Junior Open Wheel Talent

Sebastian Ordonez (right) is greeted by fellow competitor Shelby Blackstock after winning Round 11 of the Skip Barber National Championship at Lime Rock Park. It was Ordonez' first-career SBN win.
(Photo: Kelly Brouillet/Skip Barber Racing)

A normal driver would be quite concerned after missing a qualifying session.

Not Sebastian Ordonez.

The talented 16-year-old had previously been unable to convert a pole position (he has three to date in 2011) into a race win. So, why not start from the opposite end of the spectrum?

On Friday — starting from the back of the field after missing qualifying due to shifter kart testing at New Castle Motorsports Park — Ordonez won. Who needs qualifying?

Ordonez drove from the back of the pack to finish first, earning his firs-career Skip Barber National victory in Round 11 at Lime Rock Park. It was a break-through win after notching three podium finishes in 2011; runner-up at both Sebring and Virginia International Raceway and a third-place result at Road Atlanta.

During Friday’s race, Ordonez was aggressive, especially on the opening laps. He had no choice. By the end of the first lap, he picked up three spots. As the laps ticked away, he moved into second place trailing championship leader Scott Anderson. It appeared Ordonez’ charge to the front was over as Anderson had built a decent lead. Until Lap 18, that is.

Anderson spun on his eighteenth circuit around the course, gifting the lead to Ordonez. That was all the help he needed, crossing the stripe 0.156 seconds ahead of Brandon Newey and 0.986 seconds ahead of Trent Hindman. Shelby Blackstock was fourth and Anderson recovered to finish fifth.

Round 12 belonged to Hindman. After claiming his fourth pole position of the season, the New Jersey native led the entire race picking up his second National victory of the year. In the waning laps, Anderson closed a multi-second gap down to just 0.547 seconds, but that was as close as he would get in the allotted time frame. Newey rounded out the podium with Blackstock fourth and Ordonez rounding out the fast-five.

Full results after the jump:

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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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Starting on the front row doesn’t mean all that much at Road America. Being draft savvy is just as important.

Still, Brandon Newey was happy when he earned his first career Skip Barber National pole position at the four-mile Wisconsin road course for Round 7.

As a second-year racer in the Series, Newey was prepared for the race knowing exactly how critical a role the draft plays at Elkhart Lake.

Throughout the 25-minute race, Newey traded the top spot with Thomas McGregor, Trent Hindman and Danilo Estrela. On each trip to the front Newey timed his maneuver while evaluating his opponents’ strenths and weaknesses.

It paid off.

On the last lap, Newey made a move for the point securing his second win of the 2011 season narrowly edging McGregor for the top spot at the checkered flag. The margin of victory was just 0.084 seconds, with the top-five separated by less than one second (0.684).

McGregor was second, Hindman was third, Estrela was fourth and Kyle Kaiser rounded out the top-five in the weekend’s first race.

Heading into Round 8, Scott Anderson was unhappy with his qualifying effort. His fast time was nearly two seconds a lap off of pole sitter Sebastian Ordonez’ time.

Anderson had his work cut out, but similar to Newey’s mindset in Round 7, he knew working the draft could change everything.

After a good start, Anderson began to work with Newey and Series’ newcomer Zachary Silver to escape the pack. After putting some distance on the competition, the top three began to battle for the point, exchanging the lead in nearly every portion of the course.

In the end, however, it was Anderson who emerged with the victory; his third of the year. Newey trailed by just 0.021 seconds at the stripe and Silver, 14, finished just 0.047 seconds astray.

Hindman was fourth and Estrela rounded out the top-five.

The Skip Barber National drivers return to action for Rounds 9 and 10 on July 21-23 at Road Atlanta.

Full results from Road America after the jump.

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The Skip Barber Racing School announced the date of its 2011 Karting Scholarship Shootout today, as well as a few important changes to the program.

The Skip Barber Karting Scholarship Shootout will take place Nov. 4-6, 2011, at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. Here’s where things get interesting.

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Scott Anderson picked up his second win of the 2011 Skip Barber National Championship on Saturday in Round 5 and Trent Hindman earned his first career National victory Monday in Round 6 at Lime Rock Park.

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The Skip Barber National Championship resumed action last weekend at the scenic Virginia International Raceway.

In Round 3, Scott Anderson picked up his first career win after a heated battle for the lead with pole sitter Sebastian Ordonez. Danilo Estrela rounded out the podium with a third-place result.

Trent Hindman was fourth and Shelby Blackstock completed the top-five.

On Sunday, the Series had its first repeat winner. Canadian Thomas McGregor picked up the win besting Anderson by 0.025 seconds at the stripe after starting sixth. McGregor also won Round 1 at Sebring International Raceway.  Brandon Newey finished third Saturday after holding the lead for several laps.

Remo Ruscitti was fourth overall and Hindman rounded out the top-five. Sebastian Ordonez, who finished sixth, was also able to run up front for a good portion of the race… illustrating just how close the weekend’s racing was.

The SBN drivers return to action May 27-30 at Lime Rock Park for Rounds 5 & 6.

Complete Results after the jump.

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The 2011 racing season is finally underway and it opened with some exceptionally exciting races last weekend with both the Skip Barber National Championship and USF2000 National Championship opening their respective seasons at Sebring International Raceway.

Here’s a quick recap:

Skip Barber National Championship

The SBN Championship saw two first-time national winners over the weekend with Thomas McGregor picking up the win in Round 1 and Brandon Newey scoring the win in Round 2.

Danilo Estrela picked up five spots in the first race earning the hard-charger award. Shelby Blackstock drove from 10th to 6th in the second race, securing the second hard-charger title of the weekend.

Pole sitters were Scott Anderson in Round 1 and Trent Hindman in Round 2. By weekend’s end the top-three drivers in the point standings were Newey (67), McGregor (65) and Sebastian Ordonez (56).

Not surprisingly, it was a hard-fought battle for the lead all weekend long. If the competition level from this past weekend is any indication, we’re in for a thrilling season.

USF2000 National Championship

The USF2000 National Championship began with Andretti Autosport’s Zach Veach scoring the flag-to-flag win at Sebring International Raceway. Veach also won the USF2000 WinterFest in January. Petri Suvanto showcased his speed right off the bat, wheeling his Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing No. 3 entry to second place. Spencer Pigot, driving the No. 8 Andretti Autosport car, finished third.

In Round 2 — which was packed full of action — Australia’s Luke Ellery emerged victorious in the No. 85 JDC MotorSports car. Pigot secured runner-up honors after starting fourth and Suvanto scored his second podium of the weekend with a third-place result.

The USF2000 National Championship will return to action this weekend at St. Petersburg, Fla.

Skip Barber Racing has released its 2011 National Championship schedule. The new calendar features seven double-race weekends.

2011 Skip Barber National Championship Schedule

• March 16-18: Sebring International Raceway
• April 29-May 1: Virginia International Raceway
• May 27-30: Lime Rock Park
• July 1-3: Road America
• July 21-23: Road Atlanta
• Aug. 11-13: Lime Rock Park
• Sept. 9-11: Autobahn
• Oct. 6-8: Lime Rock Park

You can read the official release from Skip Barber Racing here.

Trent Hindman, 15, and Danilo Estrela, 17, were announced as the winners of the 2010 Skip Barber Karting Scholarship Shootout today at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

Tristan Nunez (15) was awarded a half season in the 2011 National Championship. Stefan Rzadzinski (17) won a full regional scholarship for 2011. Kenton Koch (16), Scott Hargrove (15) and Kyle Kaiser (14) earned a half season of regional competition.

A couple thoughts…

• As always, it’s great to see this shootout in place. The Skip Barber Karting Scholarship offers drivers a tremendous amount of seat time for a relatively low price. For those who walk away with scholarships, the event is even more valuable.
• Last year, with Pigot and Serralles winning, it was good to be from Florida as both are Floridians. This year it would appear New Jersey is the state to live in. Hindman and Estrela — the top prize winners — are both from New Jersey.
• The average age of scholarship winners this year is 15.57. Last year, the average age was 17.5 years.
• Several of the award winners had a significant amount of previous experience in a Skip Barber car. Both Hindman and Estrela ran four National Championship races in 2010.  Nunez, Koch, Kaiser and Hindman all participated in the 2009 Karting Scholarship at Sebring.
• Estrela also has European experience as the 15-year-old ran three races in the 2009 Formula Palmer Audi series. In addition, he ran a few Brazilian Touring Car events. I’m not sure where Estrela was karting this season, but I’d have to assume somewhere because the application for entry to the shootout specifically says, “Applicants must be actively and currently racing karts.” Update: Estrela ran two races in Brazil’s Center-West Cup Championship this year.
  
• I’m glad I wasn’t a judge. There were so many talented drivers in attendance this past weekend. Prior to the event, I had picked a few drivers that I thought would exit with a scholarship — Not all of them did. It’s tough to leave an event like this without a prize, but those drivers need to use this experience to their advantage and realize that they aren’t leaving empty handed.
• Congrats to everyone who participated.

Related Reading: Skip Barber Karting Scholarship

The 2010 Skip Barber Karting Scholarship Shootout is underway as of this morning and will continue throughout the weekend. The scholarship recipients will be announced Monday, Dec. 6, at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

Follow live updates from Skip Barber Marketing Coordinator Kelly Brouillet throughout the weekend on Twitter.

[Update]- Trent Hindman and Danilo Estrela earn top prize at Laguna Seca