Hebner third in Formula Russell debut

Grant Hebner finished third in his Formula Russell debut February 17 at Sears Point.

Hebner qualified fourth in his group, which was the fastest among the four race groups totaling approximately 50 drivers. “I ended up in the A main, which is the faster group, and I ended up taking third,” he said. “It was definitely more than I expected.”

The race was held at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, which is a 2.5-mile road course. Hebner’s eight qualifying laps included a time of 1:49.83 on the sixth lap, placing him fourth among the 12 drivers in the “A” group.

Hebner’s fast lap of the main event occurred in the ninth lap, when he covered the distance in 1:49.921. He had two laps under 1:50; he expended 1:49.997 of time during the fifth lap.

“We were pretty fast,” Hebner said.

Hebner finished behind winner Mark Nason and second-place Nicholas Woodman. “I didn’t expect to be on the podium my first run,” Hebner said.

The Formula Russell races at Sears Point also included a February 18 race, but prior to Hebner’s race the car’s other driver put the vehicle into the wall. Hebner ran the second day’s race in an alternative vehicle. “I just hopped in the borrowed new car for the main and I just struggled a little bit,” he said. “It handled totally different, and I had to change my driving style.”

Hebner still finished eighth in the February 18 main event.

“Overall it was pretty good,” he said of the weekend.

Hebner, a 2006 graduate of Fallbrook High School, is a graduate of the Russell Racing School’s Techniques of Racing and Advanced Racing courses. He was also a Russell Racing Scholarship finalist in 2005.