News – From www.formulatr.com –
July 16, 2006:Kligerman Back
On Top At Fontana
Round 12 – Sunday July 12th: While Parker Kligerman had his hands full dicing with Luis Martinez Jr. in the first race of the day, Round 12 proved to be an entirely different affair as he capped his weekend with an easier win following his pole success. Kligerman, who set the fastest lap time in both races, swept the top step of the podium for the fourth time this season collecting his ninth win of 2006 and further strengthening his grip on the championship.
Luis Martinez Jr. started second but problems with his engine dropped him down the order as the race started. His dogged determination saw him fight his way back to second place, despite his earlier misfortune, and he was rewarded with a second successive podium finish. Matching the finishing order from the earlier race Billy Goshen snapped up the final top-three placing for his fifth podium of the season.
Alexander Rossi took the checkered flag in fourth, a remarkable achievement considering the three-time winner was battling a car that was shutting down for several seconds at a time throughout the race. Rossi’s attitude and maturity, despite a testing day, was a showcase to his fellow competitors, not least as he was leading Round 12 before his problems struck. Liam Kenney grabbed another haul of points with a fifth place effort having successfully fended off the faster car of Tayler Malsam in sixth.
Round 12 Results: 1st Kligerman, 2nd Martinez Jr., 3rd Goshen, 4th Rossi, 5th Kenney, 6th Malsam, 7th Smutny, 8th Lynch, 9th Grisdale
1st – Kligerman: “I made a great start and didn’t really look back. It feels good to be back on the top step of the podium again with two wins from the one weekend.’
2nd – Martinez Jr.: “We had some motor problems and I ended up falling from second to fifth at the start of the race. I managed to work my way back up to second and hung on there until the end.”
3rd – Goshen: “I didn’t make a great start and stayed in fifth. I was able to get by Tayler and Liam again later in the race then Rossi, I was catching Luis before the checkered.”
The Formula TR 1600 Championship now heads to Portland International Raceway for Rounds 13 & 14, 22nd-23rd July.
Title Aspirant Parker Kligerman Drove Hard For The Victory At Fontana
Round 11 – Saturday July 11th: Title-aspirant Parker Kligerman was made to work for his first victory since Round 8 following a determined display of driving from Luis Martinez Jr. in the #5 Kimball Williams Racing entry in Fontana. Martinez Jr. showed his intent early by capturing his first pole position of the season on the 2.8-mile road course at the California Speedway.
The two chargers battled hard throughout the 15-lap race, their on-track endeavors putting them in a class of their own as they left the rest of the field trailing in their wake. Theirs wasn’t the only battle to impress onlookers as Billy Goshen fought back from a lowly qualifying position to tussle with Liam Kenney and Tayler Malsam. Goshen came out on top and captured the final podium position behind Kligerman and Martinez Jr. having missed out on a top-three finish in Nevada last time out.
Liam Kenney bounced back from the disappointment of the previous round where mechanical woes halted his title-challenge behind team-mate Kligerman. The 15-year-old just missed out on the podium but out-raced Tayler Malsam for fourth. Behind them solid efforts from CT Motorsports’ Kerstin Smutny and Knudsen Racing’s Kerry Lynch saw them add to their championship points tally with Cameron Grisdale the last of the runners at the flag.
Alexander Rossi suffered the biggest disappointment of the day recording a DNF courtesy of a pick-up point pulling out of the gear box on his #16 Odyssey Motorsports entry. Rossi, a dominant force in the previous two races in Nevada, where he scored back-to-back wins, took consolation from setting the fourth fastest lap in his two flying runs before retirement to snatch a second row start for Round 12 with the grid based on lap times from the first race.
Round 11 Results: 1st Kligerman, 2nd Martinez Jr., 3rd Goshen, 4th Kenney, 5th Malsam, 6th Smutny, 7th Lynch, 8th Grisdale, 9th Rossi - DNF
1st – Parker Kligerman: “It was fun out there, I had a real fight with Luis for the win. We broke away from the field by drafting and fought it out from there until the last couple of laps when I pulled away.”
2nd – Luis Martinez Jr.: “I started on pole and had a pretty good shot but Parker got by me on the first lap. From there we fought it out as we pulled away from the rest of the pack. My car fell away in the last quarter which allowed Parker to clear off and take the win.”
3rd – Billy Goshen: “I didn’t qualifying very well, starting down in sixth. I had a good battle with Tayler and Liam and I managed to get by both of them to move-up to third. Tayler came close towards the end but he spun which allowed me to take the podium.
