Video – 2wd & 4wd Buggy A-main Leg 2

Phend first champion of 28th Cactus Classic

In complete contrast to 12-months ago, when he didn’t even make the A-Main line-up, Dakotah Phend has become the first driver to be crowned champion at the 28th running of the Pro-Line Cactus Classic.  Having won A1, the Team Losi Racing young star backed it up with another win in A2 over local hero & multiple champion Ryan Maifield to secure the prestigious 2WD Buggy title, his first big win at America’s longest running offroad event.

Starting from the pole, Phend would lead from start to finish with another impressive showing of his ever improving talent seeing off intense presure from Maifield until the Associated driver rolled on the penultimate lap.  The current US National Champion, the 17-year-old said while he felt the pressure of Maifield he knew if he just stayed focused on hitting his lines he would be able to find a way passed.  Calling the result ‘a big change from last year’, he said he has over the past year worked hard on his 2WD driving and today that ‘paid off’.

Maifield complimented Phend on his win saying ‘he drove a good race and made no mistake’, a mistake being the only way he was going to get by.  Making a number of changes to the set-up of his new B5M, Maifield said it was better but they still needed to find more steering. On target to finish second overall at his home event, he said he ‘would like to say (he) was happy with second on the debut of the new car but I am not cause as a driver 2nd sucks’.

While the second 2WD Buggy encounter was a two way fight that saw no position changes in the Top 5, the 4WD encounter was a complete thriller of a race.  Starting from 5th on the grid US Champion Ty Tessmann would take the win as everyone starting ahead of his HB D4-13 crashed or tangled.  Third in A1, Tessmann said he just played the patience game and keeping his run free of mistakes was able to move to the front for a win that puts him in the hunt for his first Cactus Classic title.

Having again worked his way to the front, A1 winner Maifield said he didn’t deserve to win again in A2.  Saying he ‘got lucky at the start’, the defending champion added he wasn’t patient enough behind Tebo.  Having moved to the front on lap 3 after Top Qualifier Joern Neumann ran wide and the pair touched, on Lap 9 at the end of the straight Maifield would try a move down the inside of the Kyosho that resulted in the pair tangling. While the Associated would take over the lead for 4-laps after the incident, a mistake which he described as ‘karma’ would drop him back to third.   At the end of the action packed 5-minutes Phend would claim second followed by Tebo and Neumann with a last lap mistake leaving Maifield fifth.

4WD Buggy A-Main Leg 2 Result
1.(5) Ty Tessmann – HB – 14/5:04.742
2.(3) Dakotah Phend – TLR – 14/5:05.537
3.(2) Jared Tebo – Kyosho – 14/5:05.978
4.(1) Joern Neumann – Durango – 14/5:08.363
5.(4) Ryan Maifield – Associated – 14/5:08.843
6.(7) Billy Fischer – Associated – 14/5:15.305
7.(10)Ryan Lutz – Durango – 14/5:16.013
8.(8) Carson Wernimont – Schumacher – 14/5:23.457
9.(6) Ryan Cavalieri – Associated – 7/2:32.862
10.(11)Kody Numedahl – Associated – 3/1:05.249
11.(9)Daimon Borkowicz – Associated – 2/0:42.715

2WD Buggy A-Main Leg 2 Result
1.(1) Dakotah Phend – TLR – 14/5:09.445
2.(2) Ryan Maifield – Associated – 14/5:13.385
3.(3) Ryan Cavalieri – Associated – 14/5:15.399
4.(4) Jared Tebo – Kyosho – 14/5:18.117
5.(5) Billy Fischer – Associated – 14/5:21.157
6.(11)Joern Neumann – Durango – 13/5:01.605
7.(10)Ty Tessmann – HB – 13/5:03.383
8.(6) Travis Amezcua – Durango – 13/5:04.426
9.(8) Ryan Lutz – Durango – 13/5:05.479
10.(7)Dustin Evans – TLR – 13/5:11.118
11.(9)Spencer Rivkin – Associated – 13/5:13.577

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Video – 2wd SC & Truck A-main Leg 2

Cavalieri wins exciting 2WD Short Course A2

Ryan Cavalieri won an exciting second A-Main of 2WD Short Course, the defending champion holding off an intense challenge from team-mate Ryan Maifield, the Associated pairing the class of the field.  Rubbing paint during the run swapping the lead between corners, Cavalieri would finally get some breathing space with 2 laps to go when Maifield rolled his SC10 at the end of the straight.  Rolling again on the last lap, this would allow Team Durango’s Travis Amecua to get by the US National Champion to take second at the finish line by 3/10th of a second.

In Mod Truck, US National Truck champion Jared Tebo took an easy 3-second win over A1 winner Joern Neumann, the pair the only drivers to go 14-laps.  Having had a bad opening leg, finishing 4th, the Top Qualifier kept his Kyosho RT6 out front from start to finish.  Driving a Centro CT4.2, Billy Fischer would complete the Top 3 after getting by the rear motored T4.2 of A1 runner-up Cavalieri who after two bad laps in the middle of the race would post the fastest lap.

Mod Truck A2 Result
1. Jared Tebo – Kyosho – 14/5:19.429
2. Joern Neumann – Durango – 14/5:22.315
3. Billy Fischer – Team Associated – 13/5:03.804

2WD Short Course A2 Result
1. Ryan Cavalieri – Team Associated – 13/5:09.991
2. Travis Amezcua – Durango – 13/5:16.281
3. Ryan Maifield – Team Associated – 13/5:16.585

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Video – 2wd & 4wd Buggy A-main Leg 1

A1 Buggy wins for Maifield & Phend

Ryan Maifield and Dakotah Phend took the opening round of A-Mains at the Pro-Line Cactus Classic this morning in Scottsdale, Arizona.   Maifield won the more interesting encounter, 4WD Buggy, which saw drama before the race even started as Jared Tebo broke a front and rear wishbone during his warm-up laps and was forced to miss the start having been set to start second. 2WD Buggy was a rather processionally affair with Phend cruising to an easy victory, the Top 4 finishing in the same order they finished.

Commenting on his 4WD win, defending Champion Maifield said he was able to capitalise on others’ mistakes and luckily avoided making any himself.  Going to the front on lap 5 when Top Qualifier Joern Neumann rolled over his Durango, Maifield would see off the attention of Dakotah Phend to take the win by 1.5-seconds with Ty Tessmann a further 4/10ths behind in third. Asked about the re-sugaring of the track last night, Maifield said if he had been blind folded on the rostrum he wouldn’t have noticed it had been done.

Phend said he drove his TLR22-4 ‘too hard’ as he tried to pull in Maifield leading him to make mistakes which in turn allowed the Associated driver to pull clear in the closing stages of the race. Commenting on the track re-sugaring the 17-year-old said it didn’t feel as good as yesterday.

Finishing third from 5th on the grid, Tessmann felt he could have battled for the lead had it not been for contact with Neumann.  Having got passed him for third, the German would land into the rear of the Canadian’s HB and while he waited for Tessmann to resume position this broke his charge to the front.

Expecting the track to have more grip following the re-sugaring, Neumann said it felt ‘more loose’ but he said it was simple driver error that cost him the race.  Finishing 5th, he said his DEX410 was really good, highlighted by him posting the fastest lap of the race.

Making 2WD look easy, US National Champion Phend did have one ‘scary’ moment late in the race when he was put off by the position of a marshal attending a crashed car at the jump after the drivers stand.  Suffering the moment which resulted in his TLR22 getting a little out of shape, once he got a gap on Maifield he just tried to maintain it adding that he ‘still drove hard’ for most of the 5-minute race.

Despite setting the fastest lap of 2WD, Maifield said the team’s new B5M is ‘still work in progress’.  Describing the car as feeling ‘OK’ he said they still have to iron out a few things with the set-up.

Finishing third over 5-seconds clear of defending champion Jared Tebo, Cavalieri described his buggy’s performance as ‘mediocre’ adding he was ‘just driving around’. Hoping to find some improvement for A2 he will adjust the front ball cups as well as moving the battery back in the chassis.  Asked about the re-sugared track conditions the former multiple World Champion said it ‘sucks’.  Saying it did not have the same feeling as it did through qualifying he added while it is the same for everyone he feels it was not a good idea to do it.

4WD Buggy A-Main Leg 1 Result
1.(4) Ryan Maifield – Associated – 14/5:03.407
2.(3) Dakotah Phend – TLR – 14/5:04.946
3.(5) Ty Tessmann – HB – 14/5:05.379
4.(10)Ryan Lutz – Durango – 14/5:12.462
5.(1) Joern Neumann – Durango – 14/5:12.674
6.(7) Billy Fischer – Associated – 14/5:14.344
7.(8) Carson Wernimont – Schumacher – 14/5:17.076
8.(6) Ryan Cavalieri – Associated – 14/5:17.586
9.(11)Kody Numedahl – Associated – 13/5:00.820
10.(9)Daimon Borkowicz – Associated – 1/0:19.236
11.(2)Jared Tebo – Kyosho – DNS

2WD Buggy A-Main Leg 1 Result
1.(1) Dakotah Phend – TLR – 14/5:14.102
2.(2) Ryan Maifield – Associated – 14/5:15.554
3.(3) Ryan Cavalieri – Associated – 14/5:17.718
4.(4) Jared Tebo – Kyosho – 14/5:22.984
5.(6) Travis Amezcua – Durango – 13/5:05.406
6.(10)Ty Tessmann – HB – 13/5:06.489
7.(9) Spencer Rivkin – Associated – 13/5:07.282
8.(8) Ryan Lutz – Durango – 13/5:09.565
9.(7) Dustin Evans – TLR – 13/5:09.907
10.(5)Billy Fischer – Associated – 13/5:12.714
11.(11)Joern Neumann – Durango – 13/5:21.031

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