Continental Sports Cars: Kinetic Kia Takes First ST Win at Barber 200

The #10 Kinetics Motorsports Kia scored its first ST class win at the Continental Sports Car Challenge Barber 200.
Save
Continental Sports Cars: Kinetic Kia Takes First ST Win at Barber 200
Nic Jonsson brought the #10 Kinetics Kia home first in class. (James Fish/The Epoch Times)
4/15/2011
Updated:
4/16/2011

<a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/3190Kia10_medium.jpg"><img src="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/3190Kia10_medium.jpg" alt="Nic Jonsson brought the #10 Kinetics Kia home first in class. (James Fish/The Epoch Times)" title="Nic Jonsson brought the #10 Kinetics Kia home first in class. (James Fish/The Epoch Times)" width="320" class="size-medium wp-image-124125"/></a>
Nic Jonsson brought the #10 Kinetics Kia home first in class. (James Fish/The Epoch Times)
LEEDS, Ala.—After scoring its first podium at Homestead, the #10 Kinetics Motorsports Kia of Nic Jonsson and Michael Galati scored its first ST class win in the Barber 200 at Barber Motorsports Park Saturday afternoon.

Michael Galati, who was added to the team at Homestead, was overjoyed by the team’s success.

<a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/2318APRvsCompass_medium.jpg"><img src="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/2318APRvsCompass_medium.jpg" alt="Wheel-to-wheel through the corners&#8212a trademark of touring car action. (James Fish/The Epoch Times)" title="Wheel-to-wheel through the corners&#8212a trademark of touring car action. (James Fish/The Epoch Times)" width="320" class="size-medium wp-image-124126"/></a>
Wheel-to-wheel through the corners—a trademark of touring car action. (James Fish/The Epoch Times)
“How can I express my feelings right now?” he asked Grand Am.com. “It is fantastic for the whole team.

“This weekend we had some problems during practice—I only had like four laps four laps before qualifying.” [Practice accidents cut short the Continental Tire practice sessions.]

“I went out there in qualifying and made a couple mistakes—we should have been a little but better but during the race I put my head down and just drove it.

“The car was really good. I’ve got to hand it to all the guys Kia of America and the whole Kinetic team and my co-driver Nic—all the guys did outstanding jobs, all the guys back at the shop. I am so proud to be part of this team.”

<a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/3191PomboGo_medium.jpg"><img src="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/3191PomboGo_medium.jpg" alt="Mark and Mathew Pombo were in the hunt for the lead throughout the race but dropped back in the final half-dozen laps. (James Fish/The Epoch Times)" title="Mark and Mathew Pombo were in the hunt for the lead throughout the race but dropped back in the final half-dozen laps. (James Fish/The Epoch Times)" width="320" class="size-medium wp-image-124127"/></a>
Mark and Mathew Pombo were in the hunt for the lead throughout the race but dropped back in the final half-dozen laps. (James Fish/The Epoch Times)
Co-driver Nic Jonsson was equally enthused. “It’s so fantastic—bringing Kia Motors to the top of the chart in one of the toughest sports car series in the world in less than two years.

“The goal for this year was to have one or two podiums. Now we have a first and a second.”

The ST class started out as repeat of Homestead, with the brothers Matt and Mark Pombo’s #31 i-Moto Mazda Speed 3 battling the #27 Freedom Autosport Mazda 3 of Eric Foss and Brad Rampleberg.

<a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/3174mazdaGrass_medium.jpg"><img src="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/3174mazdaGrass_medium.jpg" alt="After the #27 Freedom Autosports Mazda Speed 3 fought for podium positions all day, driver eric Foss ended up stalled in the grass in the final laps. (James Fish/The Epoch Times)" title="After the #27 Freedom Autosports Mazda Speed 3 fought for podium positions all day, driver eric Foss ended up stalled in the grass in the final laps. (James Fish/The Epoch Times)" width="320" class="size-medium wp-image-124128"/></a>
After the #27 Freedom Autosports Mazda Speed 3 fought for podium positions all day, driver eric Foss ended up stalled in the grass in the final laps. (James Fish/The Epoch Times)
John Capestro-Dubets in the #81 Bimmerworld BMW 328i and Derek Whitis in the #25 Freedomsport Mazda MX5 fought for third early on, until Rob Finlay in the GS-class #50 Finlay Motorsports Mustang put Capestro-Dubets into the gravel at Turn Ten on lap 26.

Ramplelberg’s Mazda took the lead when everyone pitted under yellow, with Chris Gleason Jr.’s #181 APR VW and Trevor Hopwood’s #Kinetic Motorsports Kia behind him.

<a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/2520APR_medium.jpg"><img src="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/2520APR_medium.jpg" alt="Ian Baas held on to his ST points lead but couldn't reach the podium. (James Fish/The Epoch Times)" title="Ian Baas held on to his ST points lead but couldn't reach the podium. (James Fish/The Epoch Times)" width="320" class="size-medium wp-image-124129"/></a>
Ian Baas held on to his ST points lead but couldn't reach the podium. (James Fish/The Epoch Times)
That didn’t last. Owen Trinkler in the #198 RSR Motorsports Mini passed both Rampelberg and Gleason ot take the lead on lap 33.

After a caution five laps later, the race restarted on lap 45 with Trinkler in the lead followed by Mathew Pombo and Nic Jonsson in the #10 Kinetics Kia. Jonsson. Pombo took the lead from Trinkler on the next lap, only to lose it to Nic Jonsson on lap 54.

<a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/2572Kia10_medium.jpg"><img src="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/2572Kia10_medium.jpg" alt="For Kinetics Kia and drivers Galati and Jonsson, Barber was the first win. (James Fish/The Epoch Times)" title="For Kinetics Kia and drivers Galati and Jonsson, Barber was the first win. (James Fish/The Epoch Times)" width="320" class="size-medium wp-image-124130"/></a>
For Kinetics Kia and drivers Galati and Jonsson, Barber was the first win. (James Fish/The Epoch Times)
Ian Baas in the #171 APR VW had moved to third and was pressing Pombo when the pair of cautions slowed the field. In the brief burst of racing between the yellow flags, Bass managed to take second, reminding everyone of his last-lap grab of the win at Homestead.

Baas was not to repeat his Homestead win, however; he fell to third when the green flag waved on lap 70, as BJ Zacharias in the  #14 Doran Racing BMW 1281 and Jesse Combs in the #56 Race Epic BMW 3281 both got past the VW driver.

Zacharias pushed hard but couldn’t catch Nic Jonsson who motored home to win by a margin of .684 seconds, giving the #10 Kinetics Kia its first win since entering the series last season,

The #32 i-MOTO Mazda Speed 3 of Taylor Hacquard and Pierre Kleinubing, took fifth, while their teammates The Pombo brothers, despite leading 36 laps could manage no better than sixth.

The Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge travels to Virginia International Raceway near Danville, Va., for the Bosch Engineering 200 on Saturday, May 14, running in conjunction with the Rolex Bosch Engineering 250. Tickets are available at the VIR website ticket page.

The Bosch Engineering 250 will be televised at 5 p.m. on May 14 on SPEED TV

The Bosch Engineering 200 will be televised on SPEED TV on May 22 at 1 p.m. ET.

 

Continental Sports Car Challenge Barber 200 results

 

#

Class

Pic

Drivers

Team/Car

Laps

1

15

GS

1

Foster / Maxwell

Multimatic Motorsports / Mustang Boss 302R

77

2

96

GS

2

Auberlen / Dalla Lana

Turner Motorsport / BMW M3 Coupe

77

3

61

GS

3

Johnson / Roush Jr.

Roush Performance / Mustang Boss 302R

77

4

46

GS

4

Boden / Borcheller / Kasemets

Fall-Line Motorsports / BMW M3 Coupe

77

5

9

GS

5

Bell / Edwards

Stevenson Motorsports / Camaro GS.R

77

6

97

GS

6

Hand / Marsal

Turner Motorsport / BMW M3 Coupe

77

7

13

GS

7

Longhi / Plumb

Rum Bum Racing / BMW M3 Coupe

77

8

83

GS

8

Cosmo / Tetreault

BGB Motorsports / Porsche Cayman S

77

9

45

GS

9

Carter / Plumb

Fall-Line Motorsports / BMW M3 Coupe

77

10

6

GS

10

Bucknum / Stout

Mitchum Motorsports / Camaro GS.R

77

11

78

GS

11

Michaelian / Wilden

BimmerWorld Racing / BMW M3 Coupe

77

12

91

GS

12

Gibson / Hurley

APR Motorsport / Audi S4

77

13

33

GS

13

Buford / Sellers

Kinetic Motorsports / BMW M3 Coupe

77

14

68

GS

14

Buffomante / Gimple

Capaldi Racing / Ford Mustang GT

77

15

79

GS

15

Clay / Thomas

BimmerWorld Racing / BMW M3 Coupe

77

16

19

GS

16

Gerrard / Jensen

Insight Racing / BMW M3 Coupe

77

17

00

GS

17

Curran / McCalmont

CKS Autosport / Camaro GS.R

77

18

10

ST

1

Galati / Jonsson

Kinetic Motorsports / KIA Forte Koup

77

19

14

ST

2

Bell / Zacharias

Doran Racing / BMW 128i

77

20

56

ST

3

Combs / Mosing

RACE EPIC/Murillo Racing / BMW 328i

77

21

171

ST

4

Baas / Ellis

APR Motorsport / Volkswagen GTI

77

22

32

ST

5

Hacquard / Kleinubing

i-MOTO / Mazda Speed 3

77

23

31

ST

6

Pombo / Pombo

i-MOTO / Mazda Speed 3

77

24

38

GS

18

Massari / Piovanetti

BGB Motorsports / Porsche Cayman S

77

25

25

ST

7

Long / Whitis

Freedom Autosport / Mazda MX-5

77

26

181

ST

8

Gleason Jr. / Gleason

APR Motorsport / Volkswagen GTI

77

27

18

ST

9

Rondet / Westphal

Insight Racing / BMW 328i

77

28

12

ST

10

Burrows / Hopwood

Kinetic Motorsports / KIA Forte Koup

77

29

198

ST

11

Cattaneo / Trinkler

RSR Motorsports / Mini Cooper S

77

30

65

ST

12

Brown

RACE EPIC/Murillo Racing / BMW 328i

77

31

74

ST

13

Lutz / Thilenius

Compass360 Racing / Honda Civic SI

77

32

195

ST

14

Mirzayan / Riegel

RSR Motorsports / Mini Cooper S

77

33

62

GS

19

Aschenbach / Atterbury

Mitchum Motorsports / Camaro GS.R

77

34

80

ST

15

Heumann / White

BimmerWorld Racing / BMW 328i

77

35

24

ST

16

Guthrie / Skelton

V-Pack Motorsport / BMW 330

77

36

21

GS

20

Panzer / Snyder

Frederick Motorsports / Ford Mustang GT

76

37

03

ST

17

Picut / Watson

Next Generation Motorsports / BMW 330

76

38

4

ST

18

Conway / Kent

Doran Racing / BMW 128i

76

39

22

ST

19

Freeman Jr. / Freeman / Schmidt

FRESCH / Mercedes C300

75

40

77

ST

20

Novich / Rogers

Compass360 Racing / Honda Civic SI

74

41

90

ST

21

Eich / Gilsinger / Schmitt

HART / Honda Civic SI

73

42

75

ST

22

Carroll / Eversley

Compass360 Racing / Honda Civic SI

70

43

50

GS

21

Cameron / Finlay

Finlay Motorsports / Mustang Boss 302R

64

44

54

GS

22

Blackstock / Click / McGovern

Jim Click Racing / Ford Mustang GT

64

45

81

ST

23

Capestro-Dubets / Liefooghe

BimmerWorld Racing / BMW 328i

64

46

88

GS

23

Courtney / Ellis

Ranger Sports Racing / Porsche 997

62

47

27

ST

24

Foss / Rampelberg

Freedom Autosport / Mazda Speed 3

54

48

67

ST

25

Kozarov / Tallman

CA Sport / Honda Civic SI

50

49

28

ST

26

Igdalsky / Ledoux

Freedom Autosport / Mazda Speed 3

48

50

35

GS

24

Aquilante / Spaude

Subaru Road Racing Team / Subaru WRX-STI

39

51

161

ST

27

Brock / Lamb

APR Motorsport / Volkswagen GTI

33

52

196

ST

28

Farmer / Hart

RSR Motorsports / Mini Cooper S

31

53

26

ST

29

Carbonell / O'Doski

Freedom Autosport / Mazda MX-5

26

54

58

GS

25

DiLeo / Smith

Maxwell Paper Racing / Porsche 997

21

55

89

GS

26

Curtin / Lee

Ranger Sports Racing / Porsche 997

20

56

48

GS

27

Espenlaub / Putman

Fall-Line Motorsports / BMW M3 Coupe

16

57

23

ST

30

Hanson / Workman

AutoSport Promotions / BMW 330

10

58

04

GS

28

Lock / Sweeney

AM Performance / Nissan 370Z

9

59*

01

GS

0

Mundy / Rivera

CKS Autosport / Camaro GS.R

0