After solidifying their position with many championships in the 2009 Florida Winter Tour, J3 Competition stepped immediately into the 2010 season with conviction. With a realignment of the class structure, J3 found itself competing in both FWT weekends yet again. The difference being the team had sole emphasis on weekend one in the IAME JR. division.
Taking to the track in Orlando for the team in the IAME Jr. was the familiar face of Alessandra Madrigal. Paired with her new Kosmic Mercury chassis, the 2009 FWT champion continued her speed immediately. After two full days of testing in both wet and dry conditions the team and Alessandra felt confident leading into Saturday and Sunday.
As if the cold weather was not enough, the rain came down heavily on Saturday and the team shifted its setup and operations to full wet weather. With all competitors on the same rain tires, Madrigal clocked a time significantly ahead of the competition. Yet, with an open rain tire policy many competitors were able to secure alternate tires for racing conditions, thus turning Alessandra’s certainty to an uncertainty. After a solid finish on sub-par rain tires in the pre-final the team was able to allocate the necessary tires for the final. With the proper rain tires in-hand Alessandra’s chances were looking very good for the final, however, an electrical malfunction on lap one sidelined any hopes for victory.
“The rain tire situation was unfortunate for Alessandra as she showed superior pace in practice when all the competitors were on the same tires, yet this is racing and I’m thankful that the staff at the FWT has made this situation whole moving forward.” – J3 Management
Saturday’s cold and rainy mess was far behind the team as they moved into Sunday’s dry conditions. After a solid qualification of third, Madrigal and the team made the necessary steps to improve her package in order to fight for the victory. The green flag dropped in the pre-final and Madrigal lead wire-to-wire to a solid victory, which she backed up with a wire-to-wire victory in the final as well.
The team shifted forward for the second FWT weekend with Madrigal yet again competing in Rotax Jr. and newcomer Diego Menchaca in Rotax Sr. Both pilots’ spent ample time testing on Wednesday and Thursday in preparation for the Saturday and Sunday’s events.
Madrigal showed great speed again as she clocked the second fastest time for Friday’s grid position. Saturday progressed nicely as she qualified second and finished second in the pre-final before being penalized for a driving infraction. The wrongful infraction forced Alessandra to start the final in 18th position, whereby she worked her way to take the checkered flag in fifth place gaining valuable points for the championship.
Sunday showed an improvement as Alessandra qualified pole position and thus, lead the field to the green flag in the pre-final. A battle ensued with Nick Neri and Madrigal took home a solid second place finish in the pre-final. An unfortunate lap one incident in the final put Alessandra too far behind Neri on lap one to challenge for the victory, however, Madrigal once again improved her day with a second place finish, which puts her second in the championship.
Team newcomer, Diego Menchaca familiarized himself very well with his new Rotax Sr. package during the event. Working alongside the team, Diego was able to secure the proper setup to compete with the top runners in the event. After missing Saturday’s final, Diego improved his position and finished the weekend with a top twenty finish in Sunday’s final. Menchaca will be looking to improve and develop heading into the second round in Palm Beach.
J3 Competition will be introducing some new and exciting faces at the upcoming FWT events in Palm Beach and Ocala as the team moves into full swing into its 2010 schedule.
For further information regarding J3 Competition’s Race Department or the 2010 Kosmic Racing Kart line, Vortex Engines, ROK Series Engines, Unipro Lap Timers, IBEA, JHC, OTK Kart Parts, and Tranzformer products please contact the sales department at; Sales@J3Competition.com or 814-864-1846.
About J3 Competition
J3 Competition Inc. is an undisputed leader in Race Services since 2004, providing the necessary tooling and management to take drivers to the next level. Starting in 2015 through its COMPKART ™ brand, J3 Competition will provide a full line of high-quality chassis and products designed and engineered for the Karting industry alongside it potent Race Department. J3 Competition will aim to deliver the COMPKART ™ chassis line to the North American market as well as customers globally in 2015 and beyond with unprecedented performance and service. With its content, B2B, and B2C websites presently under construction, please visit http://www.j3competition.com along with all its social media outlets to stay up to date on the latest releases and happenings regarding the COMPKART brand.
