16-Year-Old Mällinen On Top at SCCA Majors

Elkhart Lake, WI – Liberty Lake, Washington native Max Mällinen scored his first victories in open-wheel competition in style, sweeping two SCCA Majors races at Elkhart Lake’s Road America in his No. 10 Swan Motorsports Spectrum/Honda. The 16-year-old junior at Central Valley High School was able to convert two outside front row starting spots into two first-place drives during the Cat Majors at Road America.

“The wins feel great. Road America is a fast and challenging course. Both of the races were hard fought battles with very good drivers who knew the circuit well and no one made a mistake. That makes the wins even more satisfying,” said Mällinen.

On Saturday, in the first race, it was a traditional Formula F drafting battle with Mällinen’s Spectrum/Honda up against a Van Diemen/Honda and Mygale/Honda, with a blanket covering the top three cars the entire race. Mällinen was positioned against up and coming racer Jeffrey Bartz and five-time SCCA National Champion Steve Forrer.

While the lead was traded back and forth, Bartz took the point at the white flag, but Mällinen dove under into turn five to take the victory. Mällinen thus became one of the youngest Formula F winners in history at 16 years and 54 days old.

A day later, with a victory under his belt, Mällinen took a second win over rival Jeffrey Bartz, with the No. 10 landing on the top step of the podium. Mällinen again took the lead into turn five on the last lap after an all-race battle, but Bartz stole it back. After a long back-straight run, Mällinen made another pass, and got the lead through Canada Corner en route to his second victory in two days.

With two wins coming from Road America’s four mile, 14-turn road course, Mällinen picks up his bid to qualify for the SCCA National Championship Runoffs, taking place at Laguna Seca in October. More SCCA races will follow for the young racer’s 2014 schedule,

Next up, Mällinen will head for bragging rights at the 45th Formula Ford Festival being held at the picturesque Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Alabama, August 8 and 9. A recent entry to that event has been IndyCar driver Josef Newgarden, who Mällinen will now be racing against in the Formula F Festivities.

After the Barber event comes some much needed off-time, before a week on the road, with a Majors event at Grattan in Belding, Michigan, August 23 and 24, with the Swan Motorsports hauler heading straight for an end-of-month race at Heartland Park in Topeka, Kansas.