“Qualified Rotaxians from across the Americas set to vie for Pan Am titles and the
final tickets to the Rotax World Finals”
All season long karters from across the Americas have been inundated with the question,
“Are you qualified?” Well, it all comes down to this weekend as qualified drivers will
descend upon the New Castle Motorsports Park in New Castle, Indiana for the 2011 Pan
American Rotax Max Challenge championship event, presented by RDD Motorsports and
DeFrancesco Racing. This is the pinnacle event of Rotax Max racing in the Americas.
Now in its second year, the Pan Am series was totally revamped for 2011 and the numbers
alone speak to the success of the new program. Over 300 drivers from nine countries
have qualified for the championship event, and with eight countries represented at the
finale along with a host of reigning and former World, Florida Winter Tour (FWT) and
National champions participating, fields will be stacked and competition will be at its
peak. Drivers will be competing for an array of amazing awards as a total of seven
direct transfer spots to the Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals (RMCGF) will be awarded
to the top two finishers in Sunday’s final in Senior, Junior and DD2, along with one
spot in DD2 Masters. Adding to the awards program, Formula Kart Productions will
provide the top three in Mini Max with Sony PSPs while Micro Max podium finishers will
each score a Nintendo 3DS. Similar to the Grand Finals, the Pan American Challenge
will also award a Nation’s Cup to the country with the highest cumulative point tally
among the eight represented, and there are three countries with a realistic shot at the
title.
New in 2011, the Championship event format is designed to closely mirror the format of
the RMCGF. The event will include full parc ferme for the world’s classes, and the
schedule will also closely replicate that of the World Finals, providing the
opportunity for drivers and their crews to train for their participation at the RMCGF,
and the chance for other participants to experience the feel of the premier
international Rotax event. It is also of note that the Pan American finale will be the
only event in the Americas where Junior drivers will race on the Mojo D1 tire, as they
will in Al Ain later this year.
Max Senior sponsored by Intrepid North America
In the Max Senior class, sponsored by Intrepid North America, two of who’s who in
Canadian karting will duke it out on the New Castle circuit in what is sure to be a
race for the ages. Both have already qualified for the Grand Finals, both have a
karting resumes envied by many and between the two have represented Canada ten times at
the RMCGF. Normally seen at the top of the charts in the DD2 class, Pier-Luc Ouellette
will take on the stacked Senior field at the Pan Am finale while Marco DiLeo will took
to reign supreme among 26 competitors. Ouellette holds the title of former DD2 World
Champion, won at the same track for this year’s Grand Finals back in 2007, and has
several major titles to his credit so far in 2011 including both the DD2 Eastern
Canadian Karting Championship (ECKC) and the Canadian National Championship in the
Rotax shifter class. DiLeo has too enjoyed tremendous success this year taking the
ECKC Senior title, and was vice-champion at the Canadian Nationals as well as at the
Florida Winter Tour. Four Americans will look to stop their Canadian foes, as Rotax
frontrunners Daniel Formal, Jesus Rios Jr., Stepanova Nekeel and Derek Wang will be
vying for the coveted Pan American championship crown. Wang, the 2010 Pan Am DD2
champ, already secured his Grand Finals berth via his US Rotax Max Grand Nationals DD2
vice-championship, will use that to his advantage as the other three still seek the
elusive Team USA spot. All four have previous Grand Finals experience and boast
impressive resumes close to their Canadian counterpoints, with Formal earning the 2010
eKartingNews.com Driver of the Year award, Rios Jr. as the reigning Pan Am Senior titleholder and Nekeel claiming the 2010 US Rotax Senior Grand National championship. Otherpilots to watch include Venezuelan RMC Senior Champion Nicolas Armien Sanz, VenezuelanRMC DD2 Champion Luis Schiavo and Columbian Nicolas Morales Farjado.
Rotax DD2 sponsored by ZCD Autosport
Canadians will make up the majority of the field in the ZCD Autosport sponsored Rotax
DD2 class with Canadian Nationals podium finisher Zacharie Richard-Robichon, Western
Canadian Championship frontrunner Daniel Burkett and Pan Am Homestead qualifier
double-podium finisher Matthew DiLeo expected to lead the way. Cory Cacciavillani and
Reid Arnold have also had strong seasons running in 2011, with Cacciavillani scoring
the Pan Am qualifier Sunday win at MRP and Arnold just missing the podium at the
Canadian Nationals. Two Americans, Andrew Longe and Michael Ostrowski, will be in
action along with two South American representatives in Ecuador’s Julio Moreno and
Venezuelan and fourth place FWT points finisher Diego Ferreira. The quartet will look
to topple Canada’s dominance in the category. DD2 Masters will be a shoot-out between
three Canadians and one Venezuelan. ECKC DD2 Masters vice-champion Francis Mondou, 2011
Canadian National runner-up Dany St-Hilaire, and FWT DD2 Masters vice-champion Stuart
Clark will continue their on track battles, and they will need to hold off Venezuelan
pilot and reigning FWT Masters champion Carlo Rinaldi to have a shot at the title and
the World Finals ticket.
photo: Carlo Rinaldi
Max Junior sponsored by MRP Speed Schools
Two 2011 national champions will take to the track in the MRP Speed Schools sponsored
Max Junior class, as US Grand National Junior champ Dalton Sargeant and Canadian
National Junior champion Jesse Lazare will be ones to watch at New Castle. Both have
been testing in advance of the November RMCGF, and will likely be using the Pan Am
finale as not only prep for the Worlds but also a chance to add another important title
to their tally for 2011. Two other high profile juniors will certainly be a factor as
well, as 2011 Florida Winter Tour Rotax Junior champion Dore Chaponick Jr. and 2011
Eastern Canadian Karting Championship Rotax Junior champion Zachary Claman-Demelo will
have their sights set on achieving Pan Am glory. 2011 Canadian National Mini Max
champion Jeffrey Kingsley will make the move to the junior ranks this weekend and also
be on the lookout for Canadian Artem Korolev, who staged an amazing comeback at this
year’s Canadian Nationals to stand next to teammate Lazare on the podium after starting
all three heats in P29. Four Jamaicans including Collin Daley and Thomas Issa will
look to give the Americans and Canadians a run for their money, as will Brazilian
Humberto Silva Jr. and Venezuelans Fabrizzio Famularo and Francesca Cozzaglio.
photo: Dalton Sargeant
Mini Max sponsored by SPORTALITY
Florida Winter Tour Mini Max champion Austin Versteeg will lead the American contingent
in a stacked Mini Max class, which is sponsored by SPORTALITY. Logan Sargeant and
Devlin DeFrancesco have had strong runs in 2011, and their names are sure to be near
the top of the time sheets. 2010 FWT and US Rotax Grand National champion Anthony
Gangi Jr. is making his Mini Max debut at New Castle, and will sure to be up to speed
quickly with the higher horsepower engine. West coast regulars and twin sisters, Toni
and Annie Breidinger will rely on “girl power” as they take on the boys in New Castle.
Canadian Nationals podium finisher Gianfranco Mazzaferro and Western Canadian
Championship frontrunner Jeff Fulham will lead the way for the Canadians. 2011 FWT
Mini Max vice-champion and Mexico native Patricio O’Ward will most certainly be a force
among the Mini Max competitors, as will Columbia’s Sebastian Sierra, Ecuador’s Juan
Manuel Correa and Jamaica’s Joshua Sirgany.
Micro Max sponsored by Keane Racing/Homestead Karting
The youngest of classes will most likely be lead by reigning Canadian National champion
and ECKC Micro Max champion Antonio Serravalle. The young gun has been nearly
untouchable in Canadian action, but also had strong runs at this year’s FWT and was a
winner at the Pan Am Homestead qualifier. US Micro Max champion Philip Varner will
also be in contention among the always-close Micro Max races, as will Jamaica’s Justin
Sirgany. An incredible two sets of Venezuelan twins, making that three sets of twins
among the Pan Am finale entries, will make up one-fourth of the grid with the likes of
Allesandro and Anthony Famularo, and Sergio and Santiago Terife, whose father Luis is
the Venezuelan Masters champ and will also take to the track in New Castle in the Max
Masters class.
Qualified entrants will take to the famed one-mile New Castle circuit for unofficial
practice beginning Monday, September 19 with Pan Am non-qualifying practice commencing
Thursday, September 22. Qualifying is set for Friday, with all three heat races
scheduled for Saturday. Championship Sunday will see prefinals in the morning followed
by the races drivers have been waiting all year for, the Pan American Championship
finals. The prize giving ceremony, including the awarding of the final Rotax Max
Challenge Grand Final tickets and the Nation’s Cup, will wrap up the 2011 Pan American
Challenge. A full schedule can be found at www.panamericanchallenge.com
Race promoter Formula Kart Productions has pulled out all the stops for this premier
event, and will provide their 16 channel video marshalling system and the incredible
Tracksa Light Marshaling System, complete with starting gantry / light and LED speed
display board at the New Castle finale. This cutting-edge equipment and latest
innovation in improving on-track safety has also been selected as the supplier of light
marshaling products at the 2011 RMCGF in Al Ain. For more information, sales, lease or
rental opportunities about Tracksa products, please contact Bill Wright of Safe Race
Systems, the exclusive North American distributor for Tracksa Marshaling products, at
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Formula Kart Productions will also be providing their popular and dynamic live video
streaming of the weekend’s action. Friday qualifying, Saturday heat racing and Sunday
prefinals, finals and podiums will all be streamed via “Pan Am LIVE” for those not able
to attend the event. Viewers can access the “Pan Am LIVE” coverage by clicking the
link at www.panamericanchallenge.com Also be sure to check out archived “Pan Am LIVE”
footage of the 2011 Homestead Pan Am qualifying rounds, including on-board footage of
former F1 pilot and current NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver Nelson Pique Jr.’s
drives from the back to the front of the Senior field, in the Multimedia section at
www.panamericanchallenge.com
Bill Wright
Formula Kart Productions, Inc
Product and Event Promotion / Video and Live Streaming Productions
Exclusive owner and promoter of the FWT / Administrator of the Pan American RMC
Safe Race Systems LLC
Exclusive North American Distributor Tracksa Light Marshalling Systems
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001-850-258-0846
