Junior Open Wheel Talent

James Winslow (photo:AtlanticChampionship/Phil Sedgwick)

Name: James Winslow
Born: Witham, Essex, UK
Year of Birth: 1983

Website:
http://www.jameswinslow.com/

Current Series: Atlantic Championship
Final Standings: 8th
Average Finish(1st Half of Season): 8
Average Finish(2nd Half of Season): 7.2

Previous Experience:
Started Karting:  Age 8
Karting Experience:  18+ years
Car Experience:  10 years

The Atlantic Championship didn’t feature large entry numbers this season, but the talent pool was extremely deep.  Picking an Unsung Hero in this series is not an easy task—especially when you consider the drop-out rate in 2009.

James Winslow didn’t have a break-out  season but he was one of the few drivers who actually improved throughout the year.  He also earned 3-hard charger awards; Sebring, Mid-Ohio, and Road Atlanta.   While racing, he improved on his starting position in 75% of his race starts.  His best finish this season was 7th, which occurred at Lime Rock Park, Trois-Riviéres, Road Atlanta, and Laguna Seca.  Perhaps the most admirable part of his 2009 season was that he stuck it out for the entire year.  After winning the Asian F3 Championship in 2006, the Asian Formula Renault V6 Championship in 2007, and the Australian F3 title in 2008, it would have been real easy for him to just drop his Atlantic  season after a few dismal results.

Related Reading: Unsung Hero Awards

This wasn’t a good weekend to head to Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca if you were leading a junior formula championship.  Both Peter Dempsey (Star Mazda) and Simona De Silvestro (Atlantic Championship) were leading their respective championships heading into the final event.  Both drivers ran into trouble during the first lap of their race and were subsequently forced into early retirement, handing the championship over to another competitor.

John Edwards

John Edwards, on the other hand, couldn’t be happier with today’s Atlantic Championship result.  He came into the event ranked third in the overall championship and proceeded to qualify on pole and win today’s 36-lap race.

John Edwards is your 2009 Atlantic Championship ‘Champion‘.  At just 18 years old, Edwards is now the youngest champion in series’ history. The Cincinnati, Ohio native ended the year with 4 wins, 3 pole positions, and 9 podiums.  He previously competed in the Atlantic Championship during the 2007 season until he ran out of adequate funding.  With his options running out, he decided to take the step that very few drivers take, he moved down the open-wheel ladder system to compete in the 2008 Star Mazda Championship (with hopes of winning the overall championship and the fully-funded Atlantic ride courtesy of the MazdaSPEED Driver Development Program).  Ultimately, the move paid off as he won last year’s Star Mazda championship and the fully-funded Atlantic ride associated with the title.  Not only did he return to the Atlantic Championship this season with a funded ride, he went on to win the overall title via today’s result.  The championship will provide John Edwards with a $1,000,000 prize, which he can use in a series of his choosing.

Edwards actually tied with Jonathan Summerton in the points total, but with a tie breaker (using 2nd place finishes) Edwards wins the 2009 title. That’s not to take anything away from Jonathan Summerton, who is tipped to have an upcoming role with upstart F1 team; USF1.  Summerton ended the year with 4 wins, 5 pole positions and 9 podiums in Atlantic competition.

The real story of 2009 was the success of female driver Simona De Silvestro.  Simona was extremely impressive this year, becoming the winningest female in U.S. open-wheel history.  Despite leading the championship for the majority of the year, today’s result dropped her to third in the overall championship.  She completed her 2009 season with 4 wins, 4 pole positions, and 9 podiums.  The future is very bright for Simona and I look forward to following her career again next season.  She is a true talent.

__________

Atlantic Championship Round 12 (Laguna Seca)- Complete Results

1. John Edwards
2. Jonathan Summerton
3. Frederic Vervisch (Hard Charger)
4. Tonis Kasemets
5. Markus Niemela (30-second penalty for avoidable contact)
6. Barrett Mertins
7. James Winslow
8. Jonathan Bomarito (DNF)
9. Max Lefevre (DNF)
10. Simona De Silvestro (DNF)

____________

2009 Atlantic Championship Final Point Standings- Full

1. John Edwards (182)
2. Jonathan Summerton (182)
3. Simona De Silvestro (176)
4. Frederic Vervisch (131) – (Rookie of the Year)
5. Tonis Kasemets (103)

Formula BMW-Americas driver Barrett Mertins will drive in the Atlantic Championship series finale at Laguna Seca on October 9th-11th, 2009.

Mertins signed with Jensen Motorsport, the same team he drove for in Formula BMW-Americas, after testing their Atlantic car earlier this week in Savannah, Georgia.  The test was conducted as part of his Formula BMW contract.

The 19-year-old Virginia native  finished 11th in the 2009 Formula BMW-Americas championship with an average finish of 10th place, excluding one DQ (VIR).  He finished inside the top-ten 10 times this season with a best finish of 8th place— occurring at both Miller Motorsports Park and Road America.

Obviously, this will be a rather large jump for Barrett who entered the 2009 Formula BMW season without any previous karting or car racing experience.  That said, Jensen Motorsport team owner Eric Jensen is confident in Mertins abilities and states;

“Our team is very excited to see how quickly Barrett’s skills have developed. Our team has an impressive history with driver developing programs, and Barrett looks to be one of our brightest prospects yet.”

Barrett Mertins

Atlantic-Championship.com

The Atlantic Championship just completed their penultimate event of the 2009 season at historic Road Atlanta.  The top three drivers in the overall points championship all found themselves on the podium.

Today’s tally will make the 2009 title chase even more interesting.  Make the jump for all the details…. [More]

After testing with Genoa Racing last week, Greg Mansell has decided to return to the Atlantic Championship for this weekend’s race at Road Atlanta.  Greg spent the majority of the 2009 season racing in the World Series by Renault, posting only mediocre results.  He left the team, USR, last month and decided to pursue other opportunities.

Just after his commitment to the World Series by Renault last March, I wrote;

Personally, I would have liked to see him stick around for another year and develop. His average finish in his first five Atlantic races was 14.80, his average finish in the final five races was 8.60… just to give you an idea of how much he was improving.

One more season in the Atlantic Championship would have proved extremely beneficial to the 21-year-old pilot.

It’s looking increasingly likely that sticking around for another year of Atlantic Championship competition might have been the right move.  Regardless, Greg has continued to develop this season and should do quite well this weekend at Road Atlanta.

His best finish during the 2008 Atlantic season was his last race, which occured at Road Atlanta, … he finished 5th after starting 8th.

Jonathan Bomarito

After a few weeks of rumors, it was announced today that Jonathan Bomarito will make his return to Atlantic Championship competition for the penultimate round this weekend at Road Atlanta.  He will be driving for Team Stargate Worlds as a sub for the injured Frankie Muniz.

Bomarito started the 2009 Atlantic Championship season with Mathiasen Motorsports.  In early April, the team decided to close their doors due to financial concerns.  Bomarito, who was relying on help from the Mathiasen’s, lost his Atlantic Championship ride.  Determined to not just drop Jonathan, team owners Ray and Leslie Mathiasen helped set up an Indy Lights opportunity for Jonathan with Genoa Racing in order to help keep his racing career on track.  Unfortunately, this turned into a one-off opportunity for the California native.  After sitting out most of the season, Bomarito is back and will be partnered with current championship leader Simona De Silvestro this weekend under the Team Stargate Worlds tent.

Bomarito, who finished 2nd in the 2008 Atlantic Championship, has had a very successful career.  He is a five-time winner in Atlantic competition and will likely have a fairly decent opportunity to bump that number up this weekend.  It will be nice to see him back in the car as he likely would have been a championship contender this season.

The Atlantic Championship has two races remaining on the 2009 calendar; Road Atlanta and Laguna Seca.  The top-three competitors—Simona De Silvestro, John Edwards and Jonathan Summerton—are separated by a mere 12 points (which doesn’t include a drop).  The series is allowing each driver to drop their lowest finish of the 2009 season in order to determine the final standings in the 2009 Championship.  Factoring in a drop at this point doesn’t make much sense, so we will just look at every race result for the time being.  The drop will change everything.

What You Should Know:

• Drivers can earn 20 points for finishing 1st.
• The average car count for the Atlantic Championship class is 11.8.
• If a driver finishes 12th in a race, they earn 2 points.
• If a driver qualifies on pole, they earn 1 point.
• If a driver earns the hard charger award, they earn 1 point.
• The most points a driver can earn in the final two races is 42 points.

So who can still win? By my calculations, the only three drivers still eligible for a bid at the 2009 championship are the fore mentioned top-three:  Simona De Silvestro, John Edwards, and Jonathan Summerton.

Best/Worst: Time to figure out the best possible scenario for each driver and the worst possible scenario.  Remember, the worst possible scenario listed below is basically irrelevant, because one of those races would be dropped.  I’m using 12th as the worst possible finishing position or a gain of 2 points… (because of the average car count this season:  11.8).

Without drops calculated:

• Simona De Silvestro: (Best: 202, Worst:  164)
• John Edwards:  (Best:  194, Worst:  156)
• Jonathan Summerton- (Best:  190, Worst:  152)

As you can see, any of the top-three can still win the championship depending on how the other two finish.

Just For Fun: If you calculate each drivers drop into the current point standings, here is what you will come up with:

• Simona De Silvestro:  156
• John Edwards:  147
• Jonathan Summerton:  145

Can Simona De Silvestro clinch the championship next weekend at Road Atlanta?

Yes it’s possible, but highly unlikely.  Here are a couple scenarios courtesy of the Atlantic Championship.

These scenarios are calculated with a drivers worst result dropped from the points total:  (See Just For Fun #’s Above)

1. If Simona finishes 1st and earns a hard charger/pole position bonus point, Edwards has to finish 5th or better to remain in contention.  Summerton, on the other hand, must finish 4th or better.
2. If Simona finishes 1st without a bonus point, Edwards must finish 5th without a bonus or 6th with a bonus point for pole or hard charger.  Summerton would need to finish 4th without a bonus or 5th with a bonus point.
3. If Simona finishes 2nd with a bonus point, Edwards will have to finish 8th without a bonus point or 9th with a bonus point.  Summerton will have to finish 6th without a bonus or 7th with a bonus point.
4. If Simona finishes 2nd without a bonus point, Edwards must compete at Road Atlanta.  Summerton, on the other hand, must finish 7th without a bonus point or 8th with the bonus.

You get the point: At this point, you have probably quit reading or you are saying, “Alright, I get it.”.  So we will just end the scenario section with this…

• Assuming Simona finishes 4th at Road Atlanta without a bonus, both Edwards and Summerton will just have to compete at Road Atlanta to keep their championship hopes alive.

The championship standings are very close and should offer an exciting conclusion to the 2009 season.  Make sure to stay tuned for updates and results.

Here is a look at the current Atlantic Championship standings>>.

(photo: AtlanticChampionship.com)

The Atlantic Championship returned to Mosport last weekend after a 15-year absence from the track.  The last time the series ran at Mosport International Raceway was in 1994.  Greg Ray, of IRL fame, won that event.

This past weekend, another American found his way to the top spot… Jonathan Summerton won Round 10 by 1.122 seconds over teammate and fellow American John Edwards.  Summerton’s victory marked his third of the season and fifth of his career in the Atlantic Championship. The 21-year-old Florida resident has been remarkably consistent this year, finishing on the podium in 70% of his race starts.

John Edwards, as mentioned above, finished the race in a close 2nd.  Edwards started the race in fourth, earning him the hard charger title for improving the most positions during the race.  He also set the fastest lap of the event with a 1:11.541.  The 18-year-old standout has been another mark of consistency— finishing 70% of his 2009 race starts inside the top-two.  He is yet to have a third place finish this season.

Belgian rookie, Frederic Vervisch made a nice run to the podium… his fourth of the year.  I’ve been very impressed with Frederic this season and I have a feeling that we will see him have a break-out race soon.  He is yet to win an Atlantic Championship race, but he has managed to find his way to the podium in 40% of his starts.  He currently leads the “Rookie of the Year” standings.

FIA Formula 2 front runner, Robert Wickens made his return to Atlantic competition this weekend with Genoa and finished the race in 4th.  Last years champion, Markus Niemela finished the race in 5th.  Current championship leader, Simona De Silvestro faced her first DNF of the season but retains her championship lead… albeit a much smaller one.

Complete Results

Photo: Sebastian Krauss / RobertWickens.com

Canadian driver Robert Wickens signed with Genoa Racing for a one-off event in the Atlantic Championship this weekend at Mosport.

After winning the 2006 Formula BMW-Americas championship, Wickens joined Forsythe Racing in the 2007 Atlantic Championship.  He finished the season in 3rd with 1 win and 4 podiums.  His accomplishments earned him the BBC Rising Star Award.

Since that time, he has moved to Europe to further his career.  His experience includes British F3, A1GP, F3 Euro Series, as well as the World Series by Renault.  He is currently competing in F2 (FIA Formula 2), where he is 2nd in the overall championship.  This season, in F2, he has 2 wins and 4 podiums to his name.  He has finished inside the top-ten in 60% of his Formula 2 race starts.

The 20-year-old will be a nice addition to the already “deep” Atlantic field and will partner rookie standout Frederic Vervish under the Genoa tent.

Jonathan Summerton won his second Atlantic Championship race of 2009 in Round 8 at Mid-Ohio earlier today. Summerton, who shattered the course record in qualifying (1:12.970), started from pole position and led every lap of the race.

The win will make a rather large impact in the championship points standings. Current championship leader, Simona De Silvestro finished in second place just 2.000 seconds behind Summerton at the line. John Edwards, who is currently second in the championship, had an unfortunate incident early in the race that caused him to face his first DNF of the season. Spanish rookie Borja Garcia, who was remarkably quick heading into the race, finished third in the final tally.

The hard charger of the event was James Winslow. Winslow improved three positions during the 38-lap event to finish 6th after starting 9th. Today’s result marks Winslow’s best finish to date in the 2009 Atlantic Championship season.

Honorable mention should go to Max Lefevre (10th-7th) and Michael Mallinen (12th-9th) who each improved three positions.

(photo: atlantic-championship.com)
____

Atlantic Championship
Round 8- Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course
Complete Results > >