4-18-13 CRG USA Garners Six Podium Finishes at SKUSA

A total of 13 top-10 finishes for the large North American CRG race team

The opening round of the 2013 Superkarts! USA Pro Tour was a successful trip for the CRG-USA race team. Supporting 17 drivers and other CRG drivers from across North America, the Colorado-based operation guided four drivers to the podium at the SKUSA SpringNationals at the Musselman Honda Circuit in Tucson, Arizona. In total, CRG-USA drivers recorded 13 top-10 finishes in six categories.

Leading the way on the weekend were two drivers in the S1 Pro Stock Moto category - Joey Wimsett and Sabré Cook. Wimsett - the 2012 S1 vice-champion - earned victory in the opening round and scored the runner-up position in round two. The Oregon pilot, carrying the #2 SKUSA plate on his CRG-USA machine, matched his results from a year ago at the SpringNats in Phoenix. The victory was his third in his Pro Tour career and puts him once again in the title chase for 2013. Cook - the 2012 S2 Semi-Pro champion - made her S1 debut on the weekend, earning two third-place finishes. Round one, she matched the pace set by Wimsett and last year’s champion. On Sunday, a wreck in heat one forced her to fight back, climbing from 17th on the grid in heat two, up to the third position by the end of the main event. Her results put her as the top rookie in the category for the weekend.

Southern California’s Jimmy McNeil recorded his best Pro Tour results in the S1 category on the weekend. The former S4 Pro Tour champion finished eighth and sixth in the main events over the two days. New CRG-USA driver Christian Schureman drove well in his debut with the team in the S2 division. Saturday was an excellent drive for the Colorado driver, advancing from 30th on the grid after a DNF in heat two, knifing his way up to the 10th position. The following day, Schureman was a contender for the victory, leading with five to go before getting pushed wide at the exit of a turn. This dropped him down the order and he recovered to finish sixth. Joining him in the S2 category were Pro Tour rookies Jerry Rhodes and Lindsey Brewer. Both gained valuable experience on the weekend, recorded high finishes of 18th and 21st respectively.

Junior CRG-USA driver Austin Versteeg added more hardware to his bookcase in the TaG Junior division. A rookie last year, the Utah driver finished fourth and third, backing it up by recording results of fourth and second this past weekend. Saturday, Austin qualified outside the top-10 and worked his way forward to end the day in the fourth position. Sunday was a battle all day for the second year TaG Junior driver. Running inside the top-five, Versteeg was a contender to the end. Austin led early on in the main event but spent the final half of the race fighting to the checkered flag for the second spot.

The sixth podium from the team came via Robert Marks in the S4 Master Stock Moto division. The Southern California racer earned his first trip to the steps on the Pro Tour since SummerNationals in 2011. Marks was a contender all weekend, running inside the top-five solidly on Saturday to finish third. Sunday was a challenge as he was shuffled back to 15th after the opening heat race, but fought valiantly back to end up fifth and put himself in the championship contention. Texan Steve McCaffrey made his SpringNationals debut with CRG-USA on the weekend, driving to impressive top-10 result. On Saturday, he finished 10th and backed it up with a drive to 11th on Sunday. Colorado’s Jet Davis put in top-15 performances on the weekend, earning fast lap honors in the Sunday main event en route to a 15th place finish. CRG-USA fielded eight drivers in the 36-driver S4 field, including Darrell Tunnell, Michael Rhodes, Rob Van Deren, Ben Johnston and Victor Jimenez.

The next event CRG-USA race team will be trackside is the opening rounds of the Rocky Mountain ProKart Challenge at the Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele, Utah on May 3-5. The operation will be defending a number of championships earned last season. CRG-USA is an official K1 RaceGear, MG Tires, and DDR Engines race team, and ready to provide the best trackside service in 2013 at the Superkarts! USA Pro Tour, Rocky Mountain ProKart Challenge and other selected events and series. The company is also continuing to add to its growing dealer network with new locations throughout the United States. If you are interested in becoming part of the CRG-USA network, or becoming part of this growing professional race team, please contact Stacey Cook at info@CRG-USA.com or phone 855-TEAMCRG.