ORO STATION, Ont. – October 19, 2016 – Tyler Hawn’s OSCAAR Super Late Model season has come to a close and the veteran driver is beyond proud of his most successful season to date.
To start the season, Hawn attempted to bring new energy to his team by switching from his familiar No.42 to No.2H. The Oro Station, Ont. native has been racing Super Late Models for five seasons and the number change, along with plenty of hard work, culminated in a career-best three top-five finishes in 2016.
“It was the most smiles we’ve ever had,” Hawn said. “We used to be four-tenths off the top guys, but now we’re right there. In some cases we’re the fastest car out there. I never thought we would come close to that.”
In addition to his trio of top-five results, Hawn also won the first heat race of his career at Flamboro in June and earned another heat triumph at the Autumn Colours Classic on Thanksgiving weekend.
“It’s just a heat win, but with the people I was racing against, it was unreal. We started pole and didn’t look back. It’s big to be that competitive against those guys,” said Hawn of his heat victory over top championship finishers JR Fitzpatrick and Glenn Watson.
Hawn overcame a number of issues throughout the season, including a motor problem early in the year at Flamboro. The adversity helped the team grow stronger, Hawn said, and shows them they have yet to reach their ceiling.
“We’re always going to have bad luck. No matter what you race, you’re going to go through that, but I find with us that every set back makes us stronger. We don’t know giving up,” Hawn explained.
“It definitely is one of the better season’s we’ve had in Super Late Models. We learned a ton of stuff this year. We have some things we have to do in the wintertime, but its good ground to improve on. It can only get better from here.”
The highlight of the season for Hawn came at Flamboro Speedway’s Super Late Model Gold Rush in August. Against a stacked field of cars, Hawn qualified third fastest and ran in the top-five for most of the race until late contact relegated him to eighth.
“I have to say going to the Gold Rush is pretty high up there. Qualifying third against all those guys – I still can’t believe that. Then to run 80 per cent of the race in the top-five is unbelievable,” Hawn said.
Hawn and his team have already started to analyze where they plan to improve for the 2017 season. As always, the team will consult popular chassis and setup specialist Brian MacDonald.
“There are a few things we need to address chassis wise. Our power plant is pretty good. We don’t want to give away any secrets, but truthfully I’m not sure what we’ll do,” Hawn said. “You always have to keep updating. You have to keep up with that stuff.”
Before the team began to tear apart the No.2H Super Late Model, it turned its attention to a different No.2H. Tyler’s brother, Daniel Hawn, ran his first career OSCAAR Pro Midget race at Flamboro Speedway where he earned a heat race win and a second-place finish in the main event last Saturday.
“I want to congratulate my brother on his first race win,” Hawn said. “That was pretty cool.”
Stay tuned to Hawn Motorsports on Facebook and follow @Hawn42 and @HawnRacing on Twitter for the most up to date team news throughout the off-season.
SEASON STATS
Tyler Hawn 2016 Season: 10 Starts – 0 Wins, 3 Top-5, 9 Top-10s
MEDIA LINKS
Website: www.hawnmotorsports.com
Facebook at facebook.com/HawnMotorsports
Twitter: @Hawn42 and @HawnRacing
Tyler Hawn’s 2016 OSCAAR Super Late Model season is supported by several dedicated sponsors, including: Fox’s Bakery and Deli, Atlantis Bath Centre, TSS Top Shops, Auto Trim Barrie, Belt Conveyor Guarding, and Backwoods Maple Syrup.
Prepared By Clayton Johns Media
claytonjohns@hotmail.com
Photo Attachment 1: Tyler Hawn races down the backstretch at Flamboro Speedway with his No.2h Super Late Model. (Eric Uprichard photo).
