Yahoo Autos C. Field, d’Orlando and Almeida claim Friday Radical Cup wins at Road America
With a test day in the books on Thursday that featured three on-track sessions for all drivers, all attention turned to yesterday afternoon’s qualifying for the Radical Cup North America program with wheel-to-wheel racing to follow. Taking on the picturesque 4.014-mile, 14-turn Road America, Jon Field turned a monster lap in the Platinum class to earn the pole position, while Jack Yang edged Jordan Missig for top honors in Pro 1500. Mike D’Ambrose Sr. laid the hammer down in Pro 1340 to take the inside front-row class starting position.
“It has been windy here the last couple of days, which has caused some issues on track, but the teams and competitors in the Radical Cup North America program are adjusting,” said Tom Drewer. “We had a great qualifying session, and I am confident we will see some close racing later this afternoon.”
Platinum
Qualifying
Jon Field – (One Motorsports)
Louis Schriber – (EVR Motorsports)
Jim Booth – (EVR Motorsports)
Chip Romer – (One Motorsports)
Gregg Gorski – (EVR Motorsports)
Race
Maintaining his position at the front of the field, Jon Field took the lead from the drop of the green flag and never looked back. Despite a caution on lap four to retrieve the car of Wayne Williams, Field was able to overcome a restart to keep his rivals at bay. Chip Romer advanced from fourth to second early on as he looked racy, while Louis Schriber was just ahead of Clint Field in fourth. Jim Booth fell from third to fifth early on as he looked to fight for a podium result.
Jon Field led from the drop of the green flag until a gearbox failure forced him to the sideline and out of the race. Opening the door for Romer, the No. 5 One Motorsports entry cycled to the lead until the caution flag flew again. Leading the field back to the green, white, and checkered, Romer lost the lead to Clint Field on the final circuit. Field led only one lap, and it was the last lap, to steal the win with Romer in second and Schriber in third. Jim Booth was able to advance to finish fourth, with Gregg Gorski slotting into the fifth position.
Pro 1500
Qualifying
Jack Yang – (Group-A Racing)
Jordan Missig – (Graham Rahal Performance)
Nick d’Orlando – (Graham Rahal Performance)
Spencer Schmidt – (Cameron Racing)
Evan Slater – (EVR Motorsports)
Race
It was pole position winner Jack Yang, who led early in the 40-minute Pro 1500 race after earning one of his best starting positions in the past few seasons. Competing year-after-year, Yang finally put it all together to take the elusive pole position and took advantage of his inside front- row starting position to keep ahead of Graham Rahal Performance driver Jordan Missig.
Successfully holding the lead after a pair of caution periods, Yang held Missig behind him while Missig was ahead of Spencer Schmidt and Evan Slater, who were both able to get around Nick d’Orlando. Another caution period slowed the pace but when it went back green, it was d’Orlando who moved his way forward, gaining three positions to run second behind Yang. He kept the pressure on and much like Clint Field in Platinum, d’Orlando was able to take the lead on the final restart, getting by Yang, and driving to the win. Yang, after leading the majority of the laps, would have to settle for the second step on the podium with Missig in third.
Spencer Schmidt and Evan Slater would battle in the top-five all race long and eventually finish fourth and fifth, respectively. The Gold class winner was Jack Yang while Richard Durocher was the Sunoco Hard Charger.
Pro 1340
Qualifying
Mike D’Ambrose Sr. – (RYNO with Team Stradale)
Suellio Almeida – (Graham Rahal Performance)
Mayer Deonarine – (RySpec Racing)
Chris McMurry – (CROWN with APEX)
Seth Bacon – (CROWN with APEX)
Race
In Pro 1340, it was the Jace Bacon show as he gained five positions to run third with five minutes to go. Returning to the series after a brief hiatus, Bacon ran third behind Suellio Almeida and multi-time winner Chris McMurry. Almeida, in his debut with Graham Rahal Performance, drove to the win as McMurry took advantage of some late race restarts to move into the second position and extend his championship point lead. Blake McGovern got by Bacon on the final lap to nab the final step on the podium with Bacon having to settle for the fourth position, just ahead of Pro 1340 pole position winner Mike D’Ambrose Sr.
“What a race. A few cautions kept the pack close and the drivers on their toes,” said Drewer. “Epic battles in all three classes, and a fantastic win for Suellio Almeida, along with d’Orlando and Clint Field.”
Be sure to follow the Radical Cup North America social media pages for news, information, photos, and results from the event weekend.
Radical Cup North America events are open to local and regional Radical racers of all ages with eligible cars to participate. More information, including links to register for events and obtain licensing, can be found at www.radicalmotorsport.com.
