Tanasic and O’Brien Break Through
First Time Ohvale Mini Winners at Shannonville National
The Canadian National MOTOMini Series reached mid-season with round three at Shannonville Motorsport Park’s Go-Kart “inner loop” July 24 and 25, and there were major changes among the front runners after a consistent early season. Both Championships leaders saw their winning streaks ended in dramatic circumstances.
In the GP2 category for Ohvale 190 racers, Jager Stockill had his four-race winning streak conclude after experiencing ignition problems in both races. Leading the big wheel opener mid-race, Stockill pulled into the pit exit and managed to restart his machine but had to stop twice more and was eventually listed as a Did Not Finish (DNF). His archrival, Stefan Tanasic, earned the win, ending his streak of runner-up placings with his first National success.
Eric Sergi scored a pair of second place finishes in the two races for the 190 Ohvale four-stroke singles, and in the second race he was pushed hard by Cohen Byberg, who netted a pair of thirds.
With two weekends of racing left to go and four remaining Nationals, Tanasic heads the ranking for the first time with 130 points, followed by Sergi at 104 and Stockill at100. Byberg is fourth at a total of 72 points. Stockill has represented Canada at the Valencia, Spain World Finals in the past two seasons in the 160 class and could still earn a spot for the 190 division this season.
In Qualifying, Stockill took pole with a lap at 46.95 seconds, Tanasic next up at 47.86. In the initial race, Stockill went slightly faster with a 46.79 while leading early, Tanasic also slightly faster in good conditions, getting down to 47.62 seconds.
Earlier in the program, run in conjunction with the RACE Moto Regional Series, Tanasic won Lightweight on a Snow City Kawasaki and Stockill worked up to second on a Super Sonic Road Race School Yamaha R3, having set a new lap record in Qualifying.
Qualifying in the busy 160 Ohvale GP-0 category was hectic, and Mateen O’Brien set the pace on his purple machine, with a best lap of 50.28. Undefeated points leader Tommy Molnar was second on the grid at 50.36, with the front row completed by Austin Da with a top tour of 50.77, Row two was headed by pre-season favourite Martina Cardenas at 50.80.
A tight pack disputed the lead from the start, with Molnar mostly leading from O’Brien as Cardenas worked her way up from mediocre launch. O’Brien seemed to be preparing for a last lap assault, and sure enough he dive bombed Molnar for the lead entering the tight turn one complex at the start of the last lap.
Third year racer O’Brien’s margin of victory in his first career win was a scant .15 seconds from Molnar, Cardenas third a further seven seconds back after getting the best of an aggressive dice for the final podium spot with fourth finisher Will Brown.
Quickest racer in the Ohvale 160 opener was front row starter Austin Da, who ran off track and had a big save on his way to place sixth. Da managed to set a lap time 49.11 while he paced the lead group late in the race.
O’Brien turned the second-best lap of the race with a lap at 49.60, Cardenas third best with a 49.63 and Molnar next up at 49.98.
In race two, another good battle emerged among the top four, with Molnar leading much of the time tailed by O’Brien, Cardenas, and Da. They finished in that order, with Molnar getting enough of an edge (margin of victory 1.4 seconds) to thwart the last lap ambitions of the pursuing mob.
Cardenas was third, just .01 of a second back from O’Brien, also setting the fastest race two lap at 48.71. Da set another good marker at 49.17, backing up his pace in the opener. Runner-up O’Brien turned the next best GP-0 lap time at 49.22, with winner Molnar fourth at 49.42.
In the standings, Molnar’s fifth win of the season solidifies his lead at 145 atop the table, with second overall Cardenas next up at 108. Third is Brown (4/6 at Shannonville) with 73 points.
Next National race for Canada’s top young racers is at Lombardy, north of Kingston, ON, September 4-5. The Championship will climax back at Shannonville September 25-26 for the Nelson International 50th celebration event, marking the anniversary of the opening of the venue on Thanksgiving weekend, 1976. This event will be televised on REV.
