Series concludes with special night race weekend at Speedsportz Racing Park
The fifth and final event of the 2022 Texas Sprint Racing Series presented by Auctionetx was held at the Speedsportz Racing Park. The New Caney, Texas facility welcomed the Superkarts! USA and International Kart Federation regional competitors over September 22-24 for a special night race program to close out the 2022 championship chase. Thursday afternoon and evening welcomed a full day of practice before qualifying and the opening heat race were contested Friday. Saturday was the second round of heats followed by the main events, under the lights for the ‘Fall Finale’ to decide this year’s series champions.
The KA100 Senior by Exertech category welcomed 31 drivers, led by Brayden Robertson to open up the event. Robertson posted the fast lap in the qualifying session to secure the pole position for Heat 1. In the first heat, Alex Stanfield made his way up from seventh to lead only the 15th and final lap of the race to score the win. Robertson fell down to 11th in the order. Heat Two was another driver to come from mid-pack to the win as Peyton Phillips charged forward to take cross the line first ahead of Aden Rudolph and Stanfield. Phillips was challenged early in the Final, however staked his claim for the top spot on lap nine, leading the remainder of the 22-lap race to secure his first victory of the season. Robertson was able to fight his way back up toward the front, placing second ahead of Adrian Cruz to round out the podium. Stanfield ended up fourth with Tyler Stephens placing fifth.
Helio Meza was one of two drivers to sweep the event as Meza went wire-to-wire in KA100 Junior by 4T Concrete Pumping. Meza cleared the field by two tenths of a second in qualifying before going on to win by eight seconds and three seconds in the two heat races. Helio set sail in the main event, posting fast laps of the race to drive away to an over eight-second advantage after 22 laps. Justin Music was able to climb nine spots to win the fight for second ahead of Cooper Shipman and Santiago Duran with Landon Skinner completing the top-five.
Sawyer Roussel was the other drive to sweep their event as he earned maximum points in 206 Junior class by Saville Electric. Roussel edged out the nine-driver field, besting Alfred Alvarez del Castillo by 60 thousandths of a second. Roussel was challenged in the heat races by Alfred and Westin Criddle, however, came away with the win in both. It was Jenson Harrell that became the top challenger in the Final, grabbing the lead early and led the first 15 laps. Roussel returned back to the point that lap, and was able to hold off Harrell by eight thousandths of a second at the line for the victory. Harrell settled for second with Criddle moved up to third after Castillo was removed from the results following tech. That promoted Shelby Ramirez to fourth and Joseph McCreight into fifth.
It was a record year for the KA100 Master class by Kart Racing Solutions, welcoming another large field with 18 drivers racing under the lights. James Lundberg led the way in qualifying, edging out Morgan Lebaron by two thousandths of a second to claim fast time in the session. Starting fourth, Vincent Climent fought forward to the front of the field, winning the opening heat race and then repeated the following day in Heat Two. Climent led the opening circuit of the 21-lap Final before Round Two winner Robby Mott took over. Mott led the final 20 laps to claim his second victory of the season. Miguel Mier advanced three spots up to second with Climent settling for third, his first podium of the season. Lundberg was hard charger of the race, climbing up eight spots to fourth with Lebaron in fifth.
Derek Wargo was able to claim a second straight win in the 206 Cadet by Ferris Mowers division. Wargo ended up second in qualifying as Jaxon Young posted fast time in the session by only five thousandths. Young led the first 12 laps of Heat One before Wargo took over and went on to win. He battled for the win again in Heat Two, leading the final nine laps to cross the line first. Wargo and Josey Chambers were able to break away from the 13-driver field in the Final. Chambers led the majority of the race until Wargo was able to stick a last lap pass for the victory. Chambers came 37 thousandths short at the line, settling for second with Young joining them on the podium in third. Sawyer Chambers ended up fourth with Thomas Smith rounding out the top-five.
advertisement
The Micro Swift by Houston Freightliner / Western Star class welcomed 16 drivers on the weekend, along with a first-time winner on the season. Aston Wyatt cleared the field by four tenths of a second in qualifying and led all 15 laps of the opening heat race. Round One winner Paxton Dyson picked up the pace in Heat Two, and was able to edge out Wyatt for the race win by one thousandths of a second. Wyatt responded with a perfect main event, leading all 19 laps and driving out to a nine-second advantage at the checkered flag to become the fifth different winner on the season. Dyson ended up second with Emerson Laine joining them on the podium in third. Alex Chandler and Liam Nachawati finished fourth and fifth.
Also welcoming a fifth different winner in five founds was the Mini Swift by Alan Rudolph Racing Academy class. Derek Wargo set the pace in qualifying, however, Gage Bailey set the tone for the rest of the event. Bailey drove away to a seven-second win in Heat One and nearly four seconds in Heat Two. Gage was the quickest driver on the track in the 21-lap Final, leading wire-to-wire for his first victory of the season. Tyler Roberts finished three seconds back for a runner-up finish with Wargo ending up in third. Juan Jose Paramo and David Ybarra completed the top-five.
The 206 Senior by Cruz Racing Development class provided fireworks all season long and the finale was no different. Sally Mott secured her first fast time in qualifying on the year with the top four separated by just 80 thousandths of a second. Among them was Braxden Tregre, the Round Four winner, drove up to the race win. Another, Mikey Bowlin, followed suite and drove the race win in Heat Two. The Final ended up becoming a three-driver fight with Bowlin, Tregre and Mott. Bowlin led the majority of the race, including up to the white flag. On the final circuit, Tregre was able to make the winning move, securing his second straight victory. Mott finished second with fast lap of the race while Bowlin slipped to third. Tyler Stephens was fourth with Caiden Wolfe placing fifth.
Andrew Anastasio became a two-time winner on the season in the Honda Kid Karts by Helix Electric category. Theodore Mitchell set fast time in qualifying with Brody Stoffle and Dutch Westbrook taking the wins in the heat races. Anastasio, who started third, worked up to the lead early in the 15-lap Final, leading the majority of the race to claim the victory. Stoffle was a close second with Mitchell in third. Raif Ali was fourth with Westbrook in fifth.
The Texas Sprint Racing Series presented by Auctionetx awarded the champions at the conclusion of the event, with a full 2022 season recap to be released in the coming weeks.
advertisement