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| July 29, 2012 News |
| F1600 Championship: Davies Returns to Victory Lane at Mid-Ohio |
 | Shae Davies emerged from another entertaining fight at Mid-Ohio with his third win in four races
(Photo: F1600 Formula F Championship Series - Valet) |
Australian Shae Davies drove to victory in another multi-car 18-lap battle at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on Sunday (July 29) to close the F1600 Formula F Championship Series doubleheader.
The race, similar to Saturday’s shootout, saw the top five cars break away from the field and jockey for position for the entire race, with Davies coming out on top for Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing, ahead of Garett Grist and Matias Koykka.
Davies, a 22 year-old who is running a partial F1600 Championship season in addition to Formula Ford action in his native Australia, took his third win in just four series races.
“That was a fun race, the car’s balance was really good. We found a sweet spot in qualifying, taking the pole, and that set us up for the race,” Davies said. “It was a long race and I wanted to pace myself. The caution helped us cool the tires. I had a good battle with Matias and when I saw him fighting with Garett in the mirror with two laps to go I was able to open up a bit of a gap.”
The Australian is expected back for the season finale at Watkins Glen, but was unsure about coming to Summit Point in August due to budget constraints. Davies heads back to Australia on Monday for a race next weekend in the Australian Formula Ford Championship.
Grist meanwhile, notched second for Bryan Herta Autosport with Curb/ Agajanian, in his first podium appearance since VIR in the Mygale/Honda.
Grist had a rough weekend at New Jersey, missing a race, and donating his gearbox to teammate and points leader Brandon Newey.
“It has been a while since we were on the podium,” said Grist. “We didn’t have the speed down the back stretch, so I had to make it up in the corners.”
With just four races to go, Koykka again cut into Newey’s points lead with a third place effort, slimming the lead down to just a handful of points, leaving the championship wide open as the two are virtually tied going into Summit Point doubleheader in August.
Koykka had new motor in race two of the Ohio doubleheader, after the aspiring Finnish driver's powerplant overheated in race one.
“That was similar to yesterday’s race,” Koykka said. “With two laps to go I made a bit of a mistake that let Garett by. The season is long so whoever comes back with the most consistent finishes will win the title.”
Championship points leader Brandon Newey finished fourth, also driving for Bryan Herta Autosport with Curb/ Agajanian, while 2011 championship runner-up Tim Kautz rounded out the top five in a newly reconfigured Piper/Honda.
Saturday’s winner, Colin Thompson, was in the top five fight before contact and spin in turn one with just a handful of laps to go. Thompson, who scored his first win at Mid-Ohio, rebounded to overtake numerous cars en route to sixth in his Swift DB6/Honda. He reset the race lap record in the process, and scoring the fast lap bonus points.
Behind Thompson, Lewis Cooper III finished seventh in his Polestar Racing Group entry, with Jesse Lazare, Jeremy Grenier, and Joe Colasacco rounding out the top-10.
CellMark Paper Hard Charger honors went to Mike Kolthoff, who advanced five positions to finish 16th.
The 12-round F1600 Formula F Championship Series season continues at Summit Point Raceway in West Virginia on August 25-26, with Rounds Nine and Ten.
The top-three will be posted following every session on the EFCN Facebook page, and EFCN Twitter page.
F1600 Formula F Championship Series
Round 8 - Race Results
July 29, 2012
Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course - Lexington, Ohio
| Pos. | Driver | Team | Diff. | Fast Time| 1. | Shae Davies | Cape Motorsports/Wayne Taylor Racing | - | 1:28.208 | | 2. | Garett Grist | Bryan Herta Autosport | 2.224 | 1:28.239 | | 3. | Matias Koykka | Cape Motorsports/Wayne Taylor Racing | 2.421 | 1:28.038 | | 4. | Brandon Newey | Bryan Herta Autosport | 3.290 | 1:28.146 | | 5. | Tim Kautz | Kautz Racing | 8.504 | 1:28.638 | | 6. | Colin Thompson | TTO Motorsports | 8.677 | 1:27.220 | | 7. | Lewis Cooper III | Polestar Racing Group | 9.429 | 1:28.407 | | 8. | Jesse Lazare | BGR Team Grote | 11.960 | 1:28.772 | | 9. | Jeremy Grenier | Ski Motorsports | 12.255 | 1:28.710 | | 10. | Joe Colasacco | Auriana Racing | 18.261 | 1:29.252 | | 11. | Art Foster | Art Foster Racing | 22.437 | 1:29.477 | | 12. | Steve Bamford | Rice Race Prep | 22.677 | 1:29.165 | | 13. | Steve Oseth | DBM Racing | 24.269 | 1:28.708 | | 14. | Roberto Lorena | Quantum Mechanics Racing Services | 29.369 | 1:29.251 | | 15. | Mike Scanlan | ONP Racing | 54.475 | 1:31.815 | | 16. | Mike Kolthoff | Kolthoff Racing | 54.825 | 1:32.141 | | 17. | Dan Pyanowski | Pennon Racing | 1:05.730 | 1:32.816 | | 18. | Ralph Zuponcic | Pricepoint Racing | 1 Lap | 1:35.129 | | 19. | Jim Goughary | Raceworks | 8 Laps | 1:30.845 | | DNF | Steve Jenks | Raceworks | 11 Laps | 1:31.959 | | DNF | Greg Rice | Rice Race Prep | 11 Laps | 1:33.097 | | DNF | Doug Stout | Front Range Motorsports | 12 Laps | 1:32.636 | | DNF | Kevin Brumbaugh | Brumbaugh Racing | 13 Laps | 1:35.616 | |
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