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CLOUSER CLEARS COMPETITION FOR FIRST WAR WILDCARD WIN
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POWRi Racing
CLOUSER CLEARS COMPETITION FOR FIRST WAR WILDCARD WIN
BROWNSTOWN, IL (May 12, 2018) - Mario Clouser triumphed at Fayette County Speedway in Brownstown, Illinois with the POWRi Lucas Oil WAR Wildcard Sprint League to score his first ever sprint car win of his career over hard charging Thomas Meseraull (2nd) and Landon Simon (3rd).
At the start of the 25-lap feature event Mitch Wissmiller took the lead, but Meseraull would sneak by after a few laps were in the books. Meseraull held a comfortable lead until the yellow flag came out for Austin Sears who spun to a stop in turn four.
With one lapped car between race-leader Thomas Meseraull and second-running Landon Simon, the green flag would fly. Meseraull bobbled in turns three and four as his car bounced off the cushion and he somehow kept control to keep going. Simon chased Meseraull down the front straightaway with a momentum-filled run, he threw the slider at Meseraull who crossed back over and they drag raced down the back straightaway. Coming out of turns three and four Meseraull held the lead while Mario Clouser snuck by on the bottom in front of Simon across the line. Soon after, Logan Faucon flipped in turns three and four causing the red flag to be displayed. Faucon would walk away.
Three laps remained in the race with Meseraull still in the lead, Clouser followed him, Simon was third, Korey Weyant ran fourth, and Colten Cottle rounded out the top five. The green flag waved for the final time. Meseraull and Simon laid it all out on the line banging the cushion around the top of the racetrack giving it all they had, but neither could outrun Mario Clouser who found the sweet spot on the bottom groove of the racetrack late in the event.
"It's a great feeling!" Said Clouser in victory lane when asked how it felt to get his first WAR Wildcard win, "I was very close more than once last year to picking up a win, but something always managed to not go my way in the closing laps. It is awesome to finally be able to seal the deal on a win and to do it with some tough competition here tonight makes it even sweeter."
Mario would like to thank Yokohama Tires, Clouser Auto, and Napa of Auburn for their support to his race team.
The POWRi Lucas Oil WAR Wildcard Sprints are back in action Wednesday, May 30 alongside the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Cars at Fairbury American Legion Speedway in Fairbury, Illinois.
The Missouri-based POWRi Lucas Oil WAR Sprint League resumes its season with a two-day weekend coming up. WAR will head back to Lake Ozark Speedway in Eldon, Missouri for the second time this year on Saturday, May 26 followed by a much anticipated trip to Double X Speedway in California, Missouri on Sunday, May 27. Both events are points races for the POWRi Lucas Oil WAR Sprint League.
POWRi Lucas Oil WAR Wildcard Sprint League
5/12/18
Fayette County Speedway - 20 cars
Hinchman Racewear Heat 1 - 8 laps
1. 00-Thomas Meseraull, San Jose, CA (1); 2. 6-Mario Clouser, Auburn, IL (7); 3. 5C-Colten Cottle, Kansas, IL (4); 4. 11-James Lyerla, Hillsboro, IL (5); 5. 88-Terry Babb, Decatur, IL (3); 6. 16-Anthony Nicholson, Bartlett, TN (2); 7. N2-Nic Harris, Atlanta, IL (6)
Bell Helmets Heat 2 - 8 laps
1. 24-Landon Simon, Tipp City, OH (7); 2. 99-Korey Weyant, Springfield, IL (3); 3. 41-Brad Wyatt, Kearney, MO (4); 4. Austin Sears, Macomb, IL (6); 5. 20-Steve Thomas, Rantoul, IL (2); 6. 73-Trent Tackitt, Tuscola, IL (1); 7. 70-Pete Palazzolo, Ballwin, MO (5)
Schure Built Suspension Heat 3 - 8 laps
1. 22S-Slater Helt, Harrisonville, MO (1); 2. 77K-Katlynn Leer, Moulton, IA (3); 3. 1-Mitch Wissmiller, Saybrook, IL (6); 4. 99W-Robbie Standridge, Springfield, IL (2); 5. 52F-Logan Faucon, Elkhart, IL (4); 6. 2T-Willie Tackitt, Tuscola, IL (5)
POWRi Lucas Oil WAR Wildcard Sprints A-Main - 25 laps
1. 6-Mario Clouser (3); 2. 00-Thomas Meseraull (1); 3. 24-Landon Simon (4); 4. 99-Korey Weyant (6); 5. 5C-Colten Cottle (8); 6. 77K-Katlynn Leer (7); 7. 88-Terry Babb (14); 8. 22S-Slater Helt (5); 9. 16-Anthony Nicholson (17); 10. 11-James Lyerla (11); 11. 99W-Robbie Standridge (12); 12. 70-Pete Palazzolo (20); 13. 20-Steve Thomas (15); 14. 2T-Willie Tackitt (16); 15. Trent Tackitt (18); 16. 52F-Logan Faucon (13); 17. N2-Nic Harris (19); 18. 31-Austin Sears (10); 19. Mitch Wissmiller (2); 20. 41-Brad Wyatt (9)
ASCS National Sprint Series
Hafertepe Holds Off Swindell For Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series Victory At I-30 Speedway
Bryan Hulbert - LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (May 12, 2018) Scoring his first victory of the 2018 season with the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by Sawblade.com, Sam Hafertepe, Jr. had to hold off Sammy Swindell to get the job done at I-30 Speedway this past Saturday night.
Entering Saturday fourth in tour standings, Sam leaves I-30 Speedway tied with Seth Bergman for the National Tour point's lead with the nod to Bergman who has a pair of wins on the season.
"For the fifth night on this car, we're making strides. Jack Elam called me, and he asked if there was anything he could do, and I said it wasn't anything a little wrench won't fix. We've been working hard the last couple days. We were really disgusted after Lakeside to start on the front row and fall back like we did, but to come out tonight and start fifth and get to the front it was awesome, and winning on Mother's Day Weekend, I have to just thank my Mom and wish her a Happy Mother's Day."
Taking the lead with a Lap 15 pass through turns three and four on race long leader Derek Hagar, the two-time National Tour Champion was joined at the front by Swindell on Lap 18. Clawing his way to second from the 16th starting spot, a restart with three laps to go locked Sammy on the back bumper of the Heidbreder Foundation No. 15h.
"Sammy just had an unfortunate Heat Race. It was one of the last ones where the track changed to the bottom where it was hard to pass, so that's why he had to start that far back, but I knew he'd be coming. He's got this track's number and we all know that he's the guy we have to hold off no matter if he started 16th of 20th, he'd be coming," stated Sam on the front straightaway.
Hafertepe's 31st career Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by Sawblade.com triumph, the second attempt at green after Harli White spun in the first and second turns put Sam to third behind Derek Hagar and Wayne Johnson to start things off.
Working Lap 2, the red lights blinked on as Seth Bergman flipped going into turn three. Seth was unharmed, and the race resumed with Hagar starting to put distance over the field. Still chasing Wayne Johnson for second, Hafertepe worked multiple grooves with the No. 2c able to hold until Lap 11 when the cushion in the first turn bit, and sent Wayne flying. Able to stay upright, Wayne rejoined at the tail.
Taking over second with Sammy Swindell already up to third, Hafertepe kept pace with the No. 9jr before finally diving to the lead through the third and fourth turns on Lap 15. Caution working Lap 17 for Skylar Gee who slowed drastically in turn-three with the field bearing down, the laps rolled back to 16 complete with Hafertepe taking off with the lead.
Slowed again on Lap 19, Swindell was all over Hafertepe for the lead. Able to utilize the center through turns one and two to keep his momentum up, Swindell pulled even with Sam at one point, but would not be able to complete the pass.
Never out of striking distance, it was high-speed chess as the pair began racing among the back makers, only to have the caution waved for the final time with three laps to run.
Taking the center through the first and second turns to try and get a run on Hafertepe for the lead, Swindell still trailed with all other attempts coming up short.
Sammy's 33rd career podium finish with the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by Sawblade.com, the wily veteran was joined by three-time National Tour Champion, Tim Crawley, who advanced from the 11th starting spot. Along with Sammy, the "Crawdaddy" was among the few who could make the top of the track work in the feature.
Derek Hagar held on to finish fourth with Marshall Skinner making up the top-five. Picking up the CP-Carrillo Hard Charger of the Night, Howard Moore advanced position 15 times to finish sixth. Oklahoma's Tyler Thomas from 15th crossed seventh with Blake Hahn eighth. Matt Covington put on a charge from 17th to ninth with Johnny Herrera finishing 10th.
Overall, 38 drivers took to the I-30 Speedway on Saturday night. Heats numbered five with Sam Hafertepe, Jr., Derek Hagar, Travis Rilat, Blake Hahn, and Dale Howard picking up wins. A pair of BMRS B-Features went to Cody Gardner and Matt Covington. Two Owner Points Provisionals were used by Roger Crockett and Scott Bogucki. One Regional provisional was awarded to Kevin Hinkle.
Next for the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by Sawblade.com will be the start to Speedweek at West Texas Raceway in Lubbock, Texas on June 8.
For other news, notes, and information on the American Sprint Car Series, from the National Tour to any of the Regional Tours that make up the over 150 across the ASCS Nation in 2018, log onto www.ascsracing.com, follow on Facebook, on Instagram, and on Twitter (@LucasOilASCS).
Race Results:
Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour
ASCS Mid-South Region
I-30 Speedway - Little Rock, Ark.
Saturday, May 12, 2018
Car Count: 38
Heat Races (Top 16 in Passing Points advance to the A-Feature. Top 8 Redraw)
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 15H-Sam Hafertepe Jr, [2]; 2. 2C-Wayne Johnson, [4]; 3. 99-Skylar Gee, [5]; 4. 91T-Tyler Thomas, [6]; 5. 88R-Cody Gardner, [7]; 6. 32X-Robert Richardson, [3]; 7. (DNF) 27-Curt Terrell, [1]; 8. (DNF) 2H-Wally Henson, [8]
Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 9JR-Derek Hagar, [1]; 2. 23-Seth Bergman, [5]; 3. 21-Robbie Price, [6]; 4. 17W-Harli White, [7]; 5. 32M-Adam Miller, [2]; 6. 28-Scott Bogucki, [8]; 7. 6-Dustin Gates, [3]; 8. 31W-Justin Webb, [4]
Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 1-Travis Rilat, [1]; 2. 1X-Tim Crawley, [3]; 3. 44-Chris Martin, [2]; 4. 95-Matt Covington, [4]; 5. 40-Howard Moore, [5]; 6. 8Z-Zach Pringle, [8]; 7. 11-Roger Crockett, [6]; 8. 21B-Brandon Hinkle, [7]
Heat 4 (8 Laps): 1. 52-Blake Hahn, [1]; 2. 26-Marshall Skinner, [4]; 3. 45X-Johnny Herrera, [7]; 4. D6-Dakota Gaines, [2]; 5. 21K-Kevin Hinkle, [3]; 6. 77X-Alex Hill, [6]; 7. 4-Tommy Snellgrove, [5];
Heat 5 (8 Laps): 1. 47-Dale Howard, [1]; 2. 5J-Jamie Ball, [2]; 3. 91A-Ernie Ainsworth, [3]; 4. 3-Sammy Swindell, [6]; 5. 38-Rick Pringle, [4]; 6. X-Charlie Louden, [7]; 7. 12T-Joe Young, [5]
BMRS B-Features (Top 3 in each advance to the A-Feature)
B Feature 1 (12 Laps): 1. 88R-Cody Gardner, [1]; 2. 44-Chris Martin, [2]; 3. 8Z-Zach Pringle, [4]; 4. 21B-Brandon Hinkle, [10]; 5. 31W-Justin Webb, [11]; 6. 11-Roger Crockett, [8]; 7. 77X-Alex Hill, [7]; 8. 21K-Kevin Hinkle, [6]; 9. 12T-Joe Young, [9]; 10. (DNF) 38-Rick Pringle, [5]; 11. (DNF) D6-Dakota Gaines, [3]
B Feature 2 (12 Laps): 1. 95-Matt Covington, [2]; 2. 91A-Ernie Ainsworth, [1]; 3. 40-Howard Moore, [4]; 4. 28-Scott Bogucki, [3]; 5. X-Charlie Louden, [5]; 6. 32M-Adam Miller, [6]; 7. 6-Dustin Gates, [9]; 8. 2H-Wally Henson, [11]; 9. 32X-Robert Richardson, [7]; 10. 27-Curt Terrell, [10]; 11. (DNF) 4-Tommy Snellgrove, [8]
Protect the Harvest A-Feature:
A Feature (30 Laps): 1. 15H-Sam Hafertepe Jr, [5]; 2. 3-Sammy Swindell, [16]; 3. 1X-Tim Crawley, [11]; 4. 9JR-Derek Hagar, [2]; 5. 26-Marshall Skinner, [6]; 6. 40-Howard Moore, [21]; 7. 91T-Tyler Thomas, [15]; 8. 52-Blake Hahn, [9]; 9. 95-Matt Covington, [17]; 10. 45X-Johnny Herrera, [8]; 11. 1-Travis Rilat, [7]; 12. 44-Chris Martin, [20]; 13. 17W-Harli White, [13]; 14. 88R-Cody Gardner, [18]; 15. 91A-Ernie Ainsworth, [19]; 16. 99-Skylar Gee, [12]; 17. 2C-Wayne Johnson, [3]; 18. 21K-Kevin Hinkle, [25]; 19. (DNF) 5J-Jamie Ball, [14]; 20. (DNF) 8Z-Zach Pringle, [22]; 21. (DNF) 11-Roger Crockett, [24]; 22. (DNF) 21-Robbie Price, [1]; 23. (DNF) 23-Seth Bergman, [4]; 24. (DNF) 47-Dale Howard, [10]; 25. (DNF) 28-Scott Bogucki, [23]
Lap Leader(s): Derek Hagar 1-15; Sam Hafertepe, Jr. 16-30
CP-Carrillo Hard Charger: Howard Moore +15
FSR High Point Driver: Seth Bergman
Provisional(s): Scott Bogucki / Roger Crockett / Kevin Hinkle (Regional)
2018 ASCS National Driver Points (Top 15): 1. Seth Bergman 1,064; 2. Sam Hafertepe, Jr. 1,064; 3. Wayne Johnson 1,042; 4. Johnny Herrera1,029; 5. Blake Hahn 1,019; 6. Matt Covington 925; 7. Skylar Gee 886; 8. Scott Bogucki 858; 9. Roger Crockett 855; 10. Jamie Ball 845; 11. Robbie Price 811; 12. Harli White; 796; 13. Chris Martin 746; 14. Alex Hill 746; 15. Tony Stewart 642;
2018 ASCS National Tour Wins: Seth Bergman - 2 (4/6 - Texas Motor Speedway; 5/10 - Lakeside Speedway); Roger Crockett - 1 (3/16 - Devil's Bowl Speedway); Brady Bacon - 1 (4/7 - Texas Motor Speedway); Matt Covington - 1 (4/27 - Paducah International Raceway); Greg Hodnett - 1 (5/4 - Williams Grove Speedway) ; Blake Heimbach - 1 (5/5 - Selinsgrove Speedway); Wayne Johnson - 1 (5/9 - Humboldt Speedway); Sam Hafertepe, Jr. - 1 (5/12 - I-30 Speedway);
WINDOM WAXES ‘EM AT ELDORA’S #LETSRACETWO
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The United States Auto Club.
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Contact: Richie Murray - USAC Media / richie@usacracing.com
Chris Windom captured Saturday night's #LetsRaceTwo USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car feature at Eldora Speedway. (Ryan Sellers Photo)
WINDOM WAXES 'EM AT ELDORA'S #LETSRACETWO
By: Richie Murray - USAC Media
Rossburg, Ohio....May 12, 2018 -For Chris Windom, this is supposed to be his big May. The reigning USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car champ has a jampacked schedule of short track races across the Midwest to compete in and is on the verge of his first start at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
If Saturday night's #LetsRaceTwo at Eldora Speedway was any indication of how this May will play out for the Canton, Ill. native, this month will truly be one to remember.
Windom took the lead from Kevin Thomas, Jr. on the fourth lap of the 30-lap feature at the western Ohio half-mile dirt oval and went on to hammer home USAC victory number one for 2018 and his first Sprint Car win at the track since 2013.
Rain was on the forecast and urgency was at the forefront as the show was pushed along to defeat Mother Nature. Yet it was Thomas who initially looked like the one to take the bull by the horns at the start, splitting between Chase Stockon and Windom just past the flag stand, then sliding up in front of pole sitter Joe Stornetta to grab the lead by turn one.
Windom immediately charged forth and tried to redeem a two-for-one discount coupon, sliding by Stornetta and Thomas in quick succession entering turn three to briefly snare the top spot before Thomas ducked back underneath to regain control exiting the fourth turn.
The first big incident of the night occurred in turn two on the third lap when 11th-running Justin Grant and another car made contact, sending the Ione, Calif. native on a wild ride that he would walk away from unscathed.
On the ensuing restart, more trouble ensued when third-running Stornetta climbed the outside wall between turns three and four and cartwheeled several times before coming to rest near the bottom of turn four. The series Rookie making just his second start at Eldora escaped injury.
'We've had a lot of good runs. I think we've had four or five podium finishes so far, but you get sick of those after a while and you just want to win a race. It's awesome to start it here!' - Chris Windom (Ryan Sellers Photo)
On the restart, Windom got up on the wheel once again and went on the attack, running down Thomas with a successful turn one slider. Thomas fought back on both ends of the racetrack with a two-pack of sliders, to no avail.
"I don't know if there was urgency, but clean air here, even in a non-wing car, is crucial," Windom pointed out. "With the dust, and watching guys mess up on the cushion, it's just a lot easier being in the lead. I knew that the slider line (Thomas) was running would work on restarts, but I thought if I could get up and start getting my momentum going up top, it'd be better, and it was. When I saw the opportunity, I just took it. I wanted to get out to the lead and get away from everybody as quick as possible. Obviously, it helps with the great racecar (crew chief) Derek Claxton gave me."
Though it appeared Windom and the Baldwin Brothers Racing team had the "it" factor going on from the get-go, it wasn't initially clear to Windom how well his car was going to react as the race wore on at a feisty joint like "The Big E."
"The first couple of laps, I didn't know how great my car was with the way we were sliding ourselves," Windom admitted. "Once we started rolling the top, I knew the car was really good. As long as I didn't mess up on my end, it was going to be tough for anyone to get to us. This place is just so mentally and physically demanding. Running the cushion like that is tough to do for 30 laps."
By halfway, Windom's lead was a full-straightaway - a country mile, if you will - as a pack that included Stockon, Tyler Courtney, Robert Ballou and Friday night winner Brady Bacon sorted out the runner-up spot lap-after-lap with Courtney finally able to emerge with the second position on the 19th lap. But, by then, Windom's lead was a nearly insurmountable 4.843 seconds. It was a lead so large that Windom was unaware of how large it actually was.
"I didn't know I had that big of a lead," Windom exclaimed. "I knew we were pretty good, but when you start getting into lapped traffic, every little lapped car can slow you down just enough. It's such a momentum racetrack for a guy to catch you. You have to be slow and methodical through lapped traffic, but you can't let up too much. I tried to pick them off as quickly as I could and tried to get some guys between me and second."
By race's end, Windom had lapped up to eighth place. Courtney was able to make up some ground as Windom got hung up while threading the needle through traffic. But the hang-up was a brief one and not nearly enough to stall Windom as he finished hammering the proverbial nail, winning by a margin of 2.3 seconds over Courtney, Stockon, Bacon and Ballou.
"We've had a lot of good runs," Windom recalled. "I think we've had four or five podium finishes so far, but you get sick of those after a while and you just want to win a race. It's awesome to start it here!"
Contingency award winners Saturday night at Eldora Speedway included Chase Stockon (Simpson Race Products First Heat Winner), Chris Windom (Competition Suspension, Inc. Second Heat Winner), Kevin Thomas, Jr. (Chalk Stix/Indy Race Parts Third Heat Winner), Paul Dues (KSE Racing Products Hard Charger), Chad Boespflug (Wilwood Brakes 13th Place Finisher) and Isaac Chapple (Roger & Barb Tapy 13th Fastest Qualifier).
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USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP RACE RESULTS: May 12, 2018 - Rossburg, Ohio - Eldora Speedway - "#LetsRaceTwo"
QUALIFICATIONS: 1. C.J. Leary, 30, Leary-15.940; 2. Tyler Courtney, 7BC, Clauson/Marshall/Newman-16.048; 3. Kevin Thomas Jr., 69, Dynamics-16.086; 4. Chase Stockon, 32, 32 TBI-16.135; 5. Chris Windom, 5, Baldwin-16.181; 6. Joe Stornetta, 44, Pace-16.182; 7. Justin Grant, 4, TOPP-16.205; 8. Robert Ballou, 12, Ballou-16.284; 9. Chad Boespflug, 98, NineEight-16.300; 10. Brady Bacon, 99, Bacon-16.385; 11. Dave Darland, 36D, Goodnight/Curb-Agajanian-16.460; 12. Matt Westfall, 33m, Marshall-16.609; 13. Isaac Chapple, 52, LNR/Chapple-16.706; 14. Dallas Hewitt, 18, Keen-16.772; 15. Kyle Cummins, 3c, EZR/Cummins-16.924; 16. Bill Rose, 6, Rose-17.023; 17. Chad Wilson, 14, Wilson-17.106; 18. Carmen Perigo, 21, Stehman-17.135; 19. Matt Goodnight, 39, Goodnight-17.444; 20. Paul Dues, 87, Dues-17.691; 21. Riley VanHise, 96, VanHise-17.868.
SIMPSON RACE PRODUCTS FIRST HEAT: (8 laps, all transfer) 1. Stockon, 2. Bacon, 3. Rose, 4. Grant, 5. Leary, 6. Chapple, 7. Goodnight. 2:19.73
COMPETITION SUSPENSION (CSI) SECOND HEAT: (8 laps, all transfer) 1. Windom, 2. Ballou, 3. Courtney, 4. Darland, 5. Hewitt, 6. Dues, 7. Wilson. 2:18.57
CHALK STIX/INDY RACE PARTS THIRD HEAT: (8 laps, all transfer) 1. Thomas, 2. Stornetta, 3. Perigo, 4. Westfall, 5. Boespflug, 6. Cummins, 7. VanHise. 2:26.50
FEATURE: (30 laps - starting position in parentheses) 1. Chris Windom (2), 2. Tyler Courtney (5), 3. Chase Stockon (3), 4. Brady Bacon (10), 5. Robert Ballou (8), 6. Kevin Thomas, Jr. (4), 7. C.J. Leary (6), 8. Matt Westfall (12), 9. Kyle Cummins (15), 10. Dallas Hewitt (14), 11. Dave Darland (11), 12. Paul Dues (20), 13. Chad Boespflug (9), 14. Carmen Perigo (18), 15. Chad Wilson (17), 16. Isaac Chapple (13), 17. Riley VanHise (21), 18. Bill Rose (16), 19. Matt Goodnight (19), 20. Joe Stornetta (1), 21. Justin Grant (7). NT
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**Grant flipped on lap 3 of the feature. Stornetta flipped on lap 3 of the feature.
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-3 Thomas, Laps 4-30 Windom.
KSE RACING PRODUCTS HARD CHARGER: Paul Dues (20th to 12th)
WILWOOD BRAKES 13TH PLACE FINISHER: Chad Boespflug
ROGER & BARB TAPY 13TH FASTEST QUALIFIER: Isaac Chapple
NEW USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS: 1-Thomas-572, 2-Windom-556, 3-Courtney-523, 4-Leary-494, 5-Stockon-486, 6-Ballou-476, 7-Darland-469, 8-Bacon-452, 9-Grant-426, 10-Boespflug-384.
NEXT USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP RACES: May 18 - Granite City, Illinois - Tri-City Speedway & May 19 - Pevely, Missouri - Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 - "River Town Showdown"
Donny Schatz Sweeps Outlaw Portion of Let’s Race Two Weekend at Eldora
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World of Outlaws
Contact: Anthony Corini
World of Outlaws PR
408-825-3360 | acorini@dirtcar.com
Please click here for the original World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series article
Donny Schatz Sweeps Outlaw Portion of Let’s Race Two Weekend at Eldora
ROSSBURG, OH – May 12, 2018 – The man is on a roll. Donny Schatz completed the weekend sweep of the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series portion of Let’s Race Two at Eldora Speedway holding off Logan Schuchart for the second consecutive night. It was Schatz’ eighth win of the 2018 season and fourth in his last five starts as he continues to extend his lead atop the Series Point Standings in search of his 10th Outlaw Championship.
Schatz won the Sears Craftsman Dash and shared the front row with Parker Price-Miller. It was PPM getting the jump on the start as the Indiana native set the pace for the first four laps on the cushion before Schatz took command of the field on the fifth circuit on the bottom.
Schuchart just barely edged Price-Miller to the line on Lap 7, which was significant because the caution flew for Sheldon Haudenschild, lining Schuchart to the outside of Schatz. Haudenschild, who entered the evening third in the World of Outlaws Point Standings, was unable to return to action.
The restart saw Schatz and Schuchart put a straightaway back to the rest of the field, as the duo, who finished first and second a night ago, were once again the class of the field. Schuchart was able to keep his Shark Racing No.1S glued to the bottom of the Eldora Speedway racing surface and close in on Schatz.
But, catching Donny Schatz and passing Donny Schatz are two entirely different things. Every time it appeared Schuchart may have a run to get underneath Schatz, the Fargo, ND native would go to the bottom, forcing Schuchart to the top. Schuchart’s No.1S was not as strong on the cushion, allowing Schatz to maintain the lead each time.
With consecutive Green Flag action, lapped traffic played a factor. Schatz reminded everyone why he is the nine-time and defending Series Champion with his prowess through a maze of lapped cars. Schuchart, an Outlaw winner at Eldora last year, stayed right with Schatz every step and just as he was about to pull even with the Champion, the caution flew for an ailing Spencer Bayston with five laps remaining.
With five or fewer laps remaining in the Feature, the start was single-file. Schuchart and third-place running Aaron Reutzel both stayed with Schatz on the restart, but Donny was too strong and went on to take the checkered flag 1.536 seconds ahead of Schuchart.
“We love lapped traffic. That’s where races are won and lost,” Schatz said in Victory Lane when prompted about the close-quartered racing action. “My guys are incredible. We keep working, keep digging and keep finding ways to be up here at the end of the night,” Schatz added before expressing his thanks to the fans for coming out and thanking the track and officials for running an accelerated program to beat Mother Nature.
When asked about the close racing with Schuchart, Schatz referenced an old tale from his father, “If you are worried about what is behind you, you are going to have a hell of a time handling what’s in front of you. I’ve always raced like that and tonight was no different.”
Schuchart was pleased with his second consecutive runner-up finish. “It was a lot of fun racing up there. I know my heart was pumping, it was hard to stay calm,” the upbeat Hanover, PA native said. “What a great weekend for us. Two podiums and if you are going to finish second to someone, that’s a hell of a team to finish behind. They are incredible, but we are going to try and keep working hard to beat them,” Schuchart added.
Reutzel’s 2018 speed continued as he followed up last night’s disappointment of wrecking while leading with a podium finish. “I probably should have been a little more aggressive on the top, but we definitely wanted to finish after last night,” the Texan and current All-Star point leader said.
Kraig Kinser had an impressive 15th to fourth run for his best finish of the season with Tim Shaffer completing the top five. Early race leader Parker Price-Miller settled for sixth with Kerry Madsen, 17th-starting Brad Sweet, 22nd-starting Ian Madsen and 24th-starting Daryn Pittman completing the top ten. Pittman claimed KSE Hard Charger honors for the second consecutive night.
The Greatest Show on Dirt continues its 40th Anniversary Season with a haul to the Hoosier State for a third-attempt at racing at Tri-State Speedway in Haubstadt, IN tomorrow evening Sunday, May 13. After that, the Series will head to Central Pennsylvania to take on the tough Pennsylvania Posse at Lincoln Speedway on May 16 and at Williams Grove on May 18 and 19. If you can’t make it to the track, be sure to watch all the action LIVE on DIRTVision.com!
Results from Eldora Speedway: May 12, 2018
Feature (30 Laps): 1. 15-Donny Schatz [1][$10,000]; 2. 1S-Logan Schuchart [3][$5,000]; 3. 87-Aaron Reutzel [4][$3,000]; 4. 11K-Kraig Kinser [15][$2,700]; 5. 49X-Tim Shaffer [6][$2,500]; 6. 4-Parker Price-Miller [2][$2,200]; 7. 2M-Kerry Madsen [5][$2,000]; 8. 49-Brad Sweet [17][$1,800]; 9. 18-Ian Madsen [22][$1,600]; 10. 9-Daryn Pittman [24][$1,450]; 11. 7S-Jason Sides [8][$1,300]; 12. 41-Jason Johnson [10][$1,200]; 13. 99-Brady Bacon [23][$1,100]; 14. 5-David Gravel [7][$1,000]; 15. 2-Shane Stewart [19][$950]; 16. 1A-Jacob Allen [18][$900]; 17. 26-Joey Saldana [14][$850]; 18. 24-Rico Abreu [13][$750]; 19. 13X-Paul McMahan [9][$725]; 20. 10H-Chad Kemenah [20][$700]; 21. 19-Brent Marks [21][$700]; 22. 39-Spencer Bayston [16][$700]; 23. 12N-Cole Duncan [12][$700]; 24. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [11][$700]; Lap Leaders: Parker Price-Miller 1-4, Donny Schatz 5-30; KSE Hard Charger Award: 9-Daryn Pittman[+14]
Qualifying: 1. 5-David Gravel, 12.91; 2. 2M-Kerry Madsen, 12.939; 3. 15-Donny Schatz, 12.949; 4. 87-Aaron Reutzel, 13.007; 5. 1S-Logan Schuchart, 13.032; 6. 7S-Jason Sides, 13.051; 7. 4-Parker Price-Miller, 13.057; 8. 49X-Tim Shaffer, 13.057; 9. 13X-Paul McMahan, 13.06; 10. 44-Trey Starks, 13.068; 11. 2-Shane Stewart, 13.076; 12. 12N-Cole Duncan, 13.076; 13. 24-Rico Abreu, 13.092; 14. 41-Jason Johnson, 13.101; 15. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild, 13.109; 16. 39-Spencer Bayston, 13.12; 17. 49-Brad Sweet, 13.152; 18. 26-Joey Saldana, 13.194; 19. 11K-Kraig Kinser, 13.199; 20. 10H-Chad Kemenah, 13.206; 21. 19-Brent Marks, 13.209; 22. 1A-Jacob Allen, 13.214; 23. 9-Daryn Pittman, 13.233; 24. 18-Ian Madsen, 13.251; 25. 99-Brady Bacon, 13.27; 26. 57-Gary Taylor, 13.296; 27. 3-Jac Haudenschild, 13.339; 28. 49D-Shawn Dancer, 13.395; 29. 45-Trevor Baker, 13.439; 30. 17C-Caleb Helms, 13.512; 31. 22M-Dan McCarron, 13.569; 32. 28-Brian Paulus, 13.603; 33. W20-Greg Wilson, 13.658; 34. 13-Clyde Knipp, 13.698; 35. 5QB-Quentin Blonde, 13.948; 36. 83-Cory Eliason, 14.283
Heat #1 (8 Laps) - Top 5 Transfer: 1. 1S-Logan Schuchart [2]; 2. 5-David Gravel [1]; 3. 13X-Paul McMahan [3]; 4. 24-Rico Abreu [4]; 5. 49-Brad Sweet [5]; 6. 99-Brady Bacon [7]; 7. 19-Brent Marks [6]; 8. 45-Trevor Baker [8]; 9. W20-Greg Wilson [9]
Heat #2 (8 Laps) - Top 5 Transfer: 1. 2M-Kerry Madsen [1]; 2. 7S-Jason Sides [2]; 3. 41-Jason Johnson [4]; 4. 26-Joey Saldana [5]; 5. 1A-Jacob Allen [6]; 6. 57-Gary Taylor [7]; 7. 44-Trey Starks [3]; 8. 13-Clyde Knipp [9]; 9. 17C-Caleb Helms [8]
Heat #3 (8 Laps) - Top 5 Transfer: 1. 15-Donny Schatz [1]; 2. 4-Parker Price-Miller [2]; 3. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [4]; 4. 11K-Kraig Kinser [5]; 5. 2-Shane Stewart [3]; 6. 3-Jac Haudenschild [7]; 7. 9-Daryn Pittman [6]; 8. 22M-Dan McCarron [8]; 9. 5QB-Quentin Blonde [9]
Heat #4 (8 Laps) - Top 5 Transfer: 1. 87-Aaron Reutzel [1]; 2. 49X-Tim Shaffer [2]; 3. 12N-Cole Duncan [3]; 4. 39-Spencer Bayston [4]; 5. 10H-Chad Kemenah [5]; 6. 18-Ian Madsen [6]; 7. 83-Cory Eliason [9]; 8. 28-Brian Paulus [8]; 9. 49D-Shawn Dancer [7]
Sears Craftsman Dash (6 Laps): 1. 15-Donny Schatz [2]; 2. 4-Parker Price-Miller [1]; 3. 1S-Logan Schuchart [8]; 4. 87-Aaron Reutzel [3]; 5. 2M-Kerry Madsen [6]; 6. 49X-Tim Shaffer [4]; 7. 5-David Gravel [5]; 8. 7S-Jason Sides [7]
Last Chance Showdown (12 Laps) - Top 4 Transfer: 1. 19-Brent Marks [2][-]; 2. 18-Ian Madsen [4][-]; 3. 99-Brady Bacon [5][-]; 4. 9-Daryn Pittman [3][-]; 5. 44-Trey Starks [1][$300]; 6. 57-Gary Taylor [6][$250]; 7. W20-Greg Wilson [13][$225]; 8. 3-Jac Haudenschild [7][$200]; 9. 83-Cory Eliason [16][$200]; 10. 45-Trevor Baker [9][$200]; 11. 22M-Dan McCarron [11][$200]; 12. 28-Brian Paulus [12][$200]; 13. 5QB-Quentin Blonde [15][$200]; 14. 13-Clyde Knipp [14][$200]; 15. 49D-Shawn Dancer [8][$200]; 16. 17C-Caleb Helms [10][$200]
Ryan Robinson’s First Career POWRi Win Comes at Jacksonville Speedway
Posted by: | Comments- POWRi Racing
Ryan Robinson’s First Career POWRi Win Comes at Jacksonville Speedway
Jacksonville, IL ..5/11/2018– Ryan Robinson of Foresthill, California was deemed the winner of the POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget League feature event at Jacksonville Speedway after fellow Keith Kunz/Curb-Agajanian Motorsports teammate Tucker Klaasmeyer was penalized for jumping out of line on a late race restart. Jacksonville was night one of the two day Midwest Season Opener weekend. Saturday’s show is at Macon Speedway.
Starting outside the sixth row, the initial start was called back after Presley Truedson spun in turns three and four, collecting half a dozen cars. On a clean restart, Robinson moved into the fifth position while Tucker Klaasmeyer commanded the lead. Logan Seavey took command on lap 11 and held the lead as the laps wound down.
Robinson came on strong within 10-to-go and started battling it out with Klaasmeyer and race leader Logan Seavey. In the final laps, a caution flew with two-to-go for Brayton Lynch who collected Tyler Vantoll.
Winner Ryan Robinson (POWRi Photo)
Returning to racing Klaasmeyer jumped out of line on the restart and was docked a position at the finish, delegating Ryan Robinson the winner after Seavey was shuffled back to third. Jason McDougal took fourth, while Joe B. Miller rounded out the podium.
“All three of us up front and throwing sliders is really fun,” commented Ryan Robinson. “Keith and Big Al put a great car together. I hope the fans enjoyed that. We’ve been fast all year.”
Midgets
Speedway Motors Heat Race Winners:
Heat 1: 71 - RYAN ROBINSON,
Heat 2: 77 - ALEX BRIGHT,
Heat 3: 5T - PRESLEY TRUEDSON,
Heat 4: 27 - TUCKER KLAASMEYER
Toyota Semi Feature Winners: 71K - TANNER CARRICK
Mesilla Valley Transportation Feature Winner: 71 - RYAN ROBINSON
POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget League Feature Results (30 laps): 1. 71 - RYAN ROBINSON 2. 27 - TUCKER KLAASMEYER 3. 67 - LOGAN SEAVEY 4. 15 - JASON MCDOUGAL 5. 51B - JOE B MILLER 6. 67K - HOLLY SHELTON 7. 7F - ANDREW FELKER 8. 3N - JAKE NEUMAN 9. 71K - TANNER CARRICK 10. 1K - BRAYTON LYNCH 11. 79 - BLAKE CARRICK 12. 77W - JOEY WIRTH 13. 14JR - HOLLEY HOLLAN 14. 72 - SAM JOHNSON 15. 30T - TYLER VANTOLL 16. 77 - ALEX BRIGHT 17. 21KS - KARTER SARFF 18. 103 - BROC HUNNELL 19. 5T - PRESLEY TRUEDSON 20. 5D - ZACH DAUM 21. 55 - NICK KNEPPER 22. 9K - KYLE SCHUETT 23. 3B - SHELBY BOSIE
For further information, visit www.powri.com, “Like” POWRi on Facebook and follow @POWRi_Racing on Twitter.
Schatz Scores Third Win in Last Four Starts on Night One of Let’s Race Two at Eldora
Posted by: | CommentsWorld of Outlaws
Contact: Anthony Corini
World of Outlaws PR
408-825-3360 | acorini@dirtcar.com
Please click here for the original World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series article
Schatz Scores Third Win in Last Four Starts on Night One of Let’s Race Two at Eldora
ROSSBURG, OH – May 11, 2018 – Donny Schatz inherited the lead on Lap 14 and held off a late race charge from Logan Schuchart to claim the victory on the opening night of the Let’s Race Two weekend at Eldora Speedway. It was Schatz’ 7th win of the 2018, extending his point lead atop the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series Point Standings. Schuchart finished second with Brad Sweet finishing third.
Ohio native Cole Duncan set fast time over the 37-car field, won his heat race and was victorious in the Sears Craftsman Dash to earn the pole for the 30-lap Feature. Duncan, in search of his first career World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series victory, shared the front row with legend and fellow Buckeye Jac Haudenschild, who was seeking his 74th career Outlaw victory.
It was Haudenschild getting the jump at the tip of the Green and leading the opening circuit. Third-starting Donny Schatz swooped underneath Duncan to take second the following lap. Haudenschild, or more often referred to as ‘The Wild Child’, lived up to his nickname every bit as he flirted with the dangerous cushion and was up against the wall fending off Schatz narrowly at the line for the first five laps in exciting fashion.
A Lap 6 caution for Hunter Schuerenberg halted the action and bunched the field together. On the restart, Schatz, on the bottom, remained right with Haudenschild, but this time sixth-starting Aaron Reutzel was right in tow. The trio sliced and diced their way as they battled for the lead, utilizing every inch of the Eldora Speedway racing surface.
On Lap 11, Reutzel made an eye-catching move going around the nine-time Series Champion before going wheel-to-wheel with Haudenschild and pulling even with The Wild Child on the front stretch, trailing him by .005 at the conclusion of the 11th circuit. Reutzel would take command of the field on Lap 12.
Schatz continued to jockey with Haudenschild, which allowed Reutzel, who scored his first career Outlaw win earlier this season at Tulare, to put a couple car-lengths between himself and Schatz and Haudenschild. Schatz finally wrestled the runner-up spot away from Haudenschild on Lap 13 and set his eyes on the Texas native for the lead on what promised to be a great battle.
Disaster struck for Reutzel on Lap 14, as he bobbled just enough on the thin Eldora Speedway cushion to lose the handle on his No.87, before making heavy contact with the outside retaining wall, ending his night. Schatz and Haudenschild both showed their veteran prowess avoiding Reutzel’s ailing machine as it bounced back into the racing line. Reutzel was uninjured in the accident and expressed his apologies to his race team stating the dangerous Eldora cushion got the better of him tonight.
One lap later, David Gravel was left nowhere to go and spun in turn two, creating a logjam that included Carson Macedo, Rico Abreu and Joey Saldana. Gravel and Abreu were able to make repairs, but Macedo and Saldana’s nights both came to an end.
The action remained intense on the restart as cars scattered around the Eldora racing surface. Brad Sweet had an excellent restart and moved into the runner-up position and nearly completed a slider on Schatz for the lead, to no avail as the Fargo, ND native powered around Sweet on the cushion.
Eighth-starting Logan Schuchart began making the bottom work and took the runner-up spot away from Sweet with eight laps remaining. Schuchart closed in on Schatz, who made a daring move splitting lapped cars, to extend the lead once again just as Schuchart was preparing to bid for the lead. Schuchart, who won during last year’s Let’s Race Two event at Eldora, closed in one last time with two laps remaining, but Schatz was too strong and took the checkered flag 1.041 seconds in front of the Hanover, PA native with Sweet completing the podium.
“I had a good car, we played around a little and tried something different, but this team just continues to work. We probably weren’t the best car tonight, but we are here standing with the checkered flag,” Schatz said in Victory Lane. When asked about Reutzel’s move for the lead and crash, Schatz said, “He was really fast, but he wore it out. That’s the big part of racing with the World of Outlaws. You’ve got to finish races to win the Championship and sometimes you can’t go as hard to make sure you finish these races.
Schatz also praised the Eldora Speedway track crew, “Everyone has a different perspective of what is a good race or not. There were multiple grooves and guys were making moves all over the place and that’s really all you can ask for.”
Jac Haudenschild settled for fourth with Duncan completing the top five. Gary Taylor, who was as high as second at one point, faded late to sixth. Sheldon Haudenschild came forward to seventh with 14th-starting Jason Johnson, 26th-starting Daryn Pittman and Kerry Madsen completing the top ten. Pittman’s effort was good enough to earn KSE Hard Charger honors, advancing 17 positions. Brady Bacon was the lone driver to compete in both portions of the Let’s Race Two. Bacon was victorious with USAC by nearly five seconds and finished 16th with the wing on in the Feature.
The Let’s Race Two weekend at Eldora Speedway wraps up tomorrow night Saturday, May 12. If you can’t make it to the track, be sure to catch all the action live on DIRTVision.com!
Results from Eldora Speedway: May 11, 2018
Feature (30 Laps): 1. 15-Donny Schatz [3][$10,000]; 2. 1S-Logan Schuchart [8][$5,000]; 3. 49-Brad Sweet [5][$3,000]; 4. 3-Jac Haudenschild [2][$2,700]; 5. 12N-Cole Duncan [1][$2,500]; 6. 57-Gary Taylor [7][$2,200]; 7. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [11][$2,000]; 8. 41-Jason Johnson [14][$1,800]; 9. 9-Daryn Pittman [26][$900]; 10. 2M-Kerry Madsen [4][$1,450]; 11. 83-Cory Eliason [19][$1,300]; 12. 11K-Kraig Kinser [27][$500]; 13. 5-David Gravel [12][$1,100]; 14. 49X-Tim Shaffer [17][$1,000]; 15. 10H-Chad Kemenah [10][$950]; 16. 99-Brady Bacon [21][$900]; 17. 13X-Paul McMahan [20][$850]; 18. 18-Ian Madsen [9][$750]; 19. 20N-Hunter Schuerenberg [16][$725]; 20. 39-Spencer Bayston [13][$700]; 21. 1A-Jacob Allen [24][$700]; 22. 2-Shane Stewart [25][$]; 23. 4-Parker Price-Miller [15][$700]; 24. 24-Rico Abreu [22][$700]; 25. 21B-Carson Macedo [18][$700]; 26. 26-Joey Saldana [23][$700]; 27. 87-Aaron Reutzel [6][$700]; 28. 7S-Jason Sides [28][$] Lap Leaders: Jac Haudenschild 1-11, Aaron Reutzel 12, Donny Schatz 13-30; KSE Hard Charger Award: 9-Daryn Pittman[+17]
Qualifying: 1. 12N-Cole Duncan, 12.879; 2. 15-Donny Schatz, 12.925; 3. 1S-Logan Schuchart, 12.948; 4. 5-David Gravel, 12.967; 5. 39-Spencer Bayston, 12.978; 6. 57-Gary Taylor, 12.999; 7. 3-Jac Haudenschild, 13.014; 8. 87-Aaron Reutzel, 13.029; 9. 99-Brady Bacon, 13.041; 10. 10H-Chad Kemenah, 13.06; 11. 83-Cory Eliason, 13.066; 12. 1A-Jacob Allen, 13.086; 13. 18-Ian Madsen, 13.093; 14. 11K-Kraig Kinser, 13.094; 15. 4-Parker Price-Miller, 13.126; 16. 20N-Hunter Schuerenberg, 13.126; 17. 49X-Tim Shaffer, 13.13; 18. 21B-Carson Macedo, 13.133; 19. 24-Rico Abreu, 13.154; 20. 13X-Paul McMahan, 13.164; 21. 2M-Kerry Madsen, 13.185; 22. 41-Jason Johnson, 13.255; 23. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild, 13.262; 24. 49-Brad Sweet, 13.278; 25. 26-Joey Saldana, 13.285; 26. A79-Brandon Wimmer, 13.318; 27. 44-Trey Starks, 13.319; 28. 9-Daryn Pittman, 13.326; 29. W20-Greg Wilson, 13.345; 30. 2-Shane Stewart, 13.361; 31. 45-Trevor Baker, 13.454; 32. 19-Brent Marks, 13.551; 33. 49D-Shawn Dancer, 13.558; 34. 22M-Dan McCarron, 13.599; 35. 13-Clyde Knipp, 13.802; 36. 5QB-Quentin Blonde, 13.819; 37. 7S-Jason Sides, 13.351
Heat #1 (8 Laps) - Top 5 Transfer: 1. 12N-Cole Duncan [1]; 2. 2M-Kerry Madsen [6]; 3. 18-Ian Madsen [4]; 4. 39-Spencer Bayston [2]; 5. 49X-Tim Shaffer [5]; 6. 99-Brady Bacon [3]; 7. 26-Joey Saldana [7]; 8. 49D-Shawn Dancer [9]; 9. W20-Greg Wilson [8]; 10. 7S-Jason Sides [10]
Heat #2 (8 Laps) - Top 5 Transfer: 1. 15-Donny Schatz [1]; 2. 57-Gary Taylor [2]; 3. 10H-Chad Kemenah [3]; 4. 41-Jason Johnson [6]; 5. 21B-Carson Macedo [5]; 6. 2-Shane Stewart [8]; 7. A79-Brandon Wimmer [7]; 8. 11K-Kraig Kinser [4]; 9. 22M-Dan McCarron [9]
Heat #3 (8 Laps) - Top 5 Transfer: 1. 3-Jac Haudenschild [2]; 2. 1S-Logan Schuchart [1]; 3. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [6]; 4. 4-Parker Price-Miller [4]; 5. 83-Cory Eliason [3]; 6. 24-Rico Abreu [5]; 7. 44-Trey Starks [7]; 8. 45-Trevor Baker [8]; 9. 13-Clyde Knipp [9]
Heat #4 (8 Laps) - Top 5 Transfer: 1. 87-Aaron Reutzel [2]; 2. 49-Brad Sweet [6]; 3. 5-David Gravel [1]; 4. 20N-Hunter Schuerenberg [4]; 5. 13X-Paul McMahan [5]; 6. 9-Daryn Pittman [7]; 7. 1A-Jacob Allen [3]; 8. 5QB-Quentin Blonde [9]; 9. 19-Brent Marks [8]
Sears Craftsman Dash (6 Laps): 1. 12N-Cole Duncan [1]; 2. 3-Jac Haudenschild [2]; 3. 15-Donny Schatz [5]; 4. 2M-Kerry Madsen [3]; 5. 49-Brad Sweet [4]; 6. 87-Aaron Reutzel [8]; 7. 57-Gary Taylor [6]; 8. 1S-Logan Schuchart [7]
Last Chance Showdown (12 Laps) - Top 4 Transfer: 1. 99-Brady Bacon [1][-]; 2. 24-Rico Abreu [4][-]; 3. 26-Joey Saldana [5][-]; 4. 1A-Jacob Allen [2][-]; 5. 2-Shane Stewart [10][$300]; 6. 11K-Kraig Kinser [3][$250]; 7. A79-Brandon Wimmer [6][$225]; 8. 9-Daryn Pittman [8][$200]; 9. 49D-Shawn Dancer [13][$200]; 10. 44-Trey Starks [7][$200]; 11. 45-Trevor Baker [11][$200]; 12. 5QB-Quentin Blonde [16][$200]; 13. 22M-Dan McCarron [14][$200]; 14. 13-Clyde Knipp [15][$200]; 15. W20-Greg Wilson [9][$200]; 16. 19-Brent Marks [12][$200]; 17. 7S-Jason Sides [17][$200]
BACON BLAZES ELDORA FOR #LETSRACETWO NIGHT ONE WALLOP
Posted by: | Comments- The United States Auto Club.
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Contact: Richie Murray - USAC Media / richie@usacracing.com
Brady Bacon celebrates his #LetsRaceTwo Night #1 victory Friday night at Eldora Speedway. (Travis Branch Photo)
BACON BLAZES ELDORA FOR #LETSRACETWO NIGHT ONE WALLOP
By: Richie Murray - USAC Media
Rossburg, Ohio.....May 11, 2018 -Brady Bacon is a renaissance man of sorts. Wing or wingless, running the top or the bottom, the Broken Arrow, Okla. native seems to adapt to a multitude of situations on any given racetrack.
Under the Friday night lights of Eldora Speedway's #LetsRaceTwo, Bacon was thrust into performing all those roles within a single performance as the lone wheelman pulling double-duty with both the USAC AMSOIL National and World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Cars.
Bacon was exemplary on both ends of the spectrum, conquering his second career USAC Sprint Car victory on the high banks, doing so by riding his way to victory on the wave of the expected and the unexpected.
Wheels right up against the concrete - that's the expected line at Eldora that involves putting the right rear rubber smack dab up against the outer wall. Then there's the not-so-expected hide-and-seek line in which the left side wheels are within earshot of the inside walls in the corners before the car emerges from the bottom having gained substantial ground.
Bacon did it all in one night and even translated what he learned from one car to the other to get a feel for the track and find a comfort zone for himself.
"The B-Feature (in the wing car) really helped me," Bacon admitted. "I ran the top pretty much wide open. It's not as fast in a non-wing car, but you have a lot less control too. If the wing cars are on the cushion, then the non-wing cars are definitely going to be up there. It was an old-school Eldora tonight. I did kind of make the bottom off (turn) four work a little bit, which is a little uncharacteristic for here, but it's been working for us the last couple times."
Yet, Bacon would have his work cut out for him. He had to start eighth in the field, trailing a lineup that held a collective eight career USAC National Sprint Car victories at "The Big E" coming into the night's 30-lap main event, five of which belonged to Robert Ballou, who slid up to the lead past Chris Windom from the pole position to hold the early lead.
As the front runners ringed their way around the top, Bacon inch-wormed his way forward on the bottom and, by halfway, was erasing Ballou's once-happening lead. Bacon hit the top-shelf with authority between turns one and two and tickled the twines of the bottom line in three and four. Although, at times, lapped traffic would stifle Bacon's baseline shuffle, it would not deter him for long.
'It was getting trickier to hit the bottom, but I just kept it in my back pocket. I knew it was so treacherous up top and easy to lose your momentum. There really wasn't much grip to gain your speed back. I just knew if he got slowed up or started making mistakes, I could probably get underneath him on the bottom. We still got trapped under some lapped cars, but we were able to clear them before he did. I was a little worried he was going to come back around us, but once we got out there, I tried not to make any mistakes. I knew it was going to be hard for anyone to pass me.' - Brady Bacon on his winning pass of Robert Ballou. (Ryan Sellers Photo)
On the 19th lap, Bacon took the initiative and went on the attack, using a big run to split between Ballou on the high side and the lapped car of Chad Boespflug on the inside. Like a motorist gracefully avoiding a rush hour headache by hitting the exit ramp just prior to traffic backing up to a standstill, Bacon found the open road, put the top down, mashed the throttle and checked out.
"It was getting trickier to hit the bottom, but I just kept it in my back pocket," Bacon explained. "I knew it was so treacherous up top and easy to lose your momentum. There really wasn't much grip to gain your speed back. I just knew if he got slowed up or started making mistakes, I could probably get underneath him on the bottom. We still got trapped under some lapped cars, but we were able to clear them before he did. I was a little worried he was going to come back around us, but once we got out there, I tried not to make any mistakes. I knew it was going to be hard for anyone to pass me."
From there, Bacon gradually constructed what would become an insurmountable advantage in the caution-free event, which eventually ballooned to a full-straightaway by race's end, defeating Ballou by a margin of 5.733 seconds. Windom was third ahead of Justin Grant and Kevin Thomas, Jr.
A full slate of non-stop competition that included jumping back-and-forth, to-and-fro from the USAC car to the WoO car was not an issue for the two-time USAC National Sprint Car champ on this night. Neither was a caution-free affair that was completed at a clip of less than nine-and-a-half minutes, something that is not as physical to Bacon as it may seem to the outsiders.
"This place is more mental than physical," Bacon contends. "You can get mentally worn out. That happens more to me after the '4-Crown.' I just kind of zone out after it's over. As long as you're breathing and doing everything right, it's not that tiring. It's definitely a lot easier when things are going your way."
After a rough start to the season that included exiting the Dooling-Hayward Motorsports/Richard Childress Racing ride following a tumultuous term at Ocala, Fla. in February, Bacon brought his own team to the forefront to compete on the USAC trail. It's something that has been a challenge to get back up and going, but now Bacon is beginning to reap those rewards.
"We've come a long way," Bacon reflects. "I knew we had all the ingredients to win. We just had to figure out how to put them all together. It's been a few years since I've run this package. We've kind of been looking back; we called the Hoffmans a couple times and brought out the notebook to figure out where we were. Things have changed a lot in a couple years; it's constantly evolving. The shocks are getting better and what we used to do doesn't really work anymore. We're trying to find the balance to be fast at the beginning and at the end of the night. This place caters to me or the more experienced drivers. It's good to get a win close to where I live. Lots of friends are here watching and, obviously, this is a prestigious place."
Contingency award winners Friday night at Eldora Speedway included Dave Darland (Simpson Race Products First Heat Winner & Roger & Barb Tapy 13th Fastest Qualifier), Justin Grant (Competition Suspension, Inc. Second Heat Winner), Brady Bacon (Chalk Stix/Indy Race Parts Third Heat Winner & KSE Racing Products Hard Charger) and Dallas Hewitt (Wilwood Brakes 13th Place Finisher).
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USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP RACE RESULTS: May 11, 2018 - Rossburg, Ohio - Eldora Speedway - "#LetsRaceTwo" - "Don Branson/Jud Larson Classic"
QUALIFICATIONS: 1. Kevin Thomas Jr., 69, Dynamics-15.318; 2. Chase Stockon, 32, 32 TBI-15.384; 3. C.J. Leary, 30, Leary-15.631; 4. Chad Boespflug, 98, NineEight Motorsports-15.656; 5. Tyler Courtney, 7BC, Clauson/Marshall/Newman-15.671; 6. Tony DiMattia, 50, TDM-15.814; 7. Chris Windom, 5, Baldwin-15.895; 8. Robert Ballou, 12, Ballou-15.904; 9. Brady Bacon, 99, Bacon-15.931; 10. Joe Stornetta, 44, Pace-15.976; 11. Justin Grant, 4, TOPP-15.991; 12. Kyle Cummins, 3c, EZR/Cummins-16.067; 13. Dave Darland, 36D, Goodnight/Curb-Agajanian-16.085; 14. Isaac Chapple, 52, LNR/Chapple-16.094; 15. Nick Bilbee, 17, Bilbee-16.103; 16. Matt Westfall, 33m, Marshall-16.237; 17. Dallas Hewitt, 18, Keen-16.462; 18. Paul Dues, 87, Dues-16.493; 19. Johnny Petrozelle, 59, Petrozelle-16.656; 20. Chad Wilson, 14, Wilson-16.876; 21. Carmen Perigo, 21, Stehman-16.920; 22. Matt Goodnight, 39, Goodnight-16.996; 23. Michael Fischesser, 44s, Fischesser-NT; 24. Landon Simon, 24, LSR-NT.
SIMPSON RACE PRODUCTS FIRST HEAT: (8 laps, all transfer) 1. Darland, 2. Windom, 3. Thomas, 4. Stornetta, 5. Westfall, 6. Boespflug, 7. Goodnight, 8. Petrozelle. 2:10.19
COMPETITION SUSPENSION (CSI) SECOND HEAT: (8 laps, all transfer) 1. Grant, 2. Ballou, 3. Stockon, 4. Courtney, 5. Chapple, 6. Wilson, 7. Hewitt, 2:09.85
CHALK STIX/INDY RACE PARTS THIRD HEAT: (8 laps, all transfer) 1. Bacon, 2. Leary, 3. Bilbee, 4. Cummins, 5. Dues, 6. Perigo, 7. DiMattia. NT
FEATURE: (30 laps - starting position in parentheses) 1. Brady Bacon (8), 2. Robert Ballou (1), 3. Chris Windom (2), 4. Justin Grant (10), 5. Kevin Thomas, Jr. (6), 6. Tyler Courtney (3), 7. Chase Stockon (5), 8. Dave Darland (12), 9. C.J. Leary (4), 10. Kyle Cummins (11), 11. Joe Stornetta (9), 12. Nick Bilbee (14), 13. Dallas Hewitt (16), 14. Matt Westfall (15), 15. Chad Wilson (18), 16. Paul Dues (17), 17. Isaac Chapple (13), 18. Chad Boespflug (7), 19. Carmen Perigo (19), 20. Matt Goodnight (20). 9:24.44
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**DiMattia flipped during the third heat.
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-18 Ballou, Laps 19-30 Bacon.
KSE RACING PRODUCTS HARD CHARGER: Brady Bacon (8th to 1st)
WILWOOD BRAKES 13TH PLACE FINISHER: Dallas Hewitt
ROGER & BARB TAPY 13TH FASTEST QUALIFIER: Dave Darland
NEW USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS: 1-Thomas-505, 2-Windom-476, 3-Courtney-445, 4-Leary-432, 5-Darland-423, 6-Stockon-411, 7-Ballou-411, 8-Grant-398, 9-Bacon-384, 10-Boespflug-343.
NEXT USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP RACE: May 12 - Rossburg, Ohio - Eldora Speedway - "#LetsRaceTwo"
