DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (September 26, 2015) – Tyler Hunter, of Denver, Colorado, recovered from a mid-race off-track incident to win his first National Championship in the Formula Atlantic race at the SCCA National Championship Runoffs presented by Garmin VIRB at Daytona International Speedway. Dudley Fleck, of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, finished second and Brian Novak, of Dearborn, Michigan, finished third.
Hunter started from the Tire Rack Pole position in his No. 22 Swan Motorsports Swift 014a Toyota and led the race’s opening laps until the incident exiting Daytona’s Turn 3 International Horseshoe on lap six. Hunter skidded off course and through the grass before rejoining the race in third place.
“I got a little happy with the throttle, made a mistake and ended up sideways in the grass,” Hunter said. “It was a little disappointing, having to cool down and relax, but in the end it was actually kind of good for me and the nerves. At the end of the day, we made up for it. We had a really good car and we nailed it this year.”
Hunter’s miscue gave the lead to the No. 3 Hoosier/Mazda/K-Hill Motorsports Swift 016a Mazda of Fleck, who had passed Michael Mallinen, of Liberty Lake, Washington, for second on a restart one lap earlier.
Mallinen then repassed Fleck for the lead on lap seven but both drivers soon had to deal with the rapidly-recovering Hunter who was quickly closing the gap on the leaders from third. Hunter passed Fleck for second on lap nine in the run through the Daytona tri-oval and made the winning pass for the lead on Mallinen with the same move on lap 10.
“I knew I had a good car on the straights, drafting at Daytona is everything, there was no reason trying to pass in the corners,” said Hunter, who won his first National Championship in his fifth career SCCA Runoffs race. “I was able to pass somewhere safe, somewhere clean and take care of my car. That’s what this race was all about.”
Fleck earned a Runoffs runner-up honor for the second time after finishing second for the first time in C Sports Racing in 2010.
“We kind of went into this week at Daytona with a little measure of conservatism,” Fleck said. “I had to learn the track, I had never been here before, my first year in this type of car, so we just took it step by step. For us the game plan was to run good, consistent, fast laps and, if the others had an issue, we would let the chips fall where they may. It just about came our way but Tyler saved that thing, kept it pointed straight, and that was it.”
Novak took the final podium spot in his No. 74 Honda Performance Swift 014a Honda after starting eighth on the grid. He earned the Sunoco Hard Charger Award for improving the most race positions.
“We’re really pumped,” said Novak, who jumped from eighth to fifth on the first race lap. “It was a struggle all week for us, we had a lot of problems early on, just had to fight through them and lost basically our entire test plan. For the race we just kind of concentrated on the infield, we knew that’s where our strong suit was, and at the start I knew I had to be super aggressive. If I didn’t get a couple of positions at the start I wouldn’t have been able to make it up to the front.”
Three different engine manufacturers, Hunter with Toyota, Fleck running a Mazda and Novak with the only Honda in the race, were represented in the top-three finishing order.
Mallinen led laps seven through nine but retired when his No. 71 Swan Motorsports/Mazda/Hoosier Swift 016a Mazda suffered engine issues on lap 10.
The first five laps of the race were run under caution after Bruce Hamilton, of Monkton, Maryland, and Dwight Rider, of Aurora, Colorado, came together in a turn one contact incident just after the race start. Neither driver was injured in the incident but both race cars were too damaged to continue in the race.
The 52nd SCCA National Championship Runoffs®, The Pinnacle of American Motorsports, will crown Sports Car Club of America’s Club Racing National Champions at Daytona International Speedway, Friday, September 25 through Sunday, September 27.
The live broadcast of all 27 National Championship races is available live at SCCA.com, along with live timing and notes. Each race will be on demand at a later date.
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (September 26, 2015) – Provisional results for Saturday’s Formula Atlantic National Championship at the 52nd SCCA National Championship Runoffs presented by Garmin VIRB at Daytona International Speedway, with finish position, starting position in parentheses, driver, hometown, car and laps complete.
1, (1), Tyler Hunter, Denver, CO, Swift 014a Toyota, 14.
2, (3), Dudley Fleck, Cedar Rapids, IA, Swift 016a Mazda, 14.
3, (8), Brian Novak, Dearborn, MI, Swift 014a Honda, 14.
4, (5), David Bleke, Franklin, IN, Swift 014a Toyota, 14.
5, (7), J.R. Smart, Madison, WI, Swift 014a Toyota, 14.
6, (9), Mark Felsen, Denver, CO, Swift 014a Toyota, 14.
7, (10), Ed Lever, Bakersfield, CA, Swift 014a Toyota, 14.
8, (2), Michael Mallinen, Liberty Lake, WA, Swift 016.a Mazda, 10.
9, (6), Dwight Rider, Aurora, CO, Ralt RT41 Toyota, 0.
10, (4), Bruce Hamilton, Monkton, MD, Swift 016a Mazda, 0.
Length of Race: 50 miles
Overall Time of Race: 32:49.404
Average Speed: 91.106 mph
Margin of Victory: 4.011 seconds
Fastest Race Lap: No. 22 Hunter, 1:48.162 (118.489 mph)
Lap Leaders: No. 22, laps 1-5, 10 - 14; No. 3, lap 3; No. 71, laps 7-9
Sunoco Hard Charger: No. 74 Brian Novak
Image: No. 22 Tyler Hunter won the Formula Atlantic race at the SCCA Runoffs presented by Garmin VIRB for his first National Championship.
Credit: Shawn Lumley
