Jarsocrak, Lloyd, Meier all score national wins at Jacksonville to open 2022
SPENCERPORT, N.Y. — Coyote Motorsports racers opened the 2022 racing season with an outstanding showing at the first ever Cup Karts North America (CKNA) Winter Nationals was held Dec. 31-Jan. 2 at the popular 103rd Street Sports Complex in Jacksonville, Fla., the site of so many Coyote driver wins over the decades.
This race, one of the biggest national events at Jacksonville in recent memory, was no exception with Brandon Jarsocrak (Senior Medium), Owen Lloyd (Junior) and Sean Meier (Senior Heavy) all driving their Coyote Zenith chassis to final victories at the hotly contested Cup Karts South and CKNA season opener.
Jarsocrak added a runner-up finish in the Senior Light final while James Inscoe drove his Zenith to a pair of fourth-place finishes in the Legends and Masters finals to give Coyote a total of three wins, more than any other manufacturer, and six top fives among the eight divisions on the card.
The event featured the 103rd Street circuit run in reverse (clockwise) from the traditional counterclockwise national layout and included the chicane on the north end of the track’s famous 1,000-foot straightaway.
Meier, a local Jacksonville favorite and veteran Coyote racer, backed up his huge March 2021 Senior Medium Spring Nationals win at Charlotte Motor Speedway with another CKNA national victory, this time in the Senior Heavy division. After qualifying P2, Meier would dominate the rest of the program, winning both of Saturday’s heat races — one in the daylight and one under the lights — and returning Sunday to drive his Brad’s Karts & Parts-backed Zenith to the 20-lap final win at his home track.
Meier, who’s raced only a handful of times over the last year, continues to make it count when he does hit the track. He’ll be back in action this March 4-6 at Charlotte for the second annual Spring Nationals.
Owen Lloyd is another Coyote racer who continues to make headlines. Like Meier, Lloyd turned a lot of heads last March with a big 206 Junior main event win at the Charlotte Spring Nationals. He’d go on to win the 2021 Cup Karts South Junior championship and joined Meier in the win column at the Winter Nationals with a big win in the 20-lap Junior final.
With 35 drivers entering the division, Lloyd would have an uphill battle after qualifying P13 in an incredibly tight session that produced 18 drivers qualifying less than a half-second off the pole. Lloyd would quickly make his presence known in the odd qualifiers’ heat races, finishing P4 in heat one and scoring the win under the lights in heat two.
The Waycross, Ga., racer started the final in P2 and would ride inside the top five for the entire 20-lap contest. Putting his experience at 103rd Street to good use, Lloyd moved into P2 with a handful of laps left and made a last-lap pass to score an exciting victory and another major CKNA national triumph. Look for Lloyd to be one of the favorites at Cup Karts South’s second round in February at Monticello Karting and the Charlotte Spring Nationals, where he’ll look to defend his 2021 Junior feature win.
Jordan Cline, Joey Cline, Mason Donahue, Jack Hughes and Ronnie Klys joined Lloyd in the Junior division on their Coyote machines.
Donahue and Klys finished 17th and 18th in the final while Jordan Cline finished on the lead lap in 22nd. Hughes made the main event with a P4 run in the LCQ; he’d go on the finish the final in 25th as the last kart on the lead lap. Joey Cline ran into some problems in the heats and did not qualify for the main event.
Many of the best LO206 drivers in the country entered the headline division at the Winter Nationals, Senior Medium. Among the top drivers in attendance was four-time USPKS champion Brandon Jarsocrak, who over the last year has become a force in LO206 racing after teaming with Precision Performance Karting (PPK) to ride Coyote Zeniths.
Jarsocrak was one of three Coyote drivers to qualify in the top five of 24 entrants with a P3 effort ahead PPK teammate Chris Carroll in P4 and Meier rounding out the fastest five. The Pennsylvania native would notch another third-place result in the first heat before driving to a popular win Saturday night in heat two.
Jarsocrak would return as one of the favorites for Sunday’s final and he wouldn’t disappoint, taking the lead on lap 9 and never relinquishing it. The multi-time national champion and his No. 138 Zenith would cross the finish stripe a kart-length ahead of P2 for the big win, his first with Coyote after knocking on the door several times over the course of 2021. Meier would finish P9 in the Medium final.
Carroll, one of the fastest racers in attendance all weekend with his No. 12 PPK / Coyote Zenith, ran into some Jacksonville bad luck and dropped out after contact on lap 5 after finishes of P7 and P5 in Saturday’s heats. Carroll and Jarsocrak worked closely together all weekend and it was a disappointment to see the former WKA Triple Crown champion retire early without a chance to vie for the win.
Earlier Sunday, Jarsocrak nearly gave Coyote four of eight class wins at the Winter Nationals but fell just short with a close P2 finish in the Senior Light final.
Florida dirt karting standout Austin Hill joined the PPK / Coyote team for the Winter Nationals in what would be considered his first national start in LO206 sprint racing. Hill had a solid weekend in the Senior Light division, qualifying P4 and a spot ahead of teammate Jarsocark. He’d record finishes of fifth and seventh in the pair of heats and race to a respectable P6 finish in Sunday’s final after running as high as fourth in the 20-lapper.
Coyote newcomer Luke DaCosta of Concord, N.C., made the trip south to Jacksonville for his first senior start at a national race. DaCosta, who recently moved up from juniors, gained a good amount of experience racing against many of the best in the nation on his No. 22 Coyote Zenith. He’d finish 12th in the Senior Light final after qualifying 10th and recording heat finishes of eighth and 11th. We’re looking for good things ahead for DaCosta as he continues to make laps.
Rookie driver Austin Speck finished one spot ahead of DaCosta in the Senior Light final with an 11th-place run. Speck, an indoor racer in his first few months racing in the LO206 ranks, should be a contender soon as he puts in the time at his home track at Jacksonville and other circuits.
James Inscoe raced his Coyote to another impressive weekend. Inscoe entered the Legends (age 50 and up) and Masters (age 35 and up) divisions at the Winter Nationals and drove to P4 results in both finals. Inscoe’s consistency has been outstanding as he continues to prove he’s one of the best in the country in both divisions. Inscoe was one of the Coyote standouts at the Maxxis Grand Nationals at Jacksonville in November, which is recapped in the following paragraphs!
November 2021 Maxxis Grand Nationals report —
Donahue, Klys and Inscoe score wins at Maxxis Grand Nationals, Jarsocrak and Carroll just shy in Senior
The Maxxis Sprint Series Grand Nationals was held Nov. 19-21 at 103rd Street in Jacksonville, and a number of Coyote racers had excellent weekends.
Florida junior racer Ronnie Klys won his first major national race with a big victory in Saturday’s Junior LO206 Money Race. Klys, who’s still in his first few months competing on a 2021 Coyote Zenith, raced in the lead pack throughout the 15-lap affair. Riding third on the final lap, Klys shot his No. 7 Zenith through a gap when leaders made contact to cross the finish stripe just a nosecone ahead of P2. Mason Donahue also placed his Zenith on the podium with a P3 effort in the exciting race that nearly ended in the dark.
On Sunday it was time for Donahue to shine in junior competition. The driver of the black No. 18 Zenith closed out an outstanding 2021 Maxxis campaign with a Grand National feature win in LO206 Junior Black. Mason won a close race over several top competitors, including fellow Coyote racer Owen Lloyd, who placed P4 after leading much of the contest. Klys rounded out the top 10 of 15 starters.
In the Junior Yellow final, again Lloyd led the majority of the laps but would get passed on the final lap and have to settle for another fourth-place result. Donahue couldn’t match his Junior Black win and would settle for P6 in this one while Klys once again rounded out the top 10.
Outstanding job by all of our junior drivers at Jacksonville.
LO206 Senior Medium was the headline class of the weekend with many top drivers in attendance and Sunday’s final did not disappoint.
Chris Carroll of Summerville, S.C., started P1 and led 14 circuits of the 15-lap final. Riding his sleek No. 12 Precision Performance Karting-backed 2021 Coyote Zenith, Carroll was on his way to victory when he was passed on the final straightaway of the last lap. Unfortunately, in a battle for P3 a kart slid into Carroll at the end of Jacksonville’s 1,000-ft straightaway and sent him over the banking and into the grass near 103rd Street. Carroll was OK, but relegated to a P8 result after leading nearly the entire contest.
Carroll’s luck was better in Saturday’s Senior Money Race. Once again he led the majority of the laps but was passed on the final straightaway coming to the checkered. He’d hold on for a solid P2 finish and the $150 prize that went with it.
One of the karts that passed Carroll on the final lap of the Senior Medium final was PPK / Coyote teammate Brandon Jarsocrak. The Pennsylvania native and prominent national 2-cycle kart champion continued his recent inroads into the LO206 world with another impressive weekend.
Racing at 103rd Street for the first time in several years, Jarsocrak rode behind Carroll throughout the Senior Medium final but slipped to P3 late in the race. He tried making it three wide on the final straightaway to make a bid for the win, but was blocked low and had to settle into P2, where he’d finish. Look for Jarsocrak to continue to be a force in 206 senior divisions at upcoming national events. Read below about his weekend at the CKNA Grands.
Rookie driver Austin Speck had a solid weekend racing in the pack in Senior Medium. Competing in one of his first outdoor races since advancing from indoor rental karts, Speck would DNF in Sunday’s final but showed good speed all weekend. Look for continued improvement from him in upcoming races.
James Inscoe closed a successful Maxxis season with another win in LO206 Masters. Inscoe has put in the time behind the wheel and has now cemented himself as one of the best 206 Masters racers on the East Coast. He’d also finish P10 in the Senior Heavy final.
Inscoe was one of two Coyotes on the podium in Masters. Maryland’s Brandon Hollenbaugh, who joined our Coyote team over the summer, continues to improve and ran very well, capped off with a solid P3 result on his 2021 Zenith chassis in the Masters Grand National final.
Darren Bray was another Coyote racer in Masters. Bray drove to a sixth-place result in the final after competing hard inside the top 10 throughout the weekend.
Joshua Bray ran his Coyote in Senior Heavy and finished P11.
October 2021 CKNA Grand Nationals 5 report —
Jarsocrak nearly wins twice at CKNA Grands
Going back to the first weekend of October, a number of Coyote racers made the trip to New Castle Motorsports Park in Indiana for the biggest LO206 race of the year, the Cup Karts North America (CKNA) Grand Nationals 5, which annually attracts starting fields of over 40 to 50 karts in nearly every class.
Once again on-and-off-again rain affected the event as it has many times over the years.
Brandon Jarsocrak led the way for Coyote at this year’s CKNA Grands with a pair of top-five finishes in senior competition.
Riding a potent PPK-owned and prepared No. 138 Coyote Zenith, Jarsocrak had the 50-kart Senior Light field covered until rain in the carburetor caused him to slow in the closing laps. Jarsocrak would slip to fourth before the checkers waved, denying him of a CKNA Grands win in his first attempt. He did go purple in the race with the fastest lap on his Coyote.
Jarsocrak nearly got redemption in the Senior Medium final. Again setting the fast lap, he raced at the front of the field for the entire contest but would settle for a close third.
Adding to his impressive weekend, Jarsocrak won the pole in both Light and Medium and drove to a heat race in Medium. While he was denied of a win, Jarsocrak made his presence known and will surely be back to challenge for his first CKNA Grands triumph.
Jarsocrak’s PPK / Coyote teammate Pauly Massimino showed great speed at the Grands but didn’t have the results in the finals he was hoping for. After qualifying P2 to Jarsocrak in Senior Medium, he’d record finishes of second and seventh in his heat races before crossing the stripe 17th in the final.
In Light, a disappointing P31 result in qualifying would put Massimino behind the eight ball. He’d recover for finishes of 15th and 16th in the heats before battling hard for a P7 result in the final.
Jake Walker joined the PPK / Coyote camp in Junior for his first-ever 206 race. Walker was solid throughout the event and capped it off with a fine P12 result in the 62-kart field.
Owen Lloyd, Hudson Brown, Blake Boon, and Joey and Jordan Cline all entered their Coyotes in the Junior division. After some intense qualifying and heat race action, everyone made the final field except Boon, who wasn’t able to finish the weekend after qualifying.
Lloyd would finish top 20 with a 19th-place result in the final while Brown finished just inside the top 30 in 29th. Joey and Jordan Cline crossed the finish line nose to tail in 40th and 41st, respectively.
The father-son duo of Tim and Josh Stiefel closed out their 2021 Cup Karts season with a couple good results. Tim drove his Zenith to a 14th-place finish in Legends while Josh finished a respectable P16 in the 50-kart Senior Light main event.
James Inscoe was a top driver in Legends. Inscoe drove to an impressive podium finish, taking the third spot in a competitive 26-kart field. Inscoe also ran Masters and came home 25th in a 43-kart field.
Other Coyote entrants at the Grands included Alex Masci in Sportsman, Scott Kleman in Senior Light, Chris Pettit in Legends, Chris Cirillo in Senior Heavy and Trentin Frederick and Chris Carroll in Senior Medium.
Frederick finished P2 in the Senior Medium Last-Chance-Qualifier race and kept out of trouble in the final to finish on the lead lap in P33 of 50 starters.
Pettit was involved in a lap 2 incident in the Legends final and did not finish.
Kleman qualified P27 of 52 in Senior Light but also did not finish his final. He did finish a solid P14 and P18 in the two heat races.
Cirillo qualified 25th of 41 in Senior Heavy but did not finish the heat races or final.
Masci and Carroll had tough weekends mainly due to the inclement weather. Both will regroup and live to race another day.
Alex Masci takes 6th in Buckeye Karting Challenge
New York driver Alex Masci represented Coyote Motorsports at the competitive Buckeye Karting Challenge series, a five-race series that travels to sprint tracks across Ohio.
Masci finished inside the top 10 in four of the five races, including a career best second-place run at Thompson Speedway, to finish sixth in the 206 Sportsman final standings. Great job Alex as we continue to enjoy watching your progression.
###
Leave a Reply