Jonnie Varga
Seven Time Champion
8/29 This week Team Valvoline headed to Concord Speedway for some racing action. It felt like the middle of summer with temperatures in the upper eighties and a lot of sun. The track was pretty loose because of the hot weather but with a few adjustments we thought that we could have a decent day. Jonnie gave it all he had and was able to finish 4th. It has been a couple months since we have raced at Concord so we'll take a fourth and make some changes for the next race. This was Jonnie's best finish this year at Concord.
8/25 Above is a picture of Jonnie's GT American quarter midget. This car was raced just 7 times to complete his last quarter midget season in Tampa. This car is like new, comes with a pit cart and parts! Please call for details if you are interested. Dave 704 765-2196
8/24 Check out this website for a great selection of racing collectibles! www.07racingcollectables.com
8/15 Rockingham Regional Race. In order to complete an INEX points season you must race 20 races and complete at least on regional race for a total of 21 scored races. Our regional race was held at the Rock yesterday and we were fortunate to pick up a third place finish. The crew chief made some changes in hopes of getting faster and the changes didn't seem to work. Jonnie's lap times were about tenths slower than previous weeks. But a third place finish is worth 94 points towards the national points and that is not bad. Jonnie has only 15 races completed this year due to our late season start and work schedule. Some competitors have well over thirty races completed but only their top 21 finishes will count. Team Valvoline is working hard and making good progress with our new competition. We will have to keep being consistent and finish the next six races strong in order to make it into the top 20 in national points and a possible 2np place finish for Florida State points. Jonnie was happy to pick up a nice trophy Saturday and we will head back to Concord Speedway in a couple weeks.
8/8 The Fire Cracker Series at Rockingham Speedway concluded yesterday. The feature race started off good as Jonnie was able to get the blue deuce up to the second position. Unfortunately his loose race car could not hold on as the car went around in turn two bringing out the races first caution flag. When the race resumed Jonnie was on a mission. This was the last race of the series and the last race to pick up a trophy for a top three finish. Jonnie worked his was up to third and could only get close to the second place car as the race winded down. Jonnie would finish third and finally take home a Rockingham trophy. Towards the end of the year Team Valvoline will celebrate again when Jonnie picks up another trophy for his second place finish in the series.
Above there is a picture of the day's top three finishers. Ray Beebe, Stevie Johns, & Jonnie Varga.
8/1 Saturday's feature race order would be set by the qualifying order. Jonnie went our and posted his fastest lap ever at Rockingham and just .08 seconds behind the second place qualifier. Team Valvoline was excited about having a fast car and starting third. The excitement would soon be gone as a couple mistakes would take us out of the top three. Jonnie finished with another disappointing 4th. On a high note Team Valvoline has actually moved up in the points standings. The local racing scheduling can get very busy if you choose to race at all of the tracks. Between races and wrecks there is a point where you must choose your battles and it seems a couple racers have chosen not to return to The Rock. Driver attrition has handed Jonnie the second place position with just two races remaining. We would much rather race into that position but ether way it's second place in the Fire Cracker Series at Rockingham Speedway!
7/25 The #2 finished 4th at The Rock. The crew chief continues to struggle with giving his driver a fast car. Jonnie drove hard but only had enough car to finish 4th. An early first practice crash had us worried for a few minutes but the driver and the car would be fine. A car got loose out of turn two and collected the blue deuce with it. The good news is that Jonnie has moved into the third position in the points. We have not been the fastest car out there but our consistency has kept us towards the front. Next race - Rockingham July 31.
7/15 The Million Dollar race is here! There are over 300 legends cars at Charlotte Motor Speedway this week. The cars and drivers are from all over the United States and some have even traveled from over seas. The legends drivers are competing for a total purse of $100,000,000! The feature winner will take home $250,000. Not a bad pay day for a driver that is used to winning just a few hundred on a Saturday night. There is also a small group of bandolero drivers on hand for a few races during the Legends Million race. The bandolero bandit drivers range in ages from 8 years old to 12 years and for some reason they do not get a part of the big money. It's exciting to think that in less than two years our driver could be out there for a chance of a decent payday not to mention some national TV exposure. Make sure you watch this one of a kind event this Saturday night on SPEED.
7/14 At this point we are past the halfway point in our INEX national points season. Last year at this time Jonnie was closing in on the top ten for the national points. This year Jonnie sits at about the 48th position out of well over 100 drivers. I knew many months ago that this season was going to be different. I knew that we were going to miss at least the first month of racing. And I knew that we would not have the same racing budget, or free time, that we have been used too. But the experience and the ultimate rewards far outweighed giving up just one season. Jonnie is fortunate to have many wins and a few championships. We know how to win and we know we can do it again. The biggest part of the learning curve has been for the crew chief. Last year just a few minor set up changes would put us in victory lane. This year I have found that it takes more than just a few minor adjustments to win in North Carolina. Jonnie's finishes when we started in April averaged about about 12th place due mainly because I was not giving him a good enough car. When you are racing with 18 to 19 cars you need to start and finish up front. If you are not starting in the top four your are putting yourself at risk of getting into one of the many "big ones" that usually happen in the middle to back of the pack. I thought we would just slowly work our way back into our championship racing form. I thought we would eventually buy some new tires for the season and freshen up the motor when we had a chance. Well that was not a good idea considering where we were racing and with who. I have learned, Jonnie has hung in there, and I am giving him a better car each week. Our average finish lately has improved to about 4th. I still have a lot to learn about the various set ups and gear ratios for the local tracks. Jonnie will continue to learn the tracks and who he is racing against. We will continue to get better and make our notes for next year. We will think of this year as the 2010 Heat race and next year will be our 2011 Feature Event. Jonnie's last year in the bandolero class.
7/11 The Rockingham schedule change seems be a success. Saturday's evenings weather was hot but not as hot as the usual Sunday afternoon weather. This week the cars would qualify for there starting positions. Jonnie was a little loose due to the afternoon sun but would run his fastest lap at Rockingham and qualify fourth. In another change to beat the heat the officials would run a fifteen lap feature instead of the usual twenty laps. That also seemed to help the motor issues most cars had been having. Our car ran good but we didn't seem to have the same qualifying speed at the end of the race. Jonnie was able to finish 4th in the eight car race. We will look at our notes and try to get the car better towards the end of the race.
7/10 Next Saturday July 17th at 8pm make sure to tune in to the SPEED CHANNEL for the Legends Million race. This legend's car race pays the winner $250,000! This race is open to any driver and will even have 12 year old legend's drivers trying to make the feature event. Drivers like Kurt Bush, Kyle Bush, Joey Legano, David Ragan, and more will also be trying to race there way into the main event! Don't miss it. Jonnie has one more year of Bandolero racing before he moves into the Legend's racing series. To learn more go to www.600racing.com
7/2 Jon Beau Motor sports has added a Summer Shoot out date to the schedule. On Tuesday July 27 Jonnie will drive the 02 bandolero bandit car for his first time at Charolotte Motor Speedway's Summer Shootout. With such a wide variety of talent and patience the Summer Shootout can at times be a wreck fest. With that in mind we will do what we can and shoot for at least a top ten finish. You can see all of the racing action the night of the race at www.legendsnation.com . Make sure you check it out. Track website www.charlottemotorspeedway.com
6/27 Engine failures continue at the Rock! This was the second week of many engine failures at Rockingham Speedway. The 97 degree weather and the 130 degree track temperatures are proving to be too much for the rear mounted Briggs and Stratton Vanguard motors. The motors are obviously not getting the ventilation they need in back of the bandoleros and the use of very light synthetic racing oils is also probably not helping the situation. In the Outlaws Division five of the eight car field did not make it to the end of the race. Unfortunately Jonnie and two other cars would have engine failures also. Jonnie finish fifth and is currently 4th in points at Rockingham. Today the track official's announced that the remaining race dates will be changed from the current Sunday 12 pm - 3 pm program to Saturday's 5 pm - 8 pm. www.rockinghamspeedway.com
6/20 It was another hot and humid day in Rockingham on Sunday. Temperatures were around 95 degrees and that gave us about a 130 degree track temperature! On a hot day like this the track is usually pretty loose. Jonnie held on to the blue deuce as he slid through turns one and two giving it all he had. There was a nice race going on between him and two other cars for the third position and then with just 3 laps to the 2 car began to fad. Some kind of mechanical problem with leave Jonnie with very little power and he would fall back to the fourth position. We are fortunate that there were not many laps remaining. Jonnie was able to post his fasted time yet in the beginning of the race and finished fourth for the day. This coming Sunday we head back to Rockingham.
6/13 The Fire Cracker series is underway at Rockingham Speedway. Today was our first race ever at Rockingham so we were not sure what to expect. Jonnie drove hard but the crew chief could only give him a fifth place car. We have made some good set up notes and will return next Sunday to better our finish! Above (left) is Jonnie standing near the back stretch at Rockingham Speedway.
6/6 Last night Team Valvoline raced at Orange County Speedway in NC. The track is 3/8 of a mile and has some great banking. This is very large for the bandolero's and without a restricter plate the eight to twelve year old drivers could reach speeds of over 65 miles per hour! Anyway, Jonnie would start the heat race last and make it up to 6th place. Even though we didn't have the best car set up Jonnie was able to finish 3rd in the feature race. This track is a true "Super Speedway" and Jonnie loved it. We are looking forward to returning with the notes that we made and putting a better car on the track!
2010 Bandolero Results
Rockingham Firecracker Series - 5th, 4th, 5th, 4th, 4th, 4th, 3rd
Concord Speedway - DNF, DNF, 7th, DNF, 9th, 8th, 4th,
Orange County Super Speedway - 3rd,
Regional Race @ Rockingham - 3rd
Hickory Speedway -
Rockingham Firecracker Series - 5th, 4th, 5th, 4th, 4th, 4th, 3rd
Concord Speedway - DNF, DNF, 7th, DNF, 9th, 8th, 4th,
Orange County Super Speedway - 3rd,
Regional Race @ Rockingham - 3rd
Hickory Speedway -
