MADISON, Illinois, October 17, 2020 --- At the end of the 10-race traveling Margay Ignite Challenge Series, the Bobby Krug Racing Team lost the championship over Alexander Searle by 33 points.
The first round of the Ignite Challenge Series at Whiteland Raceway in Whiteland, Indiana was the best round for the 51 team. Krug was able to secure his first Ignite win in the first race and finish P2 in the second race behind Eric Fagan who would only run the Whiteland race in the series. After the outstanding performance at Whiteland, Krug would be at the top of the points standings the entire season up until the last round at Gateway when point drops were factored in.
The second and third rounds of the Ignite Challenge Series were held on the same weekend with Saturday's race at TNT Kartways in Taylor, Missouri, and Sunday's race at Mid-State Kart Club in Springfield, Illinois. Unfortunately, kart issues haunted the race weekend which led to poor performance in 4 of the 10 races in the series. In the first race at TNT Kartways, Krug finished P10 as he couldn't keep pace with the front runners. In the second race, Krug was able to salvage a P6 finish after a wreck took out points contenders Trevor Eggemeyer and Matt Chubb. Mid-State offered P8 and P9 finishes which diminished the points lead that the 51 team had on the field. After the weekend, Greg Dingess inspected the kart and the axle key used to keep the wheel hub in place was keeping the wheel from sitting flat against the wheel hub. Along with loose rear wheels, the seat struts were loose and the floor pan was missing bolts. The kart was then repaired and prepared for the next round.
Krug showed a lot of speed at the fourth round of the Ignite Challenge Series at Autobahn Country Club in Joliet, Illinois but misfortune struck again. In the first race, Krug was closing in on a podium finish but was caught up in a last-lap wreck that relegated him to P9. In the second race, Krug's neck brace fell off on the warm-up lap but competed in all the laps of the race and finished P5. Without being informed, Krug was penalized by Autobahn officials for not having a neck brace on and was demoted to last place.
The season concluded at Krug's home track at the Gateway Kartplex in Madison, Illinois. Going into the final round with drops included, Krug was 93 points behind Alexander Searle. Krug did not have an ideal qualifying for the first race as he rolled off P12 but picked up a couple spots and finished P8. The 51 team rallied back and qualified on the pole in the 34-kart field. After losing the lead to Evan Stamer, Krug had to battle Eggemeyer for the second-place spot and was able to hold off Eggemeyer on the last lap. Krug beat Searle in both races at Gateway but only made up around 60 of the 90 points needed to overtake Searle in the points.
Next up for the Bobby Krug Racing Team is the Gateway Kartplex Ignite Series finale on October 31. Krug currently has a 377 points lead over Eggemeyer which has Krug locked in as the champion at the Gateway Kartplex. Bobby Krug Racing Team would like to thank their sponsors and partners: Margay Racing, Skip Barber Racing School, Gateway Kartplex, What's That Like? Podcast, Mark Schwigen Photography, Three Two Designs and Global Force Kartsport.