Photo: Gavin Baker Photography
Pabst Racing celebrated a maiden race win for Jacob Douglas and the 2023 title for Simon Sikes in USF2000’s first race of the weekend at Portland.
Douglas started from pole and led the whole race, holding off Max Garica into turn one on the opening lap, then Sikes on a lap four restart before managing his gap up front until the very end of the race when Jay Howard Driver Development’s Evagoras Papasavvas put pressure on him.
Aside from a few people cutting the opening chicane, there was not too much drama on lap one but a caution period was still called and the race ran under yellow flags until the end of lap three.
Sikes passed Garcia for second before the yellow flag were waved, and on the restart he had to hold off Papasavvas. He was still keeping him at bay when the second caution period began on lap 15, as marshals collected debris, with the next restart happening on lap 17.
This time Papasavvas was able to second from Sikes, and began to close in on the leader but was only really in sniffing distance of him on the 25th and last lap and ran out of time to make a move.
Third place for Sikes meant he wrapped up the title with two races to spare, and Velocity Racing Development’s Nikita Johnson finished fourth after a strong drive. He started seventh, passed Lochie Hughes then beat Garcia in a battle on lap nine. Garcia tried coming back at him but went off at turn 10, and USF2000 returnee Thomas Schrage also tried to get involved.
Garcia went off, then Schrage pitted at the end of the second caution period, leaving Johnson to focus on the cars in front. Next in his sights was DEForce Racing’s Mac Clark, who went off at turn one on the penultimate lap and conceded fourth place.
That promoted Hughes and Garcia back up to fifth and sixth, with Clark dropping down to eighth. Al Morey finished seventh, having briefly got ahead of Garcia on lap 19.
Schrage ended up retiring, along with opening lap spinner Ethan Ho, while Sam Corry also had a lap one off but rejoined the race a lap down.
There is now a four-way fight for second in the standings to be settled over the final two races, with Hughes leading the way.
Race result (25 laps)
| Pos | Driver | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jacob Douglas | Pabst Racing | 34m09.8176s |
| 2 | Evagoras Papasavvas | JHDD | +0.5286s |
| 3 | Simon Sikes | Pabst Racing | +2.7971s |
| 4 | Nikita Johnson | Velocity Racing Development | +3.5568s |
| 5 | Lochie Hughes | JHDD | +5.6802s |
| 6 | Max Garcia | Pabst Racing | +9.9929s |
| 7 | Al Morey | JHDD | +11.3515s |
| 8 | Mac Clark | DEForce Racing | +12.5221s |
| 9 | Gordon Scully | Velocity Racing Devlopment | +15.0087s |
| 10 | Elliot Cox | SFHR | +15.1365s |
| 11 | Max Taylor | Velocity Racing Development | +15.3772s |
| 12 | Lucas Fecury | DEForce Racing | +20.6800s |
| 13 | Ava Dobson | JHDD | +30.8053s |
| NC | Maxwell Jamieson | DEForce Racing | +1 lap |
| NC | Carson Etter | DC Autosport | +1 lap |
| 16 | Sam Corry | Velocity Racing Development | +1 lap |
| 17 | Jorge Garciarce | DEForce Racing | +2 laps |
| Ret | Thomas Schrage | Exclusive Autosport | |
| Ret | Ethan Ho | DC Autosport | |
| Fastest lap: Papasavvas, 1m12.9852s
Championship standings |
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