Victory for Koentges in Las Vegas in 100cc Masters Highlights FDM's Results
FDM contested 7 drivers at the penultimate race of the 2022 season, the ROK Cup USA ROK Vegas race at the Rio All Suites Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. Cooler temperatures during the week proved to be a challenge for grip in the racetrack until Sunday when the temperatures rose for a beautiful day of racing.
Victory and Double Podium in 100cc Masters
3 drivers contested the 100cc Masters category for FDM with Ian Koentges, Adam Kasick, and Mike Smith. Kasick led the way for FDM in qualifying with a 5th, with Ian Koentges 8th and Mike Smith 9th. All drivers progressed forward through the heats all finishing well within the top 5 through the 4 heat races. 1 bad heat for Kasick left him starting 8th for the final, with Koentges 5th and Smith in 4th. During the final Smith had contact early on and was forced to retire while Kasick charged to the race lead. Some great racing ensued between Kasick, Koentges, and Nash Motorsportz driver Matt Johnson, with Koentges making a last corner pass on Johnson to take the win, followed closely by Kasick in third.
Strong Pace and Mixed Results in 100cc Senior and Junior
Travis Varney was the lone FDM entrant in 100cc Senior, and showed strong pace all weekend. After a penalty in qualifying relegated him to 33rd, Travis rebounded to a 19th and 17th in the first two heats. Getting tangled up in the Las Vegas drama in heats 3 & 4 meant he started 30th in the final. Travis advanced nicely and stayed clean, bringing it home in 22nd.
Spencer Smith led the Junior duo in qualifying with a 22nd, while teammate Archer Eversman was 39th with a lot of work to do. Both drivers moved up in heat 1 to 19th and 31st, with Smith improving again to 18th in heat 2. Both drivers had at least 1 bad heat race, which set the final grid too far back to stay clean and ended up 28th for Eversman and a DNF for Smith.
Romero Improves all Weekend in Micro ROK
The team’s youngest driver, Paxton Romero made significant improvement all week. Paxton developed his race craft and closed the pace gap to the leaders significantly all weekend. Romero ended the weekend with a 22nd place result amid a stacked Micro Rok category in Las Vegas. Look for this driver to continue to develop and improve to become a threat a the front of the field.
Forward Direction Motorsports hosts a retail store, online store, service department, and racing team out of our facility in Centennial, CO. FDM is a COMPKART authorized dealer and factory supported Race Team, ROTAX Authorized Service Center, and dealer for many karting products. FDM stocks a large amount of inventory and has the products you need shipping daily, and on hand trackside. For more information on FDM, our race winning program, and our products and services please visit www.fdmkarting.com or call us at 720-940-0708.