Michele Abbate Crowned 2015 SCCA US Majors Tour Champion!

[DAEMANO]

Just got the Darkhorsepros notification email, so I thought I'd share it.

@MicheleAbbate Crowned 2015 SCCA US Majors Tour Champion!

I could have some of this wrong, but I'll give it a go...

@MicheleAbbate was fast & consistent throughout the season racing 6 weekends with 11 of 12 finishes podium finishes for a total of 155 pts with many top 3s. This looks to be the best participation of any team. Really a testament to her ability to both develop AND drive. Also her team, the terrific 86 platform, her ability to manage her equipment, her dedicated sponsors, and fans that keep encouraging her to GO!

http://crbscca.com/staffAdmin/points...wideReport.php
STU class

For the class championship Michele beat an array of sports and touring cars (M3s, S2Ks, IS300s, Miatas, Integras, GTis, et all). Many experienced drivers and teams (JR!).

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Speaking of managing equipment, her terrific account of the final race at PIR is on her website.

http://m1cheleabbate.com/michele-abb...-stu-champion/

She could have broke the car trying to get our front. She was faster, but the car was running hot. Instead she showed the self-control, maturity, and discipline to finish (again!).

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Plenty of shout-outs to her sponsor's which are some of our favorite vendors on the board:
@Nameless Performance Inc.
@Mishimoto
@CounterSpace Garage ; @CSG David ; @CSG Mike
@DeliciousTuning

Other board vendors that support M1chele
@Innovate Motorsports
@Wonderbar (Driveway Labs (correct?)

Full list of her sponsor's here
http://m1cheleabbate.com/sponsors/

Finally, for those who contributed a while back to her DarkHorsePros campaign. How about dem results!

https://www.darkhorsepros.com/campaigns/87

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And if you haven't gotten a chance to watch her win at Pacific Raceways, check out the multiple gut checks. Exciting and worth the watch.

http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showt...40#post2263640

[MicheleAbbate]

Thanks for posting up! I appreciate all of your support

We had 11 podium finishes out of the 12 races (would have been 12 had we not faced issues with the fuel pump pick up on the banking of Auto Club Speedway). And I am excited to announce we are also still leading the points for STU Nationwide championship

[DAEMANO]

Originally Posted by MicheleAbbate

Thanks for posting up! I appreciate all of your support

We had 11 podium finishes out of the 12 races (would have been 12 had we not faced issues with the fuel pump pick up on the banking of Auto Club Speedway).

No problem, thanks for reppin' to the fullest. I'll update with 11 of 12 instead. That's gettin it done.

Originally Posted by MicheleAbbate

And I am excited to announce we are also still leading the points for STU Nationwide championship

Dayam, you scary! Must be that whole GRRRRRRR thing. XD

[DarkSunrise]

Congrats! One of the best color schemes I've seen on a racecar btw.

[MicheleAbbate]

Originally Posted by DarkSunrise

Congrats! One of the best color schemes I've seen on a racecar btw.

Thank you very much

[rice_classic]

@MicheleAbbate

I love this, I love everything about this. I like watching grassroots racers living the dream. I like watching women win in this sport as well, the more the merrier. Congrats! I watched the in-car race (all of it) @ Pacific Raceways since that's my home track and the battle with the Mustang was fun to watch.. nice pass, nice win!

I have some logistics questions about STU, the potential of the FRS and the popularity of the class if you're willing.

You ran 12 races with 5 being dropped. The championship being based on the best 7 finishes. What is the reasoning for settling on 7 to determine the championship? Specifically the number 7.

Your closest points competitor did a total of 8 races (so 1 drop) and everyone did 6 or fewer events. That's a pretty thin herd. Do you see STU growing or shrinking? There's lot of people (55) but very few put together a championship run, do you think that will change?

It appears you've done well garnering support and sponsorship which I'd like to know as much about as you're willing but more importantly, how much did this endeavor as whole cost? Racing is fun but I think few folks understand the monumental time/money reality of it. I understand if you don't want to divulge.

Finally.. speed potential of the car and the class? Going back to the Pacific Raceways video I see the times being set were between 1:38's and 1:40's and I understand you were door-to-door for most of it therefore I know you're probably 2 seconds faster. I ask this because the fast ITA/SpecMiata/H4 cars turn 1:38-1:40's which leads me to believe that STU is faster but probably not by a significant margin? Or do you feel that the FRS still has more speed potential to be found in STU trim?

Thanks in advance for whatever time you to take to respond and congrats once more!



edit: I ask these questions because I have been thinking about other cars and classes to race in when I eventually get bored of what I'm currently racing and STU and the FRS (and S2000) are all on the short list of considerations.

[puma]

wow congrats!

[hmong337]

And the frs is not competitive..? Not!!!

Congrats on the championship.

[Wonderbar]

Some of my favorite people! Thanks Michelle for including me in your program!

[King Tut]

Originally Posted by rice_classic

Your closest points competitor did a total of 8 races (so 1 drop) and everyone did 6 or fewer events. That's a pretty thin herd.

That is a very thin heard. Of the races that Michele attended these were the STU participation numbers:

5
4
2
3
3
3

Guaranteed podium in 4 out of the 6 race weekends. They did have 14 at SIR where a couple older Hondas dominated. NOLA had 7 where a BMW E46 dominated. With this points structure of dropping so many races and only 7 races counting, what happens if 2 racers each only did 7 races and won each of those 7 races. Who gets the championship? Looks like there are still 6 more weekends, so I guess the championship is still way up in the air for anyone that wants to show up.

[SeanRTR]

Many may not realize that while the STU classed cars are not abundant, she's still on track with a full group of cars from other classes. Likely 25-50+ car run groups.


I'd be curious to details of the full build. Please keep us posted on your progress.

[DAEMANO]

Originally Posted by King Tut

That is a very thin heard. Of the races that Michele attended these were the STU participation numbers:
5,4,2,3,3,3
Guaranteed podium in 4 out of the 6 race weekends. They did have 14 at SIR where a couple older Hondas dominated. NOLA had 7 where a BMW E46 dominated. With this points structure of dropping so many races and only 7 races counting, what happens if 2 racers each only did 7 races and won each of those 7 races. Who gets the championship? Looks like there are still 6 more weekends, so I guess the championship is still way up in the air for anyone that wants to show up.

No matter the format, this is Michele's team. She's not only the driver. She's the owner. She has put the right people in place, the consistency, and resources (time, money, expertise), and leadership to achieve a series win.

I know you have some experience Tut. I don't question your expertise. With that being the case you know that sometimes even showing up and being able to run the full weekend can be a challenge. She's experienced too. She certainly can drive and has the 1st place (not just podium) finishes to back that up. She's also achieved something here that not many of us have in a platform we love. Good on her for building a career of it. The props and encouragement are deserved. I definitely wish her luck in winning the national championship.

I'll refer back to this post by @Dezoris in regards to USTCC in her build thread a while back. With this class win I think she's answered his question.

http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showp...2&postcount=99

Originally Posted by Dezoris

I won't poo on the fact you guys are working hard, and at least on this platform one of the few doing wheel to wheel. Seem like your facing an uphill battle here do you see this car being competitive enough to get you near the top of class consistently?

Originally Posted by MicheleAbbate

Of course we do.

We wouldnt be racing if we didn't think we could win. Obviously there was a slim chance for us to win this event, but taking the checkered flag was an acheivement of its own for me and my team.

The first year in any new chassis is a demanding one. This year we have had many obstacles but the FR-S is a great chassis for the production touring car class. There was a few things we should have done to make the car even lighter, but now we have the time to perfect the car. The engine modifications rules allow for some great NA power, and if we go FI, we can run GT. My focus as the team owner is to learn the car and its set up, and move on from there.

Our uphill battle will only last as long as it takes for us to level out our power to weight ratio. Once we gain the understanding of the best balance, we can focus on other things. I feel with the steps we plan to take, and seeing they are completed, we will be battling for a podium finish by the next race.

[DAEMANO]

Originally Posted by SeanRTR

Many may not realize that while the STU classed cars are not abundant, she's still on track with a full group of cars from other classes. Likely 25-50+ car run groups.


I'd be curious to details of the full build. Please keep us posted on your progress.

Her website has some info about her build:

http://www.m1cheleabbate.com

More details about her build can be found in her build thread:

www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=58531

and at Drivewaylabs sponsorship page here:

http://drivewaylabs.com/Michele.htm

Lastly, to get an idea of the level of dedication she's undertaken to pull this off, check out her Instagram. The P.T./fitness is driver mod to the extreme. My GF even went

https://instagram.com/m1cheleabbate/

[Locust]

Even if there is only 1, 3, or 5 competitors in a class winning is still winning. You can't control who else shows up and you can't be blamed for their attendance. It's not easy to show up every event ready to race; especially when the events are all over the country.

Congrats on the championship!