Junior Open Wheel Talent

The F2000 Championship Series released its 2012 schedule this morning. The 14-race calendar will stop at seven tracks and plans to have the F1600 Formula F Championship along at each venue.

2012 Tentative F2000 Schedule:

April 12 – 15: VIRginia International Raceway (with Historics)
May 10 – 12: Road Atlanta (with Formula Drift)
May 25 – 26: Lime Rock Park (with TransAm)
June 28 – July 1: New Jersey Motorsports Park (with ARCA and TransAm)
July 26 – July 29: Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course (with SCCA)
August 24 – 26: Summit Point (with CCS Motorcycle Racing)
October 12 – 14: Watkins Glen International (with Historics)

Team USA's Neil Alberico leads Kenneth Thirlwall at Brands Hatch during the 40th running of the Formula Ford Festival with Team Canada's Xavier Coupal close behind in the No. 23 car. (Photo: Jeff Bloxham)

F2000 Championship Series

• Kyle Connery swept the competition at Watkins Glen; bumping his win total to six while claiming Rookie of the Year honors.
• Remy Audette picked up two more podiums securing the 2011 championship, continuing his consistency. The talented Canadian finished all but one race inside the top five this season.
• Chris Livengood wrapped up a solid season with a fourth and seventh-place finish en route to third overall in the points championship.

F1600 Championship Series

• Wyatt Gooden is still looking for competition. The up-and-comer remained undefeated in F1600 competition; going 4-for-4 this season behind the wheel.
• Bill Valet won the 2011 championship with a pair of third-place finishes during the season finale.
• Ryan Leach put together a solid outing with two podiums.
• Several other up-and-coming drivers joined the fray this weekend and showed promise.

Indy Lights

• Following up on the F2000 recap, the 2010 F2000 Champion Victor Carbone found his way to victory lane in the Indy Lights season finale at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
• Series champion Josef Newgarden led laps 4-66, but fell to ninth on the final lap when his tire went down following contact with teammate Carbone’s wing.
• Stefan Wilson set the fastest lap of the race, clocking a 28.32227 while hitting 196.252 miles per hour down the straight.
• Jorge Goncalvez put together another solid race by finishing third behind Carbone and Esteban Guerrieri — his fourth top-five finish on an oval this season.

Team USA and Canada at the Formula Ford Festival

• Neil Alberico led the way for the North American contingent competing at the 40th Annual Formula Ford Festival at Brands Hatch by finishing third in the 20-lap “Kent” final.

• USA’s Trent Hindman and Alberico both won heat races over the weekend and Team Canada’s Xavier Coupal was equally quick finishing runner-up in his heat. In addition, Coupal earned the pole position for the final with his semi-final speed.
• Spencer Pigot struggled with tire issues and contact throughout the weekend, but held his head high and worked through adversity for a 16th-place finish in the “Duratec” final.
• Despite contact Hindman put in several impressive “through the field” drives en route to a ninth in the final (he started 22nd).
• Ivor McCullough won the Kent final and Scott Malvern won the Duratec Final at Brands Hatch.

F1600 Championship Series

Bill Valet used his home-track knowledge of Lime Rock Park to win his second race of the 2011 F1600 Formula F Championship season in Round Seven. Valet nipped Art Foster by .318 seconds at the stripe, but both Valet and Foster were an afterthought when the checkered flag waved. All eyes were on Colin Thompson who drove from dead last to third. Drive of the weekend? I think so. Well, maybe not …

In Round 8, Foster proved his season-best finish of second during the first race of the weekend wasn’t a fluke. Similar to Valet, Foster was at home on the Lime Rock Park circuit — a course he considers his home track. Ryan Leach was second, 0.372 seconds astray and Thompson piloted his way to another third-place result.

Honorable mention should go to Jim Goughary who qualified on pole for both races at LRP.

The F1600 drivers conclude their season on Oct. 14-16 at Watkins Glen International.

F2000 Championship Series

Championship leader Remy Audette earned his fifth win of the 2011 F2000 Championship Series season on Saturday at Lime Rock Park. He basically put on a clinic after surviving a Turn 1 incident on the opening lap of the weekend’s first race, winning by 14.285 seconds over Tim Minor. Angel Benitez scored a podium finish in the 28-lap race — his first of the season.

Did I say Colin Thompson had the drive of the weekend?  Yes, I think I did. Those watching the F2000 Championship race might argue, though. Minor — who was involved in the aforementioned first turn clash — drove from last to second. His performance might steal the honor, you be the judge.

Current runner-up in the championship, Chris Livengood was bumped from competition (following the T1 incident) in the weekend’s first race. Having lost so many points to Audette — with championship hopes seemingly gone — some would bow out. Not Livengood.

He rebounded to win Round 12 — starting from off-pole to Audette — stretching his lead over the Canadian to 5.610 seconds. Audette maintained an 88 point lead by finishing second, while Tim Paul capped off his best race of the year, finishing third.

Star Mazda

No one could touch Connor De Phillippi at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca on Sunday as the talented pilot drove to a 1.671-second lead after starting from pole position. He was plain fast.

While De Phillippi was fast, Vautier was consistent. The Frenchman seized the 2011 Star Mazda Championship with a fifth-place result in the Series’ season-finale. Vautier never finished outside the top-five this season; logging four wins, four pole positions, four fast laps and six podiums driving for three-time champs JDC MotorSports. Vautier was Mr. Consistent in the No. 5 machine.

De Phillippi’s teammate Nick Andries finished second, his fourth runner-up result of the season. A win isn’t far off. The impressive combination of De Phillippi and Andries helped earn Team Pelfrey the team championship. De Phillippi concluded the season second overall with Andries third in the drivers’ standings.

Zach Veach finished an exemplary third Sunday in his second-ever Star Mazda race. Patrick McKenna made a solid return to the championship with a fourth-place result.

Make sure to follow Junior Open Wheel Talent on Twitter (@JOWT) for up-to-date junior formula car news.

Kyle Connery celebrates his fourth F2000 Championship win of the 2011 season after taking the checkered flag Friday at Mosport International Raceway. (Photo: Valet)

Skip Barber National – Road Atlanta

Scott Anderson finished the weekend in Road Atlanta right where he started: First. The talented 22-year-old set the fastest lap in Round 9 qualifying and went on to sweep the weekend, winning both Round 9 and 10 while extending his overall championship lead. Brandon Newey was runner-up in the weekend’s first race with Sebastian Ordonez rounding out the top-three. In Round 10, Trent Hindman was second with Shelby Blackstock rounding out the podium after starting seventh.

F2000 Championship Series – Mosport

Kyle Connery picked up ten points on championship leader Remy Audette by winning his fourth race of the 2011 season Friday, July 22, at Mosport. It was his second-consecutive win in the series. On Saturday, however, Audette returned the favor by winning his fourth race of the year while extending his championship lead to 104 points (w/out drops). The victory marked Audette’s second-career win at Mosport. Chris Livengood, who sits second in the F2000 Championship standings, finished runner-up both days.

Star Mazda – Mosport

J.V. Horto secured his first-career Star Mazda win in Round 6 of the 2011 championship Sunday after starting fifth at Mosport. The victory also marked the first win of the 2011 season for Juncos Racing — the team which won the ’10 title. Connor De Phillippi finished second and Tatiana Calderon rounded out the top-three for her second-career podium finish. De Phillippi’s runner-up result bumped him into second-place in the drivers’ standings, just six points behind leader Tristan Vautier.

Indy Lights – Edmonton

Sam Schmidt Motorsports has Edmonton figured out. During the first of the Twin 100′s at Edmonton’s City Centre Airport circuit, Esteban Guerrieri piloted his No. 7 SSM entry to victory with a flawless performance. He was trailed closely by teammate and championship leader Josef Newgarden throughout the timed event. Newgarden drove to victory Sunday, edging Toronto winner Stefan Wilson at the stripe. The win — Newgarden’s fourth of the year — elevated his lead in the championship to 63 points. Victor Carbone had a bit of a break-through weekend, challenging for a podium finish both days. Series’ rookie Oliver Webb put in an impressive performance for Jensen MotorSport finishing fifth and third, respectively, in his debut.

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Not to be forgotten, the F1600 and F2000 Championship Series were both in action last weekend at Mid-Ohio.

F1600

There really isn’t much more to say than: Wyatt Gooden. The 22-year-old driver made his debut in the series this past weekend in commanding fashion. He earned the pole position in the first qualifying session and later went on to sweep both races despite some serious opposition from the incredibly-quick Mitch Martin — who, ironically, was also making his debut in the F1600 F Championship Series.

The Series returns to action this fall with a race at Lime Rock Park on Sept. 16-17.

F2000

The F2000 Championship Series saw a weekend split between Chris Livengood — who won his first-career F2000 event at Mid-Ohio last season — and Kyle Connery — the driver who swept the competition at Road Atlanta in early May. Brian Tomasi and Robert LaRocca both had a fairly strong weekend as well against a stout field.

The F2000 drivers will hit the track again July 22-24 for a high-speed battle at Mosport where Canadian — and current championship leader — Remy Audette will try to distance himself from the pack on home soil.

For much more detail on last weekend’s races make sure to visit the F1600 Formula F Championship Series page here and the F2000 Championship Series page here.

Kyle Connery doesn’t know if he’ll be able to run a full season due to funding woes.

But, if any sponsors were on the fence… he likely made their decision easier following this weekend’s F2000 Championship races at Road Atlanta.

Connery won the first race of the weekend — his first career victory — by 4.291 seconds over veteran Remy Audette. He led all 18 laps on the 12-turn, 2.54 mile road course.

Then, on Saturday, in Race 2, Connery set a new track record in qualifying (1:25.042); started from pole and won the second race of the weekend.

The second win of the weekend didn’t come quite as easy, however, as Connery, a rookie,  picked up the victory on the final lap of the race, besting master’s competitor Tim Minor.

The 20-year-old Florida resident nipped Minor by a mere 0.232 seconds at the stripe, touring the course in 1:25.162 seconds for the fastest lap of the race.

Connery set fast lap-after-fast lap from the midway point on until he closed up on Minor’s gearbox with about five laps to go. With two to go, Connery slipped past on the backstraight but Minor reclaimed the lead diving into Turn 1 following the white flag.

“I sat there and watched [Tim Minor] for a bit and saw where the tires were going off,” Connery said. ” (I) had a great run coming out of seven on the last lap and set him up at the very last second. I don’t think I’ve been that deep on the brakes at the end of the back stretch all weekend.”

When the checkered waved, however, it was all Connery.

Next up for the F2000 Championship Series is Rounds 5 & 6 at Watkins Glen International Raceway on June 3-5.

Complete Results from both races after the jump… [Continue Reading...]

Alegra Motorsports will look to defend its F2000 Championship Series title in 2011 after signing two South American drivers for the upcoming season.

Brazilian Gustavo Rizzo, 19, and Venezuelan Angel Benitez, 21, have inked contracts with the defending champions — who won the 2010 crown with Victor Carbone behind-the-wheel.

Both Rizzo and Benitez have relocated to Florida in anticipation of the upcoming season, which kicks off with a double-header at Virginia International Raceway on April 8-10.

I’m not very familiar with either driver, but according to the press release Rizzo began karting six years ago and has, more recently, been competing in Brazilian Formula Ford and Stock Car Jr. Benitez won the 2005 Venezuelan F1600 Championship and the Venezuelan FF2000 Championship during both the ’07 and ’08 season.

The two drivers recently sampled their Alegra cars at Palm Beach International Raceway.

Niki Coello will make his return to the F2000 Championship Series in 2011 with Team Afterburner.

Coello, a four-time Formula Continental SCCA National Champ, will pilot a Ralph Firman Racing chassis alongside Brian Tomasi — the squad’s other entrant.

Watch for good things from this combination in 2011.

Junior Rotax standout Ethan Ringel has signed with McLaughlin Motorsports for the 2011 F2000 Championship Series.

The talented Florida resident will make his debut in the car ranks when the F2000 Championship opens its 14-race 2011 schedule at Virginia International Raceway on April 8-10.

Ringel traveled to Egypt in 2009 and Italy in 2010 as part of the Team USA Junior Rotax squad. He finished third in the Grand Nationals this season, but advanced to Italy via a fourth-place finish in the Rotax Pan American Challenge.

Watch for the 16-year-old to gain speed every time he hits the track. He will be working with Bill McLaughlin Jr. and Jay Howard — which should help ease the transition. Obviously it will take a little time to adapt to the car and build confidence at this level, but I fully expect to see him near the front at season’s end.

Chris Livengood, who was named JOWT’s 2010 F2000 Championship Series Unsung Hero, has re-signed with Work Racing for 2011.

The 26-year-old Pennsylvania native finished eighth in the 2010 championship with eight top-10 finishes, three top-5s and one win. His lone win came at Mid-Ohio — the final stop of the season — where he also set the fast lap of the race both days.

John Walko will be Livengood’s head engineer and also provide general trackside support. Watch for Livengood and the Work Racing Team to be fast right out of the box in 2011.