Page 13 - 2021CalSpeedMagazineAug

TRound 8 - Aug 14
he Classico Grand Prix Weekend kicked off as it always has on Day 1, Sprint Series took to the track right after the Race Clinic, this being the 8th round
in the 2021 Championship. And while it was round #8, this wasn’t just any race on the calendar: this was Classico. Even for the Sprint Series, this track holds a special place for the drivers, and like the GP itself on Sunday, all the hitters came out to play on Saturday...
The 8-minute Practice/Qualifying session to set the grid on Classico would see a mixture of new faces and series veterans at the sharp end, but topping the charts would be podium 2019 winner on Classico, Ivan Martinez. Martinez carried momentum from finishing P2 overall into the event, and would start Heat #1 from pole, while Heat #2 pole sitter would be a fresh face in Brett Lopinsky, with reigning Sprint Series champ Diego Alvarado claiming P1 for the third and final heat...
When the Heats went underway, it was yet another mixture of results with the veterans vs. new talent theme continued throughout the day. In Heat 1, SE driver Frank Chen backed up his stellar qualified effort with his first career win, beating the aforementioned Martinez and Matt McCoy to the line; the pair kept the pressure on all race long.
In Heat 2, Michael Martin was a title contender as he continued his run of a solid Heat race. He finished with his second win of the year, but 6th inside the top 3. He brought home a very convincing victory for P2 man Brett Lopinsky, while Jeremy Aldridge climbed from 7th with a fast lap to claim 3rd place.
The final Heat of the day went to a title contender, this time seeing overall point leader Evan Lawrence putting in work from 8th to bring home his 5th Heat win of the year, and third in a row. Jacob Reis settled for second after leading the first half of the race, while 2R driver Donnie Clarke took down the P3 spot.
The first Main of the weekend saw Brian Leung lead the field away from the standing start, but he immediately came under fire from CalSpeed newcomer Mitch Thieman. Working his way through the pair of SE drivers was long time CalSpeed runner Greg Pelaez, with fellow experienced driver Gilbert Perez making his way to the front in a fairly quick succession. Pelaez and Perez pulled away from the rest of the field. While Perez kept the pressure on, he was unable to make the move happen. Pelaez claimed the C-Main win by just under a second at the line.
A Main Podium
B-Main Carl Zhu
C-Main Winner Gregorio Pelaez