Dean Notches Fourth Season Win in Battery Tender MAZDA MX-5 Cup at Road Atlanta
by Web | Feb 7, 2017, | In The News |
BRASELTON, Ga. (October 1, 2015)
John Dean, of Sebring, Florida, led flag to flag in Round 11 of the SCCA Pro Racing Battery Tender Mazda MX-5 Cup Presented by BFGoodrich Tires, part of the Petit LeMans Powered by Mazda at Road Atlanta. Drake Kemper, of Toluca Lake, California, and Nathanial Sparks, of Spanish Fort, Alabama, completed the first podium sweep for Sick Sideway.Dean, in the No. 16 Bulb Jacket/PPG/Sick Sideways MX-5 started the 45-minute race from the pole and led all 19 laps which averaged 64.407 mph and was slowed by four laps of full-course yellow at the 12-turn, 2.54-mile road course. Track conditions were at the forefront of everyone’s mind. Heavy rains rolled through the Braselton area during the mid-afternoon, leaving the circuit extremely wet.
From that point on, off and on rain continued until the start of the late-afternoon race. With the drama of a wet or drying track out of the equation, the race would be decided by which driver could negotiate the slippery course most successfully.The damp conditions were a contributing factor to the incident that necessitated the full-course yellow to cover the cleanup. Most importantly, track conditions were at the forefront of everyone’s mind. Heavy rains rolled through the Braselton area during the mid-afternoon, leaving the circuit extremely wet. From that point on, off and on rain continued until the start of the late-afternoon race. The race would be decided by which driver could negotiate the slippery course most successfully, with the drama of a wet or drying track out of the equation. Consequently, the damp conditions were a contributing factor to the incident that necessitated the full-course yellow to cover the cleanup.
More Action:
As the field came to the flag stand to complete lap 7, Tyler Kicera, in the No. 41 TAIT/LMC Home Loans MX-5 lost control and started to spin to the inside of the circuit, on the driver’s right-hand side. As Kicera tried to correct the spin, the car swung around and came back across the track moving from driver’s right to left. Kyle Loustaunau, in the No. 4 Mazda Motorsports Development/BFGoodrich Tires MX-5, and Timothy Paul, in the No. 6 ALARA Racing/Cellmark MX-5, were collected. Following the restart, Dean was able to hold off his pursuers, driving to victory with his teammates behind him.“It was an awesome result,” Dean said. “We came into the race debating whether we were going to run rain tires or dry tires. When we headed to the grid, it started to rain so that made the decision easy.
First of all, we put the wet setup on the car and nailed it. During testing, Drake [Kemper] was flying and [Sparks] hasn’t even raced in the rain before and we were able to triple-podium. Our hands are going to be stinging tomorrow from high fives.“For the restart, I knew Drake [Kemper] and Sparks were back there and knew they were going to take some flak. I wanted to do what I could to help them out. Additionally, there are some places you can put the car to help in utilizing the draft to help the guy in third. In addition, the two of us at the front just tried to put our cars where we could to help Sparks. Also, I still don’t know how he was able to pull it out since he had so much pressure from the rest of the field.”
The Racing Continues
Bad Racing Conditions:
“Also, having not run the test day in wet conditions, I was feeling pretty nervous about the first few laps,” Sparks said. “Fortunately, it is not a downpour, but it is plenty wet. Having done a couple of wet sessions before this one, I have had some prior experience. So I wasn’t too worried once I got out there to see what the track was really like. I just couldn’t match the pace of John [Dean] and Drake [Kemper] as they just pounded out laps. In addition, “I had a great battle with Patrick Gallagher and fortunately was able to come out on top. Out there in the wet, it’s all about getting back to the power because your best chance to beat the other guy is going into the braking zone of the next turn.
If you hit the throttle too hard and have just a little wheel spin, that’s what will allow that guy behind you to start really hounding you.” Gallagher, a championship contender in the No. 44 Howard Concrete Pumping MX-5 started a charge toward the front of the field after the initial green flag. However, once Gallagher got to second during lap two, Dean had put plenty of distance between himself and the rest of the field. As Gallagher tried to reel Dean in, the Sick Sideways duo proved to have the outright speed in the difficult conditions. Charlie Hays, behind the wheel of a Battery Tender Mazda MX-5 Cup machine for the first time, drove his No. 54 Atlanta Motorsports Group MX-5 to a fifth-place finish.
In Conclusion:
Additionally, in the Skip Barber MAZDASPEED Pro Challenge, Nikko Reger, of Houston, brought home his second win of the season. By the end of lap six, Reger took the class lead. He would not relinquish it except to Robby Foley. Foley, who led the class at the stripe after getting a massive jump on the field during the mid-race restart. “We started with a setup that leaned more toward a dry one,” Reger said. “We were just waiting for the track to dry slightly. I just spent my time hitting my marks and doing what I could to make positions.
Unfortunately, Foley got around me on the restart but I got back around him pretty quickly since we were able to get off the corners pretty well. “In the championship, it brings things a lot closer. I’m not sure exactly where we are, but we just have to come out tomorrow and run as hard as we can.”
Completing in the top three positions in the class were Sam Adams, of Richfield, Wisconsin, and Robby Foley, of Randolph, New Jersey. Also, Mike Ller had a strong finish in the No. 66 BFGoodrich Tires SBMX-5. This race marked Ller’s professional debut. Motor Trend and Four Wheeler magazines put Mike in the top amateur performance driver spot in the BFGoodrich “Are You Driver Enough” competition. In the Battery Tender Mazda MX-5 Cup standings, Dean held onto the top position in the standings with 607 points. After Dean was able to stretch his point lead, Gallagher’s deficit grew from seven to 23 markers. Sparks sits in third with 544 points.