Pitt Race - August 2015 (Round 9 & 10)
The Hoosier Tire US Formula 1000 Championship Fueled by Sunoco made its first ever visit to the newly-configured Pittsburgh International Race Complex for rounds 9 and 10 of the 2015 championship. There was only one qualifying session for the weekend and Jeremy Hill made the most of it, turning a blistering lap of 1:37.842 to take the pole for Saturday's race. Alex Mayer’s Suzuki dropped a valve during testing on Friday. The team was unable to find a replacement engine and was about to pack up. That’s when David O’Leary generously offered the use of his car for the weekend so Mayer could stay in the points battle with J.R. Osborne. The O'Leary car had a coolant leak during qualifying so Mayer wasn't able to set a good lap.
Grid for round 9:
| 1 |
Jeremy Hill |
01:37.842 |
| 2 |
J.R. Osborne |
01:38.364 |
| 3 |
Jason Slahor |
01:45.320 |
| 4 |
Mike Meyers |
01:50.444 |
| 5 |
Alex Mayer |
02:04.567 |
| 6 |
Dave O'Leary |
no time |
At the green flag, J.R. Osborne did what he does best and took the lead away from polesitter Hill. Osborne held the position for the next 7 laps but Hill was glued to his rear wing. Hill kept the pressure on until the eighth lap when he was able to take over the lead. Hill had the faster race pace of the two leaders so he began building a lead. He never looked back and took the win with a 14 second advantage over Osborne. Slahor held on for the final podium spot and Meyers ran a solid race to come home fourth. Mayer's rotten luck followed him in O'Leary's car. The car dropped a valve in his Suzuki powerplant before completing lap 1.
Final results- round 9:
| 1 |
Jeremy Hill |
| 2 |
JR Osborne |
| 3 |
Jason Slahor |
| 4 |
Mike Meyers |
| 6 |
Alex Mayer |
DNF |
Dave O'Leary |
The grid for round 10 on Sunday was set by each driver's fastest lap between qualifying and Saturday's race. Only Slahor improved on his qualifying time during the race but not enough to improve his grid position. That meant the grid for round 10 was identical to round 9.
Grid for Round 10
| 1 |
Jeremy Hill |
01:37.842 |
| 2 |
J.R. Osborne |
01:38.364 |
| 3 |
Jason Slahor |
01:43.823 |
| 4 |
Mike Meyers |
01:50.444 |
| 5 |
Alex Mayer |
02:04.567 |
| 6 |
Dave O'Leary |
no time |
Sunday's race turned out to be quite a bit different. When the green flag flew, polesitter Hill jumped out to the lead with Osborne right behind him. Just 3 turns in, Hill looped his car and Osborne had no place to go. The two collided, bringing out a full course caution. Osborne's car took most of the damage. It suffered suspension damage and lost the front wing and nosebox. Both were able to continue but were a lap down once the race restarted. Slahor inherited the lead and was never challenged for the remainder of the race. Meyers found himself in second place and held that spot for most of the race. Meanwhile, Hill and Osborne were on a mission. Hill recovered quicker and started clicking off fastest race laps as he clawed back to the lead lap. Behind him, Osborne was turning second-fastest race laps, despite having no front wing and damaged suspension. By lap 9, Hill had Meyers in his sights and made his move on the next lap. With only 6 laps to go he didn't have time to reel in Slahor and had to settle for second. Meyers held on for the final podium spot while Osborne finally pitted for a new nose and wing to meet minimum weight at race finish, salvaging a fourth place finish and crucial championship points. Mayer was once again unable to start the race.
Final results- Round 10
| 1 |
Jason Slahor |
| 2 |
Jeremy Hill |
| 3 |
Mike Meyers |
| 4 |
JR Osborne |
| DNS |
Alex Mayer |
| DNS |
Dave O'Leary |
|
