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MacDONALD SCORES ACT HAT TRICK - GOODALE TOPS BLEWITT MEMORIAL - WALLACE
COUSINS WIN AT NEW SMYRNA WORLD SERIES NIGHT SIX
It was one of the longest nights in the history of the World Series of Asphalt
Stock Car Racing at New Smyrna Speedway but fans braved the frigid
temperatures and wind to enjoy some of the best racing of this year's World
Series.
After a rain-out on Tuesday, track officials decided to add the scheduled
Super Late Model and PPG Architectural Coatings Pro Late Models to Wednesday's
card meaning there would be twin 35-lap features for both classes. Following
a meeting with American-Canadian Tour officials, it was also decided to run
their finale of the American Racer Challenge on Wednesday as well as 21 teams
agreed to stay and compete. This made for a very long evening of racing, some
381 laps worth, but while the weather was cold, the racing was hot as it could
be.
The 100-lap finale for the ACT American Racer Challenge was lined up by points
in reverse order placing Eddie MacDonald of Rowley, MA, winner of both the
Sunday and Monday ACT events, in 17th starting position. His work would be
cut out for him but MacDonald would be up to the task.
Brad Babb of Windham, ME took off from his pole starting spot and set the
early pace as Berlin, CT driver Keith Rocco shot from his fifth starting spot
to second on lap two. Tiverton, Rhode Island's Ray Parent was on the move
early and took third from Tom Carey, Jr. on lap seven. Rocco moved in on Babb
and started to put on the pressure but Babb was able to hold him at bay until
the first caution flag of the race flew for a spinning Josh Demers in turn
four. Several cars made pit stops under the caution including Nick Sweet,
Edward Leclerc, Jr., Brandon White and Aaron Fellows who was already nursing a
sick engine.
Rocco got the jump on the restart and began to put some distance on the field.
Lap 28 saw Wayne Helliwell, Jr. go for a spin to bring out the second yellow
flag. Fellows, who nearly won on Monday night, brought his ailing car back on
pit road as did Travis Stearns, Donald Theetge and both Leclerc and White for
a second time.
Rocco continued to set the pace as Brandon Atkins slipped by Parent for third
on lap 30. As Rocco began to motor away, all eyes were on MacDonald who had
already made his way into ninth spot while 15th starter Alex Labbe grabbed
fifth position on lap 38.
MacDonald continued his charge as the race ran under green flag conditions,
now up to sixth on lap 41 while Rowland Robinson, Jr. was charging hard moving
by Parent and into fourth place on lap 44.
At the half-way mark Rocco held a comfortable advantage over Babb, Atkins,
Rowland, Parent, MacDonald, Joey Polewarczyk, Jr., a surging Helliwell and
Labbe. MacDonald moved by Parent on lap 55 to take over in fifth. At this
point a great battle for third ensued involving Atkins, Rowland and MacDonald.
MacDonald tried a bold three-wide move diving under the other pair of drivers
and causing Rowland and Atkins to come together and spin in turn three.
Officials determined MacDonald did not touch either of the other two cars and
he now had third all to himself while both Rowland and Atkins started from the
back of the pack.
Rocco now had plenty of pressure up front as he and Babb raced side-by-side
with MacDonald shadowing each and every move. On lap 71, MacDonald made a
bold three-wide pass to take the lead and also bringing Babb by Rocco into
second. Polewarczyk sped by Rocco for third just as Pete Yetman spun in turn
four to bring out the caution on lap 73.
Following the restart it was Helliwell who was on the move. He passed Rocco
for fourth on lap 81 then dusted off Polewarczyk for third spot on lap 83.
Six laps later, Helliwell blasted by Babb and into second behind MacDonald.
The remainder of the event ran under green and Helliwell could not close on
MacDonald who took the checker after just under 45 minutes of racing to score
a clean sweep of the three ACT races at the World Series. Helliwell picked up
his second runner-up finish to go with a third while Polewarczyk got by Babb
on the 92nd lap and took the final spot on the podium.
Babb held off Labbe for fourth while sixth through tenth went to Rocco, Daniel
Descoste, Demers, Robinson and Parent. MacDonald was thus awarded the
American Racer Challenge Cup followed by Helliwell, Labbe, Demers and Sweet.
The cold race track did not deter Buffalo, NY hot shoe Chuck Hossfeld from
turning in a blistering lap of 17.110 seconds to top qualifying for the John
Blewitt III Memorial 76-lap race for the Tour-Type Modifieds. Ryan Preece of
Calverton, NY was not far behind at 17.116 and Justin Bonsignore of West
Islip, NY was third quick with a lap of 17.267.
The top ten in qualifying were inverted placing Kirk Totten on the pole and
Patrick Emerling to his outside. Emerling grabbed the early lead only to see
caution fly on lap three for a Mike Bolona spin in turn two. Ryan Preece was
on the move after the green came back out and he zipped into second by the end
of lap eight. Lap 16 saw Tommy Catalano hit the turn four wall to bring out
the yellow flag. Eric Goodale, who was running in the top five, pitted for
adjustments while Paul Hartwig, Jr. also came on pit road with a badly
overheating engine, done for the night.
Preece blasted into the lead on the restart and began to draw away from the
field until Bolona spun again in turn two on lap 27. The next restart was no
different as Preece was in a world of his own. Caution flew yet again as
Emerling spun in turn one on lap 36. Totten's car stalled during the yellow
flag period and he was pushed back to the pits and out of the event.
The field settled into some green flag racing as Preece held the point while
J. R. Bertuccio zipped by Hossfeld for third on lap 55 bringing Goodale with
him into fourth. Cole Powell had moved up to second and seemed to be nearly
as fast as Preece but the Canadian driver saw his hopes for victory go up in
smoke on lap 60 as he headed for the pits and out of action. Two laps later,
Bolona looped his mount for a third time, this time in turn four, to slow the
field.
Bonsignore and Goodale had now moved to second and third behind Preece and
began to close only to be slowed by a spin on lap 67. Goodale blew by
Bonsignore on the restart and took off after Preece. Foilowing a great
battle, Goodale emerged with the lead on lap 72 and never looked back as he
scored a popular victory. Bonsignore slipped by Preece with two laps to go
and claimed second with Preece third over Bertuccio and Hossfeld. Rounding
out the top ten were Spencer Davis, Al Ermmarino, Jimmy Zacharias, Amy
Catalano and Jeremy Gerstner.
New Smyrna's own James "Tank" Tucker turned quick time for the 75-lap
Florida/IMCA-Type Modified contest with a lap of 18.525 seconds to top Kevyn
Terry's 18.603 lap with Jerry "The Hammer" Symons third fastest at 18.675.
The top six in qualifying were inverted in this one putting veterans Doug Moff
and Jimmy Britts on the front row.
Moff blasted to a huge early advantage as it looked like this race might run
green to checker. Alan Bruns was having his best run of the week in second
while Terry and Tim Moore got by Tucker on lap 22 as Tucker just did not seem
to have the speed he did in qualifying. Moff, leading by a country mile, had
his race come to a screeching halt as his engine expired coming past the
start-finish line on lap 30 to bring out the first caution of the event.
After he was called to pit road to check for an oil leak (which there was
none), Bruns took over the lead on the restart and was holding off a
hard-charging pack of cars until Moore slowed to a stop on lap 60 to bring the
yellow flag out. Jimmy Britts passed Bruns for the lead but the restart was
negated as officials ruled Britts had jumped the start and put him to the rear
of the field. On the following restart, Symons tried a bold inside move going
into turn one diving to the inside of Bruns. His cold tires would not hold
onto the slick race surface and he slid into Bruns sending Bruns into a spin.
When the dust cleared the cars of Symons, Tucker, Camron Ray and James Ellis
were too damaged to continue. Bruns had minor damage and was returned to the
point while Travis Eddy had a ton of body damage but returned to the fray for
a short while before dropping out.
On the restart it was Jeremy Gerstner moving into second and he began to track
down Bruns only to spin Bruns out in turn four on lap 65. Gerstner went to
the rear of the field for the restart as Britts moved back up to second on the
restart but was passed by Terry late in the going but Terry was unable to make
a move on Bruns before the checkered flag fell. Bruns took his first win here
in over a year with Terry second and the recently un-retired Britts claiming
third in the Kurt Jett Concrete Special. Gerstner, Matt Wheeler and Robert
Deal finished fourth through sixth and were the only cars still running at the
end. Moore was credited with seventh with Eddy, Symons and Ray completing the
top ten.
Super Late Model qualifying saw Paul Shafer Jr. of Portage, IN top a strong
field with a lap of 17.626 seconds with Huntersville North Carolina's Harrison
Burton second fast at 17.666 and Orlando's Brad May a strong third quick at
17.670. Shafer drew a six for the inversion putting Bobby Wilberg of Beloit,
WI on the pole flanked by Garrett Jones of Mooresville, NC as 34 cars started
the first of the twin 35-lappers for the Super Lates.
Wilberg used his pole starting spot to his advantage and snared the early lead
only to see caution fly for a Josh Collins spin on lap six. Wilberg continued
to lead as a wild battle began to take place behind him as several "wrecks
that didn't happen" took place behind him. Zane Smith was on the charge
though and the Huntington Beach, CA driver dusted off both May and Garrett
Jones to move into second then stormed by Wilberg for the point on the ninth
lap. Two laps later, Brandon Oakley spun on the front stretch and nosed his
car into the inside barrier. After a quick stop to check for damage, Oakley
took his car to the pits.
Smith set the pace on the restart and maintained a bit of an advantage but
caution was out yet again on lap 19 as Gary Passer tagged the wall in turn one
ending his night early. Smith continued to lead but Wilberg wasn't letting
him get away. But, on lap 27, something broke on Wilberg's machine and his
car shot straight up the track and into the concrete directly between turns
three and four. Wilberg was OK but his car was badly damaged.
On the restart, May made a big move to take the lead but he and Smith tangled
in turn four sending May spinning in a cloud of smoke. After everything was
said and done, May was out of the race as was Brendon Bock while the cars of
Rico Abreu, Denver Foran, Claire Decker and Martin Latulippe had damage but
were able to continue.
Ryan Moore took over second on the restart but had nothing for Smith who
became the third winner in three Super Late Model races during the World
Series. Moore had his best run of the week with the runner-up spot while
Harrison Burton claimed third over Joey Mucciacciaro and Stephen Nasse. The
remainder of the top ten were Steve Wallace, Garrett Jones, Gus Dean, Natalie
Decker and Shafer who never really got on track after setting the fast time
earlier.
Twenty-nine cars answered the call for the second 35-lap contest with pole
sitter Drew Brannon of Tampa, FL leading early before a big mix-up going into
turn one caused the car of Martin Latulippe to stall at the bottom of the
track for the race's first caution. Brannon continued to set the pace but
could not hold off Harrison Burton who took the top spot on lap 11 bringing
Joey Mucciacciaro with him. Ty Majeski spun in turn two to bring out the
yellow on lap 14. On the restart, Hunter Robbins got booted into the turn two
wall. Robbins got out of his car and threw his steering wheel into the
cockpit of Steve Wallace's car as he felt Wallace was the one who had used him
as a football. Wallace, not in need of two steering wheels, was brought to
pit road so he could hand over Robbins' one to track officials.
On the restart, Ryan Moore moved into second and began to try and track down
Burton. Paul Shafer, Jr, pounded the turn one wall to bring out the caution
again on lap 29. Steve Wallace got a great jump on the outside lane following
the restart and moved to the point. Burton was none to happy with the way
Wallace made his move and he spun Wallace out of the lead on lap 31. However
it was Burton who would be sent to the rear of the field while Wallace
retained his lead. Drew Brannon was an innocent victim and had to take his
car to the pits and out of action.
One lap after the restart, Mucciacciaro brushed the front stretch wall. A
deflating tire caused him to spin in turn two with Burton, Derek Griffith and
others being involved. Both "Mooch" and Griffith were done for the night.
Wallace held off Moore as the 2014 World Series Super Late Model champion got
his first win of the 2015 Series. Moore finished second for the second time
during the evening while Jones came home a solid third trailed by Ty Majeski
and David Garbo, Jr. Rounding out the top ten were Natalie Decker, first
race winner Zane Smith, Latulippe, David Rogers and Denver Foran.
Fast time for the PPG Architectural Coatings Pro Late Models went to Matt
Wallace of Concord, NC with at lap of 18.217 seconds, a tick of the watch
better than the 18.233 lap turned in by Derek Scott, Jr. of Franklin, TX. The
fastest six from time trials were inverted Putting veteran driver Larry
Gelinas of Scarborough, ME on the pole and Ryan Miles of Crystal Lake, IL on
the outside pole.
Gelinas shot to the early lead only to see Tyler Thomas slide backwards into
the turn one wall at the end of lap one. Thomas was through for this race.
Gelinas continued to set the pace until the second yellow flew for Todd
Stone's front stretch spin.
Only one lap could be completed before Steve Laking spun hard into the inside
wall on the back sttetch as his car would need two wreckers to haul it back to
the pits. Gelinas maintained his slim advantage but caution came out yet
again as Fredrick Moore hit the wall a ton in his PPG Liquid Nails car going
into turn one on lap ten. Moore was OK but his car was going to need more
than Liquid Nails to put it back together.
On the restart, Ryan Miles slipped by Gelinas for the lead bringing Dalton
Armstrong with him. Getting to lap 12 would be a chore as first Sarah McKay
spun in turn two then, on the restart, Spencer Davis and Michael Lira tangled
sending Lira backwards into the wall. Yet another attempt at getting the race
going was aborted when Todd Stone and Scott Reeves crashed coming off turn
two.
The rest of the race ran under green and saw a great battle up front. Miles
led lap eleven while Armstrong led the 12th lap. Miles led lap 13 before
Armstrong took over for good on lap 14. Davis made a move on Miles for second
on lap 20 but the two nearly crashed on lap 20 and Davis slipped back.
Armstrong drove off to a big victory as Miles held off Tim Sargent who
finished third after starting dead last following fixing a clutch problem that
forced him to miss qualifying. Davis was fourth and fist qualifier Wallace
fifth. Sixth through tenth were Gelinas, Sheldon Creed, Derek Scott, Jr.,
Stone and Grant Griesbach.
Austin Nason of Roscoe, IL and Gelinas had the front row for the second Pro
Late Model event and Gelinas took the early lead just as he did in the first
race only to see a quick yellow as Duke Long spun off turn two and pounded the
inside barrier. Gelinas would set the pace for two laps before Spencer Davis
and first race winner Dalton Armstrong crashed hard on the front stretch
eliminating both from competition.
Ryan Miles zoomed by Gelinas for the point on lap five while Matt Wallace
picked up the second spot on lap six and he took the lead from Miles on lap
12. Sargent was on the charge, once again from the back of the starting grid,
and took second from Miles on lap 15 setting up a great battle for the lead
with Wallace. Lap after lap, Sargent would dive low in the corners, draw even
with Wallace, only to be fended off on each occasion and the pair nearly
crashed in turn two on lap 27.
Wallace would hold on for the victory as both he and Cousin Steve Wallace
picked up wins on the same night. Sargent was second and easily found himself
becoming a fan favorite. Miles took third in front of Nason and Derek Scott,
Jr. Completing the top ten were Tyler Thomas, Todd Stone, Sheldon Creed,
Gelinas, and Grant Griesbach.
Full race results can be found by going to www.newsmyrna.org or
www.speed51.com
COUSINS WIN AT NEW SMYRNA WORLD SERIES NIGHT SIX
It was one of the longest nights in the history of the World Series of Asphalt
Stock Car Racing at New Smyrna Speedway but fans braved the frigid
temperatures and wind to enjoy some of the best racing of this year's World
Series.
After a rain-out on Tuesday, track officials decided to add the scheduled
Super Late Model and PPG Architectural Coatings Pro Late Models to Wednesday's
card meaning there would be twin 35-lap features for both classes. Following
a meeting with American-Canadian Tour officials, it was also decided to run
their finale of the American Racer Challenge on Wednesday as well as 21 teams
agreed to stay and compete. This made for a very long evening of racing, some
381 laps worth, but while the weather was cold, the racing was hot as it could
be.
The 100-lap finale for the ACT American Racer Challenge was lined up by points
in reverse order placing Eddie MacDonald of Rowley, MA, winner of both the
Sunday and Monday ACT events, in 17th starting position. His work would be
cut out for him but MacDonald would be up to the task.
Brad Babb of Windham, ME took off from his pole starting spot and set the
early pace as Berlin, CT driver Keith Rocco shot from his fifth starting spot
to second on lap two. Tiverton, Rhode Island's Ray Parent was on the move
early and took third from Tom Carey, Jr. on lap seven. Rocco moved in on Babb
and started to put on the pressure but Babb was able to hold him at bay until
the first caution flag of the race flew for a spinning Josh Demers in turn
four. Several cars made pit stops under the caution including Nick Sweet,
Edward Leclerc, Jr., Brandon White and Aaron Fellows who was already nursing a
sick engine.
Rocco got the jump on the restart and began to put some distance on the field.
Lap 28 saw Wayne Helliwell, Jr. go for a spin to bring out the second yellow
flag. Fellows, who nearly won on Monday night, brought his ailing car back on
pit road as did Travis Stearns, Donald Theetge and both Leclerc and White for
a second time.
Rocco continued to set the pace as Brandon Atkins slipped by Parent for third
on lap 30. As Rocco began to motor away, all eyes were on MacDonald who had
already made his way into ninth spot while 15th starter Alex Labbe grabbed
fifth position on lap 38.
MacDonald continued his charge as the race ran under green flag conditions,
now up to sixth on lap 41 while Rowland Robinson, Jr. was charging hard moving
by Parent and into fourth place on lap 44.
At the half-way mark Rocco held a comfortable advantage over Babb, Atkins,
Rowland, Parent, MacDonald, Joey Polewarczyk, Jr., a surging Helliwell and
Labbe. MacDonald moved by Parent on lap 55 to take over in fifth. At this
point a great battle for third ensued involving Atkins, Rowland and MacDonald.
MacDonald tried a bold three-wide move diving under the other pair of drivers
and causing Rowland and Atkins to come together and spin in turn three.
Officials determined MacDonald did not touch either of the other two cars and
he now had third all to himself while both Rowland and Atkins started from the
back of the pack.
Rocco now had plenty of pressure up front as he and Babb raced side-by-side
with MacDonald shadowing each and every move. On lap 71, MacDonald made a
bold three-wide pass to take the lead and also bringing Babb by Rocco into
second. Polewarczyk sped by Rocco for third just as Pete Yetman spun in turn
four to bring out the caution on lap 73.
Following the restart it was Helliwell who was on the move. He passed Rocco
for fourth on lap 81 then dusted off Polewarczyk for third spot on lap 83.
Six laps later, Helliwell blasted by Babb and into second behind MacDonald.
The remainder of the event ran under green and Helliwell could not close on
MacDonald who took the checker after just under 45 minutes of racing to score
a clean sweep of the three ACT races at the World Series. Helliwell picked up
his second runner-up finish to go with a third while Polewarczyk got by Babb
on the 92nd lap and took the final spot on the podium.
Babb held off Labbe for fourth while sixth through tenth went to Rocco, Daniel
Descoste, Demers, Robinson and Parent. MacDonald was thus awarded the
American Racer Challenge Cup followed by Helliwell, Labbe, Demers and Sweet.
The cold race track did not deter Buffalo, NY hot shoe Chuck Hossfeld from
turning in a blistering lap of 17.110 seconds to top qualifying for the John
Blewitt III Memorial 76-lap race for the Tour-Type Modifieds. Ryan Preece of
Calverton, NY was not far behind at 17.116 and Justin Bonsignore of West
Islip, NY was third quick with a lap of 17.267.
The top ten in qualifying were inverted placing Kirk Totten on the pole and
Patrick Emerling to his outside. Emerling grabbed the early lead only to see
caution fly on lap three for a Mike Bolona spin in turn two. Ryan Preece was
on the move after the green came back out and he zipped into second by the end
of lap eight. Lap 16 saw Tommy Catalano hit the turn four wall to bring out
the yellow flag. Eric Goodale, who was running in the top five, pitted for
adjustments while Paul Hartwig, Jr. also came on pit road with a badly
overheating engine, done for the night.
Preece blasted into the lead on the restart and began to draw away from the
field until Bolona spun again in turn two on lap 27. The next restart was no
different as Preece was in a world of his own. Caution flew yet again as
Emerling spun in turn one on lap 36. Totten's car stalled during the yellow
flag period and he was pushed back to the pits and out of the event.
The field settled into some green flag racing as Preece held the point while
J. R. Bertuccio zipped by Hossfeld for third on lap 55 bringing Goodale with
him into fourth. Cole Powell had moved up to second and seemed to be nearly
as fast as Preece but the Canadian driver saw his hopes for victory go up in
smoke on lap 60 as he headed for the pits and out of action. Two laps later,
Bolona looped his mount for a third time, this time in turn four, to slow the
field.
Bonsignore and Goodale had now moved to second and third behind Preece and
began to close only to be slowed by a spin on lap 67. Goodale blew by
Bonsignore on the restart and took off after Preece. Foilowing a great
battle, Goodale emerged with the lead on lap 72 and never looked back as he
scored a popular victory. Bonsignore slipped by Preece with two laps to go
and claimed second with Preece third over Bertuccio and Hossfeld. Rounding
out the top ten were Spencer Davis, Al Ermmarino, Jimmy Zacharias, Amy
Catalano and Jeremy Gerstner.
New Smyrna's own James "Tank" Tucker turned quick time for the 75-lap
Florida/IMCA-Type Modified contest with a lap of 18.525 seconds to top Kevyn
Terry's 18.603 lap with Jerry "The Hammer" Symons third fastest at 18.675.
The top six in qualifying were inverted in this one putting veterans Doug Moff
and Jimmy Britts on the front row.
Moff blasted to a huge early advantage as it looked like this race might run
green to checker. Alan Bruns was having his best run of the week in second
while Terry and Tim Moore got by Tucker on lap 22 as Tucker just did not seem
to have the speed he did in qualifying. Moff, leading by a country mile, had
his race come to a screeching halt as his engine expired coming past the
start-finish line on lap 30 to bring out the first caution of the event.
After he was called to pit road to check for an oil leak (which there was
none), Bruns took over the lead on the restart and was holding off a
hard-charging pack of cars until Moore slowed to a stop on lap 60 to bring the
yellow flag out. Jimmy Britts passed Bruns for the lead but the restart was
negated as officials ruled Britts had jumped the start and put him to the rear
of the field. On the following restart, Symons tried a bold inside move going
into turn one diving to the inside of Bruns. His cold tires would not hold
onto the slick race surface and he slid into Bruns sending Bruns into a spin.
When the dust cleared the cars of Symons, Tucker, Camron Ray and James Ellis
were too damaged to continue. Bruns had minor damage and was returned to the
point while Travis Eddy had a ton of body damage but returned to the fray for
a short while before dropping out.
On the restart it was Jeremy Gerstner moving into second and he began to track
down Bruns only to spin Bruns out in turn four on lap 65. Gerstner went to
the rear of the field for the restart as Britts moved back up to second on the
restart but was passed by Terry late in the going but Terry was unable to make
a move on Bruns before the checkered flag fell. Bruns took his first win here
in over a year with Terry second and the recently un-retired Britts claiming
third in the Kurt Jett Concrete Special. Gerstner, Matt Wheeler and Robert
Deal finished fourth through sixth and were the only cars still running at the
end. Moore was credited with seventh with Eddy, Symons and Ray completing the
top ten.
Super Late Model qualifying saw Paul Shafer Jr. of Portage, IN top a strong
field with a lap of 17.626 seconds with Huntersville North Carolina's Harrison
Burton second fast at 17.666 and Orlando's Brad May a strong third quick at
17.670. Shafer drew a six for the inversion putting Bobby Wilberg of Beloit,
WI on the pole flanked by Garrett Jones of Mooresville, NC as 34 cars started
the first of the twin 35-lappers for the Super Lates.
Wilberg used his pole starting spot to his advantage and snared the early lead
only to see caution fly for a Josh Collins spin on lap six. Wilberg continued
to lead as a wild battle began to take place behind him as several "wrecks
that didn't happen" took place behind him. Zane Smith was on the charge
though and the Huntington Beach, CA driver dusted off both May and Garrett
Jones to move into second then stormed by Wilberg for the point on the ninth
lap. Two laps later, Brandon Oakley spun on the front stretch and nosed his
car into the inside barrier. After a quick stop to check for damage, Oakley
took his car to the pits.
Smith set the pace on the restart and maintained a bit of an advantage but
caution was out yet again on lap 19 as Gary Passer tagged the wall in turn one
ending his night early. Smith continued to lead but Wilberg wasn't letting
him get away. But, on lap 27, something broke on Wilberg's machine and his
car shot straight up the track and into the concrete directly between turns
three and four. Wilberg was OK but his car was badly damaged.
On the restart, May made a big move to take the lead but he and Smith tangled
in turn four sending May spinning in a cloud of smoke. After everything was
said and done, May was out of the race as was Brendon Bock while the cars of
Rico Abreu, Denver Foran, Claire Decker and Martin Latulippe had damage but
were able to continue.
Ryan Moore took over second on the restart but had nothing for Smith who
became the third winner in three Super Late Model races during the World
Series. Moore had his best run of the week with the runner-up spot while
Harrison Burton claimed third over Joey Mucciacciaro and Stephen Nasse. The
remainder of the top ten were Steve Wallace, Garrett Jones, Gus Dean, Natalie
Decker and Shafer who never really got on track after setting the fast time
earlier.
Twenty-nine cars answered the call for the second 35-lap contest with pole
sitter Drew Brannon of Tampa, FL leading early before a big mix-up going into
turn one caused the car of Martin Latulippe to stall at the bottom of the
track for the race's first caution. Brannon continued to set the pace but
could not hold off Harrison Burton who took the top spot on lap 11 bringing
Joey Mucciacciaro with him. Ty Majeski spun in turn two to bring out the
yellow on lap 14. On the restart, Hunter Robbins got booted into the turn two
wall. Robbins got out of his car and threw his steering wheel into the
cockpit of Steve Wallace's car as he felt Wallace was the one who had used him
as a football. Wallace, not in need of two steering wheels, was brought to
pit road so he could hand over Robbins' one to track officials.
On the restart, Ryan Moore moved into second and began to try and track down
Burton. Paul Shafer, Jr, pounded the turn one wall to bring out the caution
again on lap 29. Steve Wallace got a great jump on the outside lane following
the restart and moved to the point. Burton was none to happy with the way
Wallace made his move and he spun Wallace out of the lead on lap 31. However
it was Burton who would be sent to the rear of the field while Wallace
retained his lead. Drew Brannon was an innocent victim and had to take his
car to the pits and out of action.
One lap after the restart, Mucciacciaro brushed the front stretch wall. A
deflating tire caused him to spin in turn two with Burton, Derek Griffith and
others being involved. Both "Mooch" and Griffith were done for the night.
Wallace held off Moore as the 2014 World Series Super Late Model champion got
his first win of the 2015 Series. Moore finished second for the second time
during the evening while Jones came home a solid third trailed by Ty Majeski
and David Garbo, Jr. Rounding out the top ten were Natalie Decker, first
race winner Zane Smith, Latulippe, David Rogers and Denver Foran.
Fast time for the PPG Architectural Coatings Pro Late Models went to Matt
Wallace of Concord, NC with at lap of 18.217 seconds, a tick of the watch
better than the 18.233 lap turned in by Derek Scott, Jr. of Franklin, TX. The
fastest six from time trials were inverted Putting veteran driver Larry
Gelinas of Scarborough, ME on the pole and Ryan Miles of Crystal Lake, IL on
the outside pole.
Gelinas shot to the early lead only to see Tyler Thomas slide backwards into
the turn one wall at the end of lap one. Thomas was through for this race.
Gelinas continued to set the pace until the second yellow flew for Todd
Stone's front stretch spin.
Only one lap could be completed before Steve Laking spun hard into the inside
wall on the back sttetch as his car would need two wreckers to haul it back to
the pits. Gelinas maintained his slim advantage but caution came out yet
again as Fredrick Moore hit the wall a ton in his PPG Liquid Nails car going
into turn one on lap ten. Moore was OK but his car was going to need more
than Liquid Nails to put it back together.
On the restart, Ryan Miles slipped by Gelinas for the lead bringing Dalton
Armstrong with him. Getting to lap 12 would be a chore as first Sarah McKay
spun in turn two then, on the restart, Spencer Davis and Michael Lira tangled
sending Lira backwards into the wall. Yet another attempt at getting the race
going was aborted when Todd Stone and Scott Reeves crashed coming off turn
two.
The rest of the race ran under green and saw a great battle up front. Miles
led lap eleven while Armstrong led the 12th lap. Miles led lap 13 before
Armstrong took over for good on lap 14. Davis made a move on Miles for second
on lap 20 but the two nearly crashed on lap 20 and Davis slipped back.
Armstrong drove off to a big victory as Miles held off Tim Sargent who
finished third after starting dead last following fixing a clutch problem that
forced him to miss qualifying. Davis was fourth and fist qualifier Wallace
fifth. Sixth through tenth were Gelinas, Sheldon Creed, Derek Scott, Jr.,
Stone and Grant Griesbach.
Austin Nason of Roscoe, IL and Gelinas had the front row for the second Pro
Late Model event and Gelinas took the early lead just as he did in the first
race only to see a quick yellow as Duke Long spun off turn two and pounded the
inside barrier. Gelinas would set the pace for two laps before Spencer Davis
and first race winner Dalton Armstrong crashed hard on the front stretch
eliminating both from competition.
Ryan Miles zoomed by Gelinas for the point on lap five while Matt Wallace
picked up the second spot on lap six and he took the lead from Miles on lap
12. Sargent was on the charge, once again from the back of the starting grid,
and took second from Miles on lap 15 setting up a great battle for the lead
with Wallace. Lap after lap, Sargent would dive low in the corners, draw even
with Wallace, only to be fended off on each occasion and the pair nearly
crashed in turn two on lap 27.
Wallace would hold on for the victory as both he and Cousin Steve Wallace
picked up wins on the same night. Sargent was second and easily found himself
becoming a fan favorite. Miles took third in front of Nason and Derek Scott,
Jr. Completing the top ten were Tyler Thomas, Todd Stone, Sheldon Creed,
Gelinas, and Grant Griesbach.
Full race results can be found by going to www.newsmyrna.org or
www.speed51.com