Leonardo Escorpioni clinches USF Juniors title with a race to spare

Photo: Gavin Baker Photography

Leonardo Escorpioni was crowned USF Juniors champion with a race to spare by winning the season’s penultimate race at Portland.

The Zanella Racing driver started on pole, and cut the opening corner to stay ahead. He already had a gap by turn three, as DEForce Racing’s Rodrigo Gonzalez got into second and Zanella’s Ty Fisher dropped from a front row position to fifth.

In addition to Gonzalez, Jay Howard Driver Development’s title contender Liam Loiacono and Velocity Racing Development’s Oliver Wheldon had overtaken him on lap one. At the back, International Motorsport’s Hudson Potter went off at turn six but was able to rejoin.

Loiacono passed Wheldon at turn 10, and on lap two Fisher regained a place by getting back past him then DEForce’s Patricio Gonzalez relegated him to fifth.

Fisher was already almost a second behind Gonzalez, who in turn was 2.12 seconds behind Escorpioni as lap three began. Wheldon continued to lose ground, being passed by DEForce’s Vilho Aatola in a canny move exiting turn two then falling behind VRD team-mate Joao Vergara as well.

Wheldon spent most of lap four side-by-side with Patricio Gonzalez who he got ahead of to recover back to fifth. He was soon close to the top three again, as JHDD’s JT Hoskins had an issue that led to him stopping off-track after turn two and triggering a caution period.

Escorpioni’s 2.5s lead was wiped out, but he did not need to pay attention to his mirrors much on the lap eight restart as Rodrigo Gonzalez succumbed to Loiacono and his brother overtook Wheldon before even reaching the start-finish line.

It took three laps to build a one-second lead this time, and it was up to 1.5s on lap 13 when Potter crashed out at turn two after contact with Exclusive Autosport’s Kaylee Countryman and the remaining laps had to run behind the pace car.

There was a train of cars from third down to eighth following the lap eight restart, with Fisher practically rubbing Rodrigo Gonzalez as he tried attacking him while also defending from those behind. Vergara overtook Aatola at turn two on lap 11 for seventh place, and on the back straight the group ran side-by-side in pairs.

After turns 10 and 11, Patricio Gonzalez emerged in fourth ahead of Fisher and Wheldon. On the final lap of racing, Wheldon was able to clear both as Aatola lost out to Zanella’s Diego Guiot and then Exclusive’s Brenden Cooley.

Race results (15 laps)