position of sixth. Phil Lombardi stayed out of trouble in the GTP Motorsports Van Diemen to finish second and take the Masters Class victory. “First in Masters and a second place, with wet tires and a dry setup, this is pretty good,” Lombardi commented. “It was a wild ride from where I was sitting.”
However, Carbone still has a healthy lead in the race for the national championship as the Brazilian brought the Alegra Motorsports #26 home in fourth. “I had a terrible start and need more experience driving in the wet,” Carbone, who started from the outside pole, said. “The rain was the biggest problem and I just tried to follow the guys in front of me and brought it home for the points.” Tim Minor rounded out the top five ahead of Keith McCrone, who was missing half the front wing in the R-Sport #5 due to contact with Chris Livengood. “On the start we were three wide, and I just hung on,” said McCrone. “From there on out it was just white knuckle all the way.” Dave Weitzenhof, in the Citation chassis, came home seventh, with Brent Gilkes, Robert Wright and Craig Clawson following to complete the top ten. Perhaps experience and patience were the keys to success at Mosport, with seven out of the top ten drivers being Masters Class competitors. Fabio Orsolon, Carbone’s Alegra Motorsports teammate, came home with a DNF in 19th as the Brazilian had heavy impact in the closing stages of the race. Additionally, with two laps to go Paul Farmer and Bobby Caldwell made contact to send both those cars home on the hook. Notably, Ardie Greenamyer finished 16th without a rear wing and ran the entire race on slick tires. R-Sport’s Jonathan Scarallo did not make the start following a big crash in qualifying. Race Results:
Carbone Dominates for Road Atlanta Win
“At the start, (Rob) Nicholas was already there and there was nothing I could do,” said Carbone, who took pole and won at Road Atlanta in the first event of the weekend as well. Today, not only did he win and start from pole, he sweeps the maximum number of points possible by setting the fastest race tap too. “I got by him (Rob Nicholas) a couple laps later and then just nailed it. This season has been awesome so far. I can’t say enough good things about the team, we had a perfect weekend and I hope the momentum continues into Mosport,” added Carbone.
“If today was a usual race we would have had a DNF,” commented Scarallo, who had two mechanical failures on Thursday during testing. “But at the start, the Red Sea happened and the field seemed to part for me going into turn one. I was in the battle for second late in the race with Rob Nicholas and Fabio (Orsolon) and I knew they were going to crash so I hung back waiting for them to hit each other and they did.” While Carbone checked out on the field, Rob Nicholas, who finished fourth yesterday, held onto second place as Carbone’s teammate, Fabio Orsolon mounted a charge. With a few laps to go the two made contact. Nicholas ended up in a gravel trap with a bent suspension while Orsolon retired to the pits with a missing front wing. Phil Lombardi took the Masters Class win, finishing third to complete the podium. “I’ll take third and the Masters Class win,” Lombardi said. “I was trying to get by Jonathan (Scarallo) but the car picked up a bit of a vibration. GTP Motorsports prepped a heck of a car this weekend, I can’t wait for Mosport.” At the start of the race, a slight incident in turn one sent Cole Morgan spinning off the track from his sixth-place starting position. Morgan recovered but pulled off a few laps later with a reported mechanical issue. Continuing the turn one drama at the start, Tim Kautz started from fourth and made contact with the wall in his Liberty Motorsports Van Diemen, recovering to finish ninth. “In turn one it was wheel to wheel and I went into the wall on the outside,” explained Kautz. “The front wing was tweaked and the alignment was off so I just drove the car as hard as I could.” Tim Minor finished fourth ahead of Keith McCrone, in the other R-Sport entry. Gerald Kraut was sixth for JDC with Chris Livengood not far behind in the Pinto-powered Van Diemen. Mark Defer, Tim Kautz and Ardie Greenamyer rounded out the top ten. Two drivers will have to split the CellMark Paper Hard Charger, with both Blake Teeter and Dan Denison improving 13 places. Also notable was Tim Paul who recovered from a huge crash in the first race of the weekend to finish 17th after starting from the back of the grid. Matthew Inge had a challenging day to end up a distant 19th. Inge and Brian Belardi tangled early in the race to send Inge to the pits for a quick check-up while Belardi never recovered. The 18-lap race was run in its full distance without any caution periods. Race Results:
Carbone and Alegra Victorious at Road Atlanta
“We got a great start and I was able to hold onto the lead,” commented Carbone. “From there I just concentrated on what was in front of me. The team has just done an amazing job.” Orsolon commented: “It was a great race, I could keep up with the leaders but I couldn’t attack. Then with two laps to go (Rob) Nicholas went off the track and I got by to make it a one-two finish, the bosses should be pretty happy about this.” Rob Nicholas recovered for fourth position and set the fastest race lap. Nicholas spent the entire race holding station in second, and started to close in the late stages of the 18-lap event. “I had him beat,” Nicholas said. “I needed to get under him going into turn one and I got so close it took all the downforce off the car. I lost both ends. We won the Masters Class but we’re here for the overall win, we do feel good for tomorrow though.” Tim Minor rounded out the top five after starting ninth. Phil Lombardi, Chris Gumprecht, Brian Belardi, Matthew Inge and Ardie Greenamyer, logging his best finish to date, followed in positions sixth through tenth.
The race saw one full-course caution to retrieve a stalled Mikhail Goikberg in the JDC Motorsports #10. It was Mikhail’s second F2000 start to date as the young Russian also contested Mosport in 2009. Jonathan Scarallo lost a Zetec after running solidly in the top ten, and Tim Paul suffered heavy damage to the #06 when his left-rear suspension failed on the down-hill prior to the front straight. Tim Kautz, who showed impressive speed in his Liberty Motorsports entry in the opening round at VIR, ran most of the race in the top-five before the his gearbox lost fourth gear, sending him back in the field in a hurry. Chris Livengood, in the only Pint-powered F2000 entry, avoided an early lap incident to fall well back in the field before a mid-race spin sent him even further back to finish 15th.
Race 1 FINAL Results:
Morgan Wins by a Car-Length at VIR
“The start kind of just happened,” said Morgan, who went from fifth to second before taking the lead in his K-Hill Motorsports Van Diemen. “We were turning some really good laps and then the tires started to go away and Remy (Audette) caught me. (Daniel) Erickson slowed near the end and I knew Remy was all over me and I made sure he couldn’t get any runs.” Morgan’s margin of victory was four-tenths of a second, compared to round one’s two-tenths margin of victory. Both VIR races were run in their entirety without any full-course cautions. Audette, who was sporting a Sponge Bob charter on his steering wheel, commented: “I was pushing hard and felt faster than Cole in some areas, the team gave me an awesome car. During the last few laps I was hoping he would make a mistake but we’ll take second.” Fabio Orsolon finished third for the second day in a row ahead of his teammate Victor Carbone, who won round one and Rob Nicholas, who wins the Masters Class. “We struggled all weekend with broken parts,” Nicholas, driving under the K-Fast awning, said. “We got a great start, going to seventh from 13th and I had hooked up with (Jonathan) Scarallo for a few laps before he went off at Oak Tree.” Scarallo started fourth and got shuffled backwards on the start. The young American was able to work his way back to fifth in the 33-car field, while setting fastest race lap. He recovered from a mid-race spin to finish seventh, behind his R-Sport teammate Keith McCrone. Tim Kautz and Bobby Caldwell, both driving for Liberty Motorsports finished eighth and ninth, and Daniel Erickson hung on for tenth.
“The car was absolutely perfect, the guys did a great job but I’m absolutely devastated,” commented Erickson. “I had a 2.5 second gap and then I heard an unfortunate noise from the motor and my lead was gone.” Rookie Billy McLaughlin, who had a hard crash during Thursday testing, finished a solid 15th for K-Hill, behind Dave Weitzenhof, Tom Fatur, Mark Defer and Bob Wright. 22-year old Chris Keller, who wasn’t officially driving on Sunday until about 8pm on Saturday night, finished 19th after the crew of the #83 prepped the chassis late into the night. A last second setup was dialed in after qualifying. A lap one incident took out Phil Lombardi and Tim Minor, who both were expected to be quick at VIR. Chris Gumprecht lost his gearbox early in the race and Chris Livengood, driving the only Pinto-powered entry in the field, was running solidly in the top 15 before an off-course excursion in turn one put him back in the pack. Craig Clawson, who has started every F2000 Championship Series race to date, earned the CellMark Paper Hard Charger by improving 10 positions from start to finish. Race 2 Provisional Results:
Carbone Holds Off Erickson to Win at VIR
“My start was perfect, as soon as the green flag waved I was gone,” commented Carbone, who also gives Alegra their first F2000 win. “At the end, Erickson was super fast and was all over me but I was able to just barely hold him off. The car was amazing and it shows the great job the team did over the offseason.” Erickson tried a last-lap pass attempt on Carbone only to have the door shut, but walks away from his first race ever with a second place effort, in a modest 33-car field. Additionally, in qualifying he set a new track record and earned bonus points for pole as the run for the 2010 national championship begins this weekend. “I misread the start,” said Erickson, driving the #02 for Primus Racing. “I’ve never done a rolling start before and dropped back to third, by the time I got around (Tim) Kautz and into second, it took some work to catch Victor (Carbone). The car was good and quick all around.” At the drop of the green, F2000 newcomer Tim Kautz went from sixth to second, and held station in third before two spins left him finishing well down the order. Completing the podium was Carbone’s Alegra teammate Fabio Orsolon, also from Brazil. Cole Morgan finished fourth and set the fastest race lap. “The outside line at the start got shuffled, I got pushed back to sixth and was boxed in with nowhere to go,” Morgan, the 2007 F2000 Champion, said. “I knew we had the fastest car out there, and the fast lap shows it.” Remy Audette rounded out the top five, and was running solidly in third before a quick off-course excursion cost him precious time. Jonathan Scarallo, driving his second F2000 year and now with the R-Sport team finished sixth. Scarallo said: “It was a fun race, on the start we got shuffled back to tenth and I was able to pick a bunch of guys off and nearly got Remy (Audette) on the last lap. R-Sport gave me a great car and hopefully tomorrow we can qualify a bit better. “ Finish seventh and winning the Masters Class was Phil Lombardi, in the #3 GTP Motorsports Van Diemen. “I am disappointed here today, we’ve been working hard on the car and it is numb to all the changes we’re making,” Lombardi commented. Chris Gumprecht followed in eighth position, with rookie Chris Livengood in the Pinto-powered Van Diemen in ninth ahead of 2008 Masters Class Champion Tim Minor. Dave Weitzenhof, seven-time SCCA National Champion, finished 11th in the only Citation chassis on the 33-car grid. Jesse Yorio followed in 12th, in the newest hardware and the only Piper in the field. Bobby Caldwell, Al Guibord Jr, and Tim Kautz made up 13th-15th. The field ran an extra pace lap in “missing man” formation in remembrance of Joe Stimola, who was also the chief engineer for Alegra’s F2000 program. The Alegra team dedicated their win to Stimola. Keith McCrone, driving for R-Sport, was the CellMark Paper Hard Charger of the day, going from 30th to 17th in the 14-lap caution free feature event of the afternoon at VIR.
Provisional Race Results: 14 Laps
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Australian
rookie Daniel Erickson took his third win of the season and put his
stamp on third in the overall F2000 points standings with a victory in
the F2000 season finale at Mid-Ohio. Erickson took the lead on the start
from 2010 F2000 Champion Victor Carbone and never looked back, driving
to his third win in only ten starts over Cole Morgan and Carbone.
Erickson also wrapped up the Taylor Race Engineering Rookie of the Year
honors. 
Phil
Lombardi rounded out the top five and was the first of the Masters Class
drivers, clinching the Masters Championship with a solid drive at
Mid-Ohio.
American
rookie Chris Livengood got around pole-sitter and now 2010 F2000
Champion Victor Carbone on the opening lap and never looked back, taking
his first F2000 victory by just under five seconds while Carbone brought
home the 2010 F2000 Championship for Alegra Motorsports with a solid
drive, holding on for fifth place. Remy Audette finished second in the
Audette Racing #21 ahead of Cole Morgan, Fabio Orsolon and Carbone.
“The
team has done a great job to improve the car all weekend,” said Audette.
“And after qualifying this morning I was really confident in the car and
myself. I was able to get around Victor and then cut some of Livengood’s
lead down but about halfway through the engine started misfiring.” 
Jonathan
Scarallo survived an epic drafting battle between four cars and then
took the lead with two laps to go and gapped Daniel Erickson to take his
first career F2000 victory in style for R-Sport at Road America.
Erickson came home second for Primus Racing/Quantum Mechanics with Keith
McCrone, Scarallo’s R-Sport teammate, finishing third and taking the
Masters Class win. 
Championship
points leader Victor Carbone snuck around Jonathan Scarallo on the start
and then passed Daniel Erickson for the lead to go onto victory in the
first F2000 race of the weekend at Road America. The Brazilian wasted no
time in taking the top spot early in the race and then breaking the
draft to take his sixth win of the season in round 11 at Road America
over Daniel Erickson and Stevan McAleer. 
For
Daniel Erickson, a new track record in qualifying put him on the pole,
but the Australian rookie lost the lead to Carbone and never got it
back. Erickson, driving for Primus Racing/Quantum Mechanics had to
settle for second.
Victor
Carbone bounced back from his first DNF of the year in race one earlier
today to take a commanding victory in the second and final F2000 race of
the weekend at Lime Rock. Alegra Motorsports’ Carbone dominated round
ten of the season, leading from pole to further extend his points lead
over Cole Morgan, who won the first round at Lime Rock this morning. One
very-hard chagrining Daniel Erickson finished second after starting a
distant 14th in an amazing drive. Phil Lombardi rounded off the podium
with the Masters Class win. 
Cole
Morgan got around Stevan McAleer on a restart and held off a
late-charging Daniel Erickson on a green-white-checkered finish to take
his second win of the year and gain back huge championship ground in
race one at Lime Rock. Morgan capitalized from a fifth-place starting
position to take the win for K-Hill Motorsports and new sponsor, Ranger
Up military and patriotic apparel. McAleer finished second as Daniel
Erickson went off on the last lap, also vaulting Phil Lombardi to third
from his seventh place starting position. 
Daniel
Erickson took his second win of the season and second win in two days by
just a car length in another exciting race at Watkins Glen in round
eight of the F2000 Championship Series season. The Australian rookie,
driving for Quantum Mechanics/Primus Racing, led from pole to take the
checkered flag with a close-margin win over championship points leader
Victor Carbone, who nearly got by Erickson in an epic battle in the
closing laps, with 2007 F2000 title winner Cole Morgan rounding off the
podium. 
Daniel
Erickson notched his first F2000 win in his third ever start by getting
around pole-sitter Chris Livengood midway through an all green race that
saw 32 cars get through turn one without incident. Fellow rookie
Livengood led from the drop of the green with Erickson holding station
on his gearbox, halfway through the 14-lap lap race Erickson pounced,
never looking back to take the win for Quantum Mechanics/Primus Racing.
Rounding out the top five behind Work Racing’s Livengood were Tim Minor,
Cole Morgan and championship points leader Victor Carbone.
Victor
Carbone took his fourth win in six races by taking a solid victory at
Mosport in his Alegra Motorsports Van Diemen. The 17-year old Brazilian
started from pole and held off an early challenge from Cole Morgan
before pulling out a gap en route to the checkered flag. Carbone opens a
bigger championship lead over 2007 F2000 title winner, Cole Morgan, who
finished second with yesterday’s run-away winner, Remy Audette, rounding
off the podium. 
Remy
Audette led every lap in a crazy rain race at Mosport to take a
commanding victory that saw a 25-second lead at one point in the middle
of the race. Quebec’s Audette started from pole and was in control for
the entire race, which went to the 30-minute time window due to two
caution periods. And while Audette ran away with the race, there was
epic action throughout the deep F2000 field. Phil Lombardi finished
second ahead of Cole Morgan, Victor Carbone and Tim Minor. 
Meanwhile, fellow American and Liberty Motorsports driver Cole Morgan
spun exiting turn two on the opening lap, dropped all the way back to
last and proceeded to pick off cars en route to a third place finish,
and managed to get as high as second. Camber shims that fell out of the
right front wheel assembly hindered Morgan’s second-place run as the
2007 F2000 title holder hung on for an impressive third place finish and
clawed back a couple points on Victor Carbone.
Victor
Carbone took his third win in four races and stamped his name on the
Road Atlanta weekend by dominating the second and final race of the
weekend to further extend his points lead to 28 over Cole Morgan.
Carbone started from pole and lost the lead on the start as Rob Nicholas
made it three wide by diving to the inside going into turn one. The
young Brazilian, driving for Alegra Motorsports, took the lead back two
laps later going into turn one and never looked back to take the win
over Jonathan Scarallo and Phil Lombardi. 
Jonathan
Scarallo capitalized on an incident between Fabio Orsolon and Rob
Nicholas to finish second in his R-Sport Van Diemen. It was his best
F2000 finish to date.
Victor
Carbone notched his second win of the 2010 F2000 season over Alegra
Motorsports teammate Fabio Orsolon and opened a bigger margin in his
championship lead. Carbone started from pole and controlled the race
pace, surviving a charge from Rob Nicholas with two laps to go that saw
Nicholas go off in turn one, allowing Orsolon to sneak through to make
it a one-two for Brazil and Alegra Motorsports. 2007 F2000 Champion Cole
Morgan, driving for K-Hill/Greisiger Motorsports was third and continues
to hold second in the national championship. 
Matthew
Inge(right), who finished second in last year’s title fight, won
the CellMark Paper Hard Charger by improving his position 19 places,
said: “That was one of the most fun races I’ve had, we got a bunch of
guys on the start and then the full-course caution helped me out. It
was just a lot of fun trying to get to the front.”
Cole
Morgan held off Remy Audette and capitalized on Daniel Erickson’s
misfiring engine to take his first F2000 win since taking the 2007 F2000
Championship title. Erickson, the Australian rookie, led from pole and
had pulled out to a two second gap as Morgan and Audette diced for
second. With three laps to go the Zetec in Erickson’s #02 started to
misfire, and he ended up a distant tenth with a very sick-sounding
motor. Fabio Orsolon finished third, making it an
American-Canadian-Brazilian podium 
Daniel
Erickson nailed his second-ever rolling start and pulled a nice lead out
on Cole Morgan. The Australian, driving for Primus Racing, scored poles
for both rounds, resetting the track record. He was caught off guard by
his first rolling start in round one and missed winning the race by
two-tenths of a second. That wasn’t the case at VIR today, as he
controlled the race pace until an unfortunate engine problem brought him
home in tenth.
Victor
Carbone led every lap at VIR on his way to taking his first career F2000
Series victory over Australian rookie Daniel Erickson by two-tenths of a
second. Carbone, driving for Alegra Motorsports in his second F2000
season, timed his start beautifully from the outside of the front row,
taking advantage of pole sitter Erickson, who had never done a rolling
start before. Erickson would fall back to third, only to reel the
Brazilian in from 1.8 seconds away as the two ran nose-to-tail for the
closing laps in a thrilling start to the 2010 F2000 Season.