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Saturday, 02 March 2019 01:00 |
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Andrew Bujdoso put on a dominant performance to claim the inaugural Pro Shifter 1 victory (Photo: EKN)
The opening round of the 2019 Superkarts! USA Pro Tour was completed in 100% wet conditions at the CalSpeed Karting facility. Rain was on and off all day in Fontana, California for the first day of action at the third edition of the WinterNationals with only a few glimpses of the sun breaking through the heavy clouds that surround the area and block off the mountain view. The 12 categories on hand battled the conditions and each other throughout the day to claim the steps on the podium to begin the chase for the championships on the right path.
The IAME SSE 175cc powerplant made its debut on the SKUSA Pro Tour with Pro Shifter 1 and Pro Shifter 2. A 24-driver field made up the inaugural event with Mathias Ramirez (PSL / Birel ART) setting fast time in qualifying. Jumping up to second on the final lap was Pro 2 driver Race Liberante (J3 / CompKart), making his first start with SKUSA since 2009. Liberante was able to grab the holeshot in the Prefinal, leading all 10 laps for the overall win and Pro 2 victory with Ramirez top driver in Pro 1. The opening lap was wild, including Liberante not able to get off the line clean. As they came around on the opening circuit, Mad Old Nut Racing’s Andrew Bujdoso (Croc Promotion) was into the lead. Bujdoso never put a wheel wrong throughout the 21 laps, scoring his first SKUSA Pro Tour victory. 2018 SKUSA Pro Tour champion AJ Myers (MONR / Croc) suffered issues in the Prefinal, driving his way from 17th on the grid to the second spot. Rory van der Steur (MRC / Tony Kart) completed the podium. Liberante fought back to fourth overall, winning the Pro 2 division with Max Hewitt (CRG Nordam) and Calvin Ming (MRC / Aluminos) joining him on the podium. Billy Musgrave (MRC / Aluminos) suffered a flat tire early in the Prefinal, driving his way from 20th to fourth in class, working past Kyle Wick (CRG Nordam) late in the race. Read full story on eKartingNews.com
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