DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (September 26, 2015) – Kerry Jacobsen, of Deland, Florida, took the lead of the Spec Racer Ford Gen3 race for the third and final time on the last lap and went on to win his first career National Championship Saturday in the ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv National Championship Runoffs presented by Garmin VIRB at Daytona International Speedway. Tray Ayres, of Gainesville, Georgia, led the race twice and finished second, and Cliff White, of Huntsville, Alabama, finished third.
“I live just about 35 minutes from here and the first time I ever drove a race car was at a driver’s school at Daytona,” Jacobsen said. “It just makes it all the sweeter to get to this point after a lot of years of effort. It is really a sweet moment because it is such a challenging thing to do.”
Starting from the Tire Rack Pole in his No. 38 Tactical Machining/Comprent SRF3, Jacobsen led for the first time on the race’s opening lap before Ayres stepped up to take the lead on lap two in the No. 7 Ayres Racing SRF3.
From that point on, Jacobsen and Ayres ran nose-to-tail throughout the 14-lap race, swapping the lead three more times before the finish. In total, Jacobsen led five laps – including the first and last – while Ayres’ led a race-high nine laps.
“We started practicing this back in May,” Ayres said about the near-perfect display with Jacobsen. “We practiced again in August and in practice here this past Thursday, but we never really talked about what we would do on the last lap. I really didn’t want to be leading on the last lap, but my car got hot. I had to take the lead and then he did a weave move in the draft on the last lap that caught me off guard. If he hadn’t done that, it might have been a different scenario, which is exactly the way it should be.”
Jacobsen made his winning move on Ayres exiting Daytona’s Bus Stop Chicane on the last lap.
“Those of us who have raced here for years have won and lost races like this through the little idiosyncrasies about Daytona,” Jacobsen said. “It’s a different thing to pick up the little nuances you need here and there to gain a half a car length. I tossed and turned and went through all of the scenarios last night in my head and this was one of them.”
White partnered up in his No. 59 Valvoline/Prisom/The Cottages SRF3 with drafting partner James Goughary Jr. in the No. 68 SRF3. The duo raced in third and fourth for most of the race but could never quite hook up with the lead draft pace of Jacobsen and Ayres. Goughary finished fourth.
“It really was a two-car-draft race and I think that has a little bit to do with the additional horsepower in the Gen3,” White said. “When the first two cars get hooked up, even just sharing air, they pull away almost instantly a car length or two. There was a point in which I may have pulled away from Jim Goughary halfway through the race but then I actually backed out to let him catch me.”
The 52nd ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv National Championship Runoffs®, The Pinnacle of American Motorsports, will crown ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv’s Club Racing National Champions at Daytona International Speedway, Friday, September 25 through Sunday, September 27.
The live broadcast of all 27 National Championship races is available live at ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv.com, along with live timing and notes. Each race will be on demand at a later date.
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (September 26, 2015) – Provisional results for Satruday’s Spec Racer Ford Gen3 race at the 52nd ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv National Championship Runoffs presented by Garmin VIRB at Daytona International Speedway, with finish position, starting position in parentheses, driver, hometown, car and laps complete.
1, (1), Kerry Jacobsen, Deland, FL, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
2, (4), Tray Ayres, Gainesville, GA, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
3, (3), Cliff White, Huntsville, AL, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
4, (7), James Goughary Jr, Jupiter, FL, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
5, (8), Todd Vanacore, Ormond Beach, FL, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
6, (6), Scott Rettich, Columbus, OH, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
7, (2), Brian Schofield, Lakeland, FL, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
8, (11), Scott Monroe, Seabrook, TX, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
9, (5), Chad Galloway, New Smyrna Beach, FL, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
10, (14), John Black, Olympic Valley, CA, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
11, (16), Thomas Anspach, Jupiter, FL, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
12, (21), Michael Greene, Gainesville, GA, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
13, (17), Jean-Luc Liverato, Milton, GA, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
14, (10), Richie Stanley, New Smyrna Beach, FL, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
15, (18), James Regan, Longmeadow, MA, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
16, (20), Lee Hill, Brandon, FL, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
17, (19), Dudley Fleck, Cedar Rapids, IA, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
18, (9), Bobby Sak, Mattawan, MI, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
19, (24), James Marinangel, McHenry, IL, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
20, (22), Chuck Newman, Lagrange, GA, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
21, (27), Peter Jankovskis, Lisle, IL, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
22, (26), Charlie Pigeon, Abilene, TX, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
23, (25), Bob Gardner, Sunnyvale, CA, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
24, (12), Shawn Morrison, Center Conway, NH, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
25, (29), Timothy Gray, Eden Prairie, MN, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
26, (13), John Greene, Gainesville, GA, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 14.
27, (28), Ken Waters, Durham, NC, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 10.
28, (23), Matthew Gray, Chaska, MN, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 9.
29, (15), Robeson Russell, Spartanburg, SC, ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Spec Racer Ford Gen 3, 7.
Length of Race: 50 miles
Overall Time of Race: 32:52.895
Average Speed: 90.945 mph
Margin of Victory: .055 of a second
Fastest Race Lap: No. 105 Galloway, 2:10.215 (98.422 mph)
Lap Leaders: No. 38, laps 1, 7 – 9, 14; No. 7, laps 2 – 6, 10 – 13
Sunoco Hard Charger: No. 88 Michael Greene
Image: No. 38 Kerry Jacobsen made a last lap pass to win the Spec Racer Ford Gen3 race and his first National Championship in the ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû51xxtv Runoffs presented by Garmin VIRB at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday.
Credit: Jay Bonvouloir
