After a racing career that spans five decades, Dudley Fleck can now call himself an SCCA National Champion.
Fleck, from the Iowa Region, topped Hans Peter in the Formula Atlantic class on Saturday at Road America in the final race of the second of three Hagerty Race Days during the 60th anniversary SCCA® National Championship Runoffs® presented by Sunoco by just 0.910sec after a thrilling battle that came down to the wire.
Fleck had previously made nine starts at the Runoffs, spaced out from the 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, and 2020s before claiming his maiden victory in front of an enthusiastic group of his fans. Officially, the race featured three lead changes at the line, but unofficially Fleck and Peter changed positions at least twice as many times. Both Fleck’s No. 74 Hoosier/Mazda/K-Hill Motorsports Swift 016a/Mazda and Peter’s No. 66 Hoosier Swift 016a/Mazda were evenly matched, leading to passes in Turns 1, 5, and into Canada Corner on multiple laps.
Peter moved to the lead on the front straight just after the white flag signaled 4.048 miles left in the 13-lap race, and held on under braking going into Turn 5 for the final time. Peter led around the carousel, but Fleck’s run and the draft going into Canada Corner was enough to take the lead one last time. When Peter’s counterpunch through the final corner didn’t connect, Fleck was finally a National Champion.
“After so many years of near misses, this feels awesome,” Fleck said. “When I got through Turn 14 and notice he was back a little bit, I knew it was not a dream anymore. I’ve been trying to do this thing since ’86 when I started racing cars, so it’s about time.
“I wanted to be in front any time I could. I think being in front is an advantage in these cars. We had a heck of a race and I think Hans wanted to be in front, too. I got a heck of a run coming out of the Carousel and was able to make that pass and hold him to the high side and that was it.”
Peter’s silver medal is his seventh Runoffs podium of his career, which includes three previous National Championships.
“I thought if I could get back past in Turn 5, I thought I could take off and get a nice gap and not give him a tow,” Peter, a Kansas City Region member, said. “It just didn’t work out for me. We’re equal cars, they punch a big hole, and if you get up under the gear box it’s an automatic pass. That’s the way it should be. He saved it for the last turn, and that was perfect.”
Behind the lead battle was even more excitement. Tony Ave, making his fourth of sixth starts at this year’s event alone, slid off track on lap seven in his No. 49 Swift 016a/Mazda when the third-place car he was battling with blew a motor just in front of him. Ave dropped to fifth, but the incident brought out a safety car and allowed him a chance to regroup.
Ave picked up one position following the lap nine restart, then moved back to the podium two laps later and crossed the line 10.913sec behind Fleck for his second podium finish of the weekend and the eighth of his career.
“We just weren’t quick enough all week,” Ave, a Central Carolinas Region member, said. “We’ve been a half a second off, and I was hoping in the race I could do something. I just got mired back and that’s the way it goes. James blew up right in front of me, so I got in the oil and spun out. I kept it going through the gravel and lucked out we got the caution so I could get back up there.”
John McAleer and Bruce Hamilton crossed the stripe for fourth and fifth, with Hamilton earning the Sunoco Hard Charger Award after climbing from eighth on the grid.
The 60th anniversary SCCA® National Championship Runoffs® presented by Sunoco is the pinnacle of American amateur motorsports and crowns Sports Car Club of America’s Road Racing National Champions this year at Road America in Elkhart Lake, WI, during Hagerty Race Days running Friday, Oct. 4, through Sunday, Oct. 6, 2024.
Live, online video coverage of Runoffs races, presented by Mazda, is available throughout the three days of competition at SCCA.com/runoffs-live. Live timing and scoring for each race are also available at SCCA.com/pages/runoffs-live-timing.
Below are final results for Saturday's Formula Atlantic race at the 2024 SCCA® National Championship Runoffs, with finish position, starting position in parentheses, driver, hometown, car, and laps completed.
1, (2), Dudley Fleck, Cedar Rapids, IA, Swift 016a Mazda, 13
2, (1), Hans Peter, Olathe, KS, Swift 016a Mazda, 13
3, (3), Tony Ave, Maiden, NC, Swift 016a Mazda, 13
4, (4), John Mcaleer, Roswell, GA, Swift 016a Mazda, 13
5, (8), R Bruce Hamilton, Monkton, MD, Swift 014a Mazda, 13
6, (9), Brandon Schwarz, Saint Charles, IL, Ligier JS F3 Honda, 13
7, (6), Tony Opheim, Garfield, WA, Swift 014a Toyota, 13
8, (11), Kamil Kopko, Lakemoor, IL, Elan Star Pro FM, 13
9, (13), Andrew Bernardi, North Barrington, IL, Mazda Pro Formula, 13
10, (12), Derek Lamanna, Island Lake, IL, Elan Star Pro FM, 13
11, (7), Reilly Harris, Ashland, OH, Van Diemen DP04, 12
DNF, (5), James French, Sheboygan, WI, Ralt RT41 Toyota, 5
DNF, (10), J R Smart, Fitchburg, WI, Swift 014a Mazda, 0
Race Stats
Length of Race: 52.62 miles
Overall Time of Race: 36:28.012 (avg. 86.584 mph)
Margin of Victory: 00.910 seconds
Fastest Race Lap: 2:01.790 (119.655 mph)
Lap Leaders: #66, Laps 1-5, 10-11, #74, Laps 6-9, 12-13
Sunoco Hard Charger: #06 R Bruce Hamilton
Photo by: Jeff Loewe
