Racing action at East Bay Raceway Park for July 23 has been Rained out…
Next Saturday night July 30th will be the Redneck Smash-A-Rama IV.
Any further questions, please feel free to contact the office Tuesday thru Thursday.
Limited Late Models – 50 laps
– Qualifying Results –
| 1. | #9 | Rich Clouser |
| 2. | #11 | Aaron Barsness |
| 3. | #4B | Alan Bruns |
| 4. | #6 | Norbert Gostl |
| 5. | #19 | Ray Black Jr |
| 6. | #20 | Anthony Sergi |
| 7. | #15T | Tank Tucker |
| 8. | #00 | CJ Castetter |
| 9. | #00x | Daniel Miller |
| 10. | #66 | Jerry Symons |
| 11. | #18 | Zack Jarrell |
| 12. | #21 | Larry Blount |
| 13. | #9z | Zack Donatti |
| 14. | #15 | Jason Boyd |
| 15. | #29 | Joe Yarborough |
Sportsman – 25 laps
| 1. | #27 | Mike Soukup |
| 2. | #57 | Chad Pierce |
| 3. | #111 | Donny Williams |
| 4. | #09 | John Emerson |
| 5. | #96 | Tim Morton |
| 6. | #33 | Bob Kleinhans |
| 7. | #23 | Mike Pletka |
| DNS | #95 | Glenn Garceau |
E-Modifieds – 25 laps
| 1. | #112 | Jarrett Korpi |
| 2. | #51 | Richie Smith |
| 3. | #59 | Chris Brannon |
| 4. | #11 | Earl Beckner |
| 5. | #00 | John Hodge |
| 6. | #54 | David Hite |
| 7. | #21 | Mike Dahm |
| 8. | #17 | Phillip Bessette |
SADE Super Stocks – 25 laps
| 1. | #95 | Chuck Hill |
| 2. | #3 | Jeff Colburn |
| 3. | #56 | Bobby Holley |
| 4. | #60 | Ernie Tumminello |
| 5. | #5 | Joe Gerard |
| 6. | #15 | Mike Wofford |
| 7. | #35 | Gino Tumminello |
| 8. | #31 | JT Tippins |
| 9. | #88 | Jay Vinacco |
| 10. | #21 | Mike Dahm |
| DNS | #22 | Bruce McGonigal |
Strictly Stocks – 20 laps
| 1. | #57 | Joe Candalino |
| 2. | #44 | Dustin Higdon |
| 3. | #95 | Garrett Hill |
| 4. | #66 | Rick Gaither |
| 5. | #21 | Maureen Dahm |
| 6. | #88 | Mark Shukwit |
| 7. | #37 | Steven Metts |
| 8. | #67 | George Acker |
From CL Whalin
Car Driver Points
1. 24 Danny Martin 596
2. 1* Tim George 546
3. 83 Mark Ruel Jr. 534
4. 43 Terry Witherspoon 534
5. 0 Jimmy Ballew Jr. 522
6. 36 Kenneth Laureno 494
7. 14W Dan Jones 460
8. 92 Matt Kurtz 398
9. 8 Rich Alexander 376
10. 14 Ryan Partin 290
11. 41 Stephen Darvalics 282
12. 27 Johnny Gilbertson 274
13. 6S Robbie Smith 272
14. 4C Tyler Godwin 272
15. 55 Kerry Gilbert 260
16. 4 Billy Boyd 254
17. 3A AJ Maddox 252
18. 83A Christine Auld 244
19. 38 Tony Agin 232
20. 82 Sport Allen 142
21. 88 Andrew Griffin 136
22. 19 Keith Butler 136
23. 6 Mike Schroeder 134
24. F21 Ted Filides 132
25. 01 Rebecca George 130
26. 34 Darren Orth 130
27. 3K Kurt Taylor 128
28. 59 Danny Statter 124
29. 17D Bruce Durden 122
30. 98 Hall Wilson 122
31. 03 Tyler Eaton 116
32. 3 Dennis Misuraca 114
33. 3 Travis Bliemeister 110
34. 3A A.J. Maddox 110
35. 27 Troy Knowles 108
36. 02 Gene Lasker 108
37. 07 Clint Reynolds 106
38. 22 Shawn Murray 106
39. Z1 Harley Zimmerman 104
40. 52M Joe Metcalf 60
The best the South has to offer will be in competition at 5 Flags Speedway on Friday,August 12th for the fourth Buddy’s Home Furnishings Blizzard race, sponsored by Rubber & Specialties.
The Blizzard races attract Super Late Model drivers from the Carolinas to Texas.
By Chuck Corder
Augie Grill swears he hasn’t sweated through any sensitivity training sessions recently.
Yet, it was a kinder, gentler Grill on Friday since the last time he was winning at Five Flags.
Be it the bulldog, intimidating Grill as fans are used to seeing or the cooler, more collected Grill they witnessed this night, the No. 112 just keeps winning.
Grill made it three late model wins in a row with his victory in the Allen Turner Tucson 100 on Friday at Five Flags Speedway. He led the last 60 laps of the race.
“Everybody was running hard early, and I didn’t want to finish back in 10th,” Grill said. “So I decided to run hard later.”
He needed it, as defending track champion D.J. VanderLey and Bubba Pollard made a hard push on the final and fifth restart Friday with 80 laps complete.
VanderLey, on the outside, made a hard push for the lead with Grill. The pair was door-to-door for several laps, as VanderLey would put his nose ahead down the straightaways before Grill reclaimed the lead in and out of the turns.
“It was boring until Lap 80, then it got exciting quickly,” said VanderLey, who finished third. “I just about had cleared him. It was so on the edge, but if I would’ve bumped him I would’ve gone backward.”
All three nearly went backward when Pollard made it three wide at the start-finish line on Lap 85. Instead of pushing for a lead, Pollard thought better of it.
He eventually got by VanderLey for second, as the hottest late model driver in the southeast collected another runner-up.
“Anybody else would’ve stuck it in there,” Pollard said. “But I don’t race like that. Why do that? It’s not worth it. There’s some of these guys that think it’s worth to waste a racecar.
“People don’t know how to race, that’s the problem. Most of these drivers think you can mash the gas and turn left. It takes more than that to win a race.”
He should know. This was Pollard’s 19th top-five finish in 27 races this season.
His rivals knew Pollard was going to make the right decision late in the race.
“I think Bubba thought better of it,” Grill said. “That was the smart thing to do or he might’ve wrecked three perfectly, good racecars.”
Grill had a perfect racecar, both in speed and look mostly. The fast qualifier at 16.935 seconds, Grill had a few black doughnuts on his side panels from leaning on VanderLey in the closing laps.
“He gave me a hard run at the end,” Grill said of VanderLey. “I wasn’t expecting it. I thought we had a better racecar, but it got tight there at the end.”
Through it all, though, Grill remained cool as a cucumber.
Allen Turner Pro Late Models Tucson 100 — 1. Augie Grill, 2. Bubba Pollard, 3. D.J. VanderLey, 4. Hunter Robbins, 5. Kyle Benjamin, 6. Kyle Sirizzotti, 7. Chris Davidson, 8. Dwayne Buggay, 9. Korey Ruble, 10. Jake Moore, 11. Keith Thorpe, 12. David Jones, 13. Brandon Odom, 14. Eddie Craig, 15. Jeremy Mullinax, 16. Thomas Praytor, 17. Matt Smith, 18. Kyle Bryant, 19. Brandon Bendele, 20. Hal Martin, 21. Joe Aramendia, 22. Jason Young, 23. Matt Montineri, 24. Troy Grisaffi
Super Stocks
It wasn’t long ago Bubba Winslow was one of the cars to beat in the Sportsmen division.
These days, the Cantonment youngster has the car to beat in the Super Stocks.
Winslow won for the second time this season and took over the series championship lead when previous leader Shannon Jackson finished dead last of the six cars remaining on the track.
Super Stocks 25-Lap Feature Results — 1. Bubba Winslow, 2. Jessie Reid, 3. Darin Matthews, 4. Joe Mahuron, 5. Cory Jones, 6. Shannon Matthews, 7. Mike Moore, 8. Randy Thompson
Sportsmen
These boys don’t let you catch your breath.
Brannon Fowler was the eventual win, but not before some wild theatrics took place.
Another seemingly, ho-hum 20-lap victory for Steve Buttrick got interesting in the final two laps.
With a comfortable lead, Buttrick sustained a flat with two to go, setting the stage for a wild finish between Randy Thompson, Brannon Fowler and Jim Pokrant.
Thompson led with Fowler and Pokrant close behind. As the trio came out of Turn 4, Pokrant made his push and took out Thompson down the front straightaway to edge Fowler for first.
Pokrant, though, almost immediately was penalized and Fowler collected his second win of the season.
“I hate what happened to Randy’s car, and Jim and all that, but we’ll take ’em as we can get ’em,” an out-of-breath Fowler said. “Man, I owe so much to my dad and my crew.”
Thompson’s crew will have a lot of work to do before the next race.
His No. 42 went up in a cloud of smoke as he spun from the collision. He got out of his car, leaned inside the passenger side of Pokrant’s No. 7 and the two exchanged a heated conversation that ended with Thompson lunging at Pokrant.
It paved the way for Chris Nielsen to finish second, his best finish of the season.
“I’m getting to old to do this, but I sure love it,” the veteran driver said.
With racing like this, it’s easy to see why.
Sportsmen 20-lap Feature Results — 1. Brannon Fowler, 2. Chris Nielsen, 3. Marty White, 4. Jimmy Goodwin, 5. John Ward, 6. Gary Robinson, 7. Michael Couture, 8. Justin Babb, 9. Daniel Fleming, 10. Paul Mathis, 11. Randy Thompson, 12. Jim Pokrant, 13. Steve Buttrick, 14. Wayne Burkett, DQ. Scott Barbaric
Bombers
Brandon Burks likes the few out front.
Unfortunately, he won’t likely being staying out there after a post-race disqualification for an illegal chassie gave Kenny Williams his first win of the season.
Burks, who assumed the points lead after being awarded the win earlier this month, initially backed it up on the racetrack Friday with his third trip to Victory Lane this season.
“Man, that’s so much fun,” said Burks, the 18-year-old Milton driver. “The race means a lot because my dad was in town and he doesn’t get to see a lotta races because he works outta town.”
On the racetrack, that is. Technical inspection was a different story.
Bombers 20-lap Feature Results — 1. Kenny Williams, 2. Tracy Soles, 3. Courtney Rodrigues, 4. Robert Balkum, 5. Sam Mellema, 6. Leonard Craig Jr., 7. Gary Goodwin, 8. Hunter Ward, 9. Dayton Sidner, 10. Kenny Bullard, 11. Brandon Sidner, DQ. Brandon Burks
By Jimmy Rouse- Bubba Raceway Park Media
Bubba Raceway Park puts the UMP Open-Wheel Modifieds back on the clay with the Hobby Stocks on a Double Points night for $750 to win. Also, the Florida Mini Sprints Association make their 3rd appearance of 2011, the Amsoil V-8 Thunderstocks continue to swap paint and points positions, and the Gladiators look to knock the top man off his throne. Please note that all points totals and points positions used in this article are unoffficial.
Jeff Mathews leads the UMP Open-Wheel Modifieds standings, just as he has in November the last 3 seasons. However, the margin is much closer this season as friend, team-mate, and RaceCar Engineering Late Models points leader Ivedent Lloyd, Jr. is just 2 points behind his team-owner/friend Mathews. Of course, Jim Smith is 30 points behind the leader and Dave Barber is only 2 behind Smith. Kyle Bronson, the only driver with multiple wins in 2011, is 5th and 35 points out of the lead. PJ Wiggins is 1-for-1 at Bubba Raceway Park and Steve Whitener is the previous race winner proving that the top 5 have a kryptonite, but it’s tough to find. The points will have a spotlight just as the leader of the race will this week-end.
Tim Powers has a win and a runner-up finish that count towards the championship and he leads the standings by 20 over Howard Osteen and 23 over Billy Carlbert, Jr. Osteen and Carlbert will be looking for points to gain ground on Powers, but will look behind as Kevin Durden is 14 behind Osteen and Chad Scranton, the only driver with 2 wins in 2011, is 16 behind Osteen. Earlier in the year Mike Tovet took a win and Matt Shea also won, his first career Hobby Stocks victory. These drivers and more will look to gain points and money with Double Points and $750 to win.
The Amsoil V-8 Thunderstocks have the closest 3-way battle with Jason Gamble, the 2009 champion, leading “Mr. Consistency” Jonathan Gillette by 3 and Vaughn Woodall by 5. Gamble, also called “The Pondbird” in the pits, has 3 wins early in the season while Gillette has used consistency to put his 64 in 2nd. Woodall has a couple heat wins in 2011 and a feature win last season, but is still searching for that first feature win in 2011. “The Canuck” Tim Mathieu has put his 14 in 4th, 37 points behind Gamble and has the support of the Canadian fans behind him. Mathieu also won a feature in 2011, but like Woodall is still searching for win #1 of 2011. Asphalt-turned-dirt driver Gordon Cade is 5th, 39 points behind Gamble. Cade has a runner-up finish earlier this season but wants that celebration in victory lane. Chad Scranton, Don Stroshal, Jr., and Ray Wheeler are not running for the championship, but when they show up everyone knows they can get up front in a hurry. Scranton and Stroshal have 2 wins each and Wheeler has 3. Also, Chris Shea has a win early in 2011, but has missed 2 races so far.
When the Gladiators hit the clay you know a battle will break out. Of course, Steve Cox has won 5 of the 7 races in 2011 leaving the battle for 2nd most of the time. Cox has won by dominating, driving from the back, and ‘being in a lucky spot’ as he said last week. Brandon Haseleu has his 3H in 2nd, but is 58 points behind Cox and only 6 ahead of Reid Christensen. Haseleu and Christensen have both come close to victory, but have had something get between them and victory lane. Only 8 behind Christensen is the always-improving Richard Todd. Todd has consistently moved up the grid and now has a few top 5s. Victory lane is his next goal, but Jerry Taylor will try to make up the 22 points to Todd this week-end. Jonathan Green and Scott Sullivan have both put the 28 car in victory lane and Casey Feaster has won 3 times, but all before the scoring started.
In 2 races, 10 different drivers have finished in the top 5 which shows the diversity in the Florida Mini Sprints Association. David Pleaugh and Gavin Thomas have both won in 2011 while Justin Kolves and Eddie Moss have runner-up finishes. Anybody can win in the FMSA, and they will all aim for a trip to victory lane and some points in the FMSA, “The best kept secret in Florida.”
Gates open at 4:30 with racing scheduled for 7 this Saturday night. There is a practice session this Friday, July 22, from 6:00-10:30. For more information you can check out www.bubbaracewaypark.com or call the Speedway hotline
From Dave Westerman Bronson Speedway in Florida gets a new lease on life starting on July 30th when the track opens for the 2011 racing season after sitting dormant for well over a year. The track, under the new ownership of Chris and Ann Young, natives of Long Island, NY, will host a final test and tune session this Saturday evening, July 23rd in preparation for opening night the following Saturday. Gates will open this Saturday at 4PM with practice from 5-9PM to give drivers a better chance to see how actual racing conditions will be rather than practicing in the heat of the day like the previous two sessions that were held. Pit admission for practice is $10 per person but fans can watch from the grandstands for free. In action on opening night will be the Open Wheel Modifieds, Sportsman cars, INEX Legend Cars, Pure Stocks and Hornets. These classes will run almost every week at the speedway and the five divisions will be the core of racing at Bronson. Gates will open on July 30th at 4PM with racing getting under way at 7:30PM. Adult admission will be $12, Seniors 60+ and students 12-17 years of age are $10, Kids aged 6-11 are $5 and all kids under 5 are free. Pit admission is $25. Other special events will be added as the season progresses. Rather than trying to pull in cars from other racetracks, the Young's are hoping to build a solid following of core racers at Bronson Speedway who will make it their home track. Many of the race teams expected to compete have not raced at all, or just sparingly, since Bronson closed. These drivers are chomping at the bit to get back in action. "We want to put together a great group of drivers, teams and fans who will make Bronson their home," says Ann Young. "We certainly invite drivers from other tracks to give us a try, but we won't be out trying to get them to come here. Everyone will be treated courteously and fairly and we mainly want everyone to have lots of fun in a great family atmosphere," she continues. INEX Legend Cars are a big part of the Young's life since their 17-year-old son Christopher drives one and they hope to get a number of drivers interested in trying these cars out. In fact, by years end, they hope to have several Legends available to rent on a week-to-week basis so drivers can "try the class out" before purchasing one. "We've had contact with several Legend Car teams in North and North Central Florida that have cars but have had to travel great distances to race as well as a few teams in Southern Georgia who are interested, and that, coupled with getting some new faces into the Legends, should give us a pretty strong field of these cars by the end of the year," says Ann Young. Safety will be of prime importance at Bronson Speedway as each car will have to go through a rigid safety inspection before being allowed to compete. Each race night Levy County EMS and Bronson Fire Rescue will be on hand should the need for their expert services arise. Stock car racing isn't all that Bronson Speedway will be hosting. Once the racing program is established, Mud Bogs and Mud Drags will be added. During the off season, flea markets and festivals will be held on the speedway grounds. Also planned are special "Movies in the Moonlight" family gatherings in Bronson Speedway's huge parking lot. This will be a throwback to the times of the old drive-in movie theaters but with a bit of a new flair. Bronson Speedway is located at 9950 NE SR 24 (Thrasher Dr.) Northwest of Ocala and Southwest of Gainesville. Fans and race teams coming from the north can exit directly onto SR 24 from I-95 in Gainesville (exit 384) and drive directly to the track. From the south, take U. S. Highway 27 west from Ocala that takes you to Bronson, FL. Turn right onto SR 24 and go three miles to the speedway. For questions concerning all aspects of racing at Bronson Speedway, contact General Manager/Race Director Mike Odwazny at (352) 486-4998. Sportsman and Modified teams can get Hoosier 650 tires ordered by calling the track as well. Welcome back Bronson Speedway!
From Linda Jericka
Pro Trucks, Rookie Trucks, Mini Stocks, Pro4, Fab4, Legends 30 Lap, Bandolero. Its another action packed night of racing planned for Saturday night.
The Pro & Rookie Truck action has been great to watch, the Rookies Truck drivers have been getting better every week and really battling each other for the points lead.
Legends racing action is always exciting to watch, so come on out and don’t forget PGS will always try their best to get the racing in even if Mother Nature has other plans.
Front gates open at 5:00pm with racing to start at 6:00pm.
Admission is $10.00 for Adults $8.00 for seniors with Children 12 and under FREE.
Punta Gorda Speedway is located at 8655 Piper Road Punta Gorda Exit 161 off I-75.
For more info you can call the speedway at 941-575-7223 or visit our web site at www.puntagordaspeedway.com .
You can also find us now on Facebook: Punta Gorda Speedway.
Turn One Racing Team Release
July 20, 2011 6:02 PM, EDT
– CONCORD, N.C. — Turn One Racing on Wednesday announced that 18 year-old South Florida late-model standout Ross Chastain has been selected to drive the No. 66 Chevrolet in next Friday night’s Camping World Truck Series race at Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis.
The truck will carry sponsorship from the National Watermelon Promotion Board. The organization, which is based in Orlando, Fla., represents 1,500 watermelon growers, shippers and importers.
“I want to thank the National Watermelon Promotion Board for making this possible,” Chastain said. “They’ve been on board with us for a couple of years now in the Fastruck Series and late models. I’m glad to finally get the chance to live the dream and run with the big boys. I’m going to be running against the best of the best at Indy and I’m just glad that they stuck behind us and are looking to take the next step like we are. I’ve been dreaming about this for a long time and I’m glad that it’s finally coming together.”
Turn One owner Stacy Compton is happy to help in the development of another young NASCAR star.
“I’m really excited to bring Ross on board,” Compton said. “We’re bringing some more young talent to Turn One Racing and are looking forward to working with Ross at Lucas Oil Raceway. It’s obvious that he’s got a future in NASCAR and we’re excited to be a part of it.”
National Watermelon Promotion Board previously sponsored the No. 01 Chevrolet in a Nationwide Series race at the Indianapolis short track in 2009.
“The watermelon industry is very much a tight-knit family, and we are proud to support Ross Chastain’s race to the finish,” says Mark Arney, executive director of the National Watermelon Promotion Board. “Go number 66!”
In addition to sponsorship from the NWPB, Chastain’s Chevrolet also will carry the colors of Melon 1 and JDI Farms.
By Tim Bryant, 5 Flags Media
The all new “Allen Turner Pro Late Model Series” has turned into everything and more, 5 Flags Speedway and area Race Fans had hoped for. Drawing in some of the best Pro Late Model racers in the region, this Series has quickly developed a reputation for providing some of the closest competition seen anywhere. Friday night’s Hyundai Tucson 100 is race #3 in the Allen Turner Series, and is shaping up to be the best yet. Georgia hot shoe Bubba Pollard, fresh off a Pro All Stars Series win last weekend at Gresham Motorsports Park, comes into this weekend’s event with just a 3 point lead over Houston Texas Driver Brandan Bendele. Another Georgia driver, Dwayne Buggay, is just 12 points out of the lead. Defending Track Champion D.J. VanderLey is currently in 4th position, testament to the level of competition going on this year.
Also on Friday Night’s race program will be the Super Stocks, Sportsman, and the Bomber Division. Mississippi driver Shannon Jackson holds just a 6 point lead over Pensacola newlywed Bubba Winslow in the Super Stock Division, while the Sportsman class has Brannon Fowler leading the Top Gun standings. A bit of a shake-up took place in the Bomber standings after the last event, with Milton driver Brandon Burks emerging as the leader over Gary Goodwin.
The drama continues to build as the 2011 Season is now past the halfway point. As mentioned, there are some serious Championship battles ongoing. But that’s not all. Driver’s are already programming their preparations for the 44th Annual Snowball Derby, coming the first weekend of December. And speaking of the Snowball, remember that August 1st is the deadline to renew your Derby tickets. After a 2 week period for processing upgrade requests, tickets will go on sale to the general public on Tuesday, August 17th.
The first half of the 2011 season has provided some memorable moments at 5 Flags Speedway. But we believe the best is yet to come, starting with this Friday Night’s Allen Turner Hyundai Tucson 100. We hope you can join us at “America’s Favorite Home Track”!!