Category: Lotus49

Mike Erter started from the pole and won the Charlotte event ahead of David Brown by only 0.2 of a second, followed by Stuart Wright, Steven Kiefer and Andrew Forrester.

Mike Erter placed his #117 on the pole, took the lead at the start and never looked back, running a solid race up front. Breuning, who qualified 3rd, took 2nd and hung with him for a bit but fropped of eventually, not being able to keep the lap times. Bill Smithem was in 3rd, followed by Ian Wilson, rookie Jack Wilson and Phil Peterson.

Phil Peterson started from the pole, with Breuning alongside him on the front row. Breuning took the lead early on and stayed there. An early yellow dropped a few drivers a lap down, but it was pretty smooth sailing from there on out. Breuning took the checkered, his first Indy 100 win in the Lotus 49, with Don Warren saving fuel in 2nd place and Ian Wilson rounding out the podium; Mike Zakar was 4th and polesitter Peterson finished 5th.

Pole sitter Bill Smithem led the first part of the race, when Breuning caught him there was a pretty good battle between the two and they swapped positions several times. With about 7 laps to go, Smithem ran wide and brushed the wall, causing his suspension to be out of wack. He finished, but had to watch Breuning grab top spot. Phil Peterson and Ian Wilson completed the event in 3rd and 4th.

Bill Smithem started from the pole and never looked back at the season finale at Watkins Glen, leading every lap and saving fuel as best he could. He came over the finish line with a sputtering engine, as did 2nd placed Breuning. Both leading cars were the only ones not to pit for fuel, which brought Breunign back from 5th to 2nd after a lap one spin. Stuart Wright grabbed 3rd place, followed by Ian Wilson and Pierre “PappaBinz” Binette.

Breuning had already secured the championship, Bill Smithem is 2nd and Don Warren (absent today) 3rd.

Newcomer Brown put his machine on the pole alongside Mike Erter, but the race was really anyone’s. The top 5-6 drivers were all in it and dicing the entire time. Three wide, two wide, and it all seemed to fit on the high banked oval as if it was made for it!

The pit stops pulled the field apart a little bit, but the fight for the top spot remained. Ultimately, David Brown inched it over the line ahead of Erter with Breuning in 3rd. The winning margin was too close to measure in 3 digits behind the dot! Steven Kiefer and Ian Wilson rounded out the top 5.