Champions of USAC’s 2014 Honda .25 Midget series were toasted Saturday night in downtown Indianapolis, Ind. as the “Showcase of Champions” unfolded at the NCAA Hall of Champions.
Butch Lamb served as the emcee for the affair, which offered pre and post-banquet amusement with the Hall of Champions’ array of sports-related games and displays.

Eighteen National and multiple regional championships were celebrated, the National Champions also featured during opening ceremonies at Friday night’s 59th USAC “Night of Champions” National Awards Dinner, also in Indianapolis.

The “Generation Next” series encompassed a baker’s dozen events from coast to coast and resulted in 58 different class winners. 

Honored as USAC Honda .25 Midget National Champions as a result of their “Generation Next Tour” titles were Logan Heath of Hereford, AZ (Light 160 and Light World Formula Pavement); Carson Hocevar of Portage, MI (Heavy Honda and Heavy 160, Senior Animal and Heavy AA Pavement); Berklee Jimenez of San Antonio, TX (Heavy World Formula Pavement); Brady Johnson of Mooresville, N.C. (Junior Honda Pavement); Christopher Oplinger of Mount Holly, N.C. (Senior Honda Pavement); Tanner Reif of Henderson, NV (Junior Animal Pavement); Famous Rhodes II of Parkland, FL (Light Mod Pavement); Danny Sams III of Englewood, FL (Unrestricted Animal Pavement); Jack Wehmeyer of Sellersville, PA (Light AA Pavement); Aleksander Andrecs of Edgewater, MD (Junior Honda Dirt); Bradan Andrecs of Edgewater, MD (Junior Animal Dirt); Jesse James Bartleson of Rio Grande, NJ (Heavy World Formula Dirt); Zachary Curtis of Spring City, PA (Heavy Honda Dirt); Briggs Danner of Allentown, PA (Light 160 Dirt); Hanna Flood of Limerick, PA (Heavy 160 and Unrestricted Animal Dirt); Connor Gross of Middleton, MA (Light World Formula Dirt); Mike Thompson of Holland, PA (Senior Animal Dirt); and Conner Weiss of Barto, PA (Senior Honda Dirt).

Champions of the Eastern, Western, Northeast and East Coast sub-series were also recognized and presented distinctive awards.

Connie Ellington of Arizona, who served for the past three years as a dedicated USAC official, was the surprise recipient of USAC’s “Spirit of Youth Award” in recognition of her outstanding contributions and dedication to youth in motorsports.

All of the USAC champions received distinctive championship jackets compliments of Hoosier Racing Tire of Lakeville, Ind.

http://usacracing.com/news/25/item/4381-youth-take-center-stage-at-25-showcase-of-champions

The 2014 professional Formula F season kicked off in January with the start of the Pacific Formula F1600 Championship at Auto Club Speedway near Los Angeles, while several new teams and drivers announced their plans for the upcoming F1600 Formula F Championship Series plans were announced for a Formula F “45^th Birthday Party” at Barber Motorsports Park in August.

Pacific F1600 Championship at Auto Club Speedway

In California, the Pacific F1600 Championship opened January 17-19 at the 2.88-mile infield road course at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California, with veteran Ethan Shippert and young newcomer Nikita Lastochkin each claiming a victory in the first doubleheader race weekend of the season.

Rookie Lastochkin, who recently announced plans to compete in both the eastern and western Formula F championships this year, qualified on the pole both days and led portions of the first race until a spin and late-race electrical issues ended his day.  Veteran Shippert then went on to claim his second career Formula F win, and first of 2014. 

In Sunday’s finale, Lastochkin again got off to a quick start and was never headed for his first professional Formula F victory.  Shippert survived wheel-to-wheel contact on the opening lap with Chuck Horn, as the latter’s Swift-Honda vaulted over Shippert’s Piper-Honda under braking for the first turn.  Both were able to continue with Shippert finishing fourth and Horn, fifth. 

Next up for the Pacific F1600 Championship Series is the April 25-37 SCCA doubleheader weekend at Buttonwillow Raceway.  More information on the series is available at www.pacificF2000.com. 

F1600 Formula F Adds New Drivers, Teams

The eastern U.S.-based F1600 Formula F Championship season doesn’t open until April, but a number of new drivers have already announced their plans to take part in the 14-race series, along with three new teams.

Florida-based Team Pelfrey brings a heritage of IndyCar competition to Formula F as it joins the series with a powerful, three-car lineup headed by 20-year-old Ayla Agren, who scored a pole and three podium finishes in 2013. 

Augie Lerch, a 17-year-old graduate or SKUSA’s Spec Honda shifter kart class, is a promising rookie find for Pelfrey; along with 21-year-old Garth Rickards who won a Skip Barber race series event at Homestead, Florida, in 2013, in his first year of racing. 

HP Tech, a two-time winner of the Ferrari Challenge Championship and the 2012 F2000 Championship with driver Robert La Rocca, enters to Formula F for the 2014 season with the successful Australian-build Spectrum Honda chassis.  Spectrum-mounted Jake Eidson won the 2013 Formula F title, and moves up to the USF2000 Championship in 2014.   Veterans Scott Rubenzer, Art Foster and Mike Scanlan also will be Spectrum-mounted in 2014.

Virginia-based WISKO Race Engineering had a very successful debut Formula F season in 2013, challenging for the title with driver Aaron Telitz.  Nikita Latsochkin, already a winner in the west coast-based Pacific F1600 Championship, also will drive a WISKO Mygale Honda in the eastern series.  He will be joined by rookie Will Harvey, coming to Formula F from the Bertil Roos Racing Series. 

The 14-race 2014 F1600 Formula F Championship Series opens April 11-13 at Road Atlanta for the first of seven double-header weekends.  Additional information on the F1600 Formula F Championship Series can be found at http://www.f1600series.com/.

Formula F To Be Featured at Barber Summer SpeedFest

The 45th birthday of Formula F class will highlight the SCCA Summer SpeedFest at Barber Motorsports Park, August 9-10.  Three classes of Formula F machines – Formula F, Club and Vintage – representing the beginning of Formula Ford through the modern day National Championship contenders, will run on the anniversary weekend, which will run as part of a doubleheader SCCA race weekend.

A large turnout is expected at the Barber circuit, located in Birmingham, Alabama.  The celebration comes five years after HPD unveiled its new engine for Formula F during the Formula F 40^th Birthday Party at Road America in 2009. 

Since the Honda L157A engine became eligible for Formula F at the start of 2010, more than 100 engines have been sold by HPD, and the category has experienced exponential growth, including an increase in SCCA Club Racing competition, the start of two new professional racing series in the USA and an increasing number of young racers graduating from karting to Formula F competition.

A detailed schedule for the two-day weekend will be announced soon, but the schedule is expected to include a practice, qualifying and 30-minute sprint races on Saturday, with a warm-up and longer 50-mile races on Sunday. More information on the SafeRacer SCCA Club Racing program can be found at www.scca.com.   

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For more information: 

T.E. McHale  (310) 783-3169

Dan Layton   (314) 614-9763

For Immediate Release

Honda Performance Development Unveils 3.5-Liter Prototype Engine

·         Starworks Motorsport to Debut HR35TT at Sebring

·         Latest Racing Application of Production-Based Honda V6 Engine

·         Two-Team HPD Effort In TUDOR United SportsCar Championship

SANTA CLARITA, Calif., Feb. 20, 2014 – Honda Performance Development Thursday announced a new, 3.5-liter racing application for the versatile, production-based Honda V6 engine found in a wide range of Honda/Acura passenger cars and light trucks and now raced in multiple categories worldwide.

The Honda HR35TT twin-turbocharged V6 is expected to make its TUDOR United SportsCar Championship debut at the 2014 Mobil1 12 Hours of Sebring, mounted in a Riley Gen3 prototype chassis campaigned by Starworks Motorsport.

Previously, Starworks partnered with HPD to win the LMP2 class at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and World Endurance Championship in 2012, using HPD’s ARX-03b chassis and Honda HR28TT twin-turbocharged V6, which also is derived from Honda’s J35 series of engines. 

Starworks becomes the second team to utilize Honda power for the new TUDOR championship.  Extreme Speed Motorsports campaigns a pair of prototype class HPD ARX-03b Hondas, after a successful initial season with the same package in the 2013 American Le Mans Series.

“This is an exciting program for HPD and our customer teams in the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship,” said Steve Eriksen, HPD Vice President and COO.  “Adding Starworks, a team that achieved great success with us in 2012, in a prototype machine alongside the proven HPD-Honda combination run by Extreme Speed Motorsports provides HPD with a strong, balanced attack in the inaugural TUDOR Championship.

“It’s a fantastic feeling to be partnering with Honda once again,” said Starworks team owner Peter Baron.  “No doubt we had amazing success with HPD in 2012, but unfortunately it was only a one-year program.  We have had numerous conversations over the past two years about building a Daytona Prototype motor and we're thrilled to see it come to fruition.  We absolutely love working with HPD and have been in collaboration to find a new opportunity to partner with them again.  We will have our work cut out with the steep learning curve to get us to Victory Lane, but HPD brings determination and success to every program it touches.  Although HPD already competes in the Prototype class, we feel this is huge step for the TUDOR series and Starworks is thrilled to be part of it."

Starworks Motorsport has compiled an enviable record in Daytona Prototype competition, with five race victories, including back-to-back wins at Indianapolis in 2012 and 2013; and a second-place finish in the Daytona Prototype team championship in 2012, with two victories and six podium finishes.  That same year, Starworks became the first American-based prototype team to win an FIA World Championship since 1968, and HPD won its first world title in WEC competition. 

The HPD-developed twin-turbocharged Honda engines to be used in the TUDOR championship are both derived from the Honda J35 series of production V6 engines, and include relevant twin-turbocharger technology, along with the efficiency provided by direct fuel injection.  

The HR35TT is yet another competition application of the ubiquitous J35 engine.  The first, the HR28TT, was designed for LMP2 competition and won in its American Le Mans Series debut in 2011.  The engine has gone on to record 24 individual race victories and three series titles in the American Le Mans Series, World Endurance Championship and European Le Mans Series Competition.

Other variants of the engine have been raced in Japan’s Autobacs SuperGT Championship, the One Lap of America competitive rally and Pikes Peak International Hillclimb.

Honda Performance Development (HPD) is the Honda performance company within North America.  Located in Santa Clarita, Calif., HPD is the technical operations center for high-performance Honda racing cars and engines. The company is marking its 20^th anniversary in 2013.

As an engine supplier to the IZOD IndyCar Series, Honda has scored 204 race victories in both CART and IZOD IndyCar Series competition since 1994, and powered Scott Dixon to a series-high four victories and the 2013 IZOD IndyCar Series drivers’ championship.

HPD offers a variety of race engines for track applications from prototype sports cars to karting; and showcases “fun-to-drive” products for professional, amateur and entry-level racers.

Honda HR35TT V6 Engine

• Engine Type                 Aluminum alloy, twin-turbocharged, direct fuel-injected V6  
• Displacement               3.5 liters
• Valve Train                   Single overhead camshaft, four valves per cylinder
• Crankshaft                   Alloy steel
• Pistons                         Forged aluminum, low-friction coatings
• Connecting Rods        Machined alloy steel
• Engine Management   HPD/McLaren
• Ignition System           Digital inductive
• Lubrication                  Dry sump system
• Cooling                        Single mechanical water pump
• Fuel                              E10 100-101 octane gasoline, 10% ethanol

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Herta Wins Pacific Formula F Championship

 

Second-generation racer Colton Herta swept the season finale triple-header race weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway to claim the Pacific Formula F1600 Championship in his first season of Formula F racing.

 

Herta, the 13-year-old son of former Honda-powered IndyCar and ALMS driver Bryan Herta followed up a stellar karting career by scoring 10 victories in his Honda-powered PR1 Motorsports Mygale Formula F to claim the title over season-long rival and teammate Joey Bickers.

 

Bickers won four races in the 15-round championship, and consistent podium finishes kept him in the championship hunt going into the final weekend of the season.  Between them, Herta and Bickers won all but one round in 2013, with only veteran David Cheng’s win at Thunderhill’s round two interrupting their victory march.

 

At the Las Vegas road course finale, Bickers took the pole for the first race, but fell behind Herta at the start and eventually had to battle the Lynx Racing Spectrum Honda of Alex Keyes to hang on to second at the finish, with Keyes third.  Colton won from the pole in race two, clinching the title when Bickers slid off course on the opening lap.  Bickers eventually recovered to finish third behind Keyes, who scored his best result of the season.

 

In the third and final race of the weekend, Herta again started from the pole, but faced a strong challenge from Bickers as the pair exchanged the lead until Herta took command mid-race, with Bickers finishing second and Andrew Evans rounding out the podium in his Lynx Racing Spectrum Honda.  More information on the Pacific F1600 Championship series is available at www.pacificF2000.com.

 

 

Formula F Webcast Episode 3 Premiers

 

Produced by Mathisen Media with the support of Honda Performance Development, the latest episode in a series of four webcasts dedicated to Formula F competition has debuted at http://youtu.be/4rj3TstiEVI.

 

The video series provides Formula F race highlights, coupled with testamonials from Honda-powered IndyCar drivers touting the virtues of Formula F competition and the lessons learned from Formula F racing earlier in their careers.

 

The first “F1600 In Focus” webcast featured race in-car footage from the F1600 Formula F Championship Series weekends at Mid-Ohio and Summitt Point, including current IndyCar driver Tristan Vautier’s one-off return to Formula F competition at Mid-Ohio.

 

Honda IndyCar (and former Formula F) drivers making appearances in the video series include Scott Dixon, Simon Pagenaud, Charlie Kimball and Josef Newgarden.

 

 

Team USA Prepares for Formula F Festivals

 

A pair of young American Honda-powered Formula F drivers headed to England for the famed season-ending Formula F “Festival” events at Brands Hatch and Silverstone as part of the annual Team USA Scholarship program.

 

Joey Bickers, a 21-year-old Californian and championship runner-up in the Pacific Formula F1600 Championship; and Jake Eidson, 18, winner of the 2013 eastern US Formula F title, represented the USA and took  
part in both the annual FF Festival at the famed Brands Hatch circuit October 26-27, and the Walter Hayes Trophy race weekend at Silverstone, home of the British Grand Prix, November 2-4.

 

As the newest members of Team USA Scholarship, Bickers and Eidson follow in the footsteps of previous scholarship winners [and eventual Honda-powered IndyCar drivers] Jimmy Vasser, Bryan Herta, Buddy Rice, Charlie Kimball, JR Hildebrand and Josef Newgarden.

 

The Team USA Scholarship program has been boosting the careers of young (ages 16-22) American racers since 1990.  Honda Performance Development has been a proud sponsor of this effort since the institution of the Honda Racing Line program in 2010.  More information on Team USA can be found at the organization’s website, www.TeamUSAScholarship.org, as well as on Facebook and Twitter.

 

 

Kautz Defends Formula F Title at SCCA Runoffs

 

Tim Kautz, the first Honda-powered Formula F National Champion with his victory in the 2012 SCCA Runoffs, successfully defended his title in his Piper Honda last month at Road America, after a race-long battle with the Van Diemen Ford of Reid Hazelton.

 

Drivers from across North America qualify for the Runoffs with their race finishes in SCCA National competition throughout the season, but the title “national champion” can only be earned by winning the final race of the season, which this year is celebrated its 50th anniversary at the historic Road America circuit in central Wisconsin.

 

More than 700 SCCA club racers – including a record total of 63 Honda and Acura drivers took part in this year’s runoffs, one of the largest fields on record.  Included in that number were 12 Formula F racers utilizing the Honda L15A7 engine, also a record for Honda participation in the revitalized category and making up exactly half of the 24-driver entry in this popular category.

 

Kautz and Hazelton traded the lead repeatedly throughout the 13-lap contest, including at four times on the final lap.  In the run to the checkers, Kautz edged to the front, when it counted the most, to claim the title by just a tenth of a second over his rival.  Jeff Bartz made it a 1-3 result for Honda-powered drivers as the manufacturer claimed six of the top-10 finishing positions.

 

Additional information on the SCCA National Championship Runoffs can be found at www.scca.com. 

Art St. Cyr, President, Honda Performance Development, on Chip Ganassi Racing’s decision to change engine manufacturers for the 2014 IndyCar Series:  

“On behalf of everyone at Honda, I’d like to thank Chip Ganassi and the entire Ganassi Racing organization for their efforts in our very successful, eight-year partnership in the Indy Racing League and INDYCAR, which included four driver’s championships, three Indianapolis 500 victories and more than 40 individual race wins since 2006.   

“It may be worth noting that when our previous – and also very successful – association with the Ganassi organization in Championship Auto Racing Teams competition ended after the 1999 season, Honda went on to win 15 races over the next two seasons, including both the 2000 and 2001 driver’s championship, and the 2001 Manufacturers’ Championship. 

“While this partnership is coming to an end, Honda and Honda Performance Development remain committed to achieving even greater IndyCar success in the future with our continuing and new partner teams.  While Honda and the Ganassi organization are going our separate ways, we remain committed to winning the 2013 Drivers’ and Manufacturers’ championships, and our collective efforts for the final three races will be entirely focused on accomplishing those objectives.”

A pair of young American Honda-powered Formula F drivers garnered headlines in September when newly-crowned F1600 Formula F Championship winner Jake Eidson and Pacific Formula F Championship contender Joey Bickers were selected as winners of the 2013 Team USA Scholarship program.

Bickers, a 21-year-old Californian in his first season of racing, and Eidson, 18, winner of the 2013 eastern US Formula F title, will travel to England in October to represent the USA and take part in both the annual FF Festival at the famed Brands Hatch circuit, and the Walter Hayes Trophy race weekend at Silverstone, home of the British Grand Prix. 

As the newest members of Team USA Scholarship, Bickers and Eidson follow in the footsteps of previous scholarship winners [and eventual Honda-powered IndyCar drivers] Jimmy Vasser, Bryan Herta, Buddy Rice, Charlie Kimball, JR Hildebrand and Josef Newgarden.

“Being selected as a Team USA Scholarship driver is a dream come true, especially knowing the number of successful drivers who have come through the program in the past,” said Eidson, who won seven of 12 races this year to claim the F1600 Formula F Championship crown, run in the eastern United States.  “Having the opportunity to be in the same position as they were in their early racing careers is an incredible honor.”

“Words cannot explain how honored I am to be given this opportunity,” said Bickers, who raced motocross for several years before switching to karting in 2011 and has won four races so far this season in the west coast-based Pacific Formula F Championship.  “It means so much to join a long list of successful graduates such as Jimmy Vasser and Bryan Herta.  I am very excited, and ready to give my maximum effort on- and off-track, and carry the prestige of the Team USA Scholarship.”

The Team USA Scholarship program has been boosting the careers of young (ages 16-22) American racers since 1990.  Honda Performance Development has been a proud sponsor of this effort since the institution of the Honda Racing Line program in 2010.  More information on Team USA can be found at the organization’s website, www.TeamUSAScholarship.org, as well as on Facebook and Twitter. 

Eidson Claims F1600 Formula F Championship Series

Just prior to being named to the 2013 Team USA, Eidson closed out his successful F1600 Formula F Championship Series title chase with a record-setting seventh victory of year in the season finale at Summit Point Raceway in West Virginia. 

Eidson began his championship run with a May run four consecutive victories at Road Atlanta, Lime Rock Park (both races) and Mid-Ohio in his Cape Motorsports Spectrum Honda.  A sweep of both races in the second Mid-Ohio race weekend then vaulted him into a championship lead the Colorado-based driver would not surrender. 

But Eidson faced tough competition all season long from several other young chargers, led by fellow Team USA Scholarship finalists Adrian Starrantino, who swept the opening race weekend at Virginia International Raceway aboard his Bryan Herta Autosport Mygale Honda.  Starrantino went on to win two more times – once each at Mid-Ohio and Summit Point – to finish second in the championship.

Aaron Telitz has combined one win at Road Atlanta with a series of podium results to finish third in the championship in his Wisko Racing Mygale Honda and also was an early contender in the Team USA Scholarship competition. 

Additional information on the F1600 Formula F Championship Series can be found at http://www.f1600series.com/.

Herta, Bickers Battle for Pacific Formula F Championship

In California, the Pacific Formula F Championship heads to its October 4-6 triple-header season finale in Las Vegas with Bickers battling with Colton Herta for the series title. 

Herta, the 13-year-old son of former Honda-powered IndyCar and ALMS driver Bryan Herta has followed up a stellar karting career by scoring seven race wins so far in his first season of Formula F racing, and currently holds a 35-point advantage going into Las Vegas. 

But with 50 points available for a victory, and three races on the schedule for the Vegas weekend, the championship is still very much up for grabs between Herta and four-race winner Bickers, who has combined four wins with seven runner-up finishes to hand tough in the battle for the title. 

Herta and Bickers both drive Mygale Hondas for PR1 Motorsports, but continue to race each other hard and close as each seeks his first auto racing championship.  They also face strong competition from the Lynx Racing Spectrum Hondas of Alex Keys and Andrew Evans and all four “young guns” should be racing hard at the front throughout the Las Vegas season finale.

More information on the Pacific Formula F Championship series is available at www.pacificF2000.com. 

Honda Formula F Field Grows at SCCA Runoffs

More than 700 SCCA club racers – including a record total of 63 Honda Racing Line drivers – have gathered this week at Road America in Wisconsin for the annual SCCA National Championship Runoffs. 

Included in that number are 12 Formula F racers utilizing the HPD L15A7 engine, also a record for Honda participation in the revitalized category and making up exactly half of the 24-driver entry.

Tim Kautz, the first Honda-powered Formula F National Champion with his victory in the 2012 Runoffs, is back to defend his title in his Piper Honda; along with local favorite Jeff Bartz, who runs a Van Diemen Honda with support from David Hobbs Honda in Milwaukee.  Former champion Scott Rubenzer is another to switch to Honda power for his new Spectrum chassis, as is class mainstay Bill Kephart in his unique Vestal Honda. 

Drivers from across North America qualify for the Runoffs with their race finishes in SCCA National competition throughout the season, but the title “national champion” can only be earned by winning the final race of the season, which this year is celebrating its 50th anniversary and fifth consecutive run at the historic Road America circuit in central Wisconsin.  Additional information on the SCCA National Championship Runoffs can be found at www.scca.com. 

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