8/23/2022
Elvis Rankin
AFTER A NIGHTMARE RACE 1 RANKIN TAKES SECOND PLACE FROM THE BACK OF THE GRID AT ROAD AMERICA
Bobby Krug swept the race weekend at Road America in Round 5 of the Skip Barber Formula Race Series. Elkhart Lake hosted the new Skip Barber Formula Car for the first time this past weekend, with most of the field experiencing Road America for their first time.
In the Saturday qualifying session, Krug began his sweep of the weekend by taking his first ever pole position with a fast lap of 2:25.245, almost seven- tenths faster than the field after setting up the perfect draft for nearly the entire lap. 2022 Skip Barber Formula iRacing Champion Mikkel Gade and runner-up Elvis Rankin joined Krug in the Top 3 of the qualifying charts, running almost identical lap times. Gade edged out Rankin by 0.057.
At the start of Race 1, Krug was able to clear himself of Gade and the two drivers began to pull away from the field. On the way to his first win of the weekend, Krug dominated the race leading flag-to-flag after defending from a hard-charging Gade, who finished 2.5 seconds behind at the checkered flag. In only his second Skip Barber Formula race weekend, Nicky Glazier made an impressive run from sixth place on the grid, passing some of the best drivers in the series, and finished on the final step on the podium. Glazier’s third-place finish would mark his first podium in the Skip Barber Formula Race Series.
The front row was inverted as Denmark-native Gade started in the pole position after running the fastest lap in Race 1 with a 2:26.721. With a fast lap of only a tenth back, Krug started alongside. At the drop of the green flag, Gade and Krug led the field into Turn 1. Soon after, the full course caution flew after an incident involving Brian Abrams and Jeshua Alianell, which ended Alianell’s race. On the restart, Glazier showed impressive pace by working his way around Krug and began to challenge Gade for the lead. Meanwhile, Rankin strategically worked his way from the back of the grid and found himself in the fourth position. At the front of the field, Glazier’s slight mistake pushed both him and Glade out wide, allowing Krug and Rankin to charge to the front with two laps to go. On the final lap, Rankin made a pass attempt on Krug in Canada Corner for the lead but could not clear, allowing Krug to hang on to the lead and take his second checkered flag of the weekend. In his Skip Barber Formula Race Series debut weekend, James Lawley maintained consistent pace and avoided incidents to take the final step on the podium.
After five rounds of the Skip Barber Race Series, Rankin maintains the overall points lead with 310 points. Alianell holds on to second place, only 13 points behind Rankin. After the double wins at Road America, Krug tightens the gap to Alianell and sits only a single point behind in third place. Gade and William Lambros round out the Top 5.
Article Credit: Skip Barber Racing School
