Archive for Super DIRTcar series
Brett Hearn Wins Mr. DIRT Track USA at Lebanon Valley
Posted by: | Comments
.
.
.
.
.
Contact: Colby Gorniewicz
DIRTcar Racing PR
704-707-0229 | cgorniewicz@dirtcar.com
Brett Hearn Ends Super DIRTcar Series Winless Drought with $17,500 Triumph at Lebanon Valley Speedway
Sheppard's Series Win Streak Broken at Five with 10th Place Finish
By MIKE MALLETT
DirtTrackDigest.com
WEST LEBANON, NY - August 31 2017 - All it took for Brett Hearn to end his Super DIRTcar Series winless streak was a trip home. The Sussex, N.J., dominated the Mr. Dirt Track USA feature at the Lebanon Valley Speedway for his 121st career series win and his first since August, 23, 2015 at the Cornwall Motor Speedway.
Hearn's victory came in one of the highest paying series races of the season as the veteran driver pocketed $17,500 for his performance in the 101-lap main-event. Hearn's No. 20 started the race from the inside of the fourth row. >From there here made short work of the field in front of him taking the lead early and fending off all challengers as he took the win while ending Matt Sheppard's five race series winning streak.
"We've been getting criticized for not winning a series race the last year and half so I guess if you are going to break out of a slump you might as well win the one that pays the most money," said Hearn with a smile in victory lane. "This will change the balance sheet for this summer pretty much. Thanks to Howard (Commander) for giving us this $17,500 race to shoot for. It makes being a regular here all worthwhile when you win the big one."
Eddie Marshall redrew the pole position for the start of the race and quickly established himself at the front of the field as the green flag was dropped on the main-event. Marshall survived an opening lap challenge from another track regular Keith Flach. Flach looked low but Marshall's line through middle allowed him to keep the top spot in the order.
Hearn, who started seventh, picked up two spots on the opening circuit as he watched the field get in line in front of him. He used the next few laps to work over Jimmy Phelps before taking over fourth on lap four. From there Hearn settled into a rhythm keeping the top three in his sights.
The first of three caution flags came on the 14th lap. As Chad Jeseo battled with Larry Wight for eighth he got out of the groove in turns three and four catching the wall. His car hit with the rear before the front end was sucked in as well causing him to spin with a damaged car at the top of the fourth corner.
The green flag fell on lap 19 with Hearn making an impressive move through turns one and two. Hearn got to third as the field entered the first corner and by the time they hit the back straightaway he was out in front with the lead. Hearn used daring three-wide crossover move between Marshall and Flach to put himself in the lead.
"I wanted to get past the four (Andy Bachetti) and I went into one and the 43 (Flach) went low and I got a good run on the outside," cited Hearn. "Eddie (Marshall) kind of slid up a little bit and the lane opened right up. He came out sideways and lost the traction a little bit. I had a good run from the top and that was all I needed."
From there Hearn ran a steady line on the top side of the speedway. Hearn kept his ride straight as he entered the corners doing all he could to make sure to not damage the Hoosier Tire on the right rear to make sure he was going to have enough late in the race. Although he was taking care of his equipment, Hearn was still able to put distance between himself and the now second place running Marshall.
The second yellow of the event came on lap 30 as Tyler Dippel exploded the left rear tire on his No. 1. This forced him to slow and stop on the bottom of the speedway in the second corner. The pause in the action led to another double-file restart.
The race resumed at the 34 lap mark with Hearn showing no signs of slowing down. Hearn utilized the outside lane for the restart allowing him to pull away from everyone looking to wrestle the position from him including the early leader Marshall.
Hearn stayed comfortably in front with traffic coming into play as the race reached the halfway mark. He was patient in traffic taking advantage of the openings presented to him. This patience gave Marshall some hope as the shortened the gap between himself and Hearn.
With one quarter of the race remaining it was all Hearn. As he raced away Stewart Friesen began his assault on Marshall as he moved up the back bumper of the No. 98 searching for an opening. Friesen first tried the low lane around the high-banked half-mile before trying the outside as well. Marshall was able to keep him at bay.
Matt Papello watched as his hopes for a top 10 finish were dashed on lap 89. Pupello spun on the bottom of turn two coming to a rest on the inner portion of the racing surface. The field was afforded one final shot at Hearn.
As he had done on the previous restart, Hearn was up to the task when the green flag waved. He shot out on Marshall and Friesen at the green. The pair had nothing for Hearn has he led the final 12 laps of the feature event to earn his 903rd career feature win.
"It's totally nerve racking I'm telling you," mentioned Hearn. "After the restarts you are feeling vibrations, then I'm thinking I'm running out of gas as the motor is stumbling. We had other issues after the heat race with some oil issues. It's crazy, just a lot of anxiety."
Marshall, of Richfield, Conn., had to settle for second after starting the race from the pole. At one point it looked like he had something for Hearn as he closed in on him in traffic. Unfortunately he came up one spot short to finish second.
"He was really running," stated Marshall about Hearn. "We kind of got tight in the middle of the race and I was laboring with that. The longer it went the tighter it got. I knew if I was dead on I wasn't going to go back by him too easy. He was the class of the field. He came back to us a little bit. I think he was saving his tires."
Marshall wasn't expecting to see Hearn drive by him on the restart. He expected a challenge from Flach at the time only to see Hearn shoot by underneath him. He knew it was going to be tough challenge to overcome from that point.
"I was kind of surprised it was him," commented Marshall. "I thought it was Keith (Flach) down there. When I saw that it was him I knew it was a big problem. He was super strong. I can't be ashamed to run second the way he was running that's for sure. We were good, just not good enough."
Friesen, a former Mr. Dirt Track USA winner, was the first non-regular at the speedway in the finishing order. The Sprakers, N.Y., pilot had a solid night coming from tenth to take the checkers in the final spot on the podium.
"To be the first outsider, I love coming here, love racing here and to have a top three with those guys is good," said Friesen. "We were close there with Eddie (Marshall) but Brett (Hearn) was pretty much lights out. We are happy for the Halmar (International) team. We kind of righted the ship a little bit on the series here. We've been working really hard in the shop the last couple weeks. I think we are on to something, we got some grip. I'm looking forward to see how that works out on Monday at Weedsport (Speedway)."
Lebanon Valley Speedway regular Kenny Tremont was steady the entire distance to earn himself the fourth position at the checkered flag. Flach crossed the line in fifth only to be disqualified in post-race technical inspection for coming up light on the scales. This gave the position to Mike Mahaney. Mahaney was impressive on Thursday driving all the way from his 30th starting spot up to sixth before the disqualification of Flach. Mahaney found a line on the bottom which allowed him to get by several drivers in the final 15 laps of the feature.
Hearn was the fastest qualifier on the night for the 64th time in his career with a lap of 19.474. Heat race wins were taken by Flach, Hearn, Jimmy Phelps and Sheppard. A pair of consolations were run with Anthony Perrego and Billy Whittaker securing wins. Kyle Sheldon was the recipient of the KSE Hard Charger award after advancing from 31st to 22nd. Matt Pupello and Sheppard were eligible for the DIG Safely 811 bonus for drawing the eighth and 12th starting spots respectively. The Speedy First Aid Hard Luck Award went to Flach after his disqualification for coming up light on the scales.
The Super DIRTcar Series next hits the track on Monday, September 4, at the Weedsport Speedway in the Labor Day Double Play featuring the big-block Modfieds of the series plus a 360 Sprint Car open. The winner on Monday night will take home $7,500 for their efforts. For more information visit the track's website at www.weedsportspeedway.com.
RESULTS FROM LEBANON VALLEY SPEEDWAY:
Feature (100 Laps) – 1. 20-Brett Hearn (7); 2. 98-Eddie Marshall (1); 3. 44-Stewart Friesen (10); 4. 115-Kenny Tremont (6); 5. 88-Mike Mahaney (30); 6. 4-Andy Bachetti (4); 7. 98H-Jimmy Phelps (3); 8. 91-Billy Decker (13); 9. 9S-Matt Sheppard (11); 10. 74-J.R. Heffner (14); 11. 21A-Peter Britten (15); 12. 35-L.J. Lombardo (18); 13. 60-Brian Berger (17); 14. 34-Steve Hough (12); 15. 42P-Matt Pupello (8); 16. 99-Kolby Schroder (20); 17. P42-Pat Ward (25); 18. 99L-Larry Wight (9); 19. 109-Billy Whittaker (22); 20. 55-Mike King (23); 21. DNF 19-Tim Fuller (16); 22. DNF 42-Kyle Sheldon (31); 23. DNF 6H-Max McLaughlin (28); 24. DNF 17E-Elmo Reckner (32); 25. DNF 1-Tyler Dippel (27); 26. DNF 5-Ryan Godown (26); 27. DNF 22-Brandon Walters (19); 28. DNF 44X-Anthony Perrego (21); 29. DNF 25-Chad Jeseo (5); 30. DNS 11A-Kyle Armstrong (24); 31. DNS 7M-Mike Maresca (29); 32. DQ 43-Keith Flach (2)
Qualifying Group 1 - 1. 43-Keith Flach, 19.583; 2. 115-Kenny Tremont, 19.664; 3. 44-Stewart Friesen, 19.702; 4. 60-Brian Berger, 19.763; 5. 91-Billy Decker, 19.823; 6. 44x-Anthony Perrego, 19.979; 7. 42-Kyle Sheldon, 19.998; 8. P42-Pat Ward, 20.027; 9. 17-Rob Pitcher, 20.091; 10. 34H-Cody Bleau, 20.618.
Qualifying Group 2 - 1. 20-Brett Hearn, 19.474; 2. 1-Tyler Dippel, 19.823; 3. 98-Eddie Marshall, 19.995; 4. LJ Lombardo, 20.084; 5. 25-Chad Jeseo, 20.133; 6. 74-J.R. Heffner, 20.179; 7. 55-Mike King, 20.260; 8. 88-Mike Mahaney, 20.260; 9. 7-John Ruchel, 20.379; 10. 17e-Elmo Reckner, 20.659
Qualifying Group 3 - 1. 98H-Jimmy Phelps, 19.698; 2. 4-Andy Bachetti, 19.797; 3. Kyle Armstrong, 19.867; 4. 99L-Larry Wight, 19.894; 5. 45-Wayne Jelley, 19.931; 6. 21A-Peter Britten, 20.005; 7. 7M-Mike Maresca, 20.313; 8. 22-Brandon Walters, 20.751, 9. 72-Cass Bennett, 21.633
Qualifying Group 4 – 1. 6H-Max McLaughlin, 19.647; 2. 9S-Matt Sheppard, 19.689; 3. 42P-Matt Pupello, 19.926; 4. 34-Steve Hough, 20.040; 5. 99-Kolby Schroder, 20.107; 6. 19-Tim Fuller, 20.182; 7. 5-Ryan Godown, 20.312; 8. 14-C.G. Morey, 20.351; 9. 109-Billy Whittaker, 20.603
Heat 1 (8 Laps – Top-5 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 43-Keith Flach, 2. 115-Kenny Tremont, 3. 44-Stewart Friesen, 4. 91-Billy Decker, 5. 60-Brian Berger, 6. 44X-Anthony Perrego, 7. P42-Pat Ward, 8. 42-Kyle Sheldon, 9. 34H-Cody Bleau, 10. DNS 17-Rob Pitcher
Heat 2 (8 Laps – Top-5 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 20-Brett Hearn, 2. 98-Eddie Marshall, 3. 25-Chad Jeseo, 4. 74-J.R. Heffner, 5. 35-LJ Lombardo, 6. 55-Mike King, 7. 1-Tyler Dippel, 8. 88-Mike Mahaney, 9. 17E-Elmo Reckner, 10. 7-John Ruchel
Heat 3 (8 Laps – Top-5 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 98H-Jimmy Phelps, 2. 4-Andy Bachetti, 3. 99L-Larry Wight, 4. 21A-Peter Britten, 5. 22-Brandon Walters, 6. DNF 7M-Mike Maresca, 7. DNF 11A-Kyle Armstrong, 8. DNF 45-Wayne Jelley, 9. DNS 72-Cass Bennett
Heat 4 (8 Laps – Top-5 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 9S-Matt Sheppard, 2. 34-Steve Hough, 3. 42P-Matt Pupello, 4. 19-Tim Fuller, 5. 99-Kolby Schroder, 6. 109-Billy Whittaker, 7. 5-Ryan Godown, 8. 14-C.G. Morrey, 9. DNF 6H-Max McLaughlin
Last Chance Qualifier 1 (8 Laps – 3 Transfer to Feature) – 1. 44x-Anthony Perrego, 2. 55-Mike King, 3. P42-Pat Ward, 4. 1-Tyler Dippel, 5. 88-Mike Mahaney, 6. 42-Kyle Sheldon, 7. 7-John Ruchel, 8. 17E-Elmo Reckner, 9. Cody Bleau
Last Chance Qualifier 2 (8 Laps – 3 Transfer to Feature) – 1. 109-Billy Whittaker, 2. 11A-Kyle Armstrong, 3. 5-Ryan Godown, 4. DNF 6H-Max McLaughlin, 5. DNF 72-Cass Bennett, 6. DNS 7M-Mike Maresca, 7. DNS 45-Wayne Jelley, 8. DNS C.G. Morey
CONTINGENCY WINNERS: VP Racing Fuels ($50 Cash): Billy Decker; Fast Time ($100 Cash): Brett Hearn; Bicknell Racing Products ($100 Product Certificate): Stewart Friesen; Cometic Gasket ($50 Cash): Brian Berger; Comp Cams ($50 Cash): Peter Britten; Comp Cams ($50 Product Certificate): Stewart Friesen; Edelbrock ($50 Cash): Peter Britten; Fox Racing Shocks ($50 Cash): Stewart Friesen; JE Pistons ($50 Cash): Mike Mahaney; JE Pistons (Product Certificate): Kolby Schroder; JE Pistons (Product Certificate): Tim Fuller; KSE Racing Products Inc. ($50 Product Certificate): Kyle Sheldon (+8); MSD Ignition ($50 Cash): Brett Hearn; MSD Ignition ($25 Cash): Brandon Walters; SuperFlow Dynos & Flowbenches ($50 Cash): Kolby Schroder; Wrisco Aluminum (Product Certificate): Brett Hearn; JRI Shocks ($50 Cash): Kyle Sheldon; Dig Safely 811 Redraw Bonus ($100 Cash): N/A; Speedy First Aid Hard Luck Award (Product Certificate): Keith Flach; ASi Racewear ($50 Cash): Jimmy Phelps.
SEASON WINNERS
Matt Sheppard – 6 (Five Mile Point Speedway on June 11; Autodrome Granby on July 25; Autodrome Drummond on July 26; Ransomville Speedway on August 8; Merrittville Speedway on August 9; Ohsweken Speedway on August 24)
Billy Decker - 3 (Fulton Speedway on April 29; Outlaw Speedway on June 20; Eldora Speedway on July 18)
Stewart Friesen – 2 (Utica-Rome Speedway on July 2, Weedsport Speedway on July 11)
Ryan Watt – 1 (Bridgeport Speedway on May 16)
Tim McCreadie – 1 (Albany-Saratoga Speedway on June 27)
Larry Wight – 1 (Airborne Park Speedway on July 6)
Peter Britten – 1 (Sharon Speedway on July 20)
Larry Wight – 1 (Airborne Park Speedway on July 6)
Brett Hearn – 1 (Lebanon Valley Speedway on August 31)
Matt Sheppard Scores First Career Ransomville Win at Summer Nationals
Posted by: | Comments
.
.
.
.
.
Contact: Clayton Johns
DIRTcar Racing PR
(289) 314-5186 | cjohns@dirtcar.com
Matt Sheppard Scores First Career Ransomville Win at Summer Nationals
Extends Series Win Streak to Three Races
RANSOMVILLE, NY - August 8, 2017 - Matt Sheppard was the third and final leader after he took the point position from Billy Decker on lap 49 and led the remaining 52 laps to win his third straight Super DIRTcar Series race in the 33rd Summer Nationals at Ransomville Speedway on Tuesday night. The victory was also Sheppard's first career win at Ransomville and prevented rival Stewart Friesen from winning the event for the third straight year at his childhood track.
"I've won a lot of races at a lot of different racetracks, but Ransomville was never one of them," Sheppard said in Victory Lane. "We were so close last year. Me and Stewie (Friesen) had a heck of a battle (last year). It just feels great to finally get to Victory Lane here, especially in such a special event."
Billy Decker threw everything he had at Sheppard to try and retake the lead off the final restart with five laps to go, but fell 0.923 seconds short of a victory. Decker did manage to win an extended battle with Larry Wight to extend his point lead, which was just two markers entering the event. Ransomville regular Erick Rudolph and Stewart Friesen rounded out the top-five.
"Certainly, you like to win, but we'll take it," Decker said. "The Page Trucking car was pretty good. (I was ) dicing it out there heavy in lapped traffic. That was getting dicey, I'll tell ya. The fans saw a pretty good race out there. We'll take it."
The 100-lap race began with local pilot Kenny Wills III on the pole and Jimmy Phelps to his outside. Phelps led the opening lap and paced the field through a trio of cautions in the first 30 laps before Decker made his bid for the top spot. Decker seized a lap 32 opportunity when Phelps bobbled on the cushion in turn two, allowing the No.91 to race to the bottom of the track and take the lead.
It was brief, however, as Phelps retook the point the following lap, but remained under siege from Decker until the two drivers exchanged the lead again on laps 38 and 39. On lap 40, Sheppard got past Phelps for second and set out to track down Decker.
The caution waved again on lap 41 when Keith Flach slowed in turn four. When the race resumed on lap 47, Friesen jumped to third while Sheppard continued to pressure Decker. On lap 49, Sheppard made the decisive move of the race when he drove under Decker in turn four to claim the lead.
Over the final 52 laps, Sheppard pounded his No.9s against the cushion in turns one and two, but tried both the inside and outside lanes in turns three and four as he navigated through the traffic.
"It was a fine line up on the wall," Sheppard said. "It was a little closer to the wall than I like to run, but that's just part of the deal here at Ransomville. I'm just very fortunate. A lot of people got messed up on the bottom on restarts early, but my car was good enough early I could maintain and not lose any spots. It seemed like the longer the race went, the better we got."
Wight jumped into the top-three off a lap 62 restart and then spent the better part of the final 35 laps dueling side-by-side with Decker for second. Wight lost the battle on lap 86 when he went off the track in turn two trying to avoid contact with a lapped car. It was the second time in the race Wight had to take evasive action to quickly avoid serious problems. Earlier in the race, he hit the outside wall and all but destroyed the body on the right side of the car. Regardless, Wight was happy with the run.
"We're happy with it," Wight said. "That's just sheet metal. The main components of the car were fine and the car still handled alright. We can bang that out and patch it up for tomorrow and give it another run."
Sheppard was able to outpace Decker in clean air over the final 10 laps, but restarts on laps 93 and 95 forced him to hit his marks as Decker lurked within five car lengths each time.
Wight was the race's KSE Hard Charger, advancing seven positions from 10th to 3rd. Decker was the Fast Qualifier with a lap of 16.151 seconds around the 3/8-mile oval. Decker, Wight Sheppard and Max McLaughlin claimed heat race wins. McLaughlin was also the recipient of the Speedy First Aid Hard Luck Award after a he slowed on lap 57. He was able to race his way back to 14th, but lost out on a top-10 finish.
Ransomville's 358 Modified weekly points leader Ryan Susice won the Last Chance Qualifier. McLaughlin and Mike Mahaney were eligible for the 811 Dig Safely New York redraw bonus award if either could win from the eighth or eleventh starting positions, but were unsuccessful.
The Super DIRTcar Series returns to action on Wednesday, August 9 at Merrittville Speedway for the rescheduled Bob St. Amand Memorial 100. Race time is 7:00pm with Hot Laps and qualfiying taking place beforehand at 6:15pm. For additional event information, visit www.merrittvillespeedway.com.
Super DIRTcar Series Statistical Report – 33rd Summer Nationals at Ransomville Speedway – Ransomville, NY –August 8, 2017
Feature (100 Laps) – 1. 9s-Matt Sheppard [5]; 2. 91-Billy Decker [3]; 3. 99L-Larry Wight [10]; 4. 25-Erick Rudolph [6]; 5. 44-Stewart Friesen [7]; 6. 19-Tim Fuller [4]; 7. 88m-Mike Mahaney [11]; 8. 42p-Pat Ward [13]; 9. 42-Pete Bicknell [16]; 10. 21a-Peter Britten [14]; 11. 98h-Jimmy Phelps [2]; 12. 20-Brett Hearn [12]; 13. 38s-Ryan Susice [21]; 14. 6h-Max McLaughlin [8]; 15. 109-Billy Whittaker [9]; 16. 20m-Jeff McGinnis [19]; 17. 43-Keith Flach [17]; 18. 111-Allan Wills [27]; 19. 37s-Tommy Flannigan [26]; 20. 26-Rick Richner [22]; 21. 22-Brandon Walters [18]; 22. 8-Rich Scagliotta [15]; 23. 27-Jim Zimmerman [24]; 24. 56-Steve Schumacher [25]; 25. 21-Kenny Wills III [1]; 26. 7-Scott Kerwin [23]; 27. 11s-Steve Lewis Jr. [28]; 28. 55c-Steve Cotriss [20]; 29. 678-John Smith [29]; 30. DNS 7m-Mike Maresca
Qualifying Group 1 - 1. 91-Billy Decker, 16.151; 2. 88m-Mike Mahaney, 16.436; 3. 42p-Pat Ward, 16.601; 4. 19-Tim Fuller, 16.612; 5. 38s-Ryan Susice, 17.062; 6. 43-Keith Flach, 17.314; 7. 27-Jim Zimmerman, 18.622; 8. 111-Alan Wills, No Time
Qualifying Group 2 - 1. 99L-Larry Wight, 16.402; 2. 98h-Jimmy Phelps, 16.533; 3. 21a-Peter Britten, 16.663; 4. 20-Brett Hearn, 16.744; 5. 22-Brandon Walters, 17.112; 6. 26-Rick Richner, 17.519; 7. 678-John Smith, 18.119; 8. 26g-Scott George, 18.306
Qualifying Group 3 - 1. 9s-Matt Sheppard, 16.626; 2. 109-Billy Whittaker, 16.938; 3. 8-Rich Scagliotta, 16.980; 4. 21-Kenny Wills III, 17.337; 5. 20m-Jeff McGinnis, 17.413; 6. 37s-Tommy Flannigan, 17.437; 7. 7-Scott Kerwin, 17.689; 8. 7m-Mike Maresca, No Time
Qualifying Group 4 - 1. 6h-Max McLaughlin, 16.709; 2. 25-Erick Rudolph, 16.751; 3. 44-Stewart Friesen, 16.900; 4. 42-Pete Bicknell, 17.214; 5. 55c-Jesse Cotriss, 17.678; 6. 777-Tyler Willard, 17.718; 7. 11s-Steve Lewis Jr., 18.031; 8. 56 Steve Schumacher, 18.514
Heat 1 (8 Laps – Top-5 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 91-Billy Decker [1]; 2. 88m-Mike Mahaney [2]; 3. 19-Tim Fuller [4]; 4. 42p-Pat Ward [3]; 5. 43-Keith Flach [6]; 6. 38s-Ryan Susice [5]; 7. 27-Jim Zimmerman [7]; 8. 111-Alan Wills [8]
Heat 2 (8 Laps – Top-5 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 99L-Larry Wight [1]; 2. 98h-Jimmy Phelps [2]; 3. 20-Brett Hearn [4]; 4. 21a-Peter Britten [3]; 5. 22-Brandon Walters [5]; 6. 26-Rick Richner [6]; 7. 678-John Smith [7]; 8. 26g-Scott George [8]
Heat 3 (8 Laps – Top-5 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 9s-Matt Sheppard [1]; 2. 109-Billy Whittaker [2]; 3. 21-Kenny Wills III [4]; 4. 8s-Rich Scagliotta [3]; 5. 20m-Jeff McGinnis [5]; 6. 7-Scott Kerwin [7]; 7. DNF 37s-Tommy Flannigan [6]; 8. DNF 7m-Mike Maresca [8]
Heat 4 (8 Laps – Top-5 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 6h-Max McLaughlin [1]; 2. 25-Erick Rudolph [2]; 3. 44-Stewart Friesen [3]; 4. 42-Pete Bicknell [4]; 5. 55c-Jesse Cotriss [5]; 6. 56-Steve Schumacher [8]; 7. 11s-Steve Lewis Jr. [7]; 8. DNS 777-Tyler Willard [6]
Last Chance Qualifier 1 (10 Laps – All Transfer to A-Feature) – 1. 38s-Ryan Susice [1]; 2. 26-Rick Richner [2]; 3. 7-Scott Kerwin [3]; 4. 27-Jim Zimmerman [5]; 5. 56-Steve Schumacher [4]; 6. 37s-Tommy Flannigan [7]; 7. 111-Alan Wills [9]; 8. 11s-Steve Lewis Jr. [8]; 9. 678-John Smith [6]; 10. DNS 26g-Scott George; 11. DNS 7m-Mike Maresca; 12. DNS 777-Tyler Willard
CONTINGENCY WINNERS: VP Racing Fuels ($50 Cash): Pat Ward; Fast Qualifier ($100 Cash): Billy Decker; Bicknell Racing Products ($100 Product Certificate): Matt Sheppard; Cometic Gasket ($50 Cash): Jeff McGinnis; Comp Cams ($50 Cash): Peter Britten; Comp Cams ($50 Product Certificate): Matt Sheppard; Edelbrock ($50 Cash): Peter Britten; Fox Racing Shocks ($50 Cash): Erick Rudolph; JE Pistons ($50 Cash): Stewart Friesen; JE Pistons (Product Certificate): Jeff McGinnis; JE Pistons (Product Certificate): Brandon Walters; KSE Racing Products Inc. ($50 Product Certificate): Larry Wight (+7); MSD Ignition ($50 Cash): Matt Sheppard; MSD Ignition ($25 Cash): Kenny Wills III; SuperFlow Dynos & Flowbenches ($50 Cash): Jeff McGinnis; Wrisco Aluminum (Product Certificate): Matt Sheppard; JRI Shocks ($50 Cash): Max McLaughlin; Dig Safely 811 Redraw Bonus ($100 Cash): N/A; Speedy First Aid Hard Luck Award (Product Certificate): Max McLaughlin; ASi Racewear ($50 Cash): Mike Mahaney.
SEASON WINNERS
Matt Sheppard – 4 (Five Mile Point Speedway on June 11; Autodrome Granby on July 25; Autodrome Drummond on July 26; Ransomville Speedway on August 8)
Billy Decker - 3 (Fulton Speedway on April 29; Outlaw Speedway on June 20; Eldora Speedway on July 18)
Stewart Friesen – 2 (Utica-Rome Speedway on July 2, Weedsport Speedway on July 11)
Ryan Watt – 1 (Bridgeport Speedway on May 16)
Tim McCreadie – 1 (Albany-Saratoga Speedway on June 27)
Larry Wight – 1 (Airborne Park Speedway on July 6)
Peter Britten – 1 (Sharon Speedway on July 20)
.
.
.
.
.
Contact: Clayton Johns
DIRTcar Racing PR
(289) 314-5186 | cjohns@dirtcar.com
Matt Sheppard Continues Hot Streak With Second Straight Bob St. Amand Memorial Win at Merrittville
Earns Fourth Consecutive Series Win
MERRITTVILLE, ON, CAN - August 9, 2017 - Matt Sheppard drove past Gary Lindberg in the outside lane following a lap 81 restart to take the lead on lap 85 and then paced the final 16 laps to win his second straight Bob St. Amand Memorial 100 at Merrittville Speedway on Wednesday night.
The victory was also his fourth straight with the Super DIRTcar Series and second in as many nights after he also won Tuesday at Ransomville Speedway. Lindberg, a Merrittville weekly 358 (Small Block) Modified regular, gave everything he had to keep pace with Sheppard, but came up 1.203 seconds short of his first career Series victory.
"We have had some really good racecars and some really good luck. That's what it takes," Sheppard said of his four-race win streak. "Going back five races to Sharon, I thought we had a shot at winning that and got a flat tire late in the race. We were pretty good up in Quebec, good again last night and tonight I didn't think we were nearly as good, but we had a little bit of luck."
Sheppard's good luck was at the expense of Erick Rudolph's misfortune during the most dramatic point of the race. Lindberg and Rudolph had broken away from the rest of the pack in the top two spots. As the race reached its final quarter, Rudolph zeroed in on Lindberg amongst the lapped traffic and pulled to his back bumper after erasing a two-second deficit.
However, Rudolph's bid for the lead ended with 81 laps completed when he tried to race under Lindberg, who was running a half groove off the bottom of the track, in turn three. The two drivers made contact in the middle of the corner and the result Rudolph facing the wrong way in front of the field.
The ensuing restart moved Sheppard from third to the outside of the front row beside Lindberg. The Waterloo, NY native made the most of the outside groove and took the lead from Lindberg on lap 85 after a four-lap side-by-side battle on the icy slick track.
"The turning point of that race was when Rudolph tangled and spun around there," Sheppard said of the incident that halted a 51-lap green-flag run. "That kind of reset the field and gave me a little bit of open racetrack. That's kind of what we needed with the Big Block. We needed to keep our momentum up. I got up top and was able to get it rolling and just got it rolling well enough to get around Gary."
While Sheppard held the point, Lindberg kept within striking distance over the next 10 laps until the final caution flag of the race waved with five laps remaining when Fred Carleton rode the outside retaining wall to a stop on the frontstretch. Contrary to most situations, Sheppard was actually happy to see the yellow flag.
"That string of cautions really helped out," Sheppard said. "I would have never got around Gary without the yellow and then I didn't mind seeing that yellow with five to go. It gave me a little bit of open racetrack because I had to use every bit of it and even some more on the front stretch."
Sheppard and many of the drivers resorted to dipping the right-side wheels into the moat on the frontstretch to find grip for the straightaway which was devoid of moisture elsewhere. That same slick track played to the benefit of Lindberg and the other Merrittville Small Block regulars.
"The track conditions helped and so did starting up front," Lindberg said. "I thought I was a sitting duck up there and luckily we held on as long as we did. The guys put a good car under me this week."
Billy Decker completed the podium with a third-place finish. Decker's second top-three result in as many nights extended his point lead over Larry Wight, who finished ninth.
"We're not worried about everybody else," Decker quipped in Victory Lane. "We're just trying to take care of our own program. The Page Trucking car was pretty dogone good tonight. It was tough sledding. The boys at Mike Payne Racing work really hard and Textron's on board. We're having a pretty good year. We had a good run and had a lot of fun."
Prior to the lap 81 caution, the race had run under green conditions since a lap 30 restart. Before the extended run, the race experienced a slower pace than in the second half of the race. The initial start was slowed when Tommy Flannigan and Rich Scagliotta tangled together in turn four before the first lap was completed.
When the race got up to speed, polesitter Max McLaughlin took the lead with Lindberg quickly in tow. As the track slicked off, Lindberg was able to gain more on McLaughlin and was able to take the lead in turn two off a lap 13 restart.
The third caution of the race came on lap 22 when Brett Hearn, Pat Ward and Mark D'Ilario made contact and were collected against the inside wall in turn four. The lap 30 restart allowed Lindberg to build his lead to over three seconds ahead of McLaughlin at the halfway mark.
Rudolph, who ran inside the top-five most of the first half, entered a three-car battle for second with McLaughlin and Sanborn, NY driver Chad Brachmann. Brachmann took second initially on lap 53 before Rudolph took the spot on lap 63.
Rudolph hit his stride at that point and began to reel in Lindberg, who was working flawlessly through heavy lapped traffic. In less than 10 laps, Rudolph erased a two-second Lindberg advantage. Rudolph tried the inside lane in turn two on lap 76 and the two drivers made sight contact on the backstretch. Then, on lap 81, Rudolph's hope for the victory ended with his spin in turn three, but earned him the Speedy First Aid Hard Luck award. He raced back to a 10th-place finish.
McLaughlin was the night's Fast Qualifier with a lap of 16.692 seconds and the winner of heat two. Matt Sheppard, Ryan Susice and Billy Decker also picked up heat race winners. Mark D'Ilario from nearby Vineland, Ont. won the Last Chance Qualifier. Despite his troubles throughout the night, Larry Wight earned the KSE Hard Charger award, racing from 24th to 9th in the main event, an improvement of 15 spots.
For Sheppard, the win was another step in the right direction towards climbing up the points ladder. Entering Wednesday's event, he was 115 points back of Decker.
"All we can do is keep trying to win these races and let the rest take care of itself," Sheppard said in Victory Lane.
Sheppard will get the chance to try for his fifth straight win when the Super DIRTcar Series returns to action on Thursday, August 24 at Ohsweken Speedway for the Triple Crown Showdown.
The event also features 360 Sprint Cars and Crate Late Models with a $25,000 bonus to a driver who can win all three features or a $5,000 bonus if a driver can win the Feature in two divisions. Super DIRTcar Series driver Stewart Friesen will be one driver contending for all three victories. For additional event information, visit www.ohswekenspeedway.com.
Super DIRTcar Series Statistical Report – Bob St. Amand Memorial 100 at Merrittville Speedway – Thorold, ON
Feature (100 Laps) – 1. 9s-Matt Sheppard [6]; 2. 28z-Gary Lindberg [2]; 3. 91-Billy Decker [11]; 4. 6m-Mat Williamson [7]; 5. 3-Chad Brachmann [8]; 6. 71-Mike Bowman [13]; 7. 3rs-Ryan Susice [10]; 8. 21a-Peter Britten [9]; 9. 99L-Larry Wight [24]; 10. 25-Erick Rudolph [3]; 11. 6h-Max McLaughlin [1]; 12. 19-Tim Fuller [12]; 13. 15J-Tim Jones [5]; 14. 44-Stewart Friesen [23]; 15. 42-Pete Bicknell [14]; 16. 20-Brett Hearn [20]; 17. 1-Todd Gordon [4]; 18. 38-Scott Wood [16]; 19. 42p-Pat Ward [22]; 20. 16-Brent Beggolo [17]; 21. 43-Keith Flach [19]; 22. 109-Billy Whittaker [28]; 23. 7m-Mike Maresca [26]; 24. 37s-Tommy Flannigan [29]; 25. 96-Fred Carleton [15]; 26. 08-Mark D’Ilario [21]; 27. 98h-Jimmy Phelps [18]; 28. 88p-Shayne Pierce [27]; 29. 8-Rick Scagliotta [25]; 30. DNS 22-Brandon Walters
Qualifying Group 1 - 1. 9s-Matt Sheppard, 16.708; 2. 19-Tim Fuller, 16.904; 3. 16-Brent Beggolo 17.067; 4. 21a-Peter Britten, 17.139; 5. 71-Mike Bowman, 17.169; 6. 08-Mark D’Ilario, DQ; 7. 22-Brandon Walters, No Time
Qualifying Group 2 - 1. 6h-Max McLaughlin, 16.692; 2. 3-Chad Brachmann, 16.779; 3. 98h-Jimmy Phelps, 16.974; 4. 25r-Erick Rudolph, 17.011; 5. 42-Pete Bicknell, 17.105; 6. 44-Stewart Friesen, 17.184; 7. 42p-Pat Ward, 17.211; 8. 37s-Tommy Flannigan, No Time
Qualifying Group 3 - 1. 3rs-Ryan Susice, 17.331; 2. 15j-Tim Jones, 17.373; 3. 8-Rich Scagliotta, 17.443; 4. 1-Todd Gordon, 17.485; 5. 43-Keith Flach, 17.486; 6. 96-Fred Carleton, 17.554; 7. 88p-Shayne Pierce, 17.774
Qualifying Group 4 - 1. 91-Billy Decker, 16.823; 2. 38-Scott Wood, 17.082; 3. 99L-Larry Wight, 17.106; 4. 6m-Mat Williamson, 17.232; 5. 109-Billy Whittaker, 17.259; 6. 20-Brett Hearn, 17.312; 7. 28z-Gary Lindberg, 17.442
Heat 1 (8 Laps – Top-5 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 9s-Matt Sheppard [1]; 2. 19-Tim Fuller [2]; 3. 21a-Peter Britten [4]; 4. 71-Mike Bowman [5]; 5. 16-Brent Beggolo [3]; 6. 08-Mark D’Ilario [7]; 7. 7m-Mike Maresca [6]; 8. DNS 22-Brandon Walters
Heat 2 (8 Laps – Top-5 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 6h-Max McLaughlin [1]; 2. 3-Chad Brachmann [2]; 3. 25r-Erick Rudolph [4]; 4. 42-Pete Bicknell [5]; 5. 98h-Jimmy Phelps [3]; 6. 42p-Pat Ward [7]; 7. 37s-Tommy Flannigan [8]; 8. 44-Stewart Friesen [6]
Heat 3 (8 Laps – Top-5 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 3rs-Ryan Susice [1]; 2. 15J-Tim Jones [2]; 3. 1-Todd Gordon [4]; 4. 96-Fred Carleton [6]; 5. 43-Keith Flach [5]; 6. 8-Rich Scagliotta [3]; 7. 88-Shayne Pierce [7]
Heat 4 (8 Laps – Top-5 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 91-Billy Decker [1]; 2. 28z-Gary Lindberg [7]; 3. 6m-Mat Williamson [4]; 4. 38-Scott Wood [2]; 5. 20-Brett Hearn [6]; 6. 99L-Larry Wight [3]; 7. 109-Billy Whittaker [5]
Last Chance Qualifier 1 (8 Laps – All Transfer to A-Feature) – 1. 08-Mark D’Ilario [1]; 2. 42p-Pat Ward [2]; 3. 44-Stewart Friesen [9]; 4. 99L-Larry Wight [4]; 5. 8-Rich Scaglotta [3]; 6. 7m-Mike Maresca [5]; 7. 88-Shayne Pierce [7]; 8. 109-Billy Whittaker [8]; 9. 37s-Tommy Flannigan [6]; 10. DNS 22-Brandon Walters
CONTINGENCY WINNERS: VP Racing Fuels ($50 Cash): Peter Britten; Fast Time ($100 Cash): Max McLaughlin; Bicknell Racing Products ($100 Product Certificate): Matt Sheppard; Cometic Gasket ($50 Cash): Stewart Friesen; Comp Cams ($50 Cash): Erick Rudolph; Comp Cams ($50 Product Certificate): Matt Sheppard; Edelbrock ($50 Cash): Larry Wight; Fox Racing Shocks ($50 Cash): Chad Brachmann; JE Pistons ($50 Cash): Chad Brachmann; JE Pistons (Product Certificate): Scott Wood; JE Pistons (Product Certificate): Keith Flach; KSE Racing Products Inc. ($50 Product Certificate): Larry Wight; MSD Ignition ($50 Cash): Matt Sheppard; MSD Ignition ($25 Cash): Jimmy Phelps; SuperFlow Dynos & Flowbenches ($50 Cash): Scott Wood; Wrisco Aluminum (Product Certificate): Matt Sheppard; JRI Shocks ($50 Cash): Scott Wood; Speedy First Aid Hard Luck Award (Product Certificate): Erick Rudolph; ASi Racewear ($50 Cash): Ryan Susice.
SEASON WINNERS
Matt Sheppard – 5 (Five Mile Point Speedway on June 11; Autodrome Granby on July 25; Autodrome Drummond on July 26; Ransomville Speedway on August 8; Merrittville Speedway on August 9)
Billy Decker - 3 (Fulton Speedway on April 29; Outlaw Speedway on June 20; Eldora Speedway on July 18)
Stewart Friesen – 2 (Utica-Rome Speedway on July 2, Weedsport Speedway on July 11)
Ryan Watt – 1 (Bridgeport Speedway on May 16)
Tim McCreadie – 1 (Albany-Saratoga Speedway on June 27)
Larry Wight – 1 (Airborne Park Speedway on July 6)
Peter Britten – 1 (Sharon Speedway on July 20)
Larry Wight – 1 (Airborne Park Speedway on July 6)
Matt Sheppard Dominates Super DIRTcar Series at Autodrome Granby
Posted by: | Comments
.
.
.
.
.
Contact: Clayton Johns
DIRTcar Racing PR
(289) 314-5186 | cjohns@dirtcar.com
Matt Sheppard Dominates Super DIRTcar Series at Autodrome Granby
Sheppard Takes Early Lead and Resists Every Charge to Collect Second Win of the Season
By Martin Belanger
GRANBY, QC, CAN - July 25, 2017 - In front of a packed house and clear skies, the Super DIRTcar Series started a successful Quebec swing at Autodrome Granby as Matt Sheppard had a dominant run to get his second win of the season on the tour.
"It feels good," Sheppard said in the Winner's Circle. ''I always seem to have success when I come up in Quebec. I think these tracks are made for me and it is always fun to race in front of these great fans,'' added Sheppard in front of the packed Autodrome Granby stands as the always are for the Series' Quebec swing.
"I came close last week, but had issues with a tire but happy to be here and hats off to (Pat) Ward for his second-place (finish)."
Challenging Sheppard on a few occasions was Ward, who finished second.
"I tried but didn't have enough," Ward said. "My time will come."
Completing the podium was Brett Hearn.
"I was two pounds over limit and ran out of gas at the scale," Hearn said. ''I always have success up here. It's always great to come back here."
The original start saw Tim Fuller lead as Brandon Walters stopped in the backstretch. On the restart, Fuller remained in front with David Hebert and Larry Wight in third. Hebert was strong on the high side and grabbed the lead on lap 5. Stewart Friesen slowed and brought out the caution on the following lap.
Hebert and Fuller swapped the lead on a lap 11 restart as the driver of the No.19 was back in front with Hearn in third. Hebert was back in front on lap 20 after he made a great pass on Fuller using the inside lane. Hearn made a similar move to take second from Fuller just as the leaders got into lapped traffic on lap 25.
Hearn had a great restart on lap 29 to take the lead from Hebert as Sheppard ran in third. Hebert started to fade and gave third to Ward on lap 36. Sheppard had a dominant ride as he took the lead on lap 44 from Hearn and quickly pulled away from the field.
Max McLaughlin slowed the field down on lap 51. When the green lights were back on, Sheppard stayed on top as Larry Wight drove to fourth and Peter Britten cracked the top 5. Ward started to challenge Hearn for second and he was able to take the second spot on lap 57.
A few cautions slowed the final portion of the feature as Sheppard had to resist a few charges from Ward in the closing laps with Hearn completing the podium.
Steve Bernard won the Pole Position Raceway Fast Qualifier Award with a time of 18.399 seconds. Heats races were completed quickly with polesitters Steve Bernard, Max McLaughlin, Larry Wight and Jimmy Phelps dominating their sessions. Local runners Yan Bussiere and Kevin Hamel won the Last Chance Qualifiers
The Super DIRTcar Series returns to action Wednesday evening at Autodrome Drummond in Drummondville, Quebec. For additional event information, visit www.autodromedrummond.com. Race time is 7:00pm.
Autodrome Granby Notebook
Feature (100 Laps) – 1. 9s Matt Sheppard (8); 2. 42p Pat Ward (11); 3. 20 Brett Hearn (4); 4. 21a Peter Britten (7); 5. 99L Larry Wight (5); 6. 91 Billy Decker (12); 7. 66x Carey Terrance (15); 8. 1 David Hebert (3); 9. 43 Keith Flach (29); 10. 98h Jimmy Phelps (6); 11. 6h Max McLaughlin (9); 12. 19 Tim Fuller (1); 13. 25 Steve Bernier (13); 14. 8 Rich Scagliotta (2); 15. 73jr Mathieu Boisvert (19); 16. 47 Simon Perrault (16); 17. 109 Billy Whittaker (23); 18. 63 Dominic Dufault (25); 19. 96 JF Corriveau (31); 20. 23 Dany Bilodeau (26); 21. 37 Paul St-Sauveur (24); 22. 79 Maxime Plante (28); 23. 64 Daniel Nadeau (32); 24. 54 Steve Bernard (10); 25. 49 Francois Bernier (18); 26. 7m Mike Maresca (14); 27. 97k Mario Clair (27); 28. 21y Yan Bussiere (21); 29. 22j Gino Clair (20); 30. 44 Stewart Friesen (17); 31 13 Kevin Hamel (22); 32. 22 Brandon Walters (30)
Qualifying Group 1 - 1. 54 Steve Bernard 18.399; 2. 42p Pat Ward 18.417; 3. 20 Brett Hearn 18.736; 4. 21y Yan Bussiere 18.789; 5. 44 Stewart Friesen 18.845; 6. 25 Steve Bernier 18.918; 7. 97k Mario Clair 19.362; 8. 22 Brandon Walters 19.510; 9. 64 Daniel Nadeau 19.555
Qualifying Group 2 - 1. 6h Max McLaughlin 18.510; 2. 9s Matt Sheppard 18.543; 3. 1 David Hebert 18.833; 4. 109 Billy Whittaker 18.855; 5. 49 Francois Bernier 19.033; 6. 7m Mike Maresca 19.143; 7. 63 Dominic Dufault 19.440; 8. 91 Mathieu Laramee 19.589; 9 .43 Keith Flach, No Time
Qualifying Group 3 - 1. 99L Larry Wight 18.610; 2. 91d Billy Decker 18.654; 3. 21a Peter Britten 18.687; 4. 73jr Mathieu Boisvert 18.724; 5. 96 JF Corriveau 19.280; 6. 75 Maxime Michon 19.519; 7. 66x Carey Terrance 19.555; 8. 13 Kevin Hamel 19.634; 9. 25p Michael Parent 19.908
Qualifying Group 4 - 1. 98h Jimmy Phelps 18.999; 2.19 Tim Fuller 19.123; 3. 8 Rich Scagliotta 19.195; 4. 47 Simon Perrault 19.378; 5. 22j Gino Clair 19.475; 6. 37 Paul St-Sauveur 19.580; 7. 23 Dany Bilodeau19.636; 8. 79 Maxime Plante 19.649; 9 .97 Josianne Plante 20.113.
Heat 1 (8 Laps – Top-6 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 54 Steve Bernard; 2. 20 Brett Hearn; 3. 42p Pat Ward; 4. 25 Steve Bernier; 5. 44 Stewart Friesen; 6. 21y Yan Bussiere; 7. 64 Daniel Nadeau; 8. 22 Brandon Walters; 9. 97k Mario Clair
Heat 2 (8 Laps – Top-6 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 6h Max McLaughlin; 2. 9s Matt Sheppard; 3. 1 David Hebert; 4. 7m Mike Maresca; 5. 49 Francois Bernier; 6. 109 Billy Whittaker; 7. 63 Dominic Dufault; 8. 43 Keith Flach; 9. 91 Mathieu Laramee
Heat 3 (8 Laps – Top-6 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 99L Larry Wight; 2. 91 Billy Decker; 3. 21a Peter Britten; 4. 66x Carey Terrance; 5. 73jr Mathieu Boisvert; 6. 13 Kevin Hamel; 7. 25p Michael Parent; 8. 96 JF Corriveau
Heat 4 (8 Laps – Top-6 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 98h Jimmy Phelps; 2. 19 Tim Fuller; 3. 8 Rich Scagliotta; 4. 47 Simon Perrault; 5. 22j Gino Clair; 6. 37 Paul St-Sauveur; 7. 79 Maxime Plante; 8. 23 Dany Bilodeau; 9. 97 Josianne Plante
Last Chance Qualifier 1 (10 Laps – Top 3 Transfer to A-Feature) – 1. 21y Yan Bussiere; 2. 109 Billy Whittaker; 3. 63 Dominic Dufault; 4. 97k Mario Clair; 5. 22 Brandon Walters; 6. 91 Mathieu Laramee; 7. 43 Keith Flach; 8. 64 Daniel Nadeau
Last Chance Qualifier 2 (10 Laps – Top 3 Transfer to A-Feature) – 1. 13 Kevin Hamel; 2. 37 Paul St-Sauveur; 3. 23 Dany Bilodeau; 4. 79 Maxime Plante; 5. 96 JF Corriveau; 6. 25p Michael Parent; 7.97 Josianne Plante; 8. 75 Maxime Michon
CONTINGENCY WINNERS: VP Racing Fuels ($50 Cash): One David Hebert; Pole Position Raceway Fast Time ($100 Cash): 54 Steve Bernard; Bicknell Racing Products ($100 Product Certificate): 9s Matt Sheppard; Cometic Gasket ($50 Cash): 25 Steve Bernier; Comp Cams ($50 Cash): 6h Max McLaughlin; Comp Cams ($50 Product Certificate): 9s Matt Sheppard; Edelbrock ($50 Cash): 43 Keith Flach; Fox Racing Shocks ($50 Cash): 20 Brett Hearn; JE Pistons ($50 Cash): 99L Larry Wight; JE Pistons (Product Certificate): 47 Simon Perrault; JE Pistons (Product Certificate): 37 Paul St-Sauveur; KSE Racing Products Inc. ($50 Product Certificate): 43 Keith Flach; MSD Ignition ($50 Cash): 9s Matt Sheppard; MSD Ignition ($25 Cash): 54 Steve Bernard ; SuperFlow Dynos & Flowbenches ($50 Cash): 8 Rich Scagliotta; Wrisco Aluminum (Product Certificate): 9s Matt Sheppard ;JRI Shocks ($50 Cash): 25 Steve Bernier; Speedy First Aid Hard Luck Award (Product Certificate): 22 Brandon Walters; ASi Racewear ($50 Cash): 66x Carey Terrance.
SEASON WINNERS
Billy Decker - 3 (Fulton Speedway on April 29; Outlaw Speedway on June 20; Eldora Speedway on July 18)
Stewart Friesen – 2 (Utica-Rome Speedway on July 2; Weedsport Speedway on July 11)
Matt Sheppard – 2 (Five Mile Point Speedway on June 11; Autodrome Granby on July 25)
Ryan Watt – 1 (Bridgeport Speedway on May 16)
Tim McCreadie – 1 (Albany-Saratoga Speedway on June 27)
Larry Wight – 1 (Airborne Park Speedway on July 6)
Peter Britten – 1 (Sharon Speedway on July 20)
Aussie, Aussie, Aussie: Peter Britten Makes History at Sharon
Posted by: | Comments
.
.
.
.
.
Contact: Clayton Johns
DIRTcar Racing PR
(289) 314-5186 | cjohns@dirtcar.com
Aussie, Aussie, Aussie: Peter Britten Makes History at Sharon
Britten Dashes From 20th to Become First Australian Super DIRTcar Series Feature Winner
HARTFORD, OH - July 20, 2017 - Peter Britten created a little piece of Super DIRTcar Series history on Thursday night. Britten came from the 20th starting position and then used a slidejob in turns three and four to take the lead from Matt Sheppard following a lap 54 restart. The Brisbane, Queensland, Australia native led the final 46 laps and held off Stewart Friesen on a restart with 12 laps to go to earn the first Super DIRTcar Series win of his career in the Buckeye Ground Pounder 100 at Sharon Speedway. Britten also becomes the first Australian driver to win a Super DIRTcar Series Feature event.
"I can't believe it. It's amazing," Britten said in Victory Lane. "We had a good car, rolling around and kept picking off cars one by one. I ran the middle and I'm like "man, my car's pretty friggen good right now". I just kept picking them off and I got to (Matt Sheppard) and I'm like "this will be the real test". I was able to clear him and man, I don't know if they were close to me. It's unreal, a Super DIRTcar Series win at Sharon."
The task seemed daunting at first for Britten, who rolled off from outside the 10th row while Brett Hearn started on the pole with his Larry Wight to his outside. Hearn capitalized on the track position to grab an early advantage, bringing third-starting Billy Whittaker along to second.
Ninth-starting Friesen made quick work and rolled inside the top-five by lap 10. One lap later, Hearn found his way into lapped traffic. By lap 14, Hearn had company in the form of Friesen, who had gotten by Whittaker, Wight and Tim Fuller to claim second.
Friesen caught Hearn for the lead 20 laps into the 100-lap affair as he found momentum in the outside lane while the No.20 remained on the bottom. Friesen setup the pass for the lead and was outside Hearn on lap 24 when the first caution of the race waved for a spun Frank Cozze on lap 24.
Under the yellow, Friesen suffered a flat tire that forced him to relinquish the second spot and head to the pits for a new sneaker.
"We got squeezed a little bit on the backstretch," Friesen said of how the tire was cut down. "This Halmar team, they're tough. They threw a tire on it and it was still pretty good."
The ensuing restart gave Erick Rudolph a share of the front row and he used the outside lane position to power past Hearn and grab the point. Matt Sheppard took notice and followed Rudolph up high from fourth to second. By lap 36, Sheppard stole the top spot from Rudolph.
One lap later, the caution waved again at lap 37 for Hearn, who has a flat right-rear tire. Sheppard held the lead on the restart, but fans were quickly dazzled by Britten who darted from fifth to pass Rudolph for second on lap 47.
When the halfway mark rolled around, Friesen had found his way back into the top-five, despite his earlier woes, while Sheppard still led Britten by over a second. That advantage, however, was eliminated on lap 54 by a caution when Keith Flach and Kevin Bolland collided. The incident landed Flach the Speedy First Aid Hard Luck award.
Sheppard chose the outside for the restart, but Britten powered around the bottom and drove low into turn three before sliding up in front of Sheppard in turn four to take the lead. From that point, Britten was able to built some momentum and click off laps with impressive speed through the slick middle of the track.
The restart on lap 75 was another strong one for Britten as Sheppard immediately settled into the second spot. Sheppard's goal of a podium finish was wiped away shortly after when the right-rear tire on his no.9s went flat. That forced Sheppard to pit return to the rear of the field.
The final restart of the race with 12 laps to go put Britten alongside Friesen, who had passed Rudolph for second six laps earlier. Britten was flawless on the return to green and ran a perfect line in the final dash to the finish. Britten's smooth and patient style allowed him to claim the win.
"The yellow came out and they were right on my butt again," Britten said, lamenting the yellow flag. "It's a little nerve wracking, but I just had to concentrate and keep hitting my marks. I knew I had a good racecar and I knew I was driving well, so at that point I felt like it was my race to lose. They were going to have to do something pretty incredible to try and get around me."
Rudolph found another gear late in the race and was able to muscle under Friesen to take second away with three laps to go and grab the runner-up finish.
"It took maybe a few laps to find what the car wanted, but it liked being on the bottom," Rudolph explained. "I ran most of the race there. Peter ran a great race. I don't know if we had a shot at him if there was a late race caution. If we did it was a small chance. We had a really nice car and drove a really nice race. A top-three in this league of competition is nothing to be ashamed of."
Friesen looked like the car to beat in the first half of the race after he soared to the front of the field before a flat tire derailed his effort. Regardless, he was happy with the run given the circumstances.
"It was good. We'll take it," Friesen said. "I had an awesome battle there at the end. Hats off to Peter and those guys. I'm happy for our team and to leave here with a top-three."
Billy Decker, who failed to transfer to the race from his heat, but won the Last Chance Qualifier, finished in fourth. He was one spot ahead of 11th starting Pat Ward.
The victory for Britten was particularly special given how he earned it. Britten's drive from 20th to victory also made him the KSE Hard Charger.
"These races are damn near impossible to win from the front row, so to come from 20th and do it, words can't even describe it," Britten said. "That just shows how good our racecar is. I was in the groove tonight and did my job as a driver."
"I passed Matt running a different line than what he was running and got by him," he added about the winning pass. "To be able to drive by basically every good car that there is in Northeast Dirt Modified racing for the first win is pretty incredible."
Britten's win is also a victory for the so-called 'Little Guy'. The driver of the No.21a owns his own equipment and team this year. He has teamed up with Rich Scagliotta to get his single-car, single engine team to the track for each race.
"It's pretty satisfying getting the first win as a very small operation," Britten concluded. "Rich (Scagliotta) gets my car to the racetrack. We don't have a major sponsor. We have one car, one motor. We're going to keep doing our best to make all the races and getting a win here is a motivating factor to get back and keep working."
Fuller, Friesen, Ward and Sheppard were qualifying heat race winners on the night while Fuller was also the Pole Position Raceway Fast Qualifier. Decker and Mike Maresca won the pair of Last Chance Qualifiers.
Britten and the rest of the Super DIRTcar Series stars will be back in action next week with the Series' first swing through Quebec. The Series visits Autodrome Drummond on Monday, July 24 and Autodrome Granby on Tuesday, July 25. For additional information on either event, please visit www.autodromedrummond.com or www.autodromegranby.com. Advanced reserved tickets are available for the Autodrome Granby event on July 25 at www.autodromegranby.com/vente-de-billets-en-ligne.
Sharon Speedway Notebook
Feature (100 Laps) – 1. 21a-Peter Britten [20]; 2. 25r-Erick Rudolph [5]; 3. 44-Stewart Friesen [9]; 4. 91-Billy Decker [22]; 5. 42p-Pat Ward [11]; 6. 99L-Larry Wight [2]; 7. 6h-Max McLaughlin [16]; 8. 109-Billy Whittaker [4]; 9. 9s-Matt Sheppard [10]; 10. 20-Brett Hearn [1]; 11. 19-Tim Fuller [6]; 12. 98h-Jimmy Phelps [8]; 13. 83-Brian Swartzlander [17]; 14. 22-Brandon Walters [3]; 15. 8-Rich Scagliotta [19]; 16. 165-Rex King Jr. [7]; 17. 14-CG Morey [18]; 18. 9-Will Thomas [24]; 19. 13-Rick Regalski Jr. [29]; 20. 29e-Erik Martin [31]; 21. 32-Jim Rasey [13]; 22. 14w-Ryan Watt [28]; 23. 00-Rob Kristyak [30]; 24. 7m-Mike Maresca [21]; 25. 18b-Dave Blaney [26]; 26. 43-Keith Flach [27]; 27. 777-Kevin Bolland [23]; 28. 65-Rex King [15]; 29. 35-Frank Cozze [14]; 30. 6m-Mat Williamson [12]; 31. 37md-Jeremiah Shingledecker [25]
Qualifying Group 1 - 1. 19-Tim Fuller, 16.866; 2. 6m-Mat Williamson, 17.084; 3. 32-Jim Rasey, 17.141; 4. 7m-Mike Maresca, 17.272; 5. 20-Brett Hearn, 17.307; 6. 83-Brian Swartzlander, 17.342; 7. 43-Keith Flach, 17.474; 8. 777-Kevin Bolland, 17.501; 9. 21-Justin Rasey, 17.879; 10. 96b-Bob Warren, 17.947
Qualifying Group 2 - 1. 44-Stewart Frisen, 17.274; 2. 99L-Larry Wight, 17.276; 3. 25r-Erick Rudolph, 17.389; 4. 37md-Jeremiah Shingledecker, 17.306; 5. 14-CG Morey, 17.425; 6. 35-Frank Cozze, 17.507; 7. 13-Rick Regalski Jr., 17.675; 8. 46-Jeremy Smith, 17.676; 9. 00-Rob Kristyak, 18.130; 10. 29e-Erik Martin, 18.248
Qualifying Group 3 - 1. 42p-Pat Ward, 17.148; 2. 98h-Jimmy Phelps, 17.272; 3. 65-Rex King, 17.375; 4. 17m-Skip Moore, 17.548; 5. 22-Brandon Walters, 17.667; 6. 9-Will Thomas, 17.933; 7. 8-Rich Scagliotta, 18.050; 8. 69-Tom Mattocks, 18.185; 9. 25b-Steve Barr, 18.584
Qualifying Group 4 - 1. 9s-Matt Sheppard, 17.066; 2. 165-Rex King Jr., 17.226; 3. 6h-Max McLaughlin, 17.472; 4. 109-Billy Whittaker, 17.594; 5. 31-Jim Weller Jr., 17.768; 6. 18b-Dave Blaney, 17.790; 7. 21a-Peter Britten, 17.808; 8. 91-Billy Decker, 17.813; 9. 14w-Ryan Watt, 17.952
Heat 1 (8 Laps – Top-5 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 19-Tim Fuller [1]; 2. 6m-Mat Williamson [2]; 3. 20-Brett Hearn [5]; 4. 32-Jim Rasey [3]; 5. 83-Brian Swartzlander [6]; 6. 7m-Mike Maresca [4]; 7. 43-Keith Flach [7]; 8. 777-Kevin Bolland [8]; 9. 21-Justin Rasey [9]; 10. 96b-Bob Warren [10]
Heat 2 (8 Laps – Top-5 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 99L-Larry Wight [2]; 2. 44-Stewart Friesen [1]; 3. 25r-Erick Rudolph [3]; 4. 35-Frank Cozze [6]; 5. 14-CG Morey [5]; 6. 13-Rick Regalski Jr. [7]; 7. 37md-Jeremiah Shingledecker [4]; 8. 46-Jeremy Smith [8]; 9. 29e-Erik Martin [10]; 10. 00-Rob Kristyak [9]
Heat 3 (8 Laps – Top-5 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1.42p-Pat Ward [1]; 2. 98h-Jimmy Phelps [2]; 3. 22-Brandon Walters [5]; 4. 65-Rex King [3]; 5. 8-Rich Scagliotta [7]; 6. 9-Will Thomas [6]; 7. 17m-Skip Moore [4]; 8. 69-Tom Mattocks [8]; 9. DNS 25b-Steve Barr [9]
Heat 4 (8 Laps – Top-5 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 9s-Matt Sheppard [1]; 2. 165-Rex King Jr. [2]; 3. 109-Billy Whittaker [4]; 4. 6h-Max McLaughlin [3]; 5. 21a-Peter Britten [7]; 6. 18b-Dave Blaney [6]; 7. 91-Billy Decker [8]; 8. 31-Jim Weller Jr. [5]; 9. 14w-Ryan Watt [9]
Last Chance Qualifier 1 (10 Laps – Top 3 Transfer to A-Feature) – 1. 7m-Mike Maresca [1]; 2. 777-Kevin Bolland [5]; 3. 37md-Jeremiah Shingledecker [4]; 4. 43-Keith Flach [3]; 5. 13-Rick Regalski Jr. [2]; 6. 46-Jeremy Smith [6]; 7. 29e-Erik Martin [8]; 8. 21-Justin Fasey [7]; 9. 96b-Bob Warren [9]
Last Chance Qualifier 2 (10 Laps – Top 3 Transfer to A-Feature) – 1. 91-Billy Decker [4]; 2. 9-Will Thomas [1]; 3. 18b-Dave Blaney [2]; 4. 14w-Ryan Watt [7]; 5. 00-Rob Kristyak [8]; 6. 69-Tom Mattocks [5]; 7. 31-Jim Weller Jr. [6]; 8. DNS 17m-Skip Moore [3].
CONTINGENCY WINNERS: VP Racing Fuels ($50 Cash): Billy Whittaker; Pole Position Raceway Fast Time ($100 Cash): Tim Fuller; Bicknell Racing Products ($100 Product Certificate): Erick Rudolph; Cometic Gasket ($50 Cash): Brandon Walters; Comp Cams ($50 Cash): Brandon Walters; Comp Cams ($50 Product Certificate): Peter Britten; Edelbrock ($50 Cash): Brandon Walters; Fox Racing Shocks ($50 Cash): Stewart Friesen; JE Pistons ($50 Cash): Pat Ward; JE Pistons (Product Certificate): Mike Maresca; JE Pistons (Product Certificate): Dave Blaney; KSE Racing Products Inc. ($50 Product Certificate): Peter Britten (+19 - 20th to 1st); MSD Ignition ($50 Cash): Peter Britten; MSD Ignition ($25 Cash): Mike Maresca; SuperFlow Dynos & Flowbenches ($50 Cash): Brandon Walters; Wrisco Aluminum (Product Certificate): Peter Britten; JRI Shocks ($50 Cash): Rich Scagliotta; Speedy First Aid Hard Luck Award (Product Certificate): Keith Flach; ASi Racewear ($50 Cash): Max McLaughlin.
SEASON WINNERS
Billy Decker - 3 (Fulton Speedway on April 29; Outlaw Speedway on June 20; Eldora Speedway on July 18)
Stewart Friesen - 2 (Utica-Rome Speedway on July 2, Weedsport Speedway on July 11)
Ryan Watt - 1 (Bridgeport Speedway on May 16)
Matt Sheppard - 1 (Five Mile Point Speedway on June 11)
Tim McCreadie - 1 (Albany-Saratoga Speedway on June 27)
Larry Wight - 1 (Airborne Park Speedway on July 6)
Peter Britten - 1 (Sharon Speedway on July 20)
Billy Decker Dominates at Eldora For Tuesday Night Tailgate Win
Posted by: | Comments
.
.
.
.
.
Contact: Clayton Johns
DIRTcar Racing PR
(289) 314-5186 | cjohns@dirtcar.com
Billy Decker Dominates at Eldora For Tuesday Night Tailgate Win
Veteran Driver Earns Third Win of 2017, 68th Career Series Victory
ROSSBURG, OH - July 18, 2017 - Billy Decker started on the pole and dominated all 75 laps on a very fast track to win the Super DIRTcar Series Tuesday Night Tailgate at Eldora Speedway. Decker had to outrun second-starting Pat Ward on a number of mid-race restarts and a final one with 12 laps remaining to earn his Series-leading third victory of the season. The win was also the 68th in Decker's Super DIRTcar Series career.
"I really wanted a win at one of the marquee speedways," Decker said following the win. "It's big, It feels really good."
Ward had to be strong in his own right to hold off Matt Sheppard who survived a furious and chaotic battle inside the top-five to claim the final spot on the podium. Brett Hearn and Peter Britten rounded out the top-five.
Decker was strong from the drop of the green flag and chose the outside lane for the start of the race, a rare occurrence. However, the Unadilla, NY native was tough right away and jumped out to an early advantage.
"They tilled the track a little bit, but I think (the racing groove) was going to end up there anyhow," Decker said of the preferred groove. "When you pull a good number and...you're going to have a forgiving racetrack and you couple that with a fast racecar, it feels pretty good."
After Decker worked his way into traffic on lap eight, there were some tense moments. On lap 11, Decker got stuck behind CG Morey's No.14 as he tried to put him one lap down. He got past Morey in the next corner, but lost half of the advantage he had built over Ward.
"Early on, I thought I found a line where I was gaining a little bit before we hit that heavy lapped traffic," Ward said. "Then, I think it got so top-fast that the bottom wasn't working and I couldn't get anything. [Decker] started pulling away, he was running the cushion a lot better than I was."
The first caution of the race waved shortly afterwards on lap 14 when Erick Rudolph slowed to a stop in turn two. Shaun Pangman suffered a flat tire on the restart, which slowed the race again. Pangman's night ended when he hit the outside wall in turn one on lap 33.
"The lapped traffic was getting a little bit dicey," Decker said. "A couple of guys would run a line and move in the next turn, which makes it hairy and I thought I fired really good on the restarts. Given that I restarted so well, I didn't mind the cautions."
Ward knew he didn't have ability to get by Decker on the restart as did his best to work the inside lane.
"Once he got to the top in one and two, I could almost drag up even with him out of four a couple of times, but you lose your momentum when you try to run down on the bottom," Ward explained. "He just started to pull away after that."
The restart on lap 39 saw Peter Britten positioned in third ahead of Sheppard and Stewart Friesen. Britten held the spot solidly as he also found speed in the outside lane behind Decker and Ward. That changed, however, on a lap 49 restart following a caution for debris when Sheppard and Brett Hearn both got a better jump out of turn four and shuffled Britten back to fifth.
Two more caution followed on lap 56 and lap 63 and each time Decker was up to the challenge. The lap 56 caution came for Tim Fuller, who earned the Speedy First Aid Hard Luck award, after he suffered mechanical issues while running inside the top-10.
On the final restart, Hearn ducked to the bottom of Sheppard for the third spot, but couldn't keep the same momentum in the lower lane. The final 12 laps allowed the field to fall single-file and Decker to cruise off to the victory ahead of Ward, Sheppard, Hearn and Britten.
The restart were chaotic behind the two frontrunners with drivers often ducking low to try and get a run out of turn four. The end result was often three- and four-wide battles into turns one and two.
"t seemed like row two and row three were a free for all on those restarts," Sheppard explained. "I got up to third early there and I think I fell back to fourth and I might have been back to fifth at one point. Luckily I got a good restart on one of the restarts and I was able to stay there until we went single-file.
The track was wide, with the cushion about a half lane off the outside wall, but still heavy and fast after the track crew added water to the racing surface before the main event. It created a physically demanding task for each driver on track.
"It was like time trialing for 75 laps," said Sheppard. "That's about what it felt like."
The victory helped Decker take a 26-point leader over Larry Wight in the championship standings. It also offers his team a morale boost, but Decker isn't going to get too comfortable.
"Winning fixes a lot of things, but it doesn't fix everything," Decker said. "You can't get that stuff back that you giveaway. We've had a couple of tough Series races ourselves, but when you come back and you win it helps you look forward rather than look back."
Sheppard, Friesen and Decker won the qualifying heats. Billy Whittaker won the Last Chance Qualifier. Keith Flach earned the KSE Hard Charger Award advancing 19 positions from 27th to 8th. Larry Wight was the Pole Position Raceway Fast Qualifier with a lap of 16.382 seconds, just 0.002 faster than Decker.
Wight, however, hit the turn three wall on the first lap of his heat. He suffered right-side damage to his No.99L and has to qualify through the Last Chance Qualifier. Wight drove to a ninth-place finish in the main event.
The Super DIRTcar Series returns to action on Wednesday, July 19 at Eldora for the all-star race at the Eldora Dirt Derby alongside the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. For additional event information and to purchase advanced reserved seating, please visit www.EldoraSpeedway.com.
The series then travel to eastern Ohio for a return trip to Sharon Speedway in the Buckeye Ground-Pounder 100 on Thursday, July 19.
"Hopefully we can build a little bit of momentum on it," Decker said of his victory. "Maybe we can get over that hurdle too. We just look at it one race at a time. We're looking forward to going to Sharon. We had a solid run there last year. Hopefully we can do that again this year."
For more information on the Super DIRTcar Series event at Sharon Speedway, visit http://www.sharonspeedway.com/events/super-dirtcar-big-block-modified-series/.
Eldora Speedway Notebook
Feature (75 Laps) – 1. 91-Billy Decker [1]; 2. 42p-Pat Ward [2]; 3. 9s-Matt Sheppard [5]; 4. 20-Brett Hearn [8]; 5. 21a-Peter Britten [3]; 6. 44-Stewart Friesen [12]; 7. 43h-Jimmy Horton [7]; 8. 43-Keith Flach [27]; 9. 99L- Larry Wight [22]; 10. 14w-Ryan Watt [18]; 11. 22-Brandon Walters [20]; 12. 7m-Mike Maresca [4]; 13. 8-Rich Scagliotta [25]; 14. 6m-Mat Williamson [6]; 15. 23-Kyle Coffey [23]; 16. 6j-Josh Hohenforst [16]; 17. 98h-Jimmy Phelps [13]; 18. 5h-Chris Hile [14]; 19. 109-Billy Whittaker [19]; 20. 165-Rex King Jr. [21]; 21. 34h-Cody Bleau [24]; 22. 29e-Erik Martin [29]; 23. 6h-Max McLaughlin [11]; 24. 19-Tim Fuller [10]; 25. 34p-Shaun Pangman [26]; 26. 25r-Erick Rudolph [9]; 27. 35-Frank Cozze [17]; 28. 84-Gary Tomkins [15]; 29. 14-CG Morey [28]; 30. DNS 17j-Matt Janiak [30].
Qualifying Group 1 - 1. 99L-Larry Wight, 16.382; 2. 9s-Matt Sheppard, 16.386; 3. 19-Tim Fuller, 16.410; 4. 34p-Shaun Pangman, 16.529; 5. 6h-Max McLaughlin, 16.536; 6. 43-Keith Flach, 16.821; 7. 98h-Jimmy Phelps, 16.980; 8. 6j-Josh Hohenforst, 16.991; 9. 109-Billy Whittaker, 17.104; 10. 43h-Jimmy Horton, 17.425.
Qualifying Group 2 - 1. 44-Stewart Friesen, 16.537; 2. 7m-Mike Maresca, 16.546; 3. 35-Frank Cozze, 16.617; 4. 6m-Mat Williamson, 16.818; 5. 5h-Chris Hile, 16.907; 6. 21a-Peter Britten, 16.984; 7. 165-Rex King Jr., 17.120; 8. 8-Rich Scagliotta, 17.177; 9. 34h-Cody Bleau, 17.403; 10. 29e-Erik Martin, 18.341.
Qualifying Group 3 - 1. 91-Billy Decker, 16.384; 2. 25-Erick Rudolph, 16.669; 3. 42p-Pat Ward, 16.726; 4. 20-Brett Hearn, 16.733’ 5. 14w-Ryan Watt, 16.875; 6. 23-Kyle Coffey, 17.077; 7. 22-Brandon Walters, 17.272; 8. 84 Gary Tomkins, 17.813; 9. 17j-Matt Janiak, 17.917; 10. 14-CG Morey, 18.332; 11. 46-Jeremy Smith, NT.
Heat 1 (8 Laps – Top-6 Qualify – Top-4 Redraw) - 1. 9s-Matt Sheppard [2]; 2. 19-Tim Fuller [3]; 3. 6h-Max McLaughlin [5]; 4. 43h-Jimmy Horton [10]; 5. 98h-Jimmy Phelps [7]; 6. 6j-Josh Hohenforst [8]; 7. 109-Billy Whittaker [9]; 8. 99L-Larry Wight [1]; 9. 34p-Shaun Pangman [4]; 10. 43-Keith Flach [6].
Heat 2 (8 Laps – Top-6 Qualify – Top-4 Redraw) - 1. 44-Stewart Friesen [1]; 2. 7m-Mike Maresca [2]; 3. 6m-Mat Williamson [4]; 4. 21a-Peter Britten [6]; 5. 5h-Chris Hile [5]; 6. 35-Frank Cozze [3]; 7. 165-Rex King Jr. [7]; 8. 8-Rich Scagliotta [8]; 9. 34h-Cody Bleau [9]; 10. 29e-Erik Martin [10].
Heat 3 (8 Laps – Top-6 Qualify – Top-4 Redraw) - 1. 91-Billy Decker [1]; 2. 25r-Erick Rudolph [2]; 3. 42p-Pat Ward [3]; 4. 20-Brett Hearn [4]; 5. 84-Gary Tomkins [8]; 6. 14w-Ryan Watt [5]; 7. 22-Brandon Walters [7]; 8. 23-Kyle Coffey [6]; 9. 14-CG Morey [10]; 10. 17j-Matt Janiak [9]; 11. DNS 46-Jeremy Smith.
Last Chance Qualifier (8 Laps – All Transfer to A-Feature) – 1. 109-Billy Whittaker [1]; 2. 22-Brandon Walters [3]; 3. 165-Rex King Jr. [2]; 4. 99L-Larry Wight [4]; 5. 23-Kyle Coffey [6]; 6. 34h-Cody Bleau [8]; 7. 8-Rich Scagliotta [5]; 8. 34p-Shaun Pangman [7]; 9. 43-Keith Flach [10]; 10. 14-CG Morey [9]; 11. 29e-Erik Martin [11]; 12. DNS 17J-Matt Janiak [12].
CONTINGENCY WINNERS: VP Racing Fuels ($50 Cash): Keith Flach; Pole Position Raceway Fast Time ($100 Cash): Larry Wight; Bicknell Racing Products ($100 Product Certificate): Billy Decker; Cometic Gasket ($50 Cash): Rich Scagliotta; Comp Cams ($50 Cash): Ryan Watt; Comp Cams ($50 Product Certificate): Billy Decker; Edelbrock ($50 Cash): Larry Wight; Fox Racing Shocks ($50 Cash): Brett Hearn; JE Pistons ($50 Cash): Peter Britten; JE Pistons (Product Certificate): Jimmy Phelps; JE Pistons (Product Certificate): Max McLaughlin; KSE Racing Products Inc. ($50 Product Certificate): Larry Wight; MSD Ignition ($50 Cash): Billy Decker; MSD Ignition ($25 Cash): Erick Rudolph; SuperFlow Dynos & Flowbenches ($50 Cash): Erick Rudolph; Wrisco Aluminum (Product Certificate): Billy Decker; JRI Shocks ($50 Cash): Rich Scagliotta; Dig Safely 811 Redraw Bonus ($100 Cash): N/A; Speedy First Aid Hard Luck Award (Product Certificate): Tim Fuller; ASi Racewear ($50 Cash): Jimmy Horton.
SEASON WINNERS
Billy Decker - 3 (Fulton Speedway on April 29; Outlaw Speedway on June 20; Eldora Speedway on July 18)
Stewart Friesen – 2 (Utica-Rome Speedway on July 2, Weedsport Speedway on July 11)
Ryan Watt – 1 (Bridgeport Speedway on May 16)
Matt Sheppard – 1 (Five Mile Point Speedway on June 11)
Tim McCreadie – 1 (Albany-Saratoga Speedway on June 27)
Larry Wight – 1 (Airborne Park Speedway on July 6)
Friesen Wins Hall of Fame 100 at Weedsport Speedway
Posted by: | Comments
.
.
.
.
.
Contact: Colby Gorniewicz
DIRTcar Racing PR
704-707-0229 | cgorniewicz@dirtcar.com
Friesen edges McCreadie by a Nose at Hall of Fame 100
Stewart Friesen picks up second Super DIRTcar Series win of the season at Weedsport Speedway
WEEDSPORT, NY - July 11, 2017 - On a night that honored Northeast Dirt Modifieds new hall of famers, it was potentially two-future Hall of Famers that battled it out for 100-laps in the Hall of Fame 100 at Weedsport Speedway. Tim McCreadie and Stewart Friesen were the class of the field but in the end, it was Friesen who edged out McCreadie for his second Super DIRTcar Series win by a half-car length at the line and to come home $10,000-dollars richer.
On Monday evening, the Northeast Dirt Modified Hall of Fame inducted it's 2017 class which included active drivers, Alan Johnson and Steve Paine along with pioneer Freddy Adam's.
Fittingly on the night after being inducted into the Hall of Fame, Alan Johnson and Steve Paine would roll off for the 100-lap Feature event side-by-side in the 10th-row. Johnson would bring home his No. 14J with a 14th-place finish while Paine, who was in the Matt Sheppard No. 7x came home with a 12th-place finish.
When the night kicked off, it was second-place in points, Billy Decker showing the way early by wrapping up the Pole Position Raceway Fast Qualifier award with a lap of 15.348-seconds. Decker would also go on to win his heat race. In the other three heat races, it was Brett Hearn, Eric Rudolph, Larry Wight making them eligible for the 811 Dig Safely redraw. Both Rich Scagliotta and Max McLaughlin drew the number 8 and 11 starting position, giving them the opportunity to take home a little extra cash with a win. The 811 Dig Safely award would not be awarded out as both drivers finished outside of the top-10.
Andrew Ferguson qualified for the Hall of Fame 100 at Weedsport Speedway by winning the Last Chance Qualifying race giving him the 21st-starting position in the 100-lap Feature event.
Up front for the Hall of Fame 100 it was Tim McCreadie and Peter Britten as the field took the green flag. McCreadie quickly rocketed out to the lead while Stewart Friesen jumped around Britten for the second spot.
On lap 15 the race saw its first yellow flag for the 98H of Jimmy Phelps who tagged the front stretch wall during a heated battle for fifth-place along with Britten, Decker, Wight. Phelps would head pit side only to return. Because of tonight's hardship and 19th-place finish, Phelps took home the Speedy First Aid Hard Luck Award.
As the field got back under way, McCreadie once again jumped out to a lead showing the way over Friesen.
At the quarter-mark of the 100-lap Feature event, from the ninth-starting position, Lightning Larry Wight had worked his way all the way up into contention to fourth place and was quickly challenging for a spot on the podium.
"We were pretty good on the bottom in the beginning," said Larry Wight who finished third in the Hall of Fame 100. "When the [bottom] went away we were just too tight but we were also too tight on the top. I kind of had to toss the car in but we were losing too much time getting into the corner. It kind of sheered my right-rear tire up and after that we were just kind of riding."
While McCreadie was out front of the 31-car field, the leaders had to pick their way through lap traffic. With three distinct grooves to do so, it appeared as the top on the cushion was the place to be. McCreadie seemed to have the better car going through Turns 1 and 2, but Friesen would pull away around Turns 3 and 4.
"We were pretty even, [Friesen] would get away, I would run him down, it was kind of like a rubber band," added McCreadie.
Just before the halfway mark of the 100-lap race, another yellow flag was displayed for a slowed No. 22 of Brandon Walters in Turn 2.
Choosing the inside lane on the lap 51 restart, Friesen got a run going down the back stretch and threw a perfectly executed slide job on McCreadie to get by the No. 39 for the lead.
"I just made a mistake on that restart," said Tim McCreadie. "I should have taken the top but I went in there and slide for life and that was it, I saw the 44 the rest of the race. We were just cruising along pretty good. I was running along as hard as I could. I don't know if Stewart was laying back but I only have one gear and that's go as hard as I can. Hats off to those guys."
Friesen wouldn't be able to get too far out front as McCreadie and Wight were challenging for the top spot.
"We were just waiting for those guys to make a mistake and hope that we could get by [Friesen, McCreadie] but it's not something you're going to see those two do very often, said Larry Wight. "[Friesen and McCreadie] have been running up front for so many years."
For the remaining laps of the Hall of Fame 100 the top-three ran within tenths of each other until a late-race yellow flag came out for the No. 109 of Billy Whittaker who was unable to make it off the track.
Setting up a green-white-checker finish, Friesen got another stellar restart on McCreadie. Both the No. 44 of Friesen would run the top-side and the No. 39 of McCreadie was running down low. The two came off Turn 4 for the final time side-by-side dragging racing to the checkers, it was Friesen who would just barely edge out McCreadie for his second win of the Super DIRTcar Series season. Larry Wight who won at Airborne Park Speedway came home with a podium finish in third.
"I honestly didn't know the race way over with 'cause I was trying to do the best I could and I thought we just got him but then I heard the race director came on the radio and I said, damn it," said McCreadie.
"What a race, Timmy [McCreadie] got 10-grand from me a couple races ago, we got 10 from him tonight," said Stewart Friesen. "What a great race team, pretty top-notice. We got a racing coming up. I've been wanting to win one at [Weedsport Speedway] since Al [Heinke] took over and they redid this place. What a great facility."
The KSE Hard Charger in the Hall of Fame 100 was Gary Tompkins in the No. 84 who started in the 14th position and charged his way up to 7th-place finish.
The Super DIRTcar Series returns to action on Tuesday, July 18 and Wednesday, July 19 at Eldora Speedway for the Tuesday Night Tailgate and all-star race at the Eldora Dirt Derby alongside the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. For additional event information and to purchase advanced reserved seating, please visit www.EldoraSpeedway.com.
Super DIRTcar Series Statistical Report – Hall of Fame 100 at Weedsport Speedway – Weedsport, NY – July 11, 2017
Feature (100 Laps) – 1. 44 – Stewart Friesen [3] 2. 39 – Tim McCreadie [1] 3. 99L – Larry Wight [9] 4. 25 – Erick Rudolph [4] 5. 21a – Peter Britten [2] 6. 19 – Tim Fuller [5] 7. 84 – Gary Tompkins [14] 8. 91 – Billy Decker [7] 9. 3H – Justin Haers [10] 10. 42P – Pat Ward [16] 11. 11R – Rob Bellinger [15] 12. 7x – Steve Paine [19] 13. 6H – Max McLaughlin [11] 14. 14J – Alan Johnson [20] 15. 20 – Brett Hearn [12] 16. 8 – Rich Scagliotta [8] 17. 43 – Keith Flach [13] 18. X – Chad Phelps [23] 19. 98H – Jimmy Phelps [6] 20. 33 – Mike Mahaney [26] 21. 7M – Mike Maresca [24] 22. 23 – Kyle Coffey [27] 23. 34 – Andrew Ferguson [21] 24. 109 – Billy Whittaker [22] 25. 19W – Justin Wright [17] 26. 22 – Brandon Walters [25] 27. 5H – Chris Hile [18] 28. 21G – Kody Graham [31] 29. 14 – C.G. Morey [29] 30. 93 – Ryan Barlett [28] 31. 16 – Mike Bowman [30]
Qualifying Group 1 - 1. 20 – Brett Hearn, 15.662; 2. 8 – Rich Scagliotta, 15.723, 3. W19 – Justin Wright, 15.744, 4. 39 – Tim McCreadie, 15.930, 5. 34 Andrew Ferguson, 15.930, 6. 43 – Keith Flach, 15.978, 7. 21g – Kody Graham, 16.337, 8. 33 – Mike Mahaney, 16.363, 9. Y21 – Yan Bussiere.
Qualifying Group 2 – 1. 99L – Larry Wight, 15.657, 2. 44 – Stewart Friesen, 15.835, 3. 6H – Max McLaughlin, 15.864, 4. 84 – Gary Tomkins, 15.907, 5. 5H – Chris Hile, 16.031, 6. 14 - C.G. Morey, 16.112, 7. X – Chad Phelps, 16.252, 8. 23 – Kyle Coffey, 16.252, 9. 48T – Dave Rauscher, NT.
Qualifying Group 3 - 1. 25r – Erick Rudolph, 15.669, 2. 3H – Justin Haers, 15.676, 3. 21a – Peter Britten, 15.927, 4. 11r – Rob Bellinger, 16.002, 5. 7x – Steve Paine, 16.040, 6. 7m – Mike Maresca, 16.099. 7. 22 – Brandon Walters, 16.246, 8. 4 – Tim Murphy, NT
Qualifying Group 4 - 1. 91 – Billy Decker, 15.348, 2. 19 – Tim Fuller, 15.919, 3. 98H – Jimmy Phelps, 15.926, 4. 109 – Billy Whittaker, 16.006, 5. 42P – Pat Ward, 16.010, 6. 14J – Alan Johnson, 16.176, 7. 16 - Mike Bowman, 16.176, 8. 93 – Ryan Barlett
Heat 1 (8 Laps – Top-5 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 20 – Brett Hearn, 2. 8 - Rich Scagliotta, 3. 39 – Tim McCreadie, 4. 43 – Keith Flach, 5. 19W – Justin Wright, 6. 34 – Andrew Ferguson, 7. 33 – Mike Mahaney, 8. 21g – Kody Graham, 9. Y21 – Yan Bussiere.
Heat 2 (8 Laps – Top-5 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 99L – Larry Wight, 2. 44 – Stewart Friesen, 3. 6H – Max McLaughlin, 4. 84 – Gary Tompkins, 5. 5H – Chris Hile, 6. X – Chad Phelps, 7. 23 – Kyle Coffey, 8. 14 – C.G. Morey.
Heat 3 (8 Laps – Top-5 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 25 – Erick Rudolph, 2. 3 – Justin Haers, 3. 21a – Peter Britten, 4. 11r – Rob Bellinger, 5. 7x – Steve Paine, 6. 7m – Mike Maresca, 7. 22 – Brandon Walters, 8. 4 – Tim Murphy.
Heat 4 (8 Laps – Top-5 Qualify – Top-3 Redraw) - 1. 91 – Billy Decker, 2. 19 – Tim Fuller, 3. 98H – Jimmy Phelps, 4. 42p – Pat Ward, 5. 14J – Alan Johnson, 6. 109 – Billy Whittaker, 7. 93 – Ryan Bartlett, 8. 16 - Mike Bowman.
Last Chance Qualifier 1 (10 Laps – Six Transfer to Feature) – 1. 34 – Andrew Ferguson, 2. 109 – Billy Whittaker, 3. X – Chad Phelps, 4. 7m – Mike Maresca, 5. 22 – Brandon Walters, 6. 33 Mike Mahaney, 7. 23 – Kyle Coffey, 8. 93 – Bartlett, 9. 14 – C.G. Morey, 10. 16 – Mike Bowman, 11. 21g – Kody Graham, 12. 4 – Tim Murphy.
CONTINGENCY WINNERS: VP Racing Fuels ($50 Cash): Billy Decker; Pole Position Raceway Fast Time ($100 Cash): Billy Decker ; Bicknell Racing Products ($100 Product Certificate): Stewart Friesen; Cometic Gasket ($50 Cash): Steve Paine; Comp Cams ($50 Cash): Pat Ward; Comp Cams ($50 Product Certificate): Stewart Friesen; Edelbrock ($50 Cash): Pat Ward; Fox Racing Shocks ($50 Cash): Erick Rudolph; JE Pistons ($50 Cash): Peter Britten; JE Pistons (Product Certificate): Rich Scagloitta; JE Pistons (Product Certificate): Brandon Walters; KSE Racing Products Inc. ($50 Product Certificate): Gary Tompkins; MSD Ignition ($50 Cash): Stewart Friesen; MSD Ignition ($25 Cash): Justin Wright; SuperFlow Dynos & Flowbenches ($50 Cash): Rich Scagloitta; Wrisco Aluminum (Product Certificate): Stewart Friesen; JRI Shocks ($50 Cash): Max McLaughlin; Dig Safely 811 Redraw Bonus ($100 Cash): N/A; Speedy First Aid Hard Luck Award (Product Certificate): Jimmy Phelps; ASi Racewear ($50 Cash): Gary Tompkins.
SEASON WINNERS
Billy Decker - 2 (Fulton Speedway on April 29; Outlaw Speedway on June 20)
Ryan Watt – 1 (Bridgeport Speedway on May 16)
Matt Sheppard – 1 (Five Mile Point Speedway on June 11)
Tim McCreadie – 1 (Albany-Saratoga Speedway on June 27)
Stewart Friesen – 2 (Utica-Rome Speedway on July 2, Weedsport Speedway on July 11)
Larry Wight – 1 (Airborne Park Speedway on July 6)