TEAM ILP WINNER'S
UPDATE: Amantea and
Taylor Triumphant
Inside Line
Promotions -
LEWISTOWN, Pa. (May
23, 2019) - Joey
Amantea and Zac
Taylor posted
feature victories
last Saturday for
Team ILP.
Amantea drove to his
first career 600cc
micro sprint triumph
on Saturday at
Hamlin Speedway in
Hamlin, Pa.
Taylor earned his
second career
non-wing sprint car
win on Saturday at
I-76 Speedway in
Fort Morgan, Colo.
Amantea is now
eligible and Taylor
has increased his
odds to win a free
K1 RaceGear by Ryan
Bowers Motorsports
driver suit at the
end of the 2019
racing season
courtesy of Inside
Line Promotions.
ILP, which
specializes in
affordable and
professional public
relations and media
management, will
raffle off a custom
Team ILP driver suit
to one eligible
racer. To be
eligible a driver
needs to be current
on his or her bill
with Inside Line
Promotions and needs
to have at least 10
press releases
produced by Inside
Line Promotions in
2019. New clients
are always welcome.
A driver will earn
entries into the
raffle by winning A
Mains this season,
meaning more feature
victories will give
the driver a better
chance at winning
the raffle. For
example, one win
during the season
nets one entry while
12 wins will yield
12 entries.
To learn more about
professional PR,
email Shawn@InsideLinePromotions
or call
541-510-3663.
2019 TEAM ILP
FEATURE WINNERS -
Chase Johnson - 5
(Kern County
Raceway Park in
Bakersfield, Calif.,
on March 15;
Bakersfield Speedway
in Bakersfield,
Calif., on March 16;
Ocean Speedway in
Watsonville, Calif.,
on April 12; and
Petaluma Speedway in
Petaluma, Calif., on
April 20 and May
11);
Giovanni Scelzi - 3
(Avalon Raceway in
Lara, Victoria,
Australia, on Jan.
16 and Stockton Dirt
Track in Stockton,
Calif., on April 12
and April 13);
Seth Bergman - 2
(Humboldt Speedway
in Humboldt, Kan.,
on April 19 and Lake
Ozark Speedway in
Eldon, Mo., on April
20);
Brian Brown - 2
(Knoxville
Raceway in
Knoxville, Iowa, on
April 20 and May 4);
Zac Taylor - 2
(El Paso County
Raceway in Calhan,
Colo., on April 27
and I-76 Speedway in
Fort Morgan, Colo.,
on May 18);
Joey Amantea - 1
(Hamlin Speedway in
Hamlin, Pa., on May
18);
Dylan Cisney - 1
(Port Royal Speedway
in Port Royal, Pa.,
on March 23);
Jack Dover - 1
(I-80 Speedway in
Greenwood, Neb., on
April 6);
Derek Hagar - 1
(Jackson Motor
Speedway in Byram,
Miss., on April 27);
Brandon Hanks - 1
(Lucas Oil Speedway
in Wheatland, Mo.,
on April 4);
Dominic Scelzi - 1
(Kern County Raceway
Park in Bakersfield,
Calif., on April 6);
Channin Tankersley -
1 (Thunder
Valley Speedway in
Glenmora, La., on
April 20);
Tyler Thompson - 1
(Skagit Speedway in
Alger, Wash., on May
11);
Harli White - 1
(I-30 Speedway in
Little Rock, Ark.,
on March 29); and
Greg Wilson - 1
(North Alabama
Speedway in
Tuscumbia, Ala., on
March 23)
FREE DRIVER SUIT
PROMOTION -
One lucky driver
will earn a free K1
RaceGear by Ryan
Bowers Motorsports
driver suit at the
end of the 2019
racing season
courtesy of Inside
Line Promotions.
ILP, which
specializes in
affordable and
professional public
relations and media
management, will
raffle off a custom
Team ILP driver suit
to one eligible
racer. To be
eligible a driver
needs to be current
on his or her bill
with Inside Line
Promotions and needs
to have at least 10
press releases
produced by Inside
Line Promotions in
2019. New clients
are always welcome.
A driver will earn
entries into the
raffle by winning A
Mains this season,
meaning more feature
victories gives the
driver a better
chance at winning
the raffle. For
example, one win
during the season
nets one entry while
12 wins will yield
12 entries.
The drawing to
determine the custom
driver suit winner
will be random and
will occur once the
season has
concluded.
ON THE INTERNET -
Website:
http://www.InsideLinePromotions.com
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/_TeamILP
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/InsideLinePromotions
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/insidelinepromotions
Sammy Swindell
Tackling USCS
Speedweek Beginning
This Weekend
Inside Line
Promotions -
GERMANTOWN, Tenn.
(May 23, 2019) -
Sammy Swindell will
make his season
debut behind the
wheel of the A.G.
Rains owned No. 3
this weekend during
the first four USCS
Speedweek races.
The team took the
car out once this
season to shake it
down, but the races
this Friday at
Greenville Speedway
in Greenville,
Miss.; Saturday at
Riverside
International
Speedway in West
Memphis, Ark.;
Sunday at Old No. 1
Speedway in
Harrisburg, Ark.;
and Monday at
Lexington 104
Speedway in
Lexington, Tenn.,
will mark the first
time that Swindell
and Rains will
compete together in
2019.
"If Greenville
Speedway is the
track I'm thinking
about I won my first
race there in my
third night out," he
said. "That was in
1971. We won the
modifieds track
championship there
that year. It's
probably been since
1973 since I've been
there."
Swindell has also
been victorious at
Riverside
International
Speedway and at
Lexington 104
Speedway. Sunday
will mark his debut
at Old No. 1
Speedway.
Swindell and Rains
captured seven
feature victories
together last
season.
The duo also raced
in the final three
USCS Speedweek
events last year,
winning one and
placing second in
the other two.
"I think we'll be in
good shape,"
Swindell said.
"We'll throw it out
there and then if
we're close we'll
just fine-tune it."
SEASON STATS -
3 races, 0 wins, 0
top fives, 0 top
10s, 2 top 15s, 2
top 20s
UP NEXT -
Friday at Greenville
Speedway in
Greenville, Miss.;
Saturday at
Riverside
International
Speedway in West
Memphis, Ark.;
Sunday at Old No. 1
Speedway in
Harrisburg, Ark.;
and Monday at
Lexington 104
Speedway in
Lexington, Tenn.,
with the USCS Series
White Produces Pair
of Top 10s During
Debut at I-96
Speedway
Inside Line
Promotions - LAKE
ODESSA, Mich. (May
23, 2019) - Harli
White earned her
first two top 10s of
the Lucas Oil ASCS
National Tour season
last weekend during
her debut at I-96
Speedway.
"It was a good
weekend," she said.
"The draw is a big
thing and we had
enough cars to have
a qualifier. We drew
decent and were able
to go forward. We're
consistently
finishing well."
The doubleheader
started on Friday
with White
maneuvering from
fifth to third place
in a heat race. She
then placed second
in a qualifier to
rank seventh in
overall points out
of more than 40
competitors. That
lined her up seventh
in the A Main.
"I made a lot of
mistakes throughout
the A Main on both
Friday and
Saturday," she said.
"I ran off the back
straightaway and
cost myself time and
positions. Once you
fall off it takes
you forever to get
back on. You'd lose
two or three
positions at a time
and lose momentum
going into the next
corner."
White posted a
seventh-place run to
cap Friday's action.
She continued to run
well on Saturday,
winning a heat race
and powering from
sixth to third place
in a qualifier. That
ranked her as the
high-points driver
behind the four
locked-in drivers
from Friday's main
event.
"We've put ourselves
in better starting
positions," she
said. "Once you
start in the back
it's tough to make
up a bunch of
positions. The
mindset of being
better early is how
we were able to
finish better."
White battled for a
top five throughout
the feature before
ending sixth, which
is her best ASCS
National Tour outing
of the season.
"It's a big track,
but it races kind of
like a short track,"
she said." It didn't
feel like a big
track to me. They
kept it racy both
nights and it didn't
hurt any tires so
that's all you can
ask for."
White is scheduled
to resume ASCS
National Tour
competition this
Saturday and Sunday
at Lake Ozark
Speedway in Eldon,
Mo.
"The last time we
weren't very good
the first night, but
the second night we
got better," she
said. "The track is
fun and it's a nice
place. We always
like going to places
that are racy and
stay good all night.
I hope we can keep
our momentum going
and our top 10s
rolling."
QUICK RESULTS -
May 17 - I-96
Speedway in Lake
Odessa, Mich. - Heat
race: 3 (5);
Qualifier: 2 (2);
Feature: 7 (7).
May 18 - I-96
Speedway in Lake
Odessa, Mich. - Heat
race: 1 (2);
Qualifier: 3 (6);
Feature: 6 (5).
SEASON STATS -
11 races, 1 win, 3
top fives, 7 top
10s, 9 top 15s, 11
top 20s
UP NEXT -
Saturday and Sunday
at Lake Ozark
Speedway in Eldon,
Mo., with the Lucas
Oil ASCS National
Tour
Kerry Madsen and Big
Game Motorsports Set
for World of Outlaws
Races in North
Carolina and Indiana
Inside Line
Promotions -
SWEDESBORO, N.J.
(May 23, 2019) -
Kerry Madsen will
join the World of
Outlaws NOS Energy
Drink Sprint Car
Series for three
races during the
upcoming holiday
weekend.
The KI Crossbows
backed Big Game
Motorsports team
will race on Friday
and Saturday at The
Dirt Track at
Charlotte in
Concord, N.C.,
during the Patriot
Nationals and on
Monday at
Lawrenceburg
Speedway in
Lawrenceburg, Ind.,
during the Memorial
Day Spectacle
presented by KOI
Auto Parts.
"I'm looking forward
to it," Madsen said.
"We're not putting
the whole night
together yet like
you need to with the
Outlaws. We need to
do a better job at
the start of the
night and keep up
with the changes.
The speed is there.
We just have to put
it all together."
Madsen raced with
the World of Outlaws
three times in the
last week. He
qualified seventh
quickest in his
group before placing
fifth in a heat race
and 17th in the main
event on Friday at
Williams Grove
Speedway in
Mechanicsburg, Pa.
Madsen capped the
weekend by timing in
fifth quickest in
his group on
Saturday. He then
ended fourth in a
heat race and 12 th
in the A Main.
"I was pretty happy
with everything
after Williams
Grove," he said.
"It's good to do a
couple of races in a
row with the
Outlaws. When you
run weekly shows you
can run well and not
see the problems,
but when you run
with the Outlaws
it's hard to
overcome many things
so you learn where
you need to get
better."
This week started on
Tuesday at
Bridgeport Speedway,
where Madsen
qualified 24th
quickest, charged
from eighth to fifth
place in a heat race
and wrapped up the
night with a
14th-place run in
the main event.
"I think we
underachieved at
Bridgeport," he
said. "We were a
little on the free
side. But that's how
you get better is to
keep at it with the
World of Outlaws.
Hopefully we can
continue to improve
with our races this
weekend."
QUICK RESULTS -
May 17 - Williams
Grove Speedway in
Mechanicsburg, Pa. -
Qualifying: 7; Heat
race: 5 (4);
Feature: 17 (17).
May 18 - Williams
Grove Speedway in
Mechanicsburg, Pa. -
Qualifying: 5; Heat
race: 4 (3);
Feature: 12 (14).
May 21 - Bridgeport
Speedway in
Swedesboro, N.J. -
Qualifying: 24; Heat
race: 5 (8);
Feature: 14 (15).
SEASON STATS -
8 races, 0 wins, 2
top fives, 3 top
10s, 6 top 15s, 8
top 20s
UP NEXT -
Friday and Saturday
at The Dirt Track at
Charlotte in
Concord, N.C., for
the Patriot
Nationals and Monday
at Lawrenceburg
Speedway in
Lawrenceburg, Ind.,
for the Memorial Day
Spectacle presented
by KOI Auto Parts
with the World of
Outlaws NOS Energy
Drink Sprint Car
Series
Trenca Captures Top
10 at Thunder
Mountain Speedway
Inside Line
Promotions - CENTER
LISLE, N.Y. (May 23,
2019) - Joe Trenca
posted his third top
10 in four starts
this season during
the final night of a
Lucas Oil Empire
Super Sprints
doubleheader last
Saturday at Thunder
Mountain Speedway.
"We weren't really
that good when we
unloaded, but we
made some changes
and got the car a
lot better," he
said. "I timed in
fourth in my group
and had a heck of a
heat race with
Paulie Colagiovanni.
It was a good race."
Trenca placed second
in the heat race to
make the feature
redraw. The Mucci
Motorsports driver
pulled the No. 3 to
start third in the A
Main.
"There was a caution
about every five
laps," he said. "I
kept starting on the
bottom and just
couldn't get
rolling. I'd lose a
couple of spots each
time and before I
knew it the race was
over. It wasn't the
preferred line to be
on the bottom."
Trenca's ninth-place
run was his best
outing at the track
since running third
in 2016.
The weekend began on
Friday at Outlaw
Speedway in Dundee,
N.Y., where Trenca
timed in second
quickest in his
group. A heat race
win earned a bid
into the feature
redraw.
Unfortunately, he
pulled the highest
number - 12 - to
line up on the
outside of the sixth
row for the main
event.
"We ran real good in
the heat," he said.
"We were running the
fastest laps of the
night. Then in the
feature we cut a
tire running eighth
or something like
that. It started to
go down. I could
feel it and I got
real tight and went
over the track in
turn one. If you get
off the track there
it puts you right in
the pits. I couldn't
stop so that ended
our night."
Trenca was credited
with a 23rd-place
result.
Sunday's World of
Outlaws NOS Energy
Drink Sprint Car
Series race at
Weedsport Speedway
in Weedsport, N.Y.,
rained out.
Trenca will return
to action with the
Patriot Sprint Tour
this Saturday at
Fonda Speedway in
Fonda, N.Y. His best
result at the track
was eighth in 2017.
"Fonda is a tough
place, but it's
under new management
with good guys," he
said. "They've made
a lot of
improvements. I'm
excited to see the
improvements at the
track and with the
facility."
QUICK RESULTS -
May 17 - Outlaw
Speedway in Dundee,
N.Y. - Qualifying:
2; Heat race: 1 (1);
Feature: 23 (12).
May 18 - Thunder
Mountain Speedway in
Center Lisle, N.Y. -
Qualifying: 4; Heat
race: 2 (1);
Feature: 9 (3).
SEASON STATS -
4 races, 0 wins, 2
top fives, 3 top
10s, 3 top 15s, 3
top 20s
UP NEXT -
Andrews Happy With
Progress of New Team
Despite Limited Seat
Time Because of
Weather
Inside Line
Promotions -
FREMONT, Ohio (May
23, 2019) - Mother
Nature has kept
Chris Andrews from
completely gelling
with his new Mackey
Motorsports team.
But in five starts
he is happy with the
progress the team is
making, including
another top-five run
last weekend.
Andrews said the Ken
and Duane Mackey
owned team learned a
lot while competing
with the Kistler
Racing Products/All
Pro Heads Attica
Fremont Championship
Series over the
weekend.
It began on Friday
at Attica Raceway
Park in Attica,
Ohio, where Andrews
hung around the top
five the entire
feature, recording a
fifth-place finish
in only his fourth
night with the team.
He scored a
runner-up finish at
the track during his
first night in the
car a month ago.
"That was a really
cool group of
racers," he said.
"When you have Jac
Haudenschild, Dale
Blaney, Joey
Saldana, to be
competitive with
that talent and
experience, I'll
take a fifth-place
finish."
On Saturday the team
traveled to nearby
Fremont Speedway,
where Andrews scored
a 14th-place result
on a challenging
track surface.
"We were just way
too tight," he said.
"These guys aren't
used to a tight
track like Fremont.
But they learned
what I like in the
car and I think we
will be better this
coming weekend. We
just need more races
together for them to
get used to what I
like the car to
feel."
The team plans to
compete with the
Ollie's Bargain
Outlet All Star
Circuit of Champions
this Friday at
Attica Raceway Park
and Sunday at
Fremont Speedway.
"I'm not sure if we
will race Saturday
at Fremont with
FAST, but I'm
excited to see how
we stack up against
the All Stars,"
Andrews said.
QUICK RESULTS -
May 17 - Attica
Raceway Park in
Attica, Ohio -
Qualifying: 12; Heat
race: 2 (3);
Feature: 5 (3).
May 18 - Fremont
Speedway in Fremont,
Ohio - Qualifying:
15; Heat race: 2
(1); Feature: 14
(11).
SEASON STATS -
5 races, 0 wins, 2
top fives, 2 top
10s, 5 top 15s, 5
top 20s
UP NEXT -
Friday at Attica
Raceway Park in
Attica, Ohio, and
Sunday at Fremont
Speedway in Fremont,
Ohio, with the
Ollie's Bargain
Outlet All Star
Circuit of Champions
Chick Charges to
Ninth-Place Finish
at Birch Run
Speedway During JEGS/CRA
All-Stars Tour Event
Inside Line
Promotions - BIRCH
RUN, Mich. (May 23,
2019) - Mandy Chick
officially passed a
dozen cars as she
rallied to a
ninth-place finish
last Saturday at
Birch Run Speedway
during the JEGS/CRA
All-Stars Tour
opener.
"After a little bit
of a struggle for us
in the beginning,
it's really cool to
see how well our
team rallied back to
accomplish our goal
this weekend," she
said. "After all, we
rallied together and
teamwork is really
half the battle."
Chick encountered
some significant
tire problems in
practice and her
mock qualifying
runs. The team made
adjustments for
qualifying, but
still faced the same
problem. Chick
qualified 18th
quickest out of 23
cars. The team made
the decision to pull
the No. 23 out of
the post-qualifying
impound to make more
adjustments and
tweak the setup
before the feature
event.
That relegated Chick
to the rear of the
field and she lined
up 21 st for the
main event. By Lap
65, Chick had
maneuvered her way
into the sixth spot.
At one point she had
to lock up her
brakes to avoid an
incident in front of
her. It got her
sideways and she was
hit in the driver's
side, ultimately
ending in the
infield. Chick
rebounded to bring
home a ninth-place
finish.
"It felt good to be
able to overcome the
issues we had
earlier in the day,
figure it out and
accomplish the goal
of a top-10 finish,"
she said. "Our new
spotter, Josh Nelms,
did a fantastic job
of spotting and
driver coaching, and
the team worked well
together to get us
to where we needed
to be at the end of
the night."
Chick earned the
Hoosier Hard Charger
Award for passing
the most cars during
the race. In
addition, the team
was awarded the
PitBoxes.com
Pit Crew of the Race
for pulling the car
out of line and
making it
competitive after
the challenging day.
Chick's next race
will be the Short
Track U.S. Nationals
May 30 and June 1 at
Bristol Motor
Speedway in Bristol,
Tenn., with the JEGS/CRA
All-Stars Tour.
"I'm excited to get
back to Bristol,"
she said. "It's one
of my favorite
tracks, aside from
Winchester. We've
got three goals that
we'd like to
accomplish that
weekend: qualify in
the top 10, finish
the race with a car
that's in one piece
and finish better
than we did last
year - eighth. I'm
looking forward to
seeing what we can
accomplish there."
QUICK RESULTS -
May 18 - Birch Run
Speedway in Birch
Run, Mich. -
Qualifying: 18;
Feature: 9 (21).
SEASON STATS -
2 races, 0 wins, 0
top fives, 2 top
10s, 2 top 15s, 2
top 20s
UP NEXT -
May 30 and June 1 at
Bristol Motor
Speedway in Bristol,
Tenn., for the Short
Track U.S. Nationals
with the JEGS/CRA
All-Stars Tour
Hallstrom Returns to
Home Track With Pro
All Stars Series
North
Inside Line
Promotions -
NORTHFIELD, Vt. (May
23, 2019) - After a
couple of weekends
off, Evan Hallstrom
will return to his
home track of
Thunder Road
International
Speedbowl in Barre,
Vt., this Saturday
with the Pro All
Stars Series North.
"I'm really excited
to get back to my
home track and get
some racing in this
weekend," he said.
"It's one of my
favorite tracks to
race at and we're
hoping that we can
perform well and be
a contender this
weekend."
During the downtime
Hallstrom has been
working with the
'Click-It or Ticket'
campaign and raising
awareness about the
dangers of texting
and driving.
"We've been pretty
busy with our
campaign, spreading
the word about safe
driving and talking
about texting and
driving since April
was national
distracted driving
awareness month," he
said.
Now the focus shifts
back to his race
car. Throughout his
busy late model
schedule, Hallstrom
made select super
late model starts at
Thunder Road
International
Speedbowl during the
2018 season.
"I think we have a
pretty good shot at
having a good finish
this weekend," he
said. "I've learned
a lot from last year
as far as handling,
speed and tire wear
around that place.
There will be some
tough competition
out there so it's
anybody's race. You
just have to bring
your 'A' game and it
all comes down to
who has all the
pieces put together
and has a good day."
SEASON STATS -
1 race, 0 wins, 0
top fives, 0 top
10s, 1 top 15, 1 top
20
UP NEXT -
Saturday at Thunder
Road International
Speedbowl in Barre,
Vt., with the Pro
All Stars Series
North
TBJ Promotions' 4th
annual Midget Round
Up Postponed to July
5-6
Inside Line
Promotions - OWASSO,
Okla. (May 23, 2019)
- Rain throughout
this week along with
the high percentage
of wet weather
predicted this
weekend has forced
TBJ Promotions
officials to
postpone the 4th
annual Midget Round
Up until July 5-6.
"With all the rain
we've got and how
the forecast looks
we want to save
everyone the time of
traveling this
weekend," TBJ
Promotions Founder
Tony Bruce Jr. said.
"Thankfully we were
able to find a
weekend in July
where we can shift
this event."
The event continues
at Airport Raceway
in Garden City,
Kan., where both
nights will feature
midgets with the
POWRi Lucas Oil
RMMRA Series and the
POWRi Lucas Oil West
Midget League as
well as Winged 'A'
Class micro sprints
with the NOW600
Tel-Star
Technologies Kansas
Region.
The front gates are
scheduled to open at
4 p.m. with racing
at 7 p.m. each
night.
Tickets are $20 for
adults on July 5 and
$15 on July 6.
Children ages
12-years-old and
younger get in free
both nights.
There is limited
reserved spectator
parking at the track
available. To
purchase a spot,
call 620-287-3695.
Additionally, TBJ
Promotions would
like to thank the
Finney County
Convention and
Visitors Bureau,
Burtis Motor
Company, Mid-America
Millwright, The
Tunnel Car Wash,
Johnson Septic Tank
Services, Jax Sports
Grille, Driven
Midwest and Maupin's
Truck Service for
their continued
support of the
event.
TBJ PROMOTIONS -
TBJ Promotions is in
its 10th year of
showcasing marquee
events. The featured
event in 2019 is the
4th annual Midget
Round Up, which is
July 5-6
Dreyer & Reinbold
Racing Honors
Legendary A.J. Foyt
With “Pop Dreyer
Legends Award” in
2019
Award to honor
Contributions for
Commitment &
Dedication to the
Sport
SPEEDWAY, Ind. (May
23, 2019)
– Dennis Reinbold,
team owner of Dreyer
& Reinbold Racing,
today presented the
prestigious “Pop
Dreyer Legends
Award” to Indy car
racing’s winningest
driver and four-time
Indy 500 champion
A.J. Foyt at
Indianapolis Motor
Speedway.
The “Pop Dreyer
Legends Award”
honors the
contributions of
those Indy car
racing participants
who have
demonstrated
unparalleled
commitment and
dedication to the
racing community
throughout their
storied motorsports
careers.
Floyd “Pop” Dreyer,
a famed national
flat track
motorcycle racer for
the Indian factory
in the 1920s, was a
mechanic on the
famed Duesenberg
Indy 500 team in
1927 and began an
auto racing legacy
that includes
building the cars
for the entire 1931
Indy 500 front row
starters and a
variety of
championship-winning
sprint cars and
midgets in the
1930s, 1940s and
1950s. Dreyer is
also credited with
introducing several
innovations in
racing such as the
use of magnesium and
many believe that he
built the first
quarter midget.
Reinbold, Dreyer’s
grandson, has
fielded 41 starters
at the Indy 500
dating back to 1999
with drivers
including current
team’s Indy 500
drivers Sage Karam
and J.R. Hildebrand
plus Robbie Buhl, Al
Unser Jr., Buddy
Rice, Sarah Fisher,
Buddy Lazier, Ryan
Briscoe, Oriol
Servia, Townsend
Bell and Davey
Hamilton. Dreyer &
Reinbold Racing also
competes in the ARX
Rallycross series
and captured the
2016 ARX2 series
title with Cabot
Bigham.
“ For
Dreyer & Reinbold
Racing, establishing
the Pop Dreyer
Legends Award in
2008 was a natural
thing to do,” said
Reinbold. “We
believe it is
important to
remember the
incredible
contributions that
those before us have
made to our sport,
as without these men
and women, none of
us would have the
opportunities that
we currently have in
motorsports.
While
there are no doubt
other awards and
Halls of Fame that
exist and that
undertake this same
purpose, we want to
honor those people
who have
demonstrated
dedication,
commitment and
perseverance in
their motorsports
careers. We want to
thank A.J. for all
of his amazing
contributions to
Indy car racing as a
driver, mechanic and
team owner for over
60 years.
Foyt
of Houston, Tex.,
was the first
four-time winner of
the Indianapolis
500-Miler Race with
victories in 1961,
1964, 1967 and 1977.
He holds the record
for the most IndyCar
wins with 67 and
seven IndyCar series
championships as a
driver. A.J. is the
only driver to win
the Indianapolis
500, Daytona 500
(1972) and the 24
Hours of LeMans
(1967).
Foyt
was voted “Racing
Driver of the 20th
Century” for his
driving
accomplishments. In
addition, the Foyt
Racing team captured
the 1999
Indianapolis 500
with driver Kenny
Brack. Foyt Racing
currently fields two
cars in the 2019 NTT
IndyCar Series with
drivers Tony Kanaan
and Matheus Leist
ROA SETS TRACK
RECORD AND TAKES
2ND IN ARIZONA –
BACK TO PERRIS
SATURDAY!
(Cypress, CA,
May 23, 2019)
Brody Roa put
the previous
week’s
14th place
finish at
Bakersfield in
his rearview
mirror and he
set a new track
record in
qualifying and
placed second in
the USAC
Southwest
Series’ “Hank
Arnold Memorial”
last Saturday
night at the
Central Arizona
Speedway. This
week, he will
try to retake
the point lead
in the USAC/CRA
Sprint Car
Series at the
annual “Salute
to Indy” at
Perris Auto
Speedway.
Photo courtesy
of Doug Allen.
The long journey
to Arizona
quickly paid
dividends for
the Garden Grove
driver and his
team with fast
time in
qualifying and
the new track
record of 15.133
on the Casa
Grande
oval. The
veteran racer
backed that up
with a
second-place
finish in his
heat race.
Roa started the
30-lap main
event on the
outside of the
third row. The
track proved to
be hard on tires
and hard to make
passes on. For
most of the
first half of
the race, Roa
kept the #91R in
sixth before
moving up one
spot on the
13th lap. As
the four cars in
front of him
wore out and
popped their
right rear
tires, Roa had
taken care of
his right rear
well enough to
end up with the
lead with two
laps to
go. However,
one of the
drivers who blew
a tire earlier,
came back with
new rubber and
snatched the
lead from Roa
with one lap to
go.
With a tire that
was void of
tread, Roa came
home
second. The
finish allowed
him to expand
his lead in the
USAC Southwest
Series standings
to 48-points
going into the
next race at
Arizona Speedway
on June 1st.
Through his
first dozen
sprint car races
in 2019, Roa has
an impressive
record with
three wins and
10 top fives.
Only one time
has he finished
out of the top
10.
Before he heads
back to Arizona,
Roa will be at
Perris this
Saturday for the
USAC/CRA “Salute
to Indy,” a race
that began in
1948. After
leading the
points for much
of the early
going this
season, he comes
into Saturday’s
race in second
place, but he is
only 20 points
out of
first.
For fans who
would like to
attend this
Saturday’s race,
the spectator
gates will open
at 5:00 P.M. and
the first race
will be at
7:00.
Perris Auto
Speedway is
located at 18700
Lake Perris
Drive in Perris
(92571). The
track website is
at http://perrisautospeedway.com/ and
the office phone
is (951)
940-0134.
Colorful Brody
Roa t-shirts are
available now at
the track or via
mail. If you
cannot make it
to a track and
would like to
order one,
please use the
following link https://www.brodyroa.com/?post_type=product. You
can see the
design below.
Car owners, if
you are looking
for someone to
shoe your car
during the 2019
season, look at
Roa’s schedule
below. He is
available to
race on any
night not
already on his
racing
calendar. Contact
him at the phone
number and
E-mail address
in this release.
The BR
Performance team
would also like
to thank the
sponsors that
make the regular
season possible.
HD Industries,
Burris Racing,
“Biker” Bruce
Fisher,
Molecule, K-1
Race Gear, Norma
Leonard, Lee
Leonard, NGK
Spark Plugs,
Baldwin Filters,
Driven Racing
Oil, Wilwood
Brakes, and
Coffman Racing
Graphics. If
you or your
company would
like to join BR
Performance’s
team for a
championship run
in 2019, please
call
714-932-7994.
1/15/19 Tulsa
Expo
Raceway Chili
Bowl 13th A
1/19/19 Tulsa
Expo
Raceway Chili
Bowl 12th C
2/27/19 Las
Vegas Motor
Speedway USAC
West
Coast 1st A
2/28/19 Las
Vegas Motor
Speedway USAC
West
Coast 4TH A
3/2/19 Central
Arizona Speedway
(AZ) USAC
Southwest 3rd A
3/8/19 Canyon
Speedway
(AZ) USAC/CRA
&
Southwest 2nd A
3/9/19 Canyon
Speedway
(AZ) UASC/CRA
&
Southwest 3rd A
3/30/19 Perris
Auto Speedway
(CA) USAC/CRA
(with
WoO) 1st A
4/13/19 Perris
Auto Speedway
(CA) USAC/CRA 3rd A
4/20/19 Arizona
Speedway
(AZ) USAC
Southwest 6th A
4/27/19 Canyon
Speedway (AZ) USAC
Southwest 1st A
5/4/19 Ventura
Raceway
(CA) USAC/CRA 5th A
5/11/19 Bakersfield
Speedway
(CA) USAC/CRA 14th A
5/18/19 Central
Arizona Speedway
(AZ) USAC
Southwest 2nd A
5/25/19 Perris
Auto Speedway
(CA) USAC/CRA
6/1/19 Arizona
Speedway (AZ) USAC
Southwest
6/8/19 Canyon
Speedway
(AZ) USAC
Southwest
6/29/19 Perris
Auto Speedway
(CA) USAC/CRA
7/5/19 Knoxville
Raceway
(IA) USAC
National ***
7/6/19 Knoxville
Raceway
(IA) USAC
National ***
7/6/19 Santa
Maria Raceway
(CA) USAC/CRA
***
7/13/19 Perris
Auto Speedway
(CA) USAC/CRA
& Southwest
7/18/19 I-69
Speedway
(IN) USAC
National
7/19/19 Plymouth
Speedway
(IN) USAC
National
7/20/19 Kokomo
Speedway (IN) USAC
National
7/21/19 Lawrenceburg
Speedway
(IN) USAC
National
7/24/19 Terre
Haute Action
Track
(IN) USAC
National
7/25/19 Lincoln
Park Speedway
(IN) USAC
National
7/26/19 Bloomington
Speedway
(IN) USAC
National
7/27/19 Tri-State
Speedway
(IN) USAC
National
8/17/19 Perris
Auto Speedway
(CA) USAC/CRA
& Southwest
8/31/19 Calistoga
Speedway
(CA) USAC/CRA
9/1/19 Calistoga
Speedway
(CA) USAC/CRA
9/2/19 Petaluma
Speedway
(CA) USAC/CRA
9/5/29 Merced
Speedway
(CA) USAC/CRA
9/6/19 Ocean
Speedway
(CA) USAC/CRA
9/7/19 Santa
Maria Speedway
(CA) USAC/CRA
9/14/19 Canyon
Speedway
(AZ) USAC
Southwest
9/21/19 Perris
Auto Speedway
(CA) USAC/CRA
9/28/19 Arizona
Speedway
(AZ) USAC/CRA
& Southwest
10/26/19 Central
Arizona Speedway
(AZ) USAC
Southwest
11/7/19 Perris
Auto Speedway
(CA) USAC/CRA/Southwest/National
11/8/19 Perris
Auto Speedway
(CA) USAC/CRA/Southwest/National
11/9/19 Perris
Auto Speedway
(CA) USAC/CRA/Southwest/National
11/15/19 Arizona
Speedway
(AZ) USAC/CRA/Southwest/National
11/16/19 Arizona
Speedway
(AZ) USAC/CRA/Southwest/National
BUDDY RICE STILL
ACTIVE AT IMS 15
YEARS AFTER HIS
GREATEST WIN;
HE REMEMBERS MANY
THINGS IN 2004, BUT
WORKS IN 2019
Wild Weather Day
Didn’t Change the
Victory for Phoenix
Racer
SPEEDWAY, Ind. (May
23, 2019) – For 2004
Indy 500 champion
Buddy Rice, the
memories are still
vivid 15 years after
the greatest day of
his racing career.
But the personable
Phoenix, Ariz.,
racer doesn’t return
to the Indianapolis
Motor Speedway now
to talk about that
memorable May 30,
2004 “Greatest
Spectacle in
Racing.” He is too
busy as an important
element of the
Dreyer & Reinbold
Racing team.
If you can get Rice,
now 43, to sit down
and talk about the
month of May in
2004, it is a rare
moment. For the
former Toyota
Atlantic champion,
he serves a variety
of positions for the
DRR organization in
May and beyond. In
May, Buddy is the
turn one “spotter”
for driver J.R.
Hildebrand at the
Indy 500, as Rice
stands high above
the IMS turn one
grandstands and
guides Hildebrand in
the 33-car traffic
for over half of the
2.5-mile oval.
In addition, Rice
works behind the
scenes with
Hildebrand and his
DRR teammate Sage
Karam as a special
consultant regarding
car setups and
driving analysis.
After the Indy 500,
Buddy is then the
technical director
of the Dreyer &
Reinbold Racing ARX2
Rallycross team,
which begins its
2019 campaign at
Mid-Ohio Sports Car
Course on June 8-9.
So, the former high
school baseball
player doesn’t
really follow many
of the past Indy 500
champions with
autograph signings,
speaking engagements
and sponsor
commitments.
When you can stop
him for a few
minutes in the
garage area at IMS,
Rice can reminisce
about the 2004 Indy
500 and all of the
events which
surrounded his Rahal
Letterman Racing
triumph.
“Yes, I think about
the 2004 Indy 500
every once in a
while,” said Rice.
“But, to be honest,
I’m still every busy
in the sport with
coaching young
racing talent and
helping Dennis
Reinbold’s racing
team. But I don’t
think about that
crazy race unless I
look at my “Baby
Borg-Warner” trophy
at the house.”
After impressive
performances with
the Red Bull Cheever
team in the early
2000s, Buddy was
secured to drive the
No. 15 RLR
Argent/Pioneer Honda
G-Force in the 2004
season when RLR
primary driver and
1999 Indy 500 winner
Kenny Brack was
severely injured in
the 2003 IndyCar
Series finale at
Texas.
“I had always had a
good relationship
with Bobby and his
head man, the late
Scott Roembke,”
Buddy explains.
“They contacted me
after Kenny’s crash
and they had a good
program with Honda.
So, I was anxious to
work with Bobby and
Scott’s team.”
Rice came to IMS in
2004 as a slight
underdog against the
Andretti, Penske and
Ganassi squads, but
RLR had a solid,
strong three-car
effort with Rice,
Vitor Meira and
Roger Yasukawa.
“I could feel that
the team and the car
were good when we
started practice in
May,” said Rice.
“And we won the pole
on a cold, damp day
that started late
due to the weather.
It was kind of the
theme for the month
with the weather. In
practice, the
G-Force was good in
traffic too. So, we
felt good about its
speed and handling
in traffic.”
The next week, the
Rahal Letterman
Racing pit crew
captured the
prestigious Pit Stop
Challenge on Carb
Day and entered the
May 30 200-lap
Classic as a
favorite. But no one
knew what was in
store for Rice, his
team and his
competitors as rain
hit the track early
on race day.
“There was a lot of
waiting around as
the track dried and
then the weather
changed again,” he
remembers. “I think
we started the race
around 1 o’clock
(1:07 pm) but they
stopped it at about
25 or 30 laps in
(after 28 laps). And
we sat in the
garages for nearly
two hours, hoping we
could get the race
in.”
But weather
continued to play a
role in the 2004
Indy 500, including
an F2 tornado
heading directly to
IMS in the
afternoon. At 3:30
p.m., the race
resumed with Rice in
command, leading 91
circuits. It was the
most of any driver
that day.
But the race wasn’t
without drama for
Rice too as his
engine stalled in
the pits on lap 95.
He fell back to
ninth and had to
work his way through
the field.
“Late in the race,
the car was still
good, but the rain
was coming to the
track again and we
didn’t know if the
race would be called
after the halfway
point,” Rice said.
“All I remember was
Scott saying on the
radio, ‘We gotta go
to the front now!
The weather is
coming.’ So, I drove
hard and worked my
way to the lead
again.”
On lap 174, the
yellow flag flew for
wet conditions and
the RLR team warned
Rice to keep the car
straight with the
rain getting harder
on the racing
surface. After the
180th circuit, the
checkered and red
flags flew, and Rice
was the 2004 Indy
500 champion. With
the hard rain and
the F2 tornado
headed towards the
Indianapolis area,
the victory
celebration was
moved from the famed
winner’s circle area
to underneath the
IMS Pagoda.
“Our celebration was
unique because we
were under the
Pagoda and the
Speedway had to be
cleared immediately
after the race due
to the tornado
coming,” said Buddy.
“I still remember
looking at Dave
Letterman’s face
sitting next to me
on the race car.
Being an Indy
native, he knew what
winning Indy meant.
Heck, I won the
race, but I felt
better for him that
day. We didn’t know
what was happening
outside with the
weather other than
it was raining. We
are just glad no one
at IMS was injured
by a tornado.”
The F2 tornado
actually went south
of IMS but a record
3.80 inches hit
Indianapolis, the
most ever for May 30
in the city.
After Rice’s 500
win, he experienced
several highlights
throughout the 2004
racing season
including visiting
the White House and
Oval Office with
President George
Bush, throwing out
the first pitch at
Yankee Stadium and
driving a ‘fighting
vehicle” (tank) at
Fort Carson in
Colorado.
“I really loved
throwing out that
first pitch at
Yankee Stadium,”
said Rice. “And I
got to meet Reggie
Jackson and Derek
Jeter before the
game. Being an
ex-baseball player,
that was pretty
special.”
And winning the Indy
500 can be pretty
special too, just
ask Buddy Rice.
Busy Week Looms for
Bacon
Lonnie Wheatley,
WINCHESTER, Ind.
(May 22, 2019) –
Memorial Day weekend
has historically
been a significant
weekend for auto
racing in America.
This week is no
exception for Brady
Bacon, as “The Macho
Man” will take in
five consecutive
nights of racing
action aboard four
different cars
beginning on
Wednesday night.
It all starts with
Wednesday’s USAC
National Sprint Car
“Tony Hulman
Classic” aboard the
Hoffman Racing /
Mean Green No. 69
Sprint Car.
Action shifts to the
big cars on Thursday
night with Bacon
taking the wheel of
the Klatt Racing No.
6 USAC Silver Crown
entry for the
“Hoosier Hundred” at
the Indiana State
Fairgrounds.
Bacon makes the
shift from the big
cars to the little
cars with Micro
Sprint action in the
Hinck No. 21h
machine on Friday
and Saturday at
Peru, Indiana’s
Circus City Speedway
with a $10,000
winner’s share up
for grabs on
Saturday. He then
rounds out the
holiday weekend with
a Sunday night NRA
360-ci Sprint Car
outing at Eldora
Speedway aboard his
BBR No. 99.
Bacon goes into the
week after some
tough luck during
the opening leg of
last weekend’s River
City Showdown at
Tri-City Speedway in
Granite City, IL.
The Saturday portion
of the event was
postponed until
later in the year
due to inclement
weather.
Bacon was in
contention for a
strong finish in
both the USAC Midget
and USAC Sprint Car
features before
misfortune struck in
both.
Working his way
forward in the
feature aboard the
FMR No. 76 Midget,
Bacon was leading
the way until
clipping an infield
tire and coming to a
stop with front end
woes. Bacon
rejoined the chase
after quick repairs
and limped home to
an 18th place
finish.
Bacon was then in
the mix again in the
USAC Sprint Car
feature aboard the
Hoffman Racing /
Mean Green No. 69,
battling amongst the
top five until
getting collected in
an incident. Bacon
was able to restart
at the tail and
worked his way back
into the top ten
with a ninth-place
finish.
With a pair of wins
to his credit
already this season,
Bacon looks to boost
that total this
week.
Brady Bacon Racing
is bolstered by the
support of partners
including Mean
Green, Fatheadz
Eyewear, Imperial
Wagyu Beef, Gene
Franckowiak,
Drivewfx.com,
Tel-Star
Technologies, B&S
Cattle, Lykins Oil,
Elliott’s Custom
Trailers, Triple X
Race Co., Hoosier
Tire, XYZ Machine,
Factor4, Heath Clips
Lawn Care, FK Indy,
Engler Machine and
Tool, Lucas Oil, FK
Rod Ends, Keizer
Wheels, Purple Heart
Foundation, Brown
and Miller Racing
Solutions, Smiley’s
Racing Products, DMI,
Walker Filters,
ProGlide Coatings,
Chalk Stixx, Wilwood
Engineering, Lajoie
Seats, Smith
Precision Products,
Allstar Performance,
Simpson Racing
Products, Driver
Websites, Schroth
Racing, Saldana
Racing Products, KSE
Racing Products,
King Racing
Products, Schoenfeld
Headers.
2019 Quick Stats:
28 races, 2 wins, 13
top-fives, 18
top-tens.
Up Next:
Wednesday – USAC
Sprint Cars at Terre
Haute (IN) Action
Track.
Thursday – USAC
Silver Crown at the
Indiana State
Fairgrounds.
Friday and Saturday
– Micro Sprint Cars
at Circus City
Raceway in Peru, IN.
Sunday – NRA 360-ci
Sprint Cars at
Eldora Speedway in
Rossburg, OH.
Keep Track:
Keep track of Brady
Bacon’s on-track
action including
schedule and results
at
http://www.bradybaconracing.com/,
on Facebook at
https://www.facebook.com/Brady-Bacon-278125555137/
and on Twitter at
https://twitter.com/BradyBaconRacin.
If you would like
Brady Bacon Racing
press releases
e-mailed directly to
you, send your
e-mail address to
Lonnie Wheatley at
lonniewheatley@gmail.com.
Penning the
recurring series of
“The Wheatley
Chronicles” articles
on
www.sprintcarmania.com,
Lonnie Wheatley
provides media,
public relations and
more for select
tracks, drivers and
events. For more
information,
Wheatley may be
contacted at
lonniewheatley@gmail.com.
Swindell SpeedLab
Team and Bell
Joining All Stars
and World of Outlaws
This Weekend
Inside Line
Promotions - AVON,
Ind. (May 22, 2019)
- The Swindell
SpeedLab sprint car
team will race with
both the Ollie's
Bargain Outlet All
Star Circuit of
Champions and the
World of Outlaws NOS
Energy Drink Sprint
Car Series during
the upcoming holiday
weekend.
NASCAR Xfinity
Series star
Christopher Bell
will be behind the
wheel on Sunday at
Fremont Speedway in
Fremont, Ohio, with
the All Stars and on
Monday at
Lawrenceburg
Speedway in
Lawrenceburg, Ind.,
with the World of
Outlaws.
"We've been really
good, but at the
same time we're
still searching for
some things he wants
to feel to be
completely
comfortable," team
co-owner Kevin
Swindell said. "I'm
excited to see what
we can do to get him
completely happy in
the car."
Bell has earned a
trio of top fives
and five top 10s in
six starts with the
team this season.
The Swindell
SpeedLab team
ventured to Fremont
Speedway once last
year while Monday
will mark its debut
at Lawrenceburg
Speedway.
"I got an idea of
what Fremont was
last year," Swindell
said. "We'll know
what we have going
in there. I went to
Lawrenceburg with
(Tyler Courtney) the
year after I got
hurt. I've worked on
a car once and I've
raced there once
with Bernie (Stuebgen)
so I have a sense. I
expect we can apply
what we've been
doing to an extent
and we'll be in the
ballpark."
The team would also
like to welcome
Hunter Schuerenberg
to the seat for the
COMP Cams Sprint Car
World Championship
May 30 through June
1 at Mansfield Motor
Speedway in
Mansfield, Ohio.
"He's done it by
himself a lot with
the setup and
everything,"
Swindell said.
"He'll be in a
situation where he
sits with some
confidence and just
has to worry about
driving the thing.
It's trying to get
him to feel what he
needs to feel. I
think if we can do
that he can run up
front."
UP NEXT -
Sunday at Fremont
Speedway in Fremont,
Ohio, with the
Ollie's Bargain
Outlet All Star
Circuit of Champions
and Monday at
Lawrenceburg
Speedway in
Lawrenceburg, Ind.,
with the World of
Outlaws NOS Energy
Drink Sprint Car
Series
Dover Invading Rapid
Speedway and Park
Jefferson
International
Speedway This
Weekend
Inside Line
Promotions - OSBORN,
Mo. (May 22, 2019) -
Jack Dover is riding
a pair of streaks
entering this
weekend.
Dover will compete
on Friday at Rapid
Speedway in Rock
Rapids, Iowa, with
the Midwest Sprint
Touring Series and
on Saturday at Park
Jefferson
International
Speedway in
Jefferson, S.D.,
with the Carpet Land
Nebraska 360
Sprints.
"We've done well at
both tracks so as
long as the weather
holds out I think we
can race up front at
both tracks," he
said. "We do have
confidence rolling
into both Rapid
Speedway and Park
Jefferson
International
Speedway."
Dover visited
Victory Lane at
Rapid Speedway last
year when he also
posted a runner-up
result at the track.
He also has a
fourth-place run at
the oval in both
2016 and in 2012.
Dover has won at
least once during
each of the last
five years at Park
Jefferson
International
Speedway.
"The more you win at
a track the more
confidence it gives
you so we have a lot
of confidence at
Park Jefferson and
we've always been a
contender at Rapid
Speedway," he said.
"The goal for this
weekend is to come
away with a couple
of wins. I think we
have the race cars
capable of that so I
need to do my job
and we need to avoid
mistakes."
Dover competed last
Friday at U.S. 36
Raceway, where he
won an ASCS Warrior
Region heat race
after starting on
the outside of the
front row. That
locked him into the
feature redraw and
he pulled the No. 1
to start the Rick
and Chris Bowers'
owned sprint car on
the pole for the A
Main.
"We jumped out to a
big lead right
away," Dover said.
"Someone told me we
were four tenths to
a half a second
faster than the
second-place car.
Once I got into
traffic a driver
came up the track.
Their right rear hit
my left rear and
right front hit my
left front. It
pushed me off the
track off turn three
and we tipped over."
Dover was unable to
restart the race
following the
incident and he was
credited with a
19th-place outing.
QUICK RESULTS -
May 17 - U.S. 36
Raceway in Osborn,
Mo. - Heat race: 1
(2); Feature: 19
(1).
SEASON STATS -
7 races, 1 win, 2
top fives, 4 top
10s, 4 top 15s, 6
top 20s
UP NEXT -
Friday at Rapid
Speedway in Rock
Rapids, Iowa, with
the Midwest Sprint
Touring Series and
Saturday at Park
Jefferson
International
Speedway in
Jefferson, S.D.,
with the Carpet Land
Nebraska 360 Sprints
Wilson Rallies for
Top-10 Finish at
Attica Raceway Park
Inside Line
Promotions -
FREMONT, Ohio (May
22, 2019) - Greg
Wilson powered from
18th to a
seventh-place outing
last Friday at
Attica Raceway Park,
where he made only
his second start in
the last month.
Wet weather once
again hampered the
weekend for Wilson
and his Hercules
Tires, DNC
Hydraulics, Ohio
Logistics and Gear
Off Road sponsored
team as a trio of
Ollie's Bargain
Outlet All Star
Circuit of Champions
races in Wisconsin
rained out.
Fortunately, Wilson
found an opportunity
to compete in his
home state during an
AFCS Series
doubleheader.
"We're lucky we were
able to get some
laps in," he said.
"Although we had a
great rally on
Friday, the goal of
the weekend was to
learn and make more
headway on improving
the changes we've
made to our race car
recently."
Wilson improved
throughout Friday
night by overcoming
a 23rd place
qualifying run at
the oval in Attica,
Ohio. He advanced
from fifth to fourth
place in a heat race
and from third to
second in a B Main
to earn a transfer
into the main event.
Wilson capped the
night by charging to
his fourth top 10 of
the season.
"Attica Raceway Park
is a home track for
us and we have a lot
of laps there," he
said. "It gives us a
lot of confidence to
be able to move
forward and it shows
that some of the
changes we're making
to our program are
positive. It was
certainly a step in
the right
direction."
Friday was the
highlight of the
weekend as it
preceded a tough
outing at Fremont
Speedway. Wilson
rallied from eighth
to fifth place in a
heat race, which
narrowly missed a
lock-in spot into
the main event on
Saturday. An
eighth-place finish
in a B Main wrapped
up the night.
Wilson is slated to
return to All Star
action with a
tripleheader this
weekend. It begins
on Friday at Attica
Raceway Park. Wayne
County Speedway in
Orrville, Ohio,
hosts a show on
Saturday before
Fremont Speedway
concludes the
holiday weekend on
Sunday.
"I think last
weekend should help
us this weekend at
Attica and Fremont,
and we always enjoy
heading to Wayne
County," he said.
"With all the
weather we've
battled this year
our fingers are
crossed we can get
some racing in to
continue to learn
this car."
QUICK RESULTS -
May 17 - Attica
Raceway Park in
Attica, Ohio -
Qualifying: 23; Heat
race: 4 (5); B Main:
2 (3); Feature: 7
(18).
May 18 - Fremont
Speedway in Fremont,
Ohio - Qualifying:
-; Heat race: 5 (8);
B Main: 8 (2).
SEASON STATS -
14 races, 1 win, 2
top fives, 4 top
10s, 6 top 15s, 6
top 20s
UP NEXT -
Friday at Attica
Raceway Park in
Attica, Ohio;
Saturday at Wayne
County Speedway in
Orrville, Ohio; and
Sunday at Fremont
Speedway in Fremont,
Ohio, with the
Ollie's Bargain
Outlet All Star
Circuit of Champions
aylor Scores Another
Non-Wing Win and
Runs Second in
Midget
Inside Line
Promotions - FORT
MORGAN, Colo. (May
22, 2019) - Coming
into the 2019 season
Zac Taylor had never
driven a non-wing
sprint car. In three
starts thus far he
has two wins and a
second-place finish,
including a victory
last Saturday at
I-76 Speedway.
And if that's not
enough, Taylor also
scored a runner-up
result in the POWRi
Lucas Oil Rocky
Mountain Midget
Racing Association
event the same
night.
"My dad and I have
learned so much in
the past couple of
weeks with the
non-wing car and
Todd has been
incredible in that
learning curve,"
Taylor said. "We are
talking about going
to Indiana with both
the sprint car and
midget and trying
our luck. I think
there's not much
more we can learn
around our neck of
the woods. We need
to go where the
competition is the
best. We will
probably get our
butts kicked, but
that's how you get
better."
Taylor won a
non-wing heat race
before he took the
lead on the second
lap of the POWRi
Lucas Oil Warrior
Sprint Series
feature and never
looked back.
"Dad had the car so
good and I felt so
comfortable," he
said. "I think the
midget has given me
the knowledge and
the feel of what I
need - the
confidence I have
acquired."
In his first start
in Todd Henry's
midget since the
Chili Bowl Nationals
in January, Taylor
charged from fifth
to third in his heat
race and he led most
of the feature
before finishing
second.
"A lapped car kind
of hung me up," he
said. "I went low
and the second-place
car went high and
that was pretty much
it. I really think
the midget has
helped me with what
I'm doing in the
non-wing sprint car.
It's taught me how
to feel a car react
and feel
comfortable. The
feel of a midget and
a non-wing sprint
car is almost the
same. You drive both
into the corner the
same. You need to
hit your marks and
be able to move
around.
"I don't see myself
growing and learning
on a consistent
basis until I gain
the knowledge of
running against the
best in the
business. I don't
see myself winning
on a consistent
basis until I learn
from the best."
Taylor is scheduled
to tackle the 4th
annual Midget Round
Up this Saturday and
Sunday at Airport
Raceway in Garden
City, Kan., with the
POWRi Lucas Oil
Rocky Mountain
Midget Racing
Association.
QUICK RESULTS -
May 18 - I-76
Speedway in Fort
Morgan, Colo.
(non-wing sprint
car) - Heat race: 1
(1); Feature: 1 (4).
May 18 - I-76
Speedway in Fort
Morgan, Colo.
(midget) - Heat
race: 3 (5);
Feature: 2 (1).
SEASON STATS -
5 races, 2 wins, 5
top fives, 5 top
10s, 5 top 15s, 5
top 20s
UP NEXT -
Saturday and Sunday
at Airport Raceway
in Garden City,
Kan., for the 4 th
annual Midget Round
Up with the POWRi
Lucas Oil Rocky
Mountain Midget
Racing Association
Steven Aghakhani
Becomes Youngest
Driver in
Lamborghini Super
Trofeo Series
Monrovia, California (Wednesday, May
22, 2019) - US RaceTronics is
excited to announce that addition of
Steven Aghakhani to their driver
line-up for the remainder of the
2019 Lamborghini Super Trofeo North
American season. The California
youth will become the youngest
driver to compete in the prestigious
series when he takes the track next
month at the iconic Watkins Glen
International circuit.
Aghakhani has been part of the
US RaceTronics family since the
young age of 12 when he entered
the team's driver development
program. Aghakhani turned 16 in
April and immediately applied
for and was granted a license by
IMSA.
"I want to thank IMSA for the
opportunity to be a part of this
series and thank them for
supporting me in this sport at
such a young age," Aghakhani
said. "For them to have that
trust in me means a lot. I also
want to thank Lamborghini for
their on-going support. I am
really proud to be driving the
Huracan Super Trofeo Evo and I
am ready to give this race
series my all and try my best at
the podium, I can't wait."
Chris Ward, Senior Manager,
Motorsport, for Automobili
Lamborghini America LLC is
delighted to have the young
American joining the series.
"Lamborghini Squadra Corse are
delighted to welcome Steven
Aghakhani to the Super Trofeo
paddock as the youngest driver
to compete in the Series
globally," Ward said. "Steven
has demonstrated his ability in
competition outside of the
championship over the past few
years and I know he has been
working extremely hard in this
build up to his debut at Watkins
Glen in just a few weeks."
US RaceTronics' team owner,
Shane Seneviratne, is thrilled
to have Steven rounding out the
team's four-car effort for
Watkins Glen. Aghakhani has
grown up as part of the USRT
family and Seneviratne is
excited to have the opportunity
to showcase the teenager's
capabilities on track.
"I'm
really excited to have Steven
Aghakhani join our Super Trofeo
program," Seneviratne said.
"It's been quite a remarkable
journey with Steven. We started
when he was very young,
12-years-old, with a Lamborghini
Gallardo. He's finally eligible
to go Super Trofeo racing and
we're looking forward to having
him drive for us in the AM
Championship. He's made
tremendous progress over the
years. I think he's going to be
very competitive and I'm
confident that he'll do well in
the series."
"I also want to thank all of
Steven's sponsors for all their
support," Seneviratne added.
"They've been remarkable to work
with over the last few years and
I think there's a bright future
with many of these partnerships.
I think Steven's going to do
well and get them quite a bit of
attention, which will enhance
the sponsorships and return on
investments for all the
sponsors."
Steven would also like to thank
SADA, Shegerian and Associates,
Tax and Business Consulting
Group, LPA Lighting, LF
Illuminations, Forgiato, FGO,
Aghakhani & Luk LLP, Pro
Automotive repair shop, Magic
Laundry Services, Insignia
Mortgage, SKY Financials, RX
Unlimited, and US RaceTronics
for their continued support. He
is looking forward to promoting
their brands both on and off the
track.
Come
out and support Steven and the
entire US RaceTronics' team June
27-29 at Watkins Glen
International in Watkins Glen,
NY.
Follow US RaceTronics and their
drivers all season at:
|
DENNIS REINBOLD & HIS FAMILY HISTORY AT IMS
STILL CARRIES INDY 500 PASSION TO WIN THE GREATEST RACE
Dreyer & Reinbold Families & Indy
500 Connection Traces Back to 1927
SPEEDWAY, Ind. (May 22, 2019) – Indy 500 team owner Dennis
Reinbold and his family hold the longest legacy at the famed
Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It dates back to 1927 with his
grandfather, the legendary Floyd “Pop” Dreyer, serves as a
mechanic and crewman on the historic Duesenberg team.
For Reinbold, his earliest memory of the annual month of May for
the Indy 500 was hearing the engines roar around the 2.5-mile
oval just a mile and a half from his parents’ home.
“We used to ride our bicycles to 16th and Georgetown and listen
to those incredible sounds of the Indy 500 engines pounding
around the Speedway,” said Reinbold, who has entered and
qualified 41 Indy 500 entries as a car owner dating back to
1999. “Then we would ride around a makeshift oval at the church
parking lot near our house as if we were the drivers in the
race. I was always Lloyd Ruby since my uncle was on his pit
crew. He was the ‘Underdog’ and I always root for the
‘Underdog.’”
Reinbold carries a similar role now with his current Dreyer &
Reinbold Racing organization, a one-off Indy 500 team set to
take the coveted “Drink of Milk” in the IMS victory lane this
Sunday in the 103rd Indy 500 with American drivers J.R.
Hildebrand and Sage Karam.
Reinbold, the high-successful Indianapolis businessman, admits
he still gets chills every May when he drives under the 16th St.
tunnel into the track between turns one and two. And he carries
a passion to capture the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing” each
year his team enters the annual 200-lap Classic.
“It’s a passion for me to come to IMS and be able to prepare and
put the cars on the grid each year,” Dennis explained. “And I
have got to win this race. We need to win and that’s really the
passion behind me coming to the Indy 500 every year. It’s really
the only reason we show up, to put the car in Victory Lane. We
work all year-round to try to do that and try to improve from
the year before.”
Reinbold knows the history of the Indy 500 and his family.
Placed high about his current race shop in Carmel, Ind., are a
variety of his grandfather’s racing vehicles as well as past
cars from the Dreyer & Reinbold Racing stables over the last two
decades. Now, he is ready for his latest entries to find a place
in history with a winning car in the IMS Museum.
“A lot of times I’ll sit there through the middle of the race
and say, ‘all of the things that we have worked on in the last
year have piled up to this moment,’” he admits. “We’re as
prepared and ready to win this race as possible, and for
whatever reason we haven’t pulled that off quite as of yet. But
here’s to this being the year.”
Reinbold’s passion is unique to an Indy 500 “only” team as he
maintains a full-time race crew while only currently competing
in the Indy 500. Obviously, with the proper funding, Dennis
would love to return to the entire NTT IndyCar Series with his
racing team.
“We have had the same people for a long, long time,” said
Reinbold. “So, we have faith in each other and we can produce a
really good competitive product on race day. Maybe our
qualifying isn’t as good as we would like. But we have shown
that our race car setups are excellent, and we can move to the
front of the field during the race. Sage has shown that in the
past and I believe that Sage and J.R. will have cars that can
move up the field through the race.”
And Reinbold has faith in his current drivers as well. He gave
Hildebrand his first IndyCar Series ride back in 2010 (Mid-Ohio
and Sonoma) and Karam his first ride back in the 2014 Indy 500.
Sage drove from 31st to ninth that day and was awarded the “Hard
Charger of the Race.”
In recent Indy 500 races, Karam has driven his DRR mount into
the top-ten by mid-race and even into the top-five before
misfortune has halted the Nazareth, Pa., driver’s charges. Last
year, Sage started 24th and, at lap 154, ran sixth ahead of
Scott Dixon and Alexander Rossi before the No. 24 WIX Filters
Chevrolet hit the front straight wall. Hildebrand, in his first
Indy 500 start for Reinbold in the Salesforce Chevrolet, placed
11th from his 27th starting spot.
This Sunday, Hildebrand will start 21st in the 33-driver field
while Karam takes the 31st position when the race starts at
12:15 p.m. EDT at the “Racing Capital of the World.”
“Last Monday, we had excellent race setups on both cars,” said
Reinbold. “I think Sage and JR like their cars a lot heading
into Sunday’s race. So, we’ll be ready to go at the drop of the
green flag. And we want to see that checkered flag and drink the
milk.”
That would be the ultimate topping to the long legacy of the
Dreyer & Reinbold families at the Indy 500.
Giovanni Scelzi Captures Two Seventh-Place Results at Williams
Grove
Inside Line Promotions - MECHANICSBURG, Pa. (May 21, 2019) -
Giovanni Scelzi scored a pair of seventh-place finishes last
weekend at Williams Grove Speedway.
While the results were the same, the path was anything but
similar during the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car
Series Morgan Cup featuring more than 40 drivers.
"It was two very different nights," Scelzi said. "On Friday
we qualified second quickest in our group and I won a heat race
to make the dash."
Scelzi guided the Bernie Stuebgen owned race car to a
fifth-place run in the dash, which lined the team up on the
inside of the third row for the main event.
"We ran fifth for a while," he said. "I was running fifth and
think I could have got fourth when I got slowed by a lapped car,
which allowed Lance Dewease and Tim Shaffer by. Still a top 10
with the World of Outlaws in Central Pennsylvania is something
to be proud of."
Saturday's top-10 outing was much more difficult to come by.
Scelzi timed in 15th quickest in his group, which lined him up
near the back of a heat race.
"I didn't make the right line in qualifying so we were way
behind the eight ball," he said. "We battled for the transfer in
the heat, but ended in sixth. The feature lineups go back to
qualifying so we were buried."
Scelzi won the C Main to transfer into the last row of the
Last Chance Showdown. He then maneuvered from 11th to fourth in
the race to capture the final transfer position into the A Main.
"We made a lot of changes throughout the night," he said.
"We'd never been on a track that slick at Williams Grove. We got
better as we went. In the feature I got my own lane on the top
rolling. Once I got into the top 10 I had to slide guys. With
about 10 laps to go the track took rubber so that made it more
difficult to make up more ground."
Scelzi powered from 24th to a seventh-place outing, earning
the Hard Charger Award for passing the most cars. He ended the
night with 25 positions gained during the three feature races.
"It's tough to get going with those guys so it's a confidence
booster and shows we can move forward if we need to," he said.
The week began on Wednesday at Lincoln Speedway in
Abbottstown, Pa., during the Gettysburg Clash presented by
Drydene. Scelzi qualified 13th quickest in his group and placed
seventh in a heat race. A charge from seventh to third in the
Last Chance Showdown garnered a transfer into the main event.
"We didn't qualify very good," he said. "I didn't make very
good laps and we didn't have a good heat because the track was
locked down. We had a good B Main to make the show though. In
the feature someone spun in front of me and kept going. I
dropped to the back and never got going again."
Scelzi ended with a 25th-place finish.
He is scheduled to race this Friday and Saturday at The Dirt
Track at Charlotte in Concord, N.C., during the Patriot
Nationals and Monday at Lawrenceburg Speedway in Lawrenceburg,
Ind., during the Memorial Day Spectacle presented by KOI Auto
Parts with the World of Outlaws.
QUICK RESULTS -
May 15 - Lincoln Speedway in Abbottstown, Pa. - Qualifying:
13; Heat race: 7 (7); B Main: 3 (7); Feature: 25 (23).
May 17 - Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pa. -
Qualifying: 2; Heat race: 1 (1); Dash: 5 (6); Feature: 7 (5).
May 18 - Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pa. -
Qualifying: 15; Heat race: 6 (8); C Main: 1 (2); B Main: 4 (11);
Feature: 7 (24).
SEASON STATS -
20 races, 3 wins, 4 top fives, 11 top 10s, 13 top 15s, 14 top
20s
Swindell SpeedLab eSports Team Garners Podium and Two Top 10s at
The Dirt Track at Charlotte
Inside Line Promotions - AVON, Ind. (May 21, 2019) - The
Swindell SpeedLab eSports Team scored a podium finish and two
top 10s on Monday night during the World of Outlaws NOS Energy
Drink Sprint Car Series iRacing event at The Dirt Track at
Charlotte.
James Edens powered to a third-place run, marking his seventh
top five of the season. He also has nine top 10s in nine races
to rank third in the championship standings with one race
remaining.
Cole Cabre produced a 10th-place run.
Fellow Swindell SpeedLab eSports Team members Matt McKinney
placed 11 th and Chase Cabre was 20th.
Chase Cabre ranks eighth in the championship standings with
teammate Adam Elby ninth heading into the final event of the
season, which is next Monday at Knoxville Raceway.
Mallett Challenges for Top 10 During ASCS National Tour Finale
at I-96 Speedway
Inside Line Promotions - LAKE ODESSA, Mich. (May 21, 2019) -
Jordon Mallett capped his Michigan debut with a solid outing
last Saturday at I-96 Speedway.
Mallett endured an up-and-down weekend at the oval during a
Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour doubleheader, finding success in a
heat race before struggling in a qualifier each night.
"Both nights I struggled so bad in the qualifiers," he said.
"It was just different up there. The track threw me for a loop.
It reminded me of some places we've been before, but it wasn't.
I wound up both nights messing myself up in the qualifier
thinking the track wasn't progressing as quick as it was."
Mallett maneuvered from sixth to fourth place in a heat race
on Friday before a seventh-place result in a qualifier relegated
him to a B Main. He won the race to transfer into the main
event, but it was short-lived.
"I made the correct changes for the B Main and found what the
car wanted," he said. "Unfortunately, in the A Main I clipped an
infield tire and it cut the left front tire down. I ran another
lap and realized it was damaged to the point it was going to
tear more stuff up. It wasn't worth it so we pulled in."
Mallett rebounded from Friday's 19th-place run by powering
from fourth to second place in a heat race on Saturday. A
sixth-place result in a qualifier lined him up on the outside of
the sixth row in the A Main.
"We were a lot more pleased with being straight in the show,"
he said. "We started 12th and that was better because I knew the
guys in front of me were fast and we could do some racing. We
were good early on. Everybody was running around the rim. We
were as good as anybody. I got impatient and tried to run the
bottom. I shuffled my way to seventh or eighth. I overstayed my
welcome and the bottom went away. I got passed by those cars I
had passed. By the time I jumped in line I was riding in 10 th
or 11th and ripped the top for the rest of the race."
Mallett ended with an 11th-place outing.
"We feel really positive," he said. "We learned a couple of
things we should have done different. Car-wise we made some
adjustments we were pleased with."
Mallett will go from one debut to another as he makes his
first visit to Lake Ozark Speedway in Eldon, Mo., this Saturday
and Sunday during another ASCS National Tour doubleheader.
"I have the same expectation that we'll run good," he said.
"We're adaptable enough. Lots of times we look forward to going
somewhere new rather than going to the same places."
QUICK RESULTS -
May 17 - I-96 Speedway in Lake Odessa, Mich. - Heat race: 4
(6); Qualifier: 7 (1); B Main: 1 (2); Feature: 19 (18).
May 18 - I-96 Speedway in Lake Odessa, Mich. - Heat race: 2
(4); Qualifier: 6 (5); Feature: 11 (12).
SEASON STATS -
8 races, 0 wins, 2 top fives, 3 top 10s, 4 top 15s, 5 top 20s
UP NEXT -
Saturday and Sunday at Lake Ozark Speedway in Eldon, Mo.,
with the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour
Price Rallies for 12th-Place Outing at I-96 Speedway
Inside Line Promotions - LAKE ODESSA, Mich. (May 21, 2019) -
Robbie Price highlighted last weekend's Lucas Oil ASCS National
Tour doubleheader at I-96 Speedway with a 12th-place run on
Friday.
"We hot lapped good, but in the heat race I was back to sixth
going in the first corner," he said. "I passed a couple of cars
back. That cost us and put us pretty deep in a qualifier."
A fifth-place finish in a heat race was followed by a
seventh-place result in a qualifier. Price then finished second
in a B Main to transfer into the main event.
"We made good strides in the B Main, but come time for the A
Main we had the car too tight for running the curb," he said. "I
had to slide in underneath to catch it coming off. That scrubbed
too much speed."
Price was still able to rally from 19th to a 12th -place
finish, which is his best result during the first handful of
ASCS National Tour shows this year.
The weekend concluded on Saturday with Price placing fourth
in a heat race and fifth in a qualifier to lock directly into
the main event. Unfortunately, his night ended early.
"I got collected on the first lap," he said. "That knocked
the front end out. It tore a bunch of stuff up."
Price wasn't able to restart following the early incident. He
was credited with a 22nd-place finish.
Next up for the team will be its debut at Lake Ozark Speedway
in Eldon, Mo., this Saturday and Sunday with the ASCS National
Tour.
"I'm looking forward to getting there," Price said. "I'm
frustrated with our results the last couple of weeks. I consider
myself capable of a top five and we're not close to that so
we're going to dig deep this week and try to figure some things
out."
QUICK RESULTS -
May 17 - I-96 Speedway in Lake Odessa, Mich. - Heat race: 5
(3); Qualifier: 7 (9); B Main: 2 (3); Feature: 12 (19).
May 18 - I-96 Speedway in Lake Odessa, Mich. - Heat race: 4
(6); Qualifier: 5 (4); Feature: 22 (15).
SEASON STATS -
10 races, 0 wins, 0 top fives, 1 top 10, 2 top 15s, 3 top 20s
UP NEXT -
Saturday and Sunday at Lake Ozark Speedway in Eldon, Mo.,
with the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour
Crockett Hustles to Top 10 During Finale at I-96 Speedway
Inside Line Promotions - LAKE ODESSA, Mich. (May 21, 2019) -
Roger Crockett ranks fourth in the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour
championship standings despite a frustrating weekend in
Michigan.
Crockett made his debut in the state on Friday during the
opening night of a doubleheader hosted by I-96 Speedway.
Unfortunately, a miscue on the setup prior to the heat race put
the team behind from the start.
"The first night I got sidetracked and didn't adjust my right
rear shock," he said. "I was in the middle of doing it and
someone came up to talk to me. I flat got sidetracked and didn't
get back to it. Ultimately it ruined our weekend in a sense
because it put us behind the eight ball so bad. We were terrible
in the heat race. It made the car extremely unpredictable. We
backed up instead of moving forward."
A seventh-place result in the heat race relegated Crockett to
a B Main. However, a charge from eighth to third place garnered
a transfer into the main event. Crockett capped the night by
rallying from 22nd to 13th in the main event despite being
involved in an early crash.
"We started at the tail and that's why we got in that wreck,"
he said. "It messed up our top wing and bent the right rear
wheel. It didn't affect the handling too bad, other than the
wing had a big hole in it. With the way our night was going we
decided to patch the wing up rather than put a new one on."
The nine positions gained marked the third-most cars passed
in the main event.
The weekend wrapped up on Saturday. Crockett rallied from
sixth to third place in a heat race to start the action.
"We ran the fastest time in hot laps and the car felt really
good," he said. "On the first start in our heat race we came out
second, but the next start didn't quite go as good. We came out
in third and maintained. In the qualifier I wasn't aggressive
enough, waiting too long to hit the bottom. We needed to get to
second or third to start good in the feature."
Crockett placed fourth in the qualifier and he ranked ninth
in points to line up on the inside of the fifth row for the main
event.
"In the A Main we got the car a little too tight and
struggled early," he said. "We lost a few spots on Lap 1. We ran
around there for awhile. We ended up getting lapped with six
laps to go, but we hung with Sam (Hafertepe Jr.) the rest of the
race. That's the frustrating part knowing the speed of our car."
Crockett's 10th-place result marked his third top 10 in four
ASCS National Tour races this season.
He is slated to return to action with the series this
Saturday and Sunday at Lake Ozark Speedway in Eldon, Mo.
"I really like the place," he said. "We've had a couple of
good runs there. I know our car is fast. I just need to do a
better job. It's hard because everybody is so aggressive.
Unfortunately, you have to have less regard for people than
racing used to be. Making people let off the gas is the name of
the game."
QUICK RESULTS -
May 17 - I-96 Speedway in Lake Odessa, Mich. - Heat race: 7
(6); B Main: 3 (8); Feature: 13 (22).
May 18 - I-96 Speedway in Lake Odessa, Mich. - Heat race: 3
(6); Qualifier: 4 (5); Feature: 10 (9).
SEASON STATS -
6 races, 0 wins, 2 top fives, 4 top 10s, 5 top 15s, 6 top 20s
UP NEXT -
Saturday and Sunday at Lake Ozark Speedway in Eldon, Mo.,
with the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour
Kaleb Johnson Manages to Post a Podium Finish
Despite Rainy Weekend
Inside Line Promotions - JEFFERSON, S.D. (May 21, 2019) -
Kaleb Johnson earned a podium finish Saturday night at Park
Jefferson International Speedway after weather altered his
original racing schedule for the weekend.
With rain washing out races at Jackson Motorplex in Jackson,
Minn., and at U.S. 36 Raceway in Osborn, Mo., on Friday as well
as at Eagle Raceway in Eagle, Neb., on Saturday, Johnson was
part of the 20-car 305 sprint car field for his first visit of
the season to Park Jefferson International Speedway Saturday
night.
His evening began well with a second-place heat race finish
after starting fourth.
"I was able to move up to second right away, but I thought
the track would have a little more moisture than it did," he
said. "I kind of stayed behind the leader for a while. Then Stu
Snyder moved up and we raced back and forth for a few laps. That
was fun. I barely beat him at the line to get second."
Johnson started sixth in the feature.
"We tried something different with the car that we'd never
done before so I didn't know what to expect," he said. "In a way
it worked. We'll just have to fine-tune it a bit.
"A couple of cars in front of us spun out and that moved us
to second. Just like in the heat race, Stu moved up again toward
the end and we raced side by side with him for about six or
seven laps. It ended close again, but this time he beat me by a
little bit at the finish for second. That was a lot of fun. It's
pretty cool to have someone race you close and clean without
having to worry about them chopping you off or anything like
that.
"To be honest, we probably had about a fifth- or sixth-place
car. But we're never ashamed of a top three. We just had some
things go our way. There will be other nights when they don't.
It was another good learning experience for us."
Johnson has an ambitious three nights of racing scheduled for
this weekend, which includes the season debut of his 360 sprint
car at Rapid Speedway in Rock Rapids, Iowa, on Friday during a
Midwest Sprint Touring Series event. He also plans to race his
305 sprint car at Eagle Raceway on Saturday and at I-80 Speedway
in Greenwood, Neb., on Sunday.
"I'm pretty excited about racing at Rock Rapids with our own
360 car," he said. "We went there once last year, but we had
motor problems and only ran a couple of laps. I'm anxious to see
how the car does."
QUICK RESULTS -
May 18 - Park Jefferson International Speedway in Jefferson,
S.D. - Heat race: 2 (4); Feature: 3 (6).
SEASON STATS -
5 races, 0 wins, 2 top fives, 4 top 10s, 5 top 15s, 5 top 20s
Hill Sees Misfortune Halt a Pair of Promising
Nights at I-96 Speedway
Inside Line Promotions - LAKE ODESSA, Mich. (May 21, 2019) -
Misfortune brought a sudden end to a pair of promising nights
for Alex Hill last weekend at I-96 Speedway during the Lucas Oil
ASCS National Tour debut at the oval.
Hill's night ended in turn four during the A Main each night
when she was caught up in miscues by other drivers.
On Friday, she started 13th in the main event and quickly
moved forward.
"I had a good start and passed several cars on the first
lap," she said. "We were fast and I felt we had a top-10 car.
But later in the race, when we were exiting turn four, someone
ahead of us spun out and then someone else got sideways and it
ended up being a big pileup. I had nowhere to go. I hit Jamie
Ball and we both flipped. Our car was torn up pretty bad and we
had to go to our backup car the next night."
Hill posted solid runs earlier in the evening, finishing
second in her heat race and fourth in her qualifier.
"Even though it was our first time at the track, Daryl had
the car set up good and we were fast right away," she said. "I
think we're getting better on our starts, slowly but surely. We
ran the bottom most of the weekend and we seemed to be able to
run better there than most of the others."
Hill placed second in a heat race and sixth in a qualifier
before she won the B Main on Saturday night. She started 17th in
the A Main when a similar situation occurred again in turn four.
"It was just like the night before," she said. "A guy spun
out in the same exact spot and I had nowhere to go. But this
time it was just the two of us and I didn't go over, although I
came close. That wreck did a lot of damage to the car, too. It
was especially frustrating because we've been running better
lately. But that's racing."
In spite of her poor luck, Hill hopes to return to I-96
Speedway again.
"Pretty much everything went well for us there, except for
the A Mains," she said. "I really liked the track. I hope we can
race there next year."
Next up for Hill and the ASCS National Tour will be a
doubleheader at Lake Ozark Speedway in Eldon, Mo., this Saturday
and Sunday.
"I'm looking forward to going back there to race," she said.
"We raced there for the first time last year. It will be nice to
go to a track we've been to before since the last several tracks
have been new to us."
QUICK RESULTS -
May 17 - I-96 Speedway in Lake Odessa, Mich. - Heat race: 2
(3); Qualifier: 4 (3); Feature: DNF (13).
May 18 - I-96 Speedway in Lake Odessa, Mich. - Heat race: 2
(1); Qualifier: 6 (5); B Main: 1 (1); Feature: DNF (17).
SEASON STATS -
11 races, 0 wins, 0 top fives, 0 top 10s, 0 top 15s, 1 top 20
UP NEXT -
Saturday and Sunday at Lake Ozark Speedway in Eldon, Mo.,
with the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour
Hagar Prepares for USCS Speedweek Races in Mississippi, Arkansas
and Tennessee
Inside Line Promotions - MARION, Ark. (May 21, 2019) - Derek
Hagar is eager to get behind the wheel during the USCS Speedweek,
which features four straight nights of racing this week.
Rain washed out the Hooker Hood Classic, which he was
supposed to run last Saturday. It's the latest rain out that has
kept Hagar from racing.
"I was really anxious to race last weekend," he said. "The
weather was looking good and it was going to be a great race. A
storm popped up unexpectedly and they had to cancel it."
Hagar has four chances to get to Victory Lane this weekend.
He will be at Greenville Speedway in Greenville, Miss., on
Friday to kick off Speedweek. Riverside International Speedway
in West Memphis, Ark., hosts Round 2 on Saturday. Old No. 1
Speedway in Harrisburg, Ark., showcases Sunday's event before a
race on Monday at Lexington 104 Speedway in Lexington, Tenn.
Old No. 1 Speedway is the only one that Hagar hasn't won at
out of those four tracks. He's hoping to break that this
weekend.
"I think we've got a pretty good chance to pull off some good
finishes this weekend," he said. "We've had really good results
at most of these tracks and I'm looking forward to getting back
to Harrisburg to see what we can do."
SEASON STATS -
5 races, 1 win, 3 top fives, 3 top 10s, 3 top 15s, 4 top 20s
UP NEXT -
Friday at Greenville Speedway in Greenville, Miss.; Saturday
at Riverside International Speedway in West Memphis, Ark.;
Sunday at Old No. 1 Speedway in Harrisburg, Ark.; and Monday at
Lexington 104 Speedway in Lexington, Tenn., with the USCS Series
Tankersley and Old School Racing Set for Texas
Doubleheader at Devil's Bowl and LoneStar
Inside Line Promotions - HIGHLANDS, Texas (May 21, 2019) - A
pair of ASCS Gulf South Region versus ASCS Lone Star Region
races are on tap for Channin Tankersley and Old School Racing.
The team will venture to Devil's Bowl Speedway in Mesquite,
Texas, on Saturday before wrapping up the weekend on Sunday at
LoneStar Speedway in Kilgore, Texas.
"Devil's Bowl hasn't statistically been one of my better
tracks," he said. "However, we've had a bunch of good runs
there. We'll give it our all and try to get it down. It's
really, really technical. You have to have a good car and you're
driving has to be on point.
"We always run well at Kilgore. Pretty much every time we
race there we're quick. It's just a faster track and I feel like
we do better on faster tracks. Between what we're doing with the
car and my driving lately I think we'll have a good shot at both
tracks."
Tankersley enters the weekend on top of the ASCS Gulf South
Region championship standings. He is the only driver to register
a top five in all four regional races this season.
Tankersley placed eighth at Devil's Bowl Speedway last year
to give him at least one top 10 during four of the last five
years at the track. His most recent appearance at LoneStar
Speedway yielded a podium finish in 2016.
SEASON STATS -
6 races, 1 win, 5 top fives, 6 top 10s, 6 top 15s, 6 top 20s
UP NEXT -
Saturday at Devil's Bowl Speedway in Mesquite, Texas, and
Sunday at LoneStar Speedway in Kilgore, Texas, with the ASCS
Gulf South Region and ASCS Lone Star Region
Schmelzle Heading to Cottage Grove Speedway for Marvin Smith
Memorial
Inside Line Promotions - COLVILLE, Wash. (May 21, 2019) -
Chris Schmelzle will make his first start of the season in
Oregon this weekend when he tackles the 6th annual Marvin Smith
Memorial.
Cottage Grove Speedway in Cottage Grove hosts the
doubleheader on Saturday and Sunday.
"Cottage Grove is one of my favorite tracks," he said. "It's
a fun, racy little track. It looks like there will be some great
competition there. Heather (Boyce) has grown that into a pretty
good event. I'm looking forward to getting back there."
Schmelzle has competed at the quarter-mile oval off and on
throughout the last 20 years.
"Somewhere around 1998 was the first time I raced my car at
Cottage Grove," he said. "I've gone there as much as I can.
"I ran second to Roger Crockett years ago in a race leading
up to Speedweek. One year in a Speedweek race we qualified fast
time. It was a huge group of cars there. We've always seemed to
qualify well and be fast there. I don't know if it's the size of
the track or just that the track is typically wide and racy
where you can run the bottom or top, but for some reason I've
always seemed to like that track."
Schmelzle said his goal is to compete for a top-five result
each night.
"We're looking to be fast right off the trailer," he said.
"We've been consistent with our speed. I'm looking to finish
that off with the results. If we can come out with a top-five
finish both nights I'd be pleased with that."
SEASON STATS -
5 races, 0 wins, 1 top five, 2 top 10s, 3 top 15s, 4 top 20s
UP NEXT -
Saturday and Sunday at Cottage Grove Speedway in Cottage
Grove, Ore., for the 6th annual Marvin Smith Memorial
Amantea Guides Backup Car to First Career Micro Sprint Feature
Victory
Inside Line Promotions - KUTZTOWN, Pa. (May 21, 2019) - Joey
Amantea captured his first career 600cc micro sprint feature
triumph on Saturday at Hamlin Speedway.
"It was huge," he said. "I've got a win. Now we can go out,
have fun and race."
The night began with Amantea powering his non-wing micro
sprint from fourth to second place after a long day of hard work
preparing the back-up car.
"We crashed pretty bad at Linda's Speedway on Friday," he
said. "Our other car had the blown motor in it and it was set up
for winged. From 6 a.m. my dad and I were setting up that car
and putting a new motor in it. We converted it and barely made
practice at 5:45 p.m."
Not only did the heat race go well after the long day,
Amantea lined up on the pole for the main event.
"For about six laps the guy who started on the outside led
and built a straightaway lead," he said. "The caution came out
and we had a double-file restart. I got him on it and led the
rest of the race. He showed me a nose once, but I took his lane
away and that was it."
Amantea led the majority of the race to highlight a busy week
with a trip to Victory Lane.
The week began on Wednesday at Shellhammers Speedway in
Shoemakersville, Pa., where Amantea made his debut. He fought a
loose car all night and placed sixth in a heat race before
ending 16th in the main event.
"We were really good in practice, but the track changed
drastically in the heat race," he said. "People said that's not
normal. The track was only one groove. I had a bunch of tough
guys in my heat and was super loose. I was really loose in the
feature, too. I was up to 11th at one point. Two cars wrecked in
front of me and I spun out so I had to go to the back. At that
place, since it's so small, I have to work on throttle control.
We're going to adjust the setup as well."
Amantea ventured to Linda's Speedway in Jonestown, Pa., on
Friday. He advanced from seventh to fifth in a heat race and was
battling for a top 10 in the feature when a crash ended his
night early.
"I was following a guy about ready to slide him," he said.
"Someone stopped in front of him and he weaved at the last
minute. I wasn't able to and hit him and then another guy hit
me. We went flying. It bent everything from the middle of the
car back. It destroyed everything. We basically went from the
track to drop the car off at Hyper Chassis."
That began a late night and long day on Saturday getting
everything prepared for that evening's race, which turned out to
be victorious.
Sunday's race at Action Track USA rained out midway through
the event.
Amantea is slated for the same schedule this week as last
week with races on Wednesday at Shellhammers Speedway; Friday at
Linda's Speedway; Saturday at Hamlin Speedway; and Sunday at
Action Track USA.
QUICK RESULTS -
May 15 - Shellhammers Speedway in Shoemakersville, Pa. - Heat
race: 6 (4); Feature: 16 (14).
May 17 - Linda's Speedway in Jonestown, Pa. - Heat race: 5
(7); Feature: DNF (14).
May 18 - Hamlin Speedway in Hamlin, Pa. - Heat race: 2 (4);
Feature: 1 (1).
SEASON STATS -
14 races, 1 win, 3 top fives, 6 top 10s, 10 top 15s, 22 top
20s
UP NEXT -
Wednesday at Shellhammers Speedway in Shoemakersville, Pa.;
Friday at Linda's Speedway in Jonestown, Pa.; Saturday at Hamlin
Speedway in Hamlin, Pa.; and Sunday at Action Track USA in
Kutztown, Pa.
TBJ Promotions Growing Midget Round Up Thanks to RMMRA and
NOW600 Series
Inside Line Promotions - OWASSO, Okla. (May 21, 2019) - The
Midget Round Up, which is in its fourth year of being a marquee
TBJ Promotions event, has grown each year thanks to support from
its two premier series.
"It's been amazing and very fulfilling to see the car counts
continue to grow," TBJ Promotions Founder Tony Bruce Jr. said.
"The Rocky Mountain Midget Racing Association has been a
big-time supporter of the event and Terry Mattox with the NOW600
Series has been a huge addition to get the micro game strong."
Both the POWRi Lucas Oil RMMRA Series and Lucas Oil National
Open Wheel 600 Series presented by Tel-Star Technologies will
partake in this year's spectacle, which runs this Saturday and
Sunday at Airport Raceway in Garden City, Kan.
"I figure we'll have 30-to-35 midgets and the three micro
sprint classes should have great car counts, too," Bruce Jr
said.
A total of four divisions will be running featuring the
midgets and the three premier NOW600 Series classes - Stock
Non-Wing, Winged 'A' Class and Restricted 'A' Class - both
nights.
The front gates are scheduled to open at 4 p.m. with racing
at 7 p.m. each night.
Tickets are $20 for adults on Saturday and $15 on Sunday.
Children ages 12-years-old and younger get in free both nights.
There is limited reserved spectator parking at the track
available. To purchase a spot, call 620-287-3695.
Additionally, TBJ Promotions would like to thank the Finney
County Convention and Visitors Bureau, Burtis Motor Company,
Mid-America Millwright, The Tunnel Car Wash, Johnson Septic Tank
Services, Jax Sports Grille, Driven Midwest and Maupin's Truck
Service for their continued support of the event.
Esteb's Stepping Up Engine Program for
SawBlade.com Backed Pulling Tractor
Inside Line Promotions - FRANKLIN, Ind. (May 21, 2019) - The
SawBlade.com backed pulling tractor team owned by David and
Janet Esteb has been hard at work over the winter and spring
getting ready for the 2019 Lucas Oil Pro Pulling Champions Tour
season.
"We had our SawBlade tractor displayed at the PRI show in
Indianapolis in December," Janet Esteb said. "We didn't get
invited to the National Farm Machinery Show this year. They only
invite 12 light superstock tractors from all over the United
States. We will try again next year.
"We have been busy rebuilding a new motor and David redid the
rear end because of some issues."
The Estebs' first pull will be an Indiana Pulling League
event in Boswell, Ind., on June 1. The Lucas Oil Pro Pulling
League Champions Tour season starts for their division June
14-15 at Mackville, Wis.
"We are planning to be at Boswell unless we are in the
field," Janet Esteb said. "This weather has been crazy lately.
"We are very glad to have SawBlade.com for another year of
sponsorship and are honored to represent such a great company
during the pulling season."
David Esteb drove Eat'n Dollars/Alky Edition to a
seventh-place finish in the 2018 Lucas Oil Pro Pulling League
Champions Tour for the Light Super Stock Division. The class is
limited to a 505ci engine, up to four turbo chargers with a
maximum of three stages. The Estebs' machine weighs 6,300
pounds.
At tractor pulls the driver who pulls the weighted sled -
that gets heavier the farther the driver travels down the track
- the longest wins. A pulling track is typically 300-to-320 feet
long.
Repeat Double-Podium Weekend for DXDT Racing in Blancpain GT
World Challenge America at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park
- David Askew and Ryan Dalziel
Co-Drive No. 63 USALCO/Security National Mortgage Mercedes-AMG
GT3 to Season-Best Second-Place Race Finish Sunday
- Third-Place Finish Saturday for
George Kurtz and Colin Braun in No. 04 CrowdStrike/AWS/DXDT
Mercedes-AMG GT3
BOWMANVILLE, Ontario, Canada (May 21, 2019)
– DXDT Racing scored a pair of podium finishes with its
Blancpain GT World Challenge America Mercedes-AMG GT3 entries
for the second-straight race weekend this past Saturday and
Sunday at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (CTMP).
Team owner and driver David
Askew and Ryan Dalziel co-drove the DXDT No. 63 USALCO/Security
National Mortgage Mercedes-AMG GT3 to a season-best second-place
Pro-Am finish in Sunday’s final race of the weekend.
In Saturday’s first 90-minute
race, George Kurtz and Colin Braun returned to the podium with a
third-place Pro-Am finish in the No. 04 CrowdStrike/AWS/DXDT
Mercedes-AMG GT3.
The CTMP race results are a
nearly perfect repeat of DXDT Racing’s first double podium
showing in the top-tier GT3 category last month at VIRginia
International Raceway (VIR). At that event, Askew and Dalziel
finished third on Saturday while Kurtz and Braun stepped up for
second-place honors Sunday.
“Everything is going really
well with the team,” Askew said. “Everybody is having fun. We
have two complete pit stop crews and they have a little
competition going between them, which is great. Our Sunday pit
stop was flawless, I made a little mistake at the end, but I am
glad it was my fault we had a long pit stop, and not the crew.
They are doing a great job.”
Askew rebounded from the pit
stop miscue with a great closing run on track to the finish.
“We showed all weekend the
Mercedes-AMG GT3 had good pace around Canadian Tire Motorsport
Park,” Dalziel said. “I got to run in the top four overall in my
stint Sunday and stretched a pretty good lead on some of the
other Pro-Am cars. The team did a great pit stop, and David got
in and had another career drive. For a guy who has only been
doing this a couple of years, he did an unbelievably good job.”
Answering the call to pick up
the pace when asked, Askew successfully defended the No. 63’s
second-place finish to the checkered flag.
“The third-place guy was
chasing me down and the crew came on the radio and said, ‘we
need another half a second.’” Askew said. “So, I worked a little
harder and found that half a second. I figured out where I was
able to hold him off and extended a little bit. I worked really
hard on not making any more mistakes and I felt really confident
in the car. The Mercedes-AMG GT3 is the kind of car that builds
confidence in a driver, especially for us amateur guys.”
The CTMP event was just the
third time Kurtz and Braun have raced together in GT3
competition, but they have hit the podium in each of the last
two race weekends.
“Overall it was a solid weekend
for the CrowdStrike team at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park,”
Braun said. “George had a fantastic stint on Saturday, and we
were able to finish on the podium in third place! Sunday was a
little more challenging for us. We finished just shy of the
podium in fourth but learned a lot for the next race. Can’t
thank CrowdStrike and the DXDT Racing guys enough for all they
do to prepare great Mercedes-AMG GT3 cars for us.”
Next up for DXDT Racing and
Blancpain GT World Challenge America is
Victory and Pole Position for
Mercedes-AMG GT4 and Pair of Podium Finishes for Mercedes-AMG
GT3 Entries in Competitive SRO Americas Race Weekend for
Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing Teams
Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4 and Drivers Matt Fassnacht and
Christian Szymczak Win Pirelli GT4 America SprintX Race at
Canadian Tire Motorsport Park |
BOWMANVILLE, Ontario,
Canada. Matt Fassnacht and Christian Szymczak co-drove
the No. 34 Murillo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4 to victory in
Saturday’s Pirelli GT4 America SprintX race at Canadian
Tire Motorsport Park (CTMP). The win followed a SprintX
pole-winning performance on Friday by Fassnacht in the
No. 34, and was a highlight in a competitive showing at
the SRO Americas CTMP weekend by Mercedes-AMG Motorsport
Customer Racing teams. In the weekend’s Blancpain GT
World Challenge America races, DXDT Racing also earned a
pair of podium finishes with its Mercedes-AMG GT3
entries.
Both Szymczak and Fassnacht led Saturday’s race.
Szymczak survived an early contact incident with another
competitor and pitted from the top three to hand the
Mercedes-AMG GT4 off to Fassnacht.
Fast work by the Murillo Racing
crew led the No. 34 back into the lead when pit stops
were completed and Fassnacht took control. He steadily
opened up a comfortable and controlled lead and took the
checkered flag 7.5 seconds ahead of the second-place
finisher.
The win was the third of the
Pirelli GT4 America season for Fassnacht, Murillo Racing
and the Mercedes-AMG GT4. Last month at VIRginia
International Raceway (VIR), Fassnacht swept the
weekend’s Pirelli GT4 America Sprint races in a Murillo
Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4.
In the CTMP weekend’s twin
90-minute Blancpain GT World Challenge America races,
DXDT Racing turned in a repeat performance of their VIR
race weekend, with a podium result each day in their
Mercedes-AMG GT3 Pro-Am entries.
In Sunday’s second and final race,
David Askew and Ryan Dalziel co-drove the No. 63 DXDT
Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 to a season-best second-place
Pro-Am finish.
This runner-up finish followed a
third place Pro-Am showing Saturday by George Kurtz and
Colin Braun in the No. 04 DXDT Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3.
The back-to-back double podium
results for DXDT came in only the team’s second and
third race weekends with its expanded two-car Mercedes-AMG
GT3 team.
Previously run under the Pirelli
World Challenge banner, the Blancpain GT World Challenge
America features classes for both professional and
professional-amateur driving duos in GT3 cars. The new
Pirelli GT4 America series for GT4 vehicles follows a
similar format in SprintX, in addition to the
single-driver sprint series.
Next up for Mercedes-AMG Motorsport
Customer Racing teams in both Blancpain GT World
Challenge America and Pirelli GT4 America is the Sonoma
Raceway race weekend, June 7 – 9.
Matthew Fassnacht, Driver – No. 34 Murillo Racing
Mercedes-AMG GT4: “It
really comes down to just being in the game. If you look
at what has happened with the team, and Christian and I
with the team, in the last year or so, it’s really about
a lot of unforced errors. Now that we aren’t doing that
we are staying in the game and getting the results that
we should be getting. Christian was unbelievable
Saturday and the team did such a great job with the
Mercedes-AMG GT4. I just got in and drove it to the end
pretty easily. I got in the car and was able to run the
kind of lap times I wanted to run. I maintained the lead
but there was more there. The Mercedes-AMG GT4 does have
some long legs for sure.”
Christian Szymczak, Driver – No. 34 Murillo Racing
Mercedes-AMG GT4: “It
was a lot of fun. We have a great car for the whole
season and this result is hugely important. We feel like
a weight has been lifted from our shoulders with the
first SprintX win. Now we can kind of just continue what
we are doing with the first win out of the way. The
Mercedes-AMG GT4 has a lot of strengths. It felt great
the whole stint, the balance stays consistent, and it’s
really stable the entire time. A lot of other cars out
there seem to have their pace fall off quite a bit but
the Mercedes-AMG GT4 really holds it together for the
whole stint. It’s great to drive the entire time.”
David Askew, Driver – No. 63 DXDT Racing Mercedes-AMG
GT3: “I don’t have a
lot of experience at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, and
none in a GT3 car before this weekend. So, I had to get
up to speed quickly and without a lot of track time. I
kept working with Ryan, kept chipping away at it, and he
kept the car in good track position on Sunday. When I
got in I was kind of able to go to the next step with
what I had to do on the track. I had a bit of a battle
with the winner but made a little mistake and he got by
me. Then I had the second-place car chasing me down and
the crew came on the radio and said, ‘we need another
half a second.’ So, I worked a little harder and found
that half a second. I figured out where I was able to
hold him off and extended a little bit. I worked really
hard on not making any more mistakes and I felt really
confident in the car. The Mercedes-AMG GT3 is the kind
of car that builds confidence in a driver, especially
for us amateur guys.”
Ryan
Dalziel, Driver – No. 63 DXDT Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3:
“It was a great day Sunday for the No. 63 DXDT Racing
team. We showed all weekend the Mercedes-AMG GT3 had
good pace around Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. We were
a little disappointed with a fourth-place finish
Saturday after a little mistake on the pit stop, but we
definitely had one of the fastest cars in the field in
both races. I got to run in the top four overall in my
stint Sunday and stretched a pretty good lead on some of
the other Pro-Am cars. The team did a great pit stop,
and David got in and had another career drive. For a guy
who has only been doing this a couple of years, he did
an unbelievably good job with some big names all around
him. We are all super happy to get a second-place finish
for DXDT Racing and Mercedes-AMG.”
Colin Braun, Driver – No. 04 DXDT Racing Mercedes-AMG
GT3: “Overall, it was
a solid weekend for the CrowdStrike team at Canadian
Tire Motorsports Park. George had a fantastic stint on
Saturday, and we were able to finish on the podium in
third place! Sunday was a little more challenging for
us. We finished just shy of the podium in fourth but
learned a lot for the next race. Can’t thank CrowdStrike
and the DXDT Racing guys enough for all they do to
prepare great Mercedes-AMG GT3 cars for us.”
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Kraig Kinser Produces Top
10s at Lincoln Speedway and at Williams Grove Speedway
Inside Line Promotions - MECHANICSBURG, Pa. (May 20, 2019)
- Kraig Kinser scored a pair of top-10 results last week in Central
Pennsylvania.
Kinser kicked off the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink
Sprint Car Series action on Wednesday at Lincoln Speedway in Abbottstown,
where he qualified seventh quickest in his group to open the Gettysburg
Clash presented by Drydene. He then placed fourth in a heat race before
capping the night with a 10th-place outing in the A Main.
"We qualified where we needed to start in the top half of the field," he
said. "Being able to make it to the A Main through the heat and not having
to run a B Main is important. We were fortunate to get qualified well enough
we didn't have to worry about it.
"Lincoln is a tough track, especially when you factor in
the PA Posse. The car count was good with solid cars. I'd say it was one of
our better finishes at Lincoln. It's a hard place to go in and have success
at."
Kinser invaded Williams Grove Speedway on Friday and
Saturday for the Morgan Cup. After Friday ended with a DNF while leading the
C Main, Kinser rebounded on Saturday by setting quick time during qualifying
for the first time at the half-mile oval.
"As bad as Friday was Saturday was a great night," he
said. "That's what you want to do. You want to go in as fast as you can and
hope it's quicker than everyone else. You factor in Williams Grove and
everything about it, it's a pretty big thing to accomplish."
A runner-up result in a heat race locked Kinser into the
dash. He gained a position in the race to finish third, which is where he
started the A Main. Unfortunately, Kinser spun his tires on the start and
lost several positions on the opening lap.
"We couldn't get going off the start," he said. "I spun a
little hard for whatever reason and then I was back to sixth or seventh. I
wish we wouldn't have given those spots up."
Kinser battled just outside the top five throughout the
race before posting a sixth-place run.
The team has a hectic week upcoming beginning Tuesday with
the first World of Outlaws race at Bridgeport Speedway in Swedesboro, N.J.,
since 2003. That was the last time Kinser raced at the track, which has been
shortened to a 3/8-mile oval.
The action on Friday and Saturday is hosted by The Dirt
Track at Charlotte in Concord, N.C., for the Patriot Nationals. Kinser will
have Profile by Sanford as the primary sponsor during the two races and he
will make an appearance at a Profile by Sanford store in Charlotte on
Thursday. The address is 7510 Pineville Matthews Road and the appearance is
from 3:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
The holiday weekend wraps up next Monday at Lawrenceburg
Speedway in Lawrenceburg, Ind., for the Memorial Day Spectacle presented by
KOI Auto Parts.
"We're starting to get into the part of the season where
we'll race a lot," he said. "Hopefully the weather cooperates and we can
race."
QUICK RESULTS -
May 15 - Lincoln Speedway in Abbottstown, Pa. -
Qualifying: 7; Heat race: 4 (4); Feature: 10 (13).
May 17 - Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pa. -
Qualifying: 16; Heat race: 6 (8); C Main: DNF (2).
May 18 - Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pa. -
Qualifying: 1; Heat race: 2 (1); Dash: 3 (4); Feature: 6 (3).
SEASON STATS -
19 races, 0 wins, 1 top five, 4 top 10s, 11 top 15s, 14
top 20s
Sides Set for
Busy Week in New Jersey, North Carolina and Indiana
Inside Line Promotions - WEEDSPORT, N.Y. (May 20, 2019) -
Jason Sides starts a busy holiday week this Tuesday at Bridgeport Speedway,
where the World of Outlaw NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series will make its
first visit since 2003.
Sides competed during that event 16 years ago, placing
16th after coming out of the Last Chance Showdown on the 5/8-mile oval in
Swedesboro, N.J. It has been shortened to a 3/8-mile track.
"It's been quite a few years since we've been there and they've changed
the track since then so it's like we're going to a new track," he said.
"Hopefully we can lay down a good qualifying lap to start on the right
foot."
Sides will then head south to The Dirt Track at Charlotte
in Concord, N.C., to tackle the Patriot Nationals on Friday and Saturday. He
earned a career-best runner-up result at there in 2013. He also placed
second at the oval in 2009 and he has five top fives and 15 top 10s there
dating back to 2007.
"It's a confidence booster rolling into a track where
you've been successful and have competed for wins," he said. "It's nice to
have a two-day show at The Dirt Track at Charlotte in the spring, too."
The week concludes next Monday at Lawrenceburg Speedway in
Lawrenceburg, Ind., for the Memorial Day Spectacle presented by KOI Auto
Parts. His most recent top 10 at Lawrenceburg Speedway came in 2012 when
Sides rallied from 17th to 10th in the main event.
Sides is coming off a week in Central Pennsylvania where
qualifying put him behind the eight ball on Wednesday at Lincoln Speedway in
Abbottstown during the Gettysburg Clash presented by Drydene and on Friday
and Saturday at Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg during the Morgan
Cup.
"Qualifying is important at every race, but it's pretty
much make or break when you're racing in Central Pennsylvania," he said.
"The competition is so good and deep that it doesn't usually allow for you
to charge through the field so you need to lay down good qualifying laps. We
didn't do that and it buried us."
Sunday's race at Weedsport Speedway in Weedsport, N.Y.,
rained out.
QUICK RESULTS -
May 15 - Lincoln Speedway in Abbottstown, Pa. -
Qualifying: 14; Heat race: 8 (7); B Main: 13 (10).
May 17 - Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pa. -
Qualifying: 11; Heat race: 9 (6); B Main: 7 (6).
May 18 - Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pa. -
Qualifying: 13; Heat race: 9 (7); B Main: 12 (8).
SIDES MOTORSPORTS SEASON
STATS -
28 races, 0 wins, 2 top fives, 6 top 10s, 7 top 15s, 17
top 20s
Schuett Battles for Top-15
Finish at Tri-State Speedway
Inside Line Promotions - HAUBSTADT, Ind. (May 20, 2019) -
Kyle Schuett battled mechanical problems while fighting to a top-15 finish
with the Built Ford Tough MOWA Sprint Car Series Saturday night at Tri-State
Speedway.
The 410ci sprint car rookie and his team began the evening
challenged by a lack of power from their engine in their heat race, where
Schuett started and finished sixth.
"I felt a little rusty in hot laps and in the heat race," said Schuett,
who returned to the track for the first time in over a month for just the
fourth 410 sprint car race of his career. "We were way off in power in our
heat race. The motor was popping and sounding like the rev limiter all the
way down the straightaway."
Schuett and his crew immediately attempted to diagnose the
issue.
"We weren't sure what was wrong," he said. "We checked a
lot of things and eventually changed the MSD box, which turned out to be the
issue.
"When the mag moved at our last race at Tri-City, we
didn't realize it had damaged the MSD box because the track was slicker and
we weren't totally in the gas. I had no idea that the box could burn up due
to the mag being moved. That's just another thing you learn as you go."
While the power issue was resolved in time for the
feature, it still indirectly effected the car's performance in the main
event.
"The motor ran great in the feature," Schuett said.
"Unfortunately, we spent most of our time working on that issue after the
heat race and didn't have time to look at the track and see what changes
needed to be made to our car for the feature."
Schuett started 16th in the feature and finished 14th with
a car that could have handled better.
"We just weren't able to do much because of the issue in
the heat race," he said. "We held on in the feature while our car didn't
handle the best. I just tried to stay out of the wrecks and finish all the
laps."
Schuett was particularly grateful for the presence and
help of one of his sponsors.
"We're really thankful for the help we received from Tim
Engler in helping us diagnose our problem," he said. "He was a huge help and
we were grateful he was there."
With the mechanical gremlins hopefully resolved, Schuett
is looking forward to a MOWA event this Friday at Jacksonville Speedway in
Jacksonville, Ill.
"We finished ninth at Jacksonville earlier this year and
realized later that our motor didn't have full power then," he said. "We're
looking forward to returning there with things we learned the first time and
having our motor problems fixed."
QUICK RESULTS -
May 18 - Tri-State Speedway in Haubstadt, Ind. - Heat
race: 6 (6); Feature: 14 (16).
SEASON STATS -
4 races, 0 wins, 1 top five, 2 top 10s, 3 top 15s, 3 top
20s
Dominic Scelzi Earns
Second-Place Finish During Peter Murphy Classic Opener
Inside Line Promotions - TULARE, Calif. (May 20, 2019) -
Dominic Scelzi captured a runner-up result last Friday at Thunderbowl
Raceway during the opening night of the Peter Murphy Classic, which featured
more than 40 competitors in the Sprint Car Challenge Tour portion.
The action began with Scelzi driving a Roth Motorsports
entry to the third quickest qualifying time in his group. He then won a heat
race after starting on the outside of the front row, which locked him into
the dash.
"We made some changes and won the heat race," he said. "That was a boost
of confidence because that place is tough. In the dash I felt outstanding
and we raced with Rico (Abreu) and Tony (Gualda) for the lead."
A third-place result in the dash lined Scelzi up on the
inside of the second row for the main event.
"Coming off four we went three wide for the lead when Rico
and Tony got together," he said. "Tony crashed so that put me starting on
the outside of the front row for the restart. Rico got the jump and we went
five or six laps running against the wall. I ran him down and was on his
rear bumper. I was going to slide him going into turn one when a lapper
didn't get pulled off on time and brought out a caution. We went green and
then within a full lap later it was rubber down around the whole track."
Scelzi maintained second for the remainder of the race. It
marked his sixth top five of the season.
Saturday's Peter Murphy Classic was postponed to next
month because of rain.
Scelzi started last week by racing with the World of
Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series on Wednesday at Lincoln Speedway
in Abbottstown, Pa. He qualified 18th quickest in his group before placing
ninth in a heat race and fourth in the C Main.
"I got us buried in qualifying by trying to get too much,"
he said. "In the heat I felt better than cars in front of me, but it was
impossible to pass. In the C Main it was a similar situation. However, I
felt comfortable around the track. I'm looking forward to getting to
Bridgeport and making good laps."
Scelzi will join the World of Outlaws for races this
Tuesday at Bridgeport Speedway in Swedesboro, N.J.; Friday and Saturday at
The Dirt Track at Charlotte in Concord, N.C., for the Patriot Nationals; and
Monday at Lawrenceburg Speedway in Lawrenceburg, Ind., for the Memorial Day
Spectacle presented by KOI Auto Parts.
QUICK RESULTS -
May 15 - Lincoln Speedway in Abbottstown, Pa. -
Qualifying: 18; Heat race: 9 (9); C Main: 4 (4).
May 17 - Thunderbowl Raceway in Tulare, Calif. -
Qualifying: 3; Heat race: 1 (2); Dash: 3 (4); Feature: 2 (3).
SEASON STATS -
17 races, 1 win, 6 top fives, 8 top 10s, 10 top 15s, 11
top 20s
Starks Excited for
Doubleheader at Knoxville Raceway This Weekend
Inside Line Promotions - PUYALLUP, Wash. (May 20, 2019) -
The rainouts continue to stack up for Trey Starks, who lost both
opportunities to race last weekend because of rain.
That makes six of nine scheduled races that have been
cancelled or postponed because of wet weather to start the season for
Gobrecht Motorsports.
"I think everyone is pretty tired of the continual rain," he said. "You
always expect a couple of rainouts early in the year, but to have lost as
many as we have so far has been frustrating. We're hoping the weather will
turn for the better soon and we can start racing every weekend."
The next opportunity is a doubleheader hosted by Knoxville
Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa, this Friday and Saturday.
"We're grateful for Knoxville Raceway to add a show on
Friday to make up for how many have been lost," he said. "They didn't have
to do that so it shows how committed they are to racing and the teams that
support the track."
Starks made a lot of headway between the Knoxville Raceway
season opener on April 20 and his second start on May 4, when he scored his
first career top 10 in the 410ci winged sprint car division at the 'Sprint
Car Capital of the World.'
"We've said this the last couple of weeks and then the
races rain out, but we're really looking forward to seeing what race No. 3
has in store for us at Knoxville," he said. "It was such a big improvement
from the first to second race that we want to keep moving forward and
getting better. The only way we can do that is to get consistent laps
there."
Starks enters the weekend ranked 12th in the championship
standings.
SEASON STATS -
3 races, 0 wins, 1 top five, 2 top 10s, 2 top 15s, 2 top
20s
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