June 12, 2018 – What a difference a year makes! In motorsports, and karting in particular, the major focus is on race wins and championships, but the Speed Concepts Racing Cadet program started off with different views. Aiming for results straight out of the gate, they shifted their focus from on track victories to driver improvement as Noah Baker, Paul Bocuse and Alex Powell all came into their own and elevated Speed Concepts Racing to the top of the Mini ROK and Mini Swift divisions.

“We have put a lot of effort into our program. We have completed hours of research and development and put a lot of money into high quality mechanics, driver coaching as well as testing. My son Alex Speed and up-and-coming open wheel driver Kyle Kirkwood have been exceptional in our driver coaching program,” explained Mike Speed. “All the work is paying off and is definitely worth it when you see the improvement over the past calendar year.”

Dating back to the Superkarts! USA (SKUSA) Spring Nationals in 2017, all three Speed Concepts Racing drivers were just beginning their tenure with the elite Florida based karting program. All three drivers had a trying weekend as in a combined six main events, did not score one top-twenty finish. Fast forward to 2018 and the same trio showed plenty of speed and proved to be much more consistent claiming three top-ten finishes including a victory and two podium results.

Speed continued, “A lot of drivers and their families look at one event for success but it takes time to learn a program, new equipment and a different way of doing things. Noah, Paul and Alex have all had their fair share of bumps and bruises, but it is that upward trend that we continue to see month to month. While our short term goal is to win right now, our long term goal is to produce a quality driver that can win in all different environments, on any kind of track, in any type of weather and even if their equipment is a little off on any given day.”

“Working with the kids of the sport is something that is special to me,” explained Alex Speed. “We always make sure that we have a good time when and where possible, but when it comes down to racing, we work very hard to achieve success. What I really enjoy about Paul, Noah and Alex is that they work just as hard as the rest of the team. They listen to coaching, pay attention during data and video reviews and have all improved dramatically on their feedback. They look up to the drivers in our junior program and have mentors both on and off the track and because of that, they strive to be just as good, or even better, than their fellow team members.”

With future success on the horizon, the Speed Concepts Racing Mini drivers have already claimed 2018 victories and podium results in the ROK Cup USA ROK Fest, Superkarts! USA Pro Tour, Superkarts! USA Winter Series, United States Pro Kart Series, Sunshine State Karting Challenge and ROK Cup USA Florida Winter Tour.

Speed Concepts Racing will continue to push forward with their 2018 season. Be sure to follow them on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for news, results and photos. Find them at 'Speed Concepts Racing' or @SCR_Karting.