Archive for Short Track
David Gravel wins first night of National Open at Williams Grove Speedway
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World of Outlaws
Contact: Nick Graziano
World of Outlaws PR
ngraziano@dirtcar.com
Please click here for the original World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series article
Winner David Gravel (DB3 Photo)
GRAND OPENING: David Gravel wins first night of National Open at Williams Grove
Gravel dominated the night by earning his 19th Quick Time and ninth win of the season
MECHANICSBURG, PA – Oct. 4, 2019 – A hunger had been building inside David Gravel the last three weeks.
His appetite for another win had been teased on several occasions. He set Quick Time three times since his last win in September but was unable to make the achievements relevant with another win.
Friday night at Williams Grove Speedway for the opening night of the National Open, Gravel was presented with a full course meal. He made sure to leave no crumbs for his competition.
He set Quick Time for the 19th time this season. Won his Drydene Heat race. Drew the pole for the DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash and won it. And then further demonstrated his mastery of the half-mile speedway by leading all 25 laps to claim his ninth win of the season – tying 10-time Series champion Donny Schatz for the second most wins this season. The victory was also his second win at Williams Grove Speedway this year – sixth overall.
“Just happy to Quick Time and win a race,” Gravel said, of Watertown, Conn. “Seems like the couple of races we’ve been drawing a bad pill for the Dash draw and tonight we were able to get a good draw. So just an awesome night. Finally get to show how good this car is.”
Gravel was proficient on the tacky track conditions all night. He couldn’t afford to be anything less. Fellow masters of the paper clip-shaped track, 10-time Series champion Donny Schatz and PA Posse veteran Lance Dewease had cars fast enough to keep Gravel starving for another win if he made a mistake.
At the start of the 25-lap Feature, Schatz moved his way from third to second by the second lap of the race and Dewease went from sixth to fifth before the first lap was completed.
Before they could try to make up any more ground, the caution came out on Lap two for Kerry Madsen, who lost his brakes.
On the restart Gravel launched ahead of Schatz. The Fargo, N.D.-native peeked underneath Gravel going into turn one, but the Mesilla Valley Transportation No. 41 was strong around the high side of the speedway. Gravel, again, launched ahead of the Toco Warranty No. 15 car down the backstretch.
Behind them, Dewease continued his relentless charge to the front by making the pass for fourth into turn one and then passed Cory Eliason for third-place off turn four. Schatz was his next target.
Gravel, Dewease and Schatz had already won at Williams Grove Speedway earlier this year. For Gravel, he was on a quest to cure his craving for another win. Dewease was looking for his 99th win in total at the speedway. Schatz was not only eyeing another win, but a chance to close the points gap between he and points leader Brad Sweet, who started 20th.
The caution came out again on Lap five for Jeff Halligan having an issue with his engine, which left oil on the track. Now Schatz and Dewease were close enough to Gravel to potentially spoil his night.
However, on the restart, Gravel shot ahead of the 30-car field, clearing Schatz before turn one. Both drivers went low through the first corner. Gravel, again, showed the strength of his car by being able to pull away from Schatz exiting the corner and down the backstretch.
Schatz faded away from Gravel and Dewease closed to the No. 15 car's bumper. The Fayetteville, Pa.-native stalked Schatz for several laps, while Gravel pulled away from them by more than a second. With 18 laps to go, Dewease dove underneath Schatz into turn three, cleared him for second by the apex of the corner but couldn’t hold the bottom. Dewease slid to the cushion in turn four, allowing Schatz to drive back underneath him and take the position back.
The two stayed in their respective positions for the next 15 laps. Dewease never faded from Schatz. Always kept the pressure on him. He tried to pass Schatz a few more times, but Schatz always ended the battle with the advantage.
Gravel reached lap traffic by Lap 16. It was Schatz and Dewease’s opportunity to try to make up ground on the leader.
“It was real hard,” Gravel said about the lap traffic. “If I went low the guy on the outside of me was just as fast. If they didn’t mess up it was going to be hard to get by them. Luckily Sheldon (Haudenschild) messed up once. Got by him. I was able to get by Kraig (Kinser). The top opened with Jacob (Allen) and I was able to put together a few good laps there. I don’t know how close anybody was.”
There was no pressure from behind for Gravel. Even in heavy lap traffic. With three laps to go Dewease was able to dive underneath Schatz into turn one and clear him for the runner-up spot. However, Gravel was more than two second ahead of him.
The Jason Johnson Racing team found themselves back in Victory Lane, picking up the $10,000 prize, while Dewease settled for a runner-up finish and Schatz rounded out the podium.
“We were pretty good from the start,” Dewease said. “It’s a hard field. A lot of fast race cars. I had some of the best in the country I had to pass.”
After two nights in-a-row of finishes outside the top-15 for Schatz and losing more than 30 points to Sweet, he rebounded with a podium finished and almost cut Sweet’s points lead in half. Coming into Friday night’s race Schatz was 40 points behind Sweet. He is now 26 points behind the Kasey Kahne Racing driver. However, Sweet stopped the bleeding from being worse by charging from 20th to 10th, picking up the KSE Hard Charger award.
“We were kind of hanging,” Schatz said about his race. “We’ve got to adapt to somethings and the guys did a great job with that. Hopefully we can learn from the night and make improvements for tomorrow.”
Schatz also had Ford’s new 410-c.i. motor in his car. He said he was pleased with it.
“It’s finally a relief that it’s here,” Schatz said. “You can’t say enough about these guys. I don’t think anyone will see the work and how much went into this… All we can do is keep building on it and keep working on it and that’s what we’ll do because that’s what we do.”
Friday’s night victory for Gravel and his team helped cure one hungry, but another formulated soon after with the National Open on Saturday night paying $65,000-to-win.
“It feels good to win the first night, but tomorrow is why we’re here,” Gravel said.
UP NEXT:
The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series on Saturday, Oct. 5, will return to Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pa. for the National Open.
As always, if you can’t make it to the race, you can watch all of the action LIVE on www.DIRTVision.com.
Race Results: 10/4/19 – Williams Grove Speedway
NOS Energy Drink Feature (25 Laps) – 1. 41-David Gravel [1][$10,000]; 2. 69K-Lance Dewease [6][$5,000]; 3. 15-Donny Schatz [3][$3,000]; 4. 71-Giovanni Scelzi [4][$2,700]; 5. 87-Aaron Reutzel [12][$2,500]; 6. 48-Danny Dietrich [11][$2,200]; 7. 21-Brian Brown [5][$2,000]; 8. 83-Daryn Pittman [9][$1,800]; 9. 1W-Matt Campbell [8][$1,600]; 10. 49-Brad Sweet [20][$1,450]; 11. 72-Ryan Smith [7][$1,300]; 12. 26-Cory Eliason [2][$1,200]; 13. 1S-Logan Schuchart [18][$1,100]; 14. 21P-Brian Montieth [13][$1,000]; 15. 18-Ian Madsen [24][$950]; 16. 51-Freddie Rahmer [26][$200]; 17. 11-T.J. Stutts [15][$850]; 18. 1X-Chad Trout [23][$750]; 19. 2-Carson Macedo [16][$725]; 20. 17B-Bill Balog [14][$700]; 21. 19-Brent Marks [29][$]; 22. 5-Shane Stewart [25][$]; 23. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [27][$]; 24. 1A-Jacob Allen [10][$700]; 25. 11K-Kraig Kinser [30][$]; 26. 7S-Tim Shaffer [19][$700]; 27. 39-Cory Haas [28][$]; 28. 58-Jeff Halligan [17][$700]; 29. 19M-Landon Myers [22][$700]; 30. 2M-Kerry Madsen [21][$700];
Lap Leaders: David Gravel 1-25;
KSE Hard Charger Award: 49-Brad Sweet[+10]
Qualifying Flight-A – 1. 41-David Gravel, 16.206; 2. 83-Daryn Pittman, 16.34; 3. 21-Brian Brown, 16.433; 4. 72-Ryan Smith, 16.489; 5. 11-T.J. Stutts, 16.582; 6. 48-Danny Dietrich, 16.597; 7. 7S-Tim Shaffer, 16.608; 8. 15-Donny Schatz, 16.609; 9. 58-Jeff Halligan, 16.647; 10. 49-Brad Sweet, 16.686; 11. 2M-Kerry Madsen, 16.747; 12. 18-Ian Madsen, 16.755; 13. 21P-Brian Montieth, 16.808; 14. 87K-Alan Krimes, 16.855; 15. 55K-Robbie Kendall, 16.864; 16. 5C-Dylan Cisney, 16.899; 17. 13-Paul McMahan, 16.91; 18. 51-Freddie Rahmer, 16.941; 19. 1T-Tim Wagaman, 16.96; 20. 67-Justin Whittall, 16.966; 21. 19-Brent Marks, 16.983; 22. 17BX-Steve Buckwalter, 17.003; 23. 44-Trey Starks, 17.007; 24. 99M-Kyle Moody, 17.073; 25. 75-Chase Dietz, 17.178; 26. 73B-Brett Michalski, 17.455; 27. 12W-Troy Fraker, 17.973
Qualifying Flight-B – 1. 69K-Lance Dewease, 16.396; 2. 87-Aaron Reutzel, 16.425; 3. 71-Giovanni Scelzi, 16.463; 4. 19M-Landon Myers, 16.47; 5. 1X-Chad Trout, 16.509; 6. 1S-Logan Schuchart, 16.673; 7. 17B-Bill Balog, 16.791; 8. 1A-Jacob Allen, 16.807; 9. 26-Cory Eliason, 16.835; 10. 1W-Matt Campbell, 16.878; 11. 7-Jason Sides, 16.929; 12. 5-Shane Stewart, 16.955; 13. 11K-Kraig Kinser, 16.962; 14. 1-Logan Wagner, 16.966; 15. 39-Cory Haas, 16.972; 16. 39M-Anthony Macri, 17.008; 17. 2-Carson Macedo, 17.032; 18. 33-Jared Esh, 17.135; 19. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild, 17.143; 20. 2C-Wayne Johnson, 17.239; 21. 24-Lucas Wolfe, 17.28; 22. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss, 17.281; 23. 33M-Mason Daniel, 17.327; 24. 75B-Nicole Bower, 17.36; 25. 49H-Bradley Howard, 17.406; 26. 12-Barry Shearer, 17.94
DRYDENE Heat #1 – Flight (A) (8 Laps) – 1. 41-David Gravel [1]; 2. 72-Ryan Smith [2]; 3. 21P-Brian Montieth [5]; 4. 49-Brad Sweet [4]; 5. 17BX-Steve Buckwalter [8]; 6. 5C-Dylan Cisney [6]; 7. 75-Chase Dietz [9]; 8. 1T-Tim Wagaman [7]; 9. 7S-Tim Shaffer [3]
DRYDENE Heat #2 – Flight (A) (8 Laps) – 1. 83-Daryn Pittman [1]; 2. 15-Donny Schatz [3]; 3. 11-T.J. Stutts [2]; 4. 2M-Kerry Madsen [4]; 5. 13-Paul McMahan [6]; 6. 44-Trey Starks [8]; 7. 73B-Brett Michalski [9]; 8. 67-Justin Whittall [7]; 9. 87K-Alan Krimes [5]
DRYDENE Heat #3 – Flight (A) (8 Laps) – 1. 21-Brian Brown [1]; 2. 48-Danny Dietrich [2]; 3. 58-Jeff Halligan [3]; 4. 55K-Robbie Kendall [5]; 5. 19-Brent Marks [7]; 6. 18-Ian Madsen [4]; 7. 51-Freddie Rahmer [6]; 8. 99M-Kyle Moody [8]; 9. 12W-Troy Fraker [9]
DRYDENE Heat #4 – Flight (B) (8 Laps) – 1. 69K-Lance Dewease [1]; 2. 1W-Matt Campbell [4]; 3. 17B-Bill Balog [3]; 4. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [7]; 5. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss [8]; 6. 19M-Landon Myers [2]; 7. 11K-Kraig Kinser [5]; 8. 49H-Bradley Howard [9]; 9. 39M-Anthony Macri [6]
DRYDENE Heat #5 – Flight (B) (8 Laps) – 1. 87-Aaron Reutzel [1]; 2. 1A-Jacob Allen [3]; 3. 2-Carson Macedo [6]; 4. 1X-Chad Trout [2]; 5. 2C-Wayne Johnson [7]; 6. 1-Logan Wagner [5]; 7. 7-Jason Sides [4]; 8. 33M-Mason Daniel [8]; 9. 12-Barry Shearer [9]
DRYDENE Heat #6 – Flight (B) (8 Laps) – 1. 71-Giovanni Scelzi [1]; 2. 26-Cory Eliason [3]; 3. 1S-Logan Schuchart [2]; 4. 5-Shane Stewart [4]; 5. 39-Cory Haas [5]; 6. 24-Lucas Wolfe [7]; 7. 33-Jared Esh [6]; 8. 75B-Nicole Bower [8]
DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash (6 Laps) – 1. 41-David Gravel [1]; 2. 15-Donny Schatz [2]; 3. 21-Brian Brown [3]; 4. 72-Ryan Smith [5]; 5. 83-Daryn Pittman [6]; 6. 48-Danny Dietrich [4]
DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash (6 Laps) – 1. 26-Cory Eliason [1]; 2. 71-Giovanni Scelzi [3]; 3. 69K-Lance Dewease [4]; 4. 1W-Matt Campbell [6]; 5. 1A-Jacob Allen [5]; 6. 87-Aaron Reutzel [2]
D-main (8 Laps) – 1. 44-Trey Starks [3][-]; 2. 33M-Mason Daniel [2][-]; 3. 75-Chase Dietz [7][$125]; 4. 73B-Brett Michalski [9][$125]; 5. 75B-Nicole Bower [4][$125]; 6. 12W-Troy Fraker [10][$125]; 7. 12-Barry Shearer [8][$125]; 8. 17BX-Steve Buckwalter [1][$125]; 9. 99M-Kyle Moody [5][$125]; 10. 49H-Bradley Howard [6][$125]; 11. 39M-Anthony Macri [11][$125]
C-Main (10 Laps) – 1. 5C-Dylan Cisney [1][-]; 2. 39-Cory Haas [2][-]; 3. 13-Paul McMahan [3][$150]; 4. 51-Freddie Rahmer [5][$150]; 5. 19-Brent Marks [11][$150]; 6. 44-Trey Starks [13][$125]; 7. 67-Justin Whittall [9][$125]; 8. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss [12][$125]; 9. 24-Lucas Wolfe [10][$125]; 10. 33M-Mason Daniel [14][$125]; 11. 2C-Wayne Johnson [8][$125]; 12. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [6][$125]; 13. 33-Jared Esh [4][$125]; 14. 1T-Tim Wagaman [7][$125]
Last Chance Showdown (12 Laps) – 1. 7S-Tim Shaffer [1][-]; 2. 49-Brad Sweet [3][-]; 3. 2M-Kerry Madsen [5][-]; 4. 19M-Landon Myers [2][-]; 5. 1X-Chad Trout [4][-]; 6. 18-Ian Madsen [7][-]; 7. 5-Shane Stewart [8][$300]; 8. 11K-Kraig Kinser [10][$250]; 9. 39-Cory Haas [14][$225]; 10. 87K-Alan Krimes [9][$200]; 11. 55K-Robbie Kendall [11][$200]; 12. 1-Logan Wagner [12][$200]; 13. 7-Jason Sides [6][$200]; 14. 5C-Dylan Cisney [13][$200]
SEAVEY SNOOKERS RICO LATE AT JACKSONVILLE, TIES RECORD WITH 11TH WIN OF 2019
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POWRi Racing
SEAVEY SNOOKERS RICO LATE AT JACKSONVILLE, TIES RECORD WITH 11TH WIN OF 2019
JACKSONVILLE, ILL. (October 5, 2019) - Logan Seavey thought he saw the window for a win shutting when Rico Abreu slid by on the 12th circuit in Friday's POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget feature at Jacksonville Speedway. However, a late rally brought Seavey right back to Abreu's bumper before a perfect diamond maneuver off turn two sealed the race's fate when the No. 67 shot by the No. 97 with only four laps left.
A historical win on several levels, Seavey's Friday night triumph was the scene of a handful of noteworthy milestones for the Sutter, California 22-year old. The driver of the Keith Kunz-Curb Agajanian Motorsports, Mobil 1, Bullet/Toyota No. 67 tied Christopher Bell for the winningest single-season (11 wins), tied Zach Daum for fifth on the all-time wins list (19 wins), and tied the late Bryan Clauson for the most career wins at Jacksonville Speedway (5 wins).
Before the epic Abreu/Seavey battle heated up and well before the "Sutter Cut" was thrown in victory lane, Friday's 30-lapper took the green flag with Jesse Colwell of Red Bluff, Calif. and Tyler Thomas of Collinsville, Okla. pacing the field. Thomas, a three-time winner at Jacksonville, initially put his No. 91T to the point, but things drastically changed on lap two as Thomas hopped through turns three and four before catching the wall and bouncing to a disheartening stop.
Colwell, who leads the POWRi National Midget League title hunt with six races to go, assumed the lead aboard his KKM, IWX Motor Freight, Bullet/Toyota No. 71, but it didn't last long. Going a lane above Colwell, Seavey, who started fourth, zipped around his teammate and controlled the second circuit as the restart brought the field back to life.
Seavey was strong in the opening stages as 16-year old Cannon McIntosh of Bixby, Okla. and Rico Abreu of St. Helena, Calif. worked by Colwell to take second and third. The second and final caution waved on lap seven for a stopped Devin Camfield, which would bunch the field up and give McIntosh along with Abreu a much-anticipated shot at Seavey.
On the restart, Abreu aggressively attacked McIntosh for second and soon secured the spot with a low-line dive into turn one. Setting his sights on Seavey, Abreu tracked down his KKM teammate and pounced on lap 13, throwing a turn three slider that quickly cleared and gave him breathing room out front.
While it looked as if Abreu and his Safelite, Bullet/Toyota No. 97 were large and in charge out front, Seavey was tracking his every footstep and methodically prepping his game plan through the final stages. Making it a race with five to go, Seavey saw his opportunity with lap traffic looming and went for the move.
Diamonding off turn two, a patented move that has guided Seavey to four previous Jacksonville W's, the No. 67 cut on a dime from the top to the bottom and zoomed by Abreu down the backstretch on the 27th lap. From there, it was all about defense for Seavey, who still had Abreu breathing down his neck over the final mile of the race.
Abreu's relentless effort came up just short, however, as Logan Seavey's late-race heroics paid off and he cashed in for his 19th-career POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget League victory. His fifth victory in the last six events at Jacksonville sets Seavey up for a potentially historic Saturday with the record for the most wins in a single season now on the line.
Coming home with a close, but tough-to-swallow second-place bid was Abreu aboard his No. 98 entry. Tanner Thorson of Minden, Nev. rounded out the podium with a tenth-to-third run in the Hayward-Thomas Motorsports No. 19. Cannon McIntosh and Zach Daum closed out the top five while Jake Neuman (sixth), Jesse Colwell (seventh), Tucker Klaasmeyer (eighth), Tanner Carrick (ninth) and Ace McCarthy (tenth) finished inside the top ten.
The POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget League returns for another night at Jacksonville Speedway tonight Saturday, October 5 alongside the MOWA Sprint Cars, the Ron Milton Race of Champions, Modifieds, Street Stocks, and a Kids Mods exhibition.
For those unable to attend, you can watch the action from Jacksonville Speedway LIVE on Speed Shift TV. Head over to www.speedshifttv.com to purchase your VIP Subscription or a daily package to watch.
For more information on POWRi Racing, you can visit us online at www.powri.com, follow us on Twitter or Instagram at @POWRi_Racing, or like 'POWRi' on Facebook.
Auto Meter Heat One (8 Laps):
1. 71-Jesse Colwell, Red Bluff, CA (6); 2. 91T-Tyler Thomas, Collinsville, OK (7); 3. 87-Mitchell Davis, Auburn, IL (2); 4. 71K-Tanner Carrick, Lincoln, CA (5); 5. 3K-Korey Weyant, Springfield, IL (8); 6. 103-Broc Hunnell, Eolia, MO (1); 7. 54-Ray Seach, Beloit, WI (3); 8. 9-Daison Pursley, Locust Grove, OK (4).
KSE Racing Products Heat Two (8 Laps):
1. 97-Rico Abreu, St. Helena, CA (1); 2. 5D-Zach Daum, Pocahontas, IL (3); 3. 27-Tucker Klaasmeyer, Paola, KS (7); 4. 17-Austin Brown, Millstadt, IL (6); 5. 11-Andy Bishop, Harrisburg, IL (2); 6. 72-Sam Johnson, St. Peters, MO (5); DNS, 97A-Austin O'Dell, Rochester, IL.
Advanced Racing Suspensions Heat Three (8 Laps):
1. 67-Logan Seavey, Sutter, CA (2); 2. 19-Tanner Thorson, Minden, NV (1); 3. 97K-Jesse Love, Redwood City, CA (3); 4. 67K-Holley Hollan, Broken Arrow, OK (4); 5. 21KS-Jake Neuman, New Berlin, IL (7); 6. 17C-Devin Camfield, Decatur, IL (5); 7. 55-Jeff Sparks, Mason City, IL (6).
Schoenfeld Headers Heat Four (8 Laps):
1. 08-Cannon McIntosh, Bixby, OK (1); 2. 28-Ace McCarthy, Tahlequah, OK (3); 3. 50-Daniel Adler, St. Louis, MO (5); 4. 47BC-Andrew Layser, Collegeville, PA (6); 5. 86C-David Camfield Jr., Decatur, IL (2); 6. 00-Luke Howard, Overland Park, KS (4); 7. 77W-Joey Wirth, Waterloo, IL (7).
Rod End Supply B-Main (12 Laps / 6 Transfer):
1. 21KS-Jake Neuman (1); 2. 67K-Holley Hollan (2); 3. 86C-David Camfield Jr. (4); 4. 00-Luke Howard (7); 5. 11-Andy Bishop (3); 6. 17C-Devin Camfield (6); 7. 97A-Austin O'Dell (13); 8. 54-Ray Seach (11); 9. 77W-Joey Wirth (8); 10. 55-Jeff Sparks (10); 11. 103-Broc Hunnell (9); 12. 9-Daison Pursley (12); 13. 72-Sam Johnson (5).
POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget League Main Event (30 Laps):
1. 67-Logan Seavey (4); 2. 97-Rico Abreu (5); 3. 19-Tanner Thorson (10); 4. 08-Cannon McIntosh (6); 5. 5D-Zach Daum (7); 6. 21KS-Jake Neuman (17); 7. 71-Jesse Colwell (1); 8. 27-Tucker Klaasmeyer (3); 9. 71K-Tanner Carrick (16); 10. 28-Ace McCarthy (8); 11. 91T-Tyler Thomas (2); 12. 97K-Jesse Love (14); 13. 50-Daniel Adler (9); 14. 9-Daison Pursley (23); 15. 67K-Holley Hollan (18); 16. 47BC-Andrew Layser (12); 17. 3K-Korey Weyant (13); 18. 86C-David Camfield Jr. (19); 19. 00-Luke Howard (20); 20. 17-Austin Brown (11); 21. 17C-Devin Camfield (22); 22. 11-Andy Bishop (21); 23. 87-Mitchell Davis (15).
Hard Charger(s): Neuman +11.
Lap Leader(s): Thomas 1; Seavey 2-12; Abreu 13-26; Seavey 27-30.
Crazy Outcome For The Fonda 200
Posted by: | CommentsBacon Bolts to Eldora Silver Crown Triumph
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The United States Auto Club.
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Contact: Richie Murray - USAC Media / richie@usacracing.com
Eventual winner Brady Bacon (#6) and Kevin Thomas, Jr. (#9) battle for the lead during Saturday's USAC Silver Crown season finale at Eldora Speedway's 4-Crown Nationals presented by NKT.tv.
(Dallas Breeze Photo)
BACON BOLTS TO ELDORA SILVER CROWN TRIUMPH
By: Richie Murray - USAC Media
Rossburg, Ohio (September 28, 2019).........Entering Saturday's USAC Silver Crown season finale at Eldora Speedway, the formula was simple. A 4th place finish or better by Brady Bacon was what he needed to secure Klatt Enterprises' first series owner title.
Bacon defied all notions of running "just good enough." His intentions were fully set on winning and closing the curtain on a banner year for himself and the Klatt team by capturing his second series victory of the season, and his career, leading the final 10 laps to sweep both victories on half-mile dirt tracks (Eldora and Williams Grove) on the Silver Crown schedule in 2019.
"We kind of struggled and everything else, so it was good to get a win here and get an owner's championship for these guys," Bacon said. "They worked hard to make huge improvements over the last year and we won two races this year. We were in the hunt every time. I'm really happy for them, and hopefully, we can keep winning these races the next few years."
The Broken Arrow, Okla. native started 4th in the 27-car field, the largest car count for a Silver Crown race at Eldora since 2008. However, pole winner Kevin Thomas, Jr., making his debut run in Chris Dyson Racing's mount, emerged with the lead on a first lap that saw the top-three of Thomas, Kody Swanson and Bacon battle three-wide off turn four.
Thomas, a 2nd place finisher in the previous year's 4-Crown Silver Crown feature, checked out in the early stages, building up a two second lead over Bacon and Swanson, who locked up an unprecedented fifth series driving title by starting the night's main event.
The first incident of the night occurred in turn one the ninth lap when Steve Buckwalter climbed the outside wall, creating heavy damage to the right front. The trailing John Heydenreich had nowhere to roam and slid sideways into Buckwalter who was at rest up against the outside wall. Both drivers were okay, but their cars were finished for the remainder of the evening.
On the ensuing restart, the game changed as Bacon began working the middle and was able to remain within arm's reach of Thomas. Just moments later, though, on lap 12, 6th running Jason McDougal looped his ride at the entrance of turn one. As McDougal sat helplessly in the middle of the racing surface, Midget and Sprint feature winner Tyler Courtney clobbered McDougal with his right rear wheel, seriously damaging both machines and ending both driver's nights and Courtney's bid for a USAC sweep at the 4-Crown.
With 13 laps remaining, Bacon tested the waters and slid through the middle to show a nose to the high-riding Thomas in turn one and then turn three as well. Bacon tried again two laps later in turn one, making up a bit of ground, but there wasn't enough zip to make the slide stick.
Entering the final 10 laps, Thomas clung to a three-car length lead over Bacon, until scraping his right-side wheels off the outside wall between turns three and four. As Thomas fought to break free from the wall's grasp, Bacon shot under and raced away scot-free with the lead and an eventual 1.931 second triumph over Thomas, Justin Grant, Swanson and Shane Cottle, who started all the way back in 24th.
For Thomas, it was another heartbreak for a driver who's been on the cusp of a first USAC Silver Crown victory for two consecutive seasons now. In fact, his result on Saturday was the fifth 2nd place finish of his Silver Crown career, moving him into the distinction as the driver with the most runner-up finishes without a series win, passing Dave Blaney, Pablo Donoso and Arnie Knepper on the list.
"We had a good chance of winning the sprint car race too, plugged it in the fence and broke a front end," Thomas recalled. "Luckily, we finished 4th there. And then we did it again. I don't ever run the fence, so I'm actually glad that I was at least up there to plug it in the fence. It was a long day, but it was a fun day. I think we got a 5th, a 4th and a 2nd. For somebody who's not very good here, I'll take it."
Contingency award winners Friday and Saturday night at Eldora Speedway were Kevin Thomas, Jr. (Fatheadz Eyewear/ProSource Fast Qualifier), Matt Westfall (KSE Racing Products Hard Charger/Larry Rice High Performance Award & Rosewood Machine & Tool Precision Move of the Race) and Ronnie Wuerdeman (Wilwood Brakes 13th Place Finisher).
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USAC SILVER CROWN CHAMP CAR SERIES RACE RESULTS: September 28, 2019 - Eldora Speedway - Rossburg, Ohio - 38th 4-Crown Nationals presented by NKT.tv
FATHEADZ EYEWEAR/PROSOURCE QUALIFYING: (Completed on September 27) 1. Kevin Thomas, Jr., 9, Dyson-16.054; 2. Jason McDougal, 56, Foxco-16.070; 3. Kody Swanson, 20, Nolen-16.176; 4. Brady Bacon, 6, Klatt-16.250; 5. Justin Grant, 91, Hemelgarn-16.321; 6. Chris Windom, 17, Goodnight/Byrd-16.366; 7. Chad Kemenah, 15, Hampshire/Kemenah-16.445; 8. Kyle Robbins, 7, KR-16.483; 9. Ronnie Wuerdeman, 33, Wuerdeman-16.523; 10. C.J. Leary, 10, DMW-16.548; 11. Tyler Courtney, 97, Lein-16.562; 12. Travis Welpott, 18, Welpott/Gorman-16.992; 13. David Byrne, 40, Byrne-17.048; 14. Jimmy Light, 123, Two-Three-17.074; 15. Steve Buckwalter, 53, Five Three-17.078; 16. Bill Rose, 66, Rose-17.094; 17. Dallas Hewitt, 57, Hewitt-17.138; 18. Austin Mundie, 47, Butler-17.143; 19. Eric Gordon, 78, Armstrong/Slinkard-17.192; 20. Austin Nemire, 16, Nemire/Lesko-17.272; 21 Mike Haggenbottom, 24, Haggenbottom-17.279; 22. Terry Babb, 34, Morford-17.378; 23. John Heydenreich, 43, Felker-17.448; 24. Shane Cottle, 81, Williams-17.456; 25. Matt Goodnight, 39, Goodnight-17.569; 26. Dave Berkheimer, 31, Berkheimer-18.941; 27. Matt Westfall, 54, Westfall/Marshall-NT.
FEATURE: (50 laps, starting positions in parentheses) 1. Brady Bacon (4), 2. Kevin Thomas, Jr. (1), 3. Justin Grant (5), 4. Kody Swanson (3), 5. Shane Cottle (24), 6. Chris Windom (6), 7. Matt Westfall (27), 8. C.J. Leary (10), 9. Matt Goodnight (25), 10. Eric Gordon (19), 11. Chad Kemenah (7), 12. Jimmy Light (14), 13. Ronnie Wuerdeman (9), 14. Kyle Robbins (8), 15. David Byrne (13), 16. Bill Rose (16), 17. Mike Haggenbottom (21), 18. Travis Welpott (12), 19. Austin Mundie (18), 20. Terry Babb (22), 21. Austin Nemire (20), 22. Dave Berkheimer (26), 23. Jason McDougal (2), 24. Tyler Courtney (11), 25. Dallas Hewitt (17), 26. Steve Buckwalter (15), 27. John Heydenreich (23). 23:29.46
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-40 Kevin Thomas, Jr., Laps 41-50 Brady Bacon.
KSE RACING PRODUCTS/LARRY RICE HIGH PERFORMANCE AWARD HARD CHARGER: Matt Westfall (27th to 7th)
WILWOOD BRAKES 13TH PLACE FINISHER: Ronnie Wuerdeman
ROSEWOOD MACHINE & TOOL PRECISION MOVE OF THE RACE: Matt Westfall
FINAL USAC SILVER CROWN CHAMP CAR SERIES DRIVER POINTS: 1-Kody Swanson-638, 2-Justin Grant-578, 3-David Byrne-489, 4-Eric Gordon-418, 5-Chris Windom-397, 6-Kyle Hamilton-381, 7-Bobby Santos-378, 8-Kevin Thomas, Jr.-366, 9-Mike Haggenbottom-357, 10-Kyle Robbins-355.
FINAL USAC SILVER CROWN CHAMP CAR SERIES OWNER POINTS: 1-Klatt Enterprises #6-637, 2-Nolen Racing #20-613, 3-Hemelgarn Racing #91-578, 4-Byrne Racing #40-489, 5-Armstrong/Slinkard Racing #78-418, 6-Goodnight/Byrd Racing #17-378, 7-DJ Racing #22-378, 8-John Haggenbottom #24-357, 9-KR Racing #7-355, 10-Curtis Williams #81-347.
Courtney Connects on Record 4th Straight Eldora Sprint Win
Posted by: | Comments- The United States Auto Club.
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Contact: Richie Murray - USAC Media / richie@usacracing.com
Tyler Courtney became the first driver to win four consecutive Eldora Speedway USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car features at Saturday's 4-Crown Nationals presented by NKT.tv.
(Ryan Sellers Photo)
COURTNEY CONNECTS ON RECORD 4TH STRAIGHT ELDORA SPRINT WIN
By: Richie Murray - USAC Media
Rossburg, Ohio (September 28, 2019).........Tyler Courtney reached unprecedented territory following Saturday night's 4-Crown Nationals presented by NKT.tv USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car feature.
Not even the likes of three-in-row winners Jud Larson, Bubby Jones, Jack Hewitt or Steve Butler can claim four consecutive USAC National Sprint Car victories at Eldora Speedway.
However, Courtney, the reigning series champ, can now claim the record as his own after winning his seventh series main event of the year, three of which have come at the famed half-mile, with Saturday's being the 24th of his career, moving him past A.J. Foyt and Roger McCluskey on the all-time list and into a tie for 22nd with Chris Windom.
"When you have guys like Jack Hewitt and Rich Vogler and all those guys that have ran here, for someone to never do four consecutive USAC National Sprint Car wins in a row here, is incredible," Courtney exclaimed. "To just even be compared to and having the opportunity to go for four in a row is pretty incredible. But now we get to put our name in the history books and hopefully come back in the spring for five in a row."
Just as he did in the midget throughout the night, Courtney was the rabbit everyone was chasing in his Clauson-Marshall-Newman Racing/NOS Energy Drink - Competition Suspension, Inc./Spike/Rider Chevy-powered sprinter. But he had to do a little chasing himself early on as Kevin Thomas, Jr. shot out to the lead from his pole starting position.
Sixth starting Courtney, meanwhile, was a rocket on the second lap as he exploded past Brady Bacon, Justin Grant and C.J. Leary on the back straightaway to move from 5th to 2nd before banging his right rear tire off the wall between turns there and four and settling into place in third behind leader Thomas and second-running Leary.
On lap six, Courtney gave it another shot, sliding past Leary in turn three to secure the 2nd position, and now had sights set on tracking down Thomas 1.6 seconds in the distance, which he had whittled down to just a tick over a half second by the tenth lap as they both rode the rail up against the outside wall.
Nearing the halfway point, traffic came into play and Thomas was determined to be the aggressor. Not wanting to play it safe and cautious, Thomas split hairs and threaded needles through the backend of the field as he sought his very own first career win at Eldora.
With 12 laps remaining, Thomas bounced the right rear off the outside wall between turns three and four, which sucked his right front wheel into the concrete at the exit of four, thus breaking the front end as a result. Thomas was now a sitting duck in the lead, and less than a lap later, Courtney made him pay, driving by Thomas on the bottom of three to grab the spot and construct an ever-growing lead.
With 10 to go, fourth-running Leary slid by third-running Thomas utilizing the bottom of turn one. As he drifted up in turn two, a surging Chris Windom had momentum up top, driving off turn two as both he and Leary clipped wheels, sending Leary spinning backwards into the outside wall leading with the left rear. Leary was unable to restart, sending the series point leader to a 22nd place result, only his second finish outside the top-ten in 28 starts this season.
Courtney broke out to a half-straightaway lead in the final stages and appeared primed for his second victory of the night despite a particularly hairy moment that caught his attention. Exiting turn two with two laps to go, Courtney hit the right rear against the wall, getting his right front airborne and glancing off the concrete before continuing on without too much of a hindrance to speak of. No harm, no foul as they say.
The final lap was as clean as a whistle for Courtney as he raced to a 1.424 second victory over Windom, Grant, Thomas and Bacon to extend his series-leading win total to seven.
Contingency award winners Saturday night at Eldora Speedway were Tyler Courtney (Fatheadz Eyewear Fast Qualifier & Simpson Race Products First Heat Winner), Kevin Thomas, Jr. (Competition Suspension, Inc. Second Heat Winner), Justin Grant (AutoMeter Third Heat Winner), Jason McDougal (Indy Race Parts Fourth Heat Winner), Scotty Weir (Wilwood Brakes 13th Place Finisher), Matt Westfall (KSE Racing Products Hard Charger/Larry Rice High Performance Award), Chris Windom (Rosewood Machine & Tool Precision Move of the Race), Isaac Chapple (Roger & Barb Tapy 13th Fastest Qualifier), Matt Goodnight (Saldana Racing Products First Non-Transfer) and Chris Phillips (ProSource Hard Work Award).
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USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP RACE RESULTS: September 28, 2019 - Eldora Speedway - Rossburg, Ohio - 38th 4-Crown Nationals presented by NKT.tv - 1/2-Mile Dirt Oval
FATHEADZ EYEWEAR / PROSOURCE QUALIFYING: 1. Tyler Courtney, 7BC, Clauson/Marshall/Newman-16.671; 2. Chris Windom, 5G, Parallax/Goacher-16.780; 3. Justin Grant, 4, TOPP-16.832; 4. Brady Bacon, 69, Dynamics-16.917; 5. C.J. Leary, 19AZ, Reinbold/Underwood-16.947; 6. Kevin Thomas, Jr., 19, Hayward/Thomas-17.081; 7. Chase Stockon, 32, 32 TBI-17.146; 8. Dallas Hewitt, 18, Keen-17.153; 9. Max Adams, 5m, Adams-17.302; 10. Kory Crabtree, 60, Gagliardi-17.354; 11. Mario Clouser, 6, MCM-17.378; 12. Jason McDougal, 71p, Daigh/Phillips-17.384; 13. Isaac Chapple, 52, LNR/Chapple-17.393; 14. Dustin Clark, 75, Clark-17.498; 15. Bill Rose, 6R, Rose-17.518; 16. Carmen Perigo, 21p, Perigo-17.520; 17. Matt Westfall, 33m, Marshall-17.571; 18. Scotty Weir, 39G, Goodnight-17.579; 19. Nick Bilbee, 17, Bilbee-17.740; 20. Josh Hodges, 74x, Hodges-17.811; 21. Dave Darland, 36D, Darland/Curb-Agajanian-17.823; 22. Corey Smith, 66s, CS-17.995; 23. Kody Swanson, 20N, Nolen-18.111; 24. Brian Ruhlman, 49, Ruhlman-18.254; 25. Landon Simon, 23s, Simon-18.342; 26. Matt Goodnight, 39, Goodnight-18.401; 27. Jack James, 99, James-18.416; 28. Chris Phillips, 6p, Phillips-18.656; 29. Gage Etgen, 99, Etgen-18.802; 30. Travis Welpott, 18T, Welpott/Gorman-18.809; 31. Tim Creech II, 2c, Creech-18.810; 32. Cody White, 26w, White-18.902; 33. Steve Thomas, 20, Thomas-18.912; 34. Korbyn Hayslett, 1H, Hayslett-NT; 35. Scott Hampton, 51, Slinkard-NT.
SIMPSON RACE PRODUCTS FIRST HEAT: (8 laps, top-4 transfer to the feature) 1. Tyler Courtney, 2. Matt Westfall, 3. C.J. Leary, 4. Dave Darland, 5. Max Adams, 6. Isaac Chapple, 7. Landon Simon, 8. Gage Etgen, 9. Steve Thomas. 2:26.54
COMPETITION SUSPENSION (CSI) SECOND HEAT: (8 laps, top-4 transfer to the feature) 1. Kevin Thomas, Jr., 2. Chris Windom, 3. Scotty Weir, 4. Corey Smith, 5. Kory Crabtree, 6. Dustin Clark, 7. Matt Goodnight, 8. Travis Welpott, 9. Korbyn Hayslett. 2:28.17
AUTOMETER THIRD HEAT: (8 laps, top-4 transfer to the feature) 1. Justin Grant, 2. Chase Stockon, 3. Mario Clouser, 4. Nick Bilbee, 5. Kody Swanson, 6. Scott Hampton, 7. Jack James, 8. Tim Creech II, 9. Bill Rose. NT
INDY RACE PARTS FOURTH HEAT: (8 laps, top-4 transfer to the feature) 1. Jason McDougal, 2. Brady Bacon, 3. Dallas Hewitt, 4. Carmen Perigo, 5. Josh Hodges, 6. Chris Phillips, 7. Brian Ruhlman, 8. Cody White. 2:29.58
SEMI: (12 laps, top-6 transfer to the feature) 1. Max Adams, 2. Kory Crabtree, 3. Dustin Clark, 4. Isaac Chapple, 5. Josh Hodges, 6. Chris Phillips, 7. Matt Goodnight, 8. Scott Hampton, 9. Brian Ruhlman, 10. Kody Swanson, 11. Landon Simon, 12. Gage Etgen, 13. Jack James, 14. Travis Welpott, 15. Cody White, 16. Tim Creech II, 17. Steve Thomas, 18. Bill Rose, 19. Korbyn Hayslett. 3:54.09
FEATURE: (30 laps, starting position in parentheses) 1. Tyler Courtney (6), 2. Chris Windom (5), 3. Justin Grant (4), 4. Kevin Thomas, Jr. (1), 5. Brady Bacon (3), 6. Dallas Hewitt (8), 7. Matt Westfall (16), 8. Chase Stockon (7), 9. Isaac Chapple (13), 10. Nick Bilbee (18), 11. Carmen Perigo (15), 12. Jason McDougal (12), 13. Scotty Weir (17), 14. Mario Clouser (11), 15. Chris Phillips (22), 16. Dave Darland (20), 17. Dustin Clark (14), 18. Corey Smith (21), 19. Max Adams (9), 20. Kory Crabtree (10), 21. Josh Hodges (19), 22. C.J. Leary (2). NT
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-18 Kevin Thomas, Jr., Laps 19-30 Tyler Courtney.
SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS CLEAN SWEEP: Tyler Courtney
KSE RACING PRODUCTS/LARRY RICE HIGH PERFORMANCE HARD CHARGER: Matt Westfall (16th to 7th)
WILWOOD BRAKES 13TH PLACE FINISHER: Scotty Weir
SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS FIRST NON-TRANSFER: Matt Goodnight
ROGER & BARB TAPY 13TH FASTEST QUALIFIER: Isaac Chapple
PROSOURCE HARD WORK AWARD: Chris Phillips
ROSEWOOD MACHINE & TOOL PRECISION MOVE OF THE RACE: Chris Windom
NEW USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS: 1-C.J. Leary-1,934, 2-Tyler Courtney-1,876, 3-Chris Windom-1,781, 4-Justin Grant-1,780, 5-Brady Bacon-1,778, 6-Kevin Thomas, Jr.-1,778, 7-Chase Stockon-1,705, 8-Jason McDougal-1,483, 9-Carson Short-1,361, 10-Isaac Chapple-1,157.
NEXT USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP RACE: October 5, 2019 - Lawrenceburg Speedway - Lawrenceburg, Indiana - Fall Nationals - 3/8-Mile Dirt Oval
Courtney Claims Throne in 4-Crown Midget Main
Posted by: | Comments- The United States Auto Club.
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Contact: Richie Murray - USAC Media / richie@usacracing.com
Saturday night's USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget 4-Crown Nationals Midget feature winner Tyler Courtney.
(Dallas Breeze Photo)
COURTNEY CLAIMS THRONE IN 4-CROWN MIDGET MAIN
By: Richie Murray - USAC Media
Rossburg, Ohio (September 28, 2019).........Tyler Courtney had all the right moves in Saturday night's 4-Crown Nationals presented by NKT.tv USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget feature, but when you're amidst a high-speed game of chess on the banks of Eldora Speedway, you've got to have all the right moves at just the right time.
That's among the laundry list of accomplishments the Indianapolis, Ind. driver achieved in becoming just the third driver to repeat a 4-Crown Midget feature victory, joining Rich Vogler in 1985-86 and Kyle Larson in 2011-12.
Yet it took everything in his might to prevail for the second time in as many years after waging war in a lap-after-lap classic Eldora patented slider-fest involving Tanner Carrick and Logan Seavey.
Seavey, the defending series champ, jumped to the initial lead on the opening lap, sliding to the top of turn one past both pole sitter Jerry Coons, Jr. and outside front row starter Carrick. Carrick quickly took control by turns three and four with a slider past his Keith Kunz Motorsports/Curb-Agajanian teammate to take the lead.
The red flag came early in the 25-lap event, on lap five, when 12th running Jason McDougal walked away from a turn four flip.
When racing resumed, Seavey immediately went on the attack, sliding by Carrick. Carrick returned the favor on the other end, rinse and repeat, as the two teammates put on a spectacular show of who could make the other blink first.
Courtney cleared two-time 4-Crown Midget winner Rico Abreu for third on the seventh lap and closed in on the top two, riding the rim in formation behind Carrick and Seavey with two car lengths separating the freight train nearing the halfway point.
With 10 to go, Seavey made a breathtaking scoop to the bottom in turn three, climbing the stairs to the outside wall as he slid past Carrick, leading by a single car length at the line. Both Carrick and Courtney went double-barrel buckshot low into turn one nose to tail, sliding past Seavey, who countered underneath off turn two and drag raced Carrick into turn three, reclaiming the advantage.
Carrick went right back to the well and fired another shot on Seavey in turn three with eight to go, sliding by Seavey and drifting up, tapping the wall with his rear bumper as Seavey ducked under off turn four to narrowly nip Carrick at the line by a bumper.
Heading into one on the 19th lap side-by-side, Carrick clamped down on Seavey, driving to the middle on entry while Seavey went even lower. Both drifted high to the outside wall in turn two, but Carrick surged ahead to the lead the fight into turn three where Courtney split both Carrick and Seavey, threading the needle between turns three and four.
Seavey muscled his way back ahead of Courtney for second as the front runners worked their way by the lapped car of Andrew Layser. Courtney chose the low line under Layser on the back straightaway as Seavey's momentum was briefly stifled. Seavey came back at Courtney, both drifting wheel-to-wheel to the concrete with Courtney kissing the wall with his right rear tire and launching around the outside to secure second with now just five laps remaining.
On laps 22 and 23, Courtney went into action, slide jobbing Carrick into turn one. But, each time, Carrick had an answer, driving downhill off the second turn to beat Courtney into turn three to claw his way back into the lead.
However, coming to the white flag, Courtney went after Carrick once more in turn one, successfully pulling off the slider. Carrick drove low off two to pull even with Courtney midway down the back straightaway. Courtney used the lapped car of Karsyn Elledge as a sort of pick, closing up the alleyway that Carrick would've aimed for into turn three.
Courtney distanced himself just enough on the final circuit, disallowing any chance of one final haymaker from Carrick into turn three to score his seventh series feature victory of the season and the 12th of his career over Carrick, Seavey, Rico Abreu and Kevin Thomas, Jr.
"I just tried to time my moves right, but Tanner kept coming back," Courtney explained. "He's turning into one heck of a driver. That one was a lot harder than I was hoping for, but this is Eldora and that's what this place is all about."
For Carrick, it was a story of "what could've been" after leading a race-high 20 laps.
"I ran that whole race as hard as I could," Carrick said. "It's just kind of a bummer. I got into lapped traffic there and Tyler squeezed me down into a lapped car and I lost all my momentum and my shot at getting back around him. There weren't enough laps to get my speed back up and going. This is a big momentum place, and once you're out front, you just keep going and you're good. It kind of sucks. I led a lot of laps there and came out with a second. Maybe next year."
Contingency award winners Saturday night at Eldora Speedway were Tyler Courtney (Fatheadz Eyewear/ProSource Fast Qualifier, Simpson Race Products First Heat Winner & Rosewood Machine & Tool Precision Move of the Race), Rico Abreu (Competition Suspension, Inc. Second Heat Winner), Dave Darland (AutoMeter/Indy Race Parts Third Heat Winner & Wilwood Brakes 13th Place Finisher) and Tucker Klaasmeyer (KSE Racing Products Hard Charger/Larry Rice High Performance Award).
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USAC NOS ENERGY DRINK MIDGET NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP RACE RESULTS: September 28, 2019 - Eldora Speedway - Rossburg, Ohio - 38th 4-Crown Nationals presented by NKT.tv - 1/2-Mile Dirt Oval
FATHEADZ EYEWEAR/PROSOURCE QUALIFYING: 1. Tyler Courtney, 7BC, Clauson/Marshall-16.880; 2. Rico Abreu, 97, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-17.023; 3. Kevin Thomas, Jr., 5, Petry-17.025; 4. Logan Seavey, 67, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-17.213; 5. Tanner Carrick, 71K, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-17.363; 6. Jerry Coons, Jr., 25, Petry-17.400; 7. Tanner Thorson, 19, Hayward-17.414; 8. Zeb Wise, 39BC, Clauson/Marshall-17.444; 9. Chris Windom, 17BC, Clauson/Marshall-17.445; 10. Justin Grant, 4A, RAMS-17.597; 11. Ethan Mitchell, 19m, Bundy Built-17.639; 12. Chad Boat, 84, Tucker/Boat-17.645; 13. Jason McDougal, 76m, FMR-17.658; 14. Jesse Colwell, 71, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-17.662; 15. Dave Darland, 15, Petry-17.907; 16. Sam Johnson, 72, Johnson-17.909; 17. Andrew Layser, 47BC, Clauson/Marshall-17.966; 18. Holley Hollan, 67K, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-17.980; 19. Tucker Klaasmeyer, 27, Kunz/Curb-Agajanian-18.088; 20. Karsyn Elledge, 1, Tucker/Boat-18.227.
SIMPSON RACE PRODUCTS FIRST HEAT: (8 laps, all transfer to the feature) 1. Tyler Courtney, 2. Logan Seavey, 3. Tanner Thorson, 4. Justin Grant, 5. Tucker Klaasmeyer, 6. Jason McDougal, 7. Sam Johnson. NT
COMPETITION SUSPENSION (CSI) SECOND HEAT: (8 laps, all transfer to the feature) 1. Rico Abreu, 2. Jesse Colwell, 3. Zeb Wise, 4. Tanner Carrick, 5. Andrew Layser, 6. Karsyn Elledge, 7. Ethan Mitchell. 2:25.21
AUTOMETER/INDY RACE PARTS THIRD HEAT: (8 laps, all transfer to the feature) 1. Dave Darland, 2. Chris Windom, 3. Chad Boat, 4. Kevin Thomas, Jr., 5. Jerry Coons, Jr., 6. Holley Hollan. 2:27.42
FEATURE: (25 laps, starting position in parentheses) 1. Tyler Courtney (6), 2. Tanner Carrick (2), 3. Logan Seavey (3), 4. Rico Abreu (5), 5. Kevin Thomas, Jr. (4), 6. Chris Windom (9), 7. Justin Grant (10), 8. Zeb Wise (8), 9. Tucker Klaasmeyer (18), 10. Tanner Thorson (7), 11. Chad Boat (11), 12. Holley Hollan (17), 13. Dave Darland (14), 14. Jesse Colwell (13), 15. Karsyn Elledge (19), 16. Andrew Layser (16), 17. Sam Johnson (15), 18. Jerry Coons, Jr. (1), 19. Jason McDougal (12). NT
**Jason McDougal flipped on lap 5 of the feature.
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-15 Tanner Carrick, Laps 16-18 Logan Seavey, Laps 19-23 Tanner Carrick, Laps 24-25 Tyler Courtney.
SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS CLEAN SWEEP: Tyler Courtney
KSE RACING PRODUCTS HARD CHARGER/LARRY RICE HIGH PERFORMANCE AWARD: Tucker Klaasmeyer (18th to 9th)
WILWOOD BRAKES 13TH PLACE FINISHER: Dave Darland
ROSEWOOD MACHINE & TOOL PRECISION MOVE OF THE RACE: Tyler Courtney
NEW USAC NOS ENERGY DRINK MIDGET NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS: 1-Tyler Courtney-1,601, 2-Chris Windom-1,465, 3-Logan Seavey-1,424, 4-Kevin Thomas, Jr.-1,351, 5-Zeb Wise-1,341, 6-Chad Boat-1,255, 7-Tanner Carrick-1,203, 8-Jerry Coons, Jr.-1,179, 9-Jason McDougal-1,097, 10-Tucker Klaasmeyer-1,084.
NEXT USAC NOS ENERGY DRINK MIDGET NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP RACE: October 17, 2019 - Wayne County Speedway - Wayne City, Illinois - Jason Leffler Memorial - 1/8-Mile Dirt Oval
Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions presented by Mobil 1
Winner Aaron Reutzel (Wayne Riegle Photo)
Contact: Tyler Altmeyer
Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions presented by Mobil 1
(724) 954-4915, pr@tonystewart.com
Aaron Reutzel caps 2019 All Star title run with 4-Crown Nationals triumph at Eldora Speedway
ROSSBURG, Ohio (September 28, 2019) - Aaron Reutzel’s 2019 Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions presented by Mobil 1 championship campaign could not have ended more appropriately. Not only did the Clute, Texas-native cap his season with a 16th Series victory, his sixth during the month of September, but Reutzel did so during the 38th running of Eldora Speedway’s historic 4-Crown Nationals; a second consecutive victory for the Texan during Eldora’s season-ending program.
Certainly an ongoing trend in 2019, Aaron Reutzel and Baughman-Reutzel Motorsports officially etched their names in All Star Circuit of Champions history books yet again, this time as an All Star champion for a second consecutive season. Although clinching the 2019 title at the conclusion of the evening's pill draw, the 4-Crown Nationals triumph certainly put an exclamation point on their season.
Six-time Series champion, Dale Blaney, wrapped-up his 2019 campaign alongside McGhee Motorsports with a runner-up finish in the final championship standings, followed by a pair of rookie contenders, Cory Eliason and Brock Zearfoss, who finished third and fourth, respectively, and Paul McMahan.
“I can’t thank Mike and Josh Baughman enough for believing in me and believing in what this team can do. I’m blessed to be the guy who gets to wheel this car,” Aaron Reutzel explained, driver of the Baughman-Reutzel Motorsports/Folkens Brothers Trucking/Fischer Body Shop/Nattress Construction/No. 87 sprint car. “It’s unbelievable what we have been able to accomplish since we started.”
Starting sixth on the 4-Crown Nationals grid, Reutzel’s path to the top of the charts required finesse, as well as patience, ultimately forced to battle by a handful of the sport’s finest including Gio Scelzi, Cory Eliason, Cale Conley and Cale Thomas.
After moving ahead one position during the initial start, it took Reutzel until lap five to advance one more, this time driving by West Virginia's Cale Conley to takeover the fourth spot. Meanwhile, Fairland, Indiana’s Cale Thomas was the man in control, utilizing the outside-pole position aboard Ron Gorby’s No. G1 to lead the first six circuits.
Despite a stout pace around Eldora Speedway’s infamous top groove, Thomas’ reign quickly ran out as Cory Eliason made his presence known on lap seven. A diving slider through turns three and four allowed Eliason to gain the top spot, now with Thomas, Gio Scelzi and Reutzel in tow. Unfortunately for Thomas, his run in the top-five ended on lap ten, as incidental contact between himself and Aaron Reutzel led to a 360 degree spin between turns three and four. The spin eventually signaled a caution forcing Thomas to restart at the tail of the field.
With the ensuing single-file restart on his side, it would only take Reutzel one circuit to move his way into the second spot, utilizing the middle line through turns one and two to slingshot around Gio Scelzi.
The main event’s second and final caution appeared on lap 15 setting up a near-identical situation for Retuzel and Baughman-Reutzel Motorsports. Using one lap to set himself up before capitalizing one circuit later, Reutzel’s winning maneuver occurred on lap 16, this time sliding by fellow All Star full-timer, Cory Eliason, with a bold move through turns one and two.
Driving by Thomas early, Eliason had been in command since lap seven.
It was a clear path for Reutzel during his first six circuits in command, but slower traffic soon entered the picture. As lapped cars started to multiply, Eliason seemed to make progress, eventually shrinking Reutzel’s command during their first few laps in traffic. Feeling a sense of pressure, Reutzel quickly found another gear took off, immediately pulling away from the Rudeen Racing entry. By the time the final checkers flew on lap 25, the gap was pushing three seconds.
Gio Scelzi held strong to finish just behind Eliason and Reutzel, followed by Buddy Kofoid and Dale Blaney.
“When I got the lead, I could kinda see the gap I was putting on Cory,” Aaron Reutzel said referring to the Eldora big screen. “I saw when he was getting back to me a little bit, so I kinda searched around and found something else. The big screen definitely helped out here. You can see where other people are and where other people are running. I was way better on the short runs and definitely needed that last caution.”
“I knew [Aaron Reutzel] was going to be there at some stage. We were rolling pretty good. I guess I hung on the wing valve a little too much,” Cory Eliason explained. “I couldn’t figure out why we got so tight at the end. It wasn’t until after the checkers when I looked up and realized what had happened. We were really good really early. I was just trying to pace it and save myself for the end.”
“We didn’t do it from the front row tonight,” Aaron Reutzel continued. “There have been a lot of naysayers the last month or so saying that we’ve only been able to win from of the front row. We drew the worst [dash] pill we could draw tonight. Hopefully that will give them something else to talk about. This has been an absolute dream season. What a way to cap it off.”
Contingency Awards/Results:
Eldora Speedway - September 28, 2019:
Event: 38th Annual 4-Crown Nationals
Entries: 42
C&R Racing All Star Warm-Ups: Dale Blaney - 13.258 seconds
Lincoln Electric Fast Qualifier: Gio Scelzi - 13.195 seconds
Ford Performance Heat #1: Greg Wilson
All Pro Aluminum Cylinder Heads Heat #2: Cale Conley
Hunt Brothers Pizza Heat #3: James McFadden
Mobil 1 Heat #4: Buddy Kofoid
Kistler Racing Products Heat #5: Brock Zearfoss
JE Pistons Dash #1: Cale Conley
Fatheadz Eyewear Dash #2: Cale Thomas
Classic Ink USA Screenprinting B-Main Winner: Lee Jacobs
Ollie’s Bargain Outlet A-Main Winner: Aaron Reutzel
MSD Performance Hard Charger Award: Mason Daniel (+6)
Cometic Gasket Most A-Main Laps Led: Aaron Reutzel (16-25)
Rayce Rudeen Foundation First Non-Transfer: Landon Lalonde
(Lincoln Electric, MSD Performance, Fatheadz Eyewear, Rayce Rudeen Foundation, Cometic Gasket: Need decal to qualify for contingency award)
Qualifying
Group (A)
1. 71-Gio Scelzi, 13.195; 2. 99b-Brady Bacon, 13.332; 3. G1-Cale Thomas, 13.432; 4. W20-Greg Wilson, 13.441; 5. 81-Lee Jacobs, 13.471; 6. J4-John Garvin, 13.771; 7. 70X-Justin Peck, 13.784; 8. 9j-Dean Jacobs, 14.086; 9. 4X-Bradley Ashford, 14.158
Group (B)
1. 87-Aaron Reutzel, 13.244; 2. 24-Rico Abreu, 13.545; 3. 99-Skylar Gee, 13.594; 4. 3C-Cale Conley, 13.597; 5. 33M-Mason Daniel, 13.734; 6. 23-Stuart Brubaker, 13.913; 7. 35-Zach Hampton, 14.027; 8. 21N-Frankie Nervo, 14.065; 9. 16c-Ricky Peterson, 14.095
Group (C)
1. 11-Dale Blaney, 13.413; 2. 13-Paul McMahan, 13.518; 3. 9-James McFadden, 13.615; 4. 49D-Shawn Dancer, 13.663; 5. 5T-Travis Philo, 13.758; 6. 22M-Dan McCarron, 13.795; 7. 97-Max Stambaugh, 13.855; 8. 5B-Chad Blonde, NT
Group (D)
1. 67-Buddy Kofoid, 13.585; 2. 98H-Dave Blaney, 13.714; 3. 45-Trevor Baker, 13.782; 4. 20B-Cody Bova, 13.897; 5. 59N-Bryan Nuckles, 13.906; 6. K4-Chad Kemenah, 13.944; 7. 71m-Paul May, 14.005; 8. 70M-Henry Malcuit, 14.039
Group (E)
1. 26-Cory Eliason, 13.402; 2. 12N-Joey Saldana, 13.472; 3. 70-Brock Zearfoss, 13.560; 4. 41S-Dominic Scelzi, 13.784; 5. 2L-Landon Lalonde, 13.815; 6. 40-George Hobaugh, 13.906; 7. 2C-Wayne Johnson, 13.998; 8. O7-Gerard McIntyre, 14.060
Heat #1 - Group (A) (8 Laps) - Top 4 Transfer
1. W20-Greg Wilson [1]; 2. G1-Cale Thomas [2]; 3. 71-Gio Scelzi [4]; 4. 99B-Brady Bacon [3]; 5. 81-Lee Jacobs [5]; 6. 9J-Dean Jacobs [8]; 7. J4-John Garvin [6]; 8. 4X-Bradley Ashford [9]; 9. 70X-Justin Peck [7]
Heat #2 - Group (B) (8 Laps) - Top 4 Transfer
1. 3C-Cale Conley [1]; 2. 87-Aaron Reutzel [4]; 3. 24-Rico Abreu [3]; 4. 33M-Mason Daniel [5]; 5. 21N-Frankie Nervo [8]; 6. 16C-Ricky Peterson [9]; 7. 23-Stuart Brubaker [6]; 8. 35-Zach Hampton [7]; 9. 99-Skylar Gee [2]
Heat #3 - Group (C) (8 Laps) - Top 4 Transfer
1. 9-James McFadden [2]; 2. 11-Dale Blaney [4]; 3. 49D-Shawn Dancer [1]; 4. 13-Paul McMahan [3]; 5. 5T-Travis Philo [5]; 6. 97-Max Stambaugh [7]; 7. 22M-Dan McCarron [6]; 8. 5B-Chad Blonde [8]
Heat #4 - Group (D) (8 Laps) - Top 4 Transfer
1. 67-Buddy Kofoid [4]; 2. K4-Chad Kemenah [6]; 3. 45-Trevor Baker [2]; 4. 98H-Dave Blaney [3]; 5. 20B-Cody Bova [1]; 6. 59N-Bryan Nuckles [5]; 7. 71M-Paul May [7]; 8. 70M-Henry Malcuit [8]
Heat #5 - Group (E) (8 Laps) - Top 4 Transfer
1. 70-Brock Zearfoss [2]; 2. 26-Cory Eliason [4]; 3. 12N-Joey Saldana [3]; 4. 41S-Dominic Scelzi [1]; 5. 2C-Wayne Johnson [7]; 6. 2L-Landon Lalonde [5]; 7. 40-George Hobaugh [6]; 8. O7-Gerard McIntyre [8]
Dash #1 (4 Laps)
1. 3C-Cale Conley [2]; 2. 71-Gio Scelzi [4]; 3. 11-Dale Blaney [6]; 4. 9-James McFadden [3]; 5. W20-Greg Wilson [1]; 6. 70-Brock Zearfoss [5]
Dash #2 (4 Laps)
1. G1-Cale Thomas [1]; 2. 26-Cory Eliason [4]; 3. 87-Aaron Reutzel [6]; 4. 67-Buddy Kofoid [2]; 5. K4-Chad Kemenah [5]; 6. 99B-Brady Bacon [3]
B-Main (12 Laps) - Top 4 Transfer
1. 81-Lee Jacobs [1]; 2. 99-Skylar Gee [2]; 3. 2C-Wayne Johnson [5]; 4. 5T-Travis Philo [3]; 5. 9J-Dean Jacobs [10]; 6. 2L-Landon Lalonde [7]; 7. 97-Max Stambaugh [8]; 8. 21N-Frankie Nervo [6]; 9. 22M-Dan McCarron [13]; 10. O7-Gerard McIntyre [19]; 11. 71M-Paul May [16]; 12. 40-George Hobaugh [14]; 13. 59N-Bryan Nuckles [9]; 14. 23-Stuart Brubaker [15]; 15. 35-Zach Hampton [17]; 16. 70M-Henry Malcuit [18]; 17. 4X-Bradley Ashford [20]; 18. 20B-Cody Bova [4]; 19. 16C-Ricky Peterson [11]
A-Main (25 Laps)
1. 87-Aaron Reutzel [6]; 2. 26-Cory Eliason [4]; 3. 71-Gio Scelzi [3]; 4. 67-Buddy Kofoid [8]; 5. 11-Dale Blaney [5]; 6. W20-Greg Wilson [9]; 7. 3C-Cale Conley [1]; 8. K4-Chad Kemenah [10]; 9. 24-Rico Abreu [14]; 10. 9-James McFadden [7]; 11. 99B-Brady Bacon [12]; 12. 70-Brock Zearfoss [11]; 13. 33M-Mason Daniel [19]; 14. 13-Paul McMahan [17]; 15. 98H-Dave Blaney [18]; 16. 12N-Joey Saldana [13]; 17. 81-Lee Jacobs [21]; 18. 5T-Travis Philo [24]; 19. 41S-Dominic Scelzi [20]; 20. 2C-Wayne Johnson [23]; 21. 49D-Shawn Dancer [15]; 22. 99-Skylar Gee [22]; 23. G1-Cale Thomas [2]; 24. 40-George Hobaugh [25]; 25. 45-Trevor Baker [16]
Lap Leaders: Cale Thomas (1-6), Cory Eliason (7-15), Aaron Reutzel (16-25)
2019 All Star Circuit of Champions Driver Standings (FINAL):
1. Aaron Reutzel - 5736
2. Dale Blaney - 5578
3. Cory Eliason - 5524
4. Brock Zearfoss - 5388
5. Paul McMahan - 5342
6. Greg Wilson - 5104
7. Gerard McIntyre - 4874
8. Skylar Gee - 4874
9. George Hobaugh - 4190
10. Justin Peck - 3852
2019 All Star Circuit of Champions Winners:
Bubba Raceway Park, Fla. (1/31/2019): Tim Shaffer
Bubba Raceway Park, Fla. (2/1/2019): Tim Shaffer (2)
Bubba Raceway Park, Fla. (2/2/2019): Tony Stewart
Volusia Speedway Park, Fla. (2/6/2019): Shane Stewart
Volusia Speedway Park, Fla. (2/7/2019): Brad Sweet
Virginia Motor Speedway, Va. (4/11/2019): Cory Eliason
Port Royal Speedway, Pa. (4/13/2019): Lance Dewease
Attica Raceway Park, Ohio (5/24/2019): Aaron Reutzel
Fremont Speedway, Ohio (5/26/2019): Aaron Reutzel (2)
Outlaw Speedway, N.Y. (6/7/2019): Brock Zearfoss
Stateline Speedway, N.Y. (6/8/2019): Dale Blaney
Weedsport Speedway, N.Y. (6/9/2019): Danny Dietrich
Attica Raceway Park, Ohio (6/14/2019): Kyle Larson
Muskingum County Speedway, Ohio (6/16/2019): Dale Blaney (2)
Wayne County Speedway, Ohio (6/19/2019): Aaron Reutzel (3)
Wayne County Speedway, Ohio (6/22/2019): Buddy Kofoid
Dirt Oval at Route 66, Ill. (6/29/2019): Aaron Reutzel (4)
Lernerville Speedway, Pa. (7/5/2019): Aaron Reutzel (5)
Sharon Speedway, Ohio (7/6/2019): Dale Blaney (3)
Utica-Rome Speedway, N.Y. (7/12/2019): Aaron Reutzel (6)
Orange County Fair Speedway N.Y. (7/13/2019): Danny Dietrich (2)
Lebanon Valley Speedway N.Y. (7/14/2019): Brock Zearfoss (2)
Plymouth Dirt Track, Wis. (7/25/2019): James McFadden
Jackson Motorplex, Minn. (7/26/2019): James McFadden (2)
Knoxville Raceway, Iowa (7/27/2019): Gio Scelzi
34 Raceway, Iowa (7/28/2019): Tony Stewart (2)
I-96 Speedway, Mich (8/16/2019): Cory Eliason (2)
Plymouth Speedway, Ind. (8/17/2019): Aaron Reutzel (7)
Grandview Speedway, Pa. (8/22/2019): Aaron Reutzel (8)
Williams Grove Speedway, Pa. (8/23/2019): Aaron Reutzel (9)
Williams Grove Speedway, Pa. (8/23/2019): Lance Dewease (2)
Lincoln Speedway, Pa. (8/24/2019): Skylar Gee
BAPS Motor Speedway, Pa. (8/25/2019): Gerard McIntyre
Attica Raceway Park, Ohio (8/30/2019): Aaron Reutzel (10)
Attica Raceway Park, Ohio (8/31/2019): Brock Zearfoss (3)
Wayne County Speedway, Ohio (9/2/2019): Cap Henry
Bedford Speedway, Pa. (9/5/2019): Aaron Reutzel (11)
Port Royal Speedway, Pa. (9/6/2019): Trey Starks
Port Royal Speedway, Pa. (9/7/2019): Aaron Reutzel (12)
Atomic Speedway, Ohio (9/12/2019): James McFadden (3)
Atomic Speedway, Ohio (9/13/2019): James McFadden (4)
Atomic Speedway, Ohio (9/14/2019): Aaron Reutzel (13)
Williams Grove Speedway, Pa. (9/20/2019): Aaron Reutzel (14)
Lincoln Speedway, Pa. (9/21/2019): Brian Montieth
Hagerstown Speedway, Md. (9/22/2019): Aaron Reutzel (15)
Eldora Speedway, Ohio (9/28/2019): Aaron Reutzel (16)
About the All Star Circuit of Champions:
All Star Enterprises, LLC, wholly owned by Tony Stewart, d/b/a the All Star Circuit of Champions, is a winged sprint car series. The All Star Circuit of Champions Sprint Car Series is one of the oldest traveling 410 sprint car organizations and is a staple of grassroots, open-wheel racing. Formed in 1970 by Bud Miller, the series has largely been considered the first 'outlaw' Sprint Car organization of the modern era. Motorsports entrepreneur Tony Stewart agreed to terms with Guy Webb to become the sole owner of the original winged sprint car tour in January of 2015. In 2019, MAVTV Motorsports Network will continue to be the official television home of the Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions presented by Mobil 1 and will broadcast ten high-profile events.
About Ollie’s Bargain Outlet:
Ollie’s Bargain Outlet, Inc., founded in 1982, is one of America’s largest retailers of closeouts and excess inventory, offering real brands at real bargain prices. Famous for its signature catch-phrase Good Stuff Cheap, Ollie’s has a huge variety of famous brand-name merchandise in every department – food, books, housewares, toys, electronics, domestics, clothing, furniture, health and beauty, flooring, seasonal items and so much more – at up to 70 percent off the fancy stores’ prices. You never know what you’ll find at one of Ollie’s 339 “semi-lovely” stores in Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia. For more information, visit www.ollies.us. Like us on Facebook or find us on Twitter at @OlliesOutlet. Ollie’s is a publicly-traded company on NASDAQ under the ticker symbol OLLI.
About Mobil 1:
The world's leading synthetic motor oil brand, Mobil 1™ features anti-wear technology that provides performance beyond our conventional motor oils. This technology allows Mobil 1 to meet or exceed the toughest standards of car builders and to provide exceptional protection against engine wear, under normal or even some of the most extreme conditions. Mobil 1 flows quickly in extreme temperatures to protect critical engine parts and is designed to maximize engine performance and help extend engine life.
For more information, visit www.mobiloil.com, on Twitter @Mobil1 and, on Facebook, www.facebook.com/mobil1.
Mobil, Mobil 1 and Mobil 1 Racing are registered trademarks of Exxon Mobil Corporation or one of its subsidiaries.
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Photo Credit: Wayne Riegle
Contact: Tyler Altmeyer
Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions presented by Mobil 1
(724) 954-4915, pr@tonystewart.com
