P1 ENGINES SCORES THREE POLE POSITIONS IN USPKS DEBUT01
May
P1 ENGINES SCORES THREE POLE POSITIONS IN USPKS DEBUT

With a new series launching in North America, P1 Engines would travel back to the eastern half of the USA to take part in the United States Pro Kart Series (USPKS). Taking place at the pristine Mooresville Motorplex facility in Mooresville, North Carolina, P1 Engines powered drivers would close the weekend with some hardware. When the dust had finally settled and the last checkered flag had flown, three pole positions and three more podium results were garnered by the California based engine builder.

“There are a lot of series in the US and I plan on supporting my drivers across the nation,” explained P1 Engines Jesus Vasquez. “The USPKS is something new and the turnout for the first event was great and the racing was pretty intense. The only thing I wish we could have changed was the weather and some of our podium results to race wins.”

Always a threat for victory in every event, Yamaha Senior pilot Patrick Olsen would once again be at the pointy end of the field. Showing the speed right off the trailer on Friday morning, a disappointing result would ensue on Saturday as contact would take him out of contention for the win. Back to the track on Sunday, Olsen worked his way forward from a fair qualifying effort to stand on the second step of the podium.

Mason Chelootz would add another podium result for P1 Engines as he turned his poor qualifying effort into a second place result at the end of the day in Leopard Pro. Making his way forward through the heat races, the P1 Engines powered pilot would join his fellow engine builder teammate Olsen on the podium in the second position. Sunday would see Chelootz qualify in the second position and lead the first heat before electrical issues caused him to retire. Heat two would go much better as Chelootz won the race to the checkered and would start the day’s main event in tenth. Looking to move forward and shoot for another podium result, the up and coming pilot would close the weekend with a fifth place effort.

Georgia’s Chris Wehrheim was one of the fastest Leopard Pro drivers throughout the weekend as he consistently ran inside the top three. Running third in Saturday’s main event, an axle failure would steal a podium result away from the P1 Engines powered driver. Not to be denied on Sunday, Wehrheim would return back to the podium with a third place finish and is looking forward to the remaining USPKS events.

Joining Chelootz and Wehrheim in the Leopard Pro division would be Cal Stewart who would set the pace in Sunday morning’s timed qualifying. Looking to jump out to the lead early, Stewart would spin in the first corner of heat one and was hit by multiple drivers. Unable to recover from the contact and drive forward during the rest of the day, Stewart left Mooresville with only a pole position and will look to rebound at event two.

Davey Manthei would be one of P1 Engines in the Leopard Semi Pro category and he quickly made an impression on the series and fellow competitors. Scoring the pole position and two heat race wins on Saturday, Manthei would be caught out by the rain in the afternoon when the main event went green. Looking to come away with the debut victory, Manthei would have to settle for a sixth place result at the end of the day. Sunday would see Manthei qualify on the inside front row again, but two DNFs in the heat races put him deep in the field for the main event. With a never give up attitude, Manthei drove forward to score a top ten result coming home in ninth. Fellow Semi Pro pilot Austin Erickson also ran well throughout the weekend finishing ninth and sixth respectively.

P1 Engines will continue to offer trackside support and engine lease options for the USPKS, WKA Manufacturers Cup series, SKUSA Pro Kart Challenge, SKUSA Pro Tour and several other events throughout the United States. Interested parties are asked to contact P1 Engines at Champions@P1Engines.com.

For more information on P1 Engines or to book one of their national level engines for testing or event weekend use, please visit them online at www.P1Engines.com or contact P1 owner Jesus Vasquez at 951.662.3464 or via e-mail at Champions@P1Engines.com. Also, to follow up-to-date results and information on P1 Engines, become a fan of the “P1 Engines Fan Page” on Facebook.

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