1998 Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course

The 1998 US F2000 National Championship, sanctioned by the United States Auto Club and the Sports Car Club of America – Pro Racing, is an open-wheel series for Formula 2000 race cars. The series receives support from the Ford Motor Company, Yokohama Tires, Sunoco Racing Fuels and Racing Electronics.

The championship consists of fourteen races contested on road courses, ovals and one street circuit. The season begins in January on the Walt Disney World Speedway oval and ends with a doubleheader at Pikes Peak International Raceway in late September.

Walt Disney World Speedway – January 23
Phoenix International Raceway – March 22
Homestead-Miami Speedway – May 16
Homestead-Miami Speedway – May 17
Watkins Glen Internation – May 29
Watkins Glen Internation – May 30
Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course – June 14
Minneapolis Street Circuit – June 28
Lowe's Motor Speedway – July 24
Lowe's Motor Speedway – July 25
Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course – August 8
Atlanta Motor Speedway – August 29
Pikes Peak International Raceway - September 26
Pikes Peak International Raceway - September 27

The cars competing in the series are single-seat, rear-engine, open-wheel vehicles constructed with a tube frame chassis. Manufacturers producing series chassis include Carbir, Swift, Tatuus, Bowman and the most popular choice, Van Diemen. These 1,190-lb formula cars are powered by a 2.0-liter Ford NEA engine fitted with a single Weber DGV carburetor. At 6,200-rpm, the motors produce approximately 150-horsepower. The suspensions are independent – both front and rear. Shock absorbers and sway bars are adjustable. The cars compete on a spec tire from Yokohama and use a spec fuel provided by Sunoco.

Drivers compete in one of two classes:

F2A – This category is for newer cars. Competitors score points on the road courses and ovals to secure the National Championship.
F2B – The “B” field is for cars built in 1996 or older. This class was introduced to provide an economical means for drivers and teams to enter the series. Drivers in this division score points based on their overall finishing position but may be first among the “B” cars.

Titles are also on the line for Chassis Manufacturers, Engine Builders and Prep Shops.

The US F2000 National Championship made the first of two stops at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in June. Drivers would compete in a twenty-lap contest around the thirteen-turn 2.258-mile road course.

Australian David Besnard drive the No. 13 Haase Racing Karts Van Diemen RF98. Besnard entered the series with a racing resume that included the 1996 Australian Formula Ford title. When the teams made their first stop at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course for round seven, he was the points leader with wins at Orlando, Phoenix, Homestead and Watkins Glen. At Mid-Ohio, he went flag-to-flag for another victory.

Finishing second at Mid-Ohio by a margin of 6.648-seconds was Marc-Antoine Camirand. Camirand’s first start of the season was rounds three and four, where he collected a pair of fourth-place results. At Watkins Glen, Camirand earned his first podium. He qualified fourth fastest at Mid-Ohio in the No. 96 Key Motorsport Van Diemen RF98. However, Camirand was in second by lap-2 and held the position to the finish.

The No. 51 autoconnect.com Van Diemen RF98 was another Key Motorsport entry driven by Greg LeMond. LeMond is a former cyclist that won the Road Race World Championship twice and the Tour de France three times. At the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, he qualified ninth fastest. By lap-14 of 20, LeMond was in third and maintained the spot to the checkered flag for his second third-place result of the season.

Michael Johnson also entered the series with some celebrity status. Johnson was a participant in MTV’s The Real World: London. While in England, he competed in Formula Renault and the British Touring Car Championship. In this year’s US F2000 National Championship, Johnson campaigned the No. 8 Valvoline / Slick Eyewear Van Diemen RF98. At Mid-Ohio, he started twelfth and charged to a fourth-place finish.

The most popular choice of a race car manufacturer in the US F2000 National Championship is Van Diemen. However, there is an option from Tatuus, which produces the RC98 model. Tatuus Racing is an Italian company founded in 1980 by Artico Sandona. There were three Tatuus RC98 entered at Mid-Ohio. The quickest belonged to Ryan Hampton, who was gridded eighth in the No. 88 version and finished fifth.

Another constructor of F2000 race cars is Bowman. The first Bowman was built in 1991 by Steve Hollman. In 1998, the company entered the US F2000 National Championship with the BC5 designed by Bruce Cary. At Mid-Ohio, there were entries from Highcroft Racing for Andy Lally and team principal Duncan Dayton. Lally drove the No. 5 Bowman BC5 and finished sixth after qualifying thirteenth.

FINISH	START	CLASS	DRIVER	ENTRANT	LAPS	RETIREMENTS
1	1	F2A	David Besnard	Haase Racing Karts/Van Diemen RF98	20	-
2	4	F2A	Marc-Antoine Camirand	Key Motorsport/Van Diemen RF98	20	-
3	9	F2A	Greg LeMond	autoconnect.com/Van Diemen RF98	20	-
4	12	F2A	Mike Johnson	Valvoline/PCG/Van Diemen RF98	20	-
5	8	F2A	Ryan Hampton	Beta/Tatuus RC98	20	-
6	13	F2A	Andy Lally	Red Line Oil/Bowman BC5	20	-
7	11	F2A	Bobby Oergel	Quicksilver/Red Line/Van Diemen RF98	20	-
8	2	F2A	Sam Hornish, Jr.	Hornish Bros.Trucking/Van Diemen RF98	20	-
9	18	F2A	Anthony Simone	Babbitt Enterprises/Van Diemen RF97	20	-
10	7	F2A	Jonathan Bottoms	Team Great Northern/Van Diemen RF98	20	-
11	16	F2A	Ric Rushton	DSTP Motorsports/Van Diemen RF98	20	-
12	5	F2A	Alejandro García	Dixie Numerics/Van Diemen RF98	20	-
13	15	F2A	Christian Coggins	Merryland Apartment/Van Diemen RF98	20	-
14	20	F2B	Guy Cosmo	Valvoline/Bosch/Van Diemen RF94	20	-
15	22	F2A	James Yott	Claritin/Van Diemen RF98	20	-
16	21	F2A	Jon Herb	Invincible Sportsware/Van Diemen RF98	20	-
17	24	F2A	Tim Duit	TTK Construction/Van Diemen RF98	20	-
18	23	F2A	Joey Scarallo	Auto Trend Tire & Wheel/Van Diemen RF98	20	-
19	26	F2A	T. J. Bell	Bell Unlimited/Van Diemen RF98	20	-
20	19	F2A	Rolando Quintanilla	Transportes Quintanilla/Van Diemen RF98	20	-
21	6	F2A	Robby McGehee	Energizer/VisionAire/Tatuus RC98	20	-
22	29	F2A	Billy Puterbaugh, Jr.	Ferguson Steel/Van Diemen RF98	19	-
23	31	F2B	Wilmer Valentín	Hi-Tech Motor Corp./Van DiemenRF96	19	-
24	30	F2B	Jason Bach	Millennium Systems/Van Diemen RF95	19	-
25	14	F2A	Duncan Dayton	Bowman America/Bowman BC5	18	-
26	10	F2A	Steve Rikert	SnR Racing/Tatuus Race Cars/Tatuus RC97	8	Mechanical
27	25	F2A	Jeff Smith	Terre Haute 1st National Bank/Tatuus RC98	2	Mechanical
28	17	F2B	Larry Oberto	The Race Net/Van Diemen RF95	1	Did Not Finish
29	27	F2B	Dana LaLiberte	Castrol/Snap-On/Van Diemen RF95	1	Mechanical
30	28	F2B	Howie Liebengood	Campaign to Stop Violence/Van Diemen RF95	1	Did Not Finish
31	3	F2A	Ryan Jones	Ryder/Winchester/PVS/Van Diemen RF98	1	Mechanical

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